I am sitting here listening to Christmas music - reading an article from The Economist - thinking about poverty and development, etc. This piece on the largest shanty town in Nairobi is fascinating - very well done. It is worth a read: Nairobi Shanty Town - Economics!
It is done from the perspective of several of the residents. This is the face of poverty today - and the face of hope. These people are working hard, struggling, risky, dangerous, but working hard. They have HOPE! The author says it would not be unlike parts of NYC back when things started booming there.
I am sure that a more supportive government and services and banking would make it work a whole lot better - but these people will make it. Cell phones are how you do banking and payments! And the Masai are feared AND trusted.
There are many similar stories in the book Poor Economics - if you have a mind to learn a bit more about the entrepreneurial spirit of the poor - what's the other choice they have? And this is East Africa - where the world view is that "no one is in charge" - it's changing.
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