What's New?
June 2008 - Urban Health Bulletin, May/June 2008 (pdf, 88KB) - Abstracts of 16 recently published urban health studies.
Apr 8, 2008 - 2007. USAID Municipality, Concern Worldwide Bangladesh Municipal Health Partnership Program: Mid-Term Evaluation Report (pdf, 414KB). The Mid-Term Review team found that the MHPP had made significant progress on two fronts.
Urban Health
We have entered the urban millennium-half the world population now lives in cities. However this newmillennium does not belong to old urban giants like London and New York. Over 90 per cent of the world's population growth in the coming two decades will occur in developing country cities. If well managed, these cities will be engines for improved prosperity. If not, rapid urbanization can strangle economic growth by poisoning the environment and increasing the spread of disease.
Poor air and water quality in developing cities affects the health status of all residents. However, the poor are the most vulnerable, often living in marginalized areas beyond the reach of water, sanitation and solid waste services. In addition, high population densities, limited access to health services, and proximity to pollution sources contribute to particularly high morbidity and mortality rates in urban slums.
While the challenges are severe, there is evidence that low-cost environmental improvements and health service outreach can dramatically improve the health and wellbeing of the urban poor. Supported by central government and donor partners, local governments must commit to inclusive service provision that responds to the needs of all their constituents.
