Spatial patterns of slums : comparing African and Asian cities

Spatial data on slums are commonly either generalized, outdated or not available. Thus, very limited knowledge exists on spatial and locational factors of slums across cities in the Global South. Therefore, this study compares slum characteristics of six cities (three Asian and three African). These characteristics were analyzed at landscape, settlement and object level using available datasets (e.g. Open Street Map) and a set of indicators that are able to describe spatial commonalities and differences at these three spatial levels. The results indicate that slums show at environ level commonalities across six selected cities, while object and settlement level characteristics display more variations between African and Asian cities. Yet, slums are dominated by small buildings, high densities and good locations in terms of accessibility but poor in terms of land suitability.