Volume 4 Number 1 June 1996

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ISSN 1012·9812

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UNITED NATIONS CENTRE FOR HUMAN SETTLEMENTS (Habitat)

JOURNAL OF THE

NETWORKofAfrican countries on cost-effective

building technologies

United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat)

Nairobi, 1996

List of Contents

Page

The aim of the Network and its Journal .

United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II)

Habitat II tmd the Construction Sector . . . . . . .

Construction Sector for Housing and InfrastructureDelivery - An Issue Paper Prepared for the Habitat II Conference

Habitat II - A Breakthrough for Non-governmental Organizations in Committee II

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Habitat II - Shelter Afrique Launches a Continental HousingInvesunent Progrmnme and Seeks to Expand Memhership . 17

Cost-effective Building Technologies - Technology Transfer,Dissemination and Extension: The Indian experience , , . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 18

Habitat II - Conference closes as Habitat Agenda is Adopted,UNCHS to be Strengthened as Implementing Agency

Events .

Publications Review

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THE AIM OF THE NETWORK AND ITS JOURNAL

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The Network of Afiican Countries on Cost-effectiveBuilding Technologies has the objective of slrengtheninglocal technological capacity through facili~~ting

infonnation flow, regional coopemtion and lransfer ofappropriate technologies in low-cost and innovativehousing delivery systems in Afiican countries.

The JOl/mal of the Network, currently publishedbiannually, aims at providing a channel for infonnation thatis available and could be used by professionals.technicians, researchers, cientists as well as policy and

CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE JOURNAL

This JOl/mal welcomes infonnation or articles on low-costinnovations in building technologies. Infonnation in thefonn of technical and policy papers, iUustmtions, newsitems and announcements of events can be sent fromindividuals or institutions in the private or public sector,from within and outside the African region. AIlcorrespondence on the JOl/mal should be addressed to theChief, Building [utd Infrastructure Technology Section,Research and Development Division. UNCHS (Habitat),P.O. Box 30030. Nairobi Kenya.

The views expressed in this JOl/mal do not necessarilyreflect those of the United Nations. Mention of firm namesand commercial products do not imply the endorsement ofUNCHS (Habi~~t). The reprinting of any of the material inthis publication is welcome. provided that the source ismentioned and one copy sent to UNCHS (Habitat).

National Network Institutions

Housing [utd Architecture DepartmentMinislry of Town Planning and HousingYaounde. Cmneroon

Department ofCivil EngineeringUniversity of Addis AbabaEthiopia

Building tutd Road Research Institute (BRRl)Kumasi UniversityGhana

Housing and Boilding Research Institute (HABRI)College of Architecture and EngineeringUniversity of Nairobi. Kenya

Lesotho Housing and L<utdDevelopment Cooperation

decision-makers. It is a medium for infonnation exchangeand facilitator for acquiring sui~~ble technologies andknow-how by needy countries.

Efforts are made to compile, process and publish articlesand technical papers originating, mainly from the Afiicanregion. However, as deemed appropriate and subject toavailability, research findings and technologicalinfonnation from countries outside the Afiican region arealso included to stimulate interregional coopemtion as well.

Maseru, Lesotho

Department ofCivil EngineeringThe PolytechnicUniversity of M:t1awi, Malawi

Department of Architecture and Civil EngineeringUniversity of Malta, MaI~~

School of Industrial TechnologyUniversity of Mnuritius, Mauritius

Minislry of Local Government and HousingWindhoek, Narnibin

Nigerian Building and Road Research Institute (NBRRI)Lngos, Nigerin

Faculty of EngineeringFoumh Bay CollegeUniversity of Siem, Leone

Freetown. Sierra Leone

Cenlre Technique des Mnteriaux de Constructionde h~ Cemmique et du VerreCTMCCVTunis, Tunisia

MinislrY of Lands, Housing tutd Urhan DevelopmentKampala, Ug[utdn

Building Research Unit (BRO)Dar-es-Sttlaam, United Republic of Tanzania

Natiomtl Housing AuthorityLusaka. Zmnhia

Minislry of Public Construction tutd Natiomtl HousingHarare. Zimbabwe

Readers of this Journal might have noticed that the title of the Network and its Journalhas been modified to read:

Network of African Countries on Cost-effective Building Technologies

This has been done in an attempt to diversify and broaden the scope of the Network andto target its Journal to a wider audience. This decision has been made followingconsultations with a number of Mrican Govemment delegates and professionals whowere attending the second United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (HabitatII) held in Istanbul, Turkey in June 1996.

It is hoped that this modification, which encompasses the construction-relatedrecommendations of Habitat Agenda adopted by the Habitat II Conference, wouldprovide an innovative approach to facilitating informationflow and regional cooperationin appropriate building technologies, in general, and in the construction industry, inparticular, in the Mrican region.

The editor

Editor-in-chiefKalyanRayUNCHS (Habitat)P.O. Box 30030 Nairobi, KenyaTel: 254-2-623039; Fax: 254-2-624265;Email: kalyan.ray@unchs.org

EditorBaris Der-PetrossianUNCHS (Habitat)P.O. Box 30030 Nairobi, KenyaTel: 254-2-623906; Fax: 254-2-624265Email: baris.der-petrossian@unchs.org

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A construction process using durahle materi,ds. Courtesy LCHS. SlDA. Sweden

SECOND UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCEON HUMAN SETTLEMENTS (HABITAT 11)­

"THE·CITY SUMMIT", ISTANBUL,TURKEY, 3 - 14 JUNE 1996

This issue of thelournal is devoted to the Habitat II Conferencewhich was held in !stnnbul, Turkey from 3 to 14 June 1996.

The Conference was attended by representatives of 171 states,25 United Nations agencies and 22 Intergovernmentrdorganizations. In addition, thousrmds of participants fromnon-government'U organizations, local authorities, the privatesector, journalists and individuals representing differentagencies and institutions from civil society attended theConference.

During the high-level segment of the Conference, 117 heads ofS~~te,Governments and their personal representrltives attendedthe Conference and made statements.

The Conference through its Resolution No. I adopted tlleISllmbul Declaration on Human Settlements and the HabillltAgenda: goals and principles, committnents and the global planof action. The Conference, ,Uso by this same Resolutionrecommended to the GenenU Assembly of the United Nationsto endorse the Istnnbul Declaration and tl,e Habitat Agenda atits fifty-fIrst session in the fourth quarter of 1996, in New York.

SUMMARY BACKGROUND ONTHE HABITAT II CONFERENCE

The aim of the first United Nations Conference on HumanSettlements, held in V,mcouver, Canada in 1976, was to developstrategies to mitigate the effects of rapid urb'Ulization. In thetwo decades since tllen, urb'Ulization ,md tlle growth ofmega-cities have continued relentlessly. Recognition of theurgency of the problem led particip,mts at the 1992 UnitedNations Conference on Environment ,md Development(UNCED) to request the convening ofa second United NationsConference on Human Settlements (Habillit II) to' addressprohlems of adequate shelter ,md urbanization.

In 1992, the General Assemhly of the United Nations decidedto convene the Habitat II Conference in 1996. It established aPreparatory Committee. and 'L'5igned UNCHS (Hahitat) theduties of secre~matfor the preparation of the Conference. Atits first session, in April 1994 in Geneva, the PreparatoryCommiuee recommended that the Conference a.im to increaseawareness of the problems and potenti,Us of human seLilements,~md to commit the world's governments to making cities. townsand viUages he,Ulhy, safe, just and sust,unable.

The second session of the Committee, held in May 1995 inNairohi, concentmted on elaborating the draft s~lIement ofprinciples ,md commitments and the global plan of action of theHahi~~t Agenda. Also during the session, the Committeerecommended that the General Assembly authorize - as adeparture from established procedure - representatives of localauthorities and non-governmental orgtmizations to participatewithout tlle right to vote in the deliberations of the Conference.

The Conference's main themes were: "Adequate Shelter forAll" and "Suslltinahle HUlmUl Settlements Development in ,mUrhanizing World". The Hahiwt Agenda, adopted by theConference offers a positive vision of sustainable humansettlements where all have adequate shelter, a healthy 'Uld safeenvironment, basic services. ::md productive and freely- chosenemployment.

In view of the significc:UlcC of this major international event. theforeword and the edilori,U oUhis issue are replaced hy excerptsfrmn the statements made by the Secretmy-General of lheUnited Nations and the Secretary-GeneffU of the Conference.

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The Secretary-General ofUnited Nations, Dr. Balltros Bolltros-Ghali addressing the Habitat II Conference on3 June 1996. Photo: Amrik Kalsi, UNCHS (Habitat)

EXCERPTS FROM THE STATEMENT OF THESECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS,

DR. BOUTROS BOUTROS- GHALI, DURING THEOPENING CEREMONY OF THE HABITAT II CONFERENCE

IN ISTANBUL, TURKEY ON 3 JUNE 1996The United Nations Conference on HllImm Settlement,

(Habitat II), is the last in a series of United Nations conferencesthat have shaped, during the 1990s, an agenda for development.At the smne time, this Conference, in its innovative design, is anew departure for the United Nations. We should all beconscious today that the decisions taken here in [stanbul will heof signific,mce not only for the world of today, but also for theworld in which our children must live ,md prosper.

I do not wish to pre-empt our discussions over the nextfew days, and I shall not. therefore, treat the various issuesbefore the Conference. However, there are three points which,in my opinion, can provide useful background as you embarkupon your conference debates:

1. Habitat II as a [ink in a series of internationalconferences,

2. Habitat II af;) an innovation in internationalconferences,

3. The Habitat Agenda as a follow-up to thisinternational conference.

HahitDt II as a link in a series of international conferences

.. , following the end of the cold war, it is important to viewdevelopment as a cooperative venture, as an endeavour whereall partners can benefit from the fruits of growth. This vision ofdevelopment was in sharp contrast to the understanding ofdevelopment as a zero-sum game, where the gains of oneeconomy necessarily meant the loss of others. A cooperativevision of development stems from the basic premise that therec,m be no isolation, that, in a rapidly globalizing world, we allhave stake in the tmmagement of growth and development.

St.1fting from this premise, therefore, and from thisvision of development as a cooperative endeavour, the UnitedNations h~unched a series of world conferences and summitslinked to development. ...

These conferences have been criticized for their cost.Some have criticized their lack of achievement. I wish here,from this forom, to state, in the strongest possible tenns: Iconsider the conferences of the United Nations central to thework of the Organization, essenti,d to the fulfJlment of itstmmdate, ,md crucial for the detennination of the future of lifeon this pl,met.

People have journeyed to Ist.wbul by thousands for thisConference. Nearly 50,000 went to Beijing to set new standardsfor the role of women in society, ,md some 47,000 cmne to Riode Janeiro to find a better balance hetween economic growthand environmenl1d sustainability. At Copenhagen, for the

World Summit for Social Development. [18 Head of Sl1lte orGovenunent cmne to express their concern over the issues ofunemployment. marginalization and social disintegration.

The conferences of the United Nations, and the actionprognunmes and agendas produced by these conferences,together form ,m agenda for development committed to hy ti,eworld community. Through these conferences, developmentcooperation will be revil1dized and reinvented. The UnitedNations, its Member Sl1ltes ,md you, the delegates at theconferences, are deciding development patterns for futuregenerations. You are deciding the fonn of developmentcooperation to be adopted by the United Nations; you are settingthe st.wdards by which the actions of St.~tes,org,mizations andindividuals will be judged. This is the import.~nce of theinternational conferences of the United Nations. This is ti,econtext of the next few days at Istanhul.

Hahitnt II us an innnyntion in international conferences

But your presence here today is far more tlum just thecontinuation of a pattern set by the Earth Summit in 1992. Eachconference has its speciticity, its own qualities that distinguishit from all the others. In the case of Habit.~t II, you have gonefarther than other conferences in recognizing the universality ofthe issue of human settlements.

The nmge of participants here today provides mnpleevidence that this is truly a conference of partners.Represenmtives of all the institutions ,md organizations of civilsociety here at Ist.wbul will be presenting their respectiveplatfonns and commitments before the Conference.

Broad-based national committees have completed morethan 120 national plans ofaction identifying national prioritiesfor the sustainable development ,md growth of humansettlements. Local authorities, on which the implemenl1ltion ofHabit.~t II will depend, have joined non-governmentalorganizations as full partners of this Conference of the UnitedNations. Even more. we shall have the private sector. as adynmnic power for growth, represented in every aspect ofHabit.~tII.

The United Nations is primarily 'm organization ofStates. However, the increasing contribution ofnon-State actorsis essential if the United Nations is to succeed in its work.Indeed, the active participation of non-Sl1lte actors in the workof the United Nations is an essential aspect of thedemocratization of the international system.

I am pleased to see that. in addition to this spirit ofpartnership, tI,ere is a tum towards realistic solutions rather than

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good intentions. Over 100 national committees havecontributed more than 700 Best Practices to the Best PracticeInitiative for Improving the Living Environment. Many oftheseinitiatives illustrate. in concrete examples, ho~ we can act onthese issues already identified in Agenda 21, and in the agendasfor action on population and development, social development,small island States and women adopted by preceding UnitedNations conferences.

The "Habitat Agenda" as a foJJQw-uP to this internationalcnnference

We have come a long way from Vancouver and the firstUnited Nations Conference on Human Settlements. In the last20 years, the world has changed in dramatic ways. But theproblems we faced in the 1970s have not disappeared. Poverty,hunger, disease, population imbalances, the lack of equity arestill with us.

