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Enabling shelter strategiesReview of experience from two decades of implementation

Table of Contents

Foreword

Acknowledgements

Executive summary

I. Introduction

I.A. Urbanization, globalization and the shelter challenge

I.B. Shelter needs at the national scale

I.C. Shelter policy and its links with the overall economy

I.D. Effectiveness of policies, strategies and programmes in addressing the needs of thepoor and other vulnerable and disadvantaged groups

II. Background to and evolution of enabling shelter strategies

II.A. Background to the enabling approach in the shelter sector and the GSS

o II.A.1. Habitat: United Nations Conference on Human Settlements

o II.A.2. International Year of Shelter for the Homeless (IYSH)

o II.A.3. Global Strategy for Shelter to the Year 2000 (GSS)

II.B. Evolution of housing policies and strategies and basic changes since the adoption ofthe GSS

o II.B.1. United Nations Conference on Environment and Development

o II.B.2. The Second United Nations Conference on Human Settlements

o II.B.3. The Millennium Declaration

o II.B.4. Istanbul +5

II.C. II.C. Specific effects of enabling shelter strategies on national housing policies

III. The effects of enabling shelter strategies

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III.A. Governments’ and public bodies’ attitudes to informal settlements

III.B. Changes in the institutional arrangements responsible for shelter issues

o III.B.1. Decentralization

o III.B.2. Participation

o III.B.3. Partnerships

III.C. Promoting public participation in decision-making in the shelter sector

III.D. Reviewing the legal and regulatory framework governing the shelter sector

o III.D.1. Price controls

o III.D.2. Property rights

o III.D.3. Land use and building regulations

III.E. NGO/CBO involvement in shelter delivery

III.F. Specific effects on women and other vulnerable and disadvantaged groups

o III.F.1. Poverty, vulnerability, disadvantage and discrimination

o III.F.2. Women

o III.F.3. Vulnerable and disadvantaged groups

IV. The changing roles of actors in the shelter sector and workable elements of enablingstrategies

IV.A. Mobilizing human resources in the shelter sector

o IV.A.1. Public awareness of shelter issues

o IV.A.2. Availability of information on capacities of government agencies, the privatesector and NGOs

o IV.A.3. Training in alternative shelter provision options

o IV.A.4. Training programmes for government agencies and the private sector

o IV.A.5. The involvement of women and their organizations

IV.B. Housing finance

o IV.B.1. Government and formal sector initiatives to increase housing finance

a). Government banks and state-owned housing finance institutions

b). Commercial banks and housing finance institutions

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c). Lowering interest rates

d). Easing regulations on collateral

e). Flexible repayment schemes

f). Earmarking of funds for low income groups

g). Involvement of informal settlements in formal housing finance

h). Community mortgage programmes

o IV.B.2. Community initiatives in housing finance

a). Community savings and loans schemes

b). Daily savings schemes

o IV.B.3. NGO programmes

o IV.B.4. Microfinance

IV.C. Spatial planning and provision of urban land for housing

o IV.C.1. Planning procedures, role of local authorities and increasing publicparticipation in decision-making

o IV.C.2. Formulation and enforcement of urban planning standards

o IV.C.3. Provision of urban land for housing, particularly for low-income households

a). Serviced and unserviced land

b). Land sharing

c). Land readjustment

d). Land expropriation and banking

e). Resettlement and transfer of titles

o IV.C.4. Recognition and use of informal land markets: Integrating them into formalprocedures

IV.D. Provision and operation of infrastructure and services

o IV.D.1. Changes in service providers and operators

a). Changing role of government

b). Privatization

c). Partnerships and community involvement

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o IV.D.2. Mobilization of financial resources from infrastructure and services users

a). Cost recovery

b). Targeted subsidies, cross-subsidies and other support mechanisms

IV.E. Shelter production and improvement

o IV.E.1. Shelter production by public organizations

o IV.E.2. Support to informal sector and small-scale housing producers

o IV.E.3. Support to the development of appropriate building materials andconstruction technologies

o IV.E.4. Support to self-help efforts by community groups and housingco-operatives

a). Community groups

b). Co-operatives

o IV.E.5. The role of NGOs in supporting shelter development

a). Organization and representation

b). Mediation and facilitation

c). Participation in policy and decision-making

d). Demonstration projects

e). Shelter delivery

o IV.E.6. Contributions of the formal private sector to stimulating low-income housingdevelopment

o IV.E.7. Rental housing

V. Assessing the implementation of enabling shelter strategies

V.A. Inner-city rehabilitation

V.B. Access to land

o V.B.1. Shelter improvement without de jure security of tenure

o V.B.2. Land sharing

o V.B.3. Resettlement

V.C. Basic infrastructure and services

V.D. Slum upgrading

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V.E. Shelter production

V.F. National policy and strategy formulation

VI. Observations, conclusions and recommendations on improving workable elements ofenabling shelter strategies

VI.A. Observations and conclusions

o VI.A.1. Overall progress

o VI.A.2. Intervention v. liberalization

o VI.A.3. Operationalizing the right to adequate housing

o VI.A.4. The changing role and capacity of government

o VI.A.5. Participation and partnerships

o VI.A.6. Gender

o VI.A.7. Reaching the poorest and other vulnerable and disadvantaged groups

o VI.A.8. Rehabilitation of the existing housing stock

o VI.A.9. Access to land

o VI.A.10. Basic infrastructure and services

o VI.A.11. Slum upgrading

o VI.A.12. Housing finance

o VI.A.13. Monitoring, evaluation, knowledge and information-sharing

o VI.A.14. Scaling-up and sustainability

o VI.A.15. The importance of political will

VI.B. Recommendations

o VI.B.1. Intervention v. liberalization

o VI.B.2. Operationalizing the right to adequate housing

o VI.B.3. Role and capacity of the state

o VI.B.4. Participation and partnerships

o VI.B.5. Gender

o VI.B.6. Reaching the poorest and other vulnerable and disadvantaged groups

o VI.B.7. Rehabilitation of the existing housing stock

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o VI.B.8. Access to land

o VI.B.9. Basic infrastructure and services

o VI.B.10. Slum upgrading

o VI.B.11. Housing finance

o VI.B.12. Monitoring, evaluation, knowledge and information-sharing

o VI.B.13. Scaling-up and sustainability

o VI.B.14. Political will

VI.C. Directions for future research

List of references and relevant documents

List of references

International legal instruments (and related interpretations), and declarations/programmesof actions of United Nations conferences

o International Covenants, Conventions and Declarations

o Interpretative texts of international covenants/conventions

o Declarations and programmes of action of United Nations Conferences

United Nations resolutions and other documents (UN-Doc …)

o General Assembly (A/…)

o Commission on Human Rights (E/CN.4/…)

o Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights under theCommission on Human Rights (until 1999 the Sub-Commission on Prevention ofDiscrimination and Protection of Minorities) (E/CN.4/Sub.2/…)

o Commission on the Status of Women (E/CN.6/…)

o Commission on Sustainable Development (E/CN.17/…)

o Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (E/ESCWA/…)

o Commission on Human Settlements (HS/C/…)

o Governing Council of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme(HSP/GC/…)

o World Urban Forum (HSP/WUF/…)

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Enabling shelter strategiesReview of experience from two decades of implementation

List of Boxes

Box 1. Capital spending on housing

Box 2. The full and progressive realization of the right to adequate housing

Box 3. The Cities Alliance

Box 4. Changes in governments’ attitudes towards informal settlements in Africa

Box 5. The gecekondus of Turkey

Box 6. Adoption of decentralization policies in various countries

Box 7. Sustainable urban development and good governance, Nigeria

Box 8. The Community Action Planning (CAP) methodology

Box 9. UN-HABITAT’s Global Urban Observatory (GUO) and Best Practices and Local LeadershipProgramme (BLP)

Box 10. Gender and housing: the Pachacutec experience

Box 11. The Government Housing Bank of Thailand (GHB)

Box 12. The Urban Community Development Office (UCDO), Thailand

Box 13. The Community Mortgage Programme, the Philippines

Box 14. Examples of urban poor federation funds

Box 15. Development of land markets

Box 16. Small-scale independent services providers

Box 17. Cost recovery

Box 18. Transforming the lives of slum dwellers in Brazil

Box 19. Mexico’s National Fund for Popular Housing (FONHAPO)

Box 20. The People’s Housing Process and the People’s Housing Partnership Trust, South Africa

