my visit to a slum area after the

Savvy Travel Advice

Slum Tourism: 17 Responsible Travel Guidelines for Travelers

Last updated: July 12, 2022 - Written by Jessica Norah 10 Comments

Slum tourism is defined as the practice of travelers visiting poor urban areas, typically in the Global South, to view the impoverished conditions and understand more of the lifestyles of local inhabitants. It is also known as poverty tourism, township tourism, community tourism, and other terms.

Tourism is often used to help alleviate poverty, but in this case, poverty is also the attraction. It is a controversial tourism practice but one that has become increasingly popular. Slum tours are particularly popular in South Africa, Brazil, and India. It was estimated by Frezel et al. (2015) that over 1 million tourists take a slum tour each year.

The goal of this article is to provide information that will be useful to both those interested in learning about the practice of slum tourism as well as those travelers who are considering taking a slum tour.

We begin with providing information on the history of slums and slum tourism, the current state of slum tourism, the potential pros and cons of the practice, and the ethical debates around slum tourism. We also provide information for those looking for further resources about the practice. We encourage everyone to do their own research and come up with their own informed opinions on slum tourism.

For those travelers who want to take a slum tour, we propose a set of responsible slum tour guidelines for travelers which were developed based on the research literature, policy papers, and tourism ethic codes. These guidelines are designed for those tourists who plan to take a slum tour and want to do so in the most responsible way possible.

We provide lots of tips and advice for travelers in choosing a responsible tour operator, engaging in behaviors that minimize potential harm and maximize potential benefits to the visited community, and visiting in a safe and responsible manner.

Table of Contents:

Overview of Slum Tourism 

This first section gives a brief overview of the history of slums, the evolution of slum tours, the ethical debate on slum tourism, and the research on the topic of slum tourism. We also provide links to further resources for those wanting to explore these topics further.

What are Slums?

The word slum is often used to refer to urban low-income settlements that are characterized by substandard housing and poor human living conditions. They are usually in crowded urban areas, although they can also sometimes be found in suburban areas. There are a lot of different definitions of the term slum, but one of the most recognized by policymakers is the one used by the United Nations.

The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) came up with a formal and operational definition for slums to aid in their reporting. They define a slum household as a group of individuals living under the same roof lacking one or more of the following: access to an improved water source, access to improved sanitation facilities, sufficient living area, housing durability, and security of tenure.

The term informal settlement is often used interchangeably, but specifically is defined by the UN-Habitat to mean that the inhabitants have no security of tenure (e.g., don’t have rights to the land, can be easily evicted), may lack basic services and infrastructure, and the housing may not comply with local regulations.

It should be noted that many people, such as the Australian writer Alan Mayne , consider the word slum to be a pejorative and offensive term and argue against its use. He similarly argues against the use of similar foreign terms like favela , ghetto , and bustee which often have the same negative connotations. He doesn’t suggest an alternative term though and notes that “there is no one term that can describe the diversity of disadvantaged low-income settlement types.”

It should also be noted that many residents living in these areas refer to them as a “slum” (or a similar word in their own local language) themselves, and the UN notes that in many developing countries, “the word lacks the pejorative and divisive original connotation, and simply refers to lower quality or informal housing.” However, in general, the word slum has a negative connotation and is not considered a politically correct term in everyday conversation.

Slum is the main term used by organizations, policymakers, and researchers and it is therefore the one used in this article. This is done for the sake of consistency and for the lack of a better term. But one should be aware that it can often be perceived as an offensive term, and travelers should be aware of the language used in the area in which they are visiting.

Although crowded impoverished areas have existed for hundreds of years, modern urban slums are generally said to date from the beginning of the nineteenth century. The first use of the term “slum” comes from Victorian England in reference to the crowded living conditions of the poor who lived in the alleys of London’s East End.

The first slums began to appear in the early nineteenth century due to rapid industrialization and urbanization, as well as increasing populations, poor urban planning, and discrimination. The first slums occurred in big cities in Europe and North America like London, New York City, Dublin, Boston, and Paris. However, while slum areas can still be found in the Global North, the largest slums of today primarily exist in the developing countries of the Global South.

According to a 2021 report by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, about 24% of the world’s urban population resided in slums in 2018. It is estimated that over 1 billion people are currently living in slums or informal settlements. Unfortunately, the number of people residing in slums has been increasing over time in many parts of the world.

The UN notes a number of reasons for the creation and continuation of slums which include rapid rural-to-urban migration, poor policy and city planning, increasing urban poverty and inequality, insecure tenure, and the global economic cycle.

What are Slum Tours?

Slum tours are guided visits to a slum area. Slum tours are generally walking tours led by a local guide, and most take place in cities in the Global South.

Slum tours are called different things in different parts of the world. They may also be called favela tours, township tours, ghetto tours, poverty tours, community tours, cultural tours, etc.

Although many people think that slum tours are a very recent phenomenon, the practice actually dates back to the nineteenth century. According to Frenzel et al. , upper-class British people in the mid-1800s started to take an interest in visiting the slums of London and that this was the beginning of informal slum tourism.

Londoners then began to visit slums when traveling in the cities of the United States and Europe, causing more interest in this behavior. It is believed that the first commercial guided tours of slums began in the early 20th century in the cities of New York City, Chicago, and San Francisco.

Later slums began to develop in the Global South as industrialization and urbanization took place in those countries. However, there was relatively little slum tourism in the Global South for many decades, likely due to safety concerns from travelers and the lack of formal tours.

According to Frenzel (1992 ), the first commercial slum tours in the Global South are believed to date from the early 1990s, taking place in South Africa and Brazil. The first tours in both of these countries surprisingly have political and social justice roots.

Township tours in South Africa were first organized and promoted by the local governments during apartheid (which lasted from approximately 1948 to the early 1990s). These official propaganda township tours (along with cultural villages, museums, etc.) were designed to show government officials and visitors that apartheid policies were working. However, informal township tours also sprung up that were designed to show the social injustices of apartheid.

After apartheid legislation was repealed in 1991 and the first multiracial election took place in 1994, tourism increased in South Africa. The informal township tours that had sprung up during apartheid started to become less political over time and began to focus more on heritage, cultural diversity, and local life.

Today, township tours are popular in several cities in South Africa, including Cape Town, Johannesburg, and Durban. These tours are not only popular with foreign tourists but also attract a significant number of South Africans.

The year of the first commercial favela tours in Rio de Janeiro is unclear but the interest in slum tourism in Brazil was really sparked in 1992. During the Rio Summit in 1992 (United Nations Conference on Environment and Development), some of the conference delegates wanted to visit the favela areas instead of just seeing the popular tourist attractions. So, a tour operator arranged a tour for them to visit Rocinha. Some of the journalists and policymakers wrote about these visits; this made people aware of favelas and caused others to want to visit.

The early visitors to the favelas in Rio were mainly “political tourists” and journalists, but soon regular leisure tourists were also coming. Today, Rocinha is one of the most visited slums in the world and favela tours are one of the popular tourist things to do in Rio de Janeiro.

Where do Slum Tours Take Place?

Slum tours take place in dozens of countries, primarily in the Global South. Three countries that attract the most slum tourism are Brazil, South Africa, and India.

A group of researchers on slum tourism estimated in a 2015 paper that approximately 1 million tourists were taking part in slum tours each year. They noted that about 80% of those tourists are doing so in just two countries: Brazil and South Africa. In Brazil, tourists are mainly visiting the favelas of Rio de Janeiro. In South Africa, tourists are taking township tours in several cities.

As noted in the prior section, the first commercial slum tours in the Global South are believed to have started in the early 1990s in South Africa and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. These early tours sprung from political and social justice roots. Today these remain two of the most popular slum tourism destinations.

The influence of media and promotion by the local tourism industry have also had a huge effect on where slum tourism is popular. The films Slumdog Millionaire , District 9 , and City of God depicted the slums of Dharavi, District Six, and Cidade de Deus, respectively. These films are often credited with making slum tourism popular in Mumbai, Johannesburg, and Rio de Janeiro.

There are often multiple tour operators offering tours in the most popular slum tourism cities. For example, you’ll find a number of tours options to visit the slums of Soweto in Johannesburg (South Africa), Rocinha in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), Manshiyat Nasser (“Garbage City”) in Cairo (Egypt), Kibera in Nairobi (Kenya), Dharavi in Mumbai (India), and Langa in Cape Town (South Africa).

However, it should be pointed out that most slum areas around the world receive relatively little tourist interest. For example, although Orangi in Karachi, Pakistan is twice the size of Dharavi and is believed to be Asia’s largest slum area (perhaps the world’s largest), it is not a popular tourist destination. Similarly, although there are hundreds of favelas in Brazil, there are only a handful of them that attract tourist visits.

What are Slum Tours Like?

Every slum tour is different, but in general, they are often walking tours led by a tour leader through a particular neighborhood or slum area.

Slum tours are organized and run by a variety of different types of operators, including private tour companies, charities, and non-governmental organizations. The size of the operators ranges from solo tour guides running their own business to fairly large tour operators that employ a number of guides.

Most slum tours take place mainly outdoors and view the explored neighborhood on foot from the streets. Most include at least a couple of planned stops at local businesses, cultural sites, homes, schools, humanitarian projects, markets, or other points of interest.

Slum areas are all very different. Even slums in the same city can be very different in terms of infrastructure, history, cultural diversity, and level of affluence.

Slums like Soweto and Rocinha, which are two of the most visited slum areas in the world, have more developed tourist services than many other slums around the world. For instance, they offer museums, restaurants, bars, clubs, cultural centers, gift shops, and overnight lodging options for guests. Some evening tours include going to clubs for music, drinks, and entertainment. Soweto even has a 4-star hotel and conference center!

However, most slum areas offer few, if any, tourist services. It is important to remember that many people living in these areas lack access to basic necessities and resources like safe drinking water, electricity, and good sanitation services.

Is Slum Tourism Ethical?

Despite a lot of writings on the subject, there does not appear to be any agreed-upon consensus as to whether slum tourism is ethical or not. Determining whether an activity is morally right or wrong is often more of a philosophical debate than a scientific one.

It is difficult to argue that a walking tour through any neighborhood is inherently unethical. So the ethical arguments are often around tourists’ motivations for taking slum tours, tourists’ behaviors while on tours, the impact of the “tourist gaze” , the feelings of local residents about slum tourism, and the costs and benefits of such tourism on the local community.

It is a complex issue and has been discussed by many researchers, journalists, and others. Just note that many of these opinions, especially those of journalists and bloggers, are coming from people living in developed Western countries, not those actually living in slum communities themselves. We encourage you to read the debates and discussions pertaining to the ethics of slum tourism to make up your own beliefs. You can find some articles online here to get started.

In order to examine whether slum tours are responsible or not, many people look at the potential positive and negative impacts of slum tourism in a particular local community.

Those who support slum tourism often note potential benefits such as reducing stigmatization, increasing awareness, employing local residents, generating revenue for community projects, increasing profits of local businesses, and improving local services, infrastructure, and security.

Those opposed to slum tourism typically note the negative impacts that include the voyeuristic and intrusive nature of the practice, the potential exploitation of local people (particularly children), the problematic practice of using poverty as an attraction, and the limited economic benefits to locals,

A small number of studies have looked at residents’ thoughts and feelings, indicating that most slum residents believe that there are both negative and positive potential impacts of slum tourism. But the attitudes, concerns, and perceptions of residents seem to vary across slum areas.

For example, a study of residents in a Cairo slum area , noted a number of both positive (e.g., donations, employment, improved infrastructure) and negative aspects (e.g., rights and assets being used for tourism, voyeuristic nature of some tours, concerns about human trafficking) related to slum tourism. Although most residents generally had positive attitudes towards slum tourism, they reported there are a lot of barriers to benefiting from slum tourism. The most common barrier they reported to benefiting from slum tourism was actually the high-density population of the slum itself.

The biggest concern many residents have is that slum tourism does not directly benefit them and only benefits a limited number of people in the slum. This is a particular concern for slum areas like Kibera in Nairobi ( Kieti & Magio, 2013 ) where there are few tourism-focused businesses due to limited capacity and investment. So locals can’t benefit from ventures such as selling crafts, meals, and souvenirs to visitors or offering overnight accommodation as residents of other slum areas do. Many residents in Kibera had more negative overall attitudes toward slum tourism and believe that most of the profits go to outsiders.

To learn more about ethics in tourism, you can check out this code of ethics developed by The World Tourism Agency called the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism. They also provide this set of tips for being a responsible tourist to help people make more responsible choices when traveling.

Further Resources on Slum Tourism

We highly encourage you to do your own research on slums, informal settlements, and slum tourism.

One of the best sources for information and research about slums is the United Nations Habitat (UN-Habitat) website. One of the major goals of UN-Habitat is to improve the conditions of slum dwellers around the world. They regularly release data, reports, and information related to slums and their projects.

Cities Alliance is a global partnership fighting urban poverty and promoting the role of cities. One of the main goals is to improve living conditions in existing slums and prevent new slums from forming.

Another organization that provides information on slums and their work on slum rehabilitation is Habitat for Humanity. Other international organizations that do research and work on improving slum conditions are Oxfam and Save the Children.

• United Nations Habitat (UN-Habitat): https://unhabitat.org/topic/slum-upgrading
• Cities Alliance Cities Without Slums: https://www.citiesalliance.org/cities-without-slums-action-plan
• Habitat for Humanity: https://www.habitatforhumanity.org.uk/what-we-do/slum-rehabilitation/

To get a good overview of slum tourism history and research, we recommend the book and literature review by Fabian Frenzel. Frenzel’s work focuses on the intersection of tourism and urban poverty, and he has written several articles and edited a few books on the topic of slum tourism.

• Frenzel, F., Koens, K., & Steinbrink, M. (Eds.) (2012) Slum tourism :  Poverty, power and ethics. New York: Routeldge.
• Frenzel, F., Koens, K., Steinbrink, M., & Rogerson, C. (2015). Slum tourism: State of the art. Tourism Review International , 18 , 237-252. doi: 10.3727/154427215X14230549904017

Just note that there are a lot of limitations to the studies on slum tourism. As someone who has published psychological and health services research and has read dozens of these research studies, I find that there is a lack of strong empirical studies in the area of slum tourism. Much of the research relies on small samples, non-random sampling, self-reporting, qualitative data, anecdotes, and retrospective data.

Most of the research on slum tourism is published in tourism journals.

