1. travel
2. tourist destinations
3. africa

25 -April 1975
ITED NATIONS
CONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL
COMMISSION FOR AFRICA
oan Regional Conference
]|n Hunan
H
C^jlro, 21-26 Jffcne 1975
UTILIZJfflON OP RESOURCES
SANITATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES
IN SELECTED AFRICAN CITIES
CONOTTS
Introduction --------------
1
Effects of housing on health ----------
3
Water supplies
3
-------------
Sewerage t drainage and solid waste disposal
------
5
Transportn-and^otheri strives
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
5
StUEnary" and conclusion
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
13
References
—
—
------""""
4
1575-886
---
E/C»«l4/HDS/7
SANITATION AHD <3*VIRONiraTAL SERVICES
IN SELECTED AFRICAN CITIES
Introduction
The environmental problems facing many African cities today, emanate from
their historical background and geographical setting and the failure of
national Governments and city authorities to adopt developmental priorities
I with respect to these,, Historical background is iiaportant because some cities
I founded during the colonial era are in the position of having well planned
I areas with modern facilities catering for the well-to-do minority groups side
I by side with unplanned areas intended for the African population and ill-provided
{ viitfe even the most rudimentary facilities. At the same tiiae3 most African
} cities .were created as centres of commerce and industry and relied on the
| surrounding rural areas to provide them with labour and supplies , the result
j being the twentieth-century phenomenon popularly termed "the rural exodus%
i Geographical netting is important because in the case of many cities, it was
; dictated by the wishes of and priorities set by the colonial Powers, who never
took account of proximity to basic supplies, such as water resources, which
would be needed by growing urban population*
In many cases developmental
priorities adopted by national Governments hardly existed until v&ty recently,
9. and those that did exist concentrated on the "per capita income" concept,
which has little relevance to Africa, where the rich are getting richer and
the poor are getting poorer and are left with no option but to stream to the.
cities from the depressed rural areas to try to eke out a living in the even
more depressed peri-urban slums*
Tho resulting urban environmental problems have been aggravated by the
. rapid increase in the population of African countries, particularly in urban
1 areas where it dLs estimated to be doubling every 10 to 15 years* i/ Figures
; show, that the urban population of Africa, which was 58 million In 1962, will
i reach 294 million, by the year 2000* 2/ Figures 1^-5 illustrate the phenomenal
; growth of several African csities*
j
:
!
i
j
\
These continent-wade increases in urban population are basically due to
vast migrations of people from the countryside, causing aome of the larger
cities to grow by as much as 8 per cent or more per year and to become ringed
by shanty towns in which shacks made from automobile tyres and packing cases
give miserable cover to migrants and create risk3 of social diseconomies far
greater than known so far, 3/
To city planners, with only limited resources, this influx has proved
a nightmare because they have been unable to provide adequate physical
\ facilities in respect of housing, supplies and services dealing with food,
[water, energy, roads, drains and sewage©
In no city is the housing prog^wte
[keeping pace with the increasing population, and the proliferation of peri-
j urban alums continues unabated0 There is a real danger that urban populations
■ in Africa will increasingly outdistance any urban services and housing that
! may be provided for then. hJ The housing problem is a bottomless pity and
i individual projects are too marginal to have any real impact,. The costs of
\ raajor programmes are so high they are ijapossible to affords and even so-called
' "low-eost housing" schemes tend to provide shelter for the medium rich rather
' than for the nore needy poor»
H
Page
The high growth rats o£ national urban populations resulting fron the
inflow of poor rural migrants leads to increasing unenploynent^ or imbalance
In incorao distribution and a general deterioration in urban living conditions*
Besides being faced with the problen of insufficient and inadequate housing
already referred to, nost cities do not have sanitary facilities of the type
and <the adequacy required,,
VJater supply and oewag© disposal projects often
appear to be fighting c losing battle, with backlogs growing faster than they
can be filled*
Roads, street lighting, etco, fall well behind the standard
required for decent living*. Health services, clinics, hospitals and maternity
and child welfare services are often in short supply*, SoIsdoIs, libraries*
coranunity centres and sports and recreational facilities fail to satisfy the
increasing demntU §/ Traffic congestion affects the transportation of goods
and persons
3n the face of such icnesoe odd3, the city atvfchoritieo beeone helpless
and- despondent in their efforts to aneliorate urban conditions due to a
shortage of both huoan and financial resources,, 3h the neantiae, the ijapov—
erished squatters remain underfed$ conaetraently their healthy energy and
morale becone considerably weakened and their working capacity greatly reducad.
