ABSTRACT
The provision of security - i.e. an environment without violence and crime - is closely tied to a high standard of living in any city. Public authority indeed derives in part from the need to guarantee citizens security. However, in many cities crime and violence have become an ugly part of daily life. Street-level crime like robbery and homicide are much less a problem despite an equally high level of deprivation, unemployment and lack of public services. Thus, irrespective of the actual crime rate, there is a growing sense of insecurity among the population in many megacities. This is most obvious in Johannesburg and Sao Paulo, where security - or rather the lack of it - is one of the most pressing problems. As a consequence, private security provision has been one of the fastest growing service sectors in cities around the world. Johannesburg is known as being one of the most dangerous cities in the world.
