Linking informal settlements and poor neighborhoods to the dynamic city center is crucial in urban areas across the world. Only by having access to the opportunities of the formal city can the urban poor pull themselves out of poverty. The following accounts from Nairobi, Mumbai, Jakarta, Rio de Janeiro, and Mexico City present examples of solutions, including transportation projects, employment initiatives, and the peaceful relocation of street vendors. Read on to learn more, and then join the discussion below.
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Katy Fentress, Nairobi Community Manager
Slums are mostly viewed from the outside as alienated environments in which people languish in abject poverty, barely managing to scrape by.
Although there has been some progress toward debunking the stereotype of slum dwellers as lazy, criminal, and somewhat ignorant, there is still an overall perception that people who live in informal settlements are different, not like the rest of society and hence not quite able to get ahead in life.
Over the past year, the Nairobi URB.im bureau has attempted to challenge the dominant discourse, preferring instead to present a more nuanced portrait of slum dwellers – a label that in itself evokes a homogenous image of the people it describes. Articles documenting tales of enlightened youth, inspired artists, political activists, promising children and no-nonsense Grannies, have been juxtaposed to the more harsh realities that undoubtedly many urban poor inhabit.
As part of this endeavour to present a more balanced and objective picture, the reality of employment and income-generating activities must also be scrutinised, in order to differentiate the different ways in which slum dwellers live their lives.
When we consider how people make a living in Nairobi slums, the words casual labour, informal sector activity, and small-level entrepreneurship spring to mind. This is by and large correct: both the Pamoja Trust Slum inventory and the Nairobi Urban Health and Demographic Surveillance System (NUHDSS) found that the majority of people were engaged in the above-mentioned income-generating activities or that they were altogether unemployed. Both papers, however, mention that in different slums, to varying extents, a small percentage of people are engaged in formal, salaried employment. The numbers vary: in some of the slums surveyed by Pamoja Trust they were as low as 2 percent, while the results of the NUHDSS Korogocho and Viwandani surveys showed that somewhere in the region of 20 percent of adult men there are formally employed.
So how does someone living in a marginalised informal settlement succeed in securing a formal job in, for example, the city centre? Mainly in the same way that anyone else would: by getting qualified and submitting a resumé that details why they are the right candidate for the position. However, like everyone else in the world, sometimes educated and/or trained people need the help of an agency to put them in contact with prospective employers.
“We help qualified people get jobs, no matter where they come from,” says Elly Omolo, the director of an employment agency that specialises in putting informal settlement dwellers into formal sector employment. “In order for someone to qualify for our services, they need to have a high school diploma or above, some kind of professional training, and an ability to present themselves well and communicate.”
Omolo’s company operates in a neighbourhood called Ngara and is called Management Training and Consultant Services. About 60 percent of their clients hail from nearby informal settlements like Mathare. They do not have a website and operate mainly though word of mouth but, according to Omolo, this has not hindered business.
The company’s modus operandi expands beyond the basic task of putting job seekers in contact with relevant employers. Omolo and his team take the time to conduct pre-interviews in which they assess what the candidates’ weaknesses are and establish their communication skills. After that, clients are brought through a mentorship program in which their resumé is fine-tuned and they are coached in interview techniques.
“We feel it is important to mentor our clients in order to ensure they get the best possible job for themselves,” Omolo tells us. “In return we expect them to give us 50 percent of their first month’s salary,” a strong incentive for the company to place their candidates in the best employment possible.
Slum dwellers can face stigma when it comes to applying for formal employment. Managers might hesitate to hire a security guard, receptionist or accountant that comes from a place like Mathare, widely viewed as crime-ridden and unsafe. However, good presentation goes a long way, and the work done by Omolo and other companies like his is invaluable as it provides a leg up into the formal world from which these people are so often excluded.
In the end, adult slum dwellers need jobs, not charity. Any agency that helps connect them to the city centre and formal employment deserves to be lauded, supported, and emulated on a larger scale.