This leads to low personal productivity» and they are retained in a state
of poverty in which they are unable to provide thenaelvea with even the
barest necessities «> 2/
To add insult to injury^ the problen of land speculation in African
cities and of the highly inflationary spiral of urban land pirlces creates an
obstacle to furfeher urban progress at a tine when population pressure continues
to build while city adninistrations, which are highly fragnental are woefully
lacking in capacity to deal with fche probleo«
fforeover, the extent to which
soek3 authorities can regulate land values is United oinco "private land
ownership" is protected by law and the uncontrolled profit aofcive is still
regarded as the stinulus for all progresoo
In the absence of any urbanization programs in many cities^ speculators
buy and subdivide laiai on which thay provide partially constructed roads
but no water supply, drainage for surface run-off, sewage facilities or
transport to take people fron the outi3kirf-s to the buiH^-iap sections of the"
cityo Land parcel© or lots of those estates are usually priced at fully
developed urhrui lar-d ^^a.iueRj xThich ai*e far beyond the financial capacity of
more than 90 per cont of the rural &*-nigrants of the city, who are left with
no alternative bt-t to put up structures of any kind to shelter then in areas
they occupy ir illegally*1 o The initial reaction of the city authorities is
to tear dorm these s'troctures, which arc considerod to bo urban blights j
however, the- only sprout up again a:-: fast aa they are pulled down* Hhr&yr&Pf
while occupants of Iii^>-^rade areas can afford to subscribe to the cost of
facilities such ao paved roadss drains3 transport^ power and water supplies
and refuse collection and disposal, including street cleaning^ services,
occupants of 3^w^rade areas cannot nake any financial contribution to the
amortization of tbo nunicipal loans necessary for tho extension of public
services^ Fron the available evidence, it appears that housing is the cost
serious envi-rtannental problen facing African cities and the roofcai^&as© of
the nany oooial problems encounterodo
POPULATION
SOME
GROWTH
MAJOR AFRICAN
Greater
2,000,000 i
1
Lagos
1
1
with
1
FIG
CITIES
1
Lagos City
1
1
1
Kinshasa
1/
i
1,000,000
1
W
t
I
:::?:■:*:■:
t
m
28::'?:
i
YnJYj
.j.iTW;
1UQ
Greater
1910
Lagos
1930
1950
Lagos
1970
City
1B90
1910
Kinshasa
1950
=
250,000
1901
=
41,000
1908
=
4,700
1967
=
1.500.000
1969
=
842,000
1970
*
1,200,000
iJYfiYi
1930
1950
1970
POPULATION
SOME
GROWTH
MAJOR AFRICAN
FIG. 2
CITIES
Ibadan
Accra
2,000,000
1,000,000
4
500.000
-
400,000
■:::::::::::-
300,000
/
200.000
w&
ilili-i
10 0,000
'.;W#i':«
50,000
•;■'.■;•!■■.■!''
4 0.000
■:::-y.y
30.000
<*•
20,000
10,000
■:'
ills??!
o
-
5,000
V
vXW
4,000
4.000
3,000
V.-
=,
2,000
a.
■
o
a.
1,000
1890
1910
1930
19S0
1970
1890
1910
1901
=
26,622
1690
=
200,000
1966
=
521.900
1967
*
720.000
1930
•Si;:;-;:
1950
1970
POPULATION
SOME
GROWTH
MAJOR AFRICAN
FIG. 3
CITIES
Abidjan
Dakar
2,000,000
1,000,000
500.000
400,000
300,000
200.000
"■.■.■■■.-
10 0,000
——
50,000
4 0,000
4
3 0,000
/
20,000
A
ltd
/
10,000
::::-::::x:
O
WOO
-
4,000
<
—i
3
2,000
:::::::::::::
0.
o
Q.
1,000
1130
1910
19.30
1950
1970
1890
1910
1904
=
18.400
19)0
=
1.000
1969
=
677,000
1966
r
400,000
1930
1950
1970
POPULATION
SOME
GROWTH
MAJOR AFRICAN
FIG.
CITIES
Nairobi
4
Mombasa
2.000,000
1.000,000
i
500,000
400,000
0
300,000
200,000
i
10 0,000
*e,ooo
40,000
M
4
/
J
30,000
20,000
4
10,000
A
■I"
4
:
:
:-;■:■:-;-;■
o
-
4,000
<
3,000
:'■:'■:■:':■:■:
1
:
I
o
a.
':
1.000
1190
1910
1Sl30
1950
1970
1890
1910
1906
=
11,500
1906
s
30,000
1970
=
507,373
1962
»
179600
1930
1950
1970
POPULATION
SOME
GROWTH
MAJOR AFRICAN
Addis
CITIES
FIG.
Ababa
Dar
es
5
Salaam
2,000.000
1.000,000
f
$00,000
400,000
3 00,000
200.000
10 0,000
A
50,000
4 0,000
d
A
3 0,000
20.000
10.000
o
-
4,000
^
3,000
3
2,000
■::-:::::':
:'-:?:'-: :': ':-
1
So-:-:
a.
o
a.
