The growth of urban squatter settlements is a problem in developing countries. They are a particular challenge to small island developing states such as Fiji, where with increasing urbanization, there has been an unprecedented growth in their numbers. In Fiji, a squatter is defined as a person who is in illegal occupation of state, freehold or native land or without any form of security of tenure or without any consent from the landowner.

Squatter settlements usually, lack basic civic urban infrastructure, survive through poor living conditions, poverty, and low energy consumption per capita. They usually live in unhealthy living environments which can give rise to crime and other social problems.

An understanding of the livelihood strategies the poor squatters adopt is crucial to understanding how the poor cope in urban environments. Squatters usually have extremely limited resources, no assets and very few livelihood choices. This paper examines the current trends in urban squatter growth in Fiji and its contributing factors and explores the role of the informal sector as a livelihood strategy for squatters in Suva, Fiji.

Fiji has been urbanizing rapidly. The proportion of people living in urban areas increased from 30 percent in 1960 to 49 percent in 2000 and is expected to reach 60 percent by 2015.

According to the World Bank, slums and squatter settlements are resulting effects of inadequate or failed policies, planning, bad governance, inappropriate regulation, dysfunctional land markets, housing crises and a fundamental lack of political will. The major contributing factors for the growth of squatters in urban Fiji are rural-urban migration, poverty, unemployment, breakdown of family relationships, land insecurity, shortage of affordable housing and high housing rent.

Some of the concluding points of the study include the following: