In 1999, the 1,632 slum dwellers of ex-Rail shanty town (Dakar, Senegal) became residents of Xaadimu Rasuul, 1035 Baraquers of Sacre-Coeur/Liberte VI. They are now legally entitled to stay where they are and will receive, not a land title, but an authorization to live or to take up residence, provided "they behave in citizens" and they develop themselves and their area. Essential services have been set up at low cost; housing is progressively improving, and small jobs are growing. The initiative affects 22 undeveloped plots. A presidential directive gave the NGO ENDA the responsibility of reorganizing and developing this area. This marks a significant stage in the urbanization of the capital.
2. The formal and the informal city must be considered as inextricable parts of the same contemporary urban phenomenon. In order to overcome the imbalances that characterize the contemporary city, firm action must be taken to integrate the informal city and also, in a broader context, to promote urban land reform.