Under apartheid, black people were forced to live in the dormitory-style townships that were built as far away as possible from economic city centers. Post-apartheid development policies led to the construction of townships filled with government housing and limited access to some social services. However, these townships were often built as far, if not farther, than the original apartheid townships. Over the same period, there has been a massive growth of informal settlements. many townships like Lamontville shares many economic characteristics of South African townships such as joblessness, uneven access to basic public services, and overwhelming levels of crime and violence but in some respect it is atypical - newer, poorer, more informal and has a bigger proportion of foreign migrants.