Sub-Saharan Africa’s growing cities offer path to millions of new jobs

WASHINGTON, November 1, 2026 — Cities across Sub-Saharan Africa could become powerful engines of economic growth and job creation if governments direct investment and policy attention towards areas where businesses can cluster and workers can easily access employment opportunities, according to a new World Bank Group report.

The newly released Sub-Saharan Africa’s Urban Awakening: Catalyzing Economic Growth and Job Creation report projects that the region will add 748 million urban residents between 2025 and 2050.

The report says this rapid urbanisation presents a time-bound opportunity to create more and better jobs for the region’s growing young workforce.

It notes that cities already offer stronger economic prospects, with urban households spending considerably more per adult than equally educated rural households, reflecting greater access to employment and higher incomes.

“Sub-Saharan Africa’s urban transition can transform the region’s jobs market,” said Paschal Donohoe, World Bank Group Managing Director and Chief Knowledge Officer.

“With the right investments and reforms in infrastructure, land, connectivity and financing, cities can attract private capital, boost productivity, and create the formal jobs that millions of young Africans are looking for,” he said.

The report says unlocking this potential will require targeted action to address the different challenges facing major cities, their rapidly expanding peripheries and smaller towns.

In major cities, governments should prioritise the creation of accessible, job-rich clusters by investing in infrastructure, public transport and affordable housing, while improving regulations that enable firms and workers to locate closer to economic opportunities.

On city peripheries, governments need to plan ahead for rapid expansion, particularly by establishing road networks and reserving land for essential infrastructure before development becomes entrenched.

The report also highlights the often-overlooked economic potential of more than 15,000 towns across Sub-Saharan Africa.

For smaller towns, it recommends a selective approach to investment, with resources focused on areas with strong economic and geographic potential, particularly towns located along transport corridors and near other economic opportunities.

In these high-potential towns, targeted infrastructure investment and stronger urban planning could help unlock economic growth and create jobs.

The report also recommends investment in education and health to help residents of towns with fewer economic opportunities connect to stronger labour markets.

It further calls for rapidly growing towns to have appropriate urban governance and financing tools to enable them to plan effectively for future expansion.

“Africa’s urban transformation will deliver on its promise only if cities have the institutions and resources to manage growth effectively,” said Mark Roberts, World Bank Senior Urban Economist and co-author of the report.

“Stronger urban governance, more predictable financing, and greater accountability are essential to turn rapid urbanisation into better infrastructure, more investment, and ultimately more and better jobs,” he said.

The report recommends practical and cost-effective measures, including the use of low-cost technology to modernise property tax systems.

Such systems can help local authorities raise revenue, improve the creditworthiness of cities and attract private investment, including through public-private partnerships in key urban locations.

The World Bank says decisions being made today will shape the region’s cities for generations as Sub-Saharan Africa’s urban future takes shape.

It stresses the need for governments to act early and strategically by combining targeted infrastructure investment with stronger institutions, better urban planning and financing, and greater mobilisation of private capital.

Together, the measures could help ensure that rapid urban growth translates into greater economic opportunities and more and better jobs for the region’s growing population.

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