Municipalities and Quality of Life: An Analysis of Basic Services coverage between 2001 and 2010 in the Province of Santa Fe, Argentina

Abstract

In this paper we will analyse the coverage of basic services in the 55 municipalities of Santa Fe Province. In a broad sense, the growth of this kind of services is a constant challenge; its improvement reflects the progress in the quality of life. It is also an important factor to explain development. In the first place, we will determine and compare rates of the coverage of basic services from 2001 to 2010. In order to do so, we will analyse the coverage variation of that period taking into account housing increment. In the third place, we will examine changes considering population size—cohorts—and the regional belonging of the municipalities, seeking to understand the related factors to coverage variation along the aforementioned period, Regarding the methodological approach, we will combine different relevant rates of the provision of basic home services for urban life. Our information sources are the Censos Nacionales de Población, Hogares y Viviendas de Argentina (INDEC, 2001) (INDEC , 2010), and also statistics of the Instituto Provincial de Estadísticas y Censos de la Provincia de Santa Fe -Argentina- (IPEC, 2017). The achievements gave us the opportunity to appreciate the quantitative change process of the coverage of basic services in the area between the years 2001 and 2010. We have detected non-causal connections between the coverage of basic services and municipalities’ demographic size with its location in the province.