Informal settlements are not merely a temporary problem specific to developing cities, but an integral part of modern urban development, Marie Huchzermeyer, professor at the School of Architecture and Planning at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa, said during the dialogue session titled “Transforming Informal Settlements and Slums: Housing for the World,” held within the framework of WUF13, APA-Economics reports.
According to her, informal settlements in cities such as São Paulo, Guangzhou, and Baku have met the unmet housing demand of workers, including those employed in the construction sector.
Huchzermeyer noted that because many cities have failed to sufficiently expand affordable housing stock and basic services, these areas have over time also become living spaces for the lower middle class.
The professor emphasized that informal settlements are extremely complex and diverse. These areas are shaped by parallel systems of governance, services, and rental markets.
According to her, in some countries, rental markets in these settlements are controlled by everyone from small landlords to major investors and even criminal groups. This leads to the exploitation of poor families.