'■;':■;■■'■
■:;:o:::::
■:';■'■'■'■■■
1,000
10»0
1910
1&30
1950
1970
1890
1910
1908
=
35.000
1900
=
20.000
1967
=
637,800
1970
=
353.000
1930
1950
•y.-yy-
1970
E/CNoH/HUS/7
Page 3
Effects of houginj^on_healjji
The indices used to determine the effects of dwellings on the health of
a population include density, ioe«j the number of persons or houses per unit
area; the number of persons per roomj the existence of utilities3 such as
watert sewer, gas and electricity, and the physical condition of the dwelling
unit, Those factors play a major role in mortality and morbidity rates in
African cities 8 2/ Overcrowding, poverty, cultural or social deprivation^
malnutrition and inadequate social services of ten lead to a proliferation of
communicable diseases and endemic diseases© Moreover) ^he environment of the
homei especially where sanitation facilities are concerned plays a major role
in the occurrence of certain parasitic and helminthic infections. Furthermore!
overcrowding, poor ventilation -ind associated atmospheric pollution load to
an increase in the 5ncidence of respiratory infectionsc
Environmental services in several African cities will be examined in
detail in order to assess the;.r impact on the lives of African urbaniies«
VJater supplies
It is estimated that over 80 per cent of Africa's total population has to
get water from suspicious or badly contaminated sources and that 33 per cent
of all urban dwellers collect water in buckets froi3 standpipes and store it
at bome7 where it is likely to become contaminateda
Another 33 per cent
take watar wherever it is found, usually fron unsanitary wells and contaminated
streams,, The quality of most of this water is low| and most bacterial, viral
and parasitic diseases caused by contaminated water are prevalento Table 1
reveals the situation regarding water supplies to urban African populations
over a decade ago,
It shows that very few households were supplied with water
at that time; and a survey of a few African cities indicates that the per
capita supply situation lias deteriorated remarkably as a result of the rapid
Increase in the urban population,, £/
It is important to assess the situation with regard to water supplies in
a number of African cities since water plays an important part in. the transmission
of cholera, typhoid fever* bacillary and ano^bic dysentery, poliomelitis and
infectious hepatitia in Africa0 rihser is also implicated indirectly in the
transmission of such diseases as malaria^ yellow fever- filariasis and onchocerciasiatt
Come parasitic diseases r:voh as schisvosemiasis and dracontiasis
(Guinea worn) din which irhe causative organism undergoes changes inside small
aquatic animals before being liberated need the agency of water to complete
their life cycle of transmission* 9/
■later supplies tc urban populations? whether obtained from underground
sources or from streams and lakes, ciust therefore be protected against pollution
by iiapounding vo reduce organic matter contentj screenxr-g to free the water
of larger objectG3 aeration to remove odours, sedimentation to renove suspended
particles, slow falteration to reduce turbidity3 bacterial counts: chemical
precipitation and by oth^r special treatment methods so as to ensure a supply
of potable and palatable water of satisfactory quality* Thin question will
be examined as it relates to a number of African cities in subsequent chapters*
Page 4
Urban water supply3 1962
Percentage of population served and ungeryed in African c
Urban population served
House
Public
connexions
Unseryed
outlets
.
. 25
35
40
Libyan Arab Republic
25
40
35
Morocco
30
25
45
Tunisia
50
35
15
80
10
!0
Angola
15
25
60
Cameroon
10
25
65
Central African Republic
10
20
70
Chad
10
15
25
15
40
45
15
40
45
15
20
65
Ghana
10
65
25
Guinea
15
35
50
Ivory Coast
15
25
6o
Kenya
25
50
25
Madagascar
15
45
40
Mali
1O
35
55
Mozambique
10
25
65 ;
5
25
70
Nigeria
10
35
55
Senegal
20
30
50
Sierra Leone
15
25
60
Somalia
10
30
60
Sudan
30
60
10
United Republic of Tanzania
15
' 45
40
Congo
20
35
Uganda
20
40
40
Upper Volta
10
25
65
Algeria
.
Egypt
Ethiopia
Gambia,
Rhodesia, Malawi
.
Niger
Source*
B.H9 Dietrich and J«M Hendersen,
.-
•
'
75
Urban water supper conditions and
needs in seventy-five developing countries (tJHO» Public Health paper
Geneva, 1963*
3/ai/l4/H0C/7
Page 5-
-%
Sewerage, drainage and solid waste disposal
To assure a health urban population anywhere, storm water and,sewage
effluents should be discharged into water courses only after proper treatment.
Solid wastes nust be disposed of to prevent their acting as breeding grounds
for disease carriers. Stom water nay be directed through drains and sewers,
and sewage should be treated either in settling tanks or by alternative
methods suitable for the geographical location of the city concerned. In many
African cities, sewage is disposed of either in septic tanks or in cesspools,
by pair or pit latrines. Solid wastes are normally collected fron depots,
by backdoor picfo*ip or by doorwto-4oor pick-up and disposed of by sanitary landfill,
incineration or composting.
