scholarly journals Analysing the Sustainability Challenges of Informal Urban Settlements: The Case of Chibolya in Lusaka Zambia

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 55
Author(s):  
Jonathan Simbeya Mwamba
Keyword(s):  
Informal Settlement ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Major Constituent ◽  
Rapid Urbanization ◽  
Settlement Development ◽  
Development Interventions ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Sustainability Challenges ◽  
Development Literature

Presently, informal settlements exist as part of the urban fabric and a major constituent of the residential geographies of most Cities in Sub-Saharan Africa. The growth of informal settlements in cities of the global south has been widely discussed in existing literature as a critical concern. Urban development literature in Zambia in particular has focused on the rapid urbanization and poverty growth, but barely explains how this affects settlement sustainability. Studies have focused on measures put in place by government and supporting organisations to help find solutions to the problem. But this has been done without providing specifics as relates to interventions for settlement sustainability and user perceptions of their living environments. The article provides a conceptual analysis of the local dynamics influencing informal settlement development and sustainability. The historical perspective and modern day realities of informal urban settlement settings in Lusaka in Zambia are also reviewed. The case study findings indicate a need to refocus development interventions in informal settlements by considering informal dwellers concerns and requirements when formulating settlements development strategies. The article offers an insight into sustainability challenges that the settlement population faces despite a variety of development interventions by the State and private agencies. The article shows the potential success and sustainability of interventions when informal settlement residents are empowered and take responsibility of their own development agenda. The paper points out the need for collaborative approach to informal settlement improvement where all stakeholders including the local residents, participate in all stages of settlement development.

scholarly journals Access to improved sanitation facilities in low-income informal settlements of East African cities

2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 89-99 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Okurut ◽  
R. N. Kulabako ◽  
P. Abbott ◽  
J. M. Adogo ◽  
J. Chenoweth ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Informal Settlement ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
East African ◽  
Basic Sanitation ◽  
Improved Sanitation ◽  
Joint Monitoring ◽  
Sub Saharan

Throughout Africa, the population in urban areas is increasing rapidly, often exceeding the capacity and the resources of the cities and towns to accommodate the people. In sub-Saharan Africa, the majority of urban dwellers live in informal settlements served by inadequate sanitation facilities. These settlements present unique challenges to the provision of sustainable and hygienic sanitation, and there is insufficient information on access to improved facilities. This paper reports findings of a study undertaken in low-income informal settlements using a mixed methods approach to assess access to sanitation and identify the barriers to household uptake of improved sanitation facilities. More than half of the respondents (59.7%) reported using sanitation facilities that are included in the WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme definition of improved sanitation. However, a high proportion of these facilities did not provide access to basic sanitation. Less than 5% of all the respondents did not report problems related to sustainable access to basic sanitation. The findings highlight the urgent need to develop specific and strategic interventions for each low-income informal settlement, to upscale the sustainable access and use of improved sanitation in urban centres.

Playing by the rules? New institutionalism, path dependency and informal settlements in Sub-Saharan Africa

2017 ◽  
Vol 49 (11) ◽  
pp. 2558-2577 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicky Morrison
Keyword(s):  
Informal Settlement ◽  
New Institutionalism ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Path Dependency ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Government Officials ◽  
The Status ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Way

The scale of contemporary urbanization in Sub-Saharan Africa has culminated in the proliferation of informal settlements, with governments claiming a legitimate right to remove them. Drawing on new institutionalism as a conceptual framework and presenting the case of Old Fadama, an informal settlement within central Accra in Ghana, this paper sheds light on the way in which both formal and informal rules shape these legally unauthorized spaces. Using the analogy of a game, the author devises a novel typology to highlight the way in which different players maximize their personal advantage from maintaining the status quo. The paper concludes that as long as different interests are served by the existing socio-political arrangements then path dependency will endure, with government officials as the dominant playmaker in the locality ultimately controlling the rules and pace of the game.

scholarly journals Morphological Characteristics of Informal Settlements and Strategic Suggestions for Urban Sustainable Development in Tanzania: Dar es Salaam, Mwanza, and Kigoma

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 3807
Author(s):  
Jiaqi Zhang ◽  
Sophia Shuang Chen ◽  
Qun Gao ◽  
Qiushi Shen ◽  
Ismael Aaron Kimirei ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Socioeconomic Development ◽  
Morphological Characteristics ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Environmental Conservation ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Rapid Urbanization ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Urban Function

