A platform for research: civil engineering, architecture and urbanism
A platform for research: civil engineering, architecture and urbanism
Falling through the net: access to water and sanitation by the peri-urban water poor
There is still a considerable gap that needs to be filled in order to meet the water and sanitation target of the Millennium Development Goals. Current efforts are driven by the particular way in which the problem has been conceptualised, and this has implications for a large part of the population that lacks access to water supply and sanitation services (WSS), but is continually overlooked. This article takes a closer look at official attempts to improve WSS in order to understand their underlying assumptions and subsequent implications for the provision of services. This is contrasted with evidence from research in Cairo, Caracas, Chennai, Dar es Salaam and Mexico City, which sheds light on the continued struggles of the peri-urban water poor in gaining access to services. Peri-urban communities in these cities have developed a number of needs-driven practices in order to compensate for the inefficiency of the formal WSS system, but remain largely invisible and unsupported due to their political status. The article argues for recognition and active involvement of the peri-urban water poor to have a realistic chance to address the global water and sanitation challenges.
Falling through the net: access to water and sanitation by the peri-urban water poor
There is still a considerable gap that needs to be filled in order to meet the water and sanitation target of the Millennium Development Goals. Current efforts are driven by the particular way in which the problem has been conceptualised, and this has implications for a large part of the population that lacks access to water supply and sanitation services (WSS), but is continually overlooked. This article takes a closer look at official attempts to improve WSS in order to understand their underlying assumptions and subsequent implications for the provision of services. This is contrasted with evidence from research in Cairo, Caracas, Chennai, Dar es Salaam and Mexico City, which sheds light on the continued struggles of the peri-urban water poor in gaining access to services. Peri-urban communities in these cities have developed a number of needs-driven practices in order to compensate for the inefficiency of the formal WSS system, but remain largely invisible and unsupported due to their political status. The article argues for recognition and active involvement of the peri-urban water poor to have a realistic chance to address the global water and sanitation challenges.
Falling through the net: access to water and sanitation by the peri-urban water poor
Hofmann, Pascale (author)
2011-05-01
16 pages
Article (Journal)
Electronic Resource
English
Water and sanitation services to the urban poor
| British Library Conference Proceedings | 2001
The peri-urban water poor: citizens or consumers?
| Online Contents | 2006
| British Library Conference Proceedings | 1996
Decentralized Sanitation Implementation in Vietnam: A Peri-Urban Case Study
| British Library Conference Proceedings | 2007