Over 1 billion people live in slums across the world. A slum is defined by the United Nations as “human settlements with inadequate access to safe water and sanitation, poor housing quality, overcrowding and insecure residential status.” Slums don’t provide security, basic needs, and social justice, then why are many people still choosing to reside in slums? 100 to 400 people move to the Dharavi slum of Mumbai every day, not because of the poor conditions, but for the possibility of socio-economic development. But do slums really help improve people’s quality of living? To what extent do slums really help socio-economic development?
According to the Economist Intelligence Unit’s 2015 livability rankings, the Dhaka slum is ranked as one of the least livable places to live. Living in a slum you are limited to poor-quality houses which tend to be vulnerable to adverse effects, like flooding, as these settlements are usually substandard. Not only are these settlements poor-quality but they are also some of the most neglected areas in terms of planning, policies and development from governmental, and authoritative groups. Meaning that those in slums are disadvantaged with less access to healthcare, education, and other basic services than other urban areas, lowering their ability to compete in economic markets, and move out of poverty.
Illness is ubiquitous in slums. The poor sanitation, lack of healthcare and overcrowding make slums a perfect place for disease. In the Dharavi slum of Mumbai on average, a water tap is shared by 100 people, in Togi 70% of people don’t have a private latrine. Additionally, in Dharavi, 83% of toilets were found infected with fecal matter and other diseases. In the Togi slum of Dhaka, 82% had a household member who was unwell in the 30 days prior. Illness is critical for Slum-dwellers as they can’t afford to take time off work, to not generate an income and consequently survive. Unfortunately, slums are one of the easiest places to contract and spread disease as seen in 2020 with COVID-19. To live in a slum and contract an illness means limiting the chances of escaping the poverty cycle, and finding a better future.
However, Dr Shelke who works in one of the largest slums in the world said: “People who come to Dharavi or other slum areas — their priority is not health, their priority is earning.” Slums are a hub for economic development, providing more opportunities for employment and the ability to move out of poverty. The paper, ‘The Theory and Reality of Urban Slums’ shows that slums and urban areas have similar working populations of approximately a half as opposed to rural areas which are under one-third. Other research reveals that “about one-third of households in Nairobi’s slums have established their own business,” showing the economic possibilities that these communities create, allowing people to move out of the poverty cycle. Mr Mustaqueem is an example of this possibility, he arrived in the Dharavi slum at 13, initially sleeping on the streets, he is now a millionaire. He said, “When I came here, I was empty-handed, now I have everything.”
Slums provide better access to education, one survey reveals that in 70% of countries surveyed, primary-aged girls are more likely to enrol in school if they live in slums rather than in rural areas. Improving education is one of the most successful solutions to escaping the poverty cycle allowing people to upskill and have a larger variety of job opportunities. Slums bring education, and as Jim Yardley writes “Education is hope,” and with hope brings opportunities for better jobs, and for a better future. However, education is still a large cost for those in slums, Ms. Baskar, a resident of Dharavi, spends 5 months worth of her income in order to send her three children to school. This is a massive sacrifice, not allowing spending in other areas that may be crucial to their lives, many may not be willing to make this sacrifice deciding to prioritize other spendings.
In conclusion, I believe most slums today hinder socio-economic development for the poor. Even though Slums bring “economic vibrancy” to a community, the poor infrastructure and sanitation cause most people to become stuck within the poverty cycle. This is because of the struggle to fulfil even the Physiological needs from Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Despite this, I believe that slums have the potential to be a place of socio-economic development, for all. With governmental policy and slum upgrading, slums can become more like major cities around the world; New York, London, Berlin and Singapore which all were once composed of slums. But today slums have an associated stigma that they provide no value, and that they are a societal burden. So we have become reluctant to help these societies, but are 15% of the world’s population worth giving up on. So as Harvard University economist Edward Glaeser puts it, “slums don’t make people poor — they attract poor people who want to be rich. So let’s help them help themselves.”
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