The Impact Of Illegal Settlement On Economic

Researchjournali’s Journal of Economics Vol. 4 | No. 4 April | 2016 ISSN 2347-8233

1

The Impact Of Illegal Settlement On Economic Development: A Case Study Of Chirundu

Gerald Munyoro Graduate Business School, School of Business

Border Town, Mash

Science and Management, Chinhoyi University of Technology, P. Bag 7724, Chinhoyi, Mash West Province. Zimbabwe

West, Zimbabwe Getrude Nyamushamba Graduate Business School, School of Business Science and Management, Chinhoyi University of Technology, P. Bag 7724, Chinhoyi, Mash West Province. Zimbabwe

www.researchjournali.com


ABSTRACT The increasing urbanisation not matching with housing delivery by urban local authorities has been a topical issue resulting in the increasing sprawling urban informal settlements. Establishing the impact of these illegal settlements on economic development of Chirundu and beyond was the main aim of this study. Survey design which allowed the use of questionnaires was used in data collection. Findings revealed that rural urban migration is the main cause of the increased population in Chirundu, with the majority of people coming mainly from Hurungwe and as far as Gwanda. The development of the illegal settlement is impacting negatively on the economic development of Chirundu as the council has to divert resources which could have been used in economic development towards health, water and sanitation, entertainment and a large security personnel base to combat widespread crime. Illegal settlers are benefitting from these services and yet they do not pay rates or taxes to the local authority. Rehabilitating land degraded through uncontrolled deforestation, pitsand/ clay extraction including solid and liquid waste mismanagement by the informal settlers also exerts an additional strain on the council’s budget, thus retarding economic development. Key terms: Illegal settlement, Economic development, Accommodation, Local authorities

1. INTRODUCTION Illegal settlements and land allocations have troubled Zimbabwe since independence. As noted by Mutizwa (2010), rapid rural to urban migration in search of healthier living environment and work has been connected to the growth of unlawful residential settlements. ZimStats (2012) highlights that by 2012, 29 per cent of Zimbabweans were now living in urban areas, with urbanisation increasing at a rate of almost 4 per cent per year. The study was an investigation on the level of the impact of illegal settlements on economic development. As noted by Mushamba (2010), the local authority is the focal point in terms of the economic development of an area as it promotes the interests of the local community, including the social, economic, environmental, recreational, cultural, community or general development of an area. This research thus sought to identify and recommend practical solutions that can assist urban local authorities to deal with the problem of informal settlements and rediscover the path to sustainable economic development.

2. LITERATURE REVIEW The post independence era in Zimbabwe presented a transformation in settlements pattern and distribution as new policies were realised, such as housing policies from central government to local government level systems. According to UN Habitat (2013), local authorities were by this time expected to respond to the population increase especially in urban local areas and to provide decent accommodation to all urban dwellers who were displaced by the liberation war. Basically, local authorities were mandated to be responsible for