Carlin Carr, Mumbai Community Manager
Mumbai’s unique geography as a peninsula city has styled its expansion in ways dissimilar to other cities. Rapid population growth in other metropolises explodes outwards in multiple directions, forming suburban pockets in unpredictable bursts. In Mumbai, the only possibility is north, making the push away from the central business area more vast with continued expansion. The result for those living in the northern suburbs and on the edge of the city is a longer and longer train commute on one of only two rail lines. Yet studies have found that despite this natural growth pattern, the poor actually continue to work closer to home than their wealthier counterparts, calling into question the importance of connectivity to the traditional economic center of the city.
Middle class families living in the suburbs may continue to commute to the southern financial district for white collar jobs, while studies show that the poor find work closer to home. These jobs include domestic help — drivers, maids, and cooks — hawkers, vegetable vendors, shoe polishers, and other micro-businesses. “Regardless of where they live, the poor, on average, commute shorter distances than the non-poor, implying that they work closer to home than non-poor households. The fact that the poor work closer to home than the non-poor could be due to commuting costs: rail and bus fares are a higher percent of income for the poor than the non-poor,” says a World Bank study on transport and poverty in Mumbai. The study also reveals that over 60 percent of the poor walk to work.
Nowhere are these facts better substantiated than in Dharavi. The one-square-kilometer filled-in marshland that is now home to one of Asia’s largest slums houses more than 600,000 people. The small but densely populated area is conveniently settled 15 kilometers north of Churchgate Station, the first stop on the Western Railway near the economic hub, and the only two rail lines in the city both pass through Dharavi at Sion Station. Well-connected and not too far north, Dharavi is a prime piece of real estate and a convenient commuting destination. However, 80 percent of Dharavi residents live and work in the slum itself, opting for opportunities closer to home. Essentially all the trips that take place within Dharavi — for work, shopping, or visiting — occur by foot.
Dharavi’s international reputation has grown around the unique situation that has developed there — it is both an economic and residential center for the poor. The dynamic informal economy is home to thousands of small-scale businesses that the Economist estimated to be at about 15,000. “Indeed, it is for its industry, not its size, that Dharavi is most distinctive. The clothes, pots, toys and recycled materials its residents produce earn them millions of dollars in annual exports alone,” says the article. A study by the SPARC (Society for the Promotion of Area Resource Centres) estimates that Dharavi has 4,902 production facilities, with 1,036 in textiles, 932 in pottery, 567 in leather, 722 in recycling and scrap metal, 498 in embroidery, and 152 in food. There are also 111 restaurants and several thousand boutiques there.
While Dharavi is unique among slums for its massive economic output, the aforementioned World Bank study confirms that connectivity to the city’s traditional center — the southern tip — may be less important to the poor than better walking conditions and increased local transport. Given that the commute distance with the highest frequency is only 1-2 km, and more than 50 percent of poor workers are commuting less than 2 km, the planning implications here should be focused on initiatives like Mumbai’s Walking Project, or a bike share initiative, such as Cycle Chalao, which piloted a project in Mumbai in 2011, but has since been chosen by the Pune Municipal Corporation to start a program there. The Walking Project was launched last year by five local activists who aim to make Mumbai the most walkable city in India in the next decade. They’ve started walking audits in target areas of the city to assess the situation; next steps include holding training programs to teach people how to conduct audits in their own neighborhoods and to lobby local corporators to take action. “Walking is the simplest issue under the sun, it has no warring parties where somebody is pro-walking or anti-walking. There are issues of course like hawkers, cars, etc. but it’s still not so difficult to solve, the budgetary requirement doesn’t run into thousands of crores,” says Rishi Aggarwal, one of the founders, in the Mumbai Boss. These are programs that are being overshadowed by large-scale, car-centric transport planning in Mumbai. Yet these simpler and more “doable” initiatives would likely have a greater impact on a majority of the population, promoting environmentally sensitive and healthier transport options, and not just for the poor.
Yuyun Harmono, Jakarta Community Manager
Under Jokowi-Basuki’s leadership, one of the Jakarta government’s main priorities has been the city’s street vendors. In order to make space for this informal economy, the government has created special areas for street vendors, and has upgraded existing traditional markets. The relocation of street vendors is no longer done by force, but through dialogue, as seen through the successful peaceful relocation of street vendors in Solo, Central Java, where Jokowi previously served as Mayor.
