Genéro y pobreza no permiten la inclusión financiera
En el 2013 el Banco Mundial realizó un estudio junto con Global Findex (el Índice Global de Inclusión Financiera) confirmando grandes brechas de género en el tema de inclusión financiera. De acuerdo al Banco Mundial, las mujeres son 15 por ciento menos propensas de tener una cuenta bancaria, (la cifra es mayor en mujeres en condiciones de pobreza), lo que hace que este grupo sea muy vulnerable ante el tema. Este estudio demuestra que la inclusión financiera va más allá de la apertura de cuentas bancarias, como el acceso a sistemas de préstamo y ahorro, o el pertenecer a sistemas financieros formales que abren las puertas al ingreso proveniente de otras fuentes. Asli Demirguc-Kunt, Directora de Investigación del Banco Mundial afirma que "[s]in una cuenta, a las mujeres les cuesta más ahorrar formalmente y recibir subsidios gubernamentales o remesas de familiares que viven en el extranjero." Las mujeres son el sustento de los hogares, por lo que la falta de inclusión financiera refleja poca independencia económica y dificultad al obtener ingresos por cuenta propia. Leer más o discutir.
Mapeo comunitario identifica las variables de vulnerabilidad en Nezahualcóyotl
El mapeo comunitario acerca a las personas a su entorno para conocer su historia, necesidades y las propias narrativas de la comunidad para incidir en su desarrollo. En este sentido, el departamento de Ciencias del Comportamiento y del Desarrollo de la Universidad de las Américas> en la Ciudad de México, desarrolló un mapeo comunitario para identificar la incidencia del entorno en la comunidad de Nezahualcóyotl, basado en la teoría ecológica de Urie Bronfenbrenner, quien sustenta que los sistemas y el ambiente local influyen el cambio de conducta en el sujeto y esto a su vez en el cambio de desarrollo en el entorno. Este estudio, realizado por Suzette Aglot, describió el proceso relacional entre el sujeto y la comunidad de San Agustín Atlapulco, y definió los factores que hacen vulnerable a esta comunidad. Así mismo, de acuerdo a la autora, una de las herramientas del análisis de la salud comunitaria es el proceso de mapeo ecológico social. Este proceso intenta representar las interrelaciones entre condiciones y eventos que tienen lugar en el ambiente inmediato del individuo (v.gr., la casa, la familia, y los amigos), así como en ambientes más amplios y distantes (v.gr., el trabajo, la escuela, los hospitales y la distribución de bienes y servicios del que toma parte). Leer más o discutir.
La necesaria Reforma Educativa
El Pacto por México observa su primer resultado tangible: la Reforma Educativa, la cual sin los consensos entre las principales fuerzas políticas del país no hubiera sido posible. Leer más.
El México que queremos
México vive un proceso de transformación importante: los principales grupos políticos están logrando acuerdos trascendentales; no obstante, persisten grupos de poder que tratan de impedir a toda costa los cambios que el país requiere. Leer más.
Analfabetismo digital: más allá de saber leer y escribir
El alfabetismo, entendido como el saber leer y escribir, no representa un gran reto para la Ciudad de México. No obstante, las nuevas tecnologías y comunicaciones han orillado a la población a un analfabetismo digital. El analfabetismo digital es más que saber cómo utilizar una computadora básicamente ya que está ligado actualmente a las tecnologías de información que funcionan como canal de interlocución, y así es como se crea un medio de exclusión social en un sentido negativo. Esta falta de destreza para acceder y utilizar las herramientas disponibles es una limitación para los habitantes del D.F. y un gran obstáculo para ejercer la ciudadanía y la voz de una comunidad organizada. Leer más o discutir.
Digital illiteracy: More than just reading and writing
Literacy, the ability to read and write, does not pose a big challenge for Mexico City. Instead, it is new and constantly changing technology and methods of communication that have pushed the population to suffer from a new kind of illiteracy: digital illiteracy. The fact that certain Mexico City residents are unable to communicate and receive information makes social inclusion impossible. In addition, basic computer skills are not enough to be digitally literate nowadays. The lack of skills needed to access technological tools limits the inhabitants of Mexico City from having their voices heard, which makes it difficult for them to fully exercise their democratic rights. Read more or join the discussion.
Tecnología opera contra la delincuencia en el DF
Las llamadas redes sociales que capturaron la atención de los jóvenes, no solamente establecen lazos entre los amigos, sino son fuente de insumos que comenzaron a ser explotados por la delincuencia organizada en México en el año 2008 para obtener información de sus víctimas. No obstante la problemática no es endémica de México, sino que la comparten distintos países latinoamericanos con altos índices de secuestro. Leer más o discutir.
Using technology to fight crime in Mexico City
Social networks that have captured the attention of youth worldwide not only establish bonds among friends, but also are used by members of organized crime groups in Mexico to obtain information about their victims. This problem is not only a reality in Mexico; it also is shared by many Latin American countries with high kidnapping rates. Read more or discuss.
El diseño de políticas públicas considerando la opinión de la ciudadanía
La participación ciudadana es importante al momento de definir problemas, metas y objetivos, así como durante el diseño y ejecución de un programa o política pública. Lo anterior, debido a que no sólo causa un efecto positivo en la población al sentirse tomada en cuenta, también genera un compromiso total hacia el cumplimiento de las metas y objetivos establecidos. Leer más.
Los retos de la planeación urbana de la Ciudad de México
Enrique Betancourt Gaona es un urbanista experto en la Ciudad de México que compartió su pericia sobre la planeación urbana con URB.im. Betancourt Gaona se ha desempeñado en el sector público como asesor de la Subsecretaría de Desarrollo Urbano del D.F. y como el Director General Adjunto de política social de la Presidencia de la República. Leer más o discutir.
Pages
Urban innovation in Cali and Bogotá
Colombia has undergone a remarkable transformation in the past fifteen years. The armed conflict that arose in the mid-twentieth century, aggravated by organized crime and drug trafficking, generated a massive wave of displaced people seeking refuge in the cities. This flow was in addition to the regular flow of immigrants from rural to urban areas that took place in Latin America as a whole during the same period. Colombian cities were unable to assimilate such rapid growth, and suffered a significant deterioration in living conditions. This was particularly so in medium-sized cities, such as Cali, which had relatively high living standards before the conflict erupted. Bogotá, as the capital and most populated city in Colombia, attracted the largest number of displaced people, giving rise to large slums in the south. Both cities became the target of attacks from armed groups, and became isolated under the fear of constant threat. Read more.
Pages
Cooperación andina en la recuperación de centros históricos
Bogotá tiene un centro histórico espectacular. Las estrechas callejuelas de la época colonial están jalonadas de edificios de gran belleza y en muchos casos sorprendentemente bien conservados, al menos estructuralmente. El ascenso empinado de las vías hacia los Cerros Orientales, que se elevan abruptamente 600 metros sobre el nivel del centro de la ciudad, crean una perspectiva única en una ciudad que a veces se olvida de su ubicación geográfica en plena cordillera andina. Sin embargo, a lo largo de las últimas décadas se ha producido un deterioro progresivo de la zona. Los principales edificios considerados como bienes de interés cultural, tanto de la época colonial como republicana, están generalmente en muy buen estado de conservación, pero el centro histórico sufre de problemas como la inseguridad, falta de desarrollo económico, una fuerte desigualdad social, falta de espacios verdes, o el deterioro de las vivienda de personas con bajos ingresos. Leer más o discutir.
Tackling digital illiteracy in Bogotá
The illiteracy rate in Bogota is slightly below 2 percent, according to official reports. This represents the best rate in Colombia. The real rate might, nevertheless, be somewhat higher, due to the constant inflow of immigrants from rural areas, where illiteracy rates are much higher, into the capital. In addition, the 2011 PIRLS report (Progress in International Reading Literacy Study) suggests that the rate of functional illiteracy is quite high in the country as a whole. These problems are aggravated by an elevated rate of digital illiteracy, as high as 50 percent as suggested by a 2010 survey by the Ministerio de Tecnologías de la Información y las Comunicaciones. Digital illiteracy is a pressing challenge in large Latin American cities. It affects more severely the populations already at a higher risk of social exclusion, and makes it harder for them to benefit from current economic prosperity. It also affects negatively the competitiveness of local economies, which are unable to meet the challenges of an increasingly open and technology-driven world economy. Read more or join the discussion.