Human Settlements, and especially cities, are indeedbecoming a key factor in the complex equations of the growthand development, environmental sustainability, human rightsand the eradication of poverty.

By the year 2000, almost half the world's population willlive in urban centres. Problems ofjobs, housing, infrastructureand environmental safety will increasingly acquire an urbanface. By the year 2025, urban dwellers will total sum 5 billionpeople.and 80 per cent of them will be in developing countries.

...Inner city dwellers, the inhabitants of insalubrious slums ormarginalized favelas, ghettos and b.-mios, share in the misery,dangers of their health, and a vision of hopeless unemploymentand marginalization. But such common problems also providethe basis for common action, for mutual learning, forcooperation in rmding solutions.

This common purpose should not, however, blind us. Insome regions of the world, we must balance our concern withcities and towns with a need to develop rural settlements andthe rural economy. In other regions rapid urbanizationaccompartied by rapid economic growth has resulted in greatgaps in infrastructure, spiralling land prices, housing beyond thereach of most, and growing environmental decay. In the mosturbartized parts of the world, cities are becoming the focus ofnational policy. What joins us all, is the awareness that humansettlements will be central to growth and sustainabledevelopment. Our policies must reflect this.

Our collective response will be the Habitat Agenda - aglobal plan of action that embodies our vision of humansettlements for cities, towns and villages that are viable, safe,prosperous, healthy and equitable. This is our vision of thecommon future, this must be the spirit of Istanbul.

My final words relate to the world beyond the next twoweeks. For I am certain that before you adjourn, there will befull agreement on what will be known as the Istanbul Plan ofAction. In that sense, success is not in doubt. But, as in all otherUnited Nations global conferences, real success will bemeasured over the years by the degree to which participants inHabitat II live up to what they will commit themselves to inIS~'UIbul.Central and local governments, municipal authorities,civic organizations and all other non-governmentalorgartizations, bear the heavy responsibility of implementing,in good faith, the decisions of Istanbul.

The United Nations farnily ofagencies and programmesshares in this responsibility and will playa central role in thismonitoring and accoun~~bilityprocess. The people of the worldwill be watching and will call all of us to account.

EXCERPTS FROM THE STATEMENT OF THESECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE UNITED NATIONS

CONFERENCE ON HUMAN SETTLEMENT (HABITAT II),DR. WALLY N'DOW, DURING THE

OPENING CEREMONY OF THE CONFERENCE INISTANBUL, TURKEY ON 3 JUNE 1996

In the course of our preparatory work for thisConference, we have all encountered the fallout of the urbanexplosion that in less th~m half a century has literally changedthe face of our phmeC cities springing up everywhere; theexponenti~d statistics of homelessness and inadequate shelteraffecting hundreds of millions; slums and shlmty towns largerthan the original cities that spawned them; and all the urh~m illsnow spreading with the speed of a plague - poverty, crime,drugs, disaffected youth, paralyzing tramc, polluted air andwater, unhygienic sanitation compounded by a growing

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sho~~ge of potable water - the list is long the ills the commondenominator of urban life today.

Yet bad as conditions are in the city - and no one in anycountry, rich or poor, can doubt thatthey are getring worse - thesituation in rural settlements of many developing country iseven more desperate, and that is no less our charge. Thespotlight is on our urban areas, but let no one make any mistakeabout it: our ~~k is to shine that spotlight whenever peoplehuddle in the dark shadows of their despair - in mega-eity or

hamlet - without the mostelemen~1f)' facilities for decent living.The well-being of the rural dweller is no less the business of thisConference. Their future is no less at s~1ke in the urbanizingworld of tomorrow. And with world population in the decadesahead growing at the mte of a quarterofa million people a day,the likelihood now is that by far the greater part of these ruraldwellers will end up in the shadows, too, either homeless or inshelter that constitutes an insult to their very humanity.

We are here in Istanbul not merely to talk about thesethings. The time for talk is long past and the time for action ishere. For our cities, with their densely packed concentrations ofhumanity, are notlting less thml social time bombs, capable ofsetting off collisions of powerful forces that might otherwisepeacefully coexist, with all that this implies for the smbility ofthe international system and for the United Nations itself.

There is another no less serious implication, too. It is thatthe unresolved problems ofour human settlements also threatena new global division between rich and poor, within andbetween nations. And with drmnatically increasing numbers ofpeople living in poverty, it is a division that may well becomethe dominant characteristic ofthe new global urban world order,with consequences at least as d..'ll1gerous a.~ the period ofEast-West rivalry the world h't' only recently left behind.

For all the problems 'rnd difficulties of urhanization, wecannot stop it, nor should we. Not only is it at the heart of tllenew world in the making, it is the engine driving it Indeed, ithas long been recognized that urban centres and the economicactivities associated with them constitute the biggestcontributor to many a nation's wealth. OUf "global economy"is singularly dependent on the fact that cities work, that theirinstitutions work, that their communications work, that theirlaws work.

Today. no country can be a success if its cities arefailures. As never before, the fate of nations and cities areinterwined. Indeed, the fate of humanity is tied to what ishappening -,rnd what will be happening - in our cities. For it willbe in cities 'rnd towns where solutions will have to be found fornew and old challenges, where the scourges of hopelessness,poverty, and environmen~'l1decay will have to be met, wherewe have to take on the challenge of soch'l1 disintegmtion, andforge the bonds of human solidarity without which our futurewill be neither peaceful nor assured. It is where we must localizethe ideas of AgendH. 21 to build the foundations of sus~'linahlegrowth and development for genemtions yet to come and forprosperity in a globalized economy.

Here today, in IS~1Ilbul, we s~1Ild before a new re.'l1ity.The recipes of the past can no longer suffice. A new globalsocial contract for building susminable human settlements mustbe forged. Such a contract must reflect the transformation oftheworld's political, economic and social environment over thepast twenty ye.1fS: the globalization of the market economy andtherisirig recognition of the role of private economic forces indevelopment growth, the increasing vi~'Ility and, indeed,volatility of the forces of civil society transforming oncevoiceless masses into an active, demanding citizenry. .

We have only to look at the unprecedented growth ofnon-govermen~'l1organizations and other social organizationsto see that any global project, or national unde~'lking, musttoday have the support of the economic, political and socialforces ofall society to succeed and must, therefore, reflect theirneeds and aspirations. Today, local authorities and communitiesmust be engaged not as passive bysmoders, but as activeparticipants and partners. For partnership and enablement arethe keys to forging a strategy forsusminable human settlements,and forging such a strategy is what the preparatory process forHabi~1t II has set in motion.

I run happy to say that the fruits of this effort are muchin evidence here at Habi~1t II. We see it in the composition ofofficial delegations and in the diversity of other participantswho have worked unselfishly to make tllis Conference a reality.The commiunent of Governments and tlleir NationalCommittees to the Habitat II process, was an ongoing source ofinspimtion to our preparations for the Conference. Our otherpartners, the local authorities, the non-governmen~'l1

organizations, the private sector, research and academicinstitutions, the labour unions, foundations, women's and youthgroups, professionals - all and more - were not only resilient inthe face of obstacles, they were truly the co-creators of thisprocess, of the innovations that characterized it, and the agendafor action tlmt will be negotiated by this Conference.

The road to IsUrnb~l h't' been marked by manyinnovations. One of seminal importance has been a pioneeringclurnge in the rules of procedure - a ch,rnge that, was initiatedduring the preparatory process and subsequently endorsed bythe General Assembly in recognition of the important role oflocal authorities and non-governmen~'l1 org,rnizations, both inthe debate and in the implemenultion of the Habiult Agend'L Asa result, all the organizations and institutions of civil societywill receive unparalleled recognition at a United Nationsconference, nominating their representatives to participate in afonnal session...,

It would be difficult to overstate the impor~1Ilce of thischange within the context of this Conference, particularly inenabling local authorities to t.1ke the floor in their own right

They speak for countless millions of men and women inthe cities and towns across the planet, the true constituents ofHabitat II, and we need to open our doors - and our minds - totheir hopes and aspirations.

Habi~1t II, moreover, will bre.1k new ground as aconference in its focus on demonstrated solutions. In manyways, the Best Practices initiative has begun the process ofidentifying where commitments have already been made toimprove human settlements around the world. Hundreds ofcommunities and cities worldwide, in developed anddeveloping countries alike, have taken part in a mutual learningprocess and exchange ofconcrete experiences on how to solvecommon problems. Ithas brought the world together and forgedhonds offuture cooperation between and among far-flung citiesand communities. The Best Practices Initiative underscores aslittle else does that this [smobul Conference will be an action

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conference dedicated to solutions. not to a litmy of woes.

Furthermore, as part of ti,e national preparatory process,cities and counuies have begun to collect indicators on housingand urban conditions so that their national plfUls of action andfuture policies i:md programmes are shaped by priorities that. inturn, are shaped by accurate datH and infonnation. This will bea crucifd element to ti,e effective implementation of ti,e HabitatAgenda and provides t,mgible evidence once again tiUlt we arenot here to talk about the problems. but to do somethingconcrete about them.

Our ,rim in tbe preparatory period has been lD build thefoundation for continuity ::md implementation in thepost-Isumbul period: We bave developed ,md honed the toolsand mechanisms that will be vital to success. It is crucial.therefore. that at this Conference we accelerate our mumentumby marsh,dling our politic,d will and commitment to see the jobthrough,

A key part of that job is directly tied in with tbe fact tbat­Habitat II brings to ,m end a remarkable continuum of UnitedNations conferences held in this final decade of tbe century. Inessence. it is a continuum that is rewriting the United Nation'seconomic ::md social agenda. providing us with a more holistic.more hmmme message about our global problems ,md thecooperative fiolutions they require in the new century. And inthis respect, these conferences are a unifying force in findingnew pathways for human welfare and in advancing peace andstability,

The draft Habitat Agenda before this Conferenceidentities those hum:m settlement issues considered to he ofgreatest imporltmce and bighest priority around the world. Asa consequence of the preparatory process during which itevolved, it truly gives voice lD the aspirations of glob,d civilsociety.

On our journey to Ist,mbul, ti,e Habitat Agenda tookshape as a framework for commitments - :m indicative plfUl thatwill serve 'es a guide to all key groups in making commitmentsto improve the living environments of ,dl people, Itacknowledges that Governments have ti,e primaryresponsibility for implementation through their own actions.throogh enablement of partnerships and participatory processes,md throogb coordination at each relevant level.

If there is a key to tbe Habitat Agenda, it is in therecognition of the fact that most of the implementing activitieswill take place at the local level, ,md must involve a variety of

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partners. And here SUites must take seriously their role offacilitator, enabler and supporter of these partnerships. This isthe fundtunental challenge of the Habitat Agenda for oururbanizing world. It is the challenge we will bave to filcetogether in our human settlements.

Particularly important in a rapidly urb,mizing world istbe tracking of progress and the evaluation of natiomd ,md loc,defforts at implement.ation. The United Nations system has, as awbole, a responsibility here to support a natiomd and loc,dauthorities in their efforts to implement. the Habih~t Agend,e Indoing so, I suggest, we must first ,md foremost, strengthen andadequately equip the existing institutions which it has ,dreadyesltlblished for this very purpose - tile Commission on HumanSettlements and its executing ,mn, the United Nations Centrefor Hum,m Settlements (Habiull).

As we start our deliberations. we need to see thech,dlenge of the 21st century in very clear terms. The challengeis to extend the process ofsustainable development to the wholehmmm ftunily ... For this we must be prepared to clumge.Cb,mge is ti,e law of life, ,md the ch,mges that lie implacablyahead will give ti,e world's cities new problems, new perils, newpossibilities. One of the reasons we are in trouble today in thecity is because until very recently we either did not know, ordid not care, what was happening to it, ,md so were not preparedfor the changes.

Today, even as we grapple with the changes that havecreated our present urban dilemma, what may be one of thegreatest cb,mges of all is inexorably h~ing place right beforeour eyes, and we are only vaguely aware of it The world isbeginning to undergo today a structural shift as profound as theindustrial revolution - the shift fTom a factory-based economyto a computer-based economy, and tilis shift will be even morefateful tium the industrial revolution...

As this Conference now gets underway, it is my hopetbat everyone here - delegates ,md representatives of nationalgovernments. mayors and other civic leaders. representatives oflocal authorities. non-governmental organizations.entrepreneurs. professionals. women men i:md youth - will striveto bring to our deliberations the vision and the commitment thatbrought them to this Conference in the ftrst place: the promiseof global soci,d progress ,md a brighter future for our children,md all coming generations. That is a responsibility we all share.

May our work here lay the foundations of the gloriouscities of the future and fIll the hetuts of people everywhere withhope and felicity.

HABITAT IIAND THE

CONSTRUCTION SECTOR

(f)

Recognizing the import'Ulce of the construction sector fordelivering adequate housing and infrastructure facilities formillions of poor and low-income popolation worldwide, thesecond United Nations Conference on Human Settlements(Hahitat II), held in Istanbul, Turkey in June 1996, underscored,mnong others, the direct reh~tionship between constructionsector and "adequate shelter for all" by including "Improvingplanning, design, construction, maintenance and rehabilitation"as a distinct action-area in the "Habitat Agenda". TheConference, while emphasizing the need for increased andenvironmentally-sound construction, adopted a set ofrecommendations/actions to be implemented by Governmentsand all other stakeholders so as to improve the performance ofthe sector globally. The section on construction (IV.B.3.1)which is pm! of the Chapter IV - "Global Plan of Action:Strategies for Implementation" - and is under the theme:"Adequate Shelter for All" as adopted by the conferences isgiven helow.