Rapid urbanization in developing countries has been accompanied by the spread of informal settlements, which is particularly prominent in sub-Saharan Africa. These settlements have become an important supplement to the inadequate formal housing supply in cities, and their spontaneously formed spatial patterns have important influences on sustainable development. In this study, qualitative and quantitative approaches were used to examine the morphological characteristics of informal settlements in Tanzania and the associated influences on urban development. Geographic spatial analyses, landscape pattern indices, and mathematical statistics, along with quick assessments, group discussions, and key informant interviews, were used to obtain detailed information on the spatial forms of informal settlements. The results indicate that the form of the settlements does not conform to the social, economic, or environmental characteristics of sustainable development. The disordered expansion of single-layered buildings with a single function, irregular road networks in poor condition, and a lack of consideration and protection of the ecological environment were found to negatively impact urban function and sustainable development. However, the structure and form of informal settlements could, in addition to formalization projects, be optimized to drive sustainable and socioeconomic development goals as well as environmental conservation.

scholarly journals Depth of poverty in an informal settlement in the Vaal region, South Africa

2010 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wilna Oldewage-Theron ◽  
Tielman J.C. Slabbert
Keyword(s):  
Informal Settlement ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Community Based Interventions ◽  
Urban Food Security ◽  
Gap Ratio ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Poverty Indicators ◽  
Sustainable Income ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Measurement Of Poverty

Despite the large number of people currently living in poverty in sub-Saharan Africa, the debate about the definition and meaning of poverty continues. Two distinct problems exist regarding the measurement of poverty, namely the difficulty of identifying the poor in a population and the difficulty in developing an index for the measurement of poverty. The main objective of the survey was to apply a poverty model for determining the depth of poverty in an informal settlement in the Vaal Region, as well as the impact of possible income-generating activities on the community. A questionnaire, which had been devised for measuring poverty indicators, was administered to 429 randomly selected households in the informal settlement, with the poverty model being applied to measure the degree of poverty. The results of the survey showed that 286 households lived in poverty at the time. The impact of extra income on the poverty levels of these 286 households was then determined. The results of the survey also showed that the unemployment level was 91% and that the mean monthly income was R612.50. The average poverty gap was R1017.21, with the poverty gap ratio being 56%. The poverty model showed that an increase of R500 in monthly household income resulted in a poverty gap ratio of 35%. The results indicated that the community was a poverty-stricken community, suffering from chronic food insecurity. The results of the study will be used to facilitate the planning and implementation of sustainable, income-generating, community-based interventions aimed at promoting urban food security and alleviating poverty in the community in question. OpsommingTen spyte van die groot hoeveelheid mense wat steeds wêrelwyd in armoede leef, duur die debat oor die definisie en betekenis van armoede nog altyd voort. Daar word twee definitiewe probleme met die meting van armoede ervaar, naamlik die identifisering van die armes in 'n gemeenskap, en die ontwikkeling van 'n indeks vir die meet van armoede. Die hoofdoel van hierdie studie was om 'n armoedemodel vir die dieptemeting van armoede in 'n informele nedersetting in die Vaal-area toe te pas, en om die impak van moontlike aktiwiteite wat inkomste genereer in dieselfde gemeenskap te bepaal. 'n Vraelys wat ontwerp is om armoede aan te dui en te meet is ewekansig aan 429 huishoudings in die informele nedersetting uitgedeel om te voltooi en die armoedemodel is toegepas om die diepte van armoede te meet. Die resultate het getoon dat 286 huishoudings in armoede leef. Die impak van ekstra inkomste op armoedevlakke is in die 286 huishoudings bepaal. Die resultate het verder getoon dat die werkloosheidsvlak 91% was en dat die gemiddelde maandelikse huishoudelike inkomste R612.50 was. Die gemiddelde armoedegaping was R1017.21, met 'n armoedegapingverhouding van 56%. Die armoedemodel het getoon dat 'n verhoging van R500 in maandelikse huishoudelike inkomste die armoedegapingverhouding na 35% verlaag het. Die resultate het bewys dat hierdie 'n armoedige gemeenskap met kroniese voedselonsekerheid was. Die uitkoms van die studie sal gebruik word vir die beplanning en implementering van gemeenskapgebaseerde ingrypings om volhoubare inkomste te genereer om stedelike voedselsekerheid te bevorder en die armoede in hierdie gemeenskap te verlig.

scholarly journals Reclaiming On-Site Upgrading as a Viable Resilience Strategy-Viabilities and Scenarios through the Lens of Disaster-Prone Informal Settlements in Metro Manila

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (24) ◽  
pp. 10600
Author(s):  
Juan Du ◽  
Stefan Greiving
Keyword(s):  
High Risk ◽  
Informal Settlement ◽  
National Level ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Community Resilience ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Disaster Mitigation ◽  
City Development ◽  
Rapid Urbanization ◽  
Metro Manila