Jakarta, seperti kota-kota besar lainnya di Indonesia, dalam perkembangannya mengalami masalah dengan kondisi dualistik. Selain berdiri bangunan-bangunan megah dan moderen, juga berkembang pesat kegiatan Pedagang Kaki Lima (PKL) yang beragam jenisnya. Jakarta, dengan tingginya konsumsi masyarakat urban, menjadi magnet bagi PKL untuk mengadu nasib.
Sektor informal sebenarnya banyak manfaatnya bagi kehidupan kota, hal ini dapat terlihat dari sebagian besar pekerja sektor formal tergantung pada dagangan dan jasa dari sektor informal. Fungsi sektor ini sebagai ujung tombak pemasaran berbagai produk sektor formal tidak dapat diabaikan dalam pertumbuhan ekonomi kota.
Meski demikian, sering kali keberadaan dan kebutuhan ruang untuk PKL tidak pernah diperhatikan. Ruang-ruang kota yang tersedia hanya difokuskan untuk kepentingan kegiatan dan fungsi formal saja. Kondisi ini yang menyebabkan PKL menempati ruang-ruang publik untuk menjalankan usahanya.
Berdasarkan data Dinas Koperasi UMKM dan Perdagangan Jakarta tahun 2010, jumlah Pedagang Kaki Lima (PKL) di Jakarta mencapai 92,715. Dari jumlah tersebut hanya 11,005 PKL yang menempati Lokasi Sementara (Loksem). PKL yang menempati Lokasi Binaan (Lokbin) mencapai 3,408. Sebagian besar PKL menempati ruang publik, antara lain trotoar, badan jalan dan jalur hijau, jumlahnya mencapai 78,302.
Penataan PKL menjadi program prioritas bagi Pemerintah DKI Jakarta dibawah pimpinan Jokowi–Basuki. Dari 13 program prioritas Pemerintah DKI Jakarta, penataan PKL merupakan salah satunya. Penataan PKL tersebut dilakukan melalui penyediaan ruang bagi ekonomi informal atau PKL pada kawasan perkantoran dan perdagangan, Membangun mall khusus bagi PKL, Memperbaiki pasar-pasar tradisional.
Selain itu, tak kurang dari 34 Miliar rupiah dianggarkan dalam APBD DKI Jakarta tahun 2013 untuk revitalisasi Lokbin dan Loksem. Saat ini di Jakarta ada 20 lokasi Lokbin dan 165 Loksem. Lokbin berada di lokasi yang resmi, sedangkan Loksem berada di lokasi yang ditentukan wali kota setempat. Hanya saja, Dari total 20 Lokbin, jumlah PKL yang tertampung hanya 1.515 PKL. Sedangkan dari 165 Loksem, hanya mampu menampung sebanyak 7.708 PKL. Tentu tidak semua PKL akan tertampung, sehingga dibutuhkan langkah lain, misalnya, dengan memberi ruang bagi PKL pada gedung perkantoran, pasar tradisonal dan mall. Hingga saat ini sudah ada satu mall yang bersedia menampung PKL.
Namun, pola ruang aktivitas PKL sangat dipengaruhi oleh aktivitas sektor formal dalam menjaring konsumennya. Lokasi PKL sangat dipengaruhi oleh hubungan langsung dan tidak langsung dengan berbagai kegiatan formal dan kegiatan informal atau hubungan PKL dengan konsumennya. Lokasi Lokbin dan Loksem serta sarana dan prasarana termasuk kemudahan akses bagi konsumen wajib diperhatikan, sehingga PKL yang sudah direlokasi tidak kembali lagi ke tempat asal karena dagangan mereka tidak terlalu laku.
Pendekatan yang digunakan untuk relokasi PKL juga tidak bisa lagi dengan paksaan, dengan berdalih melanggar ketertiban umum, melainkan dengan dialog. Pendekatan dengan dialog terbukti berhasil diterapkan ketika Jokowi menjadi Walikota Solo. Relokasi PKL di kota Solo dilakukan dengan dialog terus-menerus selama 54 kali pertemuan untuk menciptakan pemahaman apa yang dibutuhkan oleh kedua belah pihak. Hasilnya, 23 lokasi PKL ditata, termasuk pembuatan kios tetap, tenda, dan gerobak.