Box 21. The Build Together Programme, Namibia

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Box 22. Co-operative housing in transition countries

Box 23. NGOs involvement in the policy formulation process in Zimbabwe

Box 24. Promotion of rental housing by public and private sectors

Box 25. Perceived or de facto security of tenure

Box 26. Land proclamations in the Philippines

Box 27. Bolivia's anticrético system

Box 28. The community land trust in Tanzania-Bondeni, Voi, Kenya

Box 29. The experience of Pom Mahakan, Bangkok, Thailand

Box 30. ‘Due process’ in case of forced evictions and resettlement

Box 31. Sanitation for slum dwellers, Pune, India

Box 32. Slum Networking of Indore City, Indore, India

Box 33. The Community-Led Infrastructure Finance Facility (CLIFF)

Box 34. Components of slum upgrading

Box 35. The Kampung Improvement Programme (KIP), Indonesia

Box 36. The Luanda Sul Self-financed Urban Infrastructure Programme, Angola

Box 37. Popular Habitat Programme, San José, Costa Rica

Box 38. Justiciable elements of the right to adequate housing

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Box 1. Capital spending on housing

In general, capital spending on housing contributes between two and eight per cent of GDP, and 10 to 30per cent of gross fixed capital formation (GFCF).a Housing services typically account for five to 10 percent of the GNP.b In the Middle East, for example, housing construction typically accounts for three percent of GDP,c and in Tunisia housing investment has averaged four per cent of GDP since 1990.d Housingexpenditure in Indonesia is only some 1.5 per cent of GDP, compared with two to eight per cent incomparable neighbouring Asian countries.e However, in Latin America, housing is an especially importantsector in the urban economy, typically contributing between 15 and 20 per cent of GNP.f In SouthAfrica, government expenditure on housing increased by 150 per cent from R3.6 billion to R9.1 billionbetween 1998 and 2003 because of the Housing Subsidy Scheme.g On the other hand, in Kenya, centralgovernment expenditure on housing decreased by 38 per cent in fiscal year 1999,h owing to the poorperformance of the national economy, and it has since remained low.

Sources: a). UNCHS and ILO, 1995. b). Angel, 2000:24. c). Dhonte and others, 2000. d). Erbaş and Nothaft, 2002. e). Hoek-Smit, 2002. f). Mayo, 1999. g). Vuyo, n.d. h). Majale and Albu, 2001.

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Box 2. The full and progressive realization of the right to adequate housing

The Habitat Agenda outlines various ways in which governments can bring about the full and progressiverealization of the right to adequate housing. One of these is:“Effective monitoring and evaluation ofhousing conditions, including the extent of homelessness and inadequate housing, and, inconsultation with the affected population, formulating and adopting appropriate housing policiesand implementing effective strategies and plans to address those problems.”a

In particular, there is need to “provide detailed information about those groups within …society that are vulnerable and disadvantaged with regard to housing”. These groups include, inparticular, homeless persons and families, those inadequately housed and without ready access to basicamenities, those living in ‘illegal’ settlements, those subject to forced evictions and low-income groups.b

The Habitat Agenda further recommends that all the actors in the shelter process should regularlymonitor and evaluate their own performances in the implementation of the Habitat Agenda. This appliesto local authorities, the private sector and communities. It proposes that they do this through comparablehuman settlements and shelter indicators and documented best practices. And indeed, since “theadoption of the Habitat Agenda, a systematic effort has also been made to document theseinitiatives and innovations, providing a wealth of knowledge, experience and lessons for furtherreflection, action and consolidation.”b

Sources: a). Habitat Agenda: paragraph 61. b). Amnesty International, 2003:59. c). Allen andYou, 2002.

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Box 3. The Cities Alliance

The World Bank and UN-HABITAT launched the Cities Alliance in May 1999 as a global coalition ofcities and their developmental partners. All were committed to making unprecedented improvements inthe living conditions of the growing urban poor majority in developing countries. The creation of the CitiesAlliance reflects innovative approaches to urban policy and management by four principal constituencies:

The urban poor themselves.

Local authorities and their associations, such as the International Union of Local Authorities(IULA), the United Towns Organization (UTO), and the World Assembly of Cities andLocal Authorities Coordination (WACLAC).

National governments.

Bilateral aid agencies (10 countries), and multilateral agencies (the World Bank,UN-HABITAT and UNEP).

In joining the Cities Alliance, all partners commit themselves to new ways of working togethertowards improving the efficiency and impact of urban development co-operation in two critical areas:

Supporting inclusive and participatory approaches through which local stakeholders definetheir vision for their city and establish priorities for action to tackle urban poverty and growinginequality as an integral part of a City Development Strategy.

Strengthening partnerships with local authorities and CBOs to support city-wide slumupgrading and nationwide scales of action.

The ‘Cities without Slums Action Plan’, sets an agenda that challenges “donors, governmentsand slum communities to improve the lives of 5–10 million slum dwellers by 2005 and 100 millionby 2020.”

Sources: UN-HABITAT, 2003g:139; Cities Alliance, 1999:6.

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Box 4. Changes in governments’ attitudes towards informal settlements in Africa

A number of African countries provide good examples of the changes in government attitudes towardsinformal settlements over the years:

In Kenya, the evolution of official attitudes toward informal settlements can be traced inpronouncements in the nation’s first housing policy document and subsequent nationaldevelopment plans.a They have changed from intolerance, whereby informal settlements wereregularly demolished, to acceptance. Currently, the government (in collaboration withUN-HABITAT) is implementing the Kenya Slum Upgrading Programme (KENSUP). Theobjective is “to improve the overall livelihoods of people living and working in slumsthrough targeted interventions to address shelter, infrastructure services, land tenureand employment issues, as well as the impact of HIV/AIDS in slum settlements.”b

In Mali, the authorities’ policy towards informal settlements has long been one oflaissez-faire. In the 1980s, a few informal settlements were regularized and upgraded as partof a World Bank-financed urban development programme; others were intermittentlythreatened with demolition though largely left alone. In 1992 Mali devised a comprehensivepolicy of legalization and upgrading.c

In Gabon, the government introduced new legislation aimed at regulating the construction ofinformal settlements in the late 1990s.d

Burkina Faso launched a National Urban Upgrading Programme in 1983, following therevolution. The programme, which was based on the government-executed urban landrestructuring policy of lotissements, was implemented between 1983 and 1990.e,f

In Senegal, a new policy on urban upgrading and land was launched in 1987, with the focuson land reform and regularization of informal settlements.e

In Ghana, the Government tacitly overlooked informal settlements for many years owing toits inability to provide acceptable alternatives. However, in its Shelter Strategy 2001, theGovernment acknowledged that “Conventional approaches to the delivery of shelter inboth the public and private sector have had limited impact on solving the housingproblem … Only a fraction of housing delivery has been able to filter to the low-incomepopulation where the need is greatest.”g The strategy document also recognized the criticalneed to adopt ‘non-conventional strategies’ if the housing situation of the urban poor was tobe improved significantly. However, the document also demonstrates the difficulty of definingjust what those ‘non-conventional strategies’ should be.g

In South Africa, authorities have responded positively to informal settlements in recentyears, deferring to the locational choices of the households living there.h However, it took fouryears up to 1999 to build a broad consensus among politicians and local authorities tosupport the in situ upgrading of informal settlements in Cape Town. The triggering factorbehind the shift was a study showing that informal settlements were growing more quicklythan the supply of formal housing, a situation that was unlikely to be reversed in theforeseeable future.i This underscores the important role of research in influencing policy. Cityand settlement surveys, mapping and enumerations exercises can be instrumental in thisrespect and open up agenda-defining opportunities for community organizations.

Sources: a). Majale, 1998; Warah, 2001c:12. b). UN-HABITAT, 2005c:51. c). Vaa, 2000. d).UN-DESA and UN-HABITAT, 2004. e). Gulyani and Connors, 2002; f). World Bank, 2002. g).

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COHRE, 2004a:10. h). Irurah and others, 2002. i). Abbot, 2004.

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Box 5. The gecekondus of Turkey

Turkey has seen noticeable changes in the State's and local authorities' attitudes to gecekondus,a whichhave played a complex and unique role in reducing the country’s housing deficit. Gecekondus firstappeared in 1940s. The initial reaction of the State was to demolish them and prohibit future illegaldevelopment. In the 1960s, gecekondus began to be perceived as an inevitable consequence of rapidurbanization and the country’s level of economic development. Moreover, they served the State'spolitical and economic interests by meeting the housing needs of a significant constituency without muchfinancial support from the State.

