Pr Antoine Follain
email: afollain@unistra.fr

Décartèlement or Quartering: an edifying penalty in Modern Age

In Modern Age violence has many facets. 1 At this time, the capital punishment was neither simple nor quick or discreete but it was supposed to inflict the condemned atrocious pain and to destroy his body.

French legislation never exactly determined which penalty matched with each case. As to the collection of German laws Constitution criminelle de Charles-Quint or Carolina (1532), it contained a great number of articles either precise on the penalty or open to any method. 2 For example, a poisoning was punished by torture on the wheel if the culprit was a man but if a woman, by drowning "ou punie d'une autre peine de mort, suivant ce qui se trouvera en usage" (or another death penalty depending on what was the use) (art. 130). The honourable pouvoir arbitraire (arbitrary) of the judges let them decide a death penalty and how to inflict it, in accordance with the use and their preference in the means.

Once death penalty had been publicly announced (see Annex), it was executed in a spectacular way which was part of the judiciary approach. It aimed at turning the condemned into an exemplary execute "afin que la peine d'un seul puisse inspirer de la crainte au plus grand nombre" (so that the penalty of one person could inspire threat to the biggest number). 3 According to some lawyers' commentaries, the condemned did not own his own body anymore, and it was justified that Justice use it to the benefits of society. This loss of ownership happened even earlier since it was mentioned to justify the use of torture.

At the end of a trial, everything was done to have an edifying show. Killing by hanging or decapitation were simple means. Hanging used gravity, with a slipknot because the techniques which broke the neck were not in use. Consequently, it provoked suffocation and death. The cost was moderate, there was no blood flow and other flows did not have the same symbolic value. The execute was clearly visible as he was in height. The corpse could remain in place or hung elsewhere to remain exhibited as long as necessary. Decapitation was more technical. It killed clearly and quickly so long as the executioner was qualified, if not, it was a butchery. 4 Other means put question, why suffocating, decapitating, scalding, torture on the wheel, burning or tearing apart ? The diversity of means deserves the following reasonings.

The more spectacular penalty, the greater effects The means considered is décartèlement or déquartèlement (quartering) which is one of the rarest techniques. In France, it was mainly known as écartèlement and it used horses but there is no symbolic difference. There is a precise example with an execution that happened at Plombières in the mounts of Vosges in 1573. 5 Because of his crimes, both professional and private, Blaison Barisel, lieutenant du prévôt d'Arches à Plombières (ancillary of the provost) a small officer of Duke of Lorraine deserved banishment, hanging and maybe torture on wheel. However, the judge wanted to make his execution a tremendous example. 6 This judge was Nicolas Remy, lieutenant général au bailliage de Vosges7 (1570-1575) and special judge appointed for this trial, he would later become secretary of the Duc (1575), magistrate at Tribunal du Change8 (1576), member of the Council of Lorraine (1589) and lastly procureur général de Lorraine (1599). 9 Nicolas Remy was one of the best servant of Lorraine, he had studied in French Universities where he had learnt a certain conception of public service which he shared with Duke Charles III, himself educated at the Cour of France (1543-1608). The stake of the trial was to punish an agent of power who thought his authority had given him more rights or even total impunity whereas Remy considered that as an ʺofficier de Monseigneur, il devoit servir d'exemple aux autresʺ (as an officer of Monseigneur, he should serve as an example to everyone). This particular trial concerned the edification of public service in Lorraine. 10 The case ended with Barisel's quartering.

According to the prosecutor's requisitions and Remy's judgement, Barisel was sentenced to "faire amende honorable" (solemnly ask for forgiveness), wearing just a shirt, bare headed, bare footed and with a rope around his neck (although he was not hung). Then, on his knees and holding a big candle, he had to "crier mercy" (ask for mercy) to God, to the Duke, to Justice and to all the people he had offended to whom he asked for forgiveness The scene took place in front of the post of Justice which represented the hand of the Duke in this place. Finally, Barisel was sentenced to get his right hand cut, to be decapitated and his body quartered. The judgement told the precise places where the parts were to be exposed "forever" and in fact, they still could be seen two years later.

The simple means corresponded with common crimes whereas the most atrocious torments were kept to the most severe crimes. This tearing into pieces, « quartering » was a rare and complex penalty. It was applied in the Netherlands in 1543 against Nicolas Le Borgne alias Buz pour "haute trahison" (disloyalty) (ill. N°1). 11 It was applied in 1575 against the protestant inhabitants of Besançon who had been expelled from the city and came back with the Swiss to attack their former city. The parts of their bodies were hung at the five doors of the city with a sign « traitor to the city ». It was also the penalty against Balthazar Girard in 158-for the killing of William I the Taciturn, Prince of Orange. It was also inflicted to Jacques Clément (1589) and Ravaillac (1610) for murdering Henri III and Henri IV, kings of France. For Ravaillac's execution four horses were used, one for every arm or leg.

First, the amputation of the right fist

Why did they want to turn the body into pieces and not just kill ? In the late Middle Ages and in Modern Age, judges must have had their reasons to take so much pain in executions. These methods of execution were later applied by custom and habit. Indeed, the explanations about what was the right method in this or that case can be found neither in the 17 th century, when the means of killing were just repeated nor in the 18 th century when they started being questioned. They date from the Middle Ages at least. Simple people like Le Borgne and Barisel are more significant than particular cases like Girard and Ravaillac whose penalties had to be extremely painful.

The amputation of the fist was not just something added, it was part of the penalty and it was made in first place because it sent a message to society. In France, in the 16 th century, the fist was cut in case of parricide in the broad sense (for example murder between members of a family) but not only. In Lorraine, the amputation could be decided against counterfeiters, for a crime of sacrilege, etc. In Carolina Law, the amputation punished a rape (art 119), a rebellion (127) and a sacrilege robbery (171-172). Barisel was somehow concerned by the three of them because he raped a pregnant woman (but this crime was never punished as severely as the Law predicted), he robbed sacred things (for which he was a receiver) and he was a rebel to his Lord and employer the Duke and that was his worse crime. Amputation was coherent so long as it punished a perjury, a traitor to his family, to his sovereign and even to "foi publique" (public faith) and because the right hand is the symbol of oath and commitment.

Decapitation and quartering

It is known that Ravaillac was tripped up until his flesh was torn while horses pulled in four directions. In more common situations, the executor used a butcher's tools. The first cut was the decapitation and it killed the condemned. In Lorraine and for Barisel, it was not a honour, unlike it was in France where the villains were hung and the nobles were killed with the sword. In Germany, decapitation was a usual alternative to hanging. But in case of quartering, the first cut must be considered in relation with the followings.

The word décartèlement means ʺmettre en quartiers, mettre en pièces, fendreʺ (putting into quarters, into pieces). In France where it was associated with a spectacular execution with four horses, the means (the horses) tended to attract more attention than the result itself (the quarters) which was the object of the execution. As for Barisel, the accounts of the receiver give no doubt on a dismantling with "haches, cousteaux et aultres choses qu'il convint fournir" (axes, knives and other things that could be needed) by the executor. This butcher's work could be considered as accessory in regard to the execution, like when he cut the beheaded body before exhibiting the parts in different places. Yet, the different steps of the execution must be seen as a well-thought whole. Decapitation was the first of the numerous cuts needed to tear the body into pieces. Cutting the head in first was not only a misericordious but a practical necessity 12 . Indeed, the judges and the executioner were anxious to have a good, decent show, with no uncontrolled trouble from the main actor ; thus, the recourse to alcohol or drugs 13 and a specific order to make things right.

After the head, there came the rest of the body. The iconography is not always accurate14 . When it is, it shows that it is not necessary to cut the torso and portion it into four quarters. Sometimes, the executor dislocated the shoulders and hips like a butcher would do with the carcass of an animal (picture 1, execution of Nicolas Le Borgne, 1543). So, doing, if the body was dismantled at the joints, a big part of the body remained but this part was never mentioned and it was not exhibited. Same for the organs or viscera which fell down and were probably burnt or thrown away. On a Swiss picture dating from 1587 and showing the execution of Prince Auguste of Saxe's murderer, the body does not seem to be decapitated and the executioner can be seen, cutting the arms and legs. 15 It looks as though the condemned was still alive, if ever the picture is reliable 16 . Sometimes the body was cut in the middle with an ax, like in the engraving by Jan Luyken (1649-1712) that shows the execution of a certain Thomas Armstrong, convicted for high treason 17 . Same in 1660-1662 after the restoration of Charles II of England, twelve people were condemned for the regicide of Charles I, they were quartered with an ax. The corpses of Oliver Cromwell and two others were unearthed and submitted to the same penalty.