Pendekatan yang sama patut diterapkan di Jakarta, untuk memanusiakan PKL sekaligus memberi ruang bagi tumbuhnya ekonomi rakyat, karena Jakarta tidak hanya milik mereka yang berdasi, Jakarta juga milik Pedagang Kaki Lima.
Catalina Gomez, Rio de Janeiro Community Manager
Neste mapa do Rio de Janeiro, os bairros de baixa renda estão identificados em laranja, facilitando nossa compreensão sobre sua localização. Aquele mapa também nos permite aprender que estes bairros não estão localizados numa única área, mais que eles estão distribuídos pela cidade toda, desde o centro até a periferia, com concentrações na zona norte e oeste. Segundo o último censo nos sabemos que aqueles “pontos laranja” são residência de 20 por cento da população da cidade ou 1,2 milhões de pessoas.
Devido ao desenvolvimento urbano e à dinâmica própria da cidade, a maior parte dos bairros de baixa renda está relativamente perto de varias “centralidades”, que são áreas residenciais ou comerciais que atraem atividade económica. Aquilo que estes bairros precisam não é só receber melhoras nas condições de vida dentro das comunidades, mais a melhoria das conexões com as “centralidades” para melhorar o aceso a emprego, serviços sociais e outros.
Parte da solução a necessidade de integrar os bairros de baixa renda com a “cidade formal” é melhorando o transporte e a mobilidade destas áreas. Em resposta, a Prefeitura promove a construção de meios alternativos de transporte como teleféricos e elevadores públicos nas comunidades com difícil acesso, sejam por que são muito extensas como o Complexo do Alemão, ou pela sua localização nos altos morros como Cantagalo. A cidade também está promovendo a integração e expansão do sistema público de transporte para oferecer a seus moradores, especialmente aqueles de baixa renda, mecanismos eficientes, confortáveis e econômicos de transporte.
O apoio dos moradores de bairros carentes na capacitação e procura de emprego e a outra parte da solução. Atualmente, a cidade tem oito Centros Públicos de Emprego, Trabalho e Renda, localizados além do centro da cidade, nas áreas com maior concentração de área carentes, como Jacarepaguá e Campo Grande. Estes centros recebem diariamente pessoas interessadas em cadastrar gratuitamente seus currículos e fazem vínculos com as empresas que procuram candidatos de acordo com a necessidade e o perfil. Estes centros também providenciam assistência na procura de emprego, na preparação para uma entrevista, etc. Também oferecem cursos profissionalizantes em varias práticas. Por exemplo, no mês passado, cerca de 5.300 vagas foram oferecidas para cursos gratuitos de operador de telemarketing, pintor de obras ou de automóveis e operador de computador, entre outros. Estes cursos fazem parte do Programa Nacional de Acesso ao Ensino Técnico e ao Emprego (Pronatec), que oferece além do curso, o material didático e uma bolsa de transporte e alimentação para todos os beneficiários.
Existem muitas outras formas de integrar os bairros de baixa renda à “cidade formal”, mais provavelmente o transporte e o aceso a emprego, são soluções chave. Parte do desafio é que estes serviços sejam de qualidade e de fácil acesso. Rio ainda tem o desafio de expandir estes serviços a mais bairros que precisam melhorar suas condições de vida e vínculos com a cidade.
Foto 1: Pesquisa para a Secretaria Municipal de Habitação, 2011. Foto 2: Elevador de Cantagalo. Foto 3: Pronatec.
Catalina Gomez, Rio de Janeiro Community Manager
In this map of Rio de Janeiro, low-income neighborhoods are identified in orange, providing an easy understanding of their physical distribution. This map also shows that low-income neighborhoods are not located in a particular area of the city, but are spread out from the center to the outskirts, although with higher concentrations in the northern and western areas. The latest census shows that these “orange spots” are home to 1.2 million residents, which is equivalent to 20 percent of Rio’s population.
Due to the growth dynamics of the city, most low-income neighborhoods are relatively close to “centralities,” which are commercial and residential areas that attract economic activity. What low-income neighborhoods desperately need is not only the improvement of their area’s living conditions, but the improvement of the connections to their respective “centralities” so that they can have better access to employment, social services, and many other facilities that the city has to offer.