Improving planning, design, construction,maintenance and rehabilitation*

88. With rapid urbanization, population growth andindustrialization, the skills, materials and financing for thepllUlning, design, construction, maintenance, and rehabiliL~tion

of housing, infrastructure and other facilities are often notavailable or are of inferior quality. Public policy and privateinvestment should, together, faciliLlle an adequate supply ofcost-effective building materials, construction technology andbridging finance to avoid the bottlenecks and distortions thatinhibit the development of local and national economies. Byimproving the quality and reducing the cost of production,housing and other structures will last longer, be better protectedagainst disasters, lUld be affordable to low-income populationsand accessible to persons with disabilities, which will providea better living environment. The potential for job creation andother positive external socia-economic impacts of theconstruction industry should be harnessed; its activity shouldbe brought into harmony with the environment, and itscontribution to overdll economic growth should be exploited,all to the advantage of society at large. Institutional supportshould also he provided in the fonn of industrial slandards andquality control, witll particular atlention to energy efficiency,health, accessibility, and consumer safety lUld proteclion.

89. Meeting the aClual needs of individuals, frunilies andtheir communitles cannot be achieved by looking at shelter inisolation. Provision of adequate social services and facilities,

* Numbers of paragraphs and text have been taken from HabitatAgen'da.

improving and rationalizing urban pllUlning and shelter designto cope firmly with the aCl\JaI needs of communities, as well asprovision of technical and other relevant assismnce to tlleinhabiLwts of unplanned ~ettlements are essential for theimprovement of living conditions.

AClions

90. To respond effectively to the requirements forappropriate planning, design, construction, maintenance andrehabiliL~tion of shelter, infrastructure and other facilities,Governments at the appropriate levels should:

(a) Encourage and support research lmd studies topromote and develop indigenous planning lUlddesign techniques, nonns and sLwdards to matchthe actual needs of local communities;

(b) Encourage public pm!icipation in assessing realuser needs, especially gender needs, as anintegrated action of the planning lUld designprocess;

(c) Encourage the exchange of regional . andinternational experience of best practices andfaciIimte the transfer of planning, design andconstruction techniques;

(d) Strengthen the capacities of training institutionsand non-governmental org~U1izations to increaseand diversify the supply of skilled workers inconstruction and promote apprenticeship training,particularly for women;

(e) Make use of contracts with community-hasedorganizations and, where applicahle, the informalsector for the planning, design, construction,maintenance and rehabilitation of housing andlocal services, especially in low-incomesettlements, with an emphlL,is on enhancing theparticipation and, thus, short- lmd long-term gainsof local communities;

(I) Strengthen the capacity of hoth public lUld privatesectors for infrastructure delivery throughcost-effective, employment-intensive methods,where appropriate, thereby optimizing the impacton the creation of employmenl;

(g) Promote research, exchlUlge of infonnation andcapacity-building with respect to affordable andtechnically and environmenLlIly-sound building,

7

m~rlntenance and rehabilitation technologies;

(h) Provide incentives for engineers, architects,planners and contractors and their clients to designand buildaccessible energy-efficientstructores andfacilities by using locally-available resources andto reduce energy consumption in buildings in use;

(i) Provide training to professionals and practitionersin the construction and development sector toupdate their skills and knowledge in order topromote the development of shelter progmmmesthat serve the interests and needs of women,persons with disabilities ~md disadvantaged groupsand tharensure their participation at all stages ofthe shelter development process;

UJ Adopt and ensure the enforcement of appropriatestandards relating to plarming, design,construction, maintenance and rehabilitation;

(k) Support private-sector initiatives. to providebridging loans to builders at reasonable interestrates;

(i) Support professional groups in offering technicalassistlUlce in planning, design, construction,maintenance, rehabilitation and management. tocommunity-based orglmizations,non-governmental organizations and othersengaged in self-help and community-baseddevelopment;

(m) Strengthen and make more transparent governmentregulatory ~md inspection systems;

(n) Join with professional societies to review andrevise building codes and regulations based oncurrent sumdards of engineering, building andplanning practices, local conditions and ease ofadministration, and adopt perfonnance standards,as appropriate;

(0) Support non-governmentlil organizations and othergroups to ensure full and equal participation ofwomen and persons with disabilities in thepl~mning, design and construction of houses to suittheir specific individual and family requirements.

YI. To promote ~md support an adequate supply of locallyproduced, environmentally sound, affordable and durable basichuilding materi~ds, Governments at the appropriate levels, incooperation with all other interested parties, should:

8

(a) Where appropriate, encourage and support theestablishment and expansion of environmeotallysound, small-scale, local building materialsiodustries and the expansion oftheir production andcommercialization through, jnter aHa, legal andfiscal incentives and the provision' of credit,research and development, and information;

(b) As required, provide policies and guidelines tofacilitate fair market competition for buildingmaterials with enhanced participation of localinterested parties and establish a public mechanismto enforce them;

(c) Promote information exchange and the flow ofappropriate environmentally sound, affordable andaccessible building technologies and facili~1te thetransfer of technology;

(d) With adequate attention to safety needs,reformulate and adopt building standards andby-laws, where appropriate, to promote and permitthe use of low-cost building materials in housingschemes, and use such materials in publicconstruction works;

(e) Where appropriate, promote partnerships with theprivate sector and non-govemmentld organizationsto create mechanisms for the commercuuproduction and distribution of basic buildingmaterials for self-help construction programmes;

(f) Evaluate on aregular basis the progress made in thepursuit of the above objectives.

92. To enhance the local capacity forenvironmen~llly-sound production of building materials andconstruction techniques, Governments at the appropriate levels,including local authorities, in cooperation with all interestedparties, should:

(a) Intensify and support research efforts to findsubstitutes for or optimize the use ofnon-renewableresources and to reduce their polluting effects,paying special attention to recycling, re-use ofwaste materials and increased refores~'Ition;

(b) Encourage and promote the application oflow-energy, environmentally sound and safemanufacturing technologies backed by appropriatenanTIS and effective regulatory measures;

(c) Adopt mining and quarrying policies and practicesthat ensure minimum damage to the environment.

CONSTRUCTION SECTOR FOR HOUSINGAND INFRASTRUCTURE DELIVERY - AN

ISSUE PAPER PREPARED FOR THEHABITAT II CONFERENCE**

I. Introduction

The construction sector plays a leading role in the improvementof socio-economic conditions and the built environment inevery country. The sector is an important contributor to capimlfonnation ,Uld the rate of activities in the sector is a majorindicator of the health of the economy. The level of thatcontribution has been measured in several ways - notably interms of gross domestic product (GDP) ofthe national economyand of capital assets or gross fixed capital formation (GFCF).In developing countries, major construction activities accountfor about 80 per cent of total capital assets and a singleinvestment in construction sector yields continuous benefitsover a long period.

Apart from economic benefits derived in the process ofproducing housing and infrastructure for the low-incomepopulation, the day-to-day functioning of low-incomesettlements, in itself, is ofsignificance to national development.Unfortunately, there are insufficient dam esmblishing acorrelation between the economic performance of low-incomesettlements and levels of investment in shelter delivery.However, the little evidence available suggests that low-incomesettlements do not just provide basic shelter for people but, inaddition, are economic domains with links to the nationaleconomic structure. For example, a single investment in theprovision ofan access road, linking the settlement to the marketstructure, in a rural area. leads to a significant increase incommodity output and, hence, improvements in nationaleconomic performance.

The Glob'd Stmtegy for Sheller to the year 2000 adopted hy IheGeneral Assembly of the United Nations in December 1988calls for a shift in government's role from the provider ofhousing to an enabling one. The strategy also recognizesconstruction sector activities as one of the key inputs to theproduction and improvement of shelter and idenlifies severalpriority action areas in support of the indigenous constructionsector including local production of building materials.

This issue paper is designed to provide a brief overview on themajor constraints the sector faces and on challenges andopportunities which exist that could help low-income housebuilders to build their houses using low-cost/locally-producedmaterials. For the convenience of participants and for effective

** By Baris Der-Petrossian. Research and Development Division.UNCfI&. (Habitat), This paper was prepared and presented in asymposiwn on the samesubject which was organized by theSettlementlnfrilslructure and Environment Programme (SIEP) of UNCHS(Habitat) and held as part of the Habitat n parallel eVenls. Thesymposium was held in Istanbul on 5 June 1996.

and froitful deliberntions, some key areas for consideration havebeen included in the h1St chapter of this paper.

II. The limitations of the construction sector

Despite the fact that many developing countries attach a greatinterest to the development of their construction industry, thesector is, generally not considered as a clearly identifiedindustry. It is an industrial sector that is often ignored by majoractors, e.g. economists, planners, administrators and othersconcerned with development issues. Consequently the sector isnot planned in a holistic manner, but rather, operates withfragmented and often conflicting components resulting inwasmge, inefficiency 'md inability to pl,m for totaldevelopment. In fact, one of the main reasons for theseinefficiencies is related to the multi-sectoral nature of theconstruction industry which requires sound planning anddecision- making.

Apart from not planning the construction sector in an integratedmanner, the major problems facing the sector are related todeficiencies in the specitic inputs required. A review of thevarious ways and means of constructing low-income housingand infutstrucrure suggests that the unsatisfactory performanceof the industry is due to several inter-related factors such as:

(a) An inadequate supply ofdurable and cost-effectivebuilding materials;

(b) Lack of technological know-how for lheproduction of loc,d huilding matcrhds and for theconslruction of low-cost housing;

(c) Lack of adequate and favourable financingmechanisms for pre-financing low-income housingmld infrastructure;

(d) Unfavourable regulatory mechanisms; and

(e) Lack of maintenance and upgmding strategies.

Furthermore, the construction industry in most developingcountries has seveml deficiencies as far as its demandcharacteristics is concerned. Governments are usually the mainclients of the construction industry, with a large demand forseverd! categories ofoutput by very limited financial resourcesto meet that demand. In the private sector, however, the bulk ofthe population is in the low-income or no-income category, andis not an effective market for the construction ofshelter. In mostdeveloping countries, there are two basic approaches toconstruction of urban low-income shelter: public-sector

construction progrrunmes, and private-enterprise delivery ofshelter. Almost invariably, the capacity of the public-sectoroption is very limited: it provides only marginal quantities ofshelter, 'md the little that is produced is hardly ever accessIbleto the target group. On the contrary, the bulk of shelterconstruction for the low-income population results from theprivate formal and informal sectors which, in spite of facingvarious limitations. have made significant impact in shelterdelivery over the past decades.

III. Basic resource inputs required by theconstruction sector

(a) BIIi/ding materials

Building materials,constitute the single largest input in theconstruction of housing rmd they sometimes account for about7IJ to 8IJ per cent of the total value of a simple house. It istherefore import,mt that huilding materials be made availablein sufficient qUfmtities 'md at affordable costs. However,huilding materials available on the m,rrket, in most developingcountries ,rre either prohibitively expensive and in sc,rrcesupplyor of low quality. In some low-income settlements, thetraditiomd building materials which have been popularlyadopted over the decades me gmdually declining in popularity.The fading popuhrrity is prohably due to the low qUfdity of thetraditional materials or to the relative attractiveness of"contemporary" huilding materi'ds. Whatever the reason, thisgrowing trend has had negative consequences on thelow-income shelter-construction market.

In 'm attempt to overcome the prohlems ofthe shorwge and highcost ofbuilding materials, many governments opted to establishImge-scale factories to produce basic building materials.However, within a short period, many of these factories haveheen faced with numerous difficulties, arising primarily fromthe choice of imported technologies.

The absence of stable markets, exorbil1mt transporl1ltion costsand production interruptions resulting from the lack of sp,rrep,rrts [Uld energy supply have often made production planningdifficult, resulting in low-capacity utilization and scarcity ofmaterials in the market.

The sm'dl-sc[de sector of the building-materials industry.however. ha.~ shown considerable potential in meeting the localdemand. despite the fact that it often relies on traditiomd andoutdated technologies. Lack of knowledge of innovative,energy-emcient 'md appropriate technologies based on localresources has heen the higgest stumbling block in improvingthe productivity of this sector.

Even when low-cost building materials are attractive in termsof m,rrket price, there is still the problem of consumer hiasesagainst the products. For exmnple, a preference for Portlandcement. concrete blocks and corrugated steel roof-sheets. m,against lime-pozzolana, stabilized soil hlocks [md natund fibrerooting tiles respectively, may not he b,,~ed on costconsiderations. Instead they stem from the lack of infonnationon the technical properties of these innovative materials and thelack of aw,rreness of the I"ct that costly materi'ds can easily bereplaced hy innovative materi'ds in huilding a simple house.The failure to use low-cost materials in government-sponsoredhousing construction project"i is another serious constraint

10

which limits the wide-scale adoption of these materials.Governments in developing countries are often the singlelrrrgest clients of the construction industry; iheir efforts caneasily popularize the use of these materials by privatelow-income house builders.

The above mentioned constraints in the building materialssector have the smne negative effect on the provision of basicinfrastructure as they have on housing supply. For insl1U1ce, inrural areas and in urban squatter settlements, wherepublic-sponsored programmes have provided water supply andsanitation systems, items such as sewers, septic tanks, latrineslabs and pavement tiles have mainly been procured fromconventional supplyers, so that they have been also affected bythe usual limitations of high cost and inadequate supply.

