Barcelona - Minister of Cities, Olivio Dutra, participating in the II World Urban Forum as a co- president, has met with a UN task force on Millennium Targets for urban slum inhabitants. Dutra declared that the problem of precarious urban housing requires a broad-based solution.

The minister reported that the Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva administration has spent 30% more on the problem in its first twenty months in office than was spent over the previous eight years. Dutra said that money is being targeted at people who make up to five minimum wages because they are the people who account for 92% of Brazil's housing shortfall (estimated at 6.6 million homes).

UN data shows that half of the world's population lives in urban centers and that there are 900 million people who have substandard urban housing. According to the Ministry of Cities, in Brazil there are slums in 1,500 out of 5,561 muncipalities. A factor that aggravates the situation in Brazil is that slums are concentrated; 60% of slum dwellers live in only 224 municipalities, which have populations of more than 100,000.

Dutra will explain what the Brazilian government is doing in the areas of housing and sanitation and the problems in Brazilian cities with infrastructure.

The II World Urban Forum began on September 12 and ends on the 17th. There are representatives from 191 countries participating.

Agência Brasil
Reporter:Juliana Andrade
Translator: Allen Bennett
09/13/2004