Destroying and exhibiting the corpses to show the all-powerfulness of the authorities

If the modern Age perpetuated rather than invented the penalties defined at the end of the Middle Ages, it is the time when the significance of the penalties can be found. English historians have treated the subject. In England, the penalty Hanged, drawn and quartered was rather frequent until the modern Age whereas torture on the wheel did not exist. The punishment of Hugh the Despenser gave rise to much cogitation about the symbolism in his particular penalty.

The cutting of Hugh the Despenser into four parts was not an end in itself because it had been decided to exhibit the quarters in different English cities. The unity of the body at the time of death was very important in these times because at the last Judgement, the soul needed to reintegrate the physical remains of the body before the resurrection of the dead. Consequently, dismantling and scattering parts of the body meant refusing any chance of redemption. Death penalty was not hard enough for State criminals like The Despenser, they had to be spiritually destroyed and their corrupt influence too.

The body was not scattered in thousand unrecognizable pieces but it was cut, following a religious and learned logic in regard to the remaining pieces. Knowing that man is the reflexion of the universe, quartering broke the indignant reflexion into recognizable pieces. The symbolic charge of numbers can be considered. Like number three and number nine, number five have an eminent Christian significance. It represents the perfect order sought by God and in the pentagram that symbolizes man, the head and the end of arms and legs draw the figure. Such a penalty destroyed this unity by the division of these five parts of the body. The whole process was conceived so that the execute lost his existence both physically and spiritually. Yet, the treacherous acts must not be forgotten too fast. Thus, the exhibition, because the penalty could have a lasting effect if the remains were kept at the sight of all. An opposite will be prevailed at the stake which ended with ashes blown in the wind.

The execution annihilated the convict's body and exposed the consequences of his crimes after the penalty and in this case of high treason, the authorities showed the expanse of their power. When Nicolas Remy, the superintendent of the Duke, sentenced Barisel to maybe an excessive penalty for a scoundrel, it was not without good reasons. The cutting of the fist and the quartering told that Barisel's major crime was treason, even though he did not made crimes so serious as giving the city to an enemy or attacking his Lord's life. The penalty decided by Remy was related to Barisel's status as officer and to the formula "avoir faussé son serment contre son prince naturel et induit plusieurs autres à méfaire" (for failing an oath to his prince and leading others to do bad). It is the addition of his private crimes rather than his concussions that made Barisel guilty of "crime d'État et même de lèse-Majesté" (crime of State and lesemajesty offences) according to the words of the Carolina law (art 124). In fact, Law was "sévère contre tout citoyen qui commet le crime de trahison" (harsh against any citizen who committed treason) and all the more "contre ceux qui sont dévoués à l'État ou à un souverain" (against people devoted to the State or to a sovereign), thus the exemplarity in Remy's judgement.

Barisel had not anticipated the risk, after his escape from prison in October 1573, he remained not far from Lorraine planning to come back as soon as the authorities would forget his wrongs. Arrested and brought back to the Justice of the Duke in November, Barisel declared in his first interrogation that he was "proches des pays pour savoir et apprendre plus facilement nouvelles" (not far so that he could easily know and get some news) about what he called "ses affaires" (his business), after he had sent one of his brother to negotiate a possible agreement or fine. So, this officer who trespassed his status neither understood that his position increased his guilt nor imagined that Nicolas Remy wanted to demonstrate his judicial gifts in the trial and to use Barisel to make an example and a step forward his promotion.

Was the message understood ?

Did the scholars and the judges succeeded in impressing the people with dreadful exemplary penalties? It can be assumed that the specific penalty for high treason was understood by the officers of Lorraine even though no sources can attest that this execution was known and discussed among them.

As for the common people, there is a proof that they may not have understood. Two years later, a Swiss coming to Plombières for its baths, told in his diary that he had seen the remains of a certain execution and this attests that Barisel's remains were still there !18 He had asked for explanation and had been told about a man and his mistress who had plot their partners' death. He himself commented the execution as a punishment against "orgueil et libertinage" (pride and profligacy or debauchery). The inhabitants of Plombières who were not given explanation from Justice on the main crime and the symbolism of the penalty, did not retain the good message. Or else, the scholars did not intend to give the same message to everyone, but that of a significant death to the officers and just the show of a terrifying death to common people.

Annex

Final judgment pronounced by the ducal commissioner Nicolas Remy against Blaison Barisel, followed by the report of the execution:

  Pronuncé aud[ic]t Blaison Barisel sur ung eschaulfault éminent[…] en p[rése]nce du peuple y assemblez en grand nombre et affluence[…] Pour répara[ti]on et satisfaction dequoy avons condamné et condamnons led[ic]t Blaison Barisel d'estre prins, mené et conduict par l'exécuteur de justice la corde au col, teste nue et tenant en ses mains une torche ardante du poid d'une livre, alentour du grand baing dud[ic]t Plumières et iceluy circoncyre et environner en tel estat ; et à l'endroit de la saulvegarde y plantée, demander pardon à Dieu, à n[ost]re souverain seigneur, à justice et aux p[ar]ties par luy offencées et intéressées […] puis de là estre mené par led[ic]t exécuteur sur ung eschaulfault construict et eslevé en la place dud[ic]t Plumières proche led[ic]t baing où le poingt dextre luy sera copé et abatu premièrement, puis la teste et finalement son corps et tronc mis en quatre quartiers pour puis après estre sad[ic]te teste posée et clouée sur ung poteau hault et éminent qui sera planté à cest effect joingnant le chemin tirant à Remiremont proche la croix dite La croix de Remiremont ; et le poingt aussy en une aultre colonne de bois qui sera semblablement plantée proche dud[ic]t grand baing au lieu que plus co[m]modément pourra estre ; et lesd[ic]ts quatre quartiers de son corps penduz et attachez de chaines ch[ac]un à une potence qui seront mises sur les advenues des chemins dud[ic]t Plumières les plus communs et fréquentez, pour le tout y demeurer à tousjours exemplairement et à la terreur des meschans […] Et estant led[ic]t Blaison Barisel au lieu et proche de son suplice ung peu après la prononcia[ti]on de la sentence cy dessus, luy avons remonstré qu'à la descharge de sa conscience il nous debvoit librement confesser la vérité, laquelle auparavant ou par craincte de mort ou pour aultre occasion, il nous auroit pheu celer […] lequel nous a déclairé sesd[ic]tes confessions contenir vérité en tout et p[ou]r tout […] et là-dessus s'est p[rése]nté à la mort et a icelle receue. Archives départementales of Meurthe-et-Moselle B 2673. 19 Picture 1, execution of Nicolas Le Borgne, 1543. Engraving in Actes & dernier supplice de Nicolas le Borgne dict Buz, traistre, rédigés en rimes par Josse Lambert, taileur de lettres, et Robert de La Visscherye, published in Ghent by Joos Lambrecht en 1556. Facsimile of 1879, copy Follain n°25.

Plumières or Plumers or Plombers and today Plombières-les-Bains : French department of Vosges, arrondissement of Épinal and canton of Val d'Ajol. In 16th century the village and especially the bath are under the immediate protection of the Duke. He guarantees the safety of the visitors. Some of Barisel's crimes are more serious, because they were committed in Plombières. Plombières dépends of a prévôté. The judicature's head is located in the city of Arches.

FOLLAIN, Antoine, Blaison Barisel, le pire officier du duc de Lorraine, Paris, L'Harmattan, 2017, 288 p.

In Lorraine at that time, there is three bailliages and several prévôtés. A prévôt is an investigating judge for the common people. He questions the accused and the witnesses. He reports to the procureur général au bailliage and the échevins of Nancy. The judgment is pronounced by the aldermen of the justice seat. Usually, the lieutenant général au bailliage is not active in the trials. Nicolas Remy had spécial orders.

The court of the "maistre eschevin et eschevins" of Nancy (the échevins in the plural and their director in the singular) or the Court of the Change (established street of Change) is the superior court of the States of the duke of Lorraine. In the Barisel case this court was not involved because Nicolas Remy was appointed directly by the duke..