In parts of sone African cities, even rudimentary
facilities for the disposal of solid wastes are lacking so that open spaces
are littered with deposits. Watercourses passing through and cities act as
sewers and cesspools whose smell alone constitutes an environmental nuisance
and whose disease-carrying capacity poses a serious health hazard to all persons
living in their Vicinity.
Transport and other services
Transportation in many: African cities has been affected by the general .
problem of population increase and the resulting inability of city authorities
to provide adequate means of moving people and goods from one part of the
city to another. As their incomes have grown, nenbers of the welMto-do
miaority have acquired private vehicles in increasing quantities, which has
led to traffic congestion and air pollution and the frustrations that accompany
then. Foreign exchange difficulties have prompted many governments to'halt
the importation of new vehicles, and as a result several cities abound in
dilapidated automobiles which create intolerable environmental hazards*
Poor urbanites depend on public transportj and with the increase in
urban population, the available means have been: so overstretched that people
are always packed in uncomfortably from their miserable dwellings to their
places-of work. The peri-*irban slums are constantly expanding as the in-migrant
population increases, and the available transportation means fail to cope,
thereby aggravating the situation.
TJhere energy supplies in Africa's urban centres are concerned, residents
of well-to-do areas get and can afford to pay for supplies of electricity
and/or gas for lighting, heating and cooking. The poorer segments of the
urban, population depend on wood and charcoal for all their cooking and heating
needs as they are the only resources they can afford. The pollution and nuisances
this causes in poor urban households oust be: axperienced to be believed^
Health services and educational and recreational opportunities appear
to be as inadequate in most African cities as the other environmental facilities
mentioned above.
Eight African cities, (Casablanca, Cairo, Lagos, Abidjan, Addis Ababa,
Nairobi, Lusaka and Kinshasa) have been selected as subjects for the following
case studies intended to highlight some of the urban environtaental problems
already discussed in the preceding paragraphs. An analysis of environmental
services in such fields as housing, water supply, sewerage, solid waste disposal,
B/CHa4/HDS/7
Page 6
transportation, energy supplies, health services and recreation reveals a
.pattern which is repeated in city after city with only Elinor differences*
Casablanca
Casablanca is a typical example of a city comprising a number,of separate
different cities, each with its own distinctive environmental setting and
problems. On the one hand, there are modern districts which were built for
French citizens during colonial tiiaes and are now inhabited by upper-class
Moroccans. These districts were well planned and are provided with an iwple
supply of high quality water; excellent sewerage systems; brightly lit and
well swept streets, Where garbage is collected daily and bus transport functions
well and well-kept, green parks exist for recreation^ lg/
On the other hand, there are the old Moslem quarters, surrounded by walls.
There inner cities are crowded and airless, with little sunlight to relieve
the damp and gloom. New medinas have sprouted up around the old.ones, and they
too are in a sorry state of environmental squalor. ' 'Their vast unbroken
communities* which are overcrowded and wallowing in poverty and dirt, stretch
along narrow, airless streets without adequate water and sewerage systems.
Their population is plagued with serious health problems.
The thied and most complex type of city within Casablanca is the shanty
towns. These are called "bidonvilles" or cities of oil drums. They are vast
conounities whose buildings are constructed from flattened oil drums, wood
scraps, etc. Fopolation densities of the bidonvilles. are extremely high and
are reported to be increasing. The bidonvilles of Casablanca have over
:
180,000 ±J/ residents, and their population is growing at a rate of 7 per cent
per year, Moroccan Government authorities view the bidonvilles as a threat
to security, a blot on the national character and an unmitigated evil and have
had them fenced in* There is a strict prohibition against their further
expansion and the alteration of the existing shacks. Often such structures,
which the authorities regard as a shame and scourage that must be eliminated
for the sake of national pride, are demolished only to appear again overnight
at a nearby site.
6' bidonvillea ^re overcrowded, with narrow, often unpaved streets where
garbage and waste are strewn about.; Housing consists of miserable shacksj and
their occupants get water from fountains, which are few and far, between.
The inadequate and insufficient housing in Casablanca and the serious
unemployment problems faced by ito citizens are recognized as being two facets
of the problem of poverty arid that both of them are tied to the problem of
rural migration to the cities. iJhereas the central business districts and
high-class residential areas are beautiful and have top quality services, th©
remaining areas are poor, dirty, unplanned and lack almost all public services.
The inhabitants are without resources .with which to improve these districts
thenselves .and have no political power to attract Government interest and
assistance.
