Favelas - Papplewick



Settlements

Cities in Less Economically Developed Countries

(LEDCs)

Case Study: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Which area shows the wealthy side of the

city and the Central Business District (CBD)?

Which area shows the poor side of the city

and the Favelas (Shanty Towns)?

Isn’t it incredible how such inequality can exist side by side?

Growth of Cities in the LEDCs

Here are some facts to learn about World Urban Population.

In the past 50 years, millions of people in LEDCs have moved to cities in search of jobs and a better quality of life.

• In the year 2000, two out of every three people in LEDCs will be living in a city.

• The only places for newcomers to live are on the edges of the city, along roads and railways. (Any available land that has not already been taken – e.g. hillsides or marshes)

• People build shelters from any material they can find. These areas are generally called shanty towns or squatter settlements

• In Brazil they are called favelas.

• They can be the homes for up to a quarter of the city’s population.

What does all this mean in terms of Rio de Janeiro?

General facts about Rio de Janeiro:

• 10 million people live in Rio de Janeiro (once the capital of Brazil).

• Of these, up to 2 million live in favelas.

• Many of these are newcomers to the city, living in the very poorest conditions.

Describe what the favela is like.

• Location – built on the edge of the city

• Building material – any available scrap (wood, cardboard, corrugated iron)

• Services – Few (often no water, sanitation or electricity. No shops or schools)

• Quality of life – Poor, little money, large families. Illness and diseases are common, and there is widespread crime and drug dealing. Local jobs (if work at all).

Rocihna – a Rio de Janeiro favela

Rocihna is an old favela. Up to 200,000 people live there, on the hills on the edge of Rio. But there is hope for the people of Rocihna…

…the Government have been making improvements.

• Temporary wooden shacks have been rebuilt using bricks and breezeblocks by the local people themselves and their neighbours.

• Water, electricity and other services have been put in. Many homes have sanitation.

• People have built shops, schools and clinics with help from the city council.

• Crime is still a problem, but people feel safer and enjoy a much better standard of living.

Solutions?

• Discourage rural to urban migration by improving conditions in rural areas through more jobs, housing, schools, and healthcare. E.g. in Indonesia, people need a permit before they can move to an urban area.

• Improve living conditions in favelas by building paved roads and pavements, laying drainage systems, improving water and electricity supply, building schools, clinics and community facilities. Unfortunately, improvements attract even more people!

• Build cheap housing or encourage organised settlements through providing cheap land sites with the basic infrastructure of roads, drainage, water pipes and sewerage systems.

Landslides

Landslides are a hazard because they cause a danger to both people and their possessions.

Landslides are caused when there is unstable ground. Usually where a hard rock (limestone) sits on top of a softer rock (clay). It simply slides off, down a hill – with devastating results. Heavy rain will trigger off a landslide.

Landslides have become a common threat to shantytowns in the Less Economically Developed Countries (for example, Rochina, on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil). These ‘favelas’ are often built on land that has been used for nothing else – steep slopes/boggy ground/unstable ground.

Hundreds of people die every year.

Landslides do not only happen in LEDCs. But this is where they cause the most damage, where they are the biggest HAZARD.

Brazil: Flood & landslides information bulletin December 2001

Heavy rains in the last two weeks have caused heavy flooding and mudslides in the State of Rio de Janeiro. The most affected areas have been the slums and shantytowns ("favelas").

The Government’s report of 26 December indicated there are 46 deaths, 32 missing persons, 1,528 homeless, 167 people partially affected, 142 houses destroyed and 252 houses partially damaged.

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CBD next to the old port and beautiful beach

Year

2000

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Favela built on steep slopes on the outskirts of the city

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1990

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1950

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