The general Attorney of Lorraine is also known as a demonologist author of Daemonolatreiae ... written in 1592 and published in 1595. The work is in Latin. See a French edition in: BOÈS, Jean, La Démonolâtrie…, 1998. The biographical elements about Nicolas Remy are rare. Historians all repeat the same things and make mistakes. An author previously wrote that Remy probably did his law studies at the University of Paris. The following writes that it is a certain fact! See Blaison Barisel… 19-23.

See FOLLAIN, Antoine (ed.), Contrôler et punir les agents du pouvoir XV e XVIII e siècle, Dijon, Editions Universitaires, 2015.

Les actes & dernier supplice de Nicolas le Borgne dict Buz traistre, rédigés en rimes par Josse Lambert, taileur de lettres, et Robert de La Visscherye… published in Ghent by Joos Lambrecht in 1543 and published in facsimile by A. Voisin in 1879. The booklet includes the engraved wood reproduced with our article. One of the copies is our property.

One could imagine that justice orders purposely to make suffer. But the sentence of scalding is not a cooking judgment. The hanging is not prolonged expressly. The hanged man must suffocate in a few minutes under his own weight, otherwise an assistant of the executioner can cling to him to kill him. The only death penalty that is lengthened on purpose is the wheel. The condemned is the face turned towards the Creator. The agony must last a long time. The convict must expiate for his fault. Yet the pain of the wheel often has a quick blow and it is therefore a corpse that is exposed.

According to the law, the convict must be aware. But getting drunk is a practice revealed in the book The Faithful Executioner based on the case of a Nuremberg executioner who left a journal of activity. This unique source was published in 1801 and only recently found its historian: Joel F. Harrington.

For example, an illustration where the draftsman shows an executioner who cuts with a knife a thigh in the middle, instead of detaching the head from the humerus of the hip, is it a real illustration? In a general way, the images show the intention but not necessarily the true way of doing things.

SCHILD, Wolfgang, Folter, Pranger,

The iconography and the stories of the executions pose problems. Especially among writers who write for the edification of the public and who can replace an accurate story with a story worse than the facts. Thus, according to the simplest version of the execution of Balthazar Girard, he was amputated fist, decapitated and quartered. According to the worst story, he had his hand cut off, pieces of flesh torn off in six parts of the body, his heart torn from his chest and thrown to his face during his last moments, then he was beheaded and quartered. According to another story he was quartered. In the end he was beheaded. The judges and the executioner had more practical sense than the writers.

See the engraving in LEWIS, Mary E., ʺA traitor's death?" 121. It's a paper in Archeology about of a set of bones redeposited in a medieval abbey graveyard. The individual had been chopped up.

Brief and summary description of the bath Blumers… in 1576, booklet cited in PARISOT, Jean, Plombières ancien et moderne… published in


Martine Mazaudon

An historical argument against tone features

, where one feature represents the proto-tonal opposition and another feature represents the feature contributed by the consonant, can be maintained. However, once the tone system is fully constituted, each tone follows its own path and this individual evolution constitutes a counter-example for a feature analysis of purely tonal systems.

Most theories of phonology adopt a feature analysis for tone, as they do for segments. The main concern that is reflected in such an analysis is simplicity: if we can show that the tones of a language can be reduced either to a succession of more basic tones (primary tones), as in the case of contour tones analyzed as sequences of level tones, or if we can define the tones of a system as matrices of features, then we can reduce the inventory of distinctive elements in the language. Of course economy in the inventory comes at the cost of an increased number of statements that need to be made on the possible combinations of elements.

So the simplicity criterion cannot just be the shortening of a list, and the arguments that are adduced to support a feature analysis have to do with the possibility of making global statements about "processes" in a language. In other words, if segments share a feature, we expect that this feature will define a class of segments that will behave together in one or another area of the phonology.

Ideally, a feature analysis on a given language should be corroborated by two kinds of arguments: identical behavior under synchronic rules, and historical development as a class. For the analysis of segments (and particularly consonants) as matrices of features (or in Trubetzkoy's terms members of correlations), there is abundant evidence, both synchronic and diachronic.

For tones the evidence is contradictory. I will touch on the synchronic arguments only very briefly here to concentrate on the diachronic point of view. I will take my examples from Asian languages.

The scenario

In table 1 , I have sketched a scenario of the historical relationship which I postulate between types of tone systems in three stages which I have named A, B and C, and I will show that only stage B types of tones call for a feature analysis.

We start with stage A, an hypothetical tone system with 2, 3 or 4 tones, which function as unanalysable units. We do know, in Asian languages, where most of these systems come from, but this is not our topic here. We will see later that stage A is typologically similar to stage C.

Stage A2 is typologically identical to stage A1, but with redundant pitch and/or voice quality differences conditioned by laryngeal features of the initial consonant.

The phonetic process is simple and well-documented: the transitions between the initial consonant and the following vowel differ according to the laryngeal features of the initial consonant (voice, voicelessness, breathiness, aspiration etc.). The differences are important enough to be picked up by the hearer, so that in the course of time they come to constitute contextually conditioned redundant features of the tone of the vowel, syllable or word (whichever is the phonological domain of tone in the particular language). At this stage, tones A B and C are each defined by an idiosyncratic feature which can be called respectively a, b, and c. There is no feature matrix: the [+raised] feature is redundantly assigned by rules in the context of [-voiced] (respectively [+voiced]) at the PHONETIC implementation level.

Stage B tones arise from the restructuring of the feature matrices:

The merger of any two initial consonants, (I have taken mae vs m as an example in table 1) with loss of the distinctive feature of voicing at the phonological level, leads to a total restructuring of the feature systems of the language, for initials and for tones. The tones have now acquired as a fully specified feature the once conditioned [±raised] feature, and they can be defined by the combination of the old a,b,c features contributed by the old proto-tones, and the new [±raised] feature contributed by the initials.

Typically one of the more unstable consonants, or series of consonants, loses a very "marked" feature (i.e. simplifies). As a consequence the old laryngeal feature on the consonant becomes redundant, and all the initial consonants become underspecified for that particular feature, which is now assigned by later rules (contextually determined by the tone). The tones, on the other hand, acquire the previously conditioned redundant feature (generally [±raised]) as a fully specified feature (a distinctive feature). A situation like Stage B is what I call a "transitional" tonal system. Note that it can last for hundreds of years.

At Stage C, I claim that the tonal features, which were present in the preceding stage, have fused into a new set of idiosyncratic features which I have represented in the table by a series of Greek letters.

pae È+lab ˘ p È+lab ˘ b È+lab ˘ mae È+lab ˘ m È+lab ˘ Í+asp ˙ Í-asp ˙ Í ˙ Í ˙ Í ˙ Î-nas ˚ Í-nas ˙ Í-nas ˙ Í+nas ˙ Í+nas ˙ Î-vd ˚ Î+vd ˚ Î-vd ˚ Î+vd ˚
Corresponding feature analysis of the tones:

tone A [+a] tone B [+b] Where a,b,c are unanalyzable tone C [+c]

Stage B tones:

Restructuring of the feature matrices (Prague school "transphonologization") & creation of a tonal system of the "transitional" type

Merger of 2 segments (or series

New feature definitions for all of segments) = complete loss of a ===> segments and tones in a feature at all levels including 6-tone system of the phonetic "transitional"type

*mae È+lab ˘ p È+lab ˘ A¡ È+a ˘ Í-vd ˙ Í-asp ˙ Î+raised ˚ Î+nas ˚ Î-nas ˚ B¡ È+b ˘ > m È+lab ˘ ===> Î+raised ˚ *m È+lab ˘ Î+nas ˚ b È+lab ˘ C¡ È+c ˘ Í+vd ˙ Î-nas ˚ Î+raised ˚ Î+nas ˚ [+vd] becomes A™ È+a ˘ underspecified [+vd] is redundantly Î-raised ˚ for m assigned to b in B™ È+b ˘ the context of the Î-raised ˚ [-raised] tones C™ È+c ˘ Î-raised ˚
Whether the voicing feature disappears completely (all the way to the phonetic level) or is retained redundantly on some or most segments, has no influence on the feature analysis of either segments or tones.

Stage C tones:

A¡ [+a] B¡ [+b] C¡[+g] A™ [+d] B™ [+e] C™ [+z]

The historical evidence

The historical evidence for these different analyses is presented in tables 2 and 3.

