Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
township to be built, local plan survey revealed a total of 15,230 residential structures of
which nearly half have been built without permission (Rakodi 1995). The overwhelming
concentration of new development to the southwest and west of the city has reinforced
the existing pattern of overpopulation. The growth of these high-density urban
environments has remained steady over the years. One major issue has been the
emergence of the informal sector (IS) of the economy of the country, which includes
activities such as informal agriculture, hawking and petty commodity production.
(Drakakis-Smith & Kirell 1990). Population growth and distribution, as noted above,
have significant roles to play in the sustainability of the world's vast resources. The
number of people, but also the life style, consumption patterns, and the region people
inhabit and utilize, directly affect the environment. When we look at the impact of human
activities, the situation is more complicated due to the diversity in consumption patterns
and societal habits worldwide.
Unlike the notions of the contemporary monopolistic and competitive firm or market,
the concept of the IS or informal enterprises lack a similar compelling theoretical
grounding. We know the IS when we see it, but its conceptualization for economic
analysis and policy purposes has had a number of pit-falls. A generally accepted IS
definition is that provided by the International Labor Organization (ILO), which defines
the term as “very small scale units producing and distributing goods and services, and
consisting largely of independent, self-employed producers in urban areas of developing
countries, some of whom also employ family labor and/or a few hired workers or
apprentices; which operate with very little capital, or none at all; which utilize a low level
of technology and skills; which therefore operate at a low level of productivity; and
which generally provide very low irregular incomes and highly unstable employment to
those who work in it” (ILO 1996).
IS producers and workers are “generally unorganized.... and in most cases beyond the
scope of action of trade unions and employers, ... they generally live and work in
appalling, often dangerous and unhealthy conditions, even without basic sanitary
facilities, in the densely populated towns of urban areas (ILO 1996). For instance, in
Zimbabwe, the urban informal sector consists of establishments that primarily entail self-
employment with the addition of one or two helpers who are often family members. The
urban informal sector in Zimbabwe has historically been relatively small, both in terms of
size and in terms of its role and status in the economy, especially compared with its role
and status in West Africa (Mhone 1995). In 1980, when the independence of the country
was proclaimed, the IS absorbed about 10% of the labor force. However, with the post-
independence growth in the labor force and in the face of the stagnating formal sector, the
IS absorbed more than 25% of the labor force by 1991, with a rapidly increasing trend
(ILO 1996). The continued growth of IS in Zimbabwe was further propelled by secular
economic stagnation that has afflicted the formal sector from the late half of the 1980's
up to the present. In Zimbabwe, as in many developing countries with ailing economies,
induced urban informal sector activities have proliferated with the intensification and
persistence of the economic crisis.
The previous chapter emphasizes the need to study the urban runoff quality and has
discussed data and management practices with respect to the CBD, medium - density
residential areas, commercial and industrial sectors of the city of Harare. These types of
land use practices reflect a well-developed and maintained urban landscape, which