2


local urban planning and settlement development approval process through the Urban Councils Act (Chapter 29.15) and the Regional Town and Country Planning Act (Chapter 29.12). Despite this effort, however, several local authorities are still facing challenges in eradicating informal settlements increase which is being caused by lack of housing. As noted by Aguilar (2008), a considerable number of people have had to break the law so as to provide access to urban land and housing, and they have to live in some cases in very precarious conditions, such as lack of access to water and sanitation. Hence, Cole (1995) suggests that the sprawling of poorly controlled settlement developments has resulted in many environmental and health related problems. Uncontrolled settlement development it is suggested in the literature is causing physical disorder, uneconomical land utilization, and excessive encroachment of settlements into good agricultural land, environmental degradation and pollution risks in some areas among other things. It is against this background that the researchers of this study were motivated to establish the impact of these mushrooming illegal settlements on the economic development of the country. To be able to discuss the impact of illegal settlements on the economic development of local authorities and Zimbabwe at large, it is important to first define the term ‘illegal settlement’, in order to avoid confusion. There are several definitions from various authors as shown below. For example, Illegal settlements are described as informal and spontaneous shantytowns lacking decent services and infrastructure according to Gabriel (2007), which Tsenkova et al (2008) states that these illegal settlements include the following types: squatter settlements on public or private land; settlements for refugees and vulnerable people; upgraded squatter settlements; illegal suburban land subdivisions on private or public land, often on the urban fringe; overcrowded, dilapidated housing without adequate facilities in city centres or densely urbanized areas. Thus, terms associated with this spontaneous settlement in other regions are shanty towns, peri-urban settlements and slums. Consequently, this study will adopt the definition of illegal settlement suggested by the Vienna Declaration of 2004, which defines informal settlements as human settlements, which for a variety of reasons do not meet requirements for legal recognition (and have been constructed without respecting formal procedures of legal ownership, transfer of ownership, as well as construction and urban planning regulations), exist in their respective countries and hamper economic development. That said, Illegal settlements have become a persistent feature of urbanisation and globalisation. The UN Habitat (2003) noted that by 2003, the global estimate of people living in squatter settlements was 924 million and, without major changes to the present policies and practices of urban management, the number is projected to increase to 2 billion by 2030. According to Andoni (2007), in some parts of the globe, the informal settlements have existed since the beginning of the 20th century, because of the industrial development, while in other cases they have emerged as a result of un-fulfilled housing need, lack of, undeveloped or bureaucratic land administration system, inconsistent and corrupted urban management procedure, or even old and not up-dated plans that can reflect the socio-economic changes that occurred. Hence, McGranahn et al (2003) note that in Macedonia, illegal


3


settlements are home to 11 percent of the population in the 14 largest cities, whilst in Belgrade informal settlements take up to 40% of the residential areas and in Kyrgyzstan, 150,000 to 200,000 people have migrated to Bishkek from the provinces in the past five years. Whilst, Tsenkova et al (2008), notes that the problem is significant in more than 20 countries in the European Commision for Europe (ECE) region and affects the lives of over 50 million people. The critical factors affecting the formation of informal settlements are related to several major interrelated changes; rapid urbanization and influx of people into select urban areas; wars, natural disasters and earthquakes leading to massive movement of people to places of opportunity and safety; poverty and the lack of low cost housing and serviced land. In Sub-Saharan for example, Kironde (2006) suggests that currently, Africa houses the highest proportion of slums (including shanty and squatter settlements). It was noted that many cities grew spectacularly during the 1960s and 1970s (or immediately following the ending of colonial rule in many countries) through ruralurban migration (Andoni, 2007; Kironde, 2006). Annual growth rates of some African cities were as high as five to seven percent, implying a doubling of population every ten to fifteen years as noted by Kironde (2006). The UN Habitat report (2012) also suggests that more than eight million people in African countries are living in shanty and inhabitable areas prone to several risks and disasters like cholera, malaria and typhoid outbreak, areas with insufficient or no roads between them, poor drainage where refuse removal is just an illusion. In many African countries, the low cost townships built by colonialist governments still exist, and host additional households in backyard shacks. People living in these conditions often have limited access to basic services and smaller amounts of habitable space than the main owners or municipal tenants. Nevertheless, Payne (1977), suggests that not all scholars hold negative views about squatter settlements. Focusing on developing countries, squatter settlements are portrayed as highly successful solutions to housing problems in urban areas. The development of squatter settlements should therefore be seen in the overall perspective of urban growth in the third world and its inevitability. Mutizwa and Mangiza (2009) are of the opinion that Zimbabwe, like many African developing nations such as Tanzania, Namibia and South Africa are experiencing urban overpopulation due to urbanisation and immigration. As Majone (2012) suggests, the Zimbabwean cities and towns grew as a result of the movement of people from rural to urban in search of employment resulting in increased housing demand leading to more informal settlements. According to WHO and UNICEF (2000), this was as a result of the introduction of a haphazard and fast-tracked land reform programme by the government which began in 2000, with the proportion of people living in these types of settlements increasing from 10 per cent in 1990 to 17 per cent in 2000. This was worsened as Tibaijuka (2006) suggests by Operation Restore Order in urban areas codenamed “Murambatsvina” which was aimed at demolishing all backyard extensions and other makeshift accommodation, unfortunately the intended results were not achieved as this operation resulted in an increase informal settlements in all urban areas in Zimbabwe, especially in border towns. This as Mulenga et al (2004)


