Impacts of Rapid Urban Expansion on Peri-Urban Landscapes in the Global South: Insights from Landscape Metrics in Greater Cairo

Cities in the Global South are experiencing profound demographic shifts, rapid economic growth, and unchecked urban sprawl, resulting in significant transformations in peri-urban landscapes. This paper focuses on assessing the impacts of chaotic urban expansion in the peri-urban areas (PUAs) of Greater Cairo (GC), serving as a notable case study in the Global South. By analyzing satellite imagery from 2001, 2011, and 2021, this study examines changes in land use/cover (LUC) within GC’s PUAs. Employing five landscape metrics—Landscape Expansion Index (LEI), Percentage of Landscape (PLAND), Fractal Dimension Index (FDI), Mean Patch Size (MPS), and Largest Patch index (LPI)—the research elucidates the adverse effects of unplanned urban expansion in GC’s PUAs. The analysis reveals a substantial loss of over 51 thousand hectares of arable land, raising concerns about food security in the region. Notably, the LEI identifies edge expansion as the predominant urban expansion pattern, while PLAND, FDI, and LPI metrics underscore landscape fragmentation within the peri-urban landscape. These findings have significant implications for authorities and researchers engaged in sustainable development efforts in PUAs. This study lays a crucial foundation for the formulation of successful management strategies to mitigate the adverse consequences of unplanned urban expansion in the PUAs of GC and similar regions worldwide.