Alfabetización digital en Bogotá
La tasa de analfabetismo en Bogotá, según datos oficiales, está ligeramente por debajo del 2 por ciento, el mejor dato en todo el país. Sin embargo, es posible que la cifra real esté por encima de la oficial, debido al constante flujo migratorio desde las zonas rurales, donde la tasa de analfabetismo es considerablemente superior, hacia la capital. El informe PIRLS (Progress in International Reading Literacy Study) de 2011 apunta además hacia una elevada tasa de analfabetismo funcional en Colombia. A estos problemas hay que sumar una mucho más elevada tasa de analfabetismo digital, superior al 50 por ciento según un informe del Ministerio de Tecnologías de la Información y las Comunicaciones, que está lastrando el acceso, generalmente de las personas en mayor riesgo de exclusión social, a la revolución tecnológica. El analfabetismo digital es un reto acuciante en las grandes ciudades latinoamericanas, pues aumenta la brecha que impide a los más desfavorecidos el acceso a la prosperidad económica, y reduce la competitividad de las economías locales en un mundo cada vez más conectado tecnológicamente. Leer más o discutir.
Innovación urbana en Cali y Bogotá
Colombia ha experimentado una transformación extraordinaria desde la entrada del nuevo siglo. Los conflictos armados que se iniciaron a mediados del siglo pasado, y que se vieron agravados con la irrupción del narcotráfico y de grupos criminales organizados, generaron una ola de desplazados de las zonas rurales que buscaron refugio en las ciudades, y que se sumó a la migración natural que se observó el en resto del hemisferio. Las ciudades no pudieron absorber un crecimiento tan rápido, y sufrieron un deterioro acelerado en sus condiciones de vida, que se pudo percibir especialmente en ciudades medianas, como Cali, que disfrutaban de una alta calidad de vida antes de que se iniciaran los conflictos. Bogotá, como capital y mayor ciudad del país, atrajo el número mas elevado de desplazados, que se agolpaban desordenadamente en los barrios del sur. Ambas ciudades se convirtieron también en objetivo de los ataques de los grupos armados, y vivían en permanente jaque y aislamiento. Leer más.
Urban innovation in Cali and Bogotá
Colombia has undergone a remarkable transformation in the past fifteen years. The armed conflict that arose in the mid-twentieth century, aggravated by organized crime and drug trafficking, generated a massive wave of displaced people seeking refuge in the cities. This flow was in addition to the regular flow of immigrants from rural to urban areas that took place in Latin America as a whole during the same period. Colombian cities were unable to assimilate such rapid growth, and suffered a significant deterioration in living conditions. This was particularly so in medium-sized cities, such as Cali, which had relatively high living standards before the conflict erupted. Bogotá, as the capital and most populated city in Colombia, attracted the largest number of displaced people, giving rise to large slums in the south. Both cities became the target of attacks from armed groups, and became isolated under the fear of constant threat. Read more.
Microfinanzas: Soluciones innovativas en Bogotá
La exclusión financiera es uno de los principales frenos para la salida de la pobreza, especialmente en el caso de las poblaciones más vulnerables, como madres solteras, desplazados, indígenas o afrodescendientes. En Bogotá, las empresas medianas, pequeñas, micro y familiares constituyen el 98 por ciento del total, pero de éstas tan solo el 29 por ciento tiene acceso al crédito que ofrece la banca comercial. Aunque el sector de los microcréditos ha aumentado de forma significativa en Colombia, duplicándose la cartera en el periodo 2006 al 2012, en parte gracias al apoyo del gobierno, las altas tasas de interés y los requisitos de garantías e idoneidad exigidas por las entidades privadas hacen muy difícil el acceso al crédito precisamente a los sectores más desfavorecidos. Las ONGs no disponen de fondos suficientes para cubrir la demanda, y las microempresas y empresas familiares quedan en muchos casos sujetas al sector financiero informal, conocido como "gota a gota," con tasas de interés exorbitantes. Leer más o discutir.
Pages
Alimentação saudável e "consciente" em São Paulo
O Estado Nutricional dos residentes de São Paulo foi desenvolvido em 2010 pela Prefeitura para conhecer o estado nutricional da população e orientar as politicas públicas na matéria. Segundo o relatório, a prevalência de adultos com sobrepeso foi de 34 por cento e de obesidade 13 por cento. Este último dado representa mais de 800 mil pessoas obesas na cidade. Os mais afetados são homes casado maiores de 50 anos. O relatório não achou nenhuma relação direita entre nível socioeconômico e o sobrepeso; com referência à obesidade achou que ela é sofrida um pouco mais pelos cidadãos de menores ingressos, mais a diferencia não foi considerável. Leia mais o discutir.
Menos hospitalizações e mais atenção nos serviços de reintegração social
Segundo a Coordenação Nacional de Saúde Mental, Álcool e Outras Drogas, três por cento da população brasileira sofre de transtornos mentais severos que precisam cuidados contínuos e nove por cento da população apresenta transtornos leves que precisam de tratamentos eventuais. Leia mais o discutir.
Urban agriculture and environmental conservation awareness in São Paulo
São Paulo, the biggest city in Brazil, has 11 million residents and is the epicenter of the third largest metropolitan area in the globe. It is fully urbanized and presents few connections with close by rural areas, with the exception of two fundamental aspects: (i) food supply; and (ii) shared natural resources. The following two initiatives contribute to São Paulo's sustainable development through the expansion of urban agriculture and the conservation of natural resources, bringing greater balance between the megacity and nearby rural areas. Read more or join the discussion.
Agricultura urbana e conservação ambiental em São Paulo
São Paulo, é a maior cidade do Brasil com 11 milhões de moradores e o epicentro da terceira maior área metropolitana do mundo; ela está totalmente urbanizada e tem poucas conexões com as áreas rurais, exceto por dois temas fundamentais: (i) a provisão de alimentos e (ii) os recursos naturais compartilhados. Esta semana nosso debate está focado nas conexões rural-urbano e no contexto de São Paulo, apresentamos duas experiências que estão contribuindo ao desenvolvimento sustentável da cidade por meio da agricultura urbana e da conservação ambiental, trazendo também uma relação mais balanceada entre a mega-cidade e as áreas rurais do entorno. Leia mais o discutir.
Promoting a culture of reading in São Paulo
According to Brazil's 2010 census, São Paulo has a literacy rate of 96.6 percent. Although this rate is quite high, there is not a culture of reading among the population, especially within low-income groups. This is why the Municipal Education Secretariat launched the initiative Minha Biblioteca (My Library) in 2007, aiming to promote a culture of reading among public school students. Read more or join the discussion.
Promovendo a leitura em São Paulo
Segundo o último censo de 2010, São Paulo apresenta uma taxa de alfabetização de 96.6 por cento. Embora a cidade tenha um bom indicador, existe pouca cultura de leitura entre a população, especialmente aquela de baixa renda. Com o objetivo de tornar a São Paulo numa cidade de leitores com foco nos estudantes da rede pública de ensino fundamental, a Secretaria Municipal de Educação lançou a iniciativa Minha Biblioteca em 2007. Leia mais o discutir.
Os desafios da recuperação da "Cracolândia" no centro de São Paulo
A partir dos anos 90, o centro de São Paulo iniciou um processo de deterioro e degradação, atribuído à mudança de usos e dinâmicas das áreas centrais e à falta de manutenção e investimento da infraestrutura existente. Uma amostra evidente do deterioro, foi o aumento do trafico e abuso de drogas e fez que aquela área da cidade fosse conhecida como Cracolândia. A situação ficou ainda mais complicada com o aumento da população de rua morando na área e participando das atividades ilegais. Leia mais o discutir.
Challenges in the recovery of São Paulo's "Cracolândia"
Starting in the late 1990s, part of São Paulo's center started to go through a complex process of deterioration, mostly attributed to the change of city center's dynamics, and also due to the lack of maintenance efforts in the area. Clear evidence of this deterioration included the rise of drug trafficking and substance abuse. The situation grew to such level that the area started to be called "Cracolândia" (the land of crack). Violence and insecurity rose, as well as the presence of homeless people, who were frequently involved in trafficking and drug abuse. Read more or join the discussion.
