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Improving the Lives of Slum Dwellers PDF

184 Pages·2005·1.9 MB·English
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Transforming health systems for women and children Task Force on HIV/AIDS, Malaria, TB, and Access to Essential Medicines Working Group on HIV/AIDS Combating AIDS in the developing world Task Force on HIV/AIDS, Malaria, TB, and Access to Essential Medicines Working Group on Malaria Coming to grips with malaria in the new millennium Task Force on HIV/AIDS, Malaria, TB, and Access to Essential Medicines Working Group on TB Investing in strategies to reverse the global incidence of TB Task Force on HIV/AIDS, Malaria, TB, and Access to Essential Medicines Working Group on Access to Essential Medicines Prescription for healthy development: increasing access to medicines The UN Millennium Project is an independent advisory body commissioned by the UN Task Force on Environmental Sustainability Secretary-General to propose the best strategies for meeting the Millennium Development Goals Environment and human well-being: a practical strategy (MDGs). The MDGs are the world’s targets for dramatically reducing extreme poverty in its many dimensions by 2015—income poverty, hunger, disease, exclusion, lack of infrastructure and Task Force on Water and Sanitation shelter—while promoting gender equality, education, health, and environmental sustainability. Health, dignity, and development: what will it take? The UN Millennium Project is directed by Professor Jeffrey D. Sachs, Special Advisor to the Task Force on Improving the Lives of Slum Dwellers Secretary-General on the Millennium Development Goals. The bulk of its analytical work has A home in the city been carried out by 10 thematic task forces comprising more than 250 experts from around the world, including scientists, development practitioners, parliamentarians, policymakers, Task Force on Trade and representatives from civil society, UN agencies, the World Bank, the International Trade for development Monetary Fund, and the private sector. The UN Millennium Project reports directly to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and United Nations Development Programme Administrator Task Force on Science, Technology, and Innovation Mark Malloch Brown, in his capacity as Chair of the UN Development Group. Innovation: applying knowledge in development Task Force on Hunger Halving hunger: it can be done Task Force on Education and Gender Equality Toward universal primary education: investments, incentives, and institutions Task Force on Education and Gender Equality Taking action: achieving gender equality and empowering women Task Force on Child Health and Maternal Health Who’s got the power? Transforming health systems for women and children Task Force on HIV/AIDS, Malaria, TB, and Access to Essential Medicines Working Group on HIV/AIDS Combating AIDS in the developing world Task Force on HIV/AIDS, Malaria, TB, and Access to Essential Medicines Working Group on Malaria Coming to grips with malaria in the new millennium Task Force on HIV/AIDS, Malaria, TB, and Access to Essential Medicines Working Group on TB Investing in strategies to reverse the global incidence of TB Task Force on HIV/AIDS, Malaria, TB, and Access to Essential Medicines Working Group on Access to Essential Medicines Prescription for healthy development: increasing access to medicines The UN Millennium Project is an independent advisory body commissioned by the UN Task Force on Environmental Sustainability Secretary-General to propose the best strategies for meeting the Millennium Development Goals Environment and human well-being: a practical strategy (MDGs). The MDGs are the world’s targets for dramatically reducing extreme poverty in its many dimensions by 2015—income poverty, hunger, disease, exclusion, lack of infrastructure and Task Force on Water and Sanitation shelter—while promoting gender equality, education, health, and environmental sustainability. Health, dignity, and development: what will it take? The UN Millennium Project is directed by Professor Jeffrey D. Sachs, Special Advisor to the Task Force on Improving the Lives of Slum Dwellers Secretary-General on the Millennium Development Goals. The bulk of its analytical work has A home in the city been carried out by 10 thematic task forces comprising more than 250 experts from around the world, including scientists, development practitioners, parliamentarians, policymakers, Task Force on Trade and representatives from civil society, UN agencies, the World Bank, the International Trade for development Monetary Fund, and the private sector. The UN Millennium Project reports directly to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and United Nations Development Programme Administrator Task Force on Science, Technology, and Innovation Mark Malloch Brown, in his capacity as Chair of the UN Development Group. Innovation: applying knowledge in development ������������������ ������������� ������������������������� ����������������������������� ��������������������� ��������������������� ���������������������������������� ���������������� ���� ���������������������� First published by Earthscan in the UK and USA in 2005 Copyright © 2005 by the United Nations Development Programme All rights reserved ISBN: 1-84407-230-4 paperback For a full list of publications please contact: Earthscan 8–12 Camden High Street London, NW1 0JH, UK Tel: +44 (0)20 7387 8558 Fax: +44 (0)20 7387 8998 Email: Foreword The world has an unprecedented opportunity to improve the lives of billions of people by adopting practical approaches to meeting the Millennium Devel- opment Goals. At the request of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, the UN Millennium Project has identified practical strategies to eradicate poverty by scaling up investments in infrastructure and human capital while promoting gender equality and environmental sustainability. These strategies are described in the UN Millennium Project’s report Investing in Development: A Practical Plan to Achieve the Millennium Development Goals, which was coauthored by the coordinators of the UN Millennium Project task forces. In A Home in the City, the Task Force on Improving the Lives of Slum Dwell- ers identifies the strategies needed to meet one of the most important challenges of our times. Cities in developing countries need to improve the lives of slum dwellers