ABSTRACT
As the pace of urbanisation and urban growth has increased, the capacity of most Third World governments to manage the consequences of these trends has decreased. The social, economic and environmental impacts of this failure fall most heavily upon the poor, who are generally excluded from the benefits of capitalist urban development. As we have seen, the majority of the Third World urban population has a standard of living so low as to be inconceivable to the average citizen of an advanced country. More than 3 billion people, or two-thirds of the world's population, have incomes that are less than 10 per cent of the per capita income in the USA, and by 2025 this figure is expected to encompass over 70 per cent of the global population. In this chapter we consider the relationship between poverty, power and politics in the Third World city and examine the ways in which the urban masses of the Third World cope with their disadvantaged position. We begin by exploring the nature and distribution of power in the Third World city. We then examine particular mechanisms through which poor households seek to make gains within the urban power structure, ranging from the cultivation of individual patron-client relationships to collective urban social movements. We assess the role of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in countering disadvantage and advancing the concept of community participation in Third World urban
development. Finally, we consider the links between globalisation and social justice.