The price of contempt: The cleanup of the Tietê river
The Tietê river is the State of São Paulo's most important river. Its runs more than 1100 km and crosses almost the entire state from east to west. The river is particularly important to the city of São Paulo, as it marks its urban geography. Unfortunately, the river has been polluted for years due to the lack of care, especially from the São Paulo Metropolitan Region, which encompasses 37 municipalities and has around 20 million residents. The pollution of the river began in 1920 with the construction of various infrastructure projects in the city. Then, between the 1940s and 1970s, during the city's expansion, the river started receiving industrial effluents and domestic sewage. Read more or join the discussion.
O preço do descuido: A despoluição do rio Tietê
O Tietê é o rio mais importante do Estado de São Paulo. Com 1100 km, ele atravessa praticamente todo o estado de leste a oeste. O rio é particularmente importante para a cidade de São Paulo sendo que ele marca sua geografia urbana. Infelizmente o rio se encontra bastante poluído, devido a anos de descuido, principalmente na Região Metropolitana São Paulo que tem um total de 37 municípios e 20 milhões de moradores. O processo de degradação do rio começou na década de 1920 com a construção de algumas obras de infraestrutura na capital. A poluição industrial e esgotos domésticos tem origem principalmente no processo de expansão urbana ocorrido entre as décadas de 1940 e 1970. Leia mais o discutir.
Pages
As novas formas de engajamento online no Brasil
As manifestações promovidas pelos brasileiros no mês de Junho repercutiram em todo o mundo. "Acordamos" diziam os cartazes. Com o desejo de ter maior participação nas decisões de políticas públicas e contra algumas medidas realizadas no âmbito municipal, estadual e nacional, os jovens mostraram sua indignação com o poder público brasileiro. Leia mais.
Exporting social policy know-how and promoting greater cooperation among countries
In recent years, Brazil has become an international point of reference with respect to social policies and programs, given its significant improvements in poverty alleviation and in generating greater opportunities for low-income populations. Programs like Bolsa Familia, the conditional cash transfer that currently benefits 13 million families, and the Food Acquisition Program, which has contributed to reducing food insecurity through the promotion of family agriculture initiatives, are key interventions that many countries are interested in learning from, with the intention of implementing them in their own contexts. Read more or join the discussion.
Exportando o conhecimento em politicas sociais e promovendo maior cooperação entre países
Recentemente Brasil tem-se tornado uma referência internacional em politicas e programas sociais devido a seus resultados importantes na redução da pobreza e na geração de oportunidades para as populações mais vulneráveis. Programas como Bolsa Família, o esquema de transferências de renda que beneficia a mais de 13 milhões de famílias, além do Programa de Aquisição de Alimentos, que tem contribuído na redução da insegurança alimentar por meio de iniciativas de agricultura familiar, são alguns dos principais programas de interesse para outros países. Leia mais o discutir.
Learning from Brazil's World Cup preparations
As the host of next year's World Cup, all eyes are on Brazil. The attention on the country's planning of this event has risen due to the recent protests and concerns about the costs of infrastructure required to host the tournament. Although the event is still almost a year away, there are already a number of lessons that other countries, cities, and decision-makers can learn from the Brazilian experience. Read more or discuss.
Lições do planejamento da Copa no Brasil
Como país sede da Copa 2014, a expetativa mundial esta focada no Brasil. A atenção pelo processo de planejamento do evento tem crescido devido aos protestos e preocupações relacionadas com os altos custos da infraestrutura necessária, especialmente os estádios. Embora a Copa ainda não tenha acontecido, existem algumas lições para países, cidades e planejadores urbanos sobre a experiência Brasileira no planejamento do evento. Leia mais o discutir.
Schools of Tomorrow: Investing in high quality education in Rio's most violent neighborhoods
Even though Rio de Janeiro offers good coverage of basic public education, there are important gaps in terms of quality. Historically, low-income and violent neighborhoods in Rio have suffered from the highest school drop-out rates and the worst scores in standard tests. But this situation is changing, and faster than expected, thanks to the "Schools of Tomorrow" program, known locally as Escolas do Amanhã. Read more or join the discussion.
Escolas do Amanhã: Investindo na educação de qualidade nos bairros mais violentos do Rio
Embora Rio de Janeiro apresente boas taxas de cobertura de ensino básico, ainda existem importantes desafios na melhora da qualidade. Historicamente os bairros de baixa renda e aqueles afetados pela violência são aqueles que apresentam maiores taxas de evasão escolar e pior desempenho no Índice de Educação Básica (IDEB). Felizmente, esta situação está mudando principalmente com o apoio do programa Escolas do Amanhã. Leia mais o discutir.
Improving work conditions in Rio: Greater focus on workers' formalization and education
Since the 1950s, Brazil has been taking important steps to ensure the basic protection of all its workers. The most relevant advances include the approval of a series of laws and regulations that ensure formal workers a minimum wage, and a number of benefits, including unemployment benefits, maternity leave, access to a pension fund, and paid time off, and sometimes transportation and meal subsidies. Read more or join the discussion.
Melhores condições para os trabalhadores no Rio por meio de formalização e educação
Brasil vem avançando a partir de 1950 na expansão da proteção básica para todos seus trabalhadores. Entre os avanços mais importantes estão à aprovação de um conjunto de leis e normas para garantir um salario mínimo para todos os trabalhadores formais, além de outros benefícios, como o seguro de desemprego, beneficio de maternidade, aceso a um fundo de popança, feiras remuneradas e bolsas de transporte e alimentação. Leia mais o discutir.
Meu Rio's pacific protests and proactive actions
Brazil has joined the group of countries that are experiencing massive protests concerning various public issues. In Brazil, these include the increased cost of public transportation, as well as concerns over the high costs of stadiums and World Cup infrastructure. Over the past few weeks, Rio and São Paulo have been the epicenters of clashes between protesters and the police. Some of these protests have been violent and have generated worry over a possible increase in violence throughout the country. Read more or join the discussion.
Pages
Who will plan Africa's cities?
Africa's cities are growing — and changing — rapidly. Without appropriate planning, they will become increasingly chaotic, inefficient and unsustainable. In many countries, planning legislation dates back to the colonial era. It is ill-equipped to deal with contemporary urban problems. A shortage of urban planning and management professionals trained to respond to urban complexity with progressive pro-poor approaches exacerbates urban dysfunction. Read more.
Consolidating foodstuffs to plug the supply drain and bridge the access gap
According to a survey carried out by the Financial Derivatives Company, prices in Lagos are rising largely due to increases in food prices, because of food supply shortfalls. Increases in prices make access to food difficult for the urban poor, so to tackle the problem of food supply, organizations are working to find out where the shortages come from, and who suffers from these breaks in food supply. To this end, Food Bank Nigeria organizes research to better understand its environment and to help design effective food relief program in various Nigerian cities, including Lagos. Read more or join the discussion.
Lagos' transport infrastructure scheme to mitigate effects of road congestion
Lagos is a small city with a large population. Lagos state is the smallest in Nigeria, with an area of 356,861 hectares of which 75,755 hectares are wetlands, yet it has over 5 percent of the national population, making it the most populous state in the nation. The city is overpopulated and still growing, with a growth rate of 8 percent. This issue causes congestion problems in various facets of city life, but most especially in transportation. Lagos is notorious for its heavy traffic, where a 30-minute journey can take two hours on a weekday. Congestion saps the population of energy, contributes to an unhealthy lifestyle, and generally makes for a less productive workforce. Read more or join the discussion.
Alaja the Tarkwa Bay boat operator
I recently stumbled on this series of interviews I did more than five years ago (April 2008) in Lagos, commissioned for a book project that ended up taking a different shape. I interviewed about seven "Lagosians" - a high school student, a boat pilot, an ex-private security guard and musicstar-wannabe, an itinerant shoe-cleaner, a policeman, a street trader, and a white collar worker. Read more.
Rail construction to deepen relations between West African cities
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) represents one of the many successful south-south relationships in Africa, connecting 15 West African states to promote mobility, trade, and ultimately faster growth of the member nations. These states include Nigeria and Ivory Coast, who have taken their relationships one step further to establish stronger trade ties. Read more or join the discussion.