(bJ Appropriate techllologies

An important prerequisite for wide-scale application ofappropriate building technologies is that the technologiesinvolved [rre tested 'md widely known at local leveL Fore"maple, appropriate technologies for the production oflow-cost building materials have multiple advantages,including a reduction in the dependence on imported inputs,opportunities for developing substitute inputs from abundantindigenous resources and potentials for generating new andimproved skills 'maong local workforce. Appropriatetechnologies can also be useful for reducing the cost ofconstruction outpu~ which is particularly significant for theconstruction requirements of the poor.

In many countries, the main factor limiting the diffusion of anew technology is not so much related to setbacks in the transferof technology at the international level but, rather, related to theinability of local institutions to translate successful rese,rrchfindings into commercial production. There are cases wheretechnologies for production of low-cost materials have beendeveloped by a local agency based on indigenous factor inputs,yet these findings have not been demonstrated on :m extensivesc'de or replicated by any other agency.

The lack ofrequisite knowledge or techniques in the appropriateuse ofcertain low-cost building materials in construction couldalso he [m imporl1mt factor limiting the wide-scale adoption ofsuch materials. An indigenous building material, for example,C[Ul be sold at a low-cost on the marke~ however, where skillsfor appropriate use of it are deficien~ the ovendl objective oflow-cost construction will be defeated because of the excessiveuse of such materials. Where, skills me delicient, good-qualityproducts could be wrongly applied in construction, therebyleading to unsafe and non-durable construction and,consequently, making a pmticular set of building materials,wrongly, unpopular.

(c) FillullcillX construction

The construction industry is dependent on fimUlcing to purchaserequired inputs and to pay for labour costs. Shelter ,mdinfrastructure construction for the low-income population. eventhough tenned "low-cost". is still dependent on fmtmcing.especi,dly if conventional approaches ,rre adopted. Anyconstraint in cash flow, therefore, could jeopmdize aconstruction progrmnme tmd. worse still. lead to costescalations.

In most developing countries, eXlslmg public financial

institutions do not fulfil the requiremenls for financial resourceswhich are required for critical inpuls in construction. The few

available financing institutions have had little impact and thenannal practice in private-sector low-income shelterconstruction is to depend on the builder's own finances which

often are limited.

Finlmcial resources are often more readily available in the

private sectorthlm in the public sector. Yet, in most developing

countries, financing of public construction projects, which

usually require large investments, are borne hy public sources

of fimUlce. However, private-sectorinvesunent can be attractedwith suitable conditions lmd interest mtes. An example of this

is the collection of tolls on highway projects as a means of

paying back the investment.

(d) Regulatory /Ileasures, stalldards alld specificatiolls

Building acls, regulations and codes are the me<ms by whichauthorities control construction activities for the purpose ofensuring safety and health in the built environment. Similarly,s~'IIIdards and specifications for building materials productionand use, ensure stipulated quality of products used inconstruction. To a large exte.nt, these regulatory procedures candetennine the types of building materials, skills andconstruction techniques to be used in a given constructionprocess. In this way, an opportunity is created to promote theuse ofappropriate building materials, so that the capacity of theshelter delivery can he enhanced. On the other hlmd, regulatoryinstrumenls can be fonnulated in a mlmner so lL' to prohibit theuse of ceffi'lin materials which are nonnally accessible to thelow-income population lmd, thereby, limit the delivery oflow-income shelter. Forexmnple, the use ofsoil in construction,

llIl .. :.llOIlItl.;e miiirri~I'Dntltrdlnil~hitd~ lIlId .prdfieallmn Illld It, ~llrll!lllll'

'aplfl'llPria1e .&illIrkt11ll -"raICjjIetI

• -F....~ It" II iKlhllh-l"n Innul~lhr llUIlrrbr, ~lIdIrdmullll!ll'\unll rndlll:ll[nllllOlll',1a11tul "r IT'I:lIn:h rr-ull. 1"1,,l'khI IlnM1UClInn:

• "r",nDl~ rt'dllftl1l. mlrr·ft'ltlnn;t! lIud Inlrtn:nl"nal ...."1 0111''''fur lran\frr <If l""hlllll~"" Ilno! "'lt~,,'r"lllnllltJlm \ ,'llll lindIinn.lnr: 'rtant'!'llItllhl

• E,*,",II". plhlt hUm!nl:.lJfUJech 1I.11Illlnnmulht- 111;l1rrbl.-u.:hilntablllttd W1lI hl«h.lih,,· 11l1Kn'lr r,..,finlllllrt 1l0l11"....." ..'n'llM'lIlllJni:tl!millniah nllklt ¥om dl:mlln.lr.lll' lh.,lt ~d':U1I~I:'"

, 1UlI1,,",,":

probably, offers the best opportunity for most low-incomesettlemenls however, to build a safe and dumble house in soil,requires some basic technical guidelines which can be providedthrough s~'IIIdllfdsand specifications and pennitted by buildingregulations.

The inadequacies of existing regulatory instruments have hadnegative effecls on the provision of basic infrastructure to thelow-income population in the same way a, on shelter supply.Typically, existing public health acts and regulations, coveringwater supply, sani~~tionand solid-waste disposal, ignore actualpractices in low-income settlemenls and do not offer anycorrective devices to the unhealthy state of affairs and faultytrends in the minimal avaiL'1ble infrastructure in low-incomesettlemenls. Rather, the regulations stipulate infrastructures~'IIIdards which are far too costly for the target group andwhich, even if they were provided, could not be maintained withlocal resources and know-how.

(e) Mailltellallce alld upgradillg

The expected life-span of a building or infrastructure elementpresupposes that some basic regular maintemUlce will heprovided during the service period of the facility. In nonnalpractice, buildings and infrastructure also tend 10 be exposed 10

unexpected deterioration, thus requiring repair in addition toroutine maintenance. Because ofthe low quality ofconstructionin most low-income settlements, the concept of maintenance iseven more relevlUlt than in "high-cost construction".Maintenance is also crucial for low-income construction,because most low-income fmnilies cmlnot afford thereplacement cost, should a huilding deteriorate to the point offailure.

Finally, given the low rate at which new dwellings andinfrastructure are provided for the low-income population, a

A panel displayed in an exhibition during Habitat II Conference in Isumbul

11

.logical option is to ensure that the little that is already availableis sustained in use to the utmost point of its service life. Onereason why low-income settlements lack upgrading is that thereis a disparity between the importance attached to newconslruction programmes vis-a-vis upgrading of existingsettlements. Almost invariably, any governmental programmeofinvestment in low-income shelter and infraslructure is linkedto conslruction of entirely new facilities. Another reason for thelack of response to upgrading of existing low-incomesettlements is that it is a more challenging t.1Sk than the straightforward delivery of new conslruction.

if) Small contractors

Contractors are one of the key components of the conslructionsector, as they are directly responsible for the physicalrealization of the designs prepared in response to the client'sneeds and objectives. Small contractors in developingcountries, even though can make great impact in the provisionof housing ~md infraslructure, are often affected by severalconstraints which include:

(i) lack of technical and managerial expertise;

(ii) lack of adequate finance;

(iii) difficulty in obt.1ining essential resources,materials, equipment and skilled personnel; and

(iv) inadequate supervisory capabilities.

But these constraints could be easily removed, if adequatepolicies are in place and necessary support could be providedto them by governments, local and international communities.The ultimate gmtl which is to indigenize conslruction activitiesprogressively and attain sust.1inable development andm~untenance of built environment calls for strengthenedsmall-scale contractors involvement in the sector, thus.improving quality of outputs and reducing costs.

IV, The role of communities, informal sectorand women

Experience, over the past several years, has shown thatinvolvement ofcommunities, the infonnal sector and women inconslruction activities can considerably help in improving thehuman settlements conditions in most developing countries.Positive experiences in encouraging local initiatives bycommunity-based groups and infonnal sector havedemonstrated the many advanll,ges and social opportunitiessuch an approach can provide to marginalized groups. Bymobilizing the skills and financial resources of the community,generating income and employment opportunities, and bygiving the opportunity of pmticipating in widerdecision-mnking, this npproach has proved to be a useful andeffective me.1Sure to improve the housing delivery systems inm~my developing countries.

There nre many successful examples of women's cooperativesin the manufncture of building materials. For exmnple, blockmaking opemtions in Ghmm are largely m;maged by women.and in Zimbabwe the rural hrick mnking industry is dominatedby women. Simihtry in Kenyn,the roofing tiles of nlnrge publichousing project were produced by women b'fllUpS.Awareness-raising prognumnes Imd tmining opportunities set

12

up to increase the number of women entering the conslructionindustry have been found to be successful in a number ofcountries.

V. Health hazards of building materials

A variety of building materials contribute to different aspects

of he.lIth hazards. Such materials include asbestos, solvents(e.g. toluene, xylene and dichloromethane), insecticides and

fungicides (e.g. arsenic, dieldrin, lindane, pent.1Chlorophenol),

toxic metals (cadmium chromium and 1e.1d), and radon exhaled

from building materials containing radium. Risks to healthusually result from exposure to harmful environment.lI

conditions in the extraction, production and use of cert.1in

building materials, and the disposal of related wastes. The

harmful interaction of these factors and the human organismsoccurs either by absorption through the skin, by intake into the

digestive track via the mouth, or by inhalation into lungs. The

results of the interactions can be harmful to human health in a

variety of ways, including: respiratory diseases such as asthma,heart diseases, cancer, brain damage or poisoning. The effects

of the hazards may be slow, cumulative, irreversible, andcomplicated by nOn occupational factors such as smoking.

Some of the health hazards associated with building materialsand the built-environment are well documented andprogrmnmes to reduce them are in place. Others are the subjectof current and future rese.m:h, consequently remedial measuresare not yet in place, There is aIsolow public awareness of thehealth hazards, and additionally many decision-makers are notfully infonned or awure of the health implications of buildingmaterials.lnadequnte infonnation greatly inhibits the ability ofthe conslruction industry and other stakeholders in effectivelyresponding to the challenge of controlling the health hazardsassociated with building materials. Therefore, there is an urgentneed to design programmes at industry, national andinternational levels to raise the understanding of the healthimplications of building materials on a continuing basis.

Given the fact that environmental sustainability and risks tohuman health rank among the most important areas of socialconcern today, and given the variety of hazards which need tobe addressed, and the different groups exposed to hazards, arange of control strategies need to be established andimplemented.

VI. Environmentally-sound construction

The conslruction industry, as n major COnsumer of worlds'natural resources and a potential polluter of the environment, isbeing closely scrutinized by the internationiu community andmany governments. With rapid urbanizntion and populationgrowth, developing countries, are bound to use more energyintensive materials such as cement, steel, glass etc. than theywere using 2 to 3 decades ngo. SimiL1fly, due to expansion ofthe conslruction sector in many countries, tropical hardwood,metallic and non-metallic minerals and non-renewnble energyresources nrc used extensively, all of which are indications ofcen.1in thrents to the capacity of natural resources, depletion ofwhich will jeopardize the survival of future generation. Theneed, therefore, to introduce more susllunnble conSlructionpractice is laking new urgency in the over-til development

context of human settlements.

Energy is one of the main inputs to the construction and.particularly. in the huilding materials production processes. Ofthe energy used in the production of huilding materials, a highproportion is in the production of a small number of keymaterials such as steel, cement, bricks, concrete elements.aluminium ~md glass. Similarly, different types of constructionsystems (designs) c~m result in considerable differences in thetotal embodied energy requirements in a complete house asindicated in the table below.

the construction industry activities have resulted in tllking someaction in the industri~dized countries, the developing countries,particuI1U'ly in sub-Sallaran AfriCll, hllve mllde very littleprogress in arresting this situation. Their position io; even moredesperate given that many of them are faced with fragileenvironments involving aridity, decertificlltion, floodoccurrences and other types of natural hazards.

VII. Proposed points for discussion

In the light of the lIbove mentioned issues, particip~mts maywish to consider tl,e following points for dIscussion:

While incre~h~ed aw~U'eness ~md knowledge of the implicationsofresource depletion and environmental degradation caused hy

Comparative energy requirements for threesingle-storey houses in Argentina

The process of socia-economic development through incre;h~ed

construction activities and protection of the environmentare notseparate challenges. The sustainability of development c~mnotbe ensured in a climate where growth pl~ms consistently fail tosafeguard the environment and arrest tbe degradation of thenatural-resource base and the ecosystem as a whole. It is lor thisreason that Agenda 21, adopted by the United NationsConference on Environment and Development (UNCED),underscores the importance of the sustainable constructioninduslry activities as a major conuibutor to the sustainablehUImm settlements development.

House type

House made primarily withmanufactured materials(hollow-brick walls, concreteframe and rool)

House made partly withmmlufactured materials(clay-brick walls, concrete frame,steel-sheet rool)

House built primarily with localmateri~ds (adobe w~dls. timberframe, steel-sheet rool)

SOllree: UNCHS (Habitat), 1991

Embodied energyrequirement (MJ/m2

)

1583

1314

590

(i) Which are the important public policy areas thatmfect the perfoTmllnce of the construction lindbuilding mllterials industries?

(ii) To whllt exlent policies in other sectors can affectthe construction industries?

(iii) How can appropriate and new technologies beharnessed, transferred ~md adopted so as to improvethe productivity of the construction sector'!

