Report: Model Project in the Jacarezinho Favela, Rio de Janeiro
In Brazil, the word "favela" means an illegal squatter slum, a product of migration from the land into the cities. Most settlements of this kind are marked by poverty, crime and a lack of urban infrastructure. The favela in Jacarezinho is one of roughly 500 settlements of this kind in Rio de Janeiro in which some 1.2 million people live. In the early 1990s, the Favela Bairro programme was established with the aim of opening up these areas, providing them with urban facilities, and integrating them into the city. One step in this direction is to legalize the occupation of the land.