• Google Scholar is a good place to go and search if you don’t have access to a paid research database like Scopus, PsycINFO, or PubMed. Many of the articles listed in Google Scholar are available online for free.

There are studies that examine different issues in specific slums, so if you are interested in a specific slum (e.g., Rocinha, Kibera, Soweto, Dharavi) or geographical region, you can search for that in the research literature.

17 Responsible Traveler Slum Tour Guidelines

If you are planning to take a slum tour, we have come up with a proposed set of guidelines and tips for travelers who want to do so in the most responsible way possible.

Ultimately, we believe the main responsibility in regulating slum tourism and conducting responsible tours lies with the local governments and tour operators. They should strive to ensure that tours are responsible and are designed in a way to maximize the positive impact on local communities while minimizing any negative effects.

However, realistically, we also know that most tour operators respond to the demands and behaviors of the traveler and that government regulations are often lax. The communities themselves often have minimal power. So travelers often have to vote with their wallets in determining what tourist products are available and how they are structured.

Our tips are based on research in the area of slum tourism, the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, and our personal experience. A strong influence was the proposed guidelines for township tour operators in Cape Town, South Africa that were developed in 2013 by tourism researcher Jeanett Søderstrøm. While those guidelines were specifically proposed for the slum tour operators, we have written a set of proposed guidelines for responsible travelers.

1. Choose a Responsible Tour Operator

The first step is to choose a responsible tour operator. However, this is much easier said than done as it can be hard to identify whether a tour is operated in a responsible, ethical, and sustainable way.

There is no third-party international regulation of slum tours, although there may be local regulations of such tours. So, the best you can do is to read the company’s policies, tour descriptions, and past reviews by travelers who have taken the tour.

There are lots of things to look out for (many are covered in more detail in this post) but here are some things that may indicate a more responsible company:

• The company is locally based and employs local resident guides
• The company focuses on small group walking tours
• The company pays fair wages to guides and compensates any visited households
• The company uses tours to benefit the local community (e.g., profits support a local community project)
• The company provides guidance on tourist behaviors concerning photography, dress, safety, tipping, and home visits
• The company promotes its tours with a focus on learning and the local community rather than on the more voyeuristic aspects of visiting slums
• The company allows tourists the opportunity to support local businesses and projects if they wish
• The company doesn’t promote tour activities that are likely to exploit or cause harm to children, animals, or vulnerable people
• The company consults with local residents to get feedback and inform their tours
• The company has a responsible travel or sustainable tourism policy
• The company provides evidence of its responsible or sustainable claims

Now, the chances of realistically being able to know and confirm all the above is pretty low with most companies that lead slum tours. Many are very small companies and some may just be a single person leading tours, and there may not be a ton of information available.

You can of course contact them in advance if you have questions. But for many claims, you often have to take their word for it and trust that the information provided is truthful. However, the above can be a good set of criteria for comparing tours.

Probably the best way to learn more about a specific tour is to read reviews from recent guests who did that tour. We find the best source is often the third-party websites that sell tours such as Viator and GetYourGuide as these websites generally only allow people who have booked the tour to post, and the published reviews are not controlled by the tour operator.

Other potential sources for reviews are Trustpilot , public travel forums, and other public review platforms like Google and TripAdvisor. Just note that many of these websites are often unregulated in terms of who can post. A tour company’s own website reviews can be useful but they are typically only going to share posts that are positive.

2. Visit with a Local Guide

It is best to choose a local guide and preferably someone who grew up and lives in the community. A resident of the community is going to be more likely to know more about the area, be able to share personal stories, and be more likely to be invested in ensuring that the tour visits the area in a responsible way.

One of the things that many residents of slums complain most about is that many tours are not led by local residents. The employment of local guides is one of the most direct ways for slum tourism to benefit a local community.

3. Visit on Foot

There is nothing that seems to make residents feel more like zoo animals than a bus or car full of tourists watching, pointing, and snapping photos of them. This creates a barrier between the visitor and the residents.

I think today most slum tours are done on foot, but there are tours, particularly in South Africa, that are done as a driving tour on a bus or in a private car. You should avoid these drive-by tours.

Walking tours also tend to be longer and spend more time actually seeing the area than bus or Jeep tours.

4. Don’t be in a Rush

If you are visiting a slum area to learn more about it, then you want to make sure you have the time to do so. It is going to depend on the particular slum area, but most are very large areas and it is hard to see much on a short tour.

The more time you have, the more opportunities you will have to see more, interact more with the local people, support local businesses, and learn more from your visit. We’d recommend setting aside at least half a day (about 4 hours) if you want to do a slum tour.

Most slum tours are 3 to 4 hours in length and some are even full-day experiences of 8 hours or more. Be cautious of shorter tours that are only 1 or 2 hours in length as they may rush you through the area and may be less likely to visit the area in a responsible way.

5. Visit as Part of a Small Group

Similar to the above tip about not visiting as part of a bus or driving tour, we also recommend going as part of a smaller group. Many walking tours are done as private tours or with small groups of 10 people or less.

Joining others as part of a small group tour is fine, but going as a giant group of 20 people is going to be very overwhelming when walking through narrow streets or visiting a shop or a home. Touring as part of a larger group is also going to make it harder to hear and talk to the guide, create more safety concerns, and make it more overwhelming for local people trying to go about their business.

If you want more control over your tour, a private tour may be the way to go. This will allow you to go more at your own pace, adjust the tour itinerary, and give you a chance to ask more questions.

6. Do a Little Bit of Research

One of the reasons to take a tour is to learn more about a local community, but it is also a good idea to come into the tour knowing at least a little about the area you are visiting and its history. This will help you better understand what you are seeing and ask more informed questions.

For instance, if you are visiting South Africa and plan to go on a township tour, knowing at least a little bit about the colonial history of South Africa, apartheid, and the activism of Nelson Mandela is going to be very helpful.

It is also a good idea to know what to expect on the tour by reading the tour description and recent reviews. This can help you be better prepared for the tour.

7. Dress Respectfully and Appropriately

Every area is going to be a bit different, of course, but you want to keep the local culture and customs in mind when it comes to how to dress and behave. Many slum areas are in places where most people dress modestly for cultural and/or religious reasons. So you want to be respectful of those customs.

If unsure of what would be appropriate as a visitor, it is best to err on the side of more modest and conservative clothing. Just make sure it is something that is also comfortable to wear for a lot of walking. You also want to keep sun protection in mind as you’ll likely be outside for much of the tour.

You also want to wear practical clothes and shoes that you don’t mind if they get a little dirty. For instance, when we did a walking tour of Kibera in Nairobi, we walked through a number of dirt streets and alleys and across areas that were muddy and had rubbish and open sewage.

8. Keep Safety in Mind

Many government agencies advise tourists against visiting a number of slum areas and informal settlements around the world due to safety concerns. So, it is important if you plan to visit to have a local guide, visit during daylight hours, pay attention to relevant security alerts, and take safety precautions.

Remember your guide can give you advice and try to keep an eye on you, but he or she is not your bodyguard. A guide may make it less likely you’ll be targeted, but it is not going to guarantee you won’t be pickpocketed or robbed.

Guides can provide invaluable advice but it is up to you to take it. For instance, we were talking to a guide who said he had a lady in his group who he advised twice to carry her backpack on her front rather than her back when going through a crowded market. She didn’t and by the end of the tour, she realized her pocketbook containing her money and credit cards had been stolen from her backpack.

You want to take normal safety precautions to try to prevent pickpocketing and theft. This includes leaving valuables at your hotel (or at home), not carrying a lot of money, being aware of your surroundings, not wearing flashing clothes or accessories, and storing things like your passport and a spare credit card in a hidden place like a money belt .

If you are carrying a purse or bag, we recommend a cross-body one, a sling, or fanny pack that is harder for someone to grab and one you aren’t likely to accidentally set down and leave behind. If you choose a backpack, we recommend one with lockable zippers like those by PacSafe and to consider carrying it on your front in crowded areas.

You also want to keep your surroundings in mind as many informal settlements have open sewers, rubbish tips, and animals wandering around. So staying aware as you walk around is important as you don’t want to accidentally step on a sharp object or fall into an open sewer. Wearing practical shoes and watching where you step is a good idea.

And of course, if you decide to eat while on your tour, you want to keep food and water safety in mind. Unless provided as part of the tour, you’ll want to bring along enough water for the duration of the tour. Most slum communities around the world lack access to clean drinking water.

Most slum communities are located in countries that do not have good access to clean drinking water. We have an article about finding or getting safe drinking water when traveling that may be helpful if you are traveling for the first time to a country where you can’t safely drink the tap water.

9. Bring Local Currency

You’ll want to bring local currency with you as it is likely that guides and small businesses are not going to be able to take credit cards for payment.

It is also best to leave any tips or donations in the local currency as otherwise, it costs the person money to exchange an international currency. Most slum residents lack access to banks and financial institutions, making it difficult for them to exchange foreign currency.

Of course, you do not want to carry a lot of money on you for safety reasons. So I would recommend just bringing enough to pay for the tour (if not paid for in advance), leave tips, buy souvenirs, etc.

10. Treat Everyone you Meet with Dignity and Respect

This is a fairly obvious one, but you want to treat everyone you meet with dignity and respect. People want to be treated the same way you would want others to treat you.

Impoverished people are often stigmatized, ignored, and disregarded. Not just by foreign travelers, but by more privileged people in their own communities. While visitors’ attention can help combat stigma and stereotypes, it can also have the opposite effect.

Lots of residents complain about some slum tourists making them feel like an “attraction” rather than as people. This is often due to behaviors from tourists such as pointing, staring, and photos being taken of them.

No one wants to be stared at, talked about, talked down to, or have photos taken of them without their explicit permission. Many residents, however, welcome respectful interactions with tourists.

It can also be embarrassing or hurtful to residents if tourists react in a disgusted or repulsed manner, especially if visiting someone’s home or business. If you are coming from a life of privilege, this may be the first time you have encountered true poverty. This often comes along with unfamiliar and unpleasant sights, sounds, and smells. While it is natural to be shocked and surprised, it is important to remember that this is someone’s home and community.

While the people you meet on a slum tour might all seem friendly and happy, it is important to keep in mind that most people’s lives are difficult. Many tourists leave with the impression of people who are “poor but happy” and this attitude can trivialize the lives of the residents. Many people living in slum areas struggle to obtain basic daily necessities like food, shelter, and clean water, and worry about crime, unemployment, diseases, and how to educate and protect their children. So while residents might be smiling and welcoming to visitors, most wish for an easier and more secure life.

11. Don’t Take Photos or Videos without Permission

Your guide will likely talk to you about taking photos and videos at the beginning of the tour. If you are unsure, you should ask about photography guidelines before taking any photos. Photography can make residents feel uncomfortable and like they are in a zoo so it is often discouraged when visiting slums.

Imagine if people came to your own neighborhood and started taking photos of you, your family, and your home. This is obviously not something most of us would enjoy and in some places, this behavior would be illegal.

On many slum tours, photos and videos are not allowed out of respect for the residents. Or photography may only be permitted in certain areas.

For instance, when Laurence was in Rio de Janeiro, he was advised by the guide not to take any photos in the favela areas. This policy was put into place both out of respect for the residents and the presence of gangs. So the guide took them to a viewpoint overlooking the favela areas where they were told they could take photos, but then Laurence put away his camera and took no photos while walking around in the community itself.

If photography is permitted, you want to be sure to be respectful if you do choose to take photos. As you would anywhere, if you want to take photos, particularly of people’s faces or inside their homes, you should ask permission first. Your guide should be able to help you ask permission, especially if you don’t speak the local language.

Be cautious about taking photos of children. Many residents have reported feeling particularly exploited by tourists taking photos of their children without their permission. You should have the permission of both the child and the parent before taking a photo. However, we generally recommend against taking photos of children, particularly those living in vulnerable areas.

Just understand that the power dynamics in the relationship between tourists and residents often mean that locals may agree to photos even if they would prefer not to. Some may feel it is impolite to refuse a visitor or say they feel pressured to do so by the tour guides.

We generally err on the side of not taking identifiable photos of anyone, unless they are our guides or people who are part of the tour.

If you do take photos on your tour, you also want to be respectful if you decide to share those photos publicly. You want to think about which photos you share and what you say about your experience. You don’t want to glamorize, trivialize, or romanticize these types of settings.

12. Be Respectful of People’s Private Spaces

Unless invited inside, you should respect people’s privacy in terms of people’s private living and work spaces. People may also share outdoor toilets, latrines, or bathing areas that may offer little privacy.

We have read of people gawking in windows, taking photos of people in their homes, and even wandering into people’s homes uninvited. These are not things you would do in your own town or city, and are definitely not things you should do in someone else’s neighborhood.

Some tours may include stops to visit people’s homes. It is important to be respectful of your host and their home when visiting. It is generally expected on many such tours that you will give a small donation to the hosts (e.g., money or food) at the end of the visit.

13. Be Cautious about Visiting Schools, Clinics, or Orphanages

You want to be cautious about any tour which mentions visiting schools, nurseries, clinics, or orphanages. You want to be sure to not be doing anything that is going to disrupt the care or education of children, put vulnerable people at risk, or have children involuntarily participate in tourism activities.

We personally don’t support tourists visiting or volunteering at orphanages, and you can read more about the problems with orphanages, orphanage donations, and orphanage tourism here .

Learning about a school or children’s project may be part of a tour if a tour’s profits are benefiting that school or project and the guide wants to show you actual proof of its existence. But it is best if it doesn’t involve disrupting the children’s studies. Imagine if you were a kid and every hour, some group of strangers showed up in your classroom. This is going to make it very hard to focus and learn.

Basically, you just want to think about if your visit may be doing any harm to anyone involved, especially to children and other vulnerable people.

If you feel that a tour you took could be improved, it is good to give that feedback to the tour leader (and in reviews) and suggest helpful alternatives. Tours will only change if the company thinks that is what tourists want. For example, rather than going into a classroom and talking to children in the middle of the day, it could be better to just talk to an adult volunteer at the school and/or watch a video made with the children and teachers.

14. Consider Ways to Support the Local Community

One of the things that slum residents tend to cite as one of the biggest negative things about slum tourism is that it often does not benefit the local community.

The main thing you can do is to choose a responsible tour operator that uses local resident guides and benefits the community (e.g., contributes part of profits to community-based projects). For example, in the Bwaise district of Kampala, Uganda, slum tours are used to benefit the local non-profit organization AFFCAD . The organization helps support clean water projects, local schools, and various health projects.

