>> welcome to "global 3000 toy, we're going to takeke a look at life in cities. urban centers are booming -- particularly those in asia and africa. half the world's population now lives in cities -- a figure that's forecast to hit two-thirds by 2050. and already there's a serious lack of decent, affordable living space. one impressive example of affordable living is the fuggerei in augsburg -- the world's first social housing estate. it was built way back in 1521 by one of the city's wealthy

citizens, to provide homes for those in need. since then, state-run organisations and charitable institutions worldwide have invested in countless affordable housing projects. increasingly, though, governments are distancing themselves from this social responsibility, and relying on private enterprise to meet the need. >> this is my flat. welcome to my heaven -- or should i say, to my hell? >> jailson rochas' ten square metres cost around 1000 euros per month. not much room in here. >> a small kitchen, with a sink. >> and what about washing your feet in the shower? it is pretty tricky. >> i'm supposed to do this. there's no space.

i'm supposed to actually put my leg somewhere high and then be able to. >> jailson doesn't have much alternative right now. it all started when he fell into a depression after his divorce. he was too ill to continue working as a catering manager. soon, he couldn't pay his rent. at first, he camped out on friends' sofas, then he was homeless for a while.before being offered this room by social services. he shares the run-down house in south london with five other men. the state pays all their rents. >> they must be getting about five and a half thousand pounds, coming clolose to 6000 poundsa month. what used to be a two-bedroom house -- this is only 300 pounds less than what i was paying for a two-bedroom house in peckham. this cannot be valueue for mon. >> the british government pours around 25 billion euros a year

into rent subsidies. a world record. much of it goes on exorbitant rents like jailson's.some landlords hike their prices if they know the state is paying. free-market britain has long neglected social housing. hard to imagine it was once the nation's pride -- with around 250,000 homes built per year. in 2017 there were just 3,000 left. and that, despite a rise in need. the government h has jut announced a a new initiative - but experts are sceptical. demand, they say, is simply too high. christine: the biggest improvement is the fact that people are moving out of london. if we could make things better in the rest of the c country o that people felt that they were getting what they wanted, then that would be the better way of dealing with it. >> but in reality, london's population increases by around 120,000 people each year.

landlords can rent out flats fast, regardless of how rundown or chic they are. but if you want three rooms, you will have splash out up to 8000 euros per week. anand those who cannot afford tt have to be flexible. like emily and ben. they are both employed and work in marketing. but they still can't afford to rent a flat in the capital.. for a yearar, they've lived ona boat -- and change moorings every two weeks, to avoid paying fees. despite this, it's a huge improvemenent on how things usd to be: emily we shared accommodation : with four other people. and we paid around 1100 for that. >> yes, for a double room per month. emily: and then shared obviously a bathroom, and the toiletets. and there wasn't even a living room in it? >> the living room was a bedroom. you get a lot of landlords wanting to make as much money as they can on a property. >> and that's what the london renters union is fighting. the newly-founded association campaigns for unlimited rental

contracts, a cap on rents and more social housing. they hand the landlords union a symbolic check for 22 billion pounds, which is roughly what the capital's tenants will spend on their accommodation over the coming year. >> they have the worst rates -- rights in europe. landlords have all the power so a landlord can evict a tenant at any moment, we don't have any security. if we've got poor conditions like mold, damp, poor conditions, even dangerous housing, it's very difficult to do anything about it. so we're paying all this money for bad temporary housing. >> accommodation is a human right. >> it may be a human right, yet, in reality, in britainin, tenas are second-class citizens. owning your own four walls has long been seen as the norm here. and that means no home, all of your own, -- no cacaps off -- o

castle of your own -- and you have no rights. that's still the case today. tenants are often confronted with vermin, water damage and landlords who simply don't care. and that's something jailson knows well. in england, tenants can be given two months' notice, no reasonn necessary. jailson is supposed to move out next week. but he's still hoping that his appeal will be accepted and he won't have to leave. >> i struggle every single day in different ways, because i'm devoting my time to sorting this out. but the other aspects of my life are being compromised. >> emily and ben want to stay in london for work reasons. they have transformed a desperate situation into a lifestyle choice. they don't have a castle, but they do have a boat. the mortgage costs them 350 euros a month. it's romantic here and of course mobile. usually, anyway. emily: last winter, the canal wawas frozen. you u could not . we ran out of water, we ran out of gas. ben: the toilet was full. you have summer to sleep but