*
E/QU14/H0S/7
Page 7
■Hie urban popuia-tisii cf Morocco as a whole ia growing at. a rata of
6,5 per cent a year, and it is estimated that it will reach 10 million by
19§5«
The rate of expansion of urban areas and population far outstrips
the capacity of the Government to raise or even maintain, the level of services
in fields ranging from water supply and sewerage to'hous:tagf welfare and even
education,, Older areas of the city are deserted by the wealthy and decay.
while suburban areas spread outwards with virtually no iorethoucht or
planning by the Governmehto
TJhat measures* then? have been taken or are envisaged to tackle the
eexdous environmental problems of Casablanca? Despite problecs due to the
fact land values have been grossly distorted by speculatorss the Government
embarked upon a number of far-reaching shcene3 in the postwar period. In.
1952, a latf was promulgated which provided a strong and effective instrument
for city planning and gave the Government power to develep where and Nhen it
chose* with co-operation fron private sector,,
A new plan aimed at combatinc *£he .development bidprrsrilles and overcrowding
in the; medinas his been adopted0 It focuses on housing policy and on large
developments on State-owned land$ where private individuals - from the
bidonvilleSj it is hoped - might construct their own houses .assisted by
Governoent-guaranteed loans on easy terasa In addition? the Government puts
up teoporary houses t as a half--way measure between the shacks of the bidonyilles
and the type of dwelling mentioned aboveo
The Government hast: in addition, insiituted "sito-Gm-oervice" schectes
whereby it assists large low-income housing devolopniesit by preparing a layout
fop the area to be developed3, installing basic aerviceej'syr-b as i-oadaj, waterf
sowerago and elebtricityf and then selling the lots at p.^.^33 below theii*
market valuo0
i ,
!«■
I'
j1
i:
i;
The ownorst of these lo-to sha3.1 conaiTticfc their own houses on
them with assistance provided by a low-aaost hoiising loan pro-granno*
Self"help housing construction has also becor
in efforts to eliminate
an important objective
These are gallant efforts designed to tackle soi'ious, prcbleao# which .
States td.th vast resources would find wolX-nlgh iapossibXa to eliainate©
Cairo
The urban population of Sgypt, which repi^3semted 31 per cent of the total
population of the country in 1947? had ricor. to t\2 per cer-t in 1970a 3igbty
per cent of the total urban population was crowded into Cairop which had
a density of 20^000 people per square kllbnetre*- }2j The city has a settled
population of about 5 million people and mobile population of about 1 nillion,
This has created very serious urban problems especially whore the pro?"iai£>ri
of housingo i3/
Page 8
Room capacity in Cairo has not increased at the.same rate as the population,
so that now an average of 5 people occupy a single room. This overcrowding,
which Is especially severe in the poorer parts of the city, has led to serious
problems of refuse disposal and to pollution of the waters of the Nile. Sewage
systems have become overloaded, and 75 per cent of the effluents consists
of either only partly treated water or of untreated water, which just gets
thrown into open drains* Garbage is collected from the streets manually and
dumped outside the city. The populated suburbs are now encroaching on these
public durap3, which have large fly populations and other disease vectors.
Transport problems are serious in Cairo as there are thousands of automobiles
emiting smoke which pollutes the air, and driving conditions are generally
hazardous. Tfater supplies in Cairo are good by comparison with those of other
cities, as shown by the figures given for Egypt in the table above.
Lagos suffers fron serious congestion, environmental inadequacy and
disorder, made aore complicated by administrative and political complexity and
confusion of responsibility for corrective action. Greater Lagos has in fact
been described as being on its way to becoming the Calcutta of Africa. i&/ Its
population more than doubled between 1952 and 1962 and had reached 1»5 million
by 1967.
These increases exacerbated the problems of an already rapidly
deteriorating urban environment in Lagos and posed nearly insoluble management
•difficulties in a situation where resources were scarce.
The city can be divided into a number of districts with different
environmental settings and problems. The high-grade residential districts have
wellr-planned layouts, and most of the houses in them are occupied by important
members of the community ouch as civil servants and top people in commerce
and industry. i§/
The medium-grade residential districts are also well planned and possess
good household amenities. The structures in then are modest, small-sized
bungalows, of which there are between 12 and 16 per acre. The lower-raediuiagrade residential districts started out as slum areas but were later improved.
They constitute casia of planned layout in a wilderness of confused housing. }
They have wide streets, but the traffic flow is hindred by crowds of petty
traders whose movable "counters" live then on both sides*
They were developed
by speculators who constructed multi-storied houses with numerous rooms for
hire to immigrants. Many of these houses have no lighting and/or adequate
toilet facilities.
The low-grade residential districts have never been planned.
The houses
are very poor and are separated by narrow, confused lanes*
They are
indescribably squalid, and access to them is by narrow footpaths, which also
aerv& as drains for household watero
Household equipment and facilities
are most inadequate and unsatisfactory and the generally unsanitary conditions
have led to serious cholera outbreaks.