In table 2, I present some diachronic evidence for the existence of tone classes in a "transitional" tone system.

During this transitional period, when tones ARE defined by a matrix of features (with the columns in the charts representing the feature contributed by the prototone, and the rows the feature contributed by the proto-consonant), tonal mergers occur along the rows and columns of a feature chart. This means that, at this stage, classes of tones are formed according to features. We have many examples of this from the history of Middle Chinese, Karen, Vietnamese, and many Tibeto-Burman languages [START_REF] Haudricourt | Bipartition et tripartition des systèmes de tons dans quelques langues d'Extrême-Orient[END_REF]. 3.a) or display a different kind of regularity, which cannot be described in terms of evolution as a class (Table 3.b).

Note that, in synchrony, replacive types of tone sandhi show the same kind of either apparent randomness, or a regularity which could be best phrased in terms parallel to Labov's "routes" for chain shifting of vowels.

Comparative evidence in a case study

In table 4, I have sketched the historical relationship which I believe obtains between the two types of tone systems, taking as an example a group of closely related languages from the Tamang group of languages in Nepal.

The tones are labelled, on the left side of the table, by numbers from 1 to 4 corresponding roughly to their absolute pitch from highest to lowest in the first dialect in the table.

In the left half of the table, I have represented the feature analysis which I reconstruct for "stage B" in these languages: the a and b features are the ones

Ris = Risiangku Sah = Sahu Tag = Taglung Mar = Marpha Sya = Syang
contributed by the two proto-tones *A and *B which I reconstruct at the previous stage, and the [±raised] feature comes from an old voicing contrast on the initial consonant. The daughter languages represented in the right half of the table include systems that could be considered as still being in the ʺtransitionalʺ period, and others which are clearly already what I will call ʺproperly tonalʺ.

From a synchronic point of view, in most of the dialects (all but Taglung, Marpha and Ngawal) we can see that tones 1 and 2 are clearly higher than 3 and 4, and could be claimed to have retained the etymological feature [+raised] vs [-raised]. But the OTHER etymological feature -the one inherited from the two proto-tones A and B -is more elusive in all dialects. Sahu, Syang and Ghachok all have 2,4 comparatively higher than 1,3. So we could posit a [±upper] feature. In Risiangku the values of this feature would be reversed. In Tukche the values are skewed, so that the class membership as defined by shared features is changed: 1 and 4 have to be associated as ʺrelatively higherʺ against 2 and 3. The variability of the second feature across dialects tends to show that etymological features are not retained either phonetically or phonologically, but it would not prevent us from positing a re-structuring of the system by a grid of new features, instead of the de-structuring which I claim has occurred. A detailed study of the dialects shows that from a synchronic, system-internal point of view, the choice of other phonetic parameters also linked with the tones (contour for instance) would yield other pairings of the tones. The choice is arbitrary. (For more details see [START_REF] Mazaudon | Consonantal mutation and tonal split in the Tamang sub-family of Tibeto-Burman[END_REF]Mazaudon :79-85,1978.) .) More important is the fact that even those tones which seem to share an etymologically well-attested and phonetically well-motivated feature, namely [-raised], do not EVOLVE together. In Taglung and Marpha, tone 4 has evolved from a low pitch Linguistic Society of America -27-30 december 1988 Linguistic Society of America -27-30 december 1988 value to a fall from very high to very low, while tone 3 has not changed. In Ngawal, tone 3 has evolved from low to high-falling, while tone 4 has not changed. (Note that tones 1 and 2 in these three dialects have not changed significantly either).

So aside from the fact that a feature analysis within each dialect does not yield a unique compelling partition of the tonal system into classes, it appears also that diachronic change has affected isolated tones, rather than classes.

Conclusion

What does this mean? If the tones were still organized in a correlation in Trubetzkoy's terms, or represented by matrices of features (in generative terms), we should expect them to evolve as a class. But typically each tone evolves either alone or in a chain type relationship to the other tones in the system.

I would like to suggest that this is the "properly tonal" (or purely tonal) stage, and is typologically different from the transitional stage. I would propose that the DEstructuring of an incipient tonal system is what makes it fully supra-segmental: when the tones lose their etymological anchoring in the consonantal system, they also lose their structuring in feature matrices.

It seems to me that tones are simply DIFFERENT from segments and should be treated differently in the phonology. Placing them on a separate plane, as auto-segmental phonology has done, is the first step, but I think that the internal structure of that plane is not parallel to that of the segmental plane. My best present proposal would be that tones do not break up into features until the phonetic level, and that consequently these "features" (which I propose to call "parameters" to distinguish them clearly from DISTINCTIVE features) are inaccessible to the phonology.

I would like to emphasize that the identification of a tonal system as "purely tonal" is in no way based on a phonetic definition. Whether the parameters of a tonal system be essentially pitch, or melody, or phonation, or length, or even some redundant features carried by consonants, a system is, by my definition, "properly tonal" if (1) it functions on a separate plane from the segments and (2) the tones that constitute it function as indivisible units at the phonological level.

Table 1 -The cycle of tone types: a rough sketch in 3 stages Stage A tones: -Stage A1: An hypothetical three-tone system (it could

 1

			be 2 or 4)
	A	B	C

: Historical origin of the "transitional" tone systems: Contextually conditioned allotones

	initials	tones:	A	B	C	.
	voiceless: p, t, k, s, pae, tae, kae, mae, nae, rae ... voiced: b, d, g, z, m, n, r ...		A raised A lowered	B raised B lowered	C raised C lowered
	Corresponding feature analysis of the segments:

Table 2 -Stage B tone systems Diachronic evidence for the existence of tone classes in a "transitional" tone system : early mergers, after a tonal split, occur according to shared features (in rows and columns).

 2

	Tai (dialect of Trang) kh>k, th>t, ph>p, hn>n, hm>m k,t,p,÷b,÷d g>k, d>t, b>p, n, m	A 545 323 42	B 545 323 24	C 55 33 11
	Lahu ÷b>p, ÷d>t, ÷g>q ph, th, kh b>p, d>t, g>q	*3 33 33 33	*1 33 33 21	*2 11 54 54	*-K 45 54÷ 21÷

Table 3 ,

 3 on the other hand, presents evidence for what I claim is the DE-structuring of the old feature system in stage C tones. At that stage, historical changes in phonetic values of the tones, as well as patterns of mergers, either seem random (Table

Table 3 -Stage C tone systems Diachronic evidence for the de-structuring of the old feature system in Stage C tones: historical changes do not occur by classes a. historical changes seem random

 3

	Cantonese Chinese (Dialect of Popei): shuffling of the pitch values resulting in several apparent tonal inversions
	p, ph, t, th, k, kh b > p±ph, d > t±th, g > k±kh, m, n, l	ping 44 24	shang qu 12 53 45 31
	Shan of Burma: shuffling of pitch values and "disorderly" merger
	p, t, k, hm > m, ... b > p..., m...		A 334 55	B 11 22	C 22 44
	Lahu: merger, by younger speakers, of tone 11 and 21 (see table 2 above). Note that these two tones have no "etymological" connection
	South-West Mandarin dialects general case: merger unconnected to etymology ping shang qu ru
	*voiceless *voiced/breathy	1a level 2a H fall 3a rising 4a glott.fall > L fall 1b L fall 2b H fall 3b rising 4b glott.fall > L

fall b. or they display another kind of regularity: "Chain-shifts" in some South-West Mandarin dialects

		(Baron 1975)
	Early SW Mandarin (possible value) Zhanyi Binchuan Yanjin Xundian	1a level (*44) 44 33 55 44	1b L fall (*31) 42<*31 42<*31 53<*31 53<*31	2 H fall (*53) 53 53 42 31<*42	3 rising (*35) 35 35 213 13	4 ÷fall (*31÷) 31<*31÷ 31<*31÷ 31<*31÷ 42<*31÷

Table 4 -A detailed case-study: Comparative and historical data from Tamang (Tibeto-Burman, Nepal) Stage B tones Late Stage B and early Stage C tones

 4

	Feature Analysis at the transitional stage			Modern pitch values for the 4 tones in 8 dialects
				TAMANG		THAKALI		GURUNG MANANG
			Ris Sah	Tag	Tuk	Mar	Sya	Ghachok Ngawal
	/1/ ⎡+a ⎣+raised ⎦ ⎤		54	44 55/44	54	43	43	33	33
	/2/ ⎡+b (or -a) ⎤ ⎣+raised ⎦	?[+upper] <*A	44	54 43	44/33 45	45	54	45
	/3/ ⎡+a ⎣-raised ⎦ ⎤	?[-upper] <*B	33/22 11 33/22	11	33/22 11	11	54
	/4/ ⎡+b (or -a) ⎤ ⎣-raised ⎦		211	32 51	121	51	33/22	12	31


Vincent Zoma

Actors and modes of governance of cities in Africa 1

Keywords: Cities, urban governance actors, urban management policies, Africa. I-INTRODUCTION

Africa is characterized by strong urbanization and is accompanied by multiple challenges in terms of urban governance by different actors according to the political contexts on the continent. Thus, this article, essentially based on a theoretical study, aims to better understand the main actors and methods of urban management in Africa. This investigation shows that African cities are managed by a multitude of actors, including public actors, Technical and Financial Partners, private sector actors and populations. Moreover, these actors use governance strategies that can be summed up, among other things, by urban policies, urban planning instruments and tools. Despite the existence of these urban management methods, the study shows that they currently have limits in terms of spatial governance.

