Abstract
In this chapter, we outline and discuss some of the concrete mechanisms through which space and architecture are produced. Construction site assemblages in the emerging African city reconfigure physical, observable space and alter social, political or otherwise non-spatially or non-materially defined relations. Building on fieldwork in Lekki Peninsula, Nigeria, we highlight the complex and dynamic network of actors and their diverging interests and practices involved in key moments of the construction process, from land acquisition to completion. We trace the production of the built environment as a highly relational process relying on multi-scalar relationships and translocal knowledges. On the one hand, we identify synergetic transactions that are of mutual benefit to the participating actors. On the other hand, we highlight exploitative relationships that reinstate structural injustices and infrastructural violences. We argue for the study of construction site assemblages to extract practical lessons for professional practice and future interventions in architecture and related urban practices.
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Notes
- 1.
Rather than referring to activities, practices, and behaviours of marginalised urban groups, informality here denotes an emergent “organizing logic” and mode of urban governance (Roy and AlSayyad 2004).
- 2.
Taken from Sawyer (2016), the term ‘bypass urbanism’ refers to urban substance built for through-movement, rather than as destination.
- 3.
By way of illustration, in one instance encountered during fieldwork, village chiefs insisted that they had sold a particular site to a business (interview with community leader, June 2017). Yet, inquiries with Lagos State Land Registry revealed that, officially, all land in the specified location continues to be state-owned and no legal transactions had been made over it to date.
- 4.
Translated from Yoruba.
- 5.
Busy bus stops in Lagos are famous for ‘area boys’—individuals who collect fees from the drivers and conductors of ‘danfo’ minibuses, the most popular mode of public transport. Given the absence of strictly legal grounds for this fee collection, it is not uncommon for street fights to happen between the parties involved.
- 6.
When living at a local estate, the first author witnessed its locally elected committee present to residents the idea to install a centralised power generator. If implemented, the equipment was expected to exceed the estate’s needs, making it possible to sell excess power to surrounding settlements.
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Shtanov, M., Iossifova, D. (2022). Construction Site Assemblages: Relationships of Synergy and Exploitation in the (Re)configuration of Lekki, Nigeria. In: Iossifova, D., Gasparatos, A., Zavos, S., Gamal, Y., Long, Y. (eds) Urban Infrastructuring. Sustainable Development Goals Series. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-8352-7_11
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