But there are a lot of other ways you might support the local community. You can also give direct monetary support via tips to your guides and any households you visit. You can support local businesses by buying handmade crafts and souvenirs, buying produce at the market, eating in a local eatery, and staying in local accommodation. You can support local charities and community projects by making donations.

If you are worried about giving money directly to an unknown charity or project, you might consider in-kind donations instead of cash. So you might want to donate useful and relevant goods to a local school, hospital, or community project. It is a good idea to do a bit of research first though to make sure you are able to give something that is both practical and needed.

For example, if you want to support a local school, you might consider donating some needed school supplies. This might include things like pencils, chalk, notebook paper, calculators, or solar lights.

15. Avoid Giving Money to Children

Most organizations and tour operators will advise you not to give money or candy to children who may ask or beg you for money during your tour. While many tourists give money to children with good intentions, the money often discourages the child from going to school.

As Nelson Mandela said in a speech in 1990: “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Education is the best tool in fighting poverty and can help children grow up to have a better life. If children (or their families) learn that they can make money by begging, it can be difficult to get them to attend school.

If you are interested in helping local children, consider donating money or goods to a local school, children’s charity, or public hospital instead. For example, many families and schools are in need of school supplies, school uniforms, textbooks, shoes, hygiene items, and light sources (children in many informal settlements can’t read or study after dark because of a lack of reliable electricity).

16. Use the Visit as a Learning Opportunity

One of the main reasons people want to do a slum tour is to learn more about the people, the community, and the local culture. Be open to learning and listening to the tour guide and those who you encounter as part of the tour.

For many visitors, this is their first time seeing poverty up close. As someone who is financially privileged, you want to endeavor to use this as a chance to learn and try to understand rather than as just a chance to look at poverty.

Don’t be afraid to ask questions on the tour. Tour guides and residents you meet are generally very happy to answer any questions you may have. Just be sure to do so in a respectful way.

17. Leave Feedback

After the tour, we recommend leaving private feedback for the guide and tour company and a public review for future travelers. Things that can be particularly important to note is any issues around safety, if the tour was conducted in a responsible manner, and if the tour was as advertised.

If you feel that a tour you took could be improved (particularly in the issues of being more safe or responsible), it is good to give that feedback. It is also helpful to provide constructive advice that would be practical for the tour company to implement to encourage change.

Public reviews can help future travelers know more about the tour, the tour company, and your personal experience. This can help them decide if it is an appropriate tour for them or not.

So that is our overview of slum tourism and our proposed guidelines and tips on how to choose and take a slum tour in the most responsible way possible. We hope you have found it helpful.

What do you think about slum tourism? Do you think it can be done in a more responsible manner? Have you taken a slum tour? If so, we’d love to hear about your experience.

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There are 10 comments on this post.

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Daniel E. Post author

February 1, 2024 at 3:07 am

Informative blog on slum tourism and lots of cited research and personal experience, exactly what i was searching for, thanks so much!

Jessica & Laurence Norah Post author

February 1, 2024 at 12:41 pm

Glad your found our information on slum tourism and slum tours helpful, just let us know if you have any questions.

Wishing you safe and happy travels! Jessica

Ravi Post author

October 11, 2022 at 5:06 am

This article enlightened me with a very detailed explanation when searching for information about slum tourism for a research report. thanks for sharing.

October 12, 2022 at 3:00 pm

Glad you found our article on slum tourism helpful for your research. If you have any questions we might be able to help with, just ask!

Best, Jessica

Irene Post author

July 28, 2022 at 9:23 pm

Some great research and tips! What a very interesting history. I would like to pay a visit to slum in Rio in 2024. I’m excited to get to know more about their people, life, and culture.

July 31, 2022 at 12:19 am

Glad you enjoyed our responsible travel tips for visiting slum areas. I hope you enjoy your time in Rio in 2024.

Seana Turner Post author

July 12, 2022 at 7:13 am

Wow, I didn’t even know this was a thing. I love the respectful tone of this post. It is so important to check your heart and motives before embarking on a trip like this. I love the granular advice about using local currency and visiting on foot. No one wants to feel like their misfortune and struggles are someone else’s entertainment. I hope this type of tourism benefits those who need the world’s help. Thanks for posting on this topic!

July 12, 2022 at 8:00 am

Thanks for taking the time to comment, and glad you enjoyed reading the post. I like your comment of checking “your heart and motives”.

I started reading and writing about slum tourism several years ago and avoided taking any slum tours. But I decided to take one earlier this year while in Nairobi (Kibera) to better understand what the tours were like and how to do it in the most responsible way possible. It felt a bit weird to write about something I had never done.

One thing we noticed in Kibera is that it just lacks the infrastructure for large numbers of residents to benefit from tourism. There were very few things a tourist could buy or do unlike in some other slum areas where there are stalls selling local crafts and souvenirs, food markets, a museum talking about local history, places where people can eat, see a performance, or sleep. So it doesn’t appear to currently create much employment or benefit other than for tour guides and those directly involved in the tour itself. We were also the only tourists we saw there during our visit.

Tourism is such a major industry in so many countries and leaving areas like this completely out of being able to benefit from tourism seems wrong. But having tourists going just to gawk and take photos of poverty seems wrong as well. Each country and each community is different and the study in Cairo indicated that different approaches need to be taken in each community.

Individual travelers can only do so much, and ultimately changes need to come from the tour operators and local governments to ensure that offerings are as responsible and ethical as possible. But reviews, complaints, and changes in demand over time by travelers can help.

Marge D Post author

July 10, 2022 at 11:25 am

Some great research and tips as always, very interesting history. I actually did a slum tour, called a favella tour as you mention in Rio. When in Brazil, it was just part of full day walking tour we did. I have to admit I didn’t consider most of these issues or potential probelms and never heard the term slum tourism. But I do remember they asked us not to take photos. Back then, around 2002 or 2003, most people didn’t have cameras on their phones so I think that part was less of an issue. This definitely gives me some food for thought!!

I wonder if rural tours of poor villages and disaster tourism is sort of the same thing?

July 10, 2022 at 1:38 pm

Thanks for taking the time to comment and share your experience of the favela tour you did in Rio. I am glad you enjoyed the article.

Yes, I think that any kind of tour to more impoverished areas, whether rural villages or urban ones, can have very similar issues. Disaster tourism is a bit different but has many of the same potential issues of being voyeruristic and potentially exploiting vulnerable people. I know there has been discussion about the ethics of tours to areas devastated by recent floods or hurricanes (including after Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans). All tourism can have negative effects. I think people just have to consider the potential harms of their travel decisions, make an informed decision, and try to minimize any harm.

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Visit A Slum And Find Out Their Basic Problems

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION:

A slum is a remarkably inhabited urban residential sector consisting mostly of carefully packed, decrepit housing units in an exceedingly situation of deteriorated or incomplete infrastructure, colonized primarily by impoverished persons. While slums differ in size and different characteristics, most lack reliable sanitation services, the offer of unpolluted water, reliable electricity, law enforcement, and various essential functions. The lake receives more water from sewage other than natural bodies because of slums wastes.

Today, the present population growth is outpacing the speed at which cities will answer the necessity for housing. This is often the very condition underneath which slums thrive and grow out of management.

Dharavi is vicinity in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It is regarded as one of the biggest slums in Asia. Dharavi has a neighborhood of merely over 2.1 sq. Kilometers (0.81 sq mi; 520 acres) and a population of concerning 700,000. With a population density of over 277,136/km2 (717,780/sq mi), Dharavi is one of the densest areas within the world.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES:

The objective of this project is to determine the fundamental problems of any slum. We have chosen the slum of city Mumbai: DHARAVI.

Objectives:

• To gather information about slum living.
• To be aware of the livelihood of the slum people
• To understand the necessities of slum people.
• To recognize fundamental problems that slums face in day to day life.
• To spread awareness about the fundamental slum problems.

METHOD AND METHODOLOGY:

The technique used to make this project is a reporting method. A report is built on the issues faced by the slum of Mumbai. To make this report, we have used the internet to do our research. By using the internet, we came across a great deal of data that helped us make the best report on the slums. The internet provided us with real-life experiences of people who lived in slums at a point. The story is created based on various interviews, videos on the reality of slums, a survey made by some people on slums, etc. The report covers the following problems:

• Sanitation problem
• Unemployment
• Poor housing conditions
• Safety and violence
• Health and well being
• Overcrowded homes

DETAIL REPORT OF PROJECT:

The Dharavi slums face tons of issues like noise, water, and air pollution; it additionally has no waste or drainage systems.

Dharavi has severe issues with public health. Also, with the clogged toilets they need, they’re very filthy and weakened to the point of being unsafe. Mahim Creek is a natural watercourse that’s wide utilized by residents for urination and defecation, inflicting the unfold of contagious diseases. The open sewers within the town drain to the creek inflicting a spike in water pollutants, unsanitary conditions, and foul odors. Because of the air pollutants, diseases like lung cancer, TB, and respiratory disease are common among residents. There are government proposals concerning improving Dharavi’s sanitation problems. The residents have a neighborhood where they wash their garments in water that individuals defecate in. This spreads the quantity of illness as doctors need to cope with over 4,000 cases of infectious disease daily. there’s also an average of one bathroom per 500 individuals

Dharavi has toughened a long history of epidemics and natural disasters, generally with a vital loss of lives. The primary plague to devastate Dharavi, alongside different settlements of Mumbai, happened in 1896, once nearly 1/2 the population perished. A series of diseases and various epidemics continued to have an effect on Dharavi, and Mumbai generally, for the subsequent 25 years, with high rates of mortality. Dysentery epidemics are frequent throughout the years and explained by the high population density of Dharavi. Various outbreaks reported embodying infectious disease, cholera, leprosy, meiosis, and poliomyelitis, through recent years. As an example, in 1986, youngster’s infectious disease epidemic was reported, wherever most patients were residents of Dharavi. Typical patients to arrive in hospitals were in late and necessary care conditions, and therefore the mortality rates were abnormally high. In recent years, cases of drug-resistant T.B. are reported in Dharavi.

Due to a lack of skills and education also as competitive job markets. Several slum dwellers face high rates of unemployment. The limit of job opportunities causes several of them to use themselves within the informal economy, within the slum, or in developed urban areas close to the slum. This can typically be the licit informal economy or illicit informal economy while not operating a contract or any social insurance . A number of them are seeking jobs at an equivalent time, and a few of these can eventually realize jobs in formal economies once gaining some professional skills in informal sectors.

Examples of licit informal economy embody street peddling, home enterprises, product assembly, and packaging, creating garlands and embroideries, domestic work, shoe sharpening or repair, driving manual rickshaws, construction employees, or manually driven provision, and handicrafts production. In some slums, individuals sort and recycle trash of various types (from house garbage to electronics) for a living – merchandising either the odd usable merchandise or denudation broken product for components or raw materials.

Examples of illicit informal economy embrace banned substance and weapons trafficking, drug or moonshine/change production, vice crime, and gambling – all sources of risks to the individual, families, and society.

Poor infrastructure forces the poor to adapt to terms on the far side his or her management. Low-income families that can’t afford transportation, or those that merely lack any cheap public transport, typically end up in squat settlements within walking distance or close enough to the place of their employment. Poor quality, unpaved streets encourage slums; the tenth increase in made-up all-season roads reduces slum incidence rate by regarding 0.35%. Cheap conveyance and economic infrastructure empower sick individuals to maneuver and think about housing choices apart from their current slump.

Urban poorness encourages the formation and demand for slum with a fast shift from rural to urban life; poorness migrates to urban areas. The urban poor arrives with hope and exceptionally very little of anything. He or she usually has no access to shelter, essential municipal services, and social amenities. Slums are typically the sole choice for the urban poor

Some suggest that crime is one of the most concerns in slums. Empirical information suggests crime rates are higher in some slums than in non-slums, with slum homicides alone reducing the life expectancy of a resident in a Dharavi slum by seven years than for a resident in close non-slum.

In some cases, officers have sent within the military to regulate slum criminal violence involved drugs and weapons. Rape is another severe issue associated with crime in slums. In slums, as an example, one-fourth of all young women are raped every year. Instead, crime is one of the symptoms of slum dwelling; therefore, slums incorporate more victims than criminals.

Consequently, slums altogether don’t have consistently high crime rates; slums have the worst crime rates in sectors maintaining the influence of illicit economy – like drug traffic, brewing, vice crime, and gambling –. Usually, in such circumstances, multiple gangs fight for management over revenue. Often, police can’t scale back crime because, due to ineffective urban planning and governance, slums set inefficient crime interference system. Such issues aren’t primarily because of community indifference. Leads and knowledge intelligence from slums are rare, streets are slender, and possible death traps to patrol, and lots of within the slum community have an inherent distrust of authorities from worry starting from eviction to assortment on unpaid utility bills to general law and order. Women in slums are at more significant risk of physical and sexual violence. Slums are usually non-secured areas, and ladies typically risk sexual abuse once they walk alone in slums late in the dead of night

Because unplanned settlements are generally not connected to essential services like clean water, sanitation, and hygiene facilities, residents are at high risk of acquiring water-borne and metabolism diseases.

High population density, lack of correct bathrooms, and shut proximity of homes permit diseases to unfold quickly. This creates a real risk for significant populations UN agency are typically unable to access adequate health facilities to induce treatment in time.

Overcrowding is another characteristic of slums. Several dwellings are single space units, with high occupancy rates. Multiple families also cohabit every home. Five and more persons might share a one-room flat; space is employed for cookery, sleeping, and living. Overcrowding is additionally seen close to sources of drinkable, cleaning, and sanitation where one bathroom could serve dozens of families.

However, the density and neighborhood effects of slum populations may provide a chance to focus on health interventions. There are also lots of adverse effects on the environment because of festivals .

ANALYSIS OF DATA:

The conditions in slums are unacceptable. The settlements are inbuilt tiny, engorged areas, close to airports, railway lines and industries , rivers and different water bodies, and markets. This is often not solely insanitary; however, it also creates complications throughout monsoon once there’s flooding throughout significant rains. There is no regular provider of water through pipes. Used and dirty water isn’t properly disposed of through coated pipes but is roughly directed far away from the Settlements. Since there’s no correct sewerage or waste disposal system, garbage is accumulated close to the slums or thrown into the water bodies just in case the slums are close to a water body. There aren’t any correct sanitation facilities, and people tend to defecate publicly. There’s no regulated provider of electricity in slums, creating living conditions deplorable. Finally, the quality of living is inferior. The existence of such conditions makes it easier for individuals living here to contract diseases and unfolds infectious diseases because many people sleep in shut quarters.