Encouraging productive, empowered, and employed youth through alternative education
Education is crucial for a bright future, but Nigeria's 2012 unemployment rate was 23.9 percent. The nation's youth, both educated and uneducated, bears the brunt of this unemployment. The problem arises not only from lack of employment opportunities, but from lack of employable skills. Lagos has a large population but has managed to have the lowest level of unemployment amongst the nations' 36 states: 7.6 percent. The city has been able to attain this rate due to a number reasons: some might attribute it to the wealth of companies and industries, which is plausible. However, the contributions of the government and civil society organisations that encourage youth entrepreneurship, job placements, skills acquisition, and education schemes are an important piece of the puzzle. Read more or join the discussion.
The dangers of toxicity in Accra, Ghana
The toxicity situation in Accra is very challenging to the health conditions of the city's population. This situation is aggravated by a high level of urbanization and a large population. These chemical substances are from e-waste, industrial and institutional waste-discharge, environmental, and household waste. In the landfills where electronic waste substances are disposed of, children, mostly boys between the ages of 11 and 18, take apart the electronic scrap, often with their bare hands, burn it, and sometime use stones to extract metal parts. These activities pose many health challenges to these young children and others in the city, like itchy eyes, lung and kidney infections. Read more or join the discussion.
Rapper 'Vocal Slender' thinks the Lagos government can make a difference in Olusosun rubbish dump
"Welcome to Lagos" was a 2010 BBC documentary that introduced Vocal Slender to the world. Vocal – real name Eric Obuh – was a rapper by night, and a scavenger, at the Olusosun rubbish dump, by day. Read more.
Employee unions: The first step in fighting against dire working conditions
Labour laws exist to protect employees from exploitation by their employers. Unfortunately, many companies and factories in Lagos do not adhere to these laws, leading to overworked, underpaid workers who perform in hostile, unhealthy, and dangerous work environments. In one recent case in Lagos, an employee lost his life while on duty in a Chinese-owned nylon manufacturing company with over 500 factory employees. This incident set off a series of worker protests against labour violations and unjust employment conduct. Read more or join the discussion.
Slum clearance calls for better social housing initiatives
The Makoko riverfront is an informal residential area that is Lagos' largest and most visible slum. It is located right beside the busiest highway in the state, which is the most used route to link the mainland to Lagos Island. Makoko village is mostly made up of fishermen and their families, and it is here that the famous floating school is being built. This informal community has been a bone of contention for the state government for three main reasons: it is unsanctioned, shanties have expanding beyond the established boundary, and some of the erected shanties are dangerously close to electric lines and poles. Read more or join the discussion.
Pages
Operation Anti-Sexual Harassment/Assault
"All I remember is hands all over my body, grabbing under the layers of pullovers I was wearing, touching my breasts, opening my bra. More hands on my back and legs, my pants being pulled down. I tried to see the end of circle of men, but saw rows of men surrounding me, all pushing towards me. One man moved towards me in the middle of maybe forty men. When I could reach his hand, I just hugged the stranger and told him to help me. We moved further into the square and the man started moving faster. At that point I was not sure anymore whether he would help me or whether he was collaborating with the rest of the men. I panicked. I looked for other people to help. I saw a guy wearing one of the Operation Anti Sexual Harassment t-shirts and I started shouting louder. Luckily he saw me and made his way towards me. He grabbed me and held me and told me he would help me. I fell, the guy helped me up and I got up and was surrounded by women and men of the Anti Harassment group." Read more or join the discussion.
الجرائم وأعمال العنف
"كل ال ان فكراه إن كان فيه أيادي مسكاني من كل حتة في جسمي، أيادي بتحاول تفك حمالة صدري و بتفعص صدري من تحت البلوفر ال أنا كنت ارتديه. بقية الأيادي كانت مسكاني من ظهري و رجليا، و حسيت ببنطلوني بيتشد لتحت. حاولت أنظر حوالية عشان أشوف دائرة الرجال دي بتنتهي فين، لكن وجدت صفوف من الرجل محيطة بي، وكلهم بيزقو تجاهي."
Management in the context of the Cairo 2050 plan
On June 22, I spoke with Dr. Sahar Attia, the new Chair of the Department of Architecture at the Faculty of Engineering at Cairo University. Dr. Sahar provided insight into issues of urban planning in Greater Cairo Region (GCR) and the methods used to provide services to Cairenes. Read more or join the discussion.
الإدارة في سياق برنامج القاهرة ٢٠٥٠
في يوم ٢٢ يونيو من هذا العام تحدثت مع الدكتورة سحر عطية، الرئيسة الجديدة لقسم الهندسة المعمارية في كلية الهندسة بجامعة القاهرة. قدمت الدكتورة سحر نظرة ثاقبة لقضايا التخطيط الحضري في القاهرة الكبرى و الأساليب التي يتم استخدامها لتوفير الخدمات لسكان هذه المنطقة.
Notes from Tahrir: July 4th
I managed to drive across Kasr el Nile bridge at 8:30am to find people already on the streets, cleaning up after four days of protests. I passed the Constitutional Court, where police forces had secured the area so that Judge Adly Mansour, the new interim President, could take his oath. What became publicized rather quickly was the coincidence that Judge Mansour was appointed the Head of the Constitutional Court on June 30, after his predecessor's term had ended. While some suspect that this might be foul play, he has served on the Constitutional Court since 1992 and has held the position of Vice-President until appointed as the leader by former President Mohamed Morsi. Read more.
Notes from Tahrir: July 3rd
The entire country waited in apprehension for the 48-hour ultimatum to end. Local media had placed a countdown timer on the screen while showing the live feed of Tahrir, Itahedaya, and other major squares around the country. Large numbers of protesters started taking the streets around 3:30pm, waiting for the 4:30pm mark. With the Muslim Brotherhood supporters occupying the square at Cairo University, I stayed in the suburb of Maadi rather than go to Tahrir, especially considering the rumors that they had stopped traffic on all major bridges. Read more.
Notes from Tahrir: July 2nd
In the early afternoon, the army released the aerial footage that they captured above Itahadeya and Tahrir on June 30. This was a political move used to show the huge amount of people that had came out against Morsi, and to show that the army is dedicated to following the will of the people. Read more.
Notes from Tahrir: July 1st
We woke up the next morning to find that those in Moqattam had stormed the Muslim Brotherhood headquarters to find rooms filled with Molotov cocktails and other types of weapons. Six were killed in the struggle. Read more.
Notes from Tahrir: June 30th
The protests against President Mohamed Morsi started on June 30th: Egyptians all over the country took to the streets to mark the one-year anniversary of the Muslim Brotherhood in power. The Tamarud “rebellion” campaign has been working for the past three months to collect signatures for their petition calling for the President’s immediate resignation; the group recently announced that it had collected 22,134,465 signatures. Media estimates claim that up to 33 million people stood in squares all over the country, in what BBC has titled the largest number of people to partake in a political protest ever. Read more.
Toolkit to protect housing rights
On July 13, 2010, approximately 15 buildings in the areas of Establ Antar and Ezbet Khairallah were demolished. As written in the 2011 Amnesty International report, families in these buildings were forced to remove their personal possessions and pay 200 LE (approximately $36 USD) for truck to take their belongings to alternative housing units in 6th of October City. Once the demolition began, security forces at the scene began to offload the belongings of 21 families, claiming that they were trying to cheat the enumeration process for free housing and they weren't residents of the area. These families were then told that by paying 5000 LE ($890 USD) to a middle-man, they could be placed on the enumeration list. Read more or join the discussion.
Pages
Who will plan Africa's cities?
Africa's cities are growing — and changing — rapidly. Without appropriate planning, they will become increasingly chaotic, inefficient and unsustainable. In many countries, planning legislation dates back to the colonial era. It is ill-equipped to deal with contemporary urban problems. A shortage of urban planning and management professionals trained to respond to urban complexity with progressive pro-poor approaches exacerbates urban dysfunction. Read more.
Reducing waste and getting food on the plates of Nairobi's poor
That food goes to waste in the Northern Hemisphere is common knowledge. Grocery stores, bakeries, supermarkets, all throw out large quantities of edible goods simply because health and safety rules dictate that they are past their sell-by date. Countries like Kenya, with increasingly affluent middle classes that shop in malls and eat in restaurants, have jumped on to the waste bandwagon and now also produce large quantities of food that ends up rotting in its cities' extended dumpsites. Read more or join the discussion.
Nairobians bank on the countryside to provide for them in later life
Without the ongoing support of their rural families, migrants in Nairobi slums would have little chance of making it. Family networks provide a crucial backbone on which migrants can rely on in order to be able to survive in the city and save money for their future. Grandparents and extended family contribute in the upbringing of children while parents seek urban work. The older generations act as custodians of wealth, overseeing how remittances are invested and providing informal insurance/retirement schemes to safeguard their descendants' future. Read more or join the discussion.