Options other than demolition were considered for the first time in the first ‘Five YearDevelopment Plan’ in 1963. Election campaigns in the mid-1960s began to feature gecekondu ‘amnesties’. These went hand in hand with the gradual extension of some services, especially watersupply, electricity and access roads, to the gecekondus by municipalities and utility companies. This inturn encouraged the development of new gecekondus for speculative purposes, which displeased themiddle class. Consequently, municipal authorities took action against the development of newgecekondus, while continuing to provide the existing ones with urban services. In the mid-1990s,municipalities took to demolishing gecekondus again − a different form of populist policy, albeit areactionary one. However, the increase in land ownership and development rights contributed to theredevelopment of the best located gecekondus into neighbourhoods of modern mid- and high-riseapartments. To this day, new gecekondus continue to be built.a. Gecekondus are slum houses or informal settlements; the literal meaning is ‘built in the night.’

Sources: Mahmud and Duyar-Kienast, 2001; Baharoglu and Leitmann, 1998; Erman, 1997; 2001.

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Box 6. Adoption of decentralization policies in various countries

Brazil: One of the aims of a new, multi-faceted housing policy of the Brasilia Federal Districtis to decentralize government action with regard to housing.a

Namibia: The Government decentralized responsibility for housing provision to regional andlocal authorities from 1 April 1999 onwards as part of broad-ranging decentralizationpolicies. This has paved the way for successful implementation of the decentralized ‘BuildTogether Programme’, which assists low-income households that are unable to accesshousing developed by the National Housing Enterprise (a parastatal body) or the privatesector. b

Tanzania: The success of the Hanna Nassif Community-Based Upgrading project in Dar esSalaam, has been attributed to “institutional reform that included decentralisation and aclearer definition of roles, responsibilities and actors to ensure accountability,transparency and affordability.” c

Kenya: The Government embarked on a major programme of decentralization andstrengthening of local authorities through the Ministry of Local Government in line with theHabitat Agenda. However, “[l] ocal authorities in Kenya are associated withadministrative as well as professional problems”. This comes on top of a “poor imageof the local government system among citizens.”b

Sources: a). UNCHS, 2001b. b). Ministry of Regional and Local Government and Housing,Namibia, 2001. c). UNCHS, 2001b:25. d). UN-HABITAT, 2002c:44.

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Box 7. Sustainable urban development and good governance, Nigeria

Since the election of the civilian leadership, the Government of Nigeria has made notable progresstowards the establishment of good governance at all levels. The country now has a structurallydecentralized system, with 36 states and 774 local authorities. The Federal Constitution, which legitimizesthe structure, is also under review. The aim is further to strengthen the federal units and give them greaterautonomy and fiscal responsibility. Another objective is to increase popular participation. A nationalurban development policy has been implemented in various initiatives, even in the absence of a formalcategorization of urban centres. These initiatives include World Bank-funded community-basedupgrading, the Sustainable Cities Programme and the Cities Alliance Karu programme. Communityconsultations and citizen participation are integral to several local development programmes.

Source: UN-Doc. A/S-25/3.

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Box 8. The Community Action Planning (CAP) methodology

The CAP method consisted of a structured series of workshops organised for community members whohad expressed an interest in improving their settlement. These were typically:

an initial two-day workshop for about 30 representatives of the community to identify theirsocio-economic and material issues and plan strategies to tackle these;

a variety of one or half-day issue-specific workshops, depending upon the needs of thecommunity and the stage of implementation;

a workshop to strengthen the function of CDCs;

a land regularization workshop for people to layout a block-out plan;

a building guidelines workshop to formulate community-specific building codes;

a housing information workshop for introduction of National Housing Development Authority(NHDA) house loan packages;

a community contract workshop familiarizing the community group with procedures toreceive contract awards for minor infrastructure works; and

a women's enterprise support workshop to initiate a group credit programme for incomegenerating activities.

Source: MOST, n.d.

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Box 9. UN-HABITAT’s Global Urban Observatory (GUO) and Best Practices andLocal Leadership Programme (BLP)

GUO aims to address the urgent need to improve the local, national and international knowledge andinformation base with respect to urban issues, questions and practices. It does so by assistinggovernments, local authorities and civil society organizations in the development and application ofpolicy-oriented urban indicators, statistics and other urban information. GUO works closely with BLP,which was established in 1997 to support the implementation of the Habitat Agenda.

BLP is a decentralized global network of government agencies, local authorities and theirassociations, professional and academic institutions and grassroots organizations. All are committed toidentifying and exchanging innovative and effective approaches to sustainable development. BLP aims toraise awareness about critical social, economic and environmental issues and to offer sustainable,workable and viable approaches and policy options for improving the living environment. It does so byidentifying, disseminating and applying lessons learned from ‘Best Practices’, i.e., “actions that havemade a lasting contribution to improving the quality of life and the sustainability of our cities andcommunities.” BLP places a premium on describing the processes of policy and legislative formulation,implementation, monitoring and evaluation. It emphasizes the need for accurate information regardingstakeholder involvement in these processes and their ability to participate in decision making. Access toinformation, especially by disadvantaged and marginalized groups, is given particular importance.

BLP partners have expertise and specialized experience in a wide range of areas. These includehousing and urban development, urban governance, economic development, poverty reduction,environmental planning and management, municipal finance and management, infrastructure and socialservices, architecture and urban design, social inclusion, women, youth, cultural heritage, and crimeprevention.

The ‘Best Practices Database’ website contains Best Practice Briefs selected from more than2,000 practices and 160 countries. These illustrate how the Habitat Agenda, Agenda 21 and the MDGsare being implemented.

Source:http://www.bestpractices.org/bpbriefs/; http://www.unhabitat.org/programmes/guo/;http://www.unhabitat.org/programmes/bestpractices; http://www.blpnet.org/urban/urban1.htm.

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http://www.bestpractices.org/bpbriefs/http://www.unhabitat.org/programmes/guo/http://www.unhabitat.org/programmes/bestpracticeshttp://www.blpnet.org/urban/urban1.htmhttp://www.bestpractices.org/bpbriefs/http://www.unhabitat.org/programmes/guo/http://www.unhabitat.org/programmes/bestpracticeshttp://www.blpnet.org/urban/urban1.htm

Box 10. Gender and housing: the Pachacutec experience

Pachacutec settlement is located in Ventanilla District in the north of Lima, the capital of Peru. Thecommunity is inhabited by some 50,000 households who lack access to basic services such as water andsanitation. Houses are built on poor sandy soil that is a constant problem for the residents.

An NGO known as Estrategia has launched an innovative project to train community residents,both women and men, to build affordable dwellings for themselves. The project provides training,materials and equipment for residents to make concrete bricks and beams for self-help construction. Thecost of construction is half that of the state-subsidized Techo Propio programme for the poor (US$3,500 for a 36 square metre house as compared to US$ 8,000 under the Techo Propio programme).Beneficiaries are not required to make any payments in advance. They are allowed to pay the cost backin interest-free monthly instalments of US$ 50 over six years. In the state-subsidised Techo Propioprogramme, beneficiaries are required to make a down payment of US$ 875, and then repay the loanover up to 20 years with interest.

An important feature of the project is its focus on gender equality. Through a conscious effort bothwomen and men participate in planning, training, local production of materials and housing construction.Estrategia also provides human rights awareness training to both women and men, to help empower themwhen attending meetings with local authorities.

Source: UN-Doc. E/CN. 4/2004/48/Add.1.

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Box 11. The Government Housing Bank of Thailand (GHB)

GHB was founded in 1953 as a financial institution with the status of a state enterprise. It was created toprovide finance to housing developers and prospective homeowners, particularly those at the lower endof the market. The GHB operates wholly on a commercial basis, even though it is a public sectorinstitution.

In 1982, the Ministry of Finance reorganized the GHB and created favourable conditions to enableit to become the leading housing finance institution in terms of market share and consumer recognition.The GHB consequently played a significant role in the development of the housing sector in Thailand.

Following its re-organization, the GHB has used attractive deposit instruments to capitalize on thedomestic savings market. It has also accessed funds through debt instrument issues. In 1984, breakingwith traditional practices, the GHB launched a new savings deposit scheme with higher interest rates thanthose of the commercial banks. This attracted a substantial inflow of funds.

