The images above depict the slums of Africa, a perpetuating cycle of poverty deep rooted in history and increasingly prevalent today. A slum can be characterized by a number of things including inadequate housing, water, sanitation and access to income. According to Homeless International currently one billion people currently live in these conditions and that number is expected to increase by 500 million just in the next six years due to rapid population growth and lack of reform. In Africa, the development of slums can be clearly seen after colonization as a product of many different factors. The european powers that colonized the continent did so with no regard for natural or previously existing political and social boundaries. Colonies belonged to many different independent countries and corporations with almost no interconnectedness. All of these cities were set up as gateway cities with the purpose of extracting natural resources for production. Port cities were established for trade across the atlantic and with increased technology set up railroads which ran inland to gather resources. These independent settlements had little interaction, with no way to connect with each other trade was impossible between regions and remained from coast to coast. In africa this is still somewhat true today in terms of transporting goods. Profit lies in producing finished products yet Africa is stuck as a producer of raw materials due to the lack of interconnectedness needed to process finished goods. Local economies were unable to truly develop as they were set up for the purpose of producing money for the corporation or crown the region was settled by.
Today, Africa is faced with the challenge of combating rapid urbanization without increased industrialization. Because most of the economies in Africa have been focused on gathering natural resources from their formation, very little industry has developed. Political unrest, rapidly growing populations and little opportunity for employment have created a situation in which people are forced to live in very poor very urban conditions with little to no chance of advancement. Many farmers, for example, unable to make a profit and in turn pay their land tax were kicked off of it and forced to move to urban areas with very little work. Those who could find work were paid very low wages and children were often put to work due to a lack of labor laws. Population began to increase even more rapidly and these slums have developed as a result. People cannot make any income and do not own houses or property and as a result there is nothing to collect taxes on. Without any tax base these communities have no access to any kind of public services including clean water, sanitation or education. People find ways to make money through the informal economy or the untaxed market using many different innovative ideas. Some make their living simply buying a pack of gum or cigarettes and selling them individually to make a tiny profit. These areas are plagued by horrible unsanitary conditions in which disease, hunger and often violence are common place. These problems are facilitated by a system that leaves little to no room for growth without serious reform. With a rapidly growing population and little access to education as well as conditions that ensure poor health it is easy to see why slums have continued to grow and take hold.
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