4


noted had a potentially severe impact on public health. Hence the need to establish the impact these illegal settlements have on economic development. However, as suggested by Gabriel (2007), the formation of illegal settlements is not new and unique to Zimbabwe in particular and Zimbabwe at large but goes back to the 1950s and 1960s, particularly in Italy, Greece and Portugal, where internal migrations significantly contributed to the urbanization processes. Moreover, in some cases, better economic conditions rather than poverty have led to certain forms of informal constructions along coasts and in holiday areas as is the case with Zimbabwe’s border towns too. Examples from the ECE region highlight important differences in the characteristics of informal settlements. Although many informal housing settlements lack secure tenure, some settlements which have evolved without the proper planning permit on illegally subdivided land, have good quality housing, serviced by infrastructure but lack government documents such as development permits or registration in the Cadastre. In other cases, construction might have been carried out by construction companies that are not legitimate and in violation of building codes and zoning regulations and of courses this might have impacted on the economic development of a country. As Dimopoulou and Zentels (2007) note many countries in this region have attempted to address the challenges of illegal settlements in the last few decades through control over territorial development, land management and more systematic building inspection but without establishing the impact of these settlements on the economic development of these areas and the country at large. The search for policy solutions to address illegal settlements has been multi-faceted and multi-dimensional. Various projects and urban development programs have been implemented in countries such as Spain, Italy, Greece and Portugal in the last 20 years which might turn out to be difficult if the policy makers do not know the magnitude of these illegal settlements on the development of the country. Economic development and economic growth tend to be used interchangeably but in this study economic development will be used as it is the one relevant to the issue being discussed here because economic development encompasses deliberate efforts undertaken at the local level to enhance employment, income, wealth and or opportunity as suggested by Luger (2006). Something that is supported by Todaro (1994) who notes that economic development is an increase in living conditions, improvement of the citizens self-esteem needs and free and a just society and suggests that the most accurate method of measuring economic development is the Human Development Index which takes into account the literacy rates and life expectancy which in-turn has an outright impact on productivity and could lead to economic growth. In addition, economic development basically refers to the sustained, concerted actions of communities and policymakers that improve the standard of living and economic health of a specific locality (Luger, 2006; Todaro, 1994). Furthermore, according to Tucker (2008) and Blackely (1994) point out that local economic development is a process by which local government and or local community based groups manage their existing resources and enter into partnership arrangements with private sector or with each other to create new jobs and stimulate


5


economic activity in a well-defined economic zone. Interestingly, Frank and Benanke (2007) and McConnel (2008) note that economic development can be measured quantitatively and qualitatively through development of human capital, increasing the literacy ratio, improve important infrastructure, improvement of health and safety and other areas that increase the general welfare of the citizen. Review of available literature has revealed that most researchers have concentrated on analysing the social and environmental impacts of informal settlements but they have not considered impact of the illegal settlements to economic development, an area which this study will explore. In addition, given the much localised characteristics of countries, cities, settlements and communities, it is worth emphasising that in the design of any intervention, a strongly situational approach is essential. This therefore necessitates the undertaking of the study in Chirundu to closely analyse the scope of the problem in the border town and devise strategies to address the problem not only in Chirundu but in all local authorities especially border towns which are essential to the marketing of the country to the outside world. This can only be achieved by establishing the impact that illegal settlements (Andoni, 2007; Napier, 2001), have on the economic development of the towns themselves and Zimbabwe at large.

3. METHODOLOGY Survey design was used in this study because it gave the researcher the opportunity to use both qualitative and quantitative data about the population. It allowed collection of data to be done using questionnaires in order to get opinions, attitudes and descriptions as well as getting cause and effect relationships. This method was appropriate to obtain the causes of illegal settlements and their subsequent effect or impact on economic development. The target population included Ministry of Local Government officials, Chirundu Local Board employees, residents associations, councillors, inhabitants of Baghdad settlement and people from other settlements. Participants were drawn through purposive sampling. This allowed selection of individuals who were able to offer relevant and required data for the effectiveness of the study and enabled the researcher to accurately respond to the research problem and objectives of the study. In addition, a sampling frame of 100 participants was drawn through purposive sampling from 3000 participants as it was not possible to include everyone in the study as suggested by Rossman et al (2013). As noted by Kumar (2011), this allowed selection of individuals who were able to offer relevant and required data for the effectiveness of the study and enabled the researcher to accurately respond to the research problem and objectives of the study. The researcher selected 100 participants for purposes of the research because of a limited time frame. A small number allowed completion of the research in time as well as with limited cost to the researcher as suggested by Drake (2011) and Munyoro (2014). Use of a small sample size


