City of hope – lessons from Cape Town for the future of South Africa and African cities

Описание: Public event hosted by LSE Cities and the LSE School of Public Policy on Tuesday 23 January at the LSE.

In 2024 South Africa will hold its most consequential election since Nelson Mandela become president 30 years ago.

In this event Geordin Hill-Lewis, Mayor of Cape Town, will share his lessons from leading this city of five million people. He will explore what the Cape Town experience can tell us about how to get South Africa right and what lessons Cape Town can offer to the rapidly growing cities on the rest of the African continent.

Following his presentation Mayor Hill-Lewis will discuss these questions with Desné Masie, economist and journalist and visiting senior fellow at the LSE Firoz Lalji Institute for Africa.

Meet our speakers and Chair

Geordin Hill-Lewis (@geordinhl) is the Mayor of Cape Town. He was elected to Parliament in 2011 at the age of 24, at the time the youngest South African MP to be elected. He served as the shadow minister for Finance for South Africa’s main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance and has completed a Master’s degree in Economic Policy from the University of London. As one of the youngest ever Mayors of Cape Town, he governs a city of 5 million people.

Desné Masie is an economist and journalist, specialising in international political economy, and sustainable finance She is a Visiting Senior Fellow at the Firoz Lalji Institute for Africa at LSE. She has held senior roles in academia, media and finance in the UK and South Africa. Dr Masie has advised governments and major multinational corporations on geopolitical risk, economic and public policy. She is the Chief Executive of Intelligence Labs, a research and innovation hub for scaling sustainable finance.

Suzanne Hall is Professor of Sociology at LSE and Head of Department. Her research and teaching explore the intersections of global migration and urban marginalisation. Suzi’s focus is on everyday claims to space and how political economies of displacement shape racial borders, migrant livelihoods, and urban multicultures. She is author of The Migrant’s Paradox and City Street and Citizen. Her work has developed through numerous funded research collaborations.

LSE Cities (@LSECities) is an international centre that investigates the complexities of the contemporary city. It carries out research, graduate and executive education, engagement and advisory activities in London and abroad.

The LSE School of Public Policy (@LSEPublicPolicy) equips you with the skills and ideas to transform people and societies. It is an international community where ideas and practice meet. Their approach creates professionals with the ability to analyse, understand and resolve the challenges of contemporary governance.