Part of the solution to this urgent need to link informal settlements to the “formal city” is improving transportation and mobility to and from these areas. In this regard, the local government is promoting the construction of alternative means of transportation, such as cable cars and public elevators, in communities that are difficult to access — either because they are very spread out, like Complexo do Alemão, or because they are located on steep terrain, like Cantagalo. The city is also promoting the expansion and integration of a network of public transportation so that Rio’s residents, especially those from low-income neighborhoods, can have affordable and comfortable access to efficient means of transportation.
Another part of the solution is helping low-income residents develop their skills and find better jobs. The city currently has eight Centros Públicos de Emprego, Trabalho, e Renda or Public Employment, Labor, and Intermediation Centers, located not only in the city center, but also in areas with the highest concentrations of low-income neighborhoods, such as Jacarepaguá and Campo Grande. These centers register residents’ resumés in their databases and link those residents with potential employers. These centers also provide assistance with job searching, such as how to prepare a resumé, or how to get ready for an interview. In addition, these centers offer courses in various employable skills. For example, last March about 5,300 people attended a free four-month course on telemarketing, computer operation, or home and car painting. Such courses are part of the Programa Nacional de Acesso ao Ensino Técnico e ao Emprego or National Technical Education and Employment Program (Pronatec), which in addition to free tuition for all beneficiaries, also offers free learning materials and a daily stipend for food and transportation.
There are many other ways of linking informal settlements to the “formal city,” but offering better transportation and access to jobs are two key solutions. Importantly, the services offered must be of good quality and easily accessible. Rio has the challenge of continuing to expand these services to more low-income neighborhoods that need greater links to the formal city.
Photo 1: Pesquisa para a Secretaria Municipal de Habitação, 2011. Photo 2: Elevador de Cantagalo. Photo 3: Pronatec.
María Fernanda Carvallo, Mexico City Community Manager
El rápido crecimiento en las urbes ha tenido como consecuencia a la reproducción de espacios de diferenciación social, es decir áreas marginadas alejadas de zonas con mejor condición socioeconómica y con mayor acceso a infraestructura social; dando como consecuencia cinturones de pobreza en las periferias de las urbes. En este sentido, actores en la esfera internacional promueven el bienestar de las personas que viven en estas condiciones para vincularlas con las oportunidades de las áreas con mayor prosperidad. La declaración de la Cumbre de Estambul de 1996, propuso la realización de Agendas Hábitat para establecer planes de acción que brindaran soluciones a los rezagos sociales, entre ellas “vivienda adecuada para todos” y “desarrollo de asentamientos humanos sostenibles en un mundo en proceso de urbanización”.
Cifras nacionales del CONEVAL afirman que para el año 2008 4.8 millones de personas vivían en pobreza multidimensional en México extrema en las zonas urbanas, es decir, presentaban en promedio 3.7 carencias sociales a la vez, es decir, de acuerdo a CONEVAL las personas tenían falta de acceso a 3 de las siguientes oportunidades sociales: falta de acceso a educación, salud, seguridad social, calidad de la vivienda, servicios básicos en la vivienda y alimentación. En este contexto, el propósito principal del Programa Hábitat es contribuir a la superación de la pobreza y al mejoramiento de la calidad de vida de los habitantes de zonas urbanas marginadas, por medio del fortalecimiento y mejora de la organización y participación social, así como del entorno urbano de dichos asentamientos. En este sentido, se vinculan las áreas marginadas con oportunidades de desarrollo social para la población vulnerable. La población sujeta a este programa reside en zonas que presentan alta concentración de hogares en situaciones de pobreza patrimonial, es decir insuficiencia del ingreso disponible para adquirir la canasta alimentaria, así como realizar los gastos necesarios en salud, vestido, vivienda, transporte y educación, y que presentan además déficit de infraestructura, equipamiento y servicios urbanos.
