بدأ نمو المناطق العشوائية في القاهرة في عهد جمال عبد الناصر في ظل اصلاحاته الاشتراكية التي غيرت عناوين ملكية الأراضي وقوانين مراقبة الإيجار لتوفير الأراضي الزراعية للفلاحين. وقد صممت هذه الإصلاحات كوسيلة لحماية مصالح الفقراء في المناطق الحضرية، وسمحت للملاك بتوريث هذه الأراضي لمدة ثلاثة أجيال، مما جعل تغيير قوانين ملكية هذه الأراضي مهمة عسيرة. ومع ذلك، بسبب عدم وجود ما يكفي من الوحدات السكنية الجديدة بأسعار معقولة للفقراء، بدأ ملاك الأراضي ببناء المستوطنات غير الرسمية على هذه الأراضي الزراعية، مما أدى إلى نمو العشوائيات في جميع أنحاء المدينة. ثم قررت الحكومة أن تتجاهل هزه المجتمعات غير الرسمية بسبب عدم تمكنها على تلبية الطلب المتزايد للمساكن في القاهرة ذات سعر معقول . وبالتالي, لم يتم ربط هذه المستوطنات غير القانونية إلى شبكة المدينة الرسمية، مما يعني أن سكان هذه المناطق لا يستطيعون الحصول على المياه والصرف الصحي، أو الكهرباء والغاز، أو حتى الخدمات البريدية.
Submitted by Howaida Kamel — Mon, 06/17/2013 – 00:00
Banu, a mother of two, lives in a slum of Bagunbari, Dhaka. She is a single mother who works as a housemaid to earn her living. She says, “The pond water I was forced to get water from previously was very dirty with a bad smell. My daughters and I would suffer from diarrhea, jaundice, dysentery, and skin diseases. But after the installation of the deep tube well, we are able to get safe water much more quickly… [now] we don’t have these water-borne diseases anymore!” Read more or join the discussion.
Submitted by Editor — Mon, 06/17/2013 – 00:00
Pada awalnya Waduk Pluit memiliki luas 80 hektare. Sekarang luas waduk tersebut menyusut menjadi 60 hektare. Penyebabnya, 20 hektare luas waduk telah disesaki bangunan ilegal. Luas genangan waduk diperkirakan berkurang dari 80 hektar menjadi sekitar 60 hektar akibat maraknya hunian liar. Waduk juga dipenuhi sampah dan limbah buangan rumah tangga. Dampak berikutnya, terjadilah pendangkalan akibat sedimentasi. Dari kedalaman awal sekitar 20 meter, kedalaman rata-rata waduk seluas 80 hektar itu hanya berkisar 1-5 meter. Baca lebih lanjut.
Submitted by Nanda Ratna — Mon, 06/03/2013 – 13:46
In the area of health, mobile devices are enabling developing countries to not only leap-frog the wired world but also rise above persistent social, political, economic barriers. Examples from emerging economies around world illustrate a variety of innovations that hold promise and demonstrate success for improved health in urban centers with the greatest need. Read more.
Submitted by Tracey Grose — Thu, 05/16/2013 – 11:40
Planning the medium and long-term development of a city is not an easy task — it requires a clear framework and effective tools. In order to understand how planning takes place in Rio de Janeiro, it is important to look at the highlights of the Brazilian planning framework, and then how it is implemented at the city level. Read more or join the discussion.
Submitted by Catalina Gomez — Mon, 05/06/2013 – 00:00
Planejar o desenvolvimento urbano das cidades no médio e longo prazo é um grande desafio. Para compreender melhor o processo de planejamento urbano no Rio de Janeiro, é importante descrever o marco do planejamento no Brasil para logo compreender melhor sua implementação ao nível da cidade. Leia mais ou discutir.
Planning the medium and long-term development of a city is not an easy task — it requires a clear framework and effective tools. In order to understand how planning takes place in Rio de Janeiro, it is important to look at the highlights of the Brazilian planning framework, and then how it is implemented at the city level. Read more or join the discussion.
Submitted by Catalina Gomez — Mon, 05/06/2013 – 00:00
Mobile phone usage is growing and new service models emerging. Some hold great expectations for how the growing ubiquity of mobile phones will solve many problems related to poverty in the developing world. Positive impacts cited include disaster relief, banking for the poor, disease management, literacy, commute flows, as well as government accountability and delivery of services. A recently published book, The Great Indian Phone Book, examines what might prove to be the most disruptive communications device in history. In this early stage of the mobile phone revolution, new opportunities for micro enterprise are growing. Read more.
Submitted by Tracey Grose — Wed, 05/01/2013 – 09:53
Lack of access to clean water is one of the greatest causes of ill-health and disease in over-populated informal settlements. More often than not, people find themselves paying over the odds prices for water that has been contaminated by waste and raw sewage that run perilously close to the pipelines for domestic-use. In Nairobi, some people take time to boil water in order to sanitize it, but many just drink it as it is, believing that it is not their problem and that they have more important things to worry about. A project that has been test-run over the last couple of years in Kibera, spearheaded by a Swiss aquatic research company called Eawag, tries to address this situation by providing an affordable solution for water sanitization. Read more or join the discussion.
Submitted by Katy Fentress — Mon, 03/18/2013 – 01:00
The daily struggle for water consumes the lives of the poor. Women wait hours in line for water that is often of questionable quality, paying exorbitant rates — often much higher than richer urban dwellers. Contaminated water steals the lives of millions of children each year. Husbands miss valuable work days, and leftover savings is often spent on medical bills from waterborne illnesses. Read more or join the discussion.
Submitted by Carlin Carr — Mon, 03/18/2013 – 01:00
Bencana banjir yang melanda Jakarta beberapa waktu lalu disebabkan tingginya curah air hujan dan kurangnya daerah serapan air, menyebabkan volume run-off water sangat tinggi dan tidak tertampung oleh sungai atau kanal sehingga air menggenangi jalanan dan permukiman penduduk. Ketika banjir datang, air bersih menjadi sulit untuk didapatkan padahal kebutuhan air bersih di saat banjir justru meningkat. Pada keadaan normal setiap orang membutuhkan air bersih 10 liter per harinya, namun dalam kondisi bencana kebutuhan air bersih masyarakat Jakarta mencapai 60 liter per orang per hari. Keadaan ini diperparah dengan harga air bersih di Jakarta yang memang tinggi dan diklaim sebagai salah satu harga air yang termahal di dunia.
Submitted by Editor — Mon, 03/18/2013 – 01:00