Employment and Housing: Central Aspects of Urbanization in Secondary Cities in Cross-Cultural Perspective

This text presents selected results of a geographical research project, focusing on an intercultural comparison of secondary city urbanization in different historical, cultural and socio-economic settings of developing countries. The contributions to the volume are grouped into four parts: the first part concentrates on housing provision expecially for the urban poor in the Philippines and in Thailand; the second part addresses the topic of gender specific employment opportunities in Thailand and Kenya; the third part discusses the context of urbanization and environment in Kenya and in the Philippines; and the final part attempts to compare cross-culturally the role of urban and urban-rural social networks and the contribution of the tourism industry - for which secondary cities have some comparative advantages - for gaining access to employment, income opportunities and shelter.