Oct 21, 2020 / Infur Webinar 3 / Alison Brown Keynote Lecture: Informal Economy in Urban Crisis Recovery

Week #3 / Keynote

ALISON BROWN, Cardiff University OCT 21 (4 pm) The Informal Economy in Urban Crises Recovery

Watch the video here:

Political upheaval or violent conflict is often characterised by a fundamental failure of governance and the destruction of local economies, and yet in the aftermath of conflict, through informal mechanisms of survival and support, people reconstruct their livelihoods and rebuild urban services.  In fragile and conflict-affected situations, the informal economy provides a dynamic and systemic response to the challenges and opportunities of conflict and urban violence. For many informal workers – fruit sellers, waste pickers, or labourers – work continues in a volatile context when violence disrupts transport, supplies or markets, while others find new markets replacing disrupted urban services.  The critical issue is how to bridge the gap between economic humanitarian relief and development, which this presentation explores. Increasing economic and political stability means rebuilding the complex networks which sustain informal workers – suppliers, transport, communications or credit relationships – with support from humanitarian actors in the aftermath of disaster and local government and development workers through the transition to stability.