URBim | for just and inclusive cities

La Delegación Iztapalapa es una de las demarcaciones del Distrito Federal que no tiene garantizado el derecho al acceso de agua limpia y de calidad para sus habitantes. El déficit de suministro de agua de Iztapalapa se debe a que recibe diariamente 238 litros para un millón 815 mil 786 personas que viven en la demarcación. La falda de la Sierra Santa Catarina, es una de las zonas que presenta mayor escasez del líquido vital para que las personas puedan satisfacer sus necesidades. Familias de esta colonia tienen que pedir pipas a empresas privadas para que puedan obtener agua para la higiene personal y para el uso doméstico. Ante la demanda, la delegación también proporciona a la colonia tanques de agua de acuerdo a una larga lista de espera de los solicitantes, no obstante la necesidad por el agua rebasa la capacidad de entrega y distribución por parte de la delegación. Leer más o discutir.

Submitted by Maria Fernanda Carvallo — Mon, 03/18/2013 – 01:00

Rio de Janeiro has fairly good water service coverage, with only 1,5 percent of the city’s 32,908 households lacking proper service. The city has also made important improvements regarding sewer coverage in the past decade. According to Rio Como Vamos, in 2000 21 percent of the city’s households didn’t have sewer services, while ten years later, only five percent did not. Read more or join the discussion.

Submitted by Catalina Gomez — Mon, 03/18/2013 – 01:00

Rio de Janeiro tem boa cobertura de serviços de água, com só 1,5 por cento dos domicílios cariocas (32,908) sem serviço adequado. A cidade também tem avançado na ampliação da cobertura da rede de esgoto na passada década. Segundo Rio Como Vamos, no ano 2000, cerca de 21 por cento dos domicílios do Rio (387,367) não tenham conexão de esgoto. Em 2010, o indicador de famílias sem esgoto desceu para 5 por cento (109,258 domicílios). Leia mais o discutir.

Rio de Janeiro has fairly good water service coverage, with only 1,5 percent of the city’s 32,908 households lacking proper service. The city has also made important improvements regarding sewer coverage in the past decade. According to Rio Como Vamos, in 2000 21 percent of the city’s households didn’t have sewer services, while ten years later, only five percent did not. Read more or join the discussion.

Submitted by Catalina Gomez — Mon, 03/18/2013 – 01:00

Compared to other countries in the Middle East and North Africa, Egypt is much better off with regards to access to freshwater resources, primarily thanks to the Nile. With the majority of the country’s population densely situated along the river basin, government statistics show that 99 percent of the country’s population has access to water, and access in urban areas is 100 percent. However, these statistics drown the many other political, social and economic issues that surround the water sector. Read more or join the discussion.

Submitted by Howaida Kamel — Mon, 03/18/2013 – 01:00

Water has always been a source of great challenge as well as distress for the resident of Dhaka, a city of 15 million people. Growing populations result in ground water depletion and increasing pollution, which leads to a lack of surface water usability. These factors make water issues acute for the DWASA, the main government water supplier. The intensity of the problem deepens when it comes to the slum and squatter residents, who have little or no DWASA water supply because they live in unstable and illegal settlements. In addition to a crisis of access, the quality of DWASA water (bad smell, microorganisms, presence of ammonia and arsenic, excessive chlorination) poses a great threat to people’s health. Read more or join the discussion.

Submitted by Editor — Mon, 03/18/2013 – 01:00

إذا قارنا موارد المياه العذبة المتوفرة بمصر بموارد مياه الدول الاخرى في الشرق الأوسط وشمال أفريقيا, نجد أن مصر لديها أكثر كميات من المياه العذبة، و ذلك بفضل نهر النيل العظيم. تشير احصاءات الحكومة أن ٩٩ في المئة من سكان البلد يحصلوا على المياه بطريقة ما, بسبب تواجد معظمهم بجوار نهر النيل. اظهرت الاحصاءات أيضا أن المياه العذبة متوفرة لجميع سكان المناطق الحضرية, ولكن تجاهل هذه الاحصاءات العديد من القضايا السياسية والاجتماعية والاقتصادية التي تظهر في قطاع المياه بمصر.

Submitted by Howaida Kamel — Mon, 03/18/2013 – 01:00

In March 1998, 500 three-wheeled keke vehicles first appeared on the streets of Lagos. Bright yellow in color, powered by a motorcycle engine, balanced on three thick wheels and covered by a metal half-shell replete with plastic windows, the city’s most innovative transport mode was introduced by then Governor Mohammed Buba Marwa. The vehicle came to be known colloquially as keke marwa: Keke being the Hausa word for “tricycle,” (Marwa’s native tongue); and Marwa being the surname of the governor himself. Read more or join the discussion.

Submitted by Victoria Okoye — Mon, 02/04/2013 – 23:00

The Kenyan Traffic (Amendment) Act 2012 came into force at the end of last November amidst widespread Public Service Vehicle (PSV) worker strikes and scepticism as to how effective it would be. The objectives of the introduced regulations were to minimize carnage on the roads by imposing steep penalties for those who commit traffic offences or engage in reckless driving. The main targets for the new penalties are the 14-seater PSVs — commonly known as matatus. These mini vans are widely considered to be the main source of Nairobi’s traffic delirium, and calls to do something about them have been mounting over time. Read more or join the discussion.

Submitted by Katy Fentress — Mon, 02/04/2013 – 23:00

Mumbai’s millions of commuters rely on a woefully outdated public transportation system. The two-and-only rail lines carry more than 7.24 million people every day. The dangerously overcrowded Mumbai locals, while surprisingly fast and frequent, have become increasingly life-threatening. An average of 12 people die every day on the suburban tracks. Any commuter who can afford to buy a car does so, leaving a traffic-tangled mess of cars, rickshaws, taxis, and worn-out busses on the dusty streets. The resulting emissions concerns have reached alarming rates as well. Read more or join the discussion.

Submitted by Carlin Carr — Mon, 02/04/2013 – 23:00

Hoy en día el proceso de concentración de la población en las áreas externas de la Ciudad, como respuesta a la concentración humana, industrial, comercial y financiera, ha provocado cambios importantes en los patrones de viajes de la movilidad del D.F.. Mientras que en la década de los ochentas los viajes tenían origen y destino en las mismas Delegaciones, actualmente las distancias por recorrer son más largas e interdegacionales, inclusive hasta los municipios del Estado de México pertenecientes a la Zona Metropolitana. En este contexto, la administración del Gobierno del Distrito Federal desde el 2006 ha implementado diversas estrategias para transformar la movilidad y sentar las bases de una política pública de transporte integral. Leer más o discutir.

Submitted by Maria Fernanda Carvallo — Mon, 02/04/2013 – 23:00