(iv) What measures shouldgovernmems, private sectorand communities take to improve fimmcing ofconstruction sector?

(v) What measures should governments and localaudlOrities take to revise the existing buildingregulations to encourage Lhe use oflow-cost/appropriate building materi~ds in low-costconstruction'!

(vi) What strategies should be adopted to cre~ite aculture for m~rinten~mce of buildings 'Uldinfraslructures?

(vii) How c'm international cooperation support tl,ecommunities. infonnal groups and women to bemore involved in shelter ,md infrastructuredelivery'!

(viii)ln what ways governments and internationalcommunity can support local initiatives to promoteenergy-efticienl and low polluting huildingmaterials production technologies?

13

HABITAT II

A BREAKTHROUGH FORNON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS IN

COMMITTEE II OF THE CONFERENCE

Non-governmen~~1 organizations (NGOs) and commonity­based orgarlizations (CBOs), for the fIrst time in the history ofthe United Nations, were able to state their positions on Habitatn issues 'md offer proposals as 10 their roles in Ibe follow-op tnthe Habilat n Conference.

After a warm welcome lrom the Chainmm of Committee II ­the "partners' committee" - NOG representatives aftirmed theircommitment to the goals of U1C United Nations. A speaker onbehalf of tile present NGOs , stressed that ,dtilOUgh NGOs hadoften been perceived as "troublesome 'md critical", they badtraditionally played a vital watchdog role in tile follow-up to awide range of United Nations resolotions, declarations andphms of action, such as the one being negotiated in ISllmbul.Moreover, NGOs had more often acted as Ihe real popularconscience on social, economic and environmental issueswithin national 'md international contexts.

In the opening statement it was also stressed that thepresentations made did not 'md could not adequately representall partners in the NGO community plUtly because of the widedivergence of opinion thm exists within their ranks 'md partlybecause of the extremely short time tilat had been allocated toeach plUtners hearing in Committee n. Several NGO caucusrepresentatives who addressed the Committee stated thattrlmsparency and accountability were valued in Ihe NGOcommunity. They expressed a fInn commitment to partnershipwith government al all levels and with the private sector.

The role of womeo in shelter 'md human settlement,development and suslllinability was highlighted by most of thespeakers, who were themselves predominantly women. Aspeaker after noting the major role that women play in thestroggle for 'md consolidation of shelter and communilies, said"Evictions around the world are Ihe greatesl threat 10 Ihewell-heing 'md development opportunities of poorcmnmunities. The non-recognition of the rights ofcommunilieswithin countries coupled with the current paradigm ofeconomicdevelopment are the major causes of eviction".

Another spc::tker argued that though women were strong incommunity organizations. they were weak in national andinternational decision-Inaking systems. She urged thaI womenhe i1cco~dcd greater accel'l' to relevant inl'titutinnl' ofgovernment and international cooperation. One t::mgihle way toachi~vc this would be for the international community amigovernments to create enahling legal frmnewnrks amI prnvitlelimmce for capacity-huilding within women's groups :md forNGOs that are i:l"sisting women'l' groups to ucvdnp their skills

and knowledge,

When contributions were invited from the 110or, the great,mijority of naliom~ delegations from developed anddeveloping countries expressed sl.nmg support for theparticipation of NGOs ::md for the increased role of women inthe processes of shelter improvements as well as in social andenvironmental mallers generally. A few delegations raisedquestions about whether the NGO panel presentations werefully representative of all the views ,"nong them. Ilwas ",kedwhether Committee Il woultl come out with arecommendationthat rel1ected what the NGOs were saying in the meeting. TheCommittee chaiflfilm indicmed thm the Comminee wouldreport 10 Ihe Plenary 'md that tile Plemrry would lake note ofwhat had been "ud.

A speaker said "NGOs have been independent and what theyhave achieved has been done withoul the support ofgovernments. There is a need to create a vehicle forpartnernhips." The speaker nntetl that NGGs had heen the majormonitors of the follow-up of earlier United Nationsconferences.

[n the second segment of thc session a series of short NGOpresentations wcre made hy panellist" covering the issues of theDisabled Persons, Youth, Rights and lhe Child, InternationalLaw 'md the Family, and the Environment A panicipant,speaking on hehalf of Ihe disabled, stressed the need to involvedisahletl people in the tlesign of sClllementl' and the need forIhem to work witl] the NGOs in the follow-up to Habital II soas to improve their situation in an urh::mizing worltl. Themeeting was also remintled that all the major prohlemsal'sociated with urhanization - unemploymel1l, rural-urhanmigration. crime allll urhan environment tleterioration ­impacted mnst strongly Oil ynuth. The Rigills nf the ChildCaucus representative highlighted the plighlof street-children.ehild lahourers and girl children.

All NGO representative stated t1u'l the void nf Ihe traditionalfamily had not heen strong ill the Hahilal II Cnnference. Therewal' a need. he helieved. for di:uogue hetween family-orientt.::tlNOGs ~U1d lawyers ~l" tlwre were ctllnplex il'l'uel' facing hoth inthe cities of today. Another NGO representalive poimed oul theneed to utilize Local Agenda 21 to deal with the deterioratingurh~LIl environment and environmcntal cOllst.::rvation glohally.

In the Committee discllssion thai lollowetl. there was generalemphasis on the role of the NOOs in the vmious areas prescl1Ietlhy the p,mellists, Seven~ speakers from the NGOs expressed

15

the need to follow-up the partners' Dialogues started in thepreparatory process ofHabi~1t IT and voiced the need for this tobe sustJuned and for UNCHS (Habitat) to playa key role in theprocess.

Several speakers urged a dialogue between NGOs andgovernments and the need to place the poor themselves at theheart oftheir own development process. They stressed the needfor credit mechanisms to reach the pooras the NGOs have foundthe poor to be credit-worthy as "without credit there was nodevelopment possible".

In the final segment of the meeting, the presen~1tions from theNGO Regional Caucuses covering AfriC1~ Latin America andthe Caribbean as well as the Middle Easumd Arab Region wereheard, each highlighting tlleir particular problems. These werefollowed by presentations on the implemen~1tion of the resullsof the Conference and the impo~1Uce ofNGO involvement inthe process. A number of national delegations respondedpositively. Other delegates questioned the motives and roles ofNGOs especially when they interfered in internal politics.However, many national delegations asserted their confidencethat NGOs had a vi~lI role to play and were vital to achievingthe goals of the Conference.

,1,1

Note: Text has beelltukellji"fJ!11 apress release produced ill!stallbul.

The Secret:rry-General of Habitat IT Conference. is discussing the production process ofa low-cost building material duringan exhibition in IS~1Ubul. Photo: Amrik K.lIsi, UNCHS (Habi~1t)

1'G:

HABITAT II

SHELTER-AFRIQUE LAUNCHES ACONTINENTAL HOUSING INVESTMENTPROGRAMME AND SEEKS TO EXPAND

MEMBERSHIP

As part of their preparations for Habitat II, 30 African Stmesmet in Bamako, Mnli from 28to29 Mny 1996nt the 15th AnnunlGenernl Meeting of the Company for Habitat and Housing inAfricn (Shelter-Afrique) to consider, inter nlin, the Sl.1lus ofhuman settlements and housing in Africn and to develophousing invesbnent strategies for the next five yenrs. Thecountries were represented nt Habitat II in Istnnbul by theirnationnl delegations as well as n high-level delegation fromShelter-Afrique. The company is jointly owned by 37 AfricanGovernments, the African Development Bank, AfricanReinsurance Corpomtion and Commonwe:tlth DevelopmentCorporation.

Over the last 10 years, sheller-Afrique has co-financed shellerand related projects in a number of countries including Kenyn,the Gambill, Ugandn, Zambin, Senegnl, Guinen, Cmneroon,GOOon, Congo, and Nigerin. These projects, which are financedthrough loans, are targeted at low-income and middle-incomehouseholds and have helped thousands of African fmnilies notonly to build orpurchase theirown homes butnlso to gain accessto essentinl services such as water, sanitation, schools andhenlth centers. Previously homeless and landless families incities as far nway as K:unpnla or Conakry have, throughShelter-Afrique's efforts, mannged to become property-ownersand gain n foothold in the formnl economy.

By working in collabomtion with nationnl governments,locttlcommunities, local nuthorities tmd the private sector it waspossible to make significant improvements in the livingconditions of the fmnilies concerned.

Over the next five years, Shelter-Afrique expects to invest overUS $IOU million in various projects in the urbnn sector. Thisinitiative is designed to attract ndditionnl private-sector tmdinternational resources so as to achieve a significcmt impact onpost-Istnnbul efforts.

From its hendquttrters in Nairobi, the company oversees thedesign and implementation of project pipeline of some 60projects. It takes great care to ensure that locnl professionnls,suppliers and contractors are actively involved in all stages ofproject development, so as to build locnl capacity and nlsoextend project benefits as widely as possible. Training has inthe past been provided for African professionnls in a variety ofskills ranging from managementto mortgage ndmirlistralion. Infact, the need for competent housing finance professionnls is sogreat that existing training facilities in Africa cannot cope withthe demand.

In his statement to the Habitat II Plen:uy, the M:magingDirector, recnlled the company's active pttrticipation andcontribution in the prepamtory processofHabitat IItmd stressedthe company's commitment to the post-Istanbulimplementation process. Shelter-Afrique had maintnined closeconsultmion with African Governments at the preparatorymeetings held in Nairobi, Dakar, Kmnpttla, Brazzaville andJohannesburg. The Managing Director nlso cnlled upon nilAfrican countries which were not yet members to joinShelter-Afrique at the earliest opportunity.

The Company renlizes that expansion of shelter developmentand delivery in Africa is hampered not only by the scarcity offimmcinJ resources but nlso by the nbsence of vital informationon socio-economic conditions as well as the availability ofland,infrastructure and services. To that end, it has, jointly with theUnited Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA),sponsored the prepamtion of a Continentttl Sheller Atlas forAfrica and a Regionnl Report on the SU'le of HumtmSettlements in Africa. The atL'IS provides member states withkey data tmd indicators on sheller tmd related socio-economicconditions. It will assist nil actors in the public tmd privatesectors as well as volunt:uy and women's groups 10 focus theirefforts towards improving hmmm settlements in Africa tmdmake adequate sheller available for ttll.

Nole: Texi "as been tukenjTolll a press release produced in Is(anbul

17

COST EFFECTIVE BUILDINGTECHNOLOGIES - TECHNOLOGYTRANSFER, DISSEMINATION AND

EXTENSION: THE INDIAN EXPERIENCE***

1. INTRODUCTIONConstruction costs in India are increasing at around 50 per centover the average inllation levels. With inllation rates gettinginto double digits of around 10 per cent (April 1995), theconstruction costs have registered increase of up to 15 per centover 1995, primarily doe to cost ofbasic building materials suchas steel, cement. bricks, timber ~md other inputs as well as costof labour. As a result, the cost of construction usingconventional building materials and construction fonns rangefrom Rs. 3000 to Rs. 4000 per sqm for housing. This is only inrespect of the standard types of hoosing. Higher cost levels areregistered for using better fmishes and amenities. Constructioncostofthis orderis beyond the affordability of the economicallyweak and low-income groups of population as well as a largecross section of the middle- income groups.

Therefore, there is a need to adopt cost-effective constructionmethods either by upgradation of traditional technologies usinglocal resources or applying modern construction materials andtechniques with efficient input' leading to economic solutions.

This has become the most relevant aspect in the context of thelarge volome of housing to be constructed in both rural andurban areas and the consideration of limitations in theavailability of resources such as building materials and finance.

2. AVAILABILITY OF COST-EFFECTIVETEHCNOLOGIES

Cost-effective building materials and construction technologiesare fortunately available in India. These are developed by thevarious research and development bodies in the country,namely:

• Centnu Building Research Institote (CBRI),

• Structural Engineering Research Centre (SERC),

• Centre for Application of Science ,md Technologyto Rural Are:l' (CASTRA),

• Regiomu Research Laboratories (RRL),

• National Environmentlu Engineering ResearchInstitute (NEERI), ,md many others.

These technologies have proved to be appropriate

***This is an edited version of a paper produced by Mr. V. Suresh,Director Corporate Planning. Housing and Urban DevelopmentCorporation, (HUDeD), India. This paper was presented to une of theHabitat IT parallel event'>: "Symposium on Construction for Housingand Infrastructure Delivery". organized by Settlement InfrlL'.tructureand Envrionmental Pmgrnmme (SIEP) of UNCHS (Hahitat). Thesymposium t.ook place in Istanbul on 5 June 1996.

18

ood viable in the context of low-income housingdelivery and a vast majority of population is usingthem in mooy regions of the country. A briefdescription of some of these technologies are givenin the following parts of this paper.

2.1 Walling materials

The designs for housing units range from single tomulti-stroyed, depending on the local situation (rural, urban andmetropolitan) and the needs of target groups and the pressureon land. The materials used for walling can consist of:

• Mud

• Sun-dried bricks

• Rammed earth

• Stabilized soil blocks

• Kiln-burnt bricks

• Laterite/stone

• Timber/bamboo

• Stone block masonry

• Precast/factory-made Walling units using lightweight cellular concrete

• Concrete hollow blocks

• Ferro-cement

Mud, sun-dried bricks ood rammed earth are used extensivelyin many regions depending on the availability and quality ofexisiting soils. Stahilization of soil is done by stabilizers likecement, lime, asphalt, molasses. Laterite masonry blocks areavailable in Karnataka ood Kerala. Stone mansory using dressstone and rubble is used in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Jammu,Kashmir tmd many other places. With the strength of kiln-burntbricks being ofthe orderof411 to 200 kg/sq.cm in Indo-Gangeticplain (Haryooa. Uttlrr Pradesh, Bilhar and Bengal) it is possibleto use single brick load-bearing walls of up to five storeys. Halfbrick thick zig-zag pattern load bearing walls are used in manyhousing projects of Uttm Pradesh. Adoption of "Modular"bricks can also effect savings in the use of brick and mortar.

