My research reviews the current literature on cuentapropismo (self-employment) in Havana and some of the existing theories of informality. My major goal is to see how well such theories explain the Havana case. Traditional approaches to understanding the informal economy do not fit Havana, which is distinct in terms of (1) social class structure, (2) social demography, (3) the relations between the formal and informal sectors, and (4) the relations between the informal economy and globalization. My research also examines the nature of informality and entrepreneurship and argues that the former supports the latter in three ways: overexploitation, invisibility and informal social network. These three elements apply to previous state employees who quit state jobs to enter the informal sector. In a context of neoliberal reforms and the consolidation of urbanization in Latin American countries, I conclude that it is necessary to theorize the experience of these informal entrepreneurs who previously worked in the formal sector and whose human capital and expectations separate them from earlier rural-origin migrants of the 1960s. / text

Informal human settlements, often so large that they are cities onto themselves, have been absent from urban morphological study. As the population of the urban world grows, hundreds of millions of people live in informal settlements. This report attempts to present why it is important to understand how, why, and where informal human settlements form, as well as how they evolve, and conditions for their emergence and evolution. Each region and individual city has its own varied economic, political, cultural, historical, environmental and legal issues and concerns. Such issues in certain areas of cities, including slums, pose unique challenges for governments, non-governmental organizations, non-profits, and community-based organizations. Each stands to benefit from critical analyses that not only indentify and understand informal settlements more historically, sociologically, and spatially, but that inform plans that effectively harness limited national and international resources towards carefully targeted interventions. The focus of such interventions could include slum upgrading or assistance to secure land tenure, based on a deeper knowledge that increases efficacy. In Nairobi, one of the oldest and largest informal settlements, Mathare, provides an opportunity for historical analysis. Through seven interviews with researchers, government bureaucrats, and residents, visually observing villages in Mathare, and analyzing archival maps, this report has identified factors driving change and the resulting impacts on the urban morphology of informal settlements in the African context. Various factors dealing with cultural, environmental, political/economic, and legal/regulatory issues are discussed. These data substantiate land tenure, speculative investment, tenancy insecurity, and government administrative structure as the issues that most directly drive emergence and growth of informal settlements. These issues date back to the earliest days of Nairobi, where African workers lived on land owned by their employers. These workers were denied access to land ownership, tenancy rights, and dwelling improvement through legal, economic, and institutionalized prejudice and coercion. Little has changed, as colonial-aged government administration and systemic disadvantage still determine the development of Nairobi’s informal settlements. / text

Abstract Objective: To measure dietary intakes of young children aged 12–24 months and to determine the impact of poor diets on stunting. Design: A quantitative food-frequency questionnaire was adapted, tested and standardised. Trained enumerators conducted in-depth interviews with the mothers/caregivers of the children. Forty stunted children in urban informal settlements and 30 stunted children in rural areas were selected and pair-matched with controls. The data were captured on the Food Finder Program of the Medical Research Council. Results: In both urban and rural areas, the diet of stunted and non-stunted groups did differ significantly and all diets were of poor nutritional quality. Conclusion: Diets in both areas resembled the recommended prudent diet, i.e. low in fat and high in carbohydrates. Poor quality diets were not the primary cause of stunting.

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Thesis (Honors)--College of William and Mary, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 113-125). Also available via the World Wide Web.

Thesis (doctoral)--Freie Universität Berlin. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 323-340).

Thesis (M. Inst. Agrar.(Agricultural Economics))--University of Pretoria, 2002. / Summary in English. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--California State University, 1985. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 42-43).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Bremen, 1998. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 110-125).