, you've got no amenities. >> that said, if their winter hardships are the worst they face, then emilie and ben are the lucky ones. >> africa's s population is skyrocketing. by 2050, projections say there will be twice as many people living on the continent as there are now. and more and more of them are streaming into urban areas, looking for work and better living conditions. cities in africa are growing faster than in any other region in the world. the population boom means in the next 30 years, the continent will need around 85,000 new hospitals, 310,000 schools and 700 million new apartments. but who is going to build them? and how? >> millions of africans live in informal settlements -- like thisis one in kigali. populaons s in aica's s cies are exploding and e e continent is struguggling to copope.

anan architect from rwanda, christian benimana, wants africa's boomiming cities toto flourishsh. ristian when these settlements : e dodone ian unpnplaed way,, it's diffificult to reveverse e trendsds, even if ththe governt of rwanda is doing a l o of fortrts torovidede bic services for the residents of suchch neighborhoooods to makee people arere living in safe, cln neighbhborhoods. but mostities ininfrica are faceced with the samame challes asas well. >> from m lagos to kininshasao irobi,i, gernmentstsre unable to manage urbanization.. and d those moving to the city often can't afford to build proper houousing or pay y expee rents. so o slums grow rwanda is we a aware of thee critical situation. ededward ware e tryi to : : establish didifferent prog, running awawayrom the e cial programs, bubut also movinig totowards also trying to prepae the grou f for them. cucurrently ththe government i y much commimitted to promomoting access to o housing. >> but recent housing projects in kigali were more suited to

the upper middle class. affordable solutions for the masses are still missing. benimana is traiaing a future generation o of african dedesis to find d innovative, , sustaie and affordable solutions tththe ormomous nd for infrastructure. not only houses, b but hospipis and schools. here, inin the northeaeast f rwanda, a a new primary y scols being built, using as much loc teririal apossibible christian they are vy y good : ququalitbricksks. they are building them vyy nicecely. therere is also ththis idea thae basic materirials we use f for constructition in africaca canne built t in an eleganant way --d we want to p prove that wrwro. >>he 37-yearar-old cononnced the govementnt that buildiding wih bricks, volcanic rock, and locay mamade rf tileles is cheaper than importing expensi materirials. anand that it's s worthwhile investsting in localal crafts. christian: earlier models whee peopople bng in n spializedd

contractors s to build thihingd leave hahaven't been s success. so by investing thehese peoe there is a chance e that this could d be also replplicated ey agagain here, anand if these pe were to migrgrate to otherer diststricts in thehe country, s ch more efficient than getting chese e contctors s orurkish cocontractors. >> bebenimanatudidiedn china,a, whererhe saw megacities grow along with the challenges th come w with them. totoday, he's ththe director oe africadedesign cenr,r, which openened in kigalili two years. eleven desigign graduates s fm eight african n countrs arare lelearning here hohow to take oe challenge ofof africa's enenors growth. christian: we are trying to understand the real problelems that we arare facing andnd nott browsising over statatiscal daa and saying w we need x amomounf using, b but dig down n deep ad understand w what thatat housg ans fofor residents of a afric. whatat does africacan city r africacan urban liviving mean? what does s african meanan? >> for m most africansns, urban ling stitill means e euring slum conditions. benima sayays there'e's a need r

thisis new generation of africn designgners to come upup wih solutions. chriristian: basically, it's a ststrong belief f in me that w e a very rarare chance in n this cotry y and onhis s continent to do things right this particular m moment. >> c can africa ririse to at challelenge? christian bemamana andtherers are e trng to o ma it happpp. >> urban planning is a huguge challenge. how many cities can the climate cope with? and what about human health? according to the u.n. air , pollution now contributes to the deaths of 4 million people a year. so how can we keep the air in major population centers clean? citities have alwaways had a sg appeal. i offer medical l car, educational d job opportunities, infrastructure, and cultural institutions and other attractions.