The GHB has fewer branches than the commercial banks, but this has inadvertently worked in itsfavour. Its administrative costs and overheads are significantly lower than those of commercial banks withlarger branch networks. Further re-organization, computerization and outsourcing of many traditionalin-house banking operations, such as property valuation and legal action against defaulters, has greatlyimproved the bank’s operational efficiency.

With adequate funding and lower overheads, GHB has been able to offer higher deposit rates andlower lending rates without any subsidy from the Government. The bank has subsequently expanded itsmortgage lending and developed practices that allow the lowest interest rates in the market. The GHBhas offered re-financing loans to mortgage borrowers with higher interest rates. As a result, thecommercial banks, which until then had considered housing finance as a low priority, were forced tolower their own rates in order to keep their customers. This marked the beginning of competition in thehome-loan industry.

Lower interest rates and improved loan conditions have led to the targeting of lower-middleincome groups by housing developers, and brought about a down-market trend in private-sector housingproduction in Thailand. This radical improvement of the housing finance sector, underpinned by economicgrowth, has triggered a boom in Bangkok. As home ownership remains unaffordable to thelowest-income groups, the GHB also grants loans to developers to construct low-cost rental apartments.

The Government of Thailand recognizes the importance of housing finance as an essential supportsystem and, therefore, provides policy support to the GHB. It uses the GHB as a key housing policyinstrument to promote an enabling environment for the housing industry. The Government also providesincentives to encourage commercial banks to grant more housing loans. Borrowers nationwide canaccess the extensive commercial bank networks. Mortgage-loan conditions are determined by marketforces, not the Government, and there are no arbitrary directives on interest rate (supposedly to benefitlow-income borrowers, though usually with adverse consequences). In addition, housing finance is fullyintegrated into the overall financial system.

Source: GHB, n.d.a., n.d.b.

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Box 12. The Urban Community Development Office (UCDO), Thailand

The Government of Thailand set up UCDO in 1992 to manage the Urban Community DevelopmentFund. The initial capital base of the Fund was about US$ 50 million, granted by the Government in thatsame year. The revolving fund provides flexible, low-interest loans to communities.

To be eligible for the loans, communities had to demonstrate capacity to manage savings and loans.The latter could be used to meet the particular needs of each group. Loans were initially available tocommunity-based savings and loan groups for revolving funds, income generation, housing improvement,and other housing-related costs (e.g., for land purchases, particularly for communities facing eviction, andfor housing development). Interest rates on the loans were significantly lower than those of the othersources to which poor households had access. However, rates were high enough to cover administrativecosts and sustain the initial fund. UCDO subsequently developed links with a wide range of communityorganizations, savings groups, NGOs, and government organizations through this loan programme.

Source: Boonyabancha, 2001:7; Millennium Project, 2005a.

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Box 13. The Community Mortgage Programme, the Philippines

The Community Mortgage Programme was launched in 1988 by the National Home Mortgage FinanceCorporation, an agency under the Philippines’ Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council.Its objective is to address the shelter needs of people living in poor and run-down neighbourhoods in andaround urban centres. The Programme enables the urban poor to secure credit on the basis of an incomewhich a local authority or recognized community leader confirms. The original loan is provided to thecommunity rather than individuals, in order to ensure that squatters also benefit. The community is thenresponsible for distributing the land and arranging repayment of the loan. The organized community mustbe duly registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or with the Home Insurance GuaranteeCorporation, before it can obtain this type of loan.

Initially, all the beneficiaries of the loan own the property in common through the communityassociation. A lease purchase agreement entered into by the community association and its individualmembers, allows individuals legal use of the property. The acquired property is then subdivided andtitled, and drainage systems and pathways installed. Thereafter, existing houses are improved and newhousing units constructed.

Source: Durand-Lasserve and Clerc, 1996:62.

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Box 14. Examples of urban poor federation funds

In Cambodia, the Urban Poor Development Fund was set up with US$ 103,000contributed by the federation, the municipal government, the Asian Coalition forHousing Rights and MISEREOR, a German NGO. It now has US$ 365,000, includingfunds from the Prime Minister’s fund.

In Namibia, the Twahangana Fund has US$ 300,000 in member savings and supportfrom government and international donors.

The Urban Poor Development Fund in the Philippines has US$ 700,000 in federationmembers’ savings and US$ 1.7 million in funds from the Philippine government andinternational agencies.

The uTshani Fund in South Africa was initially capitalized with a R4 million (US$ 0.7million) grant from donors, followed by a grant of R10 million (US$ 1.6 million) fromthe South African government’s Department of Housing. It currently has R48 million(US$ 7.8 million) and has generated an estimated R350 million (US$ 56.9 million)worth of net benefits.

In Zimbabwe, the Gungano Fund has US$ 242,000 in member savings, a loan from aSouth Africa federation, and grants from donors.

In India and Thailand, much larger funds support community-driven development. InThailand this is a combination of savings and government support (US$ 13.8 million);in India, it is a combination of savings and international donor support.

Source: Millennium Project, 2005a:79.

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Box 15. Development of land markets

The orderly development of land markets, the integration of formal and informal land markets, and thecreation of flexible consumer-oriented land management systems are all highly dependent on wider issuesof governance. In this regard, good governance can be defined as a commitment to transparency,probity, equity and value for money in administrative processes connected with land. The latter includedecentralization and participation in government, transparency and accountability in administration, andthe adoption of an enabling, rather than controlling, role for the public sector in general.

Source: McAuslan and Farvacque, 1991 cited in Dowall and Clarke, 1996:17.

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Box 16. Small-scale independent services providers

Small-scale independent service providers operate successfully and profitably in developing country citiesall over the world. They are able to do so for a number of reasons, including the following:

They offer a wide variety of services that the poor can afford;

They adapt to local conditions and cultural patterns of water and other service consumption;

They offer alternative water supply and sanitation solutions and other services usingappropriate technologies;

They work round unrealistically high (imported) standards and regulations that would increasetheir costs; and

They avoid bureaucratic and administrative red tape.

Source: Linares, 2003.

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Box 17. Cost recovery

It is often difficult directly to recover the costs of infrastructure through user charges, e.g., in the case ofsanitation, drainage, footpaths or roads. Direct cost recovery is even more problematic wherelandowners benefit from the windfall gains arising from increases in land values as a result of theinvestment in infrastructure. In theory, land and property values can be adjusted accordingly, orbetterment taxes applied. This happens in Colombia, for example, where investment costs are recoupedthrough an appreciation tax. In practice, however, these techniques are not easily implemented and/orrely on outdated land registration and information systems.

Cost recovery is less of a problem where the infrastructure is provided as part of a formaldevelopment scheme. In this case, the developer can pass the costs on to the final customer and applyuser charges. Cross-subsidies can also be incorporated in such schemes, making it easier to assistlow-income households. The area of off-site infrastructure is where progress remains minimal. A fewinnovative approaches have involved land ‘trading’. In several developing countries, land developers maybe asked to contribute infrastructure in cash or kind if granted permission to develop or redevelop land.Alternatively, land readjustment techniques can provide infrastructure at no cost to public authorities.

Source: UN-Doc. A/CONF.165/PC.2/5 and HS/15/3/3/Add.3.

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Box 18. Transforming the lives of slum dwellers in Brazil

In recent years, the Government of Brazil has demonstrated an exceptional commitment to bringing theuncontrolled proliferation of informal settlements to an end, and to promoting sustainable development. In2001, Parliament approved ‘The City Statute’, which is based on many years of local experimentationand paves the way for a more equitable city. This was followed by the introduction of a Slum Action Planby the Secretariat for Housing and Urban Development.

The Slum Action Plan received vital Government support in April 2003, when the Presidentestablished a $1.6 billion housing fund to finance slum upgrading and new housing development. The fundwas also to provide direct credit support to individual households looking to invest in homeimprovements. Brazil’s middle- and low-income households have access to a variety of financialinstruments, ranging from microcredit to assisted loans.

The Secretariat is upgrading some 30 slums, while approximately 31,000 housing units are invarious stages of rehabilitation or construction. Special zones of interest will receive priority status when itcomes to scaling up these programmes. The new master plan for São Paulo has already identified 600 ofthese.

Source: Millennium Project, 2005b:97.