CONCLUSION:

After analyzing the data, the conclusion of it is drawn that slums’ fundamental problems are severe.  The basic need of a person is not met. And every year there’s a significant increase in the slums. The government should make significant decisions about the slum and poverty of the country. They should provide tenements with the very least of a hygienic habitat to survive in. The visit to the slums of Mumbai made me realize she is to how lucky we are to have a decent living. We should take measures to eradicate the slums by helping the government make some proper living conditions for the slum people.

The primary issue, which is the heart of the creation of slums, is POVERTY. The visit to slums gave an insight into the worst living conditions ever witnessed. And also gave us an insight into the level of poverty that is still there in the country.

Lastly, the conclusion of this visit and this report has made us realize the darker side of the world and its horrible problems. The best way to conclude this project is actually to start working towards improving the conditions of the slums.

DISCUSSION:

The discussion about this project with teachers, friends, peers, and family was severe.

The discussion about this yielded lots of different solutions and suggestions. The outcome of these discussions with various members was the same. The majority of reviews surrounded the points of unhygienic living conditions, poverty, and crime. The debate on a topic like a slum is earnest and heart-wrenching at the same time.

SUGGESTION:

There were a lot of ideas made, opinions given, and solutions.

A few of them are mentioned below:

• The government ought to think about providing a legitimate answer to the poor. Most of the days, it’s seen that the rehabilitation takes place at a location that is much far from the core areas, and employability is zero.
• Easy finance and disposition choices at cheap interest rates for upgrading, building an extension of the present shelter should be created accessible.
• New strategies for making land provide should be tried. Liberating up the unused land lying with government establishments are used to produce cheap homes.
• If the prevailing homes are being upgraded, municipal authorities ought to upgrade the provisions from time to time

ACKNOWLEDGMENT :

My profound gratitude to all the faculty members of the Department, for their timely assistance and encouragement throughout my research work.

I duly acknowledge the encouragement and support from the research scholars in the department, and all my colleagues and friends.

It gives me immense pleasure to take the opportunity to all the people who are directly or indirectly involved in the completion of my project based on Visit A Slum And Find Out Their Basic Problems

With deep reverence, I offer my deepest gratitude _____, without whom this project could not have been fulfilled.

Lastly, I thank Almighty, my parents, family members, friends, and teachers for their constant encouragement and support, without which this project would not be possible.

Name of School/College

BIBLIOGRAPHY / REFERENCE :

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dharavi
• https://www.habitatforhumanity.org.uk/what-we-do/slum-rehabilitation/what-is-a-slum/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slum
• http://theriskyshift.com/2012/07/mumbais-largest-slum-more-than-meets-eye/
• https://www.proptiger.com/guide/post/10-step-strategy-to-eradicate-slums
• https://www.gktoday.in/gk/article-on-problem-of-slums-in-india/
• https://www.quora.com/What-are-the-basic-problems-of-slums-in-India-and-the-solution-on-them
• https://dharavislumindia.weebly.com/dharavi-problems.html

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Inside the Controversial World of Slum Tourism

People have toured the world’s most marginalized, impoverished districts for over a century.

Hundreds of shanty towns line the riverbanks, train tracks, and garbage dumps in the Filipino capital—the most jammed-packed areas in one of the world’s most densely populated cities. Around a quarter of its 12 million people are considered “informal settlers.”

Manila is starkly representative of a global problem. According to the United Nations , about a quarter of the world’s urban population lives in slums—and this figure is rising fast.

Rich cultural heritage brings visitors to Manila, but some feel compelled to leave the safety of the historic center sites to get a glimpse of the city’s inequality. Tour operators in the Philippines —as well as places like Brazil and India —have responded by offering “slum tours” that take outsiders through their most impoverished, marginalized districts.

Slum tourism sparks considerable debate around an uncomfortable moral dilemma. No matter what you call it—slum tours, reality tours, adventure tourism, poverty tourism—many consider the practice little more than slack-jawed privileged people gawking at those less fortunate. Others argue they raise awareness and provide numerous examples of giving back to the local communities. Should tourists simply keep their eyes shut?

Around a quarter of Manila's 12 million people are considered “informal settlers."

Rich cultural heritage brings visitors to Manila, but some feel compelled to leave the safety of the historic center sites to get a glimpse of the city’s inequality.

Slumming For Centuries

Slum tourism is not a new phenomenon, although much has changed since its beginning. “Slumming” was added to the Oxford English Dictionary in the 1860s, meaning “to go into, or frequent, slums for discreditable purposes; to saunter about, with a suspicion, perhaps, of immoral pursuits.” In September 1884, the New York Times published an article about the latest trend in leisure activities that arrived from across the pond, “‘Slumming’ will become a form of fashionable dissipation this winter among our Belles, as our foreign cousins will always be ready to lead the way.”

Usually under the pretense of charity and sometimes with a police escort, rich Londoners began braving the city’s ill-reputed East End beginning around 1840. This new form of amusement arrived to New York City from wealthy British tourists eager to compare slums abroad to those back home. Spreading across the coast to San Francisco, the practice creeped into city guide books. Groups wandered through neighborhoods like the Bowery or Five Points in New York to peer into brothels, saloons, and opium dens.

Visitors could hardly believe their eyes, and justifiably so. “I don’t think an opium den would have welcomed, or allowed access to, slummers to come through if they weren’t there to smoke themselves,” Chad Heap writes in his book Slumming: Sexual and Racial Encounters in American Nightlife , 1885–1940 . Recognizing the business opportunity, outsiders cashed in on the curiosity by hiring actors to play the part of addicts or gang members to stage shoot-’em-ups in the streets. After all, no one wanted the slum tourists to demand a refund or go home disappointed.

Smokey Tours does not allow participants to take photos, but this policy proves difficult to enforce.

The city of San Francisco eventually banned such mockery of the poor, the New York Times reported in 1909: “This is a heavy blow to Chinatown guides, who have collected a fee of two dollars each. The opium smokers, gamblers, blind paupers, singing children, and other curiosities were all hired.”

Tours also brought positive results, as Professor of History Seth Koven highlights in his research of slumming in Victorian London. Oxford and Cambridge Universities opened study centers in the late 19th-century to inform social policy, which was only possible by seeing the underprivileged neighborhoods firsthand.

Popularity waned after World War II with the creation of welfare and social housing—then rose again in the 1980s and 1990s as those state provisions declined and labor demands increased.

Presenting Poverty

Plastic arrives from all over India to the dark alleys and corrugated shacks of Dharavi in Mumbai —the second-largest slum on the continent of Asia (after Orangi Town in Pakistan ) and third-largest slum in the world. Ushered around by the company Reality Tour and Travel , tourists see a thriving recycling industry which employs around ten thousand to melt, reshape, and mould discarded plastic. They stop to watch the dhobiwallahs , or washermen, scrub sheets from the city’s hospitals and hotels in an open-air laundry area.

In a TripAdvisor review, one recent participant from Virginia appreciated the focus on community. “It was great to hear about the economy, education and livelihood of the residents,” she writes. “The tour group doesn't allow photography or shopping which I think is really important. It didn't feel exploitative, it felt educational.”

One traveler from London commented on the extremity of the scene. "Had to stop after about 20 minutes into it due to the overbearing nature of the surroundings. The tour is not for the faint hearted. I would've liked a few more disclaimers on the website to warn us about the nature of it." Another guest from the United Kingdom expressed disappointment over the so-called family meal. “This was in the home of one of the guides and, whilst his mum made lunch a delicious meal that we ate in her house, she didn’t eat with us so it wasn’t really what I had expected from a family lunch (or the photos promoting such on the website).”

Smokey Tours enters the Manila North Cemetery, inhabited by some of Manila's poorest people.

Children jump from grave to grave in the city’s largest cemetery.

Reality Tours hopes to challenge the stereotypical perception of slums as despairing places inhabited by hopeless people. The tour presented slum residents as productive and hardworking, but also content and happy. Analyzing more than 230 reviews of Reality Tour and Travel in her study , Dr. Melissa Nisbett of King’s College London realized that for many Dharavi visitors, poverty was practically invisible. “As the reviews show, poverty was ignored, denied, overlooked and romanticized, but moreover, it was depoliticized.” Without discussing the reason the slum existed, the tour decontextualized the plight of the poor and seemed only to empower the wrong people–the privileged, western, middle class visitors.

With good intentions, the company states that 80 percent of the profits benefit the community through the efforts of its NGO that works to provide access to healthcare, organize educational programs, and more. Co-founder Chris Way spoke to National Geographic after his company surged in popularity from the sleeper hit Slumdog Millionaire . “We do try and be as transparent as possible on our website, which does allay many people’s fears.” Way personally refuses a salary for his work.

No Two Cities Alike

The main question should be: Is poverty the central reason to visit?

Other cities take different approaches to slum tourism. In the early 1990s, when black South Africans began offering tours of their townships—the marginalized, racially-segregated areas where they were forced to live—to help raise global awareness of rampant human rights violations. Rather than exploitation inflicted by outsiders, local communities embraced slum tourism as a vehicle to take matters of their traditionally neglected neighborhoods into their own hands.

• Nat Geo Expeditions

Some free tours of favelas in Rio de Janeiro provided an accessible option to the crowds that infiltrated the city during the World Cup and Summer Olympics, while most companies continue to charge. Tour manager Eduardo Marques of Brazilian Expeditions explains how their authenticity stands out, “We work with some local guides or freelancers, and during the tour we stop in local small business plus [offer] capoeira presentations that [support] the locals in the favela. We do not hide any info from our visitors. The real life is presented to the visitors.”

Smokey Tours in Manila connected tourists with the reality facing inhabitants of a city landfill in Tondo (until 2014 when it closed) to tell their stories. Now the company tours around Baseco near the port, located in the same crowded district and known for its grassroots activism. Locally-based photographer Hannah Reyes Morales documented her experience walking with the group on assignment for National Geographic Travel. “I had permission to photograph this tour from both the operator and community officials, but the tour itself had a no photography policy for the tourists.” With the policy difficult to enforce, some guests secretly snapped photos on their phones. “I observed how differently tourists processed what they were seeing in the tour. There were those who were respectful of their surroundings, and those who were less so.”

All About Intention

Despite sincere attempts by tour operators to mitigate offense and give back to locals, the impact of slum tourism stays isolated. Ghettoized communities remain woven into the fabric of major cities around the world, each with their individual political, historical, and economic concerns that cannot be generalized. Similarly, the motivations behind the tourism inside them are as diverse as the tour participants themselves. For all participants involved, operators or guests, individual intentions matter most.

The Baseco neighborhood is located on the Pasig river near the city port, but lacks access to clean drinking water.

Better connections between cities allow more people to travel than ever before, with numbers of international tourists growing quickly every year. While prosperity and quality of life have increased in many cities, so has inequality. As travelers increasingly seek unique experiences that promise authentic experiences in previously off-limits places, access through tours helps put some areas on the map.

Travel connects people that would otherwise not meet, then provides potential to share meaningful stories with others back home. Dr. Fabian Frenzel, who studies tourism of urban poverty at the University of Leicester, points out that one of the key disadvantages of poverty is a lack of recognition and voice. “If you want to tell a story, you need an audience, and tourism provides that audience.” Frenzel argues that even taking the most commodifying tour is better than ignoring that inequality completely.

For the long-term future of these communities, the complex economic, legal, and political issues must be addressed holistically by reorganizing the distribution of resources. While illuminating the issue on a small scale, slum tourism is not a sufficient answer to a growing global problem.

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Reflections on visiting an indian slum.

I recently visited India for the first time, spending a grand total of 30 hours there.  During that time, however, my experiences ran the gamut.  I spent the day in the Zakhira slum in New Delhi, and then just a few hours later, enjoyed a sumptuous dinner sitting next to former Australia Prime Minister John Howard, his wife Janette, and other luminaries.

(Photo: Nate Gray)

My first impression of India was that the chaos on Indian roads was beyond belief: people walking and riding bikes on what appear to be freeways, motorcycles with three riders, open trucks crammed with people, the constant din of honking everywhere by everyone. On top of that, the people driving me never seemed to know how to get anywhere. It took over an hour to get from the airport to my hotel, a seemingly endless series of turns (including numerous u-turns) and my driver rolling down his window and yelling for directions at nearly every stoplight.  I was surprised when the return trip to the airport, with a different driver, took only 20 minutes and was nearly a straight shot.  I will say, however, that I saw only one cow on the trip.

The Zakhira slum is wedged between two sets of railroad tracks that run in parallel maybe 100 yards apart.  As we cross the first set of tracks to enter the neighborhood, my first impression is how well dressed everyone is.  Not fancy, obviously, but not dressed any worse than I am.  This seems incongruous, given the huge piles of garbage along the railroad tracks, the smoldering fires, and the powerful stench.  My guide and translator Shayak (whom I will write much more about soon), tells me that every few months people from the railroad company come by and take the garbage away using donkeys, which I don’t really understand, but I don’t bother to question.  There is a pile of diarrhea just off the path we are on, although it is the only sign of human excrement I will see on the visit, despite the fact there is no plumbing.  I ask Shayak where people go to the bathroom.  Shayak tells me that there is an area further down the tracks where they “take a dump.”  If we were to go near there, he tells me, I would vomit.

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Tours, Itineraries & Day Trips

Mumbai Dharavi Slum Tours: Options and Why Go on One

Overview of Dharavi Slum Tours

Voyeuristic poverty tourism? Gawking at the misery of the underprivileged? If this is your idea of a Dharavi slum tour, then you're severely mistaken. Tours of Dharavi in Mumbai, the largest slum in Asia, have grown in popularity in recent years -- but for a very good reason. These tours aim to dispel any notions that people may have of Dharavi being a place of misery, and are actually very inspiring. They show what people are capable of achieving despite adverse conditions. What's more, most of the tours are conducted by Dharavi residents themselves.

As Be the Local Tours and Travel state on their website:

"If visitors are expecting extreme poverty and despair based on movie depictions, they will be disappointed. In fact this tour actively breaks stereotypical depictions of slums."

Rather than poverty tourism, it's more accurate to think of Dharavi tours as community tourism.