is anything lacking at all? yes -- nature. but why do we need green spaces in cities? for food, for example. with so many people in cities, it makes sense to produce fofod there. urban gardening is popular -- lettuce, herbs and other easy-to-grow greens are being cultivated on rooftops or in small plots. but not every part of the city is suitable. plants that grow alongside busy streets are overexposed to pollllution. urban green spaces canmpact the climate. cities account for 70% of globol co2 emissions.s. bad for the plananet and its residents. een leafy plants absb carbon dioxidand prprode oxygygen. and trees and other vegetation help regulate the urban temperature. they provide shade and cooling through evaporation. plants and unpaved soil absorb

water when it rains heavily or rivers overflow. and parks are places for us to rest and relax. but we're not alone. lots of animals have adapted to city life. urban-dwelling animals often hahave it better than their country cousins. but only if they have access to plenty of green areas and trees. many wild plants have also adjusted well to the urban jungle -- but they require unpaved areas in order to grow. so green spaces in a city are good for the quality of life of all its inhabitants. >> in 2010, there were already more than 1 billion cars on our planet -- and by 2040 there could be as many as 2 billion!

and that even though congestion , is already a huge problem. in fact, in some cities, drivers spend more than 200 hours a year stuck in traffic jams. many chinese cities have major problems. but alternatives are making a comeback. >> this is what beijing looked like 30 years ago. baback then, china was c callee kingngdom of bicycles. but then, urban planners had a different idea. for decades, they did evererythg they could to make beijing more car-friendly. around six million vehicles now clog its roads and highways. and the kingdom of bicycles has become thehe capital of traffc jams. thenen, two years ago, colorfl ntal bikes s suddenly began appepearing everywhere. all l you need to use one e bry is thepppp, and they cost less ththan 30 euro cents per hour.

so a anyone with a smartphone n now find a bike practically anywhere. i went to find out if the new chnology iencouraging people to get out of their cars. mobike was the first bike-sharing company. it launched in 2016, a and now claiaims to have 2 200 million s worldwidide. >> at fifit there was cut-thro mpetetitio therere were over r a hundrd companies s on the markeket. now there arare just three or fr leleft. wewe're not makiking a profit , but we're gegetting there e biy bit. our reresults in sepeptember e extraordinarily good. i n n tell y thahat mu. >> one of my first queioions -- how much arere the rental l bs really beingng used?

when do you rent a b bicycle? student: if i don't have to go more than 20 kilometers. reporter: that far? most beijing residents use the bikes for much shorter distances -- for the so-called last mile from the subway to their office or home. for the first time in quite a while, the number of bike journeneys is growing. sandra retzer advivises the chchinese e ministry of transpsn behalf of the germanan governme. sandra that was ththe positive : effect of all the various bike-sharing companies. officials started rethinking things in the cities, and in city governments. it's a big discussion in many urban areas today all over the world -- the question of how we can get people to enjoy riding bikes.

reporter: most roads in beijing have bike lanes like this. we are going to look at what condition they are. this one is nice and wide, and pretty comfortable to ride on. even if there are a couple of obstacles along the way. i just manage to squeeze past one car making a turn. and there isnother issue. too many vehehicles stopop or k on thehe bike path.. then you have to swerve into the car lane. so a less than pfect situatioion. and d there are other negative aspects to b bike sharing ----e the numbers of renentabikes uttering u up stres anand sidewalks. authorities now often just pile them up onto what look like scrap heaps. the bikes the city administration has cleared are

now unloaded here, on the fringes of the capital. every major chinese city has bicycle cemeteries like this one. the reremaining rental companis have to take back some of them. nobody knonows what willll happo the rest. mobike is grappling with new reregulations fofor bike sharin the city. 750,000 of its bikes can be found on the streeeets of beiji. but the e governnt won't allllw th to deploy morore. on peak days, their bikecacan rarack utwo mimilln trips.s. >> i think m many new busisins models need d a phase of irrational competitition. bubut in t fututure, this inindy will become extremel environmentally friendly and sustainable. reporter: every ride is recorded by the system. mobike not only knows how many ofof its bikes are being used. it also has to be able to tell at a given moment where each is located.