6


did not compromise the quality of results of the research as the purposive sampling ensured all key respondents were involved in the study. Furthermore, the data was evaluated using Qualitative Data Analysis (QDA), in which the data collected from respondents using questionnaires was transformed in the form of description of the interviews’ opinions on the impact of illegal settlements on economic development of the border towns in particular and country at large (Seidel, 1998; Munyoro, 2014). As noted by Munyoro (2014) and Seidel and Kelle (1995), the process of QDA involves coding and writing. In this case the researchers looked into themes by identifying passages of text and applying labels to them that indicated some thematic idea. This labelling or coding of themes enabled the researchers to quickly retrieve all the texts that were associated with a particular thematic idea and study and contrast them. Using Seidel’s (1998) model, the researchers divided the model into three parts, namely Noticing, Collecting and Thinking about interesting things (Munyoro, 2014). These parts are interlinked and cyclical. As suggested by Seidel and Munyoro (2014), the researchers noticed fascinating things in the data and assigned ‘codes’ to them, based on the topic or theme as shown in the findings section below, and these codes were in turn used to break the data into segments. The codes were then used to act as sorting and collection devices (Gibbs, 2002; Munyoro, 2014). This was supported by secondary data in the form of both qualitative and quantitative.

4. KEY FINDINGS The findings were divided into themes as stated below: 4.1 THEMES Failure by government to provide adequate serviced land to Local Authorities The research revealed that government is not providing adequate serviced land to the local authority to develop into houses for residents. It is however the role of government to ensure local authorities have adequate available land for housing development. For instance, commenting on the Auckland housing crisis, (m.nzherald.co.nz/business) suggests that if councils are unable to deliver a sufficient supply of development capacity to meet housing demand, then central government should step in to ensure this occurs. Failure by government to provide adequate affordable housing to its citizens The government is failing to provide adequate housing to its citizens. As a result, people with no accommodation have taken it upon themselves to provide shelter, flaunting council regulations in the process. Literature also confirms this notion that governments are not providing adequate housing for citizens. Pakemen (2015) noted that while the federal government in Canada is still spending an estimated $1.6 billion on social and affordable housing programs that were largely established in the 1970s and 80s, this level of funding is inadequate to address housing needs.


7


Population increase due to rural-urban migration The increase in population in Chirundu is largely due to rural-urban migration. People resident in Chirundu mostly come from surrounding areas such as Hurungwe. However, some come from as far as Gwanda in search of opportunities to make money through cross border trading or to offer sexual services to long distance truck drivers. Rapid rural-urban migration in search of better living conditions and work has been related to the rise of squatter settlements worldwide. McAuslan (1985) noted that in the case of Dehli, half or more of its population live in squatter settlements known as JhiggiJhampri clusters. These have been consequences of urbanisation as people move into urban areas. Impact on health The existence of the illegal settlement in the border town results in increased prevalence of diseases particularly because of the activities of the sexual workers who provide services to long distance truck drivers, in the process spreading sexually transmitted diseases. It also results in spreading of communicable diseases due to overcrowding. This observation concurred with literature where for example, The Ministry of Water Resources in 2012 suggested that informal settlements will be transmission epicentres of future diarrheal disease outbreaks. The observation that most residents in Baghdad do not have easy access to health is also supported by literature. As noted by Cotton (2013), in many slum settlements, accessing healthcare can be particularly problematic. Government-run clinics and hospitals are often located outside of informal settlements, making the financial and opportunity costs of visiting a clinic high. Impact on crime The study revealed that there is widespread crime within Baghdad and outside the illegal settlement. Smuggling of goods across the border implies that duty fees and other payments due to the government are not being remitted accordingly and in the process funds that could have been channelled to improving the general well-being of the citizens lost. Similarly, those who operate illegal drinking places do not pay appropriate fees to council to operate their businesses, again resulting in the local authority losing out on revenue to improve its performance. The situation is worsened by the fact that there is no electricity in Bagdad, although the rest of Chirundu is well lit with no load shedding. Long periods of darkness give criminals the opportunity to conduct their illegal activities unnoticed. Widespread crime also requires increased deployment of police officers, which can prove costly as the law enforcing agents need to be equipped with adequate resources to effectively manage crime. Those resources could have been channelled towards meaningful economic development had there been not much crime to contend with. Evidence actually shows that Chirundu has more police officers than Karoi and Chinhoyi. Landman and Lieberman, (1999) noted that residents of informal settlements are particularly vulnerable to crime. Lack of reporting of


