Situational Analysis of Slum Settlements in Awassa, Ethiopia: the Magnitude, Nature and Methods of Overcoming the Problem

In many developing countries, lack of employment opportunities in the rural areas contributes to urbanization, which further accelerated by natural population growth, is beyond the service delivery capacity of the cities. As a result many of their residents has no option but to engage in informal employment, which are unstable and yield only low incomes. The resulting poverty in combination with lack of affordable housing are driving forces behind the formation of informal settlements, which offer only sub-standard living conditions to their inhabitants. Major indicators of housing and basic urban services shows that, the problem is more sever in Awassa. But so far there is little attention being heeded to this vital issue. Therefore this book is fundamentally intended to assess the quality of life of slum households, and to raise some of the possible solution for alleviating the problems. The book provides data on the magnitude and nature of slum in Awassa that serves as a spur to other researchers who are interested to conduct further studies in the area. Besides, the result of the study can also contribute in building knowledge base for academic and research communities.