Emerging disputes over land and leadership in urban villages on the airport reserve in Abidjan

The study focuses on growing land and leadership conflicts on the public domain of an expanding airport city. The ethnography shows the deep-rooted nature of these disputes and links them to the expropriation and sidelining of customary landowners in Abidjan. In order to regain visibility and political weight, and earn themselves a spot at negotiations on urban development, landowners have resorted to a performative form of land resource management. Political recognition and profit-sharing served as the main source of motivation. The housing shortage and competition between different levels of government have also had a major impact.