8


crime because of distance to police stations and fear of retribution (both from perpetrators and officials) also means that a large proportion of criminal activity remains hidden. Impact on land degradation It was noted that development of the illegal settlement has contributed to land degradation. Firewood is the main source of energy in Baghdad. This means there is substantial cutting down of trees to sustain the energy needs of the residents (cooking), consequently resulting in the land being bare and soil exposed to agents of erosion. Another element of degradation stems from the fact that their houses are built of pole and dagga. Again trees are cut to provide poles for housing. There is also uncontrolled clay and sand extraction for construction purposes which leaves behind exposed pits that result in enormous land degradation. The land becomes an eyesore and its aesthetic value is lost. Waste collection in Baghdad is virtually absent with people resorting to digging pits for their waste, and also creating illegal dumps within the settlement. It was also noted that at times the residents open canals for discharge of sewage as there are no sewage facilities in the illegal settlement. These findings are consistent with literature. According to DEAT (1999), lack of drainage, waste removal, and access to clean energy sources, mean that the wastes generated from human activities are not removed far from settlements (a service performed by municipal services for formal areas) but become visibly evident in the pollution of air, water and soil in the immediate vicinity. Damage to the environment impacts negatively on economic development. When sewage flows into water bodies, it becomes costly to clean up the water sources. Funds which should have been used to provide essential services are then diverted to clean up the water bodies. he council has to disinfect areas that would have been contaminated by the untreated sewage, again using resources which would have been put to more progressive use of developing the town economically. The uncontrolled expansion of the illegal settlement means additional costs to the Local Authority to rehabilitate the land that would have been degraded from sand/clay abstraction and deforestation. The loss of land to the illegally settled people also means there is limited space for the council to construct industries or attract investors to the border town, hence a backdrop in economic development. Impact on economic development From an analysis of the access to services such as education, health, water and sanitation, roads and entertainment, it was noted that the majority of residents in the illegal settlement who do not pay rates to the Local Authority are enjoying provision of services to some extent. Owners do not pay user fees and often connect to infrastructure illegally, thus reducing the returns offered to council to supply essential services. In addition, most residents in the illegal settlement are in informal employment or contract employment and thus do not pay taxes as well. As noted by Tsenkova et al (2008), since most residents in informal settlements do not pay the full price for infrastructure usage, the revenue is unable to support the growing demand for


9


infrastructure improvement and extension. Correspondingly, the systems deteriorate with serious economic and environmental consequences.

5. CONCLUSION This study examined the impact that illegal settlement has on economic development. It can be concluded in this paper that the government is failing to provide adequate serviced land to the council and housing to its citizens, resulting in development of illegal settlement. The existence of illegal settlement impacts negatively on performance by local authorities and consequently retards economic development. To deal with the problem of informal settlements, Chirundu Local Board should accurately document the extent of the informal development as well as allocate adequate institutional capacity to integrate the residents of the illegal settlement into the planned area of the city. The inability to fully absorb these informal settlers perpetuates the problem. Council should put measures in place to ensure there is an alternative housing system for the informal settlers, following which Baghdad settlement should be demolished as suggested by 87% of the respondents during the research. This intervention is also recommended because residents of Baghdad have built almost 100% of their plot size. The government will therefore potentially face a challenge of providing through roads as there is no space for this. Similarly, there is no area provided or left for social services such as schools, clinics or children’s playing ground. The current structures are also not conducive for habitation. Land that has been degraded through the activities of the illegal settlers should be rehabilitated.

