Evaluating self-help initiatives in the upgrading of informal settlements

Abstract

Apartheid spatial policies have left many black South Africans living in peripheral areas far from their places of employment. These people have occupied vacant land closer to urban areas and have built what they now refer to as home in an attempt to integrate themselves into the city. This research paper highlights the government’s failure to provide access to affordable housing for low-income people in well-located areas close to economic opportunities. The paper will look specifically at the Slovo Park informal settlement’s self-help project and the benefits the community derived from this initiative. The research will then show that self-help housing is a desirable approach to upgrading informal settlements, although it is not highly supported by government officials. The paper also proves that communities are willing to provide their own housing, provided there are sufficient infrastructural services.