The Jobs & Cities Approach

In the countries where AFD operates, cities are key sources of economic and job opportunities, but also places of social and territorial inequalities. It is therefore crucial to implement strategies to support employment and foster economic development for the benefit of all the people who live there, especially the most vulnerable among them (women, youth, marginalized or disadvantaged communities).

Local economic development is much more than “mere” economic growth. It is an approach that promotes an inclusive and common vision of a local territory where various actors from the private and public sectors and from civil society work together to build lasting solidarity aimed at achieving economic and social objectives.

Since 2017, AFD has developed a crosscutting approach, to maximize the economic and social benefits of urban projects for local inhabitants, especially the most vulnerable among them: the Jobs & Cities Approach. This would consist of promoting drivers of local economic development and identifying the best ways of measuring and providing employment.