Options for Dharavi Tours

Nowadays you'll find numerous tour companies in Mumbai that offer Dharavi slum tours. These ones are recommended:

• Reality Tours and Travel - Founded in 2005 to provide educational walking tours of Dharavi. 80% of the company's after tax profits go to its NGO, Reality Gives, which runs high-quality education programs in Dharavi for residents.
• Be The Local Tours and Travel - Started by Dharavi residents, this company works to support local students to study full time by training them and employing them as tour guides. This gives them income to fund their education and boosts their confidence by enabling them to meet people from all over the world.
• Mohammed's Dharavi Slum Tours - Mohammad Sadique, an enthusiastic and enterprising young Dharavi local, founded Inside Mumbai Tours after previously working in a call center and learning English. He has been able to fund his education with the money from his bespoke Dharavi tours, which are tailored to individual interests and personally led by him.

What the Dharavi Tours Offer

• Reality Tours and Travel - Two and a half hour Dharavi walking tours cover the recycling area, rooftop visit for a fantastic view, visit to a community center funded by the company's profits, papaddam making, and potters colony. Tours depart twice a day, at set times in the morning and afternoon, and cost 900 rupees per person. It's possible to have lunch in a Dharavi family home after the morning tour (cost 1,500 rupees per person including the tour). Tours can also be combined with sightseeing in Mumbai. More information.
• Be the Local Tours and Travel - One or two-hour walking tours of Dharavi encompass the industrial areas, residential areas, local schools, and pottery colony. Two daily departure times, in the morning and afternoon, are offered. It's possible to go on the short one hour tour any time between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. More information. Be the Local Tours and Travel have also added a foodie tour option in Dharavi, for those who would like to cook and eat a meal in a local home. The cost is 2,000 rupees per person.
• Mohammad's Dharavi Slum Tours - The most personal option, two and a half hour Dharavi walking tours explore back alleys and main thoroughfares of Dharavi to see small businesses, factories, and workshops. A stop at an atmospheric local cafe for a snack is included. Departure times are flexible and the cost is 600 rupees per person. Photography isn't permitted but Mohammad does run a special photography tour of Dharavi slum. It's also possible to have a meal with his family or even stay with them overnight for a really insightful experience. Contact Mohammad with your specific requirements and he will take care of all the arrangements. More information.

Whichever tour you choose to take, make sure you bring money for shopping ! Textile fabrics, leather goods, and other items can all be purchased from small-scale Dharavi manufacturers at great prices.

A Look Inside Dharavi: My Experience

"Welcome to Dharavi!" a customer called out to us from the chai wala , as we exited the stairs at Mahim West railway station. I had just entered what is often labeled as Asia's largest slum. Yes, THAT slum, which rose to fame in the movie Slumdog Millionaire and angered many Indians for its portrayal of poverty. The movie has been referred to as an example of "poverty porn", one that encourages perverse western voyeurism and promotes slum tourism and volunteering .

And, there I was, about to embark on a two hour "slum tour" of Dharavi. But, if you think I was indulging in any kind of poverty voyeurism, think again.

"You live in Mumbai but have never been to Dharavi?", my guide, Salman, was shocked and not at all impressed when he found out. "I've never really had any reason to visit," I tried to defend myself. He was having none of it though. "It's important for everyone to come to Dharavi and see how it functions, see the industry going on here. This is not a place where poor people are depressed. Look around. Do you see any beggars?", he implored me.

Indeed, I could not. What I could see were laughing children running through the lanes and playing cricket, and people diligently working in all types of small-scale industries.

Dharavi's Astonishing Economy

To further dispel any notion of poverty stricken people miserable in squalor, Salman began quoting astonishing numbers to me. In Dharavi, there are a total of 4,902 production units bringing in an annual income of around $1 billion. They're divided into:

• 1039 textiles
• 932 potters
• 567 leather
• 498 embroidery
• 722 recycling
• 111 restaurants
• Thousands of boutiques.

"Dharavi has so many specialist industries because of the people moving here from different areas of India, and they bring their skills with them," Salman informed me.

It's worth nothing that, apparently, there is less than 10% unemployment in Dharavi.

Salman, whose name is actually Salman Khan (yes, the same as the Bollywood actor, who not surprisingly is very popular in Salman's household), is a proud Dharavi local. His grandparents migrated to Mumbai and he has lived in Dharavi all his life. Perhaps not what you'd expect, he confidently speaks flawless English and is studying Science at college. He's also employed as a Dharavi tour guide by Be The Local Tours and Travel.

Redevelopment of Dharavi

As we walked, Salman continued to explain the importance of Dharavi in the context of Mumbai. "Now, everyone is taking an interest in Dharavi's infrastructure and facilities. It's well connected by both Mahim West railway station and the Eastern Express Highway. The government wants to redevelop the area and build high-rise apartments, and they'll move the residents into these apartments."

Without understanding Dharavi, you could easily mistake this for a good thing. After all, residents will be getting free apartments as part of the deal. However, as Salman revealed to me, the truth is much more complicated. "The residents have emotional attachment to their chawls . Plus, the government is going to give everyone 225-275 square foot apartments, regardless of how much space they already have. Also, only people who have been living in Dharavi from before the year 2000 are eligible to get an apartment."

Then, there is the troublesome issue of what will happen to the small-scale industries, which will have to be moved out of the area. "It will be difficult for residents to have to travel to far-off, relocated work places," Salman lamented.

Dharavi's Incredible Recycling Industry

The first part of the Dharavi tour took us through some of the small-scale industry workshops. It was fascinating to see how they operated. Salman explained the process of plastic recycling, as we watched the work going on.

"First, the plastics for recycling are grouped together according to color and quality. Next, they're crushed and made into small pieces. Then, they're washed and dried on the roof tops. After that, they're taken and rolled into pallets, and sent to the plastic manufacturers. 60,000 recycled products are made from them."

All kinds of plastic items, from chai cups to pieces of old telephones, were being sorted through and processed by Dharavi residents.

Other Small-Scale Industries in Dharavi

My friend and I got really excited once we reached the block-printing workshop. They were making export quality fabrics -- and due to overwhelming demand, it was possible to buy them!

Salman called the "boss man" over. "He doesn't look like the boss but he is," he referred to the informally dressed topless man, who commenced laying out a range of beautiful fabrics before us. Unlike many Indian shopkeepers, he knew not to pull out too many pieces, which would overwhelm and confuse us. He also left us alone to decide what we wanted.

The tour progressed through other small-scale industries. Used tin drums were being renewed and repainted, leather was being processed, vessels were being spun on pottery wheels, small clay diyas were being shaped, and pappads were being rolled out (next time you dine at a restaurant in Mumbai, it's likely that the pappad you eat would've been made in Dharavi).

While photography isn't allowed on the Dharavi tour, occasionally Salman gave us the opportunity to take pictures. "The artists do appreciate the acknowledgement of their work. It makes them proud that foreigners come and take an interest in what they do, and even buy what they make."

Education in Dharavi

As I was looking at the diyas , a giggling group of small girls came over to say hello and talk to us. "I want to explore the world with you," one declared. She must've only been aged around six or seven, but already she was dreaming big. And, talking fluently in English.

I asked Salman about education in Dharavi. "Around 80% of children are going to school now. Parents are recognizing the importance of education and learning English." Then he reeled off more numbers to me. "There are 60 municipality schools, four secondary schools, and 13 private schools in Dharavi."

There's also great unity in the slum. "28 temples, 11 mosques, six churches, and 24 Islamic education centers", Salman informed me. "Most industries are self sufficient, but they also support each other. For example, the potters use scraps of cloth from the textile industries as fuel for their kilns."

Dharavi's Remarkable Community Spirit

No doubt, it's the distinctive sense of community that helps make Dharavi a cheerful place. Salman took us through the narrow lanes of one residential part of the slum -- lanes so narrow that I struggled to walk properly and had to crouch down to avoid hitting my head. There were exposed wires everywhere. But, it was clean, and huge drums of fresh drinking water stood at the entrance to people's homes. Groups of housewives sat around chatting to each other, while their children played. "The slum even has 24 hour power," Salman said. "The government has been looking after it."

But what about the infamous slum Mafia? Salam laughed. "It doesn't really exist anymore. They've become politicians so what they do is legal now."

Conclusion and Lessons Learned

Too soon, the two hours of the tour were up. "I hope it's changed your thoughts about Dharavi?" Salman asked.

Without a doubt, it was an amazing, eye-opening, and POSITIVE experience. Everyone should go on a Dharavi tour and experience it for themselves. In my view, anyone who is reluctant to do so because they're worried about "poverty tourism" needs to examine their egos and false sense of superiority. The people in Dharavi are not ashamed of how they live, nor are they miserable. They are friendly, welcoming, and dignified.

Think of it this way. Most of us don't have the riches to afford a private jet and we often travel on public transport. Are we sad because we can't afford a private jet? No. Sad because we don't have a chauffeur driven limousine? Sad because we don't live in a 12 bedroom mansion? No. It's simply not part of our existence, our standard of living. In fact, we don't even know what we're missing. Likewise, the residents of Dharavi are not feeling depressed because they don't have the same standard of living as us. They're far too busy making the most of what they have, not dwelling on what they don't have. And, if you put aside notions of money and material wealth, they're actually richer than what we are because there's so much love and support among their community, they need never feel isolated, sad or lonely. To be totally honest, I envied them for this.

Salman chatted to us some more before departing. "My dream is to own an Audi but I know not to rely on that to make me happy. My boss, the tour company owner, told me that I'll only want something else after a while."

Ain't that the truth! There are indeed important life lessons to be learned from visiting Dharavi.

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A life-changing visit to the slums of delhi.

Last modified on December 15, 2016

It’s funny how something as simple as walking through a city can change your perspective so significantly.  India was amazing, eye-opening and at times confronting, but I’ve never experienced anything quite like our visit to the Slums of Delhi.

Initially we were hesitant to visit the slums – the idea of walking though peoples homes felt very intrusive, especially when we considered the level of poverty that so many of these people experience.  The last thing we wanted to do was to take advantage of them or to seek entertainment by sitting in on their daily lives.

One blog turned everything around for us though – if you’ve not read it, I highly recommend you have a nosey at Andrew Roams .  The decision was made and we booked ourselves in, still a little unsure of what to expect but hopeful.

A visit to the Slums of Delhi (the Kathputli Colony specifically) can be organised through PETE for a minimum donation of 750 rupees each.  The funds raised from these ‘slum walks’ gets put directly back into the community through the schools and programmes that they run – money well spent in my books.   Throughout the ‘tour’ you’ll have the opportunity to visit different artists in the community but the decision is entirely yours.  Our group of five elected to enjoy a traditional puppet show (for a small additional fee) but to be honest, the highlight of the day for all of us was simply walking through the community, interacting with the locals and gaining a small insight into their lives.  There’s no right or wrong way to go about your visit, as long as you do so in a respectful way.

For more information or to secure your spot on a tour in Delhi, get in touch with PETE .  We cannot recommend it enough – don’t leave India without connecting with its amazing people.

Sarah - Exploring Kiwis

Sarah is a teacher and passionate traveller from New Zealand. Thirsty for adventure, she has just returned from two years in Abu Dhabi and six months travelling around South America with her husband, Nathan. She has worked in the past for an international airline and as a tour manager - travel and adventure is her passion! Sarah hopes to inspire others to push their boundaries and make new discoveries through travel too.

4 thoughts on “ A Life-Changing Visit to the Slums of Delhi ”

I’ve felt the same conflicts when visiting slums in the past–specifically in Katatura, Namibia, Cape Town and the streets of Hebron. It can feel uncomfortable and intrusive to wander around the living quarters of others for your own entertainment. And yet it can also be such a powerful experience–so humbling and eye-opening. I’m happy to hear that proceeds from the tour get reinvested in the community too!

It’s always rewarding to go to the off-beaten paths as opposed to the tourist landmarks. I’m sure you came out of your experience, humbled and grateful.

Such beautiful people. Thanks for taking me on this tour with you.

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Mumbai Slum Tour to Dharavi Slum – The Positive and Unique Side of Slum Tourism

Categories Asia , India

What comes to mind when you think of a Slum Tour?

Precariously walking along small lanes between people’s houses whilst they stare up at you and you feel awkward making eye contact back because you’re walking through their home, staring. The smell of sewage and urine.

The fear of stepping in said sewage and urine if you misplace your foot but the awkwardness of trying not to care as these are people’s home and you’re a privileged white person walking through, staring.

This is what came to mind whenever I thought about a ‘Slum Tour’ in India. Despite having already done a very positive Slum Tour in Manila a few years ago.

I have been thinking about Slum Tours in India for quite some time because visiting India and doing a Slum Tour whilst there has been of interest to me for many years. Maybe it’s the books I’ve read which describe the slums very well- Shantaram & Behind the Beautiful Forevers .

However at the same time, as much as I wanted to do a Slum Tour, I had a feeling participating in Slum Tourism in India was the wrong thing to do, not ethical or responsible, and after all I didn’t want to go and stare at thousands of people’s poverty, feel helpless and then leave back to my privileged life.

But that all changed when I arrived in Mumbai and heard about the Mumbai Slum Tour to Dharavi Slum with Reality Tours which I then went on and it changed my outlook on Slums, or at least on Slum Tourism, and this is why:

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Dharavi Slum

There are more than 2000 slums in Mumbai and Dharavi Slum is the biggest slum in India (not just Mumbai, India!) with an estimated 1 Million people living there , and by ‘biggest’ it’s the biggest in terms of numbers, not by size. It’s also 178 years old, which is older than Canada as our guide Tavy pointed out.

Over half of the people who live in Mumbai live in Slums and there are a mixture of legal slums, which Dharavi is, and illegal slums.

Dharavi is different and unique to many other slums due to its productivity, you could say it’s a working slum, with a range of industries and companies producing, fixing, making, recycling and cooking products from inside the slum every day.

Because Dharavi is a legal slum it is recognised by the government, it receives water and electricity from the government. It has a school and a mixture of religions live there. It’s residents also do not have to fear about being told to get up and leave which is what happens in illegal slums. With that being said, it of course still has many of it’s own issues.

Should Tourists Visit Slum’s in India?

As I said at the start of this post, I had doubts about whether to visit a slum and participate in slum tourism. I wanted to but I didn’t know if it was right, and if there’s one thing we need to be conscious of these days with so much tourism is not doing something for the ‘gram, for the picture or for the story, just because we want to even when we know it’s bad, because it creates demand, it influences others and it may just be ‘one time’ to us, but everyone’s ‘one time’ creates a lot of one times.

With that being said I knew there must be a company that works alongside a slum in Mumbai that gives back and educates .