SDI in Kenya: Forging global solutions that put the grassroots first
The Kenyan federation of slum dwellers, Muungano wa Wanavijiji has succeeded in firmly establishing itself as an force to be reckoned with on the national arena. As their domestic influence grows, they have also begun to focus on strengthening ties with similar groups in the region and beyond. Read more or join the discussion.
Inspiring change in Kiberans one event at a time
The 2007 Nairobi World Social Forum (WSF) was a controversial event because while it brought social activists together to discuss urban poverty, impoverished Kenyans were effectively excluded from the function due to the high cost of attending. As a result of the controversy, many WSF participants decided to see for themselves how things worked in the slums. This resulted in a flurry of tours around Kibera, Nairobi's biggest informal settlement, effectively laying the groundwork for the creation of a slum tourism infrastructure in the area. Read more or join the discussion.
Kenyan innovations in e-waste recycling
The fact that developed countries have been using Africa as a dumping ground for electronic waste is an old story. Under the guise of "charitable donations," tons of e-products of dubious worth — refrigerators, washing machines, computers, cellular phones, TVs (the list goes on) — are disposed of on the continent every year. Kenya is no exception to this trend: it is estimated that every day the port of Mombasa receives thousands of electronic devices. These subsequently get sold on to businesses and other institutions, but their shelf life is approaching its end and most of this equipment lives out its final years in the country and is subsequently not adequately disposed of. Read more or join the discussion.
Nairobi informal service providers: Formalizing in line with the city's development
Nairobi is not the city it was five years ago. The capital of Kenya is transforming its skyline: high-rises are mushrooming up and away from the Central Business District in a quest to find unoccupied space and expand. Accompanying this vertical climb is the ongoing construction of a network of roads and bypasses, aimed to make Nairobi a more fluid and modern city. Some of the key roads that are now nearing completion have been under construction for years. This has opened up an opportunity for street vendors to create informal markets and stalls from which to provide the workforce with food and refreshments. Read more or join the discussion.
The Gamble of Land: Russians in Africa
When talking about foreign investment in Africa, China springs to mind first. Chinese malls, Chinese highways, Chinese bridges. But Chinese housing? Not so much. Because like so many other investors, the Chinese failed to link the target market with the much-needed quality social housing. On a continent where mortgage markets barely exceed 5% of GDP (compare that with 40% of GDP in North America and a whopping 80% in Denmark!), owning a house is merely a dream for most — a pretty far-off dream. Read more.
Blue House Mathare: Tackling the spread of tuberculosis
A short man wearing a hooded coat pushes back the door to a small shed. Lying by the door, his closed eyes caught in the path of a dusty ray of sunshine, a young man of about twenty stirs. The man lying next to him scratches his arm and wraps himself tighter in his jacket. Next to them another four men are stretched out on the packed earth, unaware of the intrusion. This is Mathare and these men, like many others in shacks on either side of them, have rented a piece of floor to have a place to rest for the night. They might not have blankets and a mattress to lie on, but the warmth of their bodies is enough to stave off the worst of the cold. Read more or join the discussion.
Education and integration of Somali women in Eastleigh
Refugee Women of Somali origin living in Eastleigh - a neighborhood in the east of Nairobi that over the course of a few decades became a major stronghold for Somalis escaping the war back home, do not have the luxury of choosing how to live their lives in the same way their male counterparts do. Read more or join the discussion.
Pages
Johannesburg's new urban transport initiatives: Between the market and the marginalised?
Apartheid policies in South Africa made for ineffective cities. Fragmented and segmented, Johannesburg has an ambivalent relationship with public transport. Historically, more affluent, mostly northern white suburbs were provided with extensive transport infrastructure, such as electric trams (1906-48) and later highways (see Fig. 1). By contrast, the denser and poorer black townships, mostly in the south, were provided with limited and marginalised rail and bus public transport (see Fig. 2). Yet out of desperate need by being located far away from major industrial and commercial centres, in the 1970s a mini-bus taxi industry emerged, which has grown to serve approximately 72 percent of all public transport users. Read more or join the discussion.
Mapping the South from the bottom up: Power, possibility, and pedagogy at Sheffield Road informal settlement in Cape Town
Today at least two trajectories in contemporary mapping practices can be identified in South Africa (SA). The first is a 'quantitative' mapping (i.e. mapping more), necessitated by the scale and complexity of the modern city. The second — and less mainstream — trajectory is 'qualitative', engaging lived realities and needs on the ground rather than at a distance. Read more or join the discussion.
The [IN]FORMAL STUDIO in Johannesburg's informal settlements
After the end of apartheid in 1994, the new democratic South African government promised to build millions of new houses for the great numbers of communities of squatters living in deplorable conditions. However, with the current 2.3 million backlog in subsidised housing together with rapid urbanisation, particularly in the South African province Gauteng (which includes Johannesburg), this goal has grown increasingly unattainable. This reality has resulted in a shift in thinking about housing in South Africa from eradication towards upgrading of informal settlements. The concomitant need for professionals, community planners and officials who can engage in a process of participative planning has also becoming increasingly urgent. Read more or join the discussion.
Pages
Bridging boundaries and bisecting binaries: New openings for drug rehab and drug-related mental disorder at the Sultan Bahu Drug Rehab Centre
In South Africa, many factors including disease, poverty, abuse, violence, and changing social structures contribute to the high occurrence of mental health issues (over 16.5 percent of adults). Another contributing factor is also substance abuse, as South Africa is one of the top ten narcotics and alcohol abusers in the world (15 percent of the population has a drug problem). In many ways a legacy of apartheid's disenfranchisement and dislocation, substance abuse in the Western Cape is higher than any other South African province, particularly in Cape Town's non-white urban hinterlands known as the Cape Flats; and has been linked to cognitive deficits, mental health problems, aggression, depression, anxiety, sexual risk behavior, crime and violence. Read more or join the discussion.
Mapping the South from the bottom up: Power, possibility, and pedagogy at Sheffield Road informal settlement in Cape Town
Today at least two trajectories in contemporary mapping practices can be identified in South Africa (SA). The first is a 'quantitative' mapping (i.e. mapping more), necessitated by the scale and complexity of the modern city. The second — and less mainstream — trajectory is 'qualitative', engaging lived realities and needs on the ground rather than at a distance. Read more or join the discussion.
Opportunity: Intern with Future Cape Town
Future Cape Town is a non-profit think tank, passionate about the future of cities. It delivers on its mission through engagement, research and collaboration, creating a space for awareness, debate and action, in the area of urbanism in Cape Town and in cities around the world. Future Cape Town's Urban Intelligence Unit (UIU), the research wing of the organisation, is in search of passionate, inspiring interns to assist this team.
We conduct research in various arenas, through an experiential approach, across a vast range of urban and public issues e.g. public space, models of engagement, new media, urban regeneration, economic development and so forth. Click here to learn more about the internship and to apply.
Event: African Creative Economy Conference 2013
6–9 October 2013 
Cape Town, South Africa
The African Creative Economy Conference (6–9 October 2013) is an unique opportunity to empower yourself in a three-day intensive programme of exchanging cutting-edge information and innovative ideas. It will focus on unlocking the potential of the continent's creative industries (Africa's share of the global creative economy is currently less than 1%) and leapfrogging into emerging high-growth sectors of the world economy. Learn more.
Pages
Mumbai's hidden truth: Hungry stomachs grumble for the city's most vulnerable children
Mumbai's bursting-at-the-seams population growth is often all too easily explained: rural migrants come to the big city because "no one goes hungry here." The land-starved peninsula presents many other challenges, but food is everywhere: markets overflowing with vegetables are interspersed with street food vendors, who often sell their snacks for pennies. While access to food is less of an issue than in rural areas, affordable, nutritious food for the city's most vulnerable communities remains elusive. Read more or join the discussion.
Chennai's new integrated transport plan promotes walking and cycling, and is an example for Mumbai to learn from
Mumbai's commuter woes are as oft discussed as scores to the latest cricket match. They are griped about daily and exchanged with fervor. Gridlock, overcrowded trains, non-existent east-west routes dominate the discussion and so do the controversial solutions on the table: sealinks, flyovers, monorails. Transportation activists such as Rishi Aggarwal, a research fellow at the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) and member of the Mumbai Transport Forum (MTF), says that one of the major issues is that there is no integrated approach to planning, leaving commuters with ad hoc, disconnected systems. Read more or join the discussion.