Other areas of Lagos have cheap,
/
Page 9
-H-s on to
Swellings*
bore
factories hare been
s*
poor by unscn^ulous entrepreneurs.
aerp are ^ a ff -11
hirfier olaaa residential area,
p
Wl. Itat hc^etolds, howerer,
flyBt«
or
^^
disposal of night
*,,
i
seroral points into oobile tanks.
tipp^ Sep* where their ^
Between ?«4 9 P.o.each
and
regiona plai>nix»e
collection
for the
then pulled by tractors to a
city where sepSto
£ known action at
lopnent B^ard, which has
%*•**
Page 10
The Board began by demolishing sooe of the worst slams in a United
area of Lagos Island and replacing the% u*eff©otdhrely, with ships and otti&s
buildings, 'it had no power to draw up statutory town plans until the military
passed a decree in 19^7 enabling it to do so* The work of the Board is
seriously hampered by budgetary limitations and a shortage of staff*
Both the Federal Government and the state governments have failed to
acknowledge the gravity of the situation in and around Lagos, even though
the size of the metropolitan population is approaching the ,2 aiUta* nar^.
It is, liowver, encouraging to note that a master plan for retttilding Lagos
is currently being prepared with a. view to/Solving some of the serious
environmental problems facing.tho city, ££/
. ■
Addis Abqba
'•■.-■■'_.-...*
'."
■■
The capital city of Ethiopia « has an estimated population of about t
900,000 which is growing at an annual rate of 9 per cent, 22/
'
■ ■
'
There *s an acute housing shortage in Addis Ababa, and overcrowding has
assumed serious proportions. The bulk of the population lives in su^™™^
seiiHperiaanent dweUings* which are in bad repair,-have inadequate lifting and
ventilation, no piped water,.minimum toilet and bathing facilities,,and are.
located Inr. areas* with no access to safe sewage disposal facilities.
In addition, not enough .dwellings are bfeing constructed to satisfy the _
current requirement of 82,000 units for the lower income groups in Addis Ababa
and to replace exiting sub-standard 'dwellings* and it appears that, overe rowding
will be a feature of Addis Ababa for a long tiiae to come,
:
It i« estimated that.6l,3 per cent of the houses in Addis Ababa have no
access to proper toilet facilities" so that most open spaces and streams in
the city are used as open-air toilets, 2,U'per cent of the households have
flush toilets while 36.5 per cent use pit lsttrineso
Lfost urbanites get water from public standpipes serving hundreds of
users and only a few buildings Have piped water and electricity. Recreation
facilities* are inadequate, as are the few schools and health centres in
existence which are also poorly equipped.
The public transportation system
is composed of many old buses, which become intolerably crowded during rush
hours
The only major planned new development in Addis Ababa is the construction
of sewage lines for the first time in the city's history. Provision is being
nade for additional water supplies by laying new pipes and constructing
additional reservoirs to supplement supplies which have become intermittent
in certain parts of the city,
'
Nairobi
Tho city has a population of about 600,000 which is growing at an
annual rate of 6 per cent* it is estimated that it will reach 1 tdllion
by 1983, 23/
■■*
E/CN*l4/H0S/7
Page 11
Its residential areas provide a typical example of the segregated districts
initiated during the colonial era.
Those parts originally occupied by expatriates
but now inhabited by the well—to«do netnbers of the local community are well
laid out and provided with all the facilities one expects in a modern city*
The African quarters were built in such a way that they provided only the barest
necessities.,, and housing consisted of small single rooms for individual
occupancy with no lighting or water-borne sanitation*
In additions there are
peri««rban slun areasj which arc inhabited by rural in--migrants? who live in
temporary structures with no sanitation facilities whatever0
The housing shortage is generally considered to be the nost serious
problem facing Nairobi authorities*
Nairobi's requirements are stated to be
5#88O houses per apnun between 1970 and 1974«
I:foreoverP if the degree of over
crowding is assessed in relation to housing overspill population at an average
of 5»15 persons per household? at least 10,000 dwellings would be required each
year*
In considering these figures f it should be noted that the current
annual rate of construction is only 2^000 unitsQ
Programmes initiated by the
National Houatag Corporation will be unable to meet the current demand even by
1980«
Meanwhile overcrowding had become so serious that one snail room is
occupied by three or more personss and 70 per cent of Nairobi8s dwellers live
in the' peri^arban slums in low-cost* sub-otandard housing with no water supplyf
sanitationj or sewage collection and treatment facilities0
The authorities
report that the provision of adequate sanitation facilities has become a
critical problem,.