In my first few days in Mumbai I was told by a few Indian people who are from or live in Mumbai that I should go to the Dharavi Slums and was recommended Reality Tours   as a Mumbai Slum Tour Company to go with.

As they had told me to go I figured it must be unique, the people around here must know what’s happening and after looking into Reality Tours who put 80% of their profit back into the slum, have a NGO called Reality Gives and consider Dharavi as Mumbai’s Heart, I knew going with them would be a good decision and I would be contributing to Slum Tourism in a positive, and not a negative way.

Due to this I’m glad I went on a slum tour in Mumbai and on this one. I really recommend a Dharavi Slum Tour with Reality Tours if you are visiting Mumbai.

As for any other slum tours in Mumbai, India or the rest of the world, be sure to research the company well, ideally get the opinion of locals, and only go if you are very sure they contribute in a positive way and it is well organised.

Reality Tours Slum Tour to Dharavi Slum

I took part in the 2.5 hour slum tour that Reality Tours offer for 900Rs (just over £10.00) which I booked online 2 days in advance.

There’s the option to meet a guide at Churchgate train station which is the closest station to where I was staying in Colaba at Backpacker Panda Colaba Hostel (which I really recommend if you are looking for a Hostel in Mumbai by the way).

Tavy, one of the Reality Tour guides was waiting there for anyone who wanted to get the train, as it turns out it was just myself, he purchased the ticket for me and we went to meet the others at the train station closest to Dharavi Slum.

Reality Tours seem to have a lot of tour guides working for them and I really liked that our tour was only small, 4 people and 2 guides with Tavy being the main guide. This way when we were walking around we could stay out of people’s way and we didn’t draw as much attention to ourselves had there been 10 or so of us.

Tavy gave us some information as we entered the slum via the bridge that crosses the train tracks. This was our first and last time to take photos due to the no photo policy in the slum to respect the locals privacy and I’m really glad that photos are not allowed (the 2 photos below are the one’s I took and there are more photos of Dharavi Slums below which belong to Reality Tours and are provided via email after the tour).

Tavy explained the many jobs that happen in the Slum and our first stop and most of our stops on the tour was to see these.

We started at the plastic recycling area . There was masses of plastic everywhere and all over the floor but mostly in neat piles and a lot had already been grouped together, there was plastic from the back of TV remotes, toys, and from so many more things. We were told that the plastic sorters get paid between 300-350Rs a day (£3.00-£3.50). The plastic is then melted, these people get paid a little more, and then turned into plastic pellets which are sold by the kilo.

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We then continued to see the tin recycling workshops where tins of old paint get burned to remove the outer signage, cleaned inside and then refilled and resold. They can be recycled like this only 4 times because they become too thin but after those 3-4 times they are opened out and used as tin tiles on the sides of houses.

I quickly realised everything had a use in the Slum.

We saw many women working between the men although there are more men than women. In Dharavi Slum women get paid the exact same as men per day although they are allowed to work less hours, this again was really positive and a unique factor to Dharavi.

There are more men as many people who live in Dharavi Slum are from villages around Mumbai and India, it’s hard for whole families to move into the slum , there is not much room and it’s actually quite costly for a despot and rent on a room which I believe comes down to the fact that Dharavi Slum is a legal and safe slum rather than an illegal one with no certainty.

Whereas men come and look for work. Employers have houses where the men can live (usually above where they work) and that way than men do not need to get extra accommodation, just the job. They tend to come here for 6 months in the Winter when the jobs to do with agriculture in their Village lessen and they’ll leave when the Monsoon season starts.

This of course sounds like a hard life and I’ll fully admit that seeing the men work in such hot, small and hard conditions is hard, but it’s better than feeling sorry for them because they have nothing. They are earning money, they have money to send home and they have a purpose.

Tavy also explained that people who are illiterate have jobs making things, they have other skills even though they can’t read or write and these jobs are available to them in Dharavi, which again was really positive to see and hear.

To me, Dharavi Slum felt  more like a village , it’s not all small, dark lanes. It has a main road running through it, it has wider roads with taxis and motorbikes going along it, there is a market, a school, a playground, and a river (although the river is filthy and this goes straight into the ocean as there is no filter and this is why the people in Mumbai have been advised by the government not to go in the Ocean).

We saw goats, dogs, cats, chickens and one baby rat!

Dharavi Slum is located between 2 major railways and a river so it cannot expand in width, if it expands it needs to expand up. Because of its prime location it’s also very sought after by property guru’s. Some of the people of Dharavi have been provided with flats which surround the slum in order to home more people however people do not want to live in them which is something I had heard before.

Firstly once you are in a flat, you cannot make more space, whereas if you have a house in the slum you may have the possibility to add a story on if you child gets married etc, secondly the flats have been badly made with cheap materials, we saw some that looked filthy from the outside and very old but Tavy told us they were only 14 years old. People do not want to live in them and I can understand why, although privacy is lacking in the slum lanes I can imagine the sense of community is high and suddenly decreases if you were to move into a flat.

Although we mainly saw the working side of Dharavi Slum as we wound through the lanes, we did have the chance to walk through one really small lane which was a residential area. Dharavi Slum is also famous because it’s where Slumdog Millionaire was filmed , a film which locals do not like. The first scene has the boys running through a small alleyway and this is where we walked down.

It’s small enough for only one person to walk down and you do have to be careful where you step but not because of faeces as I had imagined but because of the possible lose slab. This lane was hot, cramped and pretty claustrophobic but it was clean, there were no bad smells and the doorways to the concrete houses were covered well so people did have some privacy.

Overall I felt very uplifted by seeing Dharavi Slum and learning about it, I know that’s easily said by a White, British person who went to see it and the left, but the tours are not designed to make you feel sorry for the people who live there and they wouldn’t want that either.

No one was begging and everyone seemed happy to see us. We were stared at occasionally (but this is India where staring is normal) but a little smile back made them smile back, especially the women and children.

People were well dressed and as I had read in the books I have read about Slums in India, despite the small size of their houses and not the most ideal conditions, people are proud and this showed .

Tavy seemed well-known and respected by the slum locals and we finished the tour by seeing the school and the classroom that Reality Tours rents for its own NGO Reality Gives which gives lessons including computer classes to the locals, and then we went into the Reality Tours office on the edge of the Slum which fully showed how much of a place they have here.

Side note , if you do the tour, the office has really nice bags, t-shirts, and photos for sale so bring some extra money if you think you may want to purchase something and Reality Tours offer other tours around Mumbai and in Delhi. Make sure you wear covered shoes, cover your legs to your knees at least and your shoulders.

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I’ve spent many months travelling India in the last few years visiting over 50 places around the country, here are my recommended itinerary posts for India to help you plan your trip!

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2 WEEK SOUTH INDIA ITINERARY – GOA & KERELA

1 MONTH NORTH INDIA ITINERARY IDEAS!

1 MONTH SOUTH INDIA ITINERARY IDEAS!

2 MONTH INDIA ITINERARY IN THE NORTH & SOUTH

MY 4 MONTH INDIA ITINERARY!

24 BEST PLACES TO VISIT IN INDIA!

Now don’t get me wrong, I know that not all of the slums in Mumbai and in India are like this and what we saw, despite being positive, was very one-sided but Dharavi Slum is unique and that’s why tourists are given the chance to see it.

I’m sure life is much harder for people in other slums, and it is still hard for these people but I’m glad I was able to get an insight into this side of Mumbai and see with my own eyes that Slum Tourism can be positive and our privileged money can go to good use.

I hope this has given you a good insight into a Slum in India and convinces you to go on a tour with Reality Tours or has changed your opinion on Slum Tourism. 

For more posts on Mumbai and India see:

All India Posts

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Tuesday 16th of October 2018

waw its really awesome article thank you so much for posting this on your blog. it was mine pleasure to show you slum.

TheWanderingQuinn

You’re welcome, I’m glad you liked it, and thank you for being so great :)

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• Published: 09 January 2018

Survey-based socio-economic data from slums in Bangalore, India

• Debraj Roy   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-3579-7219 1 , 2 ,
• Bharath Palavalli 3 ,
• Niveditha Menon 4 ,
• Robin King 5 , 6 ,
• Karin Pfeffer 1 ,
• Michael Lees 1 , 7 &
• Peter M. A. Sloot   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-3848-5395 1 , 2 , 7  

Scientific Data volume  5 , Article number:  170200 ( 2018 ) Cite this article

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In 2010, an estimated 860 million people were living in slums worldwide, with around 60 million added to the slum population between 2000 and 2010. In 2011, 200 million people in urban Indian households were considered to live in slums. In order to address and create slum development programmes and poverty alleviation methods, it is necessary to understand the needs of these communities. Therefore, we require data with high granularity in the Indian context. Unfortunately, there is a paucity of highly granular data at the level of individual slums. We collected the data presented in this paper in partnership with the slum dwellers in order to overcome the challenges such as validity and efficacy of self reported data. Our survey of Bangalore covered 36 slums across the city. The slums were chosen based on stratification criteria, which included geographical location of the slum, whether the slum was resettled or rehabilitated, notification status of the slum, the size of the slum and the religious profile. This paper describes the relational model of the slum dataset, the variables in the dataset, the variables constructed for analysis and the issues identified with the dataset. The data collected includes around 267,894 data points spread over 242 questions for 1,107 households. The dataset can facilitate interdisciplinary research on spatial and temporal dynamics of urban poverty and well-being in the context of rapid urbanization of cities in developing countries.

Machine-accessible metadata file describing the reported data (ISA-Tab format)

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Background & Summary

Cities have become engines of accelerated growth as they are centres of high productivity and provide easy access to resources 1 . The outcome of this high rate of urbanization has been the rise of informal settlements or ‘slums’, characterized by a lack of adequate living space, insecure tenure and public services 2 . In 2010, an estimated 860 million people were living in slums worldwide with around 60 million added to the slum population between 2000 and 2010. In sub-Saharan Africa, the slum population doubles every 4.5 years 3 . In the past decade, over 22 million people have migrated from rural to urban areas in India 4 . While official estimates indicate that the number of slum dwellers in India increased from 30 million in 1981 to over 61 million in 2001 4 , a UN Habitat report estimates the number of slum dwellers in India to be over 100 million. In 2011, 200 million people in urban Indian households were considered to live in slums 5 , of which over a third were in million-plus cities of India.

In this paper, we present granular data about slums from the city of Bangalore in India. Bangalore grew exponentially from 1941 to 1971 6 and is now rapidly growing due to the establishment of the software industry in the city. The urban agglomeration of Bangalore is the administrative capital of the state of Karnataka in India, with a metropolitan population of about 11.52 million and a population growth rate of 47.18% 5 , making it the third most populous city and fifth most populous urban agglomeration in India. The city has seen phases of growth that correspond to the different waves of industrialization and immigration. The first wave of immigration took place between 1880 and 1920, when the textile industry developed in the western part of the city. The second wave of industrialization took place in the eastern and northern areas, when a slew of state owned industries were created between 1940 and 1960. At the same time, state owned research and development establishments were created in the north western region of the city. The final wave can be characterized post 1990, with the establishment of special economic zones for electronics and the IT industry (which was initiated in the 1980s by the state government). To meet housing needs, in the period between the 1980s–1990s, state owned bodies created townships for their employees at the periphery, while housing co-operative societies met the demand for those in the formal sector 6 . A rapid shortage of housing and increased demand for manpower in the city has led to the growth and emergence of slums in Bangalore. The number of slums in Bangalore has grown from 159 in 1971 to over 2000 slums (notified and non-notified) in 2015. Those living in slums accounted for just over 10% of the city’s population in 1971 and an estimated 25 to 35% in 2015.

However, one of the biggest problems associated with studying slum populations is that, despite being ubiquitous, their needs, issues and problems are often invisible due to lack of representation. In this data collection effort the lack of accessibility to slums because of the social distance between the researcher and the respondent was overcome by the use of participatory methods. In order to measure poverty in slums, previous studies have often relied on consumption and income indicators. A Basic Needs Index requires data on literacy, water (piped), sanitation facilities and food requirements 7 . Well-being and vulnerability indicators have used household assets, access to financial services and formal safety nets and social networks 8 . In order to acknowledge the shift in thinking towards multi-dimensional poverty, we ensured that the survey moved away from consumption indicators to well-being and vulnerability indicators. The primary questions for this survey included the economic contribution of the urban poor in the city, the affordability and accessibility of infrastructure facilities, the various migration streams and access to financial systems. Using a participatory method, the survey was conducted in 1,107 households in 36 slums, with each household answering 242 questions. This study and the data descriptor provides a template for future data that can be collected to provide a better understanding of slums in other cities. The data can be used to generate a wide range of measures to study the impact of various programs on the slum dwellers, their expenditure patterns and the economic profile of the slums.

The main purpose of the study was to obtain a better understanding of the nature of urban poverty, to unpack the needs, issues and problems of slum dwellers, but also how slum-dwellers contribute to the urban economy and why households live in slums. The primary research questions were:

What is the economic contribution (labour, production aspects) of the urban poor to the city’s economy?

What are the infrastructure facilities (health, education, water, mobility, sanitation) that are available? Are they affordable, accessible and who pays for it (state/private)?

What are the key drivers of migration flows in and out of the city? When do people enter/leave a slum?

What is the demographic and economic profile of the people living in slums?

Do slum dwellers have access to financial systems and savings?

What are the expenditures of people in the slums?

We combined a structured survey with focus groups and personal interviews. While the structured survey supported the systematic data collection, the use of the qualitative methods such as focus group discussions. Personal interviews allowed for individuals living in the slums to articulate their concerns and also supported further processing of the data, for instance to create categories. The design of the questionnaire was informed by our research questions and former surveys carried out in Bangalore, a survey developed earlier by the Word Bank 9 and surveys reported in literature 10 – 12 . The slum-survey was done in collaboration with slum dwellers to get access to slum areas and have sufficient trust between surveyor and respondent to obtain a higher validity in the answers. The following sections describe the sampling strategy used to randomly select households and individuals for the survey and survey implementation.

Sampling strategy

The slums in Bangalore were stratified based on the following parameters: Age of the Slum (Old, New), Location in the city (Core, Periphery, North, South, East, West); Size of the slum; Land Type (whether the slums are on Public land or Private land); Declaration Status (Declared or Not Declared); Major Linguistic Group (slums that contain a majority of Kannada, Tamil, or Telugu speakers); Major Religious Group (slums that contain a majority of Hindi, Muslim, or Christian populations) and State of Development (Redeveloped slums, Resettled slums, In situ developed and Planned slums). A list of 597 slums was compiled using the notified, non-notified and de-notified slums published by Karnataka Slum Clearance Board (now the Karnataka Slum Development Board). A total of 51 slums were short-listed based on the stratification criteria, after which 36 were surveyed based on verbal consent provided by the slum leaders. The following question guides the calculation of samples.

