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Of Argentina's 41.5 million people, a staggering 67 percent are living precariously without access to one of a number of determining factors such as clean drinking water, electricity and/or proper sanitation, according to a new report on informal settlements by Techo Argentina.
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To add to this, one in 10 Argentines – or around 3 million people – currently reside in informal settlements, with every seven out of 10 of these settlements located close to risk factors such as railways and/or sources of pollution.
In these informal settlements, 98 percent of families lack regular access to proper sanitation, 95 percent do not have access to running water, and 73 percent do not have formal access to electricity.
The report also shows that amid sustained population growth, over the past three years there has been a rise in informal housing. In 2013, according to the same report, approximately 533,110 families lived in informal settlements, but in 2016 the number has risen to 594,970.
Current President Mauricio Macri has cut funding to social programs, including those under the previous administrations of Nestor and Cristina Kirchner which helped alleviate poverty. But Florencia Yaccarino, head of Techo Argentina, said the country needs stronger policies from current officials.
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"The important thing to note is that structural policies are needed because if not, we will see surveys with rising figure. We are facing a structural problem," she said.
Techo Argentina aims to contribute to public housing policies with the support of open and public data. For the new report, more than 800 pollsters from Techo visited villages and settlements for two years, including large metropolitan areas, the main cities and smaller neighborhoods.
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