Greater Santa Fe Area

The Santa Fe Urban Agglomeration (AGSF, as its initials in Spanish) is a medium-sized center-north urban area of Argentina. In general, it has a diversified economic structure, where commerce and service activities prevail and make it one of the most dynamic sectors of the current economy. In 2010, AGSF presented a relatively favorable situation with regard to the total of the country districts. It manifested a low rate of incomplete primary education population, a high rate of complete university studies population, intermediate-low rate of child mortality, and intermediate-low rate of population without healthcare. Regarding housing dimension, a behavior of minor relative favorability is noted, considering that both toilet-less housing and overcrowding indicators have intermediate-low rates. Concerning environmental indicators, the favorable score in RRBN and RRSC is countered by a high index in PA, which is caused primarily by the water risk situation—alluvial valleys of the Paraná and Salado rivers—in La Capital department. In the AGSF, the distribution of the quality of life index is far from being homogeneous. There are notorious contrasts between social groups and between the different areas of the urban agglomeration. In short, it is possible to interpret that the four areas of quality of life present a layout that resembles concentric rings with a negative slope from the center to the periphery of the agglomerate. Despite the good general situation, material and social asymmetries are exhibited with respect to education, health, housing, and the environment, evidencing a typical pattern of a fragmented city.