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Box 19. Mexico’s National Fund for Popular Housing (FONHAPO)

Mexico’s FONHAPO is a national fund for low-income housing. It was established in 1981 to providetechnical assistance and finance to low-income households to enable them to develop their own housing.Since then it has been merged with another agency. FONHAPO evolved from earlier, small-scale localexperiences in shelter delivery by NGOs, replacing the former INDECO.a FONHAPO looked toreinforce the principles of equity and social justice by redistributing national government funds in favour oflow-income households with dependants.

FONHAPO granted collective credits to the formally established housing agencies of the federalstates and community groups. Each household is individually responsible to FONHAPO for the loansand guarantees but the organization participates in recovering the loans. Only once a loan is completelyrepaid is individual title to the land granted.

FONHAPO initially received only four per cent of Mexico’s housing budget. Between 1985 and1991, the body enabled the production of 370,000 dwellings — 18.6 per cent of all housing built bypublic agencies. In 1991, it financed about four per cent of all housing loans and was responsible foralmost 13 per cent of all completed formal sector dwellings in Mexico.

Unfortunately, FONHAPO had two major problems. It required time-consuming paper-work thatcould take from several months to several years to complete. On top of this, it was heavily reliant onexternal funding and failed to develop a sufficiently broad-based support system for longer term security.FONHAPO was subsequently merged into the VIVAHb programme, which provides subsidies to matchhousehold savings, while the state/local government provides land and basic infrastructure.

a: Instituto Nacional para el Desarrollo de la Comunidad.b: Programa de Ahorro y Subsidios para la Vivienda Progresiva (Savings and Subsidies Program for ProgressiveHousing).

Sources: UNCHS, 1993c; 1997b; UN-Doc. HS/C/16/7.

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Box 20. The People’s Housing Process and the People’s Housing PartnershipTrust, South Africa

The South African housing subsidy programme fully recognises that people need assistance to developcommunity identity and activity after the traumatizing effects of apartheid — and they need it as much assubsidized housing, which has its own role to play in the identity-building process. In order to maximisethe community development aspects of the subsidy process, and to galvanize self-help in favour ofdwelling improvement and infrastructure provision, the People’s Housing Process has been developed asa major constituent of the subsidy programme. The People’s Housing Process helps groups ofhouseholds to access the subsidies and to receive technical, financial, logistical and administrative supporton a basis that is both sustainable and affordable. The PHP usually does this through an NGO.

Experience has demonstrated that, given an opportunity to build or organize the building ofdwellings themselves, urban poor households can achieve better housing for less money. This is becausethey can:

Save on labour costs by undertaking some of the construction work themselves, or withassistance from others;

Avoid builders’ and developers’ profit margins by doing the work themselves or organizingfor it to be done; and

Make trade-offs to optimize their decisions.

Technical assistance and support is critical to the success of the People’s Housing Process.Consequently, the involvement of a support organization (usually an NGO) is crucial.

The South African Government established the People’s Housing Partnership Trust (PHPT) in1997 with a broad mandate to support the People’s Housing Process through capacity building andengaging with national, provincial and local governments, and civil society. Since its inception, PHPT hastrained people in construction skills, housing design and safety and community facilitation; and establishedproject implementation systems and housing support centres.

Source: Republic of South Africa, National Department of Housing, n.d.

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Box 21. The Build Together Programme, Namibia

The overall aim of Namibia’s Build Together Programme is to meet large-scale housing needs through anenabling approach. It offers financial support to low- and lower middle-income households who useself-help efforts to construct their own housing and who have no access to loans from commercialfinancial institutions. The programme provides loans for land purchase, housing construction as well asinfrastructure and services. Started in 1991, by 1995 the Programme had benefited 3,300 households.There has been a high degree of participation of women, with over 45 per cent of the beneficiaries beingwomen-headed households. Implementation has recently been decentralized to local authorities, and localcommittees with multi-stakeholder membership, including beneficiary representatives, oversee theprocess. Housing produced through this programme is significantly cheaper than what the Governmentcould achieve acting on its own. The Programme represents a notable effort by the Government todemonstrate how the enabling approach can be put into practice.

Source: Helao, 2004; BSHF, n.d.a.

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Box 22. Co-operative housing in transition countries

Warsaw, PolandA co-operative housing project in Warsaw demonstrates innovative organizational, technical and policyapproaches to the provision of affordable, attractive housing. Eighty households have pooled theirresources to provide themselves with new homes. They have participated in the design of the dwellings,all of which can be extended in future. They favoured industrialized, labour-intensive overcapital-intensive construction technologies. This created a significant number of jobs, thereby reducingunemployment in the local construction industry.

The dwelling units, which range from 100 to 120 square metres in size, are built entirely throughprivate funding. However, the Government provides a small grant towards project infrastructure. Aninnovative financial scheme gives the households access to credit which they had been denied before.

The Attic Flats Project in Prague, Czech RepublicThe Attic Flats Project in Prague uses a simple, innovative technology that enables the construction ofadditional apartments on top of existing low- and medium-rise blocks of flats. This approach providesnew, high-quality and relatively inexpensive accommodation while at the same time rehabilitating andimproving the energy efficiency of the existing housing stock. Because no additional land is required andthe same infrastructure is used, savings on the cost of a dwelling can reach up to 60 per cent. By 1990,construction co-operatives had used the unskilled labour of their members to build a total of 400 such“attic” flats.

Source: BSHF, n.d.c.

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Box 23. NGOs involvement in the policy formulation process in Zimbabwe

A number of NGOs in Zimbabwe are increasingly demanding greater participation in the policyformulation process. Their rationale is that NGOs play a major role in the implementation of governmentpolicies, in particular those related to sustainable development. Conversely, government policies havedirect effects on the NGO sector and its activities. The NGOs believe that, because of their role, theycan contribute significantly to the formulation of appropriate policies that will enable sustainabledevelopment. Participation in policy-making would give NGOs a better understanding of the policieswhile ensuring that they were relevant, feasible and practicable.

NGOs involved in policy work – a very sensitive area in Zimbabwe – must be able to addresspolicy issues effectively. They must also exercise extreme caution when dealing with the Government."There is always a precarious relationship between the NGOs and the governments, especiallywhen NGOs begin to be influential, taking initiative …" Using radical strategies to influence policyformulation can likely lead to the Government punishing the blameworthy NGO, and reducing autonomyand latitude to implement its activities. On the other hand, adopting a ‘soft’ approach can result in anNGO over-yielding to the Government’s needs at the expense of its target beneficiaries.

Source: Sibanda, 1996.

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Box 24. Promotion of rental housing by public and private sectors

The development and proliferation of slums and informal settlements in developing country cities are oftenattributed to the poverty of large segments of the urban population. This may be true in part. However,studies have shown that slum dwellers pay significant sums to landlords to protect themselves fromeviction. Moreover, many own household goods which are considered luxuries for even middle-incomegroups. This underlines the substantial potential for rental housing.

Large-scale rental housing initiatives linked to slum dwellers’ willingness and ability to pay shouldbe promoted. The rental payment structure may be designed in such a way that those with higher incomeshave the option of a tenant-purchase scheme. While the public sector has a major role to play inpromoting rental housing, it could also be a requirement that a certain proportion of the output of privatesector developers take the form of rental housing.

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Box 25. Perceived or de facto security of tenure

Perceived or de facto security of tenure can be based on a number of factors, such as:

The illegal occupation of a dwelling, since a court order is required before inhabited buildingscan be demolished and the backlog of such cases provides effective security of tenure;

The provision of basic services to the area by a local authority, such as access roads, waterand electricity. In situations, such provision later leads to some form of de jure tenure (e.g., inKarachi) but in some cases residents have been forcibly relocated (e.g., in New Delhi);

Support from a local politician. This can often give sufficient de facto tenure security forpeople to invest in housing. However, this generally only happens when a large proportion ofa given population are informal settlers;

Customary rituals, e.g., in Jordan and parts of Africa;

The experience of the community concerned with both legal and informal instruments;

When land is under litigation, settlements are known to remain undisturbed as long as thecourt case is not settled, sometimes for decades;

When land is not required for any other purpose, it is often perceived as secure. However,such land is often unsuitable for human habitation for obvious reasons: steep slopes, railwaymargins, etc.;

Where NGOs and grassroots movements have confronted the government repeatedly,thereby limiting the potential for evictions;

When a religious structure is built in a prominent place in the hope that the authorities will bereluctant to demolish. Hopes are that the surrounding areas acquire some sort of immunity;

Issuing of ration cards for the public distribution system, identity cards, and letters addressedto the family, tax receipts, electricity bills.