An open Mumbai is a better Mumbai
I had the good fortune of walking along the Bandra waterfront in Mumbai last week with architect-activist P.K. Das, environmental journalist and neighborhood leader Darryl D'Monte, and Bandra Fort steward Arup Sarbadhikary. They were showing me some of the fruits of a long-standing effort to create more open space in Mumbai, where people can enjoy the outdoors and one of Mumbai's assets: its coastline. Read more.
Community-led counting as bargaining chip
Dharavi Redevelopment Plan (DRP) stands physically at the center of the city and metaphorically at the nexus of a debate over the future of redevelopment. On the one hand is the government's grand scheme to join hands with private developers to rehouse the poor in free 225-square-foot flats, using the leftover space to construct luxury buildings that can be sold at market rates. Activists who stand opposed to this model say the DRP fails to acknowledge that the issue is more complex: the one-square kilometer is also home to thousands of small-scale businesses, often sharing spaces with residential plots. The mixed-use, low-rise settlement is a typology that many neighborhoods all over the world envy. Read more or join the discussion.
How rural traditions influence the development of urban interventions: A case of women's reproductive health
Many rural traditions and customs carry over into urban life for India's migrant communities. Local festivals, artisanal expertise, and languages turn Mumbai's slums into vibrantly diverse amalgamations of India's villages. The city also offers greater freedom from the strict caste structures of rural areas, and the role and freedoms of women in Mumbai's slums often change as well. In fact, the autonomy that women gain as they move from rural to urban India provides insights into their healthcare choices, especially when it comes to reproductive care. Read more or join the discussion.
Looking east for urban models
Researchers and urbanists from leading Western institutions have proposed interventions — both large and small — for "righting" India's megacities. In Mumbai, however, city planners have looked east for models, with the notion that cities with similar issues can provide more appropriate solutions. The idea of "Shanghai-ing" Mumbai has been one of the most talked-about examples, but more effort is being made all over the country to exchange across more local borders. Read more or join the discussion.
Mumbai's municipal schools get first program to diagnose learning disabilities
Mumbai's public classrooms are a manifestation of the complexities that exist outside the school doors. Students suffer from poor nutrition, unstable family conditions, and economic pressures. Since many parents themselves are illiterate, few can offer homework help or guidance to their children. Not surprisingly, in this challenging environment, learning disabilities, one of the most invisible disabilities, go essentially undiagnosed. The result is that many students struggle through school with few extra services. In time, many drop out of school, abandoning their studies, causing a cycle of illiteracy and unemployment. Read more or join the discussion.
What informal settlements can teach us about city planning
A growing movement of architects and urban planners are looking to informal settlements not simply to assess the breakdown in city planning but to inform it. Architect Sourav Kumar Biswas, the author of a new research study, "Play! Tactics & Strategies for Public Spaces in Mumbai's Informal City," says that Mumbai's low-rise, high-density settlements have a lot to teach us about creating a more livable city, especially for its youngest residents. Read more or join the discussion.
Bridging the skill gap: India's urban workforce
Manmohan Singh, India's prime minister, speaking during India's 66th independence day, admitted that the government has not done enough on skill building for India's youth and announced the setting up of a national skill development agency (NSDA). Read more.
Solar rickshaws pave the way for prototypes at mega-events in India
The 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi brought the world's attention to India. The major event was one of the first and largest of its kind to be held in the country. "A total of 6,081 athletes from 71 Commonwealth nations and dependencies competed in 21 sports and 272 events, making it the largest Commonwealth Games to date. It was also the largest international multi-sport event to be staged in Delhi and India, eclipsing the Asian Games in 1951 and 1982," according to statistics on the event. While the mega sporting event was rife with controversy, it also presented the opportunity for the city to test out new transport methods and for international organizations to introduce greener and cleaner ideas. Read more or join the discussion.
Pages
Mentoring program guides Bangalore's most at-risk youth
India's landmark Right to Education Act shows the country's increasing investment in, and emphasis on, free education for all. The goals are to improve the school system, quality of teaching and student attendance. At the primary school level, significant strides have been made in enrollment, particularly in urban areas. However, many at-risk youth forego secondary school, opting instead to work or attend night school. If they do continue their education, their job prospects rarely stretch beyond avenues they have seen their parents or local community members take: tailors, carpenters, drivers, maids or factory workers. Read more or join the discussion.
Toxic trash: Hazardous waste management in Bangalore
Nearly everyone in India has a mobile phone these days. Rickshaw drivers slow their engines to answer calls en route. Streetside fruit sellers take orders with their mobiles. And women picking up trash in the road use their mobiles to keep tabs on their children. Yet the growing availability of new technologies raises concerns for environmentalists, who warn that e-waste can be extremely hazardous if not dealt with properly. A Times of India article says that old computers and electronics can lead to public health issues such as mercury poisoning or a possible stroke if they are simply dumped and left to pile up. Hazardous e-waste is part of a larger issue in urban India about the lack of waste management services — especially for hazardous industries including biomedical companies, oil refineries, and chemical industries —leading to serious environmental and health issues. Read more or join the discussion.
Has the Dhaka garment tragedy taught us anything?
The Bangladesh garment factory collapse reminded us of the humanity behind our every day fashion. The substandard conditions are common to stitchers in Bangalore as well. Even before the tragedy in Dhaka, Bangalore played host to a people's tribunal, "Living Wages for Garment Workers," to hear the voices behind the brands speak on issues related to living wages and decent working conditions as a human right. It was the "first-ever attempt" to bring together workers from all major apparel hubs from across India. Read more or join the discussion.
What Taksim Square tells us about Bangalore's future
Last week, protestors in Istanbul's Taksim Square took to the streets to stop their time-honored public meeting space from becoming a shopping mall. The city, they say, has been increasingly swallowed up by privatization and commercialization; parks and open spaces have essentially disappeared. The redevelopment story is one that Indian cities know too well. Read more or join the discussion.
Street courts help women in Bangalore slums
Concerns for women's safety in India have dominated headlines this year. Since the horrific gang rape in Delhi last year, stories about mothers, teenagers, and even young girls being subjected to violent attacks, rapes, and other physically and sexually gruesome incidents have been reported on nearly every week, if not every day. While the Delhi rape case was committed by men who were strangers to the victim, all too often women know the perpetrators of such crimes. A 2012 Indian Journal of Public Health article paints a grim picture of domestic violence statistics. The violence, in its many forms, cuts across social and economic strata; however, poor women face violence at significantly higher rates, and their position in society leaves them with few avenues for redress. Read more or join the discussion.
The reality of urban malnutrition
Urban malnutrition is pervasive among children in India's slums. The issue lacks attention in the urban context; instead, discussions of under-nourished children in remote villages capture headlines and government attention. "Official urban health statistics hide the appalling health and nutrition conditions of urban slum dwellers, most of whom are not 'official' residents of the cities, and therefore, do not get included in urban statistics," says a 2004 article, "Nutrition Problems in Urban Slum Children." The study found that only 13 percent of slum children have normal weight. Read more or join the discussion.
Pages
Grameen Bank, a bank for the poor
Grameen Bank is one of the most successful experiments in extending credit to Bangladesh's poor. Many have used microfinance to pull themselves out of poverty. The beginnings of Grameen Bank can be traced back to 1976, when Professor Muhammad Yunus, the head of the Rural Economics Program at the University of Chittagong, launched a research project to examine the possibility of designing a credit delivery system to provide banking services for the rural poor. This research project grew, and as of 2011, Grameen Bank's 23,144 employees serve 8.349 million borrowers (97 percent of which are women) in 81,379 villages, covering more than 97 percent of the total villages in Bangladesh. Read more or join the discussion.
Improving the environmental condition and connectivity of the Hatir Jheel canal area
IIn Dhaka, the poor mostly live near river banks, where they face the constant risk of floods and landslides. Because of the high cost of land, the urban poor can only afford to live near drainage congestions or on the edges of deep narrow valleys, areas which are prone to flooding because of the heavy rainfall, exacerbated by rapid climate change in the last few decades. In response to these difficult living conditions, and some of Dhaka's environmental and connectivity issues, the Capital Development Authority of the Government of Bangladesh, Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (RAJUK) has planned a prodigious environmental sustainability project called Hatir Jheel. Read more or join the discussion.