As the population grows, water supply systems often break
downj and it is recognized that water supplies in Nairobi must be greatly
expanded before 198Oa 25/
Government authorities have adopted several schemes in an attempt to solve
Nairobigs environnental headaches0
To relieve the present congestion^ they
have repeatedly urged people to go back to the land; but since land is scarce,
and urbanites cannot afford to buy the land which remains at its inflated
value-- this policy has not been successfulo
ttithin Nairobi- city authorities
have frequently resorted to arbitrary demolition of peri-urban slums without
providing alternative accommodation for their displaced inhabitants.
For
examples in 1970 alone, 4*000 dwellings were demolished in the city ostensibly
to stave off possible outbreaks of communicable diseases j however, they only
mushroomed elscstfrere overnight^
To conpI:L.a*e nattcro further; there is the problem of corruption in
housing allocations and purchases with the result that most houses are owned
by wealthy Nairobi residents who charge exorbitant rents which poor urbanites
can lll-efford to paya
I'lhere other environmental servicas are concerned; Nairobi appears to be
one of the most fortunate cities in black Africa©
'
The City Council runs
efficient services for cleaning streets and disposing of garbage and public
transport appears to bo adequate evan though the increase in the urban population
has created a serious problem of congestion in this area*
Moreover, the number
of private vehicles in Nairobi has increased to such an extent that traffic
congestion is now worrying city plannerso
V
Page 12
Educational and roci^aidLonal ^acxliiioe- appear- excellent although they
are also adversely affected by the rural exodus* TJnenployneat and under-'
ecployoent have reached unmaEagable proportions, and governmental authorities
appear to have no solution t6 them*
Kinshasa
9
f
Efciring the period 1959 and 1964? the total urban population of Zaire
was Increase rig nuch faster than the population as a wh. ler. with Kinshasap
the capital, growing at an annual rate of 10 per cento
In the 5 years between
1959 and 1964? it grew from 400,000 to 800j000e 2§/ The latest figures show
that this city, which was originally planned for 400f000 inhabitants^ is
now growing at the rate of 11 per cent per annum and has reached the lp300j;000
mark, £7/
"Hi© situation ia similar to that in Casablanca and Nairobi in that the
Belgian colonial authorities constructed cities Tiithin a city,,
2h Kinshasa
there are areas comprising well—constructed buildings with excellent sanitary
facilities surrounded by depressed areasr originally designed for the African
population^ which have no adequate sanitary facilities©
Inoigranto to
Kinshasa have squatted in the peripheral areas whenever they could find free
open spaces©
In such settlements, access to good quality water supplies*
and facilities to dispose of waste does not existj and hygienic conditions are
deplorable^
In the central part of the cityt transportation problems have
become unsolvable ar.d congestion has reached nightmarish proportiono«
Lusaka
In Zambia there ie a I^igh rate of population movenent fixan the rural
areas to the towns.
Between 15)65 and 1970 the country?s overa>J. urban
populations increased by about 46 p«3rcent owing to an iaf low into the towns
of as many slb 6f000 squatter families per year. These migrants settled in
the outskirts of cities like Lusaka,? where they put up temporary nud huts in
places where no roadj water8 sewerage or garbage collecting facilities are
providedo
Unen^loyed pori-*irban dwellers novo 10 to 15 milea out of town
to eke out a precarious existence by cutting trees and buxirkng charcoal for
sale in, the cityft
The areas cleared by then are then cultivated with no
recourse good hesbandry*
It ic feared that this practice night eventually
turn the Xar/ around Lusaka into a
The. water ewpply in Lusaka Is drawn fron underground aquifero fffliit
for ttio central areas of the cityi but as the population of the perirurban slunuj t«argeons# these supplies are becoiuing overstretched7 and the
future will beblasJcif iraaginative progrannes are not embarked upon*
In order to 3xprove fsnaitary conditions in the suburbs tho Governiaent of
Zambia has launched "site-and service" schemes^ where roads and water and
E-ewersgo facilltioB aro laid cut before migrantc are given assistance in
kind to construct tlieir own dwellings on a self-4ielp basis*
Schemes such
as this take care of only a very small part of the demand since the exodus
fron tho rural areas to Lusaka ia continuing unabated*
If
1- ■;
1J
( .
Pago 13
There is a ndod to construct an est&aated 7,000 new dwellings per year
if
■f
1*
city of Abidjan^ g§/ Only about 5,000 were constructed in 1971 and
iiboming migrants experienced serious housing difficulties. Abidjan received
avast Influx of ruraltiigrantsy many of whoa are very poor. They construct
efcoap, unhygienic duellings on the city periphery, where they live in
ojxtreocly severe environmental conditionso
The city faces serious problems with respect to disposal of waste*
idustrial effluents and all sewage from the city are fed into tho la©3ons
$3und Abidjan, which seriously pollutes then, produce offensive odours and
rffact ?iarin© life.». > .Nevertheless, there is as yet no legislation to stop
discharge,'of untreated wastes and sewage into the lagoons.