How many households should be surveyed to estimate the true proportion of households who are below the poverty line (or do not have access to finance/ water etc), with a 95% confidence interval 6% wide? The 95% confidence interval is a standard used across disciplines. We have used a width of 6% instead of 10% (standard used across disciplines) to overestimate the number of samples (in case of missed households).

The required sample size ( X ) for the slum households was then calculated using the following formula 13 :

where, N is the entire population of slum households in Bangalore and

where Z is the Z-score ( Z is 1.96 for a 95% confidence level), D is the margin of error (3%), P is the estimated proportion of an attribute (such as households below poverty line) that is present in the population, Q is 1− P . Therefore, P × Q is the estimate of variance of the attribute in the population. Because a proportion of 0.5 indicates the maximum variability of an attribute in a population, it is often used in determining a more conservative sample size. Therefore, applying equation (2), we get n =1,067. The total number of slum households in Bangalore was estimated to be 321,296 (N ) as per the report released by the Karnataka Slum Development Board in 2010. Since, N ≫ n , in equation (1), the calculated sample size is 1,067.

Survey implementation

The social survey was implemented in the city of Bangalore, India with the assistance of Fields of View (FoV), a non-profit research organization, highly experienced in data collection. FoV together with Slum Jagaththu provided intensive training on survey tools, data collection methodology and ethical grounds of social data collection. The questionnaire was designed based on the research questions, after which the stratification and identification of slums (described in section Sampling Strategy) was performed. After the slums were identified, the questionnaire was modified to include questions based on the input and needs of the slum dwellers (see Table 1 ). A set of qualitative interviews on thematic topics were carried out based on the request from the slum dwellers, which served as a reference point for comparison with past surveys. The questionnaire was piloted in 2 slums and then revised after a round of feedback (see Table 2 ). A typical survey procedure consisted of the field coordinator speaking to the local leaders in each slum before the team conducted the survey. The coordinator would then introduce the enumerator team covering that slum to the slum leaders. If the slum leaders were agreeable, they would survey 10% of the slum, based on the procedure elaborated above. Informed consent was obtained at 3 different levels. First, local slum leaders were apprised of the objectives of the survey and the methods. Once local slum leaders approved the survey, we identified and approached community leaders within a slum. After the consent of the community leaders was obtained we approached individual slum households. Efforts were made to ensure that all respondents were appropriately informed about the study and thoroughly understood their participation in the study was voluntary. In the cases where slum leaders or community leaders did not agree to the survey we did not proceed further. In all cases where community leaders agreed to be a part of the survey, all households complied to the request. Participation was voluntary and interviewers ensured that participants knew that refusal to participate would not lead to any adverse consequences. If the main earner was not available at the time of interview then the enumerator excluded that household and moved to the next selected household and then reverted to the normal pattern.

The data was captured in paper questionnaires with handwritten responses, with most answers coded into structured replies (as indicated in the validation section), in addition to a few open-ended questions. Several case studies on thematic topics such as the homeless, informal workers and street vendors were also conducted. These case studies were conducted based on qualitative interviews with the participants and the data is not included in the datasets. The survey was administered by women participants from the slums in order to increase the level of comfort and trust with the participants. The enumerators comprised of fourteen women, who conducted the surveys in teams of two. The questionnaire was developed in English and then translated into Kannada (the local language of the state of Karnataka). To ensure quality of the data, a monitoring team from FoV checked one percent of the data and held periodic meetings to provide necessary feedback regarding the field work. The survey was completed in two stages, the first beginning in June 2010 included 20 slums and the second, beginning in March 2011 included 16 slums (see Table 3 ). Direct observation or spot checking in selected houses and re-interviewing with a quality control questionnaire in selected households formed part of the monitoring process. Survey data and accompanying questionnaires are available on the ReShare Repository ( Data Citation 1 ).

The data collected from this survey underwent cleaning and was stored in a relational database for further analysis. More specifically, the data was vetted by the enumerators and research team by randomly picking households and a site visit with field verification was carried out. Once the data was verified by the surveyors, the filled-in questionnaires were translated to English and then digitized by an independent group. The research team then carried out two rounds of validation, in the first round, the data was checked for consistency and outliers and in the second round, the research team coordinated with the enumerators to validate any discrepancies. This paper describes the relational model of the database, how to use it, the variables in the dataset, the variables constructed for analysis and the issues identified with the dataset. The data collected included 267,894 data points spread over 242 questions for 1,107 households.

Code availability

This study did not use any computer codes to generate the dataset. A MySQL relational database was used to store the collected data. A set of SQL queries were used to verify and validate the data.

Data Records

The Survey data is provided in SQL format ( Data Citation 1 ). All 242 questionnaire variables are named according to their number in the questionnaire and fully described in the variable labels. The household listing and survey instruments can be downloaded in English which acts as the code book for the datasets ( Supplementary File 1 ).

Technical Validation

The technical validation and quality control comprised of three stages. The first stage of quality control was done before the survey was carried and it involved: a) thorough pre-testing of the questionnaire; b) translating the questionnaire into Kannada, including local terminology and reverse translating to check quality of translations; c) recruitment of women enumerators from slums and comprehensive training in survey implementation. The survey questionnaire was designed based on the research questions of the project, using questions from other surveys already implemented in India and drawing on the qualitative data collection and expert judgement to create new questions. To ensure that the questions are relevant and meaningful, pre-testing of the quantitative questionnaire was conducted in the study area through pilot surveys and focus group discussions (described in Survey Implementation) prior to finalisation of the questions. Training of the enumerators is essential for effective implementation of a survey. A deep understanding of the questions and philosophy of the survey ensured that enumerators can help the surveyed households in answering the questions properly. To achieve this, the enumerator team was selected from the local slums (described in Survey Implementation). Role play and field practice was carried out for every section of the questionnaire.

The second stage of validation was performed during the survey and it involved field quality control questionnaires being carried out alongside the main data collection as described below. A quality control team was assigned in the field to monitor data collection. The field quality control involved quality control visits, spot check visits and checking of forms as recommended by the Demographic Surveillance Systems guidelines. Quality control visits was done by the supervisor on 5% 14 , 15 of the households in each round of data collection. It provided a way of cross-checking the accuracy and completeness of the data. Random and unannounced spot check visits were conducted to ensure that the data collection was being done as per the schedule. Finally, during the survey a field supervisor checked all the completed forms for completeness (no missing values and units) and accuracy before they were submitted for data entry. To ensure the data is accurate all possible inconsistencies (e.g., range checks, checking that only females have given birth) were checked. Forms with omissions and obvious errors were returned to the fieldworker for correction or revisits. The field quality control exercise demonstrated that most respondents were not willing to disclose their caste as it is considered sensitive in India. At the point of data entry a further checking of the forms is performed and forms that have errors or inconsistencies were returned to the fieldworker via his/her supervisor. The built-in validation during data entry comprised of standard methods such as uniqueness check, referential integrity, presence check, length check, data type check, fixed value check and cross field check 16 .

The final stage of validation was after the survey was completed and it involved checking data entry, detecting typing errors and comparison with previous studies. Two-pass verification, also called double data entry was performed to ensure correct data entry. To identify data entry errors, individual and composite variables were summarised as minimum, median, mean, maximum and compared between the two data entries. The original paper version has been retained to allow the team to check individual records in the digital dataset if necessary. Further, in this section we present a detailed quantitative validation of the survey data by comparing frequency distributions with previous studies and census surveys. First, we validate the demographic variables in the survey.

The median household size in the slums of Bangalore is 5. We find that 25% of the families have a household size of up to 4 members and 75% of the slum dwellers have a household size of up to 6 members. The maximum size of a household in the survey is 13. Figure 1 shows the family size distribution across the 36 surveyed slums in Bangalore. Table 4 indicates that the gender ratio (female to male ratio) is around 1, which is different to the trend in non-slum urban households where there are around 966 female per 1,000 male. A similar deviation has been observed in the Census of India 2011 5 and other slum studies in Bangalore 17 . Table 4 also shows that the population in the slum is young, with 35% of the respondents under the age of 18 and around 70% under the age of 35. The age distribution is consistent with the data from Census of India 2011 5 . The majority of surveyed households (67%) are Hindus. About 20% of the respondents are Muslims and 8% are Christians. The native language of 45% of surveyed households is Tamil, while 17% speak Kannada and 15% speak Telugu. Analysis of the migration data from slums show that 73% of migrants are from rural areas within Karnataka itself while the remaining 27% migrated from the rest of India, which indicates that the native language may not be an indication of migration. The above social and demographic distribution are similar to values reported in various slum studies of Bangalore 17 – 21 .

The data indicates that the average age at marriage is 24 for men and 17 for women. This is lower than the average of non-slum urban households in Bangalore, where the average age of marriage is 27.5 for men and 24 for women 5 . The median age of marriage has been rising in India. However, 49% of all women in the survey, were married before the age of 17. The median age at first pregnancy in slums of Bangalore is around 18 years, which is significantly lower than the median age of 25 years for non-slum urban households in Bangalore 5 . The average age at marriage and pregnancy are similar to the reported values in various slum studies of Bangalore 22 , 23 .

Second, we validate the data pertaining to income, expenditure and assets in the survey. The income distribution (see Fig. 2 ) shows that 25% of sample respondents earn a monthly income of less than 2,000 INR (31 USD), out of which they spend 93% on basic amenities. Around 75% of the sample respondents earn a monthly income lower than INR 4,000 (62 USD) and spend 91% of their income on basic amenities. Around 13% of households earn more than 10,000 INR (156 USD) per month and spend around 77% of their income on basic amenities. The monthly median income of slum dwellers in Bangalore is around 3,000 INR (47 USD). The median income reported in previous studies is around 3,500 INR (54 USD) 17 – 19 . Table 5 shows that the slum households spend the majority of their income on food items. The reasons for this high percentage are low income level coupled with high food inflation based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) which was 12.56% during 2013. Hence, money available for other activities is very low. Education is a priority for the urban poor, but only the top 10% highest earning households can afford a school education for their children. The other key components which contribute to the expenditure are home appliances, rent, healthcare and clothing. The expenditure patterns observed in the data are consistent with previous findings 17 , 18 .

In the surveyed slums, television sets, mobile phones and electric fans are the common asset types, with more than 75% reporting ownership of each of these assets. The least common form of assets are cars, trucks and agricultural land, possessed by less than 1% of all slum households. Bicycles or motorcycles/scooters are also owned by fewer than 20% of these households. The asset distribution we observe is similar to previous studies in the slums of Bangalore 17 , 18 .

When we examine the employment patterns in the slums, we find that most slum dwellers are employed in the informal sector, primarily working as domestic help or as manual labour. Only 13% of the sample respondents are employed in the formal sector (White collar, blue collar and sales occupations). These findings are similar to the reported values in various slum studies of Bangalore 17 – 21 . Further, we find that the slum-based micro enterprises are not served by traditional financial institutions due to their informal status ( Table 6 ). Again, this is consistent with previous studies, for example the study conducted by Society for Participatory Research in Asia 17 .

Finally, we validate the data pertaining to physical structure of the houses and tenure in the survey. The survey data indicates that around 40% of the slum households have Hakku Patra , which is an important document given by Tehsildar for land ownership indicating title to the dwelling. This indicates that the majority of slum dwellers possess legal titles. Households with a legal title to their dwelling usually live in pukka structures. A pukka structure is a semi-permanent structure with a tiled or stone roof and walls that are wooden, metal, asbestos sheets, burnt brick, stone, concrete or cement bricks. Around 20% of the households have a Possession Certificate document and live in semi-pukka houses. The remaining 40%, who have either migrated from neighbouring districts or other states, do not have any proper ownership to land and live in kutcha structures. A kutcha structure is one whose roof is built using grass, thatch, bamboo, plastic, polythene, metal, asbestos sheets and walls that are grass, thatch, bamboo, plastic, polythene, mud, burnt brick, wood, metal, asbestos sheets (See Table 7 ). Analysis of ration card data from the slums in Bangalore shows that around 3% of households have Antyodaya cards, 60% possess below poverty line (BPL) cards and 17% have the above poverty line (APL) card. A comparison with the study conducted by Society for Participatory Research in Asia 17 shows that the above distributions are comparable.

Usage Notes

Data access conditions.

A benefit of the data is its spatial nature, which allows social factors to be analysed in the context of environmental conditions and resources. However, this increases the sensitivity of the data as it creates the potential for households within each slum to be identified from the survey data. As such, the data has been made available as safeguarded on the UK Data Archive’s data repository ReShare. In order to download safeguarded data the user must register with the UKDA and agree to the conditions of their End User Licence (For conditions of the End User Licence see: https://www.ukdataservice.ac.uk/get-data/how-to-access/conditions ). For commercial use, please contact the UK Data Service at [email protected].

The diversity of variables collected in the survey instrument create a high possibility for reuse of this dataset. Furthermore, certain variables are comparable with the standard National Family Health Survey v.2,3,4 surveys of Bangalore and the national census, offering the possibility of longitudinal analysis. The dataset can be used to test key associations between social and land-use outcomes that are critical for environmental policy and development strategies for Bangalore.

For example, there are a range of variables that will allow researchers to examine the social relationships that affect livelihoods in slums such as money lending, informal labour, remittances and assets. Comprehensive data on expenditure, income and livelihood choices could be used to model growth and emergence of slums (e.g., ref. 24 ) and design strategic slum management interventions, ranging from improvements in public distribution system, through to social interventions in availability of credit, or supporting mobility and migration. The dataset can be disaggregated by group identities, and crucially includes information on seasonal variation in occupation and livelihoods, a critical issue in the variation of well-being and poverty.

Additional information

How to cite this article: Roy, D. et al. Survey-based socio-economic data from slums in Bangalore, India. Sci. Data 5:170200 doi: 10.1038/sdata.2017.200 (2018).