নগর পরিকল্পনা
ঢাকা শহরের অধিকাংশ দরিদ্রগোষ্ঠী নদীর তীরে বসবাস করে, যেখানে বন্যা ও ভূমিধ্বসের সম্ভাবনা প্রচুর। জমির উচ্চ মূল্য এবং দূর্বল অর্থনৈতিক অবস্থার কারনে, শহরের অধিকাংশ দরিদ্র জনগোষ্ঠী নিষ্কাশন প্রণালীর কাছাকাছি অথবা সংকীর্ণ স্থানগুলিতেই শুধুমাত্র বসবাস করতে সমর্থ হয়। দ্রুত জলবায়ু পরিবর্তন, ভারী বৃষ্টিপাত এবং বৈশ্বিক উষ্ণায়নের কারণে এই এলাকাটি আরো বন্যা প্রবণ হয়েছে। তাই, এসব এলাকায় বসবাস তাদের দারিদ্র জীবনের উপর কঠিন প্রভাব ফেলে। তাই ঢাকা শহর পরিকল্পনা এবং উন্নয়ন সংস্থা, রাজউক (রাজধানী উন্নয়ন কর্তৃপক্ষ) “হাতির ঝিল” নামক একটি বড় প্রকল্পের পরিকল্পনা করেছে যা শহুরে দরিদ্রদের বাসস্থান সুবিধার পাশাপাশি ঢাকা শহরের পরিবেশগত স্থায়িত্বও নিশ্চিত করবে। Read more or join the discussion.
Health services provided to women garment workers
In Bangladesh, more than a million people migrate from rural to urban areas each year. Migration in urban areas is in part influenced by 'pull' factors, like ease of access to the informal sector, the probability of a higher income, and the possibility of job opportunities in Ready Made Garment industries (RMGs). In these RMG industries, women make up almost 85 percent of the 2.4 million employees. However, almost 87 percent of female workers suffer from various health problems, like malnutrition, anemia, gynecological problems, urine infection, and other communicable diseases. Read more or join the discussion.
বাংলাদেশের গার্মেন্টস নারী শ্রমিকদের জন্য মেরী স্টপসের স্বাস্থ্যসেবা
বাংলাদেশে গড়ে ১০ লক্ষ মানুষ গ্রাম থেকে শহরে আসে, এর মধ্যে ৫০% আসে নগরী ঢাকায়। একটি পরিসংখানে দেখা গিয়েছি যে, ঢাকায় বাইরে থেকে মানুষ আসার প্রধান কারণ হচ্ছে বেসরকারি কর্মসংস্থানের (যেমনঃ গার্মেন্টস ফ্যাক্টরি) সুব্যবস্থা এবং তুলনামূলক বেশী উপার্জনের সম্ভাবনা। আনুমানিক ১,১০০ গার্মেন্টস ফ্যাক্টরি ৪০০,০০০ অভিজ্ঞ-অনভিজ্ঞ শ্রমিকদের চাকরি দিয়ে থাকে এবং গ্রাম থেকে আসা শতকরা ৮ ভাগ মানুষই গার্মেন্টস ফ্যাক্টরিতে চাকরি পাওয়ার আশায় শহরে আসে। গার্মেন্টস শ্রমিকদের শতকরা ৮৫ ভাগ কাজ করে গ্রাম থেকে আসা মহিলারা। লক্ষ্য করা গিয়েছে যে, এসকল মহিলা শ্রমিকদের শতকরা ৮৭ জনই বিভিন্ন অসুখে ভুগছে; উদাহরণ সরূপ, পুষ্টিহীনতা, অ্যানিমিয়া, গাইনকলজিকাল (gynocological) সমস্যা, প্রসাবে সমস্যা এবং অন্যান্য ছোঁয়াচে রোগ। গার্মেন্টস ফ্যাক্টরির মহিলা কর্মীরা সমাজ ব্যবস্থায় নিম্নস্তরে অবস্থান করে, যেখানে তারা খুব সীমিত আয়ে সুবিধাবঞ্চিত জীবনযাপন করে।
A Manifesto for the Extreme Poor
There are 25 million extreme poor in Bangladesh, a significant proportion of whom live in Dhaka city. However, there has been no comprehensive study of their individual needs. The narrative of the poor is often stereotyped and misrepresented; it is therefore vital that the voice of the poor be heard. The buzzword in poverty eradication must change from "intervention" to "cooperation." Read more or join the discussion.
চরম দরিদ্রের জন্য একটি ঘোষণা
একটি বিদ্রূপাত্মক কিন্তু বিনোদনমূলক ভিডিও থেকে বুঝা যায় কিভাবে একজন আন্তর্জাতিক সাহায্য কর্মী এবং একটি আফ্রিকান গ্রামবাসীর কাছে দরিদ্রের সংজ্ঞা ভিন্ন হতে পারে। যদিও এই ভিডিওটি কিছুটা গতানুগতিক এবং ক্ষতিকারক, এটি পরিষ্কারভাবে দেখায় যে কখনও কখনও ঘটনা এবং পরিসংখ্যান ভুলে, দারিদ্র্য দূরীকরণ এবং উন্নয়ন আসল লক্ষ্য স্মরণ করা প্রয়োজন। বাংলাদেশে ২৫ লক্ষ চরম দরিদ্র আছে, যার একটি গুরুত্বপূর্ণ অংশ ঢাকা শহরে বাস করে। কিন্তু, তাদের স্বতন্ত্র চাহিদা সংক্রান্ত কোন ব্যপক গবেষণা এখনো হয় নি। দরিদ্র আখ্যান প্রায়ই গতানুগতিক ও ভুল ভাবে উপস্থাপিত এবং তাই, দারিদ্র দূরীকরণে দরিদ্রদের নিজস্ব গল্প শোনা অত্যন্ত গুরুত্বপূর্ণ। আর তাই, দারিদ্র্য দূরীকরণের জন্য চিন্তাধারা "হস্তক্ষেপ" থেকে "সহযোগিতা"য় পরিবর্তন করতে হবে। Read more or discuss.
How cell phones save babies
Asha Rani, a 24-year-old mother of two living in the Vashantek slum, says that she used to have no idea about how to raise a healthy child. She did not know about immunization schedules, nutritional recomendations, or common pediatric illnesses that can be handled at home. This was her level of knowledge about health care before she came across the Aponjon service ("the close or dear one" in Bangla), a mobile health service in Bangladesh. Read more or join the discussion.
Government-private partnerships to empower girls via stipends
In August 2010, the Policy and Strategy for Public Private Partnership (PPP) was issued by the Government of Bangladesh to assist the development of public infrastructure and services: "The PPP program is part of the Government's Vision 2021 goal to ensure a more rapid, inclusive growth trajectory, and to better meet the need for enhanced, high-quality public services in a fiscally sustainable manner." In order to promote financial responsibility and sustainability of these public-private partnerships, the PPP unit was established under the Ministry of Finance. Thanks to these policies, public-private partnerships have indeed been effective in reducing the illiteracy rate in Bangladesh. Read more or join the discussion.
Water: Demand exceeding supply
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.
Pages
Khawatirkan Jokowi Nyapres, Bukti Indonesia Gagal Mengkader Pemimpin!
Bila melakukan kilas balik, menangnya Jokowi dalam pilkada Provinsi DKI Jakarta dua tahun silam, memang menggemparkan dunia perpolitikan Indonesia. Sebagian masyarakat tentu senang sekaligus 'harap-harap cemas' lantaran beberapa pertanyaan: "Apakah Jokowi akan mampu menata Jakarta yang sarat dengan kepentingan politik, sebagaimana beliau menata Solo yang terkesan adem ayem? Ya, Jakarta memang keras bung!" Baca lebih lanjut.
