Land Use Policy in the Mexican Periphery: A Capstone Project with the United Nations Human Settlements Programme

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the implementation of the United Nations' Millennium Development Goals target intended to improve the living conditions in low-income settlements and encourage sustainable urban development.United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN Habitat) Mexico City officeOpe

Enhancing Urban Safety And Security. Global Report on Human Settlements 2007

United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat)Enhancing Urban Safety And Security. Global Report on Human Settlements 200

Overview of the 2016 South African Health Review

The Global Report on Urban Health: Equitable, Healthier Cities for Sustainable Development, issued in March 2016 by the World Health Organization and the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), emphasises the need for enhanced governance and leadership to achieve universal health coverage and the Sustainable Development Goals. Noting that a healthy population forms the foundation for ‘sustainable economic growth, social stability, and full realisation of human potential’, the report presents ‘practical, proven solutions for working across sectors to tackle these … health challenges’, and includes examples of such successes in South Africa

Urban Policies and the Right to the City: Rights, responsibilities and citizenship

The purpose of the joint research project Urban Policies and the Right to the City: Rights, Responsibilities and Citizenship, launched by UNESCO with UN-HABITAT in March 2005, is to contribute to meeting the MDGs and reducing poverty by identifying good practices and initiatives in law and urban planning that strengthen rights and responsibilities, interfaith tolerance, and the participation of women, young people and migrants in urban management

Access to Water in the Slums of the Developing World

The text and data in this publication may be reproduced as long as the source is cited. Reproductions for commercial purposes are forbiddenThe discussion reveals the failure of public policies as well as markets to provide satisfactory solutions to the problems of access to a safe, affordable and continuous water supply. In many countries, especially those in Sub-Saharan Africa, access to safe water through household connections declined in the 1990s. Achievements in access rates in many Asian and African economies are the due to widespread use of public water points such as public standpipes and kiosks. These sources are important, but doubtless the quality of access to water with these facilities is unsatisfactory since they involve greater effort by households, involving queuing, carrying water and lacking continuous access. A substantial proportion of urban dwellers in developing countries, especially in unplanned settlements, rely on a wide range of small-scale providers whose services are vital in the absence of alternatives. Their services, however, are often inferior to those provided by the formal network. Invariably, the water charges of alternative sources are higher than those for supply from the public network.Final Published versio

The Face of Urban Poverty Explaining the Prevalence of Slums in Developing Countries

One of the most visible and enduring manifestations of urban poverty in developing countries is the formation and proliferation of slums. While attention has focused on the rapid pace of urbanization as the sole or major factor explaining the proliferation of slums and squatter settlements in developing countries, there are other factors whose impacts are not known with much degree of certainty. It is also not clear how the effects of these factors vary across regions of the developing world. This paper accounts for differences in the prevalence of slums among developing countries using data drawn from the recent global assessment of slums undertaken by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme. The empirical analysis identifies substantial inter-country variations in the incidence of slums both within and across the regions of Africa, Asia as well as, Latin America and the Caribbean. Further analysis indicates that higher GDPurban poverty, slums, developing countries, inter-country differences

Successful, safe and sustainable cities: towards a New Urban Agenda

There is a growing interest among national governments and international agencies in the contribution of urban centres to sustainable development. The paper outlines the new global agendas to guide this: the Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Agreement and the New Urban Agenda. It then sets out the key challenges and opportunities facing urban governments across the Commonwealth in implementing these agendas and achieving inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable cities. This is hampered by significant infrastructure deficits (especially in provision for water and sanitation) and a lack of funding. After outlining the commitments agreed by national governments in these global agendas, the paper discusses the vital role in meeting these of city leadership, financing and investment, urban planning and local economic development. Whilst it is good to see recognition of the importance of cities to national economies, economic success in any city does not automatically contribute to a healthier city, a more inclusive city or a sustainable city. This needs capable and accountable urban governments working closely with local civil society, and the redirection of public funds and development assistance to support them

Participatory approach for integrated basin planning with focus on disaster risk reduction : the case of the Limpopo river

This paper defends the idea that a participatory approach is a suitable method for basin planning integrating both water and land aspects. Assertions made are based on scientific literature review and corroborated by field experience and research carried out in the Limpopo River basin, a transboundary river located in southern Africa which is affected by periodical floods. The paper explains how a basin strategic plan can be drafted and disaster risk reduction strategies derived by combining different types of activities using a bottom-up approach, despite an institutional context which operates through traditional top-down mechanisms. In particular, the "Living with Floods" experience in the lower Limpopo River, in Mozambique, is described as a concrete example of a disaster adaptation measure resulting from a participatory planning exercise. In conclusion, the adopted method and obtained results are discussed and recommendations are formulated for potential replication in similar contexts of the developing world

Design drivers for affordable and sustainable housing in developing countries

Current demand for housing worldwide has reached unprecedented levels due to factors such as human population growth, natural disasters and conflict. This is felt no more so than in developing countries which have experienced disproportionate levels of demand due to their innate vulnerability. Many current approaches to housing delivery in developing countries continue to utilize inappropriate construction methods and implementation procedures that are often problematic and unsustainable. As such affordability and sustainability are now vital considerations in the international development debate for housing the poor in developing countries in order to meet the long term sustainable development goals and needs of housing inhabitants. This paper utilized an extensive scoping study to examine the various facets impacting on design decision making relative to sustainable and affordable housing delivery in developing country contexts. Aspects of affordability, sustainability, design decision making, appropriate technology use, cultural awareness, as well as current barriers to affordable and sustainable construction in developing countries are examined in detail. Results highlighted the capability of indigenous knowledge, skills and materials as well as selected appropriate technology transfer and cultural awareness by foreign bodies can be utilized in innovative ways in addressing current housing needs in many developing country contexts