Greater Monrovia Urban Development Strategy

Greater Monrovia is the capital region of Liberia and the nucleus of the country’s economy. Over 40% of Liberians live in Greater Monrovia, which comprises the cities of Monrovia and Paynesville as well as 12 smaller townships. 

Working together and with partners, these municipalities have produced an urban development strategy that sets out a framework for strengthening the economy, protecting the environment, improving service delivery, promoting equality, and alleviating poverty over the next 21 years. 

An urban development strategy is a tool that helps a city or region harness the potential of urbanization through strategic planning. It is built around an action-oriented process – developed and sustained through participation – to promote equitable growth in cities and their surrounding regions to improve the quality of life for all citizens. It can be used from the metropolitan area down to the neighborhood level. 

Called Kukatono (We Are One), the strategy analyzes the urban trends in Greater Monrovia, including cross-cutting issues that are at the heart of many of its urbanization challenges. The strategy outlines a set of strategic actions in five thematic areas – Governance, Economy, Environment, Service, and Citizenship – as well as interventions and deliverables for each theme. 

The strategy is aligned with Liberia’s national development initiatives and agendas, including the Pro-Poor Agenda for Prosperity and Development. It also supports the tenets of the national urban policy currently under development. 

The Greater Monrovia Urban Development Strategy is an output of the Cities Alliance Liberia Country Programme. The activity was funded by Comic Relief and implemented by Cities Alliance.