and manage a projected near doubling of the urban population over the next three decades. This challenge can be met if local authorities and national governments work closely with the urban poor through open and participatory processes. Such processes can empower the urban poor and give them a voice in decisions about infrastructure and public services that affect their lives. This report lays out a road map for progress. Using successful examples from around the world, it shows ways to provide adequate shelter, improved public services, and core urban infrastructure. Critically, it not only describes the needed interventions, but also proposes operational means of implementa- tion and presents estimates of investment requirements. A Home in the City demonstrates that the knowledge, tools, and financial resources exist to meet the goal of improving the lives of 100 million slum dwellers and to provide alternatives to slum formation. This report was prepared by a group of leading experts who contributed in their personal capacities and generously volunteered their time to this important iv Foreword task. I am very grateful for their thorough and skilled efforts and I am sure that the practical recommendations in this report will make an important contribu- tion to improving the lives of slum dwellers. I recommend it to anyone who is interested in how cities can be made to work in developing countries. Jeffrey D. Sachs New York January 17, 2005 Contents Foreword iii Task force members x Preface xiii Acknowledgments xvi Abbreviations xix Millennium Development Goals xx Executive summary 1 1 The dimensions of the problem 10 The urban population of the world is growing 11 More than 900 million people live in slums 12 Urban poverty is severe, pervasive, and largely unacknowledged 13 Slum dwellers are excluded from urban life in many ways 14 Urban poverty is often underestimated 15 The benefits of the urban economy reach beyond city boundaries 16 The urban context is critical to meeting all of the Goals 18 Specific actions must be taken to meet target 11 18 2 Recognizing the urban poor as active agents of development 22 Federations of the urban poor are making a difference 22 Community-led work in slums draws on a variety of mechanisms 23 Actions by federations are setting precedents and changing standards 29 Many criticisms of community-driven processes are unfounded 31 Nongovernmental organizations, governments, and international agencies can support organizations representing the urban poor 31 Conclusion 33 vi Contents 3 Reaching the target through improved governance 35 Countries around the world are adopting good urban governance practices 36 People have the “right to the city” 38 Planning for development can prevent slums from developing 42 Local strategies for improving slum dwellers’ lives can address all the Goals 46 4 Supporting and enacting local pro-poor policies 48 Land regulation and transparency in private land transactions are critical to ensuring secure tenure 48 Cities can provide adequate, affordable infrastructure and services to the poor 52 Community contracts are a good way to involve slum dwellers in improvement projects and raise their income 55 Improving public transportation can expand options for the urban poor 57 Health services need to reach poor urban dwellers 59 Building codes and regulations need to meet the needs of the urban poor 62 Policymakers need to provide alternatives to prevent new slums from forming 65 Cities need to create regulatory and policy environments that encourage private sector participation 67 Organizations and community groups need to be empowered to participate meaningfully in planning 76 5 Mobilizing resources and investments 77 Most of the funding for improved housing will come from local sources 77 Land needs to be made available to the urban poor 89 Professionals and civil servants need to be trained to improve the lives of slum dwellers 93 6 Empowering local action 97 Networks of people committed to improving the lives of slum dwellers need to be developed and strengthened 97 International initiatives for local poverty reduction strategies are needed 101 Creating a worldwide partnership of “Millennium Cities” could advance the urban agenda 104 7 Monitoring progress toward target 11 109 UN-HABITAT is responsible for monitoring progress 110 The Monitoring of Urban Inequities Program was created to provide institutional infrastructure for monitoring progress 111 Monitoring security of tenure is difficult 113 Progress is being made in improving the data needed to monitor target 11 114 Contents vii An enhanced global monitoring mechanism is needed 114 The urban poor represent an untapped resource for monitoring progress 115 Recommendations 116 8 Investing in the target to improve the lives of slum dwellers 117 Meeting the target is feasible 118 Current estimates were used to estimate the investment required to meet target 11 120 A variety of factors affect investment costs for slum upgrading 121 The target needs to be translated into operational terms 122 Process is as important as technical solutions 123 Interventions must be well defined 124 Slum upgrading would cost about $42 a year per beneficiary 127 Three self-help housing programs in Central America provide important lessons 130 Estimates were developed for each component of assisted self-help housing in the Central American programs 132 Global estimates were calculated on the basis of the Central American experience 134 By 2020 some 570 million people will need alternative housing to avoid becoming slum dwellers 139 Estimates of regional investments required to meet the Goals show that the greatest need is in Sub-Saharan Africa 139 Notes 144 References 149 Boxes 1.1 Aggregate statistics conceal the problems of slum dwellers 17 2.1 Federations of the urban poor are making a difference around the world 24 3.1 National initiatives are supporting good urban governance in Thailand 37 3.2 Participatory budgeting has transformed lives in Porto Alegre, Brazil 38 3.3 The mayor of La Paz was able to root out much corruption 39 3.4 South Africa’s Homeless People’s Federation is improving housing in townships and informal settlements 40 3.5 What is “adequate shelter”? 41 3.6 Federal legislation on urban policy in Brazil is bold 42 4.1 São Paulo is making efforts to improve slums and integrate them into the city 65

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