Source: UN-HABITAT, 2003c:10.

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Box 26. Land proclamations in the Philippines

One of the major policies launched by president Macapagal-Arroyo, who came to office in 2001,involves land proclamations that give squatters on public land a formal assurance that they will not beevicted and that services and amenities will be improved. Between 2000 and 2002, over 645,000households in 33 informal settlements benefited from these proclamations. These expand on a policyintroduced earlier by a previous president, Corazon Aquino (1986–1992).

The policy does not apply to squatting on private land, which forms the majority of informalsettlements, and therefore does not impinge on private landowner rights. Nonetheless, this is a positiveand pragmatic response, which has encouraged many poor households to improve their neighbourhoods.

Source: UN-HABITAT, 2004g.

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Box 27. Bolivia’s anticrético system

Bolivia’s anticrético (“against a credit”) system is based on a property rental contract whereby tenantspay landlords a lump sum of money equal to a mutually agreed period’s rent upfront, in lieu of payingmonthly rent. This gives the tenant the use of the house for a mutually agreed period, normally twocalendar years, the first year being compulsory and the second optional. The tenant’s only responsibilitiesvis-à-vis the dwelling are paying for the services and carrying out necessary maintenance. The interestingelement here is that at the end of the tenancy, the landlord returns the initial payment to the tenant.

The anticrético system encourages tenants to keep the dwelling in good repair, all the more so asthe contract typically includes a clause enabling them to purchase the property at the end of the term. Thisparticular format is known as “ anticrético con opción a compra” (e.g., anticrético with a purchaseoption). This usually occurs when both parties have met their mutual obligations under the contract andwhen the term is longer than four years. Ultimate purchase may also happen by default, in the eventwhere the owner cannot repay the money at the end of the term.

It must be noted here that the typical upfront payment by the tenant at the beginning of ananticrético tenancy, is considerably higher (often three times or more) than what would have been thenormal rent for that period. Thus, if the normal market rent for a property was, for example, US$ 1,000per month, an anticrético tenancy for a one-year period might cost in the region of US$ 40,000. Thismakes it unaffordable for most low-income earners, and altogether keeps out those with irregularincomes and no savings.

For all the role and impact of anticrético in Bolivia, little research or innovation to develop andimprove it has taken place. Supporters and users of the system see it is an enabling approach forlandlords and tenants. It provides landlords access to interest-free finance without having to go throughcumbersome bureaucratic procedures and requirements. For tenants who can afford the lump sum,anticrético propels them on the first rung of the property ladder.

Source: Li, 2001.

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Box 28. The community land trust in Tanzania-Bondeni, Voi, Kenya

The origins of the community land trust (CLT) concept are traceable to African and Islamic tenuresystems. Kenya’s Ministry of Local Government first considered the CLT model as an alternative to landdevelopment in the early 1990s. A primary objective was to mitigate the adverse impacts of the landmarket on the poor and make land tenure sustainable. Working in partnership with Voi MunicipalCouncil, the Commissioner of Lands, GTZ, NGOs and, most importantly, the people themselves, theMinistry adopted the model for use in Tanzania-Bondeni Village. In 1989, Tanzania-Bondeni had apopulation of 4,730 poor people living in 530 structures. About 62 per cent of the structures were builtof temporary materials. This was because the local council prohibited construction of permanent houseswithout formal tenure rights.

A baseline survey conducted in 1989 enabled the structure owners to identify security of tenure astheir most urgent priority. This was followed by better housing and water supply, as prioritised by thetenants along with electricity. After a comprehensive consultative process, the CLT model was favouredover individual title, primarily because it provided sustainable security of tenure. The CLT model had tobe articulated in such a way as to ensure that its fundamental basis, “collective ownership of land withspecific conditions as to user rights for its members, is fully recognized in law”.

“The basic concept of CLT is that the land belongs to the community, with individualmembers owning the development and improvements that they have undertaken in their plots.This discourages absentee landlords. If a member wants to move out of the settlement, he or shecan sell the development but the land is not included in the price”.

Legal provisions and social guarantees addressed the following concerns:

“control of speculation in land transactions;

restrictions on disposal of the property without prior consent and approval of thecommunity;

retention within the community of all subsidies of a public nature;

mechanisms for the maintenance of affordability of housing for the poor;

participation, control and empowerment of the community in the process of socialorganization”

Partnerships were formed with various organizations, which assisted the community with the designand implementation of some components. These included facilitating land acquisition, provision of credit,training, road construction and collection of money. In order to ensure that the target group are notforced out or displaced by high building standards, existing buildings are recognized. However, theowners must gradually comply with local authority building by-laws. Preferential access is given to lessprivileged members, including the poorest, women-headed households and the elderly. Training ofcommunities on various aspects of the CLT is a major success factor.

Notable changes have occurred in Tanzania-Bondeni since 1992. Half of the structures weremoved in accordance with the layout plan, but all the affected households were resettled in the projectarea. Many of the houses have been rehabilitated or newly constructed with alternative, locally producedbuilding materials (soil blocks). Employment and income-earning opportunities have increased as a resultof the construction. Four housing co-operative societies have been formed to assist in the rehabilitation ofhouses under NACHU’s Housing Rehabilitation Programme.

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The initiative is being sustained largely through funds raised from the community. However,payment of membership dues remains a problem and mitigation measures have been taken. These includewithholding benefits, withholding approval of building plans and not allowing defaulters to participate inelections.

Source: Yahya, 2002a:239-240.

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Box 29. The experience of Pom Mahakan, Bangkok, Thailand

Pom Mahakan is a small community of about 300 residents in central Bangkok. In January 2003, theBangkok Metropolitan Administration served the residents with an eviction notice. Residents wereoffered relocation to an alternative site, on the outskirts of the city, 45 kilometres away, The residents,some of whom had lived in Pom Mahakan for up to six generations, had to make way for a public park,as part of a ‘conservation and development’ plan. Forced eviction would have amounted to a violation ofhousing rights. It would also have destroyed a “vibrant, cohesive community with a remarkablesense of collective responsibility and mutual support”.

The residents subsequently organized themselves in a bid to prevent eviction. They used familiarmethods such as delivering petitions, staging protests, building barricades and organising a night-watchsystem to protect the community. However, the most interesting feature of their resistance was that theysupplemented it with a number of pre-emptive activities. In collaboration with a coalition of NGOs,human rights activists and professionals, they proposed an innovative landsharing plan as an alternative toeviction and relocation. The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration failed to appreciate the value of thiscommunity-driven initiative, and did not consider the proposals. In August 2003, an administrative courtruled that eviction was lawful and could proceed. This was despite many calls for dialogue, petitions,pleas, and public support for the land-sharing plan. Following eviction of some of the residents inNovember 2005, it was reported in local newspapers that the remaining residents “are now technicallysafe from eviction as the city administration has agreed to their plan to develop the area into avillage of preserved vintage wooden houses.”

The Pom Mahakan experience illustrates how community members, through innovation and action,have attempted to devise alternatives to their own eviction. Yet, despite efforts to co-operate with theauthorities and to preserve and protect their heritage, the community remain potential victims of forcedeviction. However, it remains up to the authorities to adopt a novel approach and work towards asituation that would benefit both parties, including the community, and, possibly, other stakeholders.

Source: Du Plessis, n.d.:5-6;http://www.2bangkok.com/2bangkok/buildings/mahakan/mahakanfort.shtml.

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http://www.2bangkok.com/2bangkok/buildings/mahakan/mahakanfort.shtml.

Box 30. ‘Due process’ in case of forced evictions and resettlement

Appropriate procedural protection and due process are essential aspects of all human rights butare especially pertinent in relation to a matter such as forced evictions which directly invokes alarge number of the rights recognized in both the International Covenants on Human Rights. TheCommittee [on Economic Social and Cultural Rights] considers that the procedural protectionswhich should be applied in relation to forced evictions include:

(a) an opportunity for genuine consultation with those affected;

(b) adequate and reasonable notice for all affected persons prior to the scheduleddate of eviction;

(c) information on the proposed evictions, and, where applicable, on thealternative purpose for which the land or housing is to be used, to be madeavailable in reasonable time to all those affected;

(d) especially where groups of people are involved, government officials or theirrepresentatives to be present during an eviction;

(e) all persons carrying out the eviction to be properly identified;

(f) evictions not to take place in particularly bad weather or at night unless theaffected persons consent otherwise;

(g) provision of legal remedies; and

(h) provision, where possible, of legal aid to persons who are in need of it to seekredress from the courts.

