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Research Paper | Geography | Guyana | Volume 13 Issue 4, April 2024 | Popularity: 5.5 / 10
Factors Influencing the Relocation of Informal Settlements: Case Studies of Two Urban Communities in Georgetown, Guyana
Patrick E. Williams
Abstract: Despite several decades of policy interventions and collaborative actions with local and international agencies, informal settlements continue to be a contentious and elusive issue confronting decision - makers in Guyana. Settlement relocation has been one of the main planks of the government?s housing policy. However, the settlement relocation strategy has proven to be problematic as informal settlers often display an unwillingness and sometimes open defiance to be relocated. The aim of this research is to determine the factors influencing the informal settlers? reluctance to move to new sites and to explore policy - measures that could facilitate a smooth and effective settlement relocation. Two informal settlements, Lombard Street and Front Road, located in the capital city of Georgetown were selected for the research. The study utilized the Likert Scale with rankings of strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree and strongly disagree to solicit and assess responses from households with respect to their concerns about removal to new settlement sites. The main findings of the study indicated that informal settlers have been reluctant to be relocated due to such issues as delays in land titling, proximity of proposed sites to services, relocation costs, nearness to employment opportunities, propinquity to relatives and friends and concern for security. The paper concludes by proposing measures that include institutional and policy adjustments for the relocation of informal settlers.
Keywords: informal settlement, housing policy, relocation
Edition: Volume 13 Issue 4, April 2024
Pages: 391 - 400
DOI: https://www.doi.org/10.21275/SR24331073757
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