Swaziland moves to upgrade informal settlements
More Swazis live in informal settlements in the mountainous kingdom's urban centres than in established formal neighbourhoods, according to recent government statistics.
Mbabane - The revelation has spurred efforts to improve living conditions for the urban majority, but the government's emphasis is on upgrading informal settlements rather than building new housing.
"We don't have a housing shortage, really, we have a neighbourhood shortage: places for people to put dwellings," said Madoda Dlamini, city engineer in Manzini, in central Swaziland, the country's commercial hub. A population of 65,000 makes it the biggest urban centre, but only 30,000 residents live in formally declared neighbourhoods.