>> all rental bicycycle compmps now have to instalall live monitoriring systems.. e e data fm ththem is also ansmitted in tandem to the governnt.. reporter: but pele like mr. ngng are en momore importantn. he colles scattered rental bikes, and drives around the streets of zhongguancun, where beijing's young i.t. industry is located loading them up. , dodong brings ththem back toto places where they're needed ke s subway statioions. zhongggguancun sees s many yog commuters,s, and the sububway ie hotspot for bike sharingng. ththe bike collelector came toto beijing frfrom his villalage ja year ago.. he gets s paid by the e day fos labobor. in a month, he canararn abou 0 euroros. that's a around half t the avee wage. >> 9 9:00 inhe m morning i ise bubusiest time..

by the everyone is in thei offices.s. the e bikes are alall over the place.e. i fill u up my truck e every w minutes. reporter: are rental bikes really the solution to beijing's traffic proboblems? to finind out more i take a dedr , into the historic district. as the city modernized, the old town became a symbol for backwardness. for the old and the poor who lived here, bicycles were a common means of transport. today, the charms of the old town are being rediscovered by young people. and what about bikes? this small shop wants to show the people of beijing ththat cyclcling can be f fun. customers can design their own bikes here. >> you can pick any color you want. see which one you like. some customersrs rediscover cycling through riding rental bikes. they use them, but they dodont

find them comfortable enough. they're too small, don't have enough gears, or are only suitable for short distancese. and many rental bikes are inin d condndition and are poorly maintained. after riding the rental bikeks however, people decide they want to buy one of their own. and slowly but surely, the bicycle culture is reemerging. reporter: so bike sharing has acted as a catalyst, helping beijing residents rediscover an important means of transport from the past. now all that's needed is a sustainable plan for the traffic of the future. >> in creating an environmentally friendly transport system for the future, a lot will depend on the efficiency of local systems and how different types of transport interconnect. app developers around the globe are busy looking for solutions -- with particular success in lithuania.

>> gediminas d dilertas lives n vilnius, the capital of lithuania. he doesn't need a car of his own -- he just uses the trafi app. it pinpoints his location, and supplies him with information on the most convenient public transport services available nearby, complete with timetables and connections. he can also use the app for bicycle and carsharing schemes, and he can pay for all these services via the app too. dilertas uses it every day. >> yeah, i think a lot of people are using trafi -- not just in vilnius but in lithuania in general. it's especially popular amongst the younger generation. >> the app was developed b bya local startup. the team programmed a map that compiles and centrally coordinates data on all of vilnius' transport services, including taxis. it's free for users -- companies

like google maps also use the technology -- that's where the startup makes most of its money. it's now available in 30 cities worldwide, from istanbul to jakarta to sao paulo. >> the reason to go there was to solve their problems in those megacities, because we knew that transportation is unpredictable, unreliable, it's even hard for local people to understand how the system works, and we wanted to launch the product in those big megacities to make everyday life easier for them. the authorities in jakarta gave trafi access to all the gps data gathered by its public transport systems. home t tover 30 million peop, it's one oththe mostensesely populated cicities in the e wo. ththere's no sububway syste. those without a r take the bus. t the approvivides tailedd informatation.

>> the bigiggest challenenge io proper prorocesshe gpsps signals and vevery nicely shshow on thp hohow the traffific moves ande eta, t expectetime of arval to t bus sto and that takes quite a lot of effort. we've been doing this for 12 years and we still keep updating and improving the algorithms to do that. >> if taking the bus could be planned d more efficiently, moe people would ditch their cars. that's the theory. it remains to be seen if they really will. 20% of people in vilnius use the trafi app. but it only has a population of 550,000, and a realtively modest public transport system. >> in the future, cities will control that mobility, right, there will be a lot of autonomous vehicles. so the city will have a platform where it will be able to see all the movement in the city and be even able to c control it, contl

parking spots, control licences, who is driving in the city and who is not, which hours, which not, logistic services. >> critics might worry about privacy issues, but the mayor of vilnius has no such qualms. he has a radical open data policy and has already incorporated trafi's data pool into the city's urban planning. >> starting with this data, we may draw conclusions to invest in, for example, pedestrian lanes, or to adapt some publbl transport routes or find some other solutions. i think this is still just an initial stage, we are going to the future, i think this kind of big data analysis is very important for any city, without it i think the planning of infrastructure is simply blind. >> although h there is undenene concern that it can be hijacked for ulterior motives, big data can help fine tune public transport to people's needs.

>> and that's all from "global 3000" this week. but do drop us a line -- global3000@dw.com or check us out on facebook: dw global society. see you soon -- take care! [captioning performed by the

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