Human-Rio De janiero

Urban Issues and challenges:

• Rio De janeiro, Brazil

Location and Importance:

• Rio De Janeiro is a NEE (newly emerging economy) in brazil, South America and is located on the Atlantic Coast ; it is the second most populated city in Brazil. Recently, many people have migrated from rural area to major cities such as Rio to seek better opportunities.
• The city has 4 major zones:
• North - main industrial area
• West - includes newly rejuvenated Barra de Tijuca
• South - main tourist area (including Copacabana Beach) as well as Rocinha, the largest favela in South America
• Centro - Shopping and financial centre
• The city holds much global, regional and national significance which includes :
• It is the second most important industrial centre in the country
• The statue of Christ The Redeemer is one of the Seven New Wonders Of the World
• Rio hosted the 2014 world cup and the 2016 Olympic Games

Social challenges and solutions :

• Only 55% have a local health clinic.
• Only half of children continue education beyond the age of 14 due to lack of schools.
• Around 12% of the population has no access to running water.
• Blackouts occur due to frequent power cuts.
• The solution is in Santa Marta, medical staff take health kits in to peoples homes
• The solution is to encourage volunteers to help in school and give grants to families to cover the cost
• The solution was 7 new treatment plants built between 1998 and 2014
• The solution was to develop an HEP plant in Simplicio costing $2 billion

Economic challenges and solutions:

• The city suffers from high crime rates especially from drugs
• Most people who work in favelas work in the informal sector, 1/3 of people earn less than £60 a month and there is a 20% unemployment rate
• There is a wide gap between rich and poor, with the richest 1% earning 12% of the income and the poorest 50% earning 13%
• The solution has been to set up to set up Pacifying Police Units in 2013 to reclaim drug dealers from favelas
• To overcome this, there is an investment in education through the Schools of Tomorrow Programme, adult classes and free childcare for teenage parents

Environmental challenges and solutions:

• The air pollution is estimated to kill 5000 people per year
• 50 tonnes of industrial waste and 200 tonnes of sewage is pumped into bay each day
• Waste is a signifiant problem and can harm the natural habitats
• Heavy pollution due to industrialisation , poor sanitation and growth in car ownership - this has increased by 40% in 10 years
• In order to reduce this, improvements have been made to traffic congestion including expanding the metro and making coastal roads for rush hour
• To solve this, 12 new sewage plants have been built since 2004 costing $68 million and ships are fined for discharging fuel
• To solve this, a power plant using rotting rubbish provides electricity for 1000 homes

City opportunities:

• Rio has one of the highest incomes per person in the country
• The city provides 6% of the country's total employment
• Increasingly, the city is improving people's access to services such as education and healthcare
• The growth of urban industrial areas can increase economic development
• As the city become more industrialised, the city will become wealthier

Managing urban growth:

• In Rio, there are 1000 favelas, 60% in the suburbs, predominantly along main roads in the Port area in the North East. Rocinha is the biggest favela in South America with 75000 people registered in 2010 however it could now be 3 times higher

Challenges of squatter settlements:

• Construction - houses are cinstructed illegally from basic materials. This has caused issues especially heavy rain when houses collapse
• Services - in non improved areas, 12% of homes don't have running water, 30% have no electricity and 50% have no sewage
• Unemployment - as high as 20% predominantly work in the informal sector
• Crime - murder rate of 20 per 1000 population, drug gangs dominate
• Health - population densities of 37000 per km^2, IMR as high as 50 per 1000

The favela Bairro Project:

• It is a government plan to improve and upgrade the quality of life in the favelas. This is a site and service scheme where the local authority provides land and services for the residents to build homes. The plan includes :
• Developing new areas of the city where people can be rehoused
• Access credit to allow people to buy ,materials to improve their home
• 100% mortgages available for people to buy homes
• Pacifying Police Unit set up to reduce crime
• Installing a cable car and giving a 1 free return ride a day
• Successes:
• Quality of life improved
• Employement prospects have improved
• Failures:
• Budget of $1 million may not cover all favelas
• Infrastructure not being maintained