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the support from the Dutch NWO, eScience project number 027.015.G05 ‘DynaSlum: Data Driven Modelling and Decision Support for Slums’, Russian Science Foundation project number 14-21-00137 ‘Supercomputer modelling of critical phenomena in complex social systems’, SimCity project of the Dutch NWO, eScience agency under contract C.2324.0293. The authors also acknowledge the support of Mr. Isaac Arul Selva from ‘Slum Jagaththu’ for his contribution towards collecting the data as the liaison with the slums (access to the slums and data collection) and Ms. Bhagyalakshmi Srinivas from ‘Fields of View’ for training the field surveyors and cleaning the data. The survey was carried out with grants from Jamshedji Tata Trust, India and the Next Generation Infrastructure Foundation, Netherlands.

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University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam 1098 XH, The Netherlands

Debraj Roy, Karin Pfeffer, Michael Lees & Peter M. A. Sloot

Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, 639798, Singapore

Debraj Roy & Peter M. A. Sloot

Fields of View, Bangalore, 560078, India

Bharath Palavalli

Centre for Budget and Policy Studies, Bangalore, 560004, India

Niveditha Menon

Urban Development, Ross Center for Sustainable Cities, World Resources Institute, Washington, DC 20002, USA

School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University, Washington, DC 20057, USA,

National Research University ITMO, St Petersburg, 197101, Russia

Michael Lees & Peter M. A. Sloot

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D.R. wrote sections of this paper and led the writing of the paper, carried out technical validation and quality control of the database received from the survey team; M.L. is also the principal investigator of the DynaSlum project and helped in writing the paper and acted as the daily supervisor for D.R.; K.P. helped in writing the paper and served as the supervisor for B.M.P.; B.M.P. was involved in conceptualization, data collection, verification, data cleaning, analysis, qualitative research and prepared sections of the manuscript; N.M. was involved in conceptualization, analysis, qualitative research and helped with preparing the manuscript; R.K. was the principal investigator for the survey, led the design of the qualitative research of the study; P.M.A.S. is the principal investigator of the SimCITY project and contributed to the design of the study.

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Tourist and resident perspectives on ‘slum tourism’: the case of the Vilakazi precinct, Soweto

• Published: 06 May 2019
• Volume 85 , pages 1133–1149, ( 2020 )

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• Gijsbert Hoogendoorn   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-7969-7952 1 ,
• Nthabiseng Letsatsi 1 ,
• Thabisile Malleka 1 &
• Irma Booyens 2 , 3  

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Slum tourism as a topic of investigation has seen significant growth since the beginning of this decade with increasing theoretical and empirical depth. With this growth, some inconsistencies in conceptual framing and use of terminology have emerged. The purpose of this paper is to argue for township tourism in Soweto to be regarded as a form of heritage tourism rather than slum tourism—a notion which has entered the township tourism literature in recent years. This argument is presented through two sections of analysis and debate, using Vilakazi precinct in Soweto as a case study. Firstly, the paper analyses the emergence of township tourism as an academic focus in the literature and how it came to be classified as slum tourism, considering definitional conundrums. Various South African authors emphasise the struggle heritage character of township tourism. Secondly, the historical development of townships and tourism in these areas are interrogated. The empirical data offer the perspectives on tourism in their area from: (a) residents living in and around Vilakazi Street; and (b) tourists visiting the Vilakazi precinct. The analysis reveals that neither residents nor visitors consider the Vilakazi precinct or the larger area of Orlando West as a slum; rather they perceive tourism is the area to be connected to its struggle heritage. We accordingly stress that the term ‘slum tourism’ to describe township tourism in Soweto is inaccurate and is inconsistent with the views not only of residents and visitors, but also South African authors.

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Visitor No. 30 (hereafter V with the questionnaire number), female, aged 30, on holiday.

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Hoogendoorn, G., Letsatsi, N., Malleka, T. et al. Tourist and resident perspectives on ‘slum tourism’: the case of the Vilakazi precinct, Soweto. GeoJournal 85 , 1133–1149 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10708-019-10016-2

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Why do people live in slums?

Jan 19, 2023 | By: Kieran McConville

It’s predicted that 68% of the world’s population will live in urban areas by 2050. That’s nearly 7 billion people, according to the folks at the UN with the big calculator. And as many as two-thirds of them — about 4.6 billion — will live in slums.

Content Advisory: In this article we use the word “slum”, the most commonly used description for informal urban settlements. Concern fully supports the drive to update terminology used in the development sector, especially when it has derogatory connotations. On this occasion, because so many of the people who live in informal urban settlements themselves use the word slum, we have made the decision to use both.

4.6 BILLION human beings living in urban informal settlements by the year 2050.  Hardly a vision of an ideal world, by any stretch of the imagination. So why is this a thing? Why are more and more people packing themselves into crowded spaces, with all of the accompanying discomforts and daily life challenges? Especially when there’s a whole world of fertile valleys, rolling hills, and open plains that could easily accommodate (and feed) all of us.

There’s both a compelling logic to this mass urbanization and a strong case for trying to reverse it. Read on for our take on the what, who, why, and how of slums.

What is a slum?

First off, what is a slum? According to the World Health Organization , a slum household is defined as a group of individuals living under the same roof lacking one or more of the following conditions :

• Access to improved water
• Access to improved sanitation
• Sufficient living area
• Durability of housing
• Security of tenure

Doesn’t sound very appealing right? Well, it’s all relative.

“At least here in the city my husband can find work and there are more opportunities”

Take the example of Rena, a mother of two we met on the streets of Dhaka in Bangladesh some years back. Her home was literally a square of pavement — actually a step down from a slum — where the family cook, eat, and sleep. They survived on money raised from petty trading and the casual labor jobs her husband picked up.

But life where they came from, a rural area in the vast river delta that forms the southern part of the country, was even more difficult. The only reason they even had access to land was that they lived on a char, an alluvial island that regularly disappears under flood waters, taking with it everything they owned and sometimes even putting their lives in danger. Rena told us “At least here in the city my husband can find work and there are more opportunities,” she said.

Dhaka has more than its fair share of slums. Sprawling, ramshakle settlements made from timber and tin and rags, with jerry-rigged water and electricity for those who can pay, and a complex system of ownership and governance. According to the World Bank, nearly 50% of urban dwellers in Bangladesh live in slums. The UN says that nearly 60% of that country’s total population will be urban by the year 2050. In Dhaka alone there will be 30 million people by 2025.

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Who lives in slums (and who runs them).

Of course, people living in informal urban settlements are not a homogeneous group. For example, there are people with regular jobs, tenancies, formal ID documents, and even semi-formal arrangements for utilities like electricity and water. Then there’s the “floating population” which tend to be more transient, less engaged with any systems, and generally less economically secure.

Then there are different ethnicities and minority groups — in the case of Bangladesh this can include the Dalit, Hijra (trans gender), Bihari (Urdu speaking), Bede (semi-nomadic boat community), among others. Often it is these groups who are most excluded and at highest risk of falling into long-term extreme poverty

As for who owns the land, how it’s allocated, and who administers the provision of services, that’s a complex question with multiple answers. For example, in Kenya , much of the land that constitutes Nairobi’s sprawling slum communities is government-owned, but has traditionally been managed by a variety of private interests, with benefit often accruing to those with strong political connections. Efforts have been made to establish land management committees, made up of community representatives, but progress can been slow.

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In many slums there is electricity and water available, but it’s often stolen by “entrepreneurs” who tap into public power lines and resell to individual households for profit. It’s a lucrative business model, generally controlled by those who have the means to enforce that control. For example, in the slums of Port-a-Prince, Haiti , power and water is mostly controlled by gangs, who use threats and violence to protect their business.

Sometimes, a more traditional business model, involving diesel-powered generators, is in place for those who can afford the fees. You'll also see solar panels dotted throughout settlements, mostly for phone charging and lighting. Local and national governments have in recent years begun to formalize some of the utilities available within slums, to varying effect.

Education is, in the words of Concern legend Aengus Finucane, “the key to everything.” It’s a precious commodity and one for which parents in most informal settlements must pay. Such was the case in Nairobi’s Mathare slum for many years, where all elementary schools were privately run, often set up by parents, and provided a wildly varying quality of education.

Many teachers were themselves poorly educated, and attendance by pupils was dependent on their parent’s ability to pay and the child’s availability to attend. A lot of children are involved in the daily grind of generating income for their family. For many years, Concern ran programs supporting informal schools in Mathare, but over the past decade the Kenyan government has begun to regularize elementary education within this and other settlements.

Learn more about our work in education

Concern Worldwide has extensive education programs in over a dozen countries, reaching millions of young people with vital services. Learn More

Attaining a second-level education can be little more than a dream for many kids who live in the slums, especially girls. Families often rely on the generosity of sponsors to fund their attendance at boarding schools. Marystella Barasa, who has lived in Ngando settlement all her life, is one of 3,000 young Kenyans who have been supported to attend high school through a Concern program called “Let All Girls Succeed.”

She is determined to get maximum benefit from her good fortune and also to pay it forward to others. “Now I have seven girls whom I mentor. Some have experienced many struggles in life,” she says. Marystella intends to dedicate her career to helping others, with plans to train as a teacher. “I don’t just want to do teaching to earn a wage,” she explains. “ I want to help my young sisters out there to rebuild their self-esteem.”

Why do people stay?

Probably one of the most famous of all the urban slums is Kibera, a sprawling neighborhood in Nairobi, famed for its proximity to a huge landfill site. When we met Margret, she was living in a single room in the Makina neighborhood with her two children and a friend. There was no electricity, only one bed, and the roof leaked during the rainy season. Margret’s family migrated from a village in the countryside when she herself was just child, her parents deciding that the city provided more economic prospects than where they lived at the time.

"I love where I live"

Life has been a series of ups and downs for Margret, but she has managed to survive, doing laundry for income and relying on the goodwill of others when times were tough. At one point, during the COVID pandemic, her youngest child became seriously malnourished and ended up in treatment.

But for Margret this is the only home she has ever really known. “I love where I live,” she told us. “It’s quieter than other parts and I can leave my baby with my friends here… but I would like a house that the rain doesn’t get into, somewhere that’s dry.”

Good sanitation and hygiene are a massive challenge for almost everyone who lives in a slum, which of course has consequences for people’s health. Because of the informal nature of these settlements, access to clean water and functioning toilets is at best intermittent. Also, because most slums have developed on marginal and unused land, they are often prone to flooding.

This combination of factors, coupled with high population densities, means that water-borne diseases are much more prevalent than in other communities. Outbreaks of cholera can be deadly and difficult to control, especially when health facilities are few in number and poorly resourced. High density can also be an issue when it comes to contagion, as evidenced during the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone in 2015.

Cité Soleil is a slum in the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince. It has developed a notorious reputation for poverty and violence, fueled by gang wars and the effects of a spiraling economy. It’s home to over a quarter of a million people, squeezed into about eight square miles of marginal land between they city’s airport and the shores of the Caribbean. That’s some serious density, considering the majority of buildings are single-storey.

“This is a place where people are not living in a good situation,” according to 18-year-old Fefe. “When you wake up in the morning the first thing to greet you is rubbish. Here you will see armed men, dead bodies, no sanitation. The way people live is inhuman.”

Yet people stay, partly through lack of choice, but also because of the sense of community and kinship that has underpinned their lives here. They hold onto hope, waiting for better days. Community activists like Ernanciy Bien-Aimée advocate for outside investment and support at every opportunity. “We are not without hope, even at the worst of times,” she says.

Meanwhile the demographic majority in Cité Soleil is impatient for change. “Young people need recreational spaces,” Fefe tells us, “where they are not sitting down waiting for someone to give them a gun instead of a notebook.” His friend echoes that sentiment. “We need peace and normal services. Then life will smile on us again.”

One thing that’s common to every informal urban settlement you’ll visit anywhere in the world is an intense level of activity and enterprise. Life in the slums is about hustling for a living. Slum dwellers have office jobs, run trading enterprises, cook, bake, build, recycle, fix, fish, teach, learn, grow, buy, sell, deliver, entertain, and engage in a million different activities every day.

Artist Faith Atieno was born and raised in Kibera, and she loves it. “It is home and it is an exciting and vibrant place to live,” she says. She took part in an arts program in high school and quickly realized that the creative world was where her future lay. Although there were no post-school art classes in Kibera, Faith spent time with local artists and developed her craft and style through osmosis and experimentation. Street art has been a key part of her output.

Today, Faith runs a collective called Art360, a community-based organization with the goal of using art for change. “We aim to inspire and educate, and also provide a space for kids to be creative… and to earn something from it.” In late 2022, the collective secured backing to establish a web-based sales platform and international delivery service, bringing them one step closer to making that aim a reality.

How can we make things better?

It’s obvious that many people have figured out a way to make slum life work for them and have even managed to thrive in some of the most densely populated, economically disadvantaged environments on the planet. But, given the choice, it’s fair to say that most would prefer life to be less stressful and precarious, especially for their children.

Making this a reality will most likely take an integrated approach by governments and local and international NGOs. Improving living conditions within informal urban settlements is an obvious element of any solution. In the words of one Bangladeshi government official: “In the past, there was a push to send back the poor living in the slums to their villages. But we have shifted our position. We understand that these people are here to stay and are not going back. That is why we have the slum development section, and whenever we introduce programs or strategic plans, we try to incorporate them.”

Supporting business development for women — who often have fewer job opportunities outside of their community — is one way to help families build sustainable income and savings. Rina Akter, who lives in a settlement in Dhaka, worked with the Concern livelihoods team to launch her small business. " With the support of BDT 10,000 (US$100) and some training, I started business locally, selling vegetables in the local market. I now have daily income and enough to meet my family expenses and my business is encouraging other women in the community.”

Another approach to the issue is to look at ways of stemming the flight of population from rural areas, where poverty, climate shock, and land ownership restrictions drive people towards the big urban centers. Remember those startling urbanization statistics we discussed at the start?

Concern Country Director in Haiti, Kwanli Kladstrup, says longer term solutions could include increased support for indigenous food production and processing, making rural life more attractive to young people. “There’s great potential for more resilient market-based livelihoods, especially around climate smart agriculture practices, and for more inclusive urban-rural trade linkages to give increased returns on assets and effort“.

As with any issue that involves human beings, the answer to our question “Why do people live in slums?” is nuanced. “Because they have no choice” is an obvious one, but so too is “Because it’s home, it’s what they know, and it’s where their people are.”

Concern Worldwide works with urban slum communities from Asia to Africa to the Caribbean, supporting programs in education, social protection, water and sanitation, vocational training, nutrition and health, livelihoods, and much more. And in the countryside — from which so many people migrate — those programs are mirrored, in support of rural communities struggling to survive, thrive, and provide a livable environment for future generations.

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