Omanghana
Africa’s rapid population growth and accelerating urbanization are prompting cities across the continent to reconsider how streets, parks and public facilities are designed for children.
About 60% of Africa’s population is under the age of 25, while the continent’s median age is approximately 19. Despite this youthful demographic, many African cities have historically been planned around motor vehicles, commercial activity and the needs of working adults.
The result is an urban environment in which millions of children face dangerous roads, polluted air, inadequate sanitation and limited access to safe public spaces for recreation and early learning.
Urban planners, municipal authorities and civil society organizations are now promoting child-friendly development as an essential part of building safer, healthier and more inclusive African cities.
Making Journeys to School Safer
Walking remains the primary means of travelling to school for millions of African children. In many communities, however, pupils must navigate busy roads without sidewalks, streetlights, pedestrian crossings or effective speed controls.
Child-friendly planning initiatives are seeking to address these risks through dedicated walkways, clearly marked zebra crossings, lower speed limits and traffic-calming measures near schools.
Other interventions include pedestrian bridges, improved street lighting and barriers separating children from moving vehicles. Some communities are also creating supervised walking routes to help pupils travel safely between their homes and schools.
These measures recognize that children are among the most vulnerable road users and require infrastructure designed specifically around their height, visibility and mobility.
Viewing the City From a Child’s Perspective
One increasingly influential approach is the Urban95 concept, which encourages city leaders to experience urban life from a height of 95 centimeters the approximate height of a three-year-old.
The initiative, championed by the Bernard van Leer Foundation and its partners, asks a simple but important question: If planners could experience the city from a young child’s perspective, what would they change?
At that height, exhaust fumes are closer to a child’s breathing zone, vehicles appear much larger, curbs become difficult barriers and crowded streets can feel especially intimidating.
Applying this perspective can influence decisions about sidewalk widths, curb heights, seating, road crossings, public transportation, air quality and the placement of trees and green spaces.
It also encourages authorities to consider the needs of parents and caregivers who travel with young children, use strollers or require safe places to rest.
Bringing Play Spaces Closer to Communities
Access to safe play areas remains another major challenge. Large parks are often concentrated in wealthier neighborhoods, located far from residential communities or operated as gated facilities that require payment.
The emerging child-friendly model supports smaller and more accessible recreational spaces located within neighborhoods. These may include pocket parks, community playgrounds, car-free play streets and temporary recreational areas created on underused land.
Some communities are constructing play equipment from affordable and locally available materials, reducing development costs while making the facilities easier to maintain.
Green infrastructure is also becoming an important part of the strategy. Trees, gardens and shaded areas can reduce urban heat, improve air quality and provide children with safer environments for physical activity and social interaction.
Supporting Children in Informal Settlements
The need for child-centered planning is particularly urgent in informal settlements and densely populated urban communities, where access to clean water, sanitation, healthcare and safe childcare can be limited.
Instead of treating early childhood services as separate projects, planners are increasingly exploring integrated community hubs. Such facilities may combine childcare, nutrition support, clean water, toilets, health services and shaded gathering areas in one accessible location.
This approach reduces the distance families must travel to obtain essential services and provides caregivers with safer spaces to meet, rest and receive assistance.
It also recognizes that a child’s development is shaped by the wider physical environment, including housing conditions, sanitation, access to nutritious food and opportunities to learn and play.
African Cities Leading the Transition
Several African cities have introduced projects demonstrating how child-friendly principles can be incorporated into wider development plans.
Addis Ababa has expanded neighborhood green spaces, pocket parks and public playgrounds, bringing recreational facilities closer to residential communities.
In Lusaka, efforts have focused on integrating early childhood development considerations into municipal planning and zoning. This allows authorities to consider family services, childcare facilities and accessible public spaces during the planning of new communities.
Nairobi has seen community-led campaigns to reclaim neglected public areas, plant trees and temporarily restrict vehicles on selected streets so children can play safely.
Cape Town and Johannesburg have also pursued urban-upgrading initiatives aimed at improving access to parks, pedestrian corridors and public facilities in lower-income communities. A major part of this work involves removing physical barriers and making public spaces accessible to children and people with disabilities.
Why Designing for Children Benefits Everyone
Urban planners increasingly view children’s experiences as a test of whether a city is functioning effectively.
A street that is safe enough for a three-year-old is generally safer for an older person, a pregnant woman, a caregiver pushing a stroller and a person living with a disability. Similarly, cleaner air, shaded walkways, accessible toilets and nearby green spaces improve life for the entire community.
Child-friendly planning is therefore not simply about building more playgrounds. It involves reconsidering transportation, housing, sanitation, environmental protection and public services through the experiences of a city’s youngest residents.
As African cities continue to expand, decisions made today will determine whether the continent’s growing urban population inherits communities dominated by congestion and inequality or environments that support safety, health and opportunity.
Designing cities for children ultimately means building cities that work better for everyone.
Source: Omanghana
