Building-Related Health Issues in an Unsustainable Neighbourhood– a Study of a Slum Area in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Similar to many slum areas across the globe, the living conditions are very unhealthy, and the people who live in Jeddah slum areas are endangered by contracting certain health complications and diseases. This paper investigated the predominant health issues that are related to the building conditions faced by the people who reside in Kilometre 2, the largest slum area in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. An online survey was used to collect data from fifty heads of household, selected using a snowballing technique; forty-nine responded. The results revealed that almost all of the respondents acknowledged the bad conditions of the buildings and had no access to clean water. The majority of them experienced building-related health illness, with allergies and dysentery as the most common. The results imply the need for government intervention and a joint effort from the public and private sectors to solve the problems.