Another very innovative area where cost reduction can beachieved is in the use of economic.'l1 and innovative bondingsystems using, for example, "rat trap bond" tIS against "English,md/or Flemish bond". Over 25 per cent saving in bricks andmortar is achieved with proven structural strength and betterthennal efficiency. The technology has not only proved to beuseful and economical but also has resulted in aestheticalhousing options.

Stone-block masonry is an R&D contribution using stoneblocks and lime/cement mortar, made by semi-skilled labour.Its use is effectively demonstrated in ffiJDCO low-cost housingproject in Ghaziabad, A1war, Faridabad, Hydembad andelsewhere.

In the North-eastern region, which is a seismically activeregion, the conventional system of timber, bamboo, mat-basedwall system called "Ekra" walling is a traditionally popular lmdstructundly sound walling system. With appropriate R&Dinputs, it is possible to give plaster over cladding material withstretched wiremesh and appropriate frames of timber orreinforced cement concrete (RCC).

Factory made cellular concrete wall panels have been used atMadras, Pune, Bombay, Ahmedabad and Delhi. In situationswhere" it is not possible to have access to masonry buildingblocks made of local materials, recourse has to be tliken tommmfacture masonry blocks. This could cover aerated lightweight concrete blocks and hollow concrete masonry blocks.

Flyash which is a waste emanating from thermal power plantscan be utilized with advlmtage for either flyash-hased bricks oraerated light weight blocks. There are many modes ofapplication of flyash using various technologies developed atCBRI and other research institutions in the country.

The hollow concrete block masonry can be used hoth asstructural/non-structural elements. Large prefabricated panelunits have been use'ct in mass construction schemes. However,its application in the country has been limited mltinly due to tllelimitations in lifting/erecting equipments as well as weaknessesin joints of wldl to wall lmd roof to wall interaction locations.

Hollow concrete block masonry has been able to make a majorimpact lately, primarily because of the poor qUldity of hurntbrick and also high cost of the local fuels nmnely timher andcmd for burning kilns. In Bangalore, most of the housescoostructed by co-operative societies, private builders aretaking recourse to use hollow coocrete block mll,onry forwalliog. Many ofthe building centres countrywide are also ahleto cootribute to the increased use of hollow concrete hlocks il'willing materild.

2.2 Roofing materials

Reinforced cement concrete (RCCl rooting slahs arepredominantly used in mlmy housing projects more so in tl,eurban context. But the use of the many economic ldternativese,m playa major role in large housing projects. The variousld ternative systems that ClUl he used are:

• Clay/micro-concrete tiled roofiog with insulationover timber/ferrocement rafters

• Stone rootiog with distribotors

• Terraces with insulation - Madras Terrace• Corrugated sheet: asbestos, galvlUlized iron (GIl

lUlU asphaltic• Prefabricated brick panel

, ". 'L' plUlel rooting

• Filler slab roofing with wtrious filler material

• Clay tile - RCC batten roof

• Precast cellular concrete rooting unit (celeon roof)

• RCC channel units

• Precast joist and hollow block construction• Precast RCC solid planks/joists

• Funicular shells over edge bemns• Precast plate floors• Ferrocement roofing elements

• Filler slab rooting with various filler materialUsing prefabricated roofing elements, large-scale housingprojects can be constructed economically. There are manysuccessful applications of these systems in different parts of thecountry.

2.3 Doors and windows

Timber is used for door and window frames and shutlers andalso for structural and non-structural walling and rooting unitsin different pmts of the country. With a view to effect theeconomic use of timber and also conserve the primary speciesof timber, use of secondary species of timber has been resortedto by giving appropriate seasoning and chemicld treatmentbefore use. However, time has come to look for ldternatives totimber. The use of steel shaped frames as well as precastconcrete and magnesium oxychloride cement door and windowframes is becoming increasingly popular. Precast concretedoor/window frames are competitive in cost and function lUlddo not need repetitive maintenance.

The precast concrete door and window frmnes have gotconsiderable acceptance both by the public and private housebuilders. The latest contribution is the use of ferro cement doorsbased on the initiative of the Auroville Building Centre atPondicherry. In view of the scarcity and high cost of timher, tlleneed for replacing timber with alternates has become anecessity. Therefore, the use ofprecastdoor lUld window frmnesas wen as feffacement shutters are gaining considerable

Concrete is being spread over a durable mof. CourtesyffiJDCO, India

19

momentum in the housing scenario in the country. Use ofprecast hollow decomtive blocks has also become very popuL'lfmainly through the work of building centres as well a~ privatesector entrepreneurs. With regard In door shutters, the use ofalternatives like cement bonded particle boards, bamboo boardsare becoming popular in many regions.

2.4 Other elements

The scope for the use of precast elements is coming into sharpfocu~ for areas ofapplication such as:

• Thin precast lintels

• Thin ferrocement precast shelves

• Ferrocement based sanitation units/cladding

• Ferrocein~nt water tanks• Precast well rings for water wells

• Precast sanitation unit rings• Precast septic tanks

• Ferrocement bio-gas units

• Precast jalousies• Precast poles for street lighting

• Precast posts for boun<L'lfY walls

The use of ferro cement water tank has become very popular inthe lastonedecade in and around Madms and Tamil Nadu basedon the good work being done by SERC and the training nOwbeing imparted to the large number of masons, bar-benders andconcrete work force. Sinnilarly the use of precast well rings forwater well has also caught up because of their popularity andthe fact that they are manufactured by private sector outlets aswell as through the building centres. This has become very

important because of the need for pumping ground water in theareas where surface water is scarce.

The sanitation schemes using twin pits is also giving rise to themanufacture of the rings for sanitation. A major progrmnme onlow-cost sanitation h(.~ been launched hy the Government (md

it is hoped thar the pn:cwH sanitatiq," rings would contrihutesuhsUmtiaIly in t1tis direction. The precast poles for the streetlighting has become increasingly popuL'lf for the land

development as well as electricity boards due to scarcity oftimber poles and also the exorbitlmt cost of the same. Evenmetallic telephone poles are being often replaced with precastconcrete poles.

3. PROGRAMME FOR NATIONAL NETWORKOF BUILDING CENTRES

Despite considerable efforts made by the Government andrelevant institutions, the technologies developed by various R& D bodies have, often remained at L~bomtory level and very .limited exposure to these positive achievements have beenmade at field level.

In a bid to overcome this limitation, an institutional mechanism

was set up in 1986 In strengthen the local capacities so as toenable them to absorb and implement the successful R&Dfindings inlow-income housing construction. To this effect the

20

Nirmithi Kendra (Building Centre) was established in August,1986 in Quilon (Kollam). The Quilon Building Centre hasplayed a very crucial role in ensuring appropriate technologytransferto field through proper training ofartisans in productionof building materials and application of appropriateconstruction techniques in many housing (md building projects.The successful results achieved by this Centre has nowblossomed into National Programme of Network of BuildingCentres.

Considering the potential of the grassroots-level technologytransfer through an institutional mechanism, the Government of

India decided to launch a national programme for setting upbuilding centres in all districts of India. The programme wascleared by the Finance Minister in the budget proposals on 29thFehruary 1988 through the following statement:

"There is. a great scope for using local low-cost materials inhousing. Our scientists and engineers have also developedconsiderableexperience inlow-cost housing technology. It hasbeen decided to set up a nat/anal network ofNirman Kendrasor Nirmithi Kendras which will provide easy access to low-costhousing materiuls and techniques. It is proposed to set up oneKendra ill each district. In the coming year, lOa Kelldras willbe set up",

The building centres essentially serve the following five areasof work:

(a) Technology transfer from 'L~b' In 'land' bydisseminating information on cost- effectivetechnologies in urban and rural areas;

(b) Skill upgm<L'ltion and training of masons, artisans,carpenters, other building related work forceincluding professil;mals and entrepreneurs invarious cost-effective building materialsproduction techniques and construction systems;

(c) Manulilcturing/production of cost-effectivebuilding materials/components based on local,natural or waste resources and providing salesoutlets for the various user groups;

(d) Creating a pool of trained rural/urban constructionworkforce and meet the diverse needs of housingand building construction and other developmentalactivities undertaken by individual households orpublic housing/development agencies utilizingappropriate and cost-effective buildingt.echnologies;

(e) Providing guidance, information and counsellingon housing and building construction matters.

3.1 Organizational set-up

In the initial years. building centres have been established withdistrict administration-driven model where the initiative was tocome primarily from the district collector and district

administration. However, during the evolutionary sk.ges in thelast five years, the building centres are being established undervarious leadership models as given below:

(i) by sk.te Government, dislrict administration, localbodies, block development offices, ruraIdevelopment agencies;

(ii) by the sk.te/central housing agencies/underwkings;

(iii) by the research and development institutions;

(iv) by educational, training, management organizationsengaged in teaching, skill/entrepreneurshipdevelopment in the areas of housing, building andconstruction;

(v) by non-governmenk'll organizations, volunwrybodies and charik.ble trust societies;

(vi) by _professionals, developers, builders andentrepreneurs individually or collectively;

(vii) by construction workers' cooperatives, contractors/builders' associations, cooperative housingsocieties.

It is hoped that the above flexibility of eSk.blishing andoperationalising building centres through flexible leadershipwould Subskwtially help in giving the right level of autonomyand operational effectiveness.

HUDCO has been entrusted with the noeL'll role ofestablishmentof National Network of Building Centres by the Ministry ofUrban Development, Government of India HUDCO hasformulated an Action Plan M.wual identifying the various

administrative, technical, financial. organisational andmanagement requirements for the _establishment of buildingcentres in respect of:

• the institutional set up and requirements for runningthe centres;

• land for putting up the building centres;

• the building required for the centre with adequaterooms, building materials storage spaces andoffices for personnel;

• identification of tools, equipment and othermachin~ry to have them on stock;

• training requirements.

As far as fmanch'll inputs are concerned, initial funds life madeavailable by the Government of India through grant assiskwce

- for building, -equipments, machinery, tools and also training,covering 'cost of trainer 3!ld trainees. So far ~m mnount ofRs.200.OllO has been made available for each centre coveringRs.50.000 for building, Rs.50.000 for equipments, machineriesand tools and Rs.100,000 for training support on behalf of the

Ministry of Urban Development and administered by Housingand Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO). Some of thestate govemments!housing agencies/development authoritieshave also made conlributions in form ofgrant assistance for thedevelopment of building centres in their respective dislricts.

Following the initial results achieved by building centres, areview was carried out by an expert panel on behalf of theGovernment ofIndia The expert group had noted that while theBuilding Centre Movement has caught up well in some sWtes,it has not taken roots in many other sk.tes. With a view tomaking the Building Centre Movement spread its activities ona nation-wide basis in all sWtes, the expert group had comeforward with many recommendations. One of therecommeneL.tions has been to increase the grantassiskwceformthe present Rs. 200,000 to Rs. 500.000 for each centre. Thiswould cover land and development assistance as well as forcovering the costs for running the centres.

The breakdown of the proposed fmancial requirement ofeach centre is given in the k.ble below:

FACILITY PERCENTAGE COST(RUPEES)

Land/development 10 50.000

Building 20 100,000

Equipment, 20 100.000machinery and tools

Training 30 150,000

Overhead, such as 20 100,000water, electricityconnection, etc.

Total 100 500,000

3.2 External assistance

The German Credit Bank for Reconstruction (KFW) hasdecided to provide assistance for the expansion andimprovement of the operations of building centres with agrant-in-aid of upto Rs. I ,000,000 for I.wd and development,building, equipments, etc. It is, therefore, possible to dovek1i1the funds available from the Government ofIndiaand KFW andallocate larger swrter corpus of funds for building centres. Itwould also help in making the building centres economicallyand financially viable with this type of support. The KFWsupport of DM 10 million would give supplemenk1ry financialsupport to 200 building centres.

The work of building centres can also be attnched to the dislrictdevelopment programmes where subskwtial amount ofintegrated projects are -implemented. The uniqueness of theprogrammes is the integration of the-dislrict developmentactivities and dovetailing these with the building centreactivities, so that the trained construction workforce can bedeployed in housing and other building construction activitieskmng place in the dislrict.

In addition, certain supplemenk1ry R&D grant is madeavailable by HUDCO for demonstration oftechnologies as well

21

As a result of the success of the Building Centre Movement

achieved so far, several new initiatives are coming up, namelythe establishment of s~~te level building centres/nocL-u agenciesto coordinate, guide, assist in the work of building centres.Appropriate linkages for technology adoption. prepar'dtion oftechnical literature in curriculum are also considered to be animportant activity of the building centres. Forthennore, there

are some additional initiatives taken to establish buildingcentres so as to ~~e care of the needs of rural areas. Fordisseminating technologies in remote areas, the concept ofmobile building centres are also promoted (Ninnithi Vahini).As part of HUDCO's Silver Jubilee initiatives, 4 NinnathiVahini have been commissioned for Kesnik, Auroville,

Verllore and Candhigram building centres.

as esmblishing testing facilities/equipment for enhancingqoality control.

Forthermore, additional soft loan assismnce is also madeavailable by HUDCO for the capacity building programmes forbuilding centres. The lmUl assistance covers costs of additional

machinery/equipment as well as working capi~-u needs.

3.3 Training programme

Training is given to the local workers to familiarize them withconventional/innovative technologies. Training in buildingcentres is given lor three categories of workers: skilled.semi-skilled and unskilled. The training duration differs fordifferent categories:,

(a) For skilled masons/carpenters/bar-benders: 2 to 3months training on upgrading skills in the field ofnew technology and alternative building materialsproduction and use.

(b) For semi-skilled work force the training period is 4months.

(c)

(d)

Land allotted

Administrative approval accordedfor inclusion in National Networkof Building Centres

383

375

The latest position of progress as on April 1995 is given below:

No.

(c) For unskilled and unemployed rural youths, thetraining period is 6 months. In this period anindepth training will be given to them on variousconventional and new technologies and alternativeproducts.

3.4 Professionals

In-service professionals of various construction department.also need subSllUltial exposure on the availability of thealternative technologies and the application methods. For theprofessionals of various construction deparunents both at stateand central levels, it is necessary that appropriate orien~~tion

programmes are organized. These could be for three weeks toone month for mid-level executives and executive engineersand may be a week for superintendent engineers and above.

3.5 Progress

During the last six years of operation, the Building CentreMovement has got off fairly well 'Uld subsllUltial amount ofprogress has been made for identifying locations for setting upbuilding centres, including organizational set up, l'Uldallocations and administrative approvals for inclusion in theNational Network of Building Centres. Currently the Networkhas expanded to over 375 centres in different parts of thecountry.

Experience has shown that buildings constructed throughbuilding centres interventions, have been 15 to 40 per centch",~per than conventional and traditional methods, dependingupon the combination of technology adopted in a specificapplication and materials used in the construction process.

The Building Centre Movement has been able to providetraining for over 41,000 construction workers over the last fiveyears on many cost-effective and innovative technologies andtechniques ofconstruction.

Another significant ar"'~ where the building centres are able toplaya role is in imparting the right level of practical training tothe professional architects, engineers and diploma holders forcontributing their skills and capacities in actual implementationofprojects, using various technologies. Students ofarchitectureand engineering in architectural schools and engineeringcolleges are also increasingly getting exposed to the new

technologies. Till now, very limited exposure has been given tothese ar",~ in the professional colleges. This has been felt as atypical gap in the educational curriculum. Attachment ofstudents to the building centres for practical field exposure andhands-on training have contributed significantly in these

efforl'.

It has also been able to ~~e up the construction work for

houses/buildings with the lowest cost in different parts of thecountry. These cover the houses for all categories of

government housing agencies, cooperatives, individuals, andsocial and community amenities such as schools, primary health

centres, office building, commercial complexes, industri.-ues~~tes, tourism complex buildings, recreational buildings,

kiosks, bus shelters, water supply tanks, solid waste collectors,etc, thus demonstrating thai cost effective technologies haveequal levels of application from the w",~er sections to highincome housing as well as public buildings.

390

421

30 to 40 years20 to 35 years15 to 20 years

Organizational set up constituted

Building centres identified(a)

(b)

Skilled labourersSemi-skilled labourersUnskilled labourers

The id",-u age group for trainees are:

22

The Building Centre Movement of India has hrought innational. regional and international acclaim as fm appropriategrassrootli level intervention for technology transfer andhousing delivery.

This movement h'l' found acceptance as a model with ,dl itspotenti,d for appropriate replication. adaption arld adoption byvarious countries in various locations. depenuing upon theregiomd needs. The United Nations Centre for Hum,mSettlements (Habii<1t) in a hid to acknowledge and appreciatethe efforts of HUDCO. awarded in 1991 the Habitat Scroll ofHonour to HUDCO "fur inllovation, development amipromotion of building materials, design am} cOllsfructioll,f{U'ajj()rdable housing for the poor and tr(Jillill~ ill constructionskills".

MarlY developing countries in Asiaand Aliica bave shown greatinterest and initiatives to replicate the Indiim huilding centremodel in their countries.

3.6 Extension and propagation

While i<1king stock of the initiatives of technology tr,msferthrough the Network of Building Centres and through ti,eintroduction in high-visibility publicljJrojects, the followingadditional areas require attention and consideration:

appropriate technology brochures/hand outs published hyBMTPC/HUDCO/R & D/other agencies of central ,md stateconstruction departments could be used flO;; tr,msitional andprovisional standards.

(d) R&D flllld

With a view to populal'ize various new technologies ,md ,dsofor building conlidcnce alnong professiomds, 'm R&D fund orrisk fond to the extent of 1 to 2 per cent of tile cost of theconstruction could be created so that in ca."iC of ~my damage. asa result of introduction of ,my new technology. ti,e fundsavailable in the R&D fund could compensate it. This isimportant because many practising professionals are unwillingto use some of the cost-effective technologies due to fear oflaterproblems, which could affect their future career prospects.HUDCO's R&D support for various initiatives in thisconnection may be considered as a source of encouragement.

(e) Disseminution through Ulldio-vislluls ami other mea/lS

[t is necessary that new technologies are given appropriateprojection using the media and audio-visual means. This wouldhelp give appropriate infonnation on ti,e right type of materi:dsand technologies. Dissemination of infonnation through mediacould be particularly helpful in slmdltown and suh-urhan are",where people have access to radio and TV.

(a)

4. CONCLUSIONThere is an array of technology options available for variouselements ofbuilding construction. leading to cost-effectivenessand at the smne time not effecting the perfonmmce

With a view to encourage entrepreneurs to come forward forthe manufacture of various low-cost building materials andtechnologies. SUlte Governments may set up huilding materi,destates and also appropriate building material component salesoutlet centres tbrough the building materi,d Imrrkets.

(hJ Reco}:llitioll by !Iousillx/lnallf:e institutio/ls (HFls)

It is a common perception that large number of housing financeinstitutions (with ti,e exemption of HUDCO) do not encourageintroduction of various cost-eflective building materials andtechnologies for housing projects tmd as a result, lmms are notgiven e'LSily. It is necessary tbat a folio is made available to theHFIs. so that when tbey sanction individual loans, the saine doesnot get held up due to introduction ofthesetecbno[ogies. Aspecial training programme recently org,mized by one of theHFIs has brougbt to focus tbe need for such a step.

Buildillg material eSlales and markets(f)

(g) A specialllzruslfor IItitization ofagricllltllraland industrial wastes

With a view to encourage the building materials industry to

utilize agricultural and industrial waste:-; a."! a 'wa:-;te to health'or 'refuse to re1:lourcc' strategy, Government should comeforw,rrd ,md give ,dl possible incentives for such initiatives.

These may include exemption of customs duty /excise duty :LS

well ,., Sldes tax and other ch,rrges. Furthennore, the finallcial

institutions should also support initiatives for usingagro/industrial residues in the production of building materialsthrough equity support lmm, etc.

Propagationlhrough the building lechnology exposilianand housing guidance centre

There is need for extending the results of research anddevelopment in huilding tecbnologies to suite the needs ofindividual and group bome builders. professionals ,md othersthrough ti,e penmment "building technology exposition" and"housing guidance centre tl in all st..'lte capitals. These should besimilar to the one set up in the HUDCO soutilem zomd officeat Madras. These should be open throughout the year for thegeneral public to visit and familiarize with the buildingtechnologies. Such penmment expositions should be put up hystate housing agencies/HUDCO/BMTPC ,md other agencies ona continuing basis in all statc capiUds and over a period of timein ,dl otiler cities/towns.

In addition. it is ,dso desirable to give at least six months to oneyear practical training to students on actual field situations aspart of the educational curriculum, before degree is awarded.

The curriculum of the courses offered at architectund :mdengineering schools should be upgraded so as to train thestudents on innovative :md appropriate tecbnologies for housingconslructions.

(b ) Upgrading educatiollal ,,"rricululll ofarchileCtllral andengineering courses

(i:) Standardizationl'alidily Ihrough Ihe codesand standards

Since most ofthe existing handbooks, manuals as well,LS codes,md s~1ndards do not have coverage on most of the innovativebuilding materials ,md technologies, speedy and time-boundaction need to be i<1ken for providing these technologies in theseimportant regulatory documents. This is also linked with thecountries standardization efforts for introduction of innovativetechnologies/materiai'/techniques of construction in IndianCode design and construction sumdards. Till such time.

23

characteristics expected from a decent house. Itis desirable tohave increased understanding of the various materials andtechnology options, its structural and functional characteristicsand efficiencies ~md more importantly the methodologies forimplementation. Series of follow-up measures to enableapplication of the srune would need to be tlken. These wouldcover work related to regulatory measures, organizational

A construction site in India, Courtesy HUDCO, India

24

development needs and also technology transfer mechanismsevolved. This would playa major role in ensuring the adoptionof appropriate and cost-effective technologies in housing andbuilding construction scene, which is one of the vit<ll inputs tomake affordable and accept<~ble housing a reality for the vastmajority of low-income people in the country.

HABITAT II

CONFERENCE CLOSES ASHABITAT AGENDA IS ADOPTED,

UNCHS TO BE STRENGTHENED ASIMPLEMENTING AGENCY

The Hahitatll Conferencesucceeded in aU ofits major goals

of putting the problems of human settlements at the centre ofthe local, national and international agenda and sharing

solutions aimed at improving life in hwnan settlements. Thiswas said by Habitat II SecretlUy-General Dr. waUy N'Oow.

Included in the process for the first til'ne were represen~~tives

from cities, the private sector, other local authorities, grassrootsorganization and non-governmental organizations (NGOs),instead ofjust national governments. This bold move paid richdividends in terms ofgenerating enthusiasm and interest as wellas enriching the understanding of aU issues which were being

"

addressed.

"This Conference recognized the changing global patterns oflife, recognizing that solutions also must be found at the locallevel" National governments and international agencies,cannot solve nor pay the solutions to these massive urbanproblems" said Dr. waUy N'Oow.

"Habitat II has revolutionized how the United Nations willconduct future confere,nces," Dr. N'Oow said. " The UnitedNations and its conferences have grown beyond being a forumfor just countries, and will from here on better reflect thedynamic cities and local organizations."

The burgeoning growth in global population, which will risefrom today's 5.6 billion to some 8.5 billion by 2025, can onlybe sus~~ed in cities. The Habi~~t II Conference recognized thisnew reality, th~t the Earth's rural areas clthnot absorb anadditionalthree billion people, because the land clmnolsupportthem without devas~~ting environmenutl consequences.

Dr. N'Oow added that "the m;yor theme of the Conference isthat cities are the world's future and that they can be madeliveable. A second theme is that hltlfthe world's people still livein rural areas, and the same improvements in the way peoplelive can be applied to these areas as well."

The' problems of human settlements are many - the world

population is growing at the rate ofa quarter ofa million peopledaily. Currently, some 100 million human beings, most of them

women and children, are homeless. Oventl\, at lC1L<t600 million

people live in shelters that are life - or hC1tlth - threatening indeveloping world cities.

"This Habitat conference, however, has demonstratedconclusively tbataU ofthis hardship is completely unnecessary,that the resources exist to put a roofover the head and bring safewater and sani~~tion, for less than $ lOOper person, to everyman, woman and child on this phwet." said Dr. N'Oow.

Dr. N'Oow emphasized that a m;yor advance ofthe Conferencewas in its emphasis on the crucial role of women in thesustainable development of human settlements.

WOl)1en constitute 7Qpercentofthe world's 1.3 billion absolutepoor, and 50,000 women and their children die daily as a result

of poor shelter, water or sanitation. "But thousands of womenhave come to Is~wbul, many from the grassroots level, to seekdeeper commitments from the international community tochange the conditions that keep the m;yority of womenpowerless and poor" ...... "We have kept this commitment Theprimary role of women in human settlements has been stronglyrecognized by this Conference".

"The empowerment of women and their full and equalparticipation in political, social and economic life, theimprovement of health, and the eradication of poverty areessential to achieving sus~'linable human settlements", says thefinal Habi~~t document.

Dr. N'Oow added that the delegates bridged differences duringthe final work on the "Habi~~t Agendlc Gmtls and Principles,Comminnents and Global Phm of Action," and that this itselfwas a sign of the vi~wty of the United Nations system.

"Anyone who believes that our global conferences consist ofdry debate with the outcome preonI.'lined did not sit in on anyof the spirited discussions that went on during Habi~~t II",

The primary disputes arose over the definition of the" right tohousing," the question of whether developed countries shouldgreatly increase aid to developing ones to improve shelter, andwomen's reproductive rights. Recognition of the right to

25

housing was fnuned as fulluws: "We agree to t,lke all stepsnecessary for the progressive realization of the rightto adequatehousing." Issues that are part of the Habitat Agenda but not coreissues have heen defined in relation to spiritual and cultumlvalues.

"We have resolved most of these questions, through vigorousdebate and consensus:' said Dr. N'Dow. "A m1\iorreason whydebate was so spirited was because of the fresh infusion ofvoices into this UN conference, from city and other localofllcials, NGOs [Uld grassroo!., org[Ulizations."

