Slums are defined as densely populated urban areas characterized by weak buildings and incomplete housing and primarily inhabited by the city’s poorest communities. As defined by UN-Habitat, slum housing includes durable infrastructure that is safe from extreme weather events, sufficient living space, affordable access to clean water, adequate sanitation, and protection from forced evictions. One or more elements are missing. Due to these problems, slums are generally tend to infectious and contagious diseases, as well as diseases spread by poor sanitation.
Global Habitat Crisis
In 2020, approximately 1.1 billion people lived in slums or slum-like conditions, according to United Nations data. The United Nations estimates that nearly two billion more people will be forced to live in such conditions by 2050. The world faces a growing habitat crisis, and the problem is so urgent that SDG target 11.1 calls for solutions. The goal is: “By 2030, ensure access for all to adequate, safe, and affordable housing and basic services and upgrade slums.” In 2020, the world’s population Almost 14% of the population lived in slums, 85% of which were concentrated in three areas: Central and South Asia, East and Southeast Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa. Together, the two regions of Asia have 662 million people living in slums, and in sub-Saharan Africa, 230 million people live in slums.
Look at the top 5 Countries in the world with the highest population of slums.
5. Afghanistan
- Total Urban Population (2020): 10,142,913
- Percentage of Urban Population living in Slums (2020): 73%
In Kabul alone, there are about 30 slums that are home to almost 75% of the city’s inhabitants, according to a report by CGTN News. Approximately 7.4 million urban residents of Afghanistan reside in impoverished conditions. Afghanistan has one of the highest densities of slum population worldwide as a result of decades of conflict.
4. Sudan
- Total urban population (2020): 15,666,605
- Percentage of urban population living in slums (2020): 74D
According to the PSUP, around 25% of Sudanese people reside in major slums outside of Khartoum. 74% of the nation’s urban population lives in slums, home to about 11.5 million people.
3. Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Total urban population (2020): 42,376,327
- Percentage of urban population living in slums (2020): 78%
Three out of every four urban residents in the DRC, according to PSUP, live in slum-like situations. The nation has one of the largest slum populations in the world, with over 33 million people living in slums.
2. Chad
- Total urban population (2020): 3,914,834
- Percentage of urban population living in slums (2020): 82D
Chad is a landlocked country in Central Africa with a high rate of extreme poverty. Currently, 82% of Chad’s urban population lives in slums, making the country one of the countries with the highest slum populations in the world.
1. South Sudan
- Total urban population (2016): 2,112,741
- Percentage of urban population living in slums (2016): 94D
South Sudan currently has the world’s largest slum population, with a 94% live in slums. Housing that looks like a slum. The country suffers from extreme poverty, mainly due to extreme instability and conflict in the region.
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