Source: CESCR, General Comment No. 7, paragraph 15.

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Box 31. Sanitation for slum dwellers, Pune, India

Objectives and strategiesThe primary objective of the initiative was to provide community sanitation blocks in all the city’s slumsthrough community participation. NGOs were invited to bid for the design, construction and maintenanceof the sanitation blocks, through monthly user charges, in close collaboration with local communities.Pune Municipal Corporation was to bear the capital costs for construction and the provision of water andelectricity. Costs were significantly reduced as NGOs — which, unlike private sector contractors, arenon-profit bodies — were required to bid within the estimated cost.

The Municipal Corporation surveyed all slums in the city and categorized them into three groupsdepending on sanitation facilities. Top priority was given to those 67 slums devoid of any sanitationfacilities. Next came another 452 slums where existing blocks were unusable or dilapidated, requiringmajor repair or demolition and reconstruction. The third category included areas with functioning thoughinadequat, toilet blocks.

Resource mobilisationThe Municipal Commissioner personally ensured that the initiative received the budgetary supportneeded. He further mobilised all of the Municipal Corporation’s available human and technical resources.Private sector architects and engineers were contracted by the NGOs to help local communities finalizethe designs. The stronger CBOs, where available, undertook construction and maintenance.

ProcessThe emphasis on community participation was precedent-setting, and the Municipal Corporation had noprior experience in dealing with NGOs and CBOs. The Commissioner personally promoted apartnership approach. Some elected municipal councillors initially opposed the initiative, partly in fear oflosing control and patronage. However, constituents pressured them into implementing the programme.Communities, and women in particular, were encouraged to work with architects and engineers. As aresult, they gained technical know-how, experience and confidence. Women can now undertake otherconstruction programmes, visit government offices to negotiate entitlements, and are more respected bytheir families and communities.

AchievementsLaunching the programme on a city-wide scale has made it possible to reach 500,000 people out of aslum population of 600,000. A total of 418 toilet blocks with 6,958 toilet seats have been constructed inPune slums through community participation. This includes child-friendly facilities in many locations. Theprovision of a caretaker’s room is an added incentive to households to oversee cleanliness of the blocks.

Hygiene and health have improved significantly as a result. The poor – a majority of slum dwellers– are the main beneficiaries. The Municipal Corporation will save on maintenance costs, as in the blocksnow are under the responsibility of local communities. However, maintenance is proving problematic inthe few cases where the number of users fails to cover costs. Some NGOs envisage the feasibility of acity-wide maintenance system.

In the process, Pune Municipal Corporation has become more familiar with NGOs and CBOs,who in turn can more confidently engage with government at the local level. The communities’ new-foundself-assurance extends to those other areas of their lives where they interact with public authorities.

The State Government has endorsed the Pune model, and other municipal authorities have beenencouraged to follow suit. Some cities have tried to incorporate the main principles into their ownprogrammes. The Indian Government has launched the National Sanitation Programme (Nirmal Bharat

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Abhiyan) based on the Pune model, and offers state State governments/local authorities a 50 per centsubsidy on construction costs. Although Pune Municipal Corporation has adequate budgetary resourcesto fund the entire sanitation programme, this may not always be the case for other municipal bodies.These, however, will be able to take advantage of the above- mentioned subsidy. The increased attentionbeing paid to urban sanitation signals a greater focus on the needs of the poor. The national programmelaunch has brought increased resource allocation to the sector. In turn, this will result in better servicing ofthe slums, with the attendant health and environmental benefits.

Source: Best Practices Database.

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Box 32. Slum Networking of Indore City, India

Slum Networking is a community-based sanitation and environmental improvement programme in Indore,India. The programme seeks to transform its 183 slums and integrate the poor into the urban populationas a whole. The city had a total population of about 1.4 million in 1995. Some 28 percent of these livedin slums, all of which were facing the banks of Indore's two small rivers. As a result, the rivers were filledwith untreated sewage and solid waste.

The programme included new government-built sewers, storm drainage and fresh water services,to be built along the natural courses of the two rivers near the heart of the city. A supportive stategovernment granted the slum dwellers long-term land leases. As a further incentive, the residents paid forand built their own private toilets and washrooms. Today, the two rivers are clean, the streets paved,street lighting added, community halls built, and the housing upgraded. The slums are no longer slums.

One of the most important aspects of this initiative is that the regularization and upgrading exercisewas part of a larger upgrading plan for the entire city. “The application of this approach to othersimilar conditions would go a long way in overcoming the weakness of conventional urbanupgrading projects, which seldom attempt to integrate slums into the urban fabric.”

Source: Aga Khan Development Network, (n.d.).

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Box 33. The Community-Led Infrastructure Finance Facility (CLIFF)

CLIFF is an alternative financing facility that emerged in India from the findings of a research projectcalled ‘Bridging the Finance Gap.’ This study was undertaken jointly by SPARC, other members of SDIand the Homeless International, an NGO from the United Kingdom. The aim was to investigate howvarious organizations of the poor had managed to develop and finance projects through their owninitiatives. The project also sought to find out why incentives designed to encourage formal andcommercial financial institutions into pro-poor lending had been largely unsuccessful.

The findings were that mainstream institutions understand very little about housing and infrastructureinvestment and finance for the poor. However, the urban poor have both the entrepreneurial aspirationsand capacity to undertake such projects, and do so despite the risk — which they themselves have tobear. When these initiatives meet with success, other institutions and organizations are keen to learn fromthem.

CLIFF provides funding in such a way as to recover the original costs, which it reinvests or uses toleverage funds from other sources. CLIFF financial assistance takes the following forms:

Technical assistance grants, which help communities devise bankable projects;

Capital loans to leverage public and private resources; and

Knowledge grants to share lessons learned.

In addition, Homeless International sometimes complements CLIFF by providing financialguarantees to banks.

In Mumbai, CLIFF has been able to focus on two specific challenges that condition any scaled updelivery of effective and quality infrastructure services. These are:

“Working with municipal and state authorities to improve the use of state subsidies tomunicipalities to support community-driven and other initiatives.”

“Engaging the commercial banking sector to identify ways in which finance and creditcould be made available to support and enhance slum upgrading and other activities.”

Sources: Nirman, n.d.; Cities Alliance, 2004.

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Box 34. Components of slum upgrading

Slum upgrading typically involves physical, social, economic, organizational and environmentalimprovements to existing slums and informal settlements. It is usually carried out by residents, communitygroups, local authorities and external agencies working in partnership. Actions carried out typicallyinclude:

“Installing or improving basic infrastructure, e.g., water reticulation, sanitation/wastecollection, rehabilitation of circulation, storm drainage and flood prevention,electricity, security lighting, and public telephones;

removal or mitigation of environmental hazards;

providing incentives for community management and maintenance;

constructing or rehabilitating community facilities such as nurseries, health posts,community open space;

regularizing security of tenure;

home improvement;

relocation/compensation for the small number of residents dislocated by theimprovements;

improving access to health care and education as well as social support programs toaddress issues of security, violence, substance abuse, etc.;

enhancement of income-earning opportunities through training and micro-credit;

building social capital and the institutional framework to sustain improvements”.

Source: Cities Alliance, 1999:2.

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Box 35. The Kampung Improvement Programme (KIP), Indonesia

Indonesia’s world-renowned KIP was first implemented in the two cities of Surabaya and Semarang in1924. Initially, the scheme focused on sanitation. In the late 1990s, KIP was remodelled andreintroduced in the two largest cities of Jakarta (the capital) and Surabaya. The aim was “to bringurban development closer to low-income people.” KIP was subsequently implemented as anation-wide programme in all urban areas of the country in the late 1970s.

The KIP approach is, essentially, to provide urban services as a complement to the housingprocess initiated and implemented by the people themselves. KIP has five main objectives:

To strengthen and recognize the kampungs, which house 60 per cent of Indonesia's urbanpopulation;

To integrate the kampungs with urban housing and services systems;

To increase kampung community participation and empowerment;

To stimulate the social and economic mobility of the residents; and

To ensure the sustained improvement of the quality of life in kampungs.

Several models of KIP have been developed in Surabaya, in particular, including participatoryapproaches in the inner-city and peripheral areas.

