Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today described appalling living conditions in slums as a violation of human rights, saying that helping the urban poor reclaim their rights strengthened societies and stemmed environmental degradation.
Ban said in a message to the fifth session of the World Urban Forum, which got under way in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro today. The Forum was established by the United Nations to examine the effects of rapid urbanization on communities, cities, economies and the climate.
It held its first meeting in Nairobi, Kenya, in The Secretary-General noted that an estimated 22 million people in developing countries had managed to move out of slums each year during the past decade, but that achievement was not enough to have the impact required to reduce urban poverty. All people have the right to live with a sense of security. Ban told delegates. On top of that, workers are often marginalised from the formal economy, as the lack of a formal address is an obstacle to gaining employment.
Working in the black market only exacerbates their situation, making them more vulnerable to exploitation and work-related accidents. As people attempt to meet their immediate need for shelter, many low-income urban dwellers end up with poorly constructed shelters in locations that are unsafe and highly vulnerable to disasters and other types of environmental degradation.
Without secure land rights , many people living in poor urban conditions are discouraged from investing limited financial resources into improving their housing or adapting it to be energy efficient, given the ever-present risk of eviction.
On top of our current activities to rehabilitate slums worldwide, we are building up a global team in our offices worldwide to advocate for better land rights for the most vulnerable. This post was produced with the financial support of the European Union. Its contents are the sole responsibility of Habitat for Humanity GB and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.
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What is a slum? Definition of a Global Housing Crisis. Share this Facebook. Life in informal settlements Slums represent one of the main types of housing in many growing urban cities from Kibera in Nairobi, to New Delhi and Manila. Finding a definition of slums: a growing problem Today, the current population growth is outpacing the rate at which cities can respond to the need for housing. Partnership is important to successful upgrading.
Successful slum upgrading is a highly participatory endeavour. It is also very comprehensive and complex, needing coordinated inputs from many local government agencies as well as those from outside the public sector. Secure tenure is at the very centre of slum upgrading. Without some form of legal tenure security the situation of slum residents and their neighbourhoods is uncertain: they could be removed at any time.
People who fear eviction will not invest in their houses. They will invest, however, once they have a sense of permanence and realise that they can sell their house and recoup their investment.
Furthermore illegality and informality make them susceptible to exploitation, corruption and extortion. Residents are the main partners of slum upgrading programmes. Because their futures are directly affected by the decisions, and because they can help in the upgrading process, it is necessary that they be fully informed and actively involved.
Upgrading is an incremental, but sustained process. When slum upgrading is municipal a core operation, it produces cohesion, coordination, and increases efficiencies in service provision. Stable and consistent national and local budgetary allocations are needed for slum upgrading. Large-scale upgrading programmes need central government support backed by corresponding national budgetary allocations, subsidy policies and human resources.
Upgrading existing slums and preventing new slums are twin objectives of Cities without Slums policy. Until land and housing policies are changed to eliminate barriers for the poor, new slums will continue to occur. Therefore, cities need to introduce proactive measures for producing viable alternatives to slums.
It is important to invest in a community infrastructure that helps build community cohesion. If a government invests poorly, people will not respect the infrastructure. Slums and Slum Upgrading. What are Slums? What is slum upgrading? UN-HABITAT defines a slum household as a group of individuals living under the same roof in an urban area who lack one or more of the following: Durable housing of a permanent nature that protects against extreme climate conditions.
Sufficient living space, which means not more than three people sharing the same room. Easy access to safe water in sufficient amounts at an affordable price. Access to adequate sanitation in the form of a private or public toilet shared by a reasonable number of people. Security of tenure that prevents forced evictions. Why do slums develop?
There are two main reasons why slums develop: population growth and governance. Population growth Countries around the world are urbanising rapidly as more people migrate from rural areas to the cities and natural population growth continues to occur. Urban migration happens for a number of reasons: The pushing and pulling forces of migration. Governance Another reason slums develop is bad governance. What do we mean by citizenship rights? The economic and social disruption costs are too high.
Ten principles that shape the policy framework for a successful slum upgrading programme 1. Accept and acknowledge slums and their importance.
Political will and leadership makes slum upgrading possible. Mobilise partners. Provide security of tenure. Plan with, not for, the slum communities. Ensure continuity of effort over time and institutionalise the programme. Allocate budget, design subsidies, mobilise public and non-public resources. Find alternatives to new slum formation. Invest in community infrastructure.
Rural to urban migration is a natural, inevitable and irreversible process. Many governments have tried to slow it down, divert it or stop it — all have failed. The rural poor move to urban areas primarily to improve their economic and social opportunities. With good policies, urban growth is essential to reducing rural poverty. Slums should be demolished to stop their formation. Slum demolitions fail. Governments that use mass, forced evictions and demolition only made matters worse and, in every case, do not stop new slums from forming.
Apartment buildings provide a better urban solution. Apartments house more families on less land so they are also cheaper. Studies demonstrate that the residential densities of high- and mid-rise apartments are equal to, or not much greater than that of typical low-income settlements. Valuable land in the city centre should not be for existing slum dwellers - it should be developed for high-value, high-density housing and businesses.
Slumdwellers in city centres are typically long-time residents and, with good policies and good planning, can often be successfully integrated. The poor cannot and will not pay for housing and services. The opposite is true. The poor are able to, and will pay what they can afford, if it is what they need and if it is reliable.
In reality, when they are not serviced by their local government, most poor people are exploited and are forced to pay more and buy urban services informally or illegally.
The poor cause slums. Government neglect or indifference is one of the main reason slums are the only options for the poor.
Moreover, policies that fix unrealistically high development standards and inappropriately costly building codes also create slums. Upgrading slums will attract more migrants and squatters; giving slum residents secure tenure will encourage even more to move to cities.
The poor do not move to cities because there are programmes to improve slums - migrants go to cities even if they have to live in deplorable, insecure conditions. Urban News. Cities Alliance News. The poor are better off in rural areas than in slums, so their migration to urban areas can and should be stopped.
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