Planning and Governing in an Emerging City-Region Context

This study examines the evolution of city-regions, the way they have been planned in the past and emerging approaches. The study focuses on relating planning and governing in an emerging city-region context of the Greater Gaborone City-Region (GGCR) of Botswana with the view to strategizing future planning. Rather than providing a chronological account of events, the study weaves history with underlying planning ideals, theories and practices of the times. The theoretical framework adopted involves the "stage urban theory" supported by various theoretical perspectives. The study argues that a city-region evolves through four stages. The first stage involves the development of a city. The second stage involves the development of a city into a "regional-city". The third stage involves the development of a regional-city into a "metropolitan region". The fourth stage involves the maturing of the metropolitan region into a city-region (megalopolis). Urbanists argue that there is a fifth stage of "citi-state or city-state" (mega- megalopolis)...