However, urbanization is more or less advanced depending on the continent. It is very advanced in the countries of the North, with three quarters of the population living in cities, and is currently experiencing its full development in the countries of the South. According to the [START_REF]Dynamics of African urbanization 2020. Africapolis, a new urban geography[END_REF], by 2050, Africa is expected to experience the fastest urban growth rate in the world. By this time, African cities should be home to an additional 950 million people. This growth is largely taking place in small and mediumsized towns. Indeed, in 2010, Africa exceeded one billion inhabitants, of which 400 million (or 40%) lived in urban areas. According to estimates, 50% of the African population will live in cities in 2035 and 58% in 2050 [START_REF]The State of African Cities 2014. Reinventing the Urban Transition[END_REF]. This rapid urbanization of the African continent, out of step with economic growth, is creating enormous difficulties for cities. Indeed, the growth of the population of African cities is everywhere accompanied by a peripheral extension [START_REF] Manirakiza | Urbanization process of the city of Kigali, Rwanda: relationship between spatial and demographic dynamics[END_REF]. We are then witnessing a growth, more or less rapid, of unplanned neighborhoods or spontaneous housing.

For example, 72% of urban dwellers in sub-Saharan Africa live in slums. This situation ranks the region second in this area after Southern Central Asia [START_REF] Maury | Building housing[END_REF].

In addition, the extreme poverty of the populations of African cities, linked to the predominance of the informal sector in these cities, constitutes a real economic challenge for the authorities. Also, urban structures are deficient [START_REF] Compaoré | Urban development policies in Sub-Saharan Africa[END_REF]. Thus the rapidity of urban growth, the spatial sprawl of cities, the lack of financial means of municipal authorities explain the shortcomings of collective equipment (transport, water, energy, waste, education and health) which make life difficult for the inhabitants. Large African urban units [START_REF] Attahi | Problems of urbanization and the challenges of municipal management in West and Central Africa[END_REF]. Added to this are the ecological risks linked to natural and sometimes technological disasters, the consequences of which are harmful [START_REF] Soma | Urban vulnerability and resilience: perception and territorial management of risks in the city of Ouagadougou[END_REF].

Faced with these problems, the colonial administration and, later, the national administrations endeavored to control urban growth and to organize it. Urban management strategies are implemented [START_REF] Arnaud | Dynamics of urbanization in Africa South of the Sahara[END_REF] by different actors according to the political contexts on the continent.

Thus, this article, essentially based on a theoretical study, aims to better understand the main actors and methods of urban management in Africa. In other words, this investigation based on documentary research makes it possible, on the one hand, to identify the main actors of governance and, on the other hand, to study the management strategies of cities on the African continent.

II-SEVERAL ACTORS IN THE

GOVERNANCE OF AFRICAN CITIES

Major African cities are managed by a multitude of actors, including public actors, Technical and Financial Partners, private sector actors and populations. These actors often have relations of supervision, competition, cooperation, association or partnership [START_REF] Adamou | Migration path of city dwellers and housing problem in Niamey[END_REF]. As part of this research, their role is analyzed in the context of decentralization.

Public actors

The public actors who intervene in the management that a sound municipal policy should safeguard the interests of the community while preparing the citizens in a hard and pure effort, to their permanent role as agents of development [START_REF] Staranise | Urban development and dynamics of local actors: the case of Kaolack in Senegal[END_REF].

Broaden participation in the development process. Local authorities are the main players at the local level in the implementation of any housing and urban development policy. In this sense, the development of municipal and civic culture is essential [START_REF]Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning (MHU). National Housing and Urban Development Policy[END_REF]. As such, the town is a school of civics, a center of initiation for life. One city is distinguished from another by the dynamism of municipal management, by the creative spirit of its city officials, by their dedication to the cause of their constituents. As former President Senghor of Senegal points out, who believes that the Commune should be the first framework for responsible popular participation and that a sound municipal policy should safeguard the interests of the community while preparing the citizens in a hard and pure effort, to their permanent role as agents of development [START_REF] Staranise | Urban development and dynamics of local actors: the case of Kaolack in Senegal[END_REF]. [START_REF] Staranise | Urban development and dynamics of local actors: the case of Kaolack in Senegal[END_REF] specifies that the procedures for implementing the aid allocated differ from one agency to another, but the objectives targeted remain the same. Moreover, in the countries of the South, especially in Africa, the tendency is to question the Central State because its power is often decried, its legitimacy controversial and its authority remains to be demonstrated [START_REF] Choplin | Building capital cities between the Arab world and black Africa: Nouakchott (Mauritania) and Khartoum (Sudan), comparative study[END_REF]. In this context, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) very often provide support in the governance of cities in this part of the world. These NGOs are generally linked to international donors like the World Bank or with Western cooperation organizations like OXFAM and Quebec II [START_REF] Dorier-Apprill | NGOs: actors in a contested management" of basic services in African cities?[END_REF].

These international NGOs are at times used as intermediaries for the financing and technical support of African civil society organizations for development.

Thus, [START_REF] Staranise | Urban development and dynamics of local actors: the case of Kaolack in Senegal[END_REF] shows the different forms of intervention of large international NGOs and the areas of intervention. He believes that Northern NGOs have

Technical and Financial Partners and private sector actors

Technical and Financial Partners as well as private sector actors are significant players in the governance of cities in Africa.

Indeed, there are a multitude of partners with whom municipalities can work to develop actions and development projects [START_REF] Ouédraogo | Urban management in the countries of the South[END_REF]. Most of them are technical and financial partners for development. Moreover, in the countries of the South, especially in Africa, the tendency is to question the Central State because its power is often decried, its legitimacy controversial and its authority remains to be demonstrated [START_REF] Choplin | Building capital cities between the Arab world and black Africa: Nouakchott (Mauritania) and Khartoum (Sudan), comparative study[END_REF]. In this context, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) very often provide support in the governance of cities in this part of the world. These NGOs are generally linked to international donors like the World Bank or with Western cooperation organizations like OXFAM and Quebec II [START_REF] Dorier-Apprill | NGOs: actors in a contested management" of basic services in African cities?[END_REF]. These international NGOs are at times used as intermediaries for the financing and technical support of African civil society organizations for development.

Thus, [START_REF] Staranise | Urban development and dynamics of local actors: the case of Kaolack in Senegal[END_REF] shows the different forms of intervention of large international NGOs and the areas of denounce violent urban policies and explain that it would be wiser for the State to build housing rather than intervene so brutally [START_REF] Choplin | Building capital cities between the Arab world and black Africa: Nouakchott (Mauritania) and Khartoum (Sudan), comparative study[END_REF].

In short, despite these denunciations, NGOs are actors to be taken into account in urban management in Africa because they very often accompany the central State and especially the municipalities. In terms of support in the management of cities on the African continent, it is necessary to integrate the Technical and Financial Partners. Today, in addition to these actors already mentioned, populations are involved in the governance of African cities.

3.The populations

In the context of decentralization and democratization, the participation of the population in the management of the city would be essential.

