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Mapping changes in housing in sub-Saharan Africa from 2000 to 2015

Author

Listed:
  • Lucy S. Tusting

    (London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine)

  • Donal Bisanzio

    (RTI International
    University of Nottingham)

  • Graham Alabaster

    (United Nations Human Settlements Programme)

  • Ewan Cameron

    (University of Oxford)

  • Richard Cibulskis

    (World Health Organization)

  • Michael Davies

    (UCL Institute for Environmental Design and Engineering (IEDE), University College London)

  • Seth Flaxman

    (Imperial College London)

  • Harry S. Gibson

    (University of Oxford)

  • Jakob Knudsen

    (The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts)

  • Charles Mbogo

    (Kenya Medical Research Institute
    KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Program)

  • Fredros O. Okumu

    (Ifakara Health Institute
    University of the Witwatersrand
    University of Glasgow)

  • Lorenz Seidlein

    (Mahidol University)

  • Daniel J. Weiss

    (University of Oxford)

  • Steve W. Lindsay

    (Durham University)

  • Peter W. Gething

    (University of Oxford)

  • Samir Bhatt

    (University of Oxford
    Imperial College London)

Abstract

Access to adequate housing is a fundamental human right, essential to human security, nutrition and health, and a core objective of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals1,2. Globally, the housing need is most acute in Africa, where the population will more than double by 2050. However, existing data on housing quality across Africa are limited primarily to urban areas and are mostly recorded at the national level. Here we quantify changes in housing in sub-Saharan Africa from 2000 to 2015 by combining national survey data within a geostatistical framework. We show a marked transformation of housing in urban and rural sub-Saharan Africa between 2000 and 2015, with the prevalence of improved housing (with improved water and sanitation, sufficient living area and durable construction) doubling from 11% (95% confidence interval, 10–12%) to 23% (21–25%). However, 53 (50–57) million urban Africans (47% (44–50%) of the urban population analysed) were living in unimproved housing in 2015. We provide high-resolution, standardized estimates of housing conditions across sub-Saharan Africa. Our maps provide a baseline for measuring change and a mechanism to guide interventions during the era of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Suggested Citation

  • Lucy S. Tusting & Donal Bisanzio & Graham Alabaster & Ewan Cameron & Richard Cibulskis & Michael Davies & Seth Flaxman & Harry S. Gibson & Jakob Knudsen & Charles Mbogo & Fredros O. Okumu & Lorenz Sei, 2019. "Mapping changes in housing in sub-Saharan Africa from 2000 to 2015," Nature, Nature, vol. 568(7752), pages 391-394, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:568:y:2019:i:7752:d:10.1038_s41586-019-1050-5
    DOI: 10.1038/s41586-019-1050-5
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Winter, Samantha & Obara, Lena Moraa & McMahon, Sarah, 2020. "Intimate partner violence: A key correlate of women’s physical and mental health in informal settlements in Nairobi, Kenya," OSF Preprints hs2dv, Center for Open Science.
    2. Randell, Heather & Gray, Clark & Shayo, Elizabeth H., 2022. "Climatic conditions and household food security: Evidence from Tanzania," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 112(C).
    3. Alizée McLorg & Kennedy Omolo & Peter Sifuna & Andrea Shaw & Bhavneet Walia & David A. Larsen, 2021. "Examining Wealth Trends in Kombewa, Kenya," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 157(2), pages 631-651, September.
    4. Claudia Nieto-Sanchez & Benjamin R Bates & Darwin Guerrero & Sylvia Jimenez & Esteban G Baus & Koen Peeters Grietens & Mario J Grijalva, 2019. "Home improvement and system-based health promotion for sustainable prevention of Chagas disease: A qualitative study," PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, Public Library of Science, vol. 13(6), pages 1-24, June.
    5. Samantha C. Winter & Lena Moraa Obara & Francis Barchi, 2019. "Environmental Correlates of Health-Related Quality of Life among Women Living in Informal Settlements in Kenya," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(20), pages 1-19, October.
    6. Francis Onditi & Moses Obimbo & Samson Kinyanjui Muchina & Israel Nyadera, 2020. "Modeling a Pandemic (COVID-19) Management Strategy for Urban Slums Using Social Geometry Framework," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 32(5), pages 1450-1475, December.
    7. Samantha C Winter & Lena Moraa Obara & Sarah McMahon, 2020. "Intimate partner violence: A key correlate of women’s physical and mental health in informal settlements in Nairobi, Kenya," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(4), pages 1-18, April.
    8. Wei Wang & Yuzhe Wu, 2020. "Exploring the Coordination Mechanism for Public Housing Supply with Urban Growth Management: A Case Study of Chongqing, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(10), pages 1-16, May.
    9. Strong, Michael & Silva, Julie A., 2021. "‘We would like this place to be a town’: The benefits and challenges of rural development near protected areas," World Development Perspectives, Elsevier, vol. 24(C).

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