sustainable development 20 years on from the ... - José Eli da Veiga

79
As mentioned earlier in relation to access to basic services and suitable housing, however,
urbanization in the region is both the outgrowth of striking asymmetries in the distribution of resources
and power and a factor in the perpetuation of those gaps. As a result, it has been taking place without the
benefit of robust, continuing, forward-thinking political or technical guidance. This has resulted in a
number of “urban deficits” in terms of living conditions, infrastructure, facilities, connectivity,
institutional arrangements, public participation, and management and governance capacity, which have
built up as a consequence of the region’s inability to absorb the social costs of urbanization, population
growth and the impacts of the various crises that have hit the region, especially in the 1980s. Thus, the
problems of limited mobility and housing in areas exposed to pollution and uncertain land title are
compounded by inequality, the preponderance of informal employment and delinquency (Linn, <strong>20</strong>10;
ECLAC, <strong>20</strong>11a; UN-Habitat, <strong>20</strong>09; UNFPA, <strong>20</strong>07). Shortcomings in urban infrastructure and services
add yet another dimension to poverty and, in addition to their cost in terms of health and human wellbeing,
impair environmental quality (United Nations, <strong>20</strong>10a; UNDP, <strong>20</strong>10b). Box I.7 provides an
overview of social and environmental features of the region’s main “mega-cities”.
Most cities in developing countries have grown as a result of the proliferation of informal
settlements. The risks of locating such settlements in disaster-prone areas are compounded by the
substandard quality of the dwellings and local services and the lack of proper risk-reduction
infrastructure. Poverty means that many households in these cities cannot afford to buy land, or safe
housing, in suitable locations. However, whether poverty translates into risk will depend on the capacity
of municipal and local authorities to plan and regulate urban <strong>development</strong>, permit access to safe lands and
provide infrastructure and protection so as to reduce the threats to poor households.
Informal settlements, substandard housing, lack of services and poor health are a reflection not
just of poverty but also of deficiencies in planning and managing urban growth. The concentration of
private capital and economic opportunities in a city does not of itself generate the institutional facilities
necessary for guaranteeing that availability of land for housing, infrastructure, services keeps pace with
urban growth, nor does it generate the normative framework necessary to guarantee proper management
of environmental, employment and natural risks created for urban growth. Moreover, the capacity to
provide supply and regulatory services in urban zones is diminishing. The decline in ecosystems increases
the level of threat and reduces resilience thus constituting an underlying risk factor (ISDR, <strong>20</strong>09).
The inhabitants of metropolitan areas (or major cities and their outlying areas) also face growing
security threats in terms of the concentration of population and poverty, unemployment, degradation of
natural resources, climate change, conflict and violence. There are also sharp contrasts between urban and
rural areas and between territorial entities in terms of infrastructure <strong>development</strong>, communications,
income and institutional capacity to address problems that go beyond the existing political and
administrative limits. One of the main challenges in the countries of Latin America is institution-building,
which is essential if urban planners are to manage <strong>development</strong> efficiently and comprehensively in
metropolitan regions and to promote policies for decentralization and local autonomy consistent with
globalization trends. This is particularly relevant in areas where diverse territorial entities with
jurisdictional and administrative autonomy come into play and where there are no appropriate institutions
for administering inter-jursidictional or intersectoral justice (UNCRD, <strong>20</strong>05).