Para su operación, se asigna en convenio con las entidades subsidios federales a través de la Secretaría de Desarrollo Social (SEDESOL); de tal manera las autoridades locales por medio de los Comités de Planeación para el Desarrollo y las autoridades municipales deciden los proyectos donde se canalizarán los recursos y los municipios ejecutan la operación. A través de la modalidad de Mejoramiento del entorno urbano de este programa, se mejora el entorno físico de las zonas urbanas marginadas por medio de la introducción de infraestructura urbana social básica, el mejoramiento del entorno ecológico, la ejecución de proyectos de prevención y mitigación de riesgos, saneamiento y distribución de agua potable.
Aunado al apoyo para las acciones de mejora en infraestructura y equipamiento urbano, el programa promueve actividades para el desarrollo comunitario; por lo que por medio del empoderamiento y la autogestión, los habitantes de los barrios se organizan para resolver las necesidades más urgentes.
Un ejemplo de implementación del programa dentro de la Zona Metropolitana del Valle de México (ZMVM) es el municipio de Chimalhuacán, en el cual desde el 2008 se han asignado recursos para la realización de obras de pavimentación, electrificación, drenaje e instalación de tubería para la distribución de agua potable en los barrios. Así mismo, para el 2012 se invirtieron más de 84 millones de pesos para trabajos de urbanización de obras y servicios para las comunidades más necesitadas de la localidad. En esta etapa, el mejoramiento urbano se acompañó por un componente de desarrollo comunitario a través de la implementación de jornadas y campañas de salud para brindar acceso a la población a los servicios de salud de estas comunidades. Para garantizar la adecuada inversión de los recursos, se formaron juntas de supervisión integradas por vecinos voluntarios de la zona.
Por medio de la implementación del Programa Hábitat se rompe con la reproducción de rezagos sociales en las áreas más marginadas de la Ciudad de México, de manera que se integran estos espacios a la Ciudad al alejarlos de la exclusión social.
María Fernanda Carvallo, Mexico City Community Manager
The rapid growth of major cities has led to the reproduction of marginalization and poverty in increasingly unequal societies. This is emphasized by the creation of under-served areas in the outskirts of cities, where the marginalized population has been distanced from the better socioeconomic conditions and social infrastructure that the city center has to offer. International actors have therefore worked to promote the welfare of the poor living in these unequal conditions in order to link them with prosperous zones. The 1996 Istanbul Summit Declaration resulted in the Habitat Agendas, which propose a plan of action with regard to human settlement issues, including “proper housing for all” and “sustainable settlement development for humans in an urbanizing world.”
National statistics from the CONEVAL show that in 2008, 4.8 million Mexicans were living in extreme multidimensional poverty in urban areas. They face a range of unmet social needs, including lack of access to education, health, social security, quality housing, basic housing services, and nourishment. Taking this into account, the main goal of the Programa Hábitat (Habitat Program) is to contribute to alleviating poverty and to improving the quality of life in marginalized urban areas in Mexico by strengthening and improving the community’s organization and increasing social participation.This is how marginalized zones are linked with social development opportunities for the vulnerable population.
Federal subsidies for the Programa Hábitat are allocated by the government’s Ministry of Social Development, and local authorities use the Comités de Planeación para el Desarrollo (Planning Committees for Development) to decide how resources will be allocated, before the municipalities actually execute the operation. The methodology used by the program improves the urban environment: the physical environment is enhanced by the introduction of basic social urban infrastructure, the renovation of the ecological environment, sanitation, and the distribution of potable water.
In addition to supporting urban infrastructure, Programa Hábitat promotes community development activities: empowered neighborhood residents equipped with self-management skills organize to resolve their most urgent needs.
An example of the program’s implementation within Mexico City’s Metropolitan Zone is the municipality of Chimalhuacán. In 2008, it received funding for the development of roads, access to electricity, creation of a drainage system, and the installation of pipelines for the distribution of potable water. In 2012, more than 84 million pesos were invested in development work for the neediest communities. At this point, urban improvement was paired with a community component through the implementation of conferences and health campaigns to offer these communities access to health services. In order to guarantee the adequate investment of resources, supervisory meetings were taken on by the neighborhood’s volunteers.
Thanks to Programa Hábita, social needs in Mexico City’s most marginalized areas are being addressed, integrating these areas into the rest of the city and keeping them from social exclusion.