The populations are represented by the civil society which is embodied mainly by the associative movement which plays a role of mediation between them and the State [START_REF] Ayimpam | Civil society, local authorities and sustainable development of cities in Africa. CEMAF research axis n°1[END_REF]. For this reason, the associative dynamics of urban development are most often born from the will of the populations to take charge of their problems, to face the crisis. They emerge especially on the initiative of groups of young people and women concerned with improving their living conditions and who ask for the support of external actors [START_REF] Staranise | Urban development and dynamics of local actors: the case of Kaolack in Senegal[END_REF]. Thanks to this support and the access it allows to external funding, these selforganizing movements have established themselves as major interlocutors and have probably been a jobcreating sector over the past twenty years [START_REF] Path | What role for the municipality?[END_REF].

For [START_REF] Wade | Urban associations and local power in working-class neighborhoods[END_REF], it was the evolution of the national contexts The state is increasingly losing its authority following the resurgence of civil society. However, a better coordination of the actors is essential for a good elaboration of the instruments and tools of urban management.

III-URBAN MANAGEMENT METHODS IN

AFRICA

These include urban policies, urban planning instruments and tools and their limits in the development of cities.

Urban policies

Urban policies in developing countries and in particular in African countries have been strongly marked by the colonial imprint and then by the austerity policies of the Breton Wood institutions.

Most of these policies are assimilated to urban planning policies [START_REF] Bonkoungou | Urbanization and urban policies, Master's thesis in Geography[END_REF]. In addition, urban policies in Africa constitute isolated actions or interventions in well-defined sectors that come under sectorial policies [START_REF] Compaoré | Urban development policies in Sub-Saharan Africa[END_REF]. Thus some positive results were recorded.

According to [START_REF] Vennetier | What to do with the cities of tropical Africa? Or: the problems of galloping urbanization[END_REF], both before and after independence, the public authorities endeavored to "produce" housing, through state or mixed companies, housing assistance, subsidies, special funds, etc. This was the task of bodies such as the Furthermore, [START_REF] Maury | Building housing[END_REF] shows that since the end of apartheid, South Africa has invested considerable resources to guarantee decent housing for all its citizens. This through a program focused on housing assistance but also financial assistance to property developers to establish the necessary infrastructure.

This commitment has ensured space, housing and services for the urban poor.

The author [START_REF] Staranise | Urban development and dynamics of local actors: the case of Kaolack in Senegal[END_REF] explains that to promote and In addition, investments supported by the State and by aid agencies have enabled the construction of means of transport, educational and health establishments, as well as urban infrastructure and services, where the demand exists, that is to say in large cities [START_REF] Bonkoungou | Urbanization and urban policies, Master's thesis in Geography[END_REF]. For example, [START_REF] Compaoré | Urban development policies in Sub-Saharan Africa[END_REF] emphasizes that to achieve the objective of sustainable and equitable improvement of accessibility, Mozambique benefits from funding from the French Development Agency which relates to projects with high social impact.

The country also has a drinking water improvement program for the benefit of Maputo, co-financed with the European Investment Bank and the European Commission Water Facility.

All these policies mentioned in this part are increasingly accompanied by urban management instruments on the African continent. In some countries such as Algeria, we speak of the Master Plan for Development and Urbanism [START_REF]Ministry of Housing and Urbanism (MHU), Urbanism Glossary Project[END_REF].

Urban management instruments

Urban

As for the Land Use Plan (LUP), it is an urban planning document which sets out in detail the rights of use of the land and construction in compliance with the provisions of the Master Plan for Development and Urbanism [START_REF]Law No. 017-2006[END_REF]. To this end, [START_REF]Ministry of Housing and Urbanism (MHU), Urbanism Glossary Project[END_REF] shows that it must set for the sector or sectors concerned the urban form, the organization and the building rights to the plot as well as the use of the land. It defines the minimum and maximum quantity of authorized constructions, the types of authorized constructions and their uses. It must also determine the rules concerning the exterior appearance of buildings, delimit public space, green spaces, locations reserved for public works and installations of general interest as well as the layout and characteristics of traffic routes and must specify the easements, districts, streets, monuments and sites to be protected and finally must locate the agricultural land to be preserved and protected. For example, according to the urban planning and construction code of Burkina Faso, this instrument is an urban planning document which determines the allocation of land according to the main use to be made of it, with regard to its constructability (housing, leisure, activities, natural areas to be protected) [START_REF]Law No. 017-2006[END_REF]. [START_REF] Ouédraogo | Urban management in the countries of the South[END_REF] mentions that it is presented as a means of densification of urban space and is part of a sustainable development approach. It is currently being applied in many cities in southern countries.

Concerning the subdivision plan, in town, [START_REF] Sinu | Counters and colonial cities of Senegal: Saint-Louis[END_REF] (SDAU). The scale most often used is 1/1,000 [START_REF] Grepa | From urban planning to the urban planning of subdivision projects in Cameroon: impacts on strategies for access to property and urban services[END_REF].

As for the Land Use Plan (POS), it is an urban planning document which sets out in detail the rights of use of the land and construction in compliance with the provisions of the Master Plan for Development and Urbanism [START_REF]Law No. 017-2006[END_REF]. To this end, [START_REF]Ministry of Housing and Urbanism (MHU), Urbanism Glossary Project[END_REF] shows that it must set for the sector or sectors concerned the urban form, the organization and the building rights to the plot as well as the use of the land. It defines the minimum and maximum quantity of authorized constructions, the types of authorized constructions and their uses. It must also determine the rules concerning the exterior appearance of buildings, delimit public space, green spaces, locations reserved for public works and installations of general interest as well as the layout and characteristics of traffic routes and must specify the easements, districts, streets, monuments and sites to be protected and finally must locate the agricultural land to be preserved and protected. For example, according to the urban planning and construction code of Burkina Faso, this instrument is an urban planning document which determines the allocation of land according to the main use to be made of it, with regard to its constructability (housing, leisure, activities, natural areas to be protected) [START_REF]Law No. 017-2006[END_REF]. [START_REF] Ouédraogo | Urban management in the countries of the South[END_REF] mentions that it is presented as a means of densification of urban space and is part of a sustainable development approach. It is currently being applied in many cities in southern countries.

Concerning the subdivision plan, in town, [START_REF] Sinu | Counters and colonial cities of Senegal: Saint-Louis[END_REF] notes that plots are generally defined by a subdivision plan. It establishes a division of lots of one or more landed properties with a view to the creation of dwellings, industrial and commercial establishments, etc. This instrument integrates and complies with the Land Use Plan (LUP) and the Master Plan for Development and Urbanism (SDAU). The scale most often used is 1/1,000 [START_REF] Grepa | From urban planning to the urban planning of subdivision projects in Cameroon: impacts on strategies for access to property and urban services[END_REF].

Alongside these instruments, the budget should also be taken into account, which is a provisional accounting document distinguishing income and expenditure. The budget of local authorities brings together all public revenue and expenditure for one year. For example, [START_REF] Nama | Stakeholders in urban development and urban management: roles and responsibilities[END_REF] shows that Burkina Faso has adopted the program budget, which is an explanatory document attached to the finance law that specifies the objectives of an institution, the programs that contribute to it and the resources it devotes to it.

There are therefore a multitude of essentially regulatory instruments that help in the governance of cities in Africa. These instruments in their implementation very often call upon urban management tools.

Urban management tools

Urban management tools mainly concern operational urban planning. These include the GIS tool (Geographic Information System) and urban planning operations.

Regarding the Geographic Information System (GIS), with the recent technological revolution in most African countries, the GIS tool is increasingly involved in the governance of large African cities as an urban management tool. . It makes it possible to provide the geographical information necessary for the management of a territory. It also promotes the coordination of a large number of actors. It offers them rich information on the territory and its management, and even possibilities for negotiation or joint decision-making [START_REF] Repetti | A concept of participatory monitoring at the service of developing cities, Methodological approach and creation of an urban observatory[END_REF]. Nowadays, GIS make it possible to better understand complex urban problems and also to establish the map of land use on which appear water reservoirs and dams, vegetation, habitats, industrial areas and equipment [START_REF] Ouédraogo | Urban management in the countries of the South[END_REF]. Finally, from GIS, other urban management information systems can be developed such as the Land Information System which provides a range of geographical information on land and the urban information system.

