Upgrading Lives

PBS, USA, Thomson Reuters Foundation 2017

A third of Cape Town’s 3.7 million people now live in informal settlements with limited access to basic services such as water, electricity and toilets. Shack fires are frequent and deadly, as residents rely on candlelight and firelight.

At night, a bucket under a bed is the only toilet; fear of deadly crime prevents people from walking a distance to a toilet.
In Flamingo Crescent, a settlement of 400 people, the inimitable ‘Aunty’ Marie has been instrumental in bringing about change and transforming the lives of her community. After years of development, working with Cape Town City and NGOs, Flamingo Crescent has been 'upgraded’: each shack now has its own toilet, tap and electricity supply.

As 900 million people now live in slum conditions worldwide, with limited access to basic facilities, Aunt Marie’s tenacity and strength has set a precedent for global settlement redevelopment.