ABSTRACT
The rapid pace of urbanisation, the spread of urban poverty and the deteriorating physical and social environment of many cities in the South has led to a growing interest in the health status of urbanites. In this context, health does not merely refer to the absence of diseases or infirmities: following the constitution of the World Health Organisation (WHO), we will define it as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being. Health depends on a good physical environment where people are protected from chemical and biological hazards. Traditionally, development co-operation pays more attention to the provision of health-care facilities than to the improvement of other environmental determinants of health, yet these are of crucial importance. Provision of clean water in a community, for example, can have a much greater positive effect on the health of the people than an extension of its health-care facilities.