Nowadays, the GIS tool is essential in the management of African metropolises. However, these economic, technical and logistical requirements limit its use in the management of these equipment, land consolidation, etc.) are therefore considered to be development operations [START_REF] Grepa | From urban planning to the urban planning of subdivision projects in Cameroon: impacts on strategies for access to property and urban services[END_REF], [START_REF]Law No. 017-2006[END_REF].

For each type of operation, there is therefore a welldefined procedure and methods of execution.

Indeed, as shown by [START_REF] Grepa | From urban planning to the urban planning of subdivision projects in Cameroon: impacts on strategies for access to property and urban services[END_REF] and [START_REF]Ministry of Housing and Urbanism (MHU), Urbanism Glossary Project[END_REF] As for urban renewal, as [START_REF] Compaoré | The renovation of urban centers: the case of Ouagadougou[END_REF] points out, it is a set of Along the same lines as [START_REF] Ouédraogo | Urban management in the countries of the South[END_REF], [START_REF] Grepa | From urban planning to the urban planning of subdivision projects in Cameroon: impacts on strategies for access to property and urban services[END_REF] [START_REF] Grepa | From urban planning to the urban planning of subdivision projects in Cameroon: impacts on strategies for access to property and urban services[END_REF], [START_REF]Law No. 017-2006[END_REF]. With regard to urban consolidation, it is the operation of development which consists, in a given urban perimeter, of grouping together plots of land in order to make them suitable for new types of construction [START_REF]Law No. 017-2006[END_REF].

Overall, in Africa, despite the existence of urban management instruments and tools, it is important to point out that if urban strategies have been adopted

to deal with the problems of cities, the fact remains that they have limits both in their development, in substance and in their implementation.

The limits of urban management methods

To control the problems of urban growth and their consequences, urban planning instruments (master urban plans, development and urban planning master plans) have been drawn up like those used in the countries of the North. It is for this reason that [START_REF] Grepa | From urban planning to the urban planning of subdivision projects in Cameroon: impacts on strategies for access to property and urban services[END_REF] specifies that the forecasts are simulated therein, generally with assumptions of demographic and economic growth. Unfortunately, cities are expanding faster than urban plans predict. Thus, these instruments have proven to be ineffective for two types of reasons. Inadequate means and institutional shortcomings. To this end, it must be specified that not only have the urban plans been copied from those used in the so-called developed countries without taking into account the resources that can be mobilized, the sociological environment, etc. But also, shortcomings such as the lack of qualified technical staff in local communities, a low rate of issuance of official documents, too long and complex land procedures have hampered the realization of these plans in Africa.

For example, the subdivision which is used as the main urban planning operation in African cities has unfortunately been a source of embezzlement and numerous slippages with the major consequences of the chaotic urban sprawl of cities, the premature exhaustion of urban land, the urban fabric is drained of basic urban services and related multifaceted activities and strong social tensions that have [START_REF]Estates General on housing estates in Burkina Faso-October 24 th and 25 th 2013[END_REF].

With the advent of Structural Adjustment Programs (SAP), urban planning has been replaced by housing estate planning with all the inherent consequences [START_REF] Grepa | From urban planning to the urban planning of subdivision projects in Cameroon: impacts on strategies for access to property and urban services[END_REF]. According to [START_REF] Bonkoungou | Urbanization and urban policies, Master's thesis in Geography[END_REF], SAPs have made the urban crisis more acute for developing countries. The measures recommended by the SAPs have led to the privatization of public enterprises and financial services, the removal of customs barriers, the liberalization of capital markets, the drastic reduction of social expenditure and public subsidies, the respect of macroeconomic balances, etc. For all of sub-Saharan Africa, 78% of non-agricultural jobs are now in the informal sector.

At the level of decentralization, [START_REF] Jaglin | Powers and Cities of Black Africa, Decentralization in Questions[END_REF] This situation is explained by the fact that the development policies of African cities were not clearly defined. They were most often summed up in spontaneous projects and programs whose execution is short-term. This is why [START_REF] Compaoré | Urban development policies in Sub-Saharan Africa[END_REF] considered that these policies have serious problems with their implementation. The primary difficulty common to all Sub-Saharan African countries in the implementation of urban development policies comes down to the lack of financial resources. Also the political will is not very often clearly defined.

Furthermore, [START_REF] Repetti | A concept of participatory monitoring at the service of developing cities, Methodological approach and creation of an urban observatory[END_REF] adds that in a context of

  of cities are essentially made up of the central State on the one hand and the decentralized State on the other. Concerning the central State, the governance of large African cities requires its involvement at a higher level as the main driving force. As a result, the central State, through the government and the various ministerial departments intervening directly or indirectly in the field of town planning and housing and the organizations under its supervision, plays a leading role in the design, development and implementation of urban strategies at the national level. According to [11], the central state has a fundamental role in terms of redistribution, design, and monitoring of equalization mechanisms within the national framework. A role of arbitration concerning the choices conditioning the use of urban space, the operation of services and the allocation of resources. The objective is to have, according to [12], a more legitimate, transparent State with a great sense of responsibility and national service which can carry out the three main missions: -Chart the path that can lead to economic growth. It is a question of finding a new balance between the respective roles of the public and private sectors, where the responsibility of the State would be essentially centered on the functions of sovereignty, the provision of physical and social infrastructures, and the creation of an enabling environment for private and public productive activities. This role would also include facilitating access to economic data and information as well as developing effective regulatory capacity, in order to prevent monopolies, minimize political interference in economic management, and other aberrant practices; -Broaden participation in the development process. The aim would be to guarantee the effective participation of the population in the decision-making process, access to information, respect for the rule of law, and equal opportunities in the economic field; -Reconnect the State to civil society. This reconnection consists of building a governance system that is more pluralistic and participatory. This means greater delegation, and decentralization to local communities, to create more real synergy and partnership between central government institutions and those of local and traditional governments. Nowadays, the central State appears doubly threatened because its powers seem to be amputated by globalization on the one hand and by decentralization movements on the other. This double movement invites us to rethink the place and position of the State in management [13]. Regarding the decentralized State, it is represented by the local authorities. For example, in Burkina Faso, the territorial community is a subdivision of the territory endowed with legal personality and financial autonomy. It constitutes an entity for the organization and coordination of development. The local authorities are the region and the commune in Burkina Faso [14], but each country has its own territorial division which is not necessarily identical to Burkina Faso. Local authorities are the main players at the local level in the implementation of any housing and urban development policy. In this sense, the development of municipal and civic culture is essential [15]. As such, the town is a school of civics, a center of initiation for life. One city is distinguished from another by the dynamism of municipal management, by the creative spirit of its city officials, by their dedication to the cause of their constituents. As former President Senghor of Senegal points out, who believes that the Commune should be the first framework for responsible popular participation and

  According to the author, the first objective is to strengthen the administrative and technical structures of the new African local authorities, by assisting the States in the legislative and regulatory implementation of decentralization and by providing means for the training of elected officials and executives. municipalities, in particular within the framework of regional programmes. The second is to promote the mobilization of resources, in particular of tax origin, by assisting the States or local authorities in the reorganization of their tax systems, by supporting the creation and management of databases for tax purposes, and by financing setting up loan funds for local authorities. The third, finally, is to improve the financial and technical management capacity of the municipalities, so that they gradually become responsible for improving the living environment of the inhabitants and for developing the infrastructure and equipment needed to increase the economic productivity of the urban sector.

  adopted three different behaviors. Some have created NGOs from scratch in the South, others have decided to disengage from action in the field by encouraging locals to take over by creating autonomous structures and, finally, others have accompanied the maturation embryonic organizations of beneficiaries. As for areas of intervention, NGOs took their first steps at a time when the major problem to be solved was that of hunger. Today, they have evolved and become close to the city, in three registers. It is first of all about the accompaniment of the poorest in the fields of health, education, management of the problems experienced by children. Then that of support for urban struggles and finally, later that of the environment. In addition, several NGOs (such as Action Contre la Faim, Triangle, Solidarités, Enfants du Monde et Droits de l'Homme, Force d'Action Rapide, Congress of Racial Equality, Child War, etc.) denounce violent urban policies and explain that it would be wiser for the State to build housing rather than intervene so brutally [13]. In short, despite these denunciations, NGOs are actors to be taken into account in urban management in Africa because they very often accompany the central State and especially the municipalities. In terms of support in the management of cities on the African continent, it is necessary to integrate the Technical and Financial Partners. Today, in addition to these actors already mentioned, populations are involved in the governance of African cities.