6. REFERENCES Ali M.J and Sulaiman M.S (2006), The Causes and Consequences of the Informal Settlements in Zanzibar ,Tanzania, Shaping the Change XXIII FIG Congress Munich, Germany, October 8 – 13, 2006 Andoni D (2007), The paradigm of legalisation- A paradox of development, Ministry of Public Works, Transport and Communication, Tirana, Albania Cotton C (2013) Growing up on the edge: The well-being of children and youth in the slums of sub-Saharan Africa, Institute for the study of international development, Canada DEAT (Department of Environment Affairs and Tourism) (1999), State of the Environment: South Africa, Pretoria Gibbs, G. R. (2002) Qualitative Data Analysis: Explanations with NVivo: Buckingham: Open University Press Kironde J.M.L (2006), The regulatory frameworkunplanned development and urban poverty; Findings from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Landman, K and Lieberman, S (1999), Urban redesign for public safety, Pretoria CSIR, Report number BOU/C270 Mapira, J (2004) A Historical Perspective of the problem of Housing & Attempted Solution In City of Mutare, Zimbabwe Open University: Mutare McConnell B (2008), Microeconomics; Principles, Problems and Policies, 18th edition, McGraw Companies McGranahn G and Satterthwaite D (2003), Urban Centres, an assessment of sustainability, Annual Review of Environmental Resources Majone, C (2012) Analysis on Factors impacting on demand and supply of affordable Declining economy, Midlands State University: Gweru.


10

Researchjournali’s Journal of Economics Vol. 4 | No. 4 April | 2016 ISSN 2347-8233 Msindo P.D, Gutsa I and Choguya, Z (2013), Squatter settlements an urban menace in Zimbabwe? Examining factors behind the continued resurfacing of squatter settlements in Epworth suburb, Harare, Journal of settlements and spatial planning Mulenga, M, Manase, G and Fawcett B(2004), Building links for improved sanitation in poor urban settlements: Recommendations from research in Southern Africa. Southampton: Institute of irrigation and Development Studies. Munyoro, G (2014), An evaluation of the effectiveness of handouts in enhancing teaching and learning in higher education: Africa Development and Resources Research Institute: pISSN: 2343-6662 ISSN-L: 2343-6662 VOL. 6,No.6(2), pp 95-107Higher Educatio Mutizwa, H (2010) Low-income Housing Schemes: Urban Development experience, Hillside crosses press, Harare. Napier M (2001), Informal settlement integration, the environment and sustainable livelihoods in Sub-Saharan Africa, Programme for sustainable human settlements, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), South Africa Pakemen K (2015), Finding Solutions to homelessness, Queens University, Canada Payne, G. K. (1977), Urban Housing in the Third World, Leonard Hill. Seidel, J. (1998) Qualitative Data Analysis: The Ethnograph v5 Manual, Appendix E/http://www.qualisresearch.com/ Tibaijuka, A(2005)UN Report of the fact-finding mission to Zimbabwe to assess the scope and impact of Operation Murambatsvina. United Nations. Tsenkova S,Badyina A, and Potsiou C, (2008), In Search for Sustainable Solutions for Informal Settlements in the ECE Region: Challenges and Policy Responses, Sixty-ninth session Geneva, 22–23 September 2008 Informal notice 1, UN Habitat (2003), The challenge of slums- Global report on human settlements UN-Habitat. (2012) State of the World's Cities 2012/2013: Prosperity of Cities. Nairobi, Kenya: UN-Habitat Vienna Declaration (2004), Vienna Declaration in Report: Ministerial Conference on Informal Settlements in South EasternEurope, OSCE Hofburg in Vienna, 28 Sep – 01 Oct 2004. World Health Organisation (WHO) (1999), Sustainable development and healthy environments: Protection of the human environment, Geneva Zimbabwe National Statistical Agency (ZimStats) (2012). 2012 Census Report. Government Printers. Harare


11