Urban rootedness and rural routedness at a time of privatisation of housing in Jinja, Uganda

Andrew Byerley, docent at the Department of Human Geography at Stockholm University, has published an article in the Journal of Eastern African Studies.

In the article, "Ambivalent Disinheritance? Articulating urban rootedness and rural routedness in older-age at a time of privatisation of inherited colonial housing-estates in Jinja, Uganda," Byerley investigates how neoliberal processes are reshaping the geographies of Southern cities. He highlights how the privatization of housing markets is creating new everyday patterns of aging, where the relationship between urban living and home villages becomes central. By prioritizing the voices of older adults and drawing on two decades of research on these housing estates, he elucidates how older individuals imagine and navigate the opportunities arising from urban property ownership. The article illustrates that this transformation is not merely an individualistic affair, but is also influenced by historically accrued forms of social capital, leading many older adults to experience ambivalence towards their homes and face the risks of insecurity and displacement.

Read the article:
Byerley, A. (2025). Ambivalent Disinheritance? Articulating urban rootedness and rural routedness in older-age at a time of privatisation of inherited colonial housing-estates in Jinja, Uganda. Journal of Eastern African Studies, 1–28.

Andrew Byerley, is senior lecturer and docent at the Department of Human Geography at Stockholm University.

Theme

Research subject

Urban Africa

Last updated: November 4, 2025

Source: Department of Human Geography

eventNewsArticle

standard-article

false

{
  "dimensions": [
    {
      "id": "department.categorydimension.subject",
      "name": "Global categories",
      "enumerable": true,
      "entities": [],
      "localizations": {}
    },
    {
      "id": "department.categorydimension.tag.Keywords",
      "name": "Keywords",
      "enumerable": false,
      "entities": [],
      "localizations": {}
    },
    {
      "id": "department.categorydimension.tag.Person",
      "name": "Person",
      "enumerable": false,
      "entities": [],
      "localizations": {}
    },
    {
      "id": "department.categorydimension.tag.Tag",
      "name": "Tag",
      "enumerable": false,
      "entities": [],
      "localizations": {}
    },
    {
      "id": "webb2021.categorydimension.Category",
      "name": "News Category (Webb 2021)",
      "enumerable": true,
      "entities": [],
      "localizations": {}
    },
    {
      "id": "webb2021.categorydimension.Label",
      "name": "Etiketter (Webb 2021)",
      "enumerable": true,
      "entities": [],
      "localizations": {}
    },
    {
      "id": "webb2021.categorydimension.Label.en",
      "name": "Labels (Webb 2021)",
      "enumerable": true,
      "entities": [
        {
          "id": "webb2021.categorydimension.Label.en.geology_geography_landscapes",
          "name": "Geology, Geography and Landscapes",
          "entities": [],
          "attributes": [],
          "childrenOmitted": false,
          "localizations": {}
        },
        {
          "id": "webb2021.categorydimension.Label.en.samhalle",
          "name": "Society, Democracy and Welfare",
          "entities": [],
          "attributes": [],
          "childrenOmitted": false,
          "localizations": {}
        },
        {
          "id": "webb2021.categorydimension.Label.en.IntRels",
          "name": "International Relations and Migration",
          "entities": [],
          "attributes": [],
          "childrenOmitted": false,
          "localizations": {}
        }
      ],
      "localizations": {}
    },
    {
      "id": "webb2021.categorydimension.Keyword",
      "name": "Keywords (Webb 2021)",
      "enumerable": false,
      "entities": [],
      "localizations": {}
    },
    {
      "id": "humangeo.eng.lokala.kat",
      "name": "Lokala kategorier Eng humangeo",
      "enumerable": true,
      "entities": [
        {
          "id": "humangeo.eng.lokala.kat.news",
          "name": "Local news",
          "entities": [],
          "attributes": [],
          "childrenOmitted": false,
          "localizations": {}
        },
        {
          "id": "humangeo.eng.lokala.kat.news",
          "name": "Local news",
          "entities": [
            {
              "id": "humangeo.eng.lokala.kat.news.om",
              "name": "About the department",
              "entities": [],
              "attributes": [],
              "childrenOmitted": false,
              "localizations": {}
            }
          ],
          "attributes": [],
          "childrenOmitted": false,
          "localizations": {}
        },
        {
          "id": "humangeo.eng.lokala.kat.news",
          "name": "Local news",
          "entities": [
            {
              "id": "humangeo.eng.lokala.kat.news.fo",
              "name": "Research",
              "entities": [],
              "attributes": [],
              "childrenOmitted": false,
              "localizations": {}
            }
          ],
          "attributes": [],
          "childrenOmitted": false,
          "localizations": {}
        }
      ],
      "localizations": {}
    }
  ]
}