  These are, on the one hand, multilateral partners such as the World Bank, the European Union, the UNDP, the African Development Bank, UN-Habitat and, on the other hand, bilateral cooperation such as the French Development Agency (FDA), the North/South cooperation agreements signed between the cities of the North and those of the South, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDC), the Partnership for Municipal Development (PMD) and the GTZ (German cooperation). [16] specifies that the procedures for implementing the aid allocated is different from one agency to another, but the objectives targeted remain the same. According to the author, the first objective is to strengthen the administrative and technical structures of the new African local authorities, by assisting the States in the legislative and regulatory implementation of decentralization and by providing means for the training of elected officials and executives. Municipalities, in particular within the framework of regional programs. The second is to promote the mobilization of resources, in particular of tax origin, by assisting the States or local authorities in the reorganization of their tax systems, by supporting the creation and management of databases for tax purposes, and by financing setting up loan funds for local authorities. The third, finally, is to improve the financial and technical management capacity of the municipalities, so that they gradually become responsible for improving the living environment of the inhabitants and for developing the infrastructure and equipment needed to increase the economic productivity of the urban sector.

  intervention. He believes that Northern NGOs have adopted three different behaviors. Some have created NGOs from scratch in the South, others have decided to disengage from action in the field by encouraging locals to take over by creating autonomous structures and, finally, others have accompanied the maturation embryonic organizations of beneficiaries. As for areas of intervention, NGOs took their first steps at a time when the major problem to be solved was that of hunger. Today, they have evolved and become close to the city, in three registers. It is first of all about the accompaniment of the poorest in the fields of health, education, management of the problems experienced by children. Then that of support for urban struggles and finally, later that of the environment. In addition, several NGOs (such as Action Contre la Faim, Triangle, Solidarités, Enfants du Monde et Droits de l'Homme, Force d'Action Rapide, Congress of Racial Equality, Child War, etc.)

  of many African countries during the 1990s and, more indirectly, that of the global political environment, which gave rise to unprecedented opportunities for participation. Popular and institutional to local development. The populations then organize themselves into urban associative movements (associations, groups, federations of groups, cooperatives, community organizations, small NGOs) and participate in the management of cities through a multitude of works and practices. socio-economic, political, environmental and cultural issues. If the management of large African cities involves a spiral of actors, there is however a lack of coherent coordination between them. The power of the State always seems central and the local authorities are most often left behind. Large African cities are most often divided into autonomous districts within the framework of decentralization. However, these districts remain increasingly dependent on the central town hall. Associative movements are growing in the sphere of actors, leading to a complexification of actors. The intervention of large NGOs is often seen by African states as interference.

  stimulate local governance, African countries have been engaged for several decades in a process of territorial decentralization. It is a political, administrative and financial process of setting up decentralized local authorities allowing shared management between the State and civil society, of local affairs. This process reflects a certain evolution of democracy in Africa. Decentralization therefore appears a priori as an instrument for facilitating and consolidating local development, breaking with the practices of centralized development, initiated and programmed without real involvement of local actors.

  management instruments are generally regulatory documents governing the planning and management of cities. It is therefore regulatory town planning which includes, depending on the town, the Master Plan for Development and Town Planning (SDAU), the Land Use Plan (POS), the subdivision plan, the strategic plan, the budget, etc. The Master Plan for Development and Urbanism (SDAU) is an instrument for urban planning and management. It sets the fundamental long-term guidelines (around 20 years) for the development of a territory, makes it possible to identify the actions to be carried out in the medium term (10 years) and defines the general destination of the soils and the programming of major facilities [26]. In addition, it integrates and coordinates the objectives of the State, local authorities, public or private establishments in terms of sustainable urban development at municipal level [27]. It then serves as a frame of reference for planning the urban development of a given territory. It presents itself nowadays as an important urban planning document for a functional organization and the creation of relatively homogeneous sectors despite the difficulties it faces in its development and implementation [17]. [26] also points out that the Master Plan for Development and Urbanism is drawn up on a scale varying from 1/10,000 to 1/25,000. This document is drawn up for urban communities and for groups of municipalities whose development requires concerted action. It is prescribed by order of the Minister in charge of Town Planning and is carried out under the authority of the urban community or the group in accordance with the prescriptions of general interest previously brought to knowledge by the State. In general, most African cities have this type of scheme. Its implementation must be in accordance with the guidelines of the National Spatial Planning Scheme.

  cities. A. Ouagadougou for example, this tool is only used at the central level and remains almost nonexistent at the district level. However, the authorities would benefit from investing seriously in this tool which is very essential to the urban management of our times. The various actors of urban planning must appropriate it for a very efficient and economical computerized management. In addition, knowledge of this tool must be favored in temples of knowledge such as universities in order to initiate future development actors in its use because it is transversal. With regard to town planning operations, which are also tools in the management of towns, the purpose of development operations is to organize the maintenance, extension or reception of housing or activities, to carry out collective facilities, to safeguard or enhance the built or unbuilt heritage and natural spaces. Urban restructuring and/or renovation, subdivisions and any other operation affecting urban land (roads and various networks,

  , urban restructuring is a set of development actions on spaces built in an anarchic way, degraded or made in old sectors, intended the integration of specific facilities or the improvement of the urban fabric of agglomerations. It can be total or partial. It concerns both viability networks and buildings or groups of buildings. It may include the partial destruction of blocks and a modification of the characteristics of the district by transferring activities of any kind and the decommissioning of buildings for another use.

  measures and development operations which consists of the total or partial demolition of an unhealthy, defective or unsuitable urban sector, for the construction of new buildings. Included in the renovation policy, the restructuring of spontaneous or unsanitary neighborhoods, the construction of housing estates and the development of commercial and administrative areas.The purpose of restructuring and renovation is to improve the living conditions and safety of populations, with regard to the land situation, the state of buildings, access to homes, green spaces and the environment. On the other hand, they help to strengthen the functionality of the perimeters considered with regard to economic life and collective social and cultural facilities. As for the work subdivision,[START_REF] Ouédraogo | Urban management in the countries of the South[END_REF] maintains that it can be defined as the operation resulting in the division of a landed property into lots. The subdivision therefore consists of a subdivision of virgin land into plots with appropriate facilities in terms of infrastructure and collective equipment to accommodate the constructions to be carried out by future occupants.

  mention that transfers of responsibilities to the benefit of local authorities can be observed almost everywhere, but they are rarely accompanied by an institutionalized sharing of powers. There is a lack of resources, weaknesses in management and technical knowhow, an insufficient maturity of local political life are often presented by the central authorities as an obstacle to the empowerment of municipalities.

  globalization and the creation of a world information society, new technologies are experiencing very rapid growth and are attractive to everyone. However, this technological boom does not provide ready-made solutions to development problems. Information systems in developing countries present a triple constraint in their implementation. The constraints are first and foremost technical. They are then methodological. Finally, the impact of technologies on the development process remains conditioned by the urban policies that promote them. IV-CONCLUSION This study has provided a better understanding of the main actors and methods of urban governance in Africa. Indeed, the management of large African cities integrates a certain number of actors and means of management. In the past, African cities were mainly managed by the central state. But today, with the process of decentralization underway in almost all African countries, we have the emergence of a network of actors. Decentralization, which aims to bring the citizen closer to the administrator, empowers municipalities downstream in the management of African metropolises. These basic actors are interlinked upstream by the State and its various dismemberments which are the ministerial departments and the directorates. Civil society, which plays the role of counter-power, is also very active in the decentralization process. Also in the context of decentralized cooperation, a network of private sector actors and technical and financial partners appears in the sphere of actors. This world of actors combines their efforts for better governance of African cities. Moreover, who speaks of actors also speaks of instruments and management tools because it is they who develop, adopt and apply them. Thus, several urban policies, instruments and planning tools are implemented in major African cities to meet major urban challenges. However, urban policies are generally sectorial and summary. They remain sketchy, isolated and are proving increasingly ineffective in the face of the scale of the urbanization phenomenon. Overall, in Africa, despite the existence of urban management instruments and tools, it is important to point out that if urban strategies have been adopted to deal with the problems of cities, the fact remains that they currently have limits in terms of spatial governance because African cities are still characterized by strong population growth, which remains out of step with economic development.