The Philippines is argued as the only Southeast Asian country where informal settlers’ communities have been self-organized and produced discernible impacts on the country’s urban policies. As one of the high risk countries, fifty percent of the country’s informal settlements are located in danger and disaster-prone areas. However, informal settlement upgrading has not reached its significance in disaster mitigation and community resilience building. At the national level, on-site upgrading is not established in disaster risk management or climate change adaptation strategies, which explains the lack of strategic approaches for local implementation. Metro Manila serves as a suitable backdrop in this sense to study informal settlement upgrading under the condition of high risk and rapid urbanization with a high civil society engagement. This study investigates the underlined reasons why upgrading strategically falls short in addressing disaster mitigation and community resilience building. Theoretically, it questions what on-site upgrading is about. Empirically, two hazard-prone informal settlement communities within Metro Manila are examined with their different risk profiles, community development needs and resilience priorities. The core issues of upgrading are, therefore, differentiated at the settlement level with communities’ innate socio-economic and eco-spatial features over time. Meanwhile, the paper heightens the necessity of tackling on-site upgrading at the settlement level and articulating settlements’ spatial correlations with the city development, so as to sustain upgrading outcomes. In addition, this study attempts at setting up a range of scenarios conditioned with COVID pandemic fallout. It endeavors to provide another facet of how to deal with adaptation and resilience. This includes the urgent strategy shift in the housing sector and its financial sustainability, innovative mechanisms to manage uncertainty and risks, lessons for post-COVID planning, etc.

scholarly journals Air Pollution Measurements and Land-Use Regression in Urban Sub-Saharan Africa Using Low-Cost Sensors—Possibilities and Pitfalls

Atmosphere ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 1357
Author(s):  
Asmamaw Abera ◽  
Kristoffer Mattisson ◽  
Axel Eriksson ◽  
Erik Ahlberg ◽  
Geremew Sahilu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Air Pollution ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Pollution Monitoring ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Land Use Regression ◽  
Rapid Urbanization ◽  
Final Model ◽  
Sub Saharan

Air pollution is recognized as the most important environmental factor that adversely affects human and societal wellbeing. Due to rapid urbanization, air pollution levels are increasing in the Sub-Saharan region, but there is a shortage of air pollution monitoring. Hence, exposure data to use as a base for exposure modelling and health effect assessments is also lacking. In this study, low-cost sensors were used to assess PM2.5 (particulate matter) levels in the city of Adama, Ethiopia. The measurements were conducted during two separate 1-week periods. The measurements were used to develop a land-use regression (LUR) model. The developed LUR model explained 33.4% of the variance in the concentrations of PM2.5. Two predictor variables were included in the final model, of which both were related to emissions from traffic sources. Some concern regarding influential observations remained in the final model. Long-term PM2.5 and wind direction data were obtained from the city’s meteorological station, which should be used to validate the representativeness of our sensor measurements. The PM2.5 long-term data were however not reliable. Means of obtaining good reference data combined with longer sensor measurements would be a good way forward to develop a stronger LUR model which, together with improved knowledge, can be applied towards improving the quality of health. A health impact assessment, based on the mean level of PM2.5 (23 µg/m3), presented the attributable burden of disease and showed the importance of addressing causes of these high ambient levels in the area.

scholarly journals Approaches to Addressing Informal Settlement Problems: A Case Study of District 13 in the Kabul city, Afghanistan.

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maqsood Rezayee ◽  
Gabriel Hoh Teck Ling ◽  
Siti Hajar Misnan
Keyword(s):  
Rural Areas ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Informal Settlement ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Recovery Process ◽  
Government Officials ◽  
Rapid Urbanization ◽  
Land Readjustment ◽  
Post War ◽  
Basic Infrastructure

Afghanistan witnessed rapid urbanization in recent decades due to the post-war recovery process. When the war ended in 2001 by fall of Taliban regime, most Afghans refugees returned to urban areas of Afghanistan, especially in Kabul city. Moreover, the rapid urbanization, migration from rural areas, and population growth impacted on Kabul city with the manifestation of informal settlement. It is acknowledged that the residents of informal settlements suffer social, spatial, and economic exclusion from the benefit and opportunity of an urban environment. Furthermore, the residents of informal settlements experience disadvantages by geographical marginalization, shortage of basic infrastructure, improper governance framework, vulnerability into the effect of poor environment, and natural disaster. With all the above, the problems of informal settlements are considered challenges for and informal residents. Thus, it is a dire need to tackle and overcome problems of informal settlements. Therefore, this paper aims to identify the most proper approaches to addressing informal settlement problems in District13 of Kabul city. In order to reach this aim, interviews and a questionnaire survey have been conducted with government officials and local inhabitants. And the finding of this paper indicates that through the resident’s preferences, government capacity, and District 13 physical condition there are three approaches which can be implemented and adopted for improvement of informal settlement in District 13 of Kabul city, which is settlement upgrading as the first option, the land readjustment as the second option and urban redevelopment as the last option.

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