Young people at risk in an urbanizing world
By Sabine Ravestijn

In today's rapidly urbanizing world, the risks facing young people are varied, indiscriminate and growing, especially in the developing world.

From boys forced to take up arms by warlords in west and central Africa, and girls kidnapped to serve as their "wives" as documented in Uganda, to the child labourers of Asia, the Middle East and Latin America, there is little hope of leading a healthy life. Likewise for those who end up as street children in Cape Town or Rio de Janeiro.

The risks are greatest to those born in poverty, or in countries at war. Elsewhere, dwindling employment opportunities, rising levels of delinquency, crime and growing slums that lack basic services aggravate the situation. Those most at risk are children afflicted by war, young people in conflict with the law, victims of family violence and sexual abuse, the street children and children who have lived all their lives in slums, school drop-outs, orphans, and those without jobs.

Those most at risk: street children in an African city with nowhere to go, no education or job prospects and no guarantee of their next meal. Photo: © UN-HABITAT

The growth of the informal sector in our towns and cities reflects the inability
of governments, municipalities and national economies to confront their plight and create sufficient employment. And those who live on the fringes of society, in informal settlements, often face stigmatisation, and social, economic, and physical exclusion.

Poverty underlies the lives of the majority of the world's children and youth. The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that about 600 million children in developing countries live below the poverty line of US$1 per day and are thus deprived of the basic necessities of life. The proportion of families living below the poverty line in urban areas is more than 30 per cent. In many informal settlements, which shelter the majority of young people in many cities, the appalling living standards, inadequate shelter and non-existent services, rarely offer adequate social structures.

Poverty has an alarming impact on the lives of children and young people and has been associated with social exclusion. This includes a lack of adequate housing, water, transport, public safety, employment, health and education.

World-wide, estimates put the number of children out of school at 130 million _ which can be read as lost social capital.

Rapid urbanization, the huge youth population, and the impacts of globalization are leading to a breakdown in norms and values. Migration from rural to urban areas, combined with economic and social hardships, is leading to changing community and family structures. The traditional nuclear family is replaced by a multitude of family types, such as single-parent families. This has weakened traditional family values, affecting early childhood education that is so crucial for social and individual development. It also threatens subsequent integration of young people into society at large.

Crime is another major risk factor because young people are the most frequent victims and perpetrators. International studies have shown that those abused during childhood are more likely to offend as adults. The formation of gangs, a phenomenon in most countries, is often a reaction to exclusion and marginalization that gives members alternative status and recognition. Rapid and unplanned urbanization appears to bear a direct relation to increased crime.

Girls and young women are often most at risk. In many societies, there are important cultural and social differences in the way girls and boys are raised, and treated by others.

In many developing countries some of these differences can be particularly stark because of customs, traditions and religious beliefs. Poverty exacerbates these problems. As a result, the social and economic exclusion of girls in many societies is worse. Some of the consequences for boys are that they are more likely to become involved in offending. In recent years, nevertheless, the numbers of young urban women involved in criminal activities have also increased.

Those most marginalized are those most at risk. And the risks faced by these young people ultimately put whole societies, economies and democracies at risk.

Sabine Ravestijn is an Urban Safety Consultant for UN-HABITAT's Safer Cities Programme.