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Cairo, Egypt
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MANSHIET NASSER AND MASR QADIMA SLUMS
Overview prepared by the Association for the Development and Enhancement of Women (ADEW)
© ADEW
Most of the roads in Manshiet Nasser are unpaved and too narrow for normal vehicle traffic. The severe slopes and uneven changes in elevation mean that large sections of the District (above 85 meters) do not have access to basic services such as running water and sewage systems. Even at lower levels, potable water is limited and a majority of people rely on pit latrines and old septic tanks. The area was once used as a landfill site, so the lower quarry levels are filled with centuries of garbage, resulting in poor foundation conditions vulnerable to leaking sewer and water systems. Health problems arising from the faulty sewage system, as well as from poor nutrition, inadequate vaccinations, and the toxic fumes produced by the burning of waste in the garbage collectors' area are common.
Residents in these slums generally lack access to government utility services. Few households benefit from running water, electricity, and sanitation. Most households that do have electricity acquire it illegally, by tapping into the legal electricity meter of a neighbor and then paying the neighbor for electrical usage. There are no government schools in these areas beyond the primary level, and no public health services.
Small families in these areas generally have 7 to 8 members. Most families live in a one-room home where the family sleeps, eats, and prepares food using a small stove or cook-top. A single toilet and shower facility is shared by the residents of the building. Women bathe infrequently or at night due to the toilet facility's lack of privacy. The bathroom may or may not have a door, and the door may not have a working latch.
© ADEW
Family incomes are about 300 Egyptian Pounds (about $54) per month, and either or both spouses might work. Men typically work as garbage collectors, laborers or factory workers, junk collectors/resellers, food sellers (e.g. fruit, vegetables, or poultry). Women typically sell clothing, household items, or food goods such as biscuits, butter, or milk; run small convenience stores; work as domestic maids; or make and sell handicrafts such as handmade hair brushes, small leather goods, etc. Youth aged 13 years and older generally work in socially acceptable jobs based on gender. Some small children also work, but they represent a small percentage of the labor market.
These squatter areas have no hospitals or clinics. Transport to hospitals from squatter areas is very difficult, as there is no way to call an ambulance. The squatter areas themselves are highly congested, with few taxis and limited access to main roads, which may be situated several kilometers from the interior sections of a squatter area. In addition to this, the hospitals and clinics that do exist near slum areas are not equipped to address the needs of expectant mothers and newborns, as they lack nurseries and neo-natal care units.
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