An evaluation of KIP conducted in the early 1990s concluded that the upgrading of kampungs wasnot keeping pace with city-scale development. The Comprehensive KIP (C-KIP) was consequentlyintroduced in the mid-1990s. The emphasis in C-KIP is both on infrastructure improvement andinstitution building, including the promotion of revolving credit schemes, as a means to enhancecommunity participation in the upgrading process. The C-KIP approach can conceivably strengthen andpromote the role of kampungs, thereby harnessing “the potential of the lower income urbanpopulation to make the city more competitive in relation to the demands and challenges ofglobalization”.

Source: Silas, 2001.

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Box 36. The Luanda Sul Self-financed Urban Infrastructure Programme, Angola

The Luanda Sul Self-financed Urban Infrastructure Programme was launched in 1995. The programmeaddresses the housing shortage in the capital city by mobilising private sector investment. Private sectorinvestment was enlisted to develop three new residential areas. The aim was to reduce the pressure onthe old city centre and provide housing for refugees and other city residents. Refugees are included invulnerable and disadventaged groups in the Habitat Agenda. The programme operates through an ‘Achievement and Management Fund’ that enables the government to amass funds for social investment.The primary source of funding is the sale of land titles to private companies as well as the collection oftaxes and tariffs in formal residential neighbourhoods.

The city authorities launched the process by identifying and purchasing suitable land fordevelopment. However, inadequate land legislation under the former socialist regime (i.e., until 1990) ledto confusion over legal ownership of much of the identified land. This came as a major challenge, resultingin protracted conflict with the occupants of the land and those who owned it prior to the socialist regime.

Once this was resolved, the next step was to mobilize private businesses to undertake thedevelopment. Title deeds to serviced land within the newly developed areas were offered to the privatecompanies as an incentive. In 1995, two companies that urgently needed to provide good quality housingfor their workers pledged a total of US$30 million. Another US$ 14 million went to water treatment.

So far, private capital expenditure in the programme totals US$96 million, including US$16 millionfor social infrastructure. As a result, over 800 hectares of land have been serviced with water, sewerage,drainage and electricity, and over 2,200 houses built. Community facilities, schools, a hospital,commercial establishments and an industrial estate have also been built. The new housing is designed fora wide range of income groups, from those able to spend their savings on housing to the poorest andthose less well-off and disadvantaged.

As a result, some 2,700 households have been resettled. In addition, the programme has benefitedemerging construction and real estate industries in Luanda, creating an estimated 4,000 new jobs. Thecity is in urgent need of new economic opportunities of this nature.

Source: DPU, 2001.

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Box 37. Popular Habitat Programme, San José, Costa Rica

Costa Rica’s Popular Habitat Programme views housing development not as an end in itself, but rather asa means to achieve community development. This is why households are involved in the programming,implementation and management of the programme. It started in 1988 as a bilateral assistance project tobuild new housing for low-income households and to tackle the housing shortage in the country’s capitalcity. The community has become increasingly involved in all aspects of the programme. Alternativemethods of financing are pursued and enacted to scale up and sustain the project; resulting in the creationof a revolving fund managed under a trusteeship.

The scheme has given over 17,000 households access to decent housing, reducing the housingshortage in the city. The participatory nature and a strong emphasis on community capacity building haveenabled over 30,000 of the newly housed people to get training in various fields related to operations andmaintenance, project management and administration. This has created employment and improvedincomes. Community participation and capacity building have considerably strengthened community spiritand involvement in civic affairs, on top of improving the overall living environment. Another spin-off of theparticipatory process is the unique approach whereby each neighbourhood designs its own housingprojects. This shows that there can be no single response to housing needs and demand. The needs ofthe poor vary at least as much as those of other segments of the population. Moreover, housingconditions also vary according to the situation, aspirations and necessities of individual households.

Several international bodies and institutions have studied the model of the Popular HabitatProgramme. Projects in Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatemala and South Africa have adopted similarprinciples. The experience of this programme has been taken into account for NGO training in the field ofhousing and of human settlements in general.

Source: Best Practices Database, n.d.a.

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Box 38. Justiciable elements of the right to adequate housing

Based on a detailed analysis of the human right to adequate housing and on developments in this area, theSpecial Rapporteur on promoting the right to adequate housing, Rajindar Sachar, has identified thefollowing elements of this right as being inherently justiciable:

(a) protection against arbitrary, unreasonable, punitive or unlawful forced evictionsand/or demolitions;

(b) security of tenure;

(c) non-discrimination and equality of access in housing;

(d) housing affordability and accessibility;

(e) tenants’ rights;

(f) the right to equality and equal protection and benefit of the law;

(g) equality of access to land, basic civic services, building materials and amenities;

(h) equitable access to credit, subsidies and financing on reasonable terms fordisadvantaged groups;

(i) the right to special measures to ensure adequate housing for households with specialneeds or lacking necessary resources;

(j) the right to the provision of appropriate emergency housing to the poorest sectionsof society;

(k) the right to participation in all aspects of the housing sphere; and

(l) the right to a clean environment and safe and secure habitable housing.

Source: UN-Doc. E/CN.4/Sub.2/1995/12: paragraph 95.

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Enabling shelter strategiesReview of experience from two decades of implementation

List of Figures

Figure 1. Continuum of land rights

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Figure 1. Continuum of land rights

Source: Based on UN-HABITAT, 2004d.

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Enabling shelter strategiesReview of experience from two decades of implementation

List of Tables

Table 1. The various aspects of urban poverty

Table 2. The scale of urban poverty in low- and middle-income countries in 2000/2001

Table 3. Dimensions of housing poverty

Table 4. Population living in slums

Table 5. The evolution of housing policies

Table 6. Millennium Development goals and targets most directly relevant to enabling shelter strategies

Table 7. The Dos and Don’ts of enabling housing markets to work

Table 8. Details of the federations, their support NGOs and funds

Table 9. Loan comparison: Mortgage finance, microenterprise finance and housing microfinance

Table 10. Housing tenure in selected countries, per cent (1994–2002)

Table 11. Programme for Integral Urban Renewal, El Salvador

Table 12. Taxonomy of scaling up

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Table 1. The various aspects of urban poverty1. Inadequate income (and inadequate consumption of necessities including food and, often, safe and sufficientwater; indebtedness, with debt repayments significantly reducing income available for necessities).2. Inadequate, unstable or risky asset base (non-material and material, including educational attainment andhousing), for individuals, households or communities.3. Inadequate shelter (typically poor quality, overcrowded and insecure).4. Inadequate provision of ‘public’ infrastructure (piped water, sanitation, drainage, roads, footpaths, etc.), whichincreases the health burden and often the work burden.5. Inadequate provision of basic services such as day care/schools/vocational training, health care, emergencyservices, public transport, communications, law enforcement.6. Limited safety nets, if any, to maintain basic consumption whenever income falls; also to ensure access to shelterand health care when these can no longer be paid for.7. Inadequate protection of poorer groups’ rights by the legal system: including laws and regulations regarding civiland political rights, occupational health and safety, pollution control, environmental health, protection from violenceand other crimes, protection from discrimination and exploitation.8. Poorer groups’ voiceless and powerless status/ within political systems and bureaucratic structures, leading tolittle if any possibility to receive entitlements, get organized, make demands and receive a fair response, or receivesupport for developing their own initiatives. No means of ensuring accountability from aid agencies, NGOs, publicagencies and private utilities, and inability to participate in the definition and implementation of urban povertyprogrammes.Source: Satterthwaite, 2002:3.

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Table 2. The scale of urban poverty in low- and middle-income countries in 2000/2001Type of poverty Urban population in poverty Notes

Millions Per centInadequate income for basic needs 700–1,000 36–51 No accurate figures are available on this and the totalvaries, depending on the criteria used to set ‘the income level’ required for ‘basic needs’.Inadequate or no provision for safe, sufficient water680+ 35+ No reliable figures for the extent of provisionfor ‘adequate’ or ‘safe and sufficient’ water or on the extent of provision for ‘adequate’ sanitation for urban areas inmost countries.Inadequate or no provision for sanitation in the home 850+ 43+Under-nutrition 150–200 8–10 No reliable figures available; in many Asian and Sub-SaharanAfrican countries 25–40 per cent of urban children are underweight.Living in housing that is overcrowded, insecure and/or of poor quality 870 43 No accurate figuresavailable in most countries; these are based on UN-HABITAT estimates of the ‘slum’ population in developingcountries.Source: Based on Satterthwaite and others, 2005:5 and UN-HABITAT, 2003f.

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Table 3. Dimensions of housing pove