Informal Settlements

The informal settlements orfavelas characterizing the cities of Brazil are visible evidence that the political-economic system does not adequately serve the urban population. How has society responded to this constant reminder in urban spatial form? How are these responses translated into intervention policies, and how have these in turn allowed the perpetuation of urban informal settlements? The parallels and contrasts in informal-settlement policy and perpetuation between South Africa and Brazil provide an interesting basis for an exploration of these questions. Broad parallels in the succession of dominant politics and associated economies in Brazil and South Africa form the contours1 that are relevant to a cross-national comparison on the question of informal settlements. As noted in Lawrence's (1994) comparison between the African National Congress (ANC) in South Africa and the Partido dos Trabalhadores (Workers' party-PT2) in Brazil, the two countries share the persistence of colonial structures and values well into the twentieth century. These supported the