Making an African City

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The book delves into the tension between colonial regulations and the indigenous practices of Accra's residents. British officials and local technocrats aimed to create a "modern" city by criminalizing certain activities, yet residents actively resisted these changes through protests and informal adaptations. Hart emphasizes that the informalization of Accra's development was a historical process shaped by these interactions, revealing how urban planning often failed to serve the needs of its inhabitants while still influencing the city's infrastructure and growth.