Impian Jakarta menjadi kota hijau
Undang-undang Dasar 1945 Indonesia secara resmi menjamin kebebasan memilih dan mempraktekkan agama dan kepercayaan tiap-tiap penduduk. Namun demikian pemerintah secara resmi mengakui hanya enam agama yaitu Islam, katolik, protestan, buddha, hindu dan konghuchu. akibatnya banyak terjadi kasus kekerasan terhadap minoritas penganut agama dan kepercayaan. Munculnya kelompok-kelompok militan islam misalnya, kerap melakukan intimidasi dan menyerang rumah-rumah ibadah serta anggota-anggota minoritas agama. Human Rights Watch yang sudah melakukan riset di 10 provinsi dan mewawancarai lebih dari 115 orang dari berbagai kepercayaan, menyatakan bahwa 71 diantara mereka adalah korban kekerasan dan pelanggaran. Begitu juga survey dari LSI yang menyatakan bahwa sejak kepemimpinan SBY tahun jumlah kekerasan diskriminasi meningkat dengan rata-rata 150 kasus pertahun dan 65 persen diantaranya adalah kekerasan agama.Dalam rangka menjaga keharmonisan dan keselarasan kehidupan beragama di Indonesia maka telah dikembangkan perangkat lunak yang dapat memonitor berbagai tindak kekerasan atas nama agama dan isu-isu pluralisme. Perangkat ini telah dikembangkan oleh dua institute di Jakarta, The Wahid Institute dan Setara Institute. Baca lebih lanjut atau bergabung dalam diskusi.
Riset untuk aksi di Johar Baru, Jakarta Pusat
Riset untuk aksi di Johar Baru, Jakarta Pusat
Jati Baru adalah sebuah kecamatan miskin dan padat penduduk di Jakarta Pusat. Kemiskinan, eksklusi social dan tawuran anak muda telah menjadi cirri-ciri umum dari komunitas kumuh ini. Didorong oleh keinginan untuk mencari jalan keluar dari masalah sisial yang akut ini beberapa orang staf pengajar dari departemen sosiologi Universitas Indonesia menyusun strategi berdasarkan temuan penelitian yang mereka lakukan tahun 2012. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk memahami proses-proses yang bersifat sistemik dari penyakit sosial sebagaimana yang tercermin dari tawuran antar kelompok anak muda ini terjadi. Dengan asumsi bahwa fenomena tawuran adalah refleksi frustrasi terhadap aturan-aturan yang dipaksakan oleh otoritas formal di pilihlah sebuah pendekatan penelitian yang memanfaatkan metode kuantitatif dan kualitatif. Baca lebih lanjut.
Musim hujan datang, Jakarta bersiap menghadapi banjir
Di bulan November ini warga dan pemerintah DKI Jakarta bersiap-siap menghadapi datangnya musim penghujan. Tentu kita masih ingat ketika banjir besar melanda ibukota di awal tahun 2013 ini, saat itu sebagian besar wilayah Jabodetabek terendam air karena intensitas hujan yang tinggi. Bahkan pusat kota Jakarta yang merupakan pusat pemerintahan dan bisnis distrik juga terendam karena peristiwa tanggul jebol di Jalan Latuharhari. Pemprov DKI Jakarta menargetkan pengerjaan persiapan antisipasi banjir selesai pada akhir Desember tahun ini. Pengerjaan tersebut terbagi ke dalam beberapa proyek seperti pengerukan 12 waduk, perbaikan pompa di rumah-rumah pompa, refungsi sungai, normalisasi kali, dan sumur resapan. Baca lebih lanjut.
Tantangan Jakarta menuju kota ramah sepeda
Apa yang terjadi ketika seseorang memutuskan naik sepeda di Jakarta? rata-rata mereka pasti akan mengeluh soal betapa parah polusi dan kemacetan di jalan, belum ditambah sepeda motor atau bis kota yang tidak mau mengalah dan memotong jalan dan mobil yang kian hari jumlahnya terus bertambah. Ditengah kekacauan kota Jakarta, ada angin segar dari pemerintah yang mulai menunjukkan keperpihakan terhadap para pemakai sepeda di Jakarta dengan membuat jalur sepeda pertama kalinya tahun 2011. Meski demikian masih banyak tantangan bagi Jakarta untuk menjadi kota yang ramah bagi pemakai sepeda. Baca lebih lanjut atau bergabung dalam diskusi.
Pembangunan Transportasi Massal berbasis Rel di Jakarta
Di Bulan Oktober ini, Pemerintah DKI Jakarta memulai pembangunan dua sistem transportasi massal berbasis rel, yaitu MRT dan Monorail. Gubernur Jakarta Joko Widodo meresmikan pembangunan awal stasiun kereta transportasi massal cepat (MRT) di kawasan Dukuh Atas, Jakarta Pusat, pada hari Kamis 10 Oktober 2013. Jalur MRT ini merupakan tahap pertama yang akan menghubungkan kawasan Bundaran Hotel Indonesia, Blok M hingga Lebak Bulus. Rencananya pemerintah Jakarta akan membangun proyek MRT lanjutan yang menghubungkan berbagai wilayah di Jakarta. Baca lebih lanjut.
Sebuah Tes Inklusivitas
Sebuah Tes Inklusivitas
Peristiwanya sederhana. Seorang lurah, perempuan dan beragama Kristen, yang baru diangkat, diprotes oleh sekelompok orang yang menganggap bahwa dia tidak tepat memimpin sebuah kelurahan yang mayoritasnya beragama Islam. Peristiwa ini terjadi di Kelurahan Lenteng Agung, Jakarta Selatan, di ibukota Negara Republik Indonesia. Baca lebih lanjut.
Kolaborasi bersama menangani masalah gizi Indonesia
Temuan menarik tentang permasalah gizi di Indonesia disampaikan oleh Friesland Campina Institute bekerjasama dengan Persagi (Persatuan Ahli Gizi Indonesia) yang melakukan studi gizi anak yang dikenal dengan nama SEANUTS (South East Asia Nutrition Survey) yang menyatakan bahwa anak Indonesia menghadapi beban ganda yaitu kekurangan gizi dan kelebihan gizi. Baca lebih lanjut atau bergabung dalam diskusi.
Pro kontra kebijakan mobil murah (Low Cost Green Car)
Kebijakan pemerintah pusat mengenai low cost green car (LCGC) atau yang lebih dikenal masyarakat sebagai "mobil murah" menimbulkan pro dan kontra. Pemerintah pusat, dalam hal ini Kementerian Perindustrian, menyatakan bahwa dengan adanya LCGC ini akan menumbuhkan industri otomotif dalam negri karena dibuat di Indonesia dan memakai komponen buatan Indonesia. Aturan mengenai LCGC ini tertuang dalam Peraturan Menteri Perindustrian (Permenperin) Nomor 33/M-IND/PER/7/2013 tentang Pengembangan Produksi Kendaraan Bermotor Roda Empat yang Hemat Energi dan Harga Terjangkau. Permenperin itu merupakan turunan dari program mobil emisi karbon rendah atau low emission carbon yang telah diatur dalam Peraturan Pemerintah Nomor 41 Tahun 2013 tentang kendaraan yang dikenai Pajak Penjualan atas Barang Mewah (PPnBM). Peraturan itu antara lain menyebutkan tentang keringanan pajak bagi penjualan mobil hemat energi. Hal ini memungkinkan produsen menjual mobil di bawah Rp 100 juta. Dengan peraturan itu, mobil dengan kapasitas mesin di bawah 1.200 cc dan konsumsi bahan bakar paling setidaknya 20 km per liter dapat dipasarkan tanpa PPnBM. Baca lebih lanjut.
KOPAJA: Transportasi murah meriah yang terabaikan
KOPAJA! Siapa orang Jakarta yang tidak tahu tentang Kopaja. Bis ukuran sedang dengan kapasitas 25 orang yang sering digunakan sebagai angkutan umum oleh masyarakat awam. Ia disukai karena murah dengan tarif Rp 3.000, untuk jarak dekat maupun jauh. Kopaja dimiliki oleh perusahaan penyedia jasa angkutan umum bernama Koperasi Angkutan Jakarta yang telah berdiri sejak 1970an. Masyarakat kecil yang tidak mampu membeli kendaraan pribadi cukup terbantu dengan keberadaan Kopaja dan Metromini yang memiliki rute lengkap dan tersebar di Jakarta Pusat, Barat, Utara, Timur dan Selatan meski dengan kompromi kurangnya rasa nyaman. Karenanya saat ini Pemerintah Jakarta melakukan intervensi terhadap keberadaan Kopaja dengan membantu proses peremajaan bis hingga penyediaan subsidi; menyediakan armada bis baru dan integrasi dengan jalur busway Transjakarta. Baca lebih lanjut atau bergabung dalam diskusi.