;:
Affluent parts of Abidjan have f-irst class houses on well lit and carefully
Iteid ottt streets* These parts of town are provided with adequate and efficient
iwlronncntal servicesf however, even these services arc threatened by the
of rural migrants into the city*
SUttMRY AND CONCLUSION
aivironnental problens encountered in Africa's urban centres are a direct
t of the rapid rise in urban population due tb massive human noveaaents \ . the depressed rural areas. Sone of tho larger cities grow by 8 per cent
lousing,
per year. As a result, there is a serious bacJcLo^ in the provision of
Gince their housing deaands are unsatisfied, imnigrants construct
iirt-«rban shanty towns in which shacks made from gasoline tins, old automobile
||rre3 and packing cases provide a miserable cover and create risks of greatippcial diseconomies.
;
Ouch areas have inadequate water, lighting and sewage 3ysteosf and are
% serious hazard to health. The truth is that city authorities do not have the
iteeources to attend to the sanitation and other environmental needs of the
masses r
■
"Gite-raid service" 6cheneo," self-rhelp efforts and other prbgraOMS designed
to aneUorate these conditionn tend to be hampered by existing land tenure
Hastens and speculation by private landowners, which make,the coot of urban
I
too high for poor city dweller3 to afford.
;
A possible solution to these urban problems lies in a combination of
Jtigorous programmes to improve life in tho rural.areas and imaginative
bchenes to create a new urban situation in Africa, suited to the continent's
own values and not blindly based on tho patterns already laid down ^T^e
:»estern world. Building codes and regulations must, for example be revised
i%ake into account the realities prevailing in African countries*"
Page 14
REFERENCES
1.
T.G, McGee; The UiH^anization ftcocess in the Third 'forJLd (London, G. Bell
2.
M. Jupenlatz, Cities, in Transformation! Tho yrbangouatter Problen of the
and Sons, 1971)«
.. "■/.
.
"
'".'.-
.
-\ ■*„.'■'
Doveloping Ttorld (University Queensland Pres3, 1970;.
3.
Barbara ;7ard and Rene Dttois, Only One 5arth (New York, N.J. Norton and
Company, 1972).
4.
Ilorld Bank, "Urbanization" (a sector working paper) (Tfashington, D,C. 1972).
5.
ft.H. Chinn, "Social problems of rapid urbanization with particular reference to
6.
Jupenlatz, op.cit.
7.
3H0, Use of'^idepiqlofw in Housing! E^flrammea and in PlanninK Human
8.
UNICEF, Childrena YouUij Jfooen and peyelopment Plans, Homo Conference (1972i,
9«
M# Roy, "Problems of water supply, sewage and waste disposal in Africa",
First All-African Seminar on the Hunan Environment, Addis Ababa, 1971«
British Africa", in Urbanization in African Social Change (1973) pp.9-0.0li
.■
.
Settlements (Geneva', 19/4).
10# M»K» Johnson, Urbanization in Eforocco (international Urbanisation Survey)
(The Ford. Foun3ation, 1973). '
,:
11. Janet Abu-Lugjiod, "Cities blend the past to face the future", Africa Report,(1971) Vol.16, No» 6, pp. 1>15.
12. Arab Republic of Egypt, National Report to the United Hationg Conference on
the Hunan Itait
13. N.C. Otieno and C» Pineau "The Hunan 2nvironment in Egypt" (1971).
14. Co Roser* Ifrbanization in Tropical Africa A Deaoflraphic Introduction,
International Urbanization Survey (The Ford Foundation. £973)•
15. A.L. J.5abogunje, Urbanization in Migeria (London University Press1,
l6« A,Lo Mabogunje, op. cit.
. ..... :.
17. L, Green, and V. Milone, Urbanization in Nigeria , an International Survey
Report (Ford Foundation, 1973).
.
,
.
18. Federal Republic of Nigeria, National; Report to the United Nations Cohference
on the Human Qwrironoent (1972).
19. G. Pineau, and N.C. Otieno, The Human aivironment in Nifjeriat (April, 1971) •
J5/CBWA/H0S/7
Page 15
Green and
S.A. Thomas, "Master Plan being prepared to rebuild Lagos", Ethiopian
Herald, Vol. XXIX, Mo.686, 1973.
22. Roser.
23. Ibid.
24. Republic of Kenya» National Report to the United Nations Conference on
the Hunan Bmrironoent (1972 jL
25. L. Laurenti and J. Gerhart, Urbanization in Kenya (international Urbanization
Survey) (Ford Foundation, 1973)t
26. Henri Khoop, "The Sex ratio of African squatter settlement.
hypothesis building", African Urban Notes, No. 6,1971.
An exercise in
27. C. Pinoau and H.C. Otleno, The Hutan Enviromaent in Zaire (March 1971).
28. C. Pinoau and H#C. Otleno, The Hunan ISnyironpent in Ivory Coast (April 1971).