"The Global Plan of Action" puts the primary responsibility oncountries for carrying out the Hahik~t programme, hut cities are

Note: Text tokelljhJln 0 press release produced lilistollblli

also given a centml role. In terms of post-Conferencesfollow-up, there was unanimous endorsement of UNCHS(Habitat) as the focal point for the implementation of theHabik~t Agenda within the United Nations system.Implemenk~tion of the Habik~t Agenda will fall within thesovereign rights of Member Sk~tes".

"The Hahitat Agenda is a global call to action at all levels,"tbe final document says. It offers, within a framework of goalsand principals and committnents, a positive vision ofsustainable human settlements - where all have adequateshelter, a healthy and safe environment, basic services, andproductive and freely chosen employment. The Habik~tAgendawill guide all efforts to tum this vision into a reality."

The Habitat AgendaGoals and Principles, Commitments and

Global Plan of Action

26

•

EVENTS

. MEETING OF THE MINISTERS IN CHARGE OFHABITAT AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT OF THECENTRAL AFRICAN SUBREGION: NAMIBIA,COMOROS AND DJIBOUTI HEW INBRAZAVILLE, CONGO, IO - I2 APRIL 1995

THE BRAZAVILLE DECLARATION

Aware of the troubles and delay experienced by most countriesin the subregion in preparing their National Plans of Action forHabitat II.

We, the Ministers in charge ofHabitat and UrbanDevelopment, reaffirm that cities, towns and villagesmust be part ofan area ofpriority action forgovemmellts ofcountries in the subregion for thispurpose, we solemnly undertake to:

Bearing in mind the African Ministers declaration adopted in

Nairobi on March 30, 1994, relating to the prepamtion of the

second United Nations Conference on Human settlements(Habitat II) - "the City Summit" which will tlIke place inIstanhul in June 1996.

Bearing also in mind the decision of the Prepamtory Committee

of Habitat II Conference at its fIrst subsmntive session held inGeneva, from 11 to 22 April, 1994.

Taking note of the Declarations of Dakar on October 4, 1994

and Krunpala on February 28, 1995.

Aware of the cities driving role in tlle suhregion economic,

politic~d, social and cultural development, as well as thecomplemenlIrry relationship existing between cities and the

rund world.

Taking into account the situation of Human Settlements inAfrica and mainly in the subregion. which is characterized bycut intensive urban crisis and a continuous deterioration of theliving conditions of the poorest, due mainly to:

• The high demographic increase rate with an everincreasing urbanization, which makes it imperative tnbetter manage the urb~m development.

• The deterioration ofthe general conditions ofhabitat andurban environment which will come to an end with thesupply of services and tlle setting-up of appropriateinfrastructures for waler supply, electricity, telephone,solid-wastes management, sanitation ~md publictnmsportation.

• The weakness of interventions in the area of urhandevelopment and hmd policies which causes a chronicshortnge of adequate housing and fdTordahle forlow-income people.

• The disregard of m~my non-oflici~d hmd productionclumnels and the complexity of omcial procedureswhich perpetuates precarious situations andunder-equipment.

• The importlmce of political ~md socitd crises and naturaldi"isters, which particularly affect hum~m settlemenlSmId the need to undertake preventive actions forreconstruction rmd development in favour of strickencommunities.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

Adopt ~md implement facililIltor, partICIpative ~md

innovative policies in the area of urb~m development,land and urban management and habitat, in order toreach Habit~t II t1fgets, which are:

an adequate housing for alla sustainable development of hum,m settlements inan urbanizing world

Define rmd implement programmes aiming at pr~servingenvironment, improving infrastructure llild basicservices, as well as reducing urban poverty. which arethree closely linked pmmneters.

Closely collaborate with municip~dities and favourdecentralization in order to improve the technical andfinancial management: of towns and their effectivenessin the promotion of social and economic development.

Favour the emergence of dynmnic municip~~ landpolicies including the setting up of l~md reserves, whichc~m he made possible hy a greater autonomy granted tomunicipalities in the management of their fimmcialresources rmd the financing of their urbanization througha contractual ba:;;is in their relationships with theGovernment. the possibility to have access ~o credit andpromote ~m appropriate tax system. The Governmentshould therefore strengthen its capahilities to control thelegality of municipal actions and look after the respectof basic national social bahmces.

Revise. should the occasion arise. the legal andregulation fnunewofk and land management which is at:the root of the hmmm settlements development, byacknowledging the vmious lanu production channels.allowing the variou." tenure status. trying to mtionalizethem and cmTying out policies of Irmd regulmization soas to favour acc~ss to land. mainly for poor people.

Encourage and develop actions and strategies at theneighbourhood level, mainly through non.;.governmentalorganizations ~Uld basic communities. which makes itpossihle to improve th~ living environment and reduceurban poverty.

Look after the development of national urban network,which is essential for the development of the rund world,

27

8.

9.

10.

II.

12.

13.

14.

15_

28

particularly thanks to adequate investmeDls in secondarycities and communication infrastructures.

Strengthen the role of women in the development ofhuman settlements by making land, resources anddecision-making processes fairly accessible to tllem.

Mobilize youth in creating better conditions for theiraccess to education and favouring their participation inurban mmmgement and decision-making process.

Promote the selling up ,md the irnplemen~~tion ofinnovative. appropriate and facilitatory financingmachineries of credit for poor people, ~1king intoaccount their irifonmu undertllkings both in urban ,mdrural areas.

Develop ch,mnels of production, diffusion and supplyfor locally-produced materials in order to lower buildingcosts, favour job opportunities and save -foreigncurrencies. Should the occasion arise, mnend huildingcodes and regulations in ordeno make their use possible.

Define preventive strategies for natural and man-madedisasters, resolution of the massive and lasting refugeeproblems ,md victims of disasters, for the control ofurhan violence, which c,m he made possible by wllY ofa hroader politic,u smbility in the region and thepromotion of the h'Ulnonious and f,Ur relationshipshetween social groups.

Actively participate in prepming Habitat II by way ofcarrying out a broader possible national consultationwith the different actors of human settlements:Governmental rmd non-governmental orgrmizations andinstitutions, private sector, basic communities. researchworkers and sGholars.

Prepare before December 1, 1995 Natiomu Pltms ofAction answering the main prbblems of people living intowns ,md villages as stressed by various actors,specific,uly:

the gathering of urhan sector ,md housing indicatorsas detined by the United Nations Centre for HumanSettlements;the an,uysis of current policies and theireffectiveness;the selection of some model policies or successfulactions, for a national and international publicity;the setting up of a priority progrtunme of actions forthe period 1996 - 2lKJO.

Appe,u to multilateral 'Uld hi/ateml organizations inorder for them to support the countries of tl,e suhregionin their preparatory works of Habitat II Conference.

AFRICAN REGIONAL MINISTERIAL MEETINGIN PREPARATION FOR THE SECOND UNITEDNATIONS CONFERENCE ON HUMANSETTLEMENTS (HABITAT Il), JOHANNESBURG,SOUTH AFRICA, 16 - 18 OCTOBER 1995

Executive Summary of Johannesburg Declarationon the African Common Position for the Habitat IIAdopted by the African Ministers

Ministers in charge of Human Settlements in all the countriesof the African Region met in Johannesborg, Sooth Africa from16 to 18 October 1995 to consolidate a strategy for effectiveAfrican participation in, and to sopport. the implementation ofthe two themes of the Habi~~t Agenda: adequate shelter for alland susutinable human settlements development in ,murbanizing world.

The Declaration produced is a statement of shared vision andcommitment to dedicate common resources for implementingthe Habi~~t Agenda in Africa.

While acknowledging the need for worldwide focus on hmmmsettlements issues, the Ministers placed special emphasis on anAfrican perspective, stressing financial resources mobilization,resolution of conflicts, land issues, rural-urban developmentbalance, urban poverty and the deteriorating urban environmentas key issues.

African policies must address both urban and rural needs,provide infrastructure in rural areas, and encourage privatesector involvement through direct incentives to invest in ruralareas.

The African region is plagued by the problem of persistentmassive refugees and displaces persons as aresultofnatural andm,m-made disasters. Solutions must be implemented whichGonfonn root causes of such displacement as well asenvironmenuu degradation and civil violence. In particular, theurgent situations in Rw,mda, Burundi, Liberia and SierraLeonemust he recognized by the intematiomu community.

Susutinahle human settlements require appropri'tle andenvironmen~~y-sound land-use planning. Such planning mustrecognize the continuum of rural regions, cities and towns ,mdmust take into account the potentially dire ramitication of theexpansion of cities which depletes already stressed water, landand energy resources and threatens cultUrtU and geologicalmonuments.

As the engines that drive economic development, cities requireetlicient inlrastructure ,md services including energy, wastedispos,u, tnmsport ,md communication. Increasingly, loc,uauthorities must he given greaterpowenmd tiscal responsihilityfor providing such services. Puhlic and private partnershipsmust be encouraged to genemte new resources and to involvepopular pmlicipatiDn in municip,u decision-making.

Susutinahle hum,m settlements are achievable only throughpopular participation and civic education. Legislative refonnmust be enacted which encourages and exp,mds participation ofthe private sector, loc,u authorities and non-govemmenuuorganizations.

»

To ensure civic participation at all levels. priority must be givento the issue of land-tenure reform and security of tenure. toguarantee equitllble access to land by all citizens. especially thepoor. disadvantaged and women.

FisCI~ reform must be implemented. Innovative financialmechanisms must be cr~'lted to ensure access to finance.including mobilization of pension and insurance funds 'mdbonds. These new mechanisms. while allowing citizens accessto finance. must also include global measures such as debtreduction or cancellation.

National economies must be stimulated to attract privateinvestmen~ genemte employmen~ increase revenues andprovide a strong economic base. To this end. we urge thecreation of an International Fund to elicit contributions fromcountries and international institutions. directed at addressingthe human settlements problems in Afric'L

Human capiL1.I is critical for the effective functioning of aneconomy. We must invest in basic education and vocationalInuning while addressing the root causes of poverty. withspecial emphasis on female-headed households. Women playacritical role in the human settlements agenda and must beguaranteed full rights. including the right to inheritance andownership of land. property and security of tenure.

The special needs of the elderly. the disabled and youth mustbe recognized. Millions ofchildren in the African region live indire circumSL1I1ces. Such children. as our most vulnerablecitizens. must be provided with 'special protection andassistance.

OUf urban citizens continue to be victims ofcrime lmd violence.Neighbourhood-based crime prevention and conflict resolutionprogmmmes must be implemented to offer protection 'md tobuild united communities.

To further strengthen community involvement. production ofbuilding materials must be localized. Reform of buildingtechnologies. codes and regulations is required to reduce costs.provide employment and new opportunities for shelter.

To ensure that these critical issues are addressed and solutionsdeveloped. regional orglmizations must co-operate withUNCHS (Habitat) to implement the Habitat Agenda in Africa.We urge such organisations. member states and a.ll relevmltpartners to attend to the Third Substtmtive Session of thePreparatory Committee in New York and the UN Conferenceon Human Settlements in Isttmbul in June 1996.

Our commitment to the hUlmm settlements agenda must go

heyond the HabiL~t II Conference. The Genert~ Assemhlyshould recognize Hahitat as an agency to coordinate theimplementation 'md follow-up of the Gloh,~ Plan of Action andshould" provide additio",~ resources for this mandate. We

pledge our continued involvement in implementing the hum,msettlements agenda fmd will meet annually to monitor our

progress.

PRIVATE SECTOR ROUND-TABLE, 16 TO 18OCTOBER 1995, JOHANNESBURG, SOUTHAFRICA

About 100 African private-sector represenL~tives attended around-L~ble meeting which was held during the Regio",~

Ministerial Meeting for Africa on preparation for the secondUnited Nations Conference on Human Settlements (HahiL~t II)in Joh,mnesburg.

The private-sector representative called on their governmentsto establish and pursue. as' a matter of policy. the partnershipbetween the public and private sectors with a view to achievingrapidly the goals of adequate shelter for all and susL1.inablehuman settlements development in Africa.

In a joint Declaration. the private-sector representativesrecommended to the Ministerial Meeting the need for Africangovernments to recognize shelter provision and the humansettlements sector as "major engines for economic growth ll and"to underttlke necessary land refonns and land marketdecentralization in order to faciliL~te private-sector invesnnentin housing 'md related infrastructure development". TheDeclaration I~SO called for, mnong other things, theeSL~blishment of national forums involving the private sectorand all Ministries concerned to "faciliL~te an effectivepartnership in response to the challenges of providing adequate

shelter for all and susL1.inable human seulement development".

This declan'tion is the fIrst step forward in the evolution of aprivate-sector partnership with governments to implement theGlobal Plan of Action - the blueprint for susllunable hum,msettlements development that will emerge out of the Habitat IIConference next June - and to help develop a strategic agendafor delivery of affordable housing in AfriCIL

Dr. Wally N·Dow. the Secretnry-Genert~ of HabiL~t II. who isdetennined to make partnership between the public and privatesectors a key principle in the HabiL~t II Global Plan of Action.said that "partnership hetween governments and the privatesector would be profitable for both sectors in the long run.Private-sector investment in housing ~md infrastructure,particularly in cities. is a sure win-win situation in the strugglefor economic growth and development ll

,

Dr. W,~ly N'Dow expl,uned: "Such a partnership. ror U,eaccelerated development or hUlmm settlements andinfrastructure in Africa. has several advantages. both in theshort- and long-run. In the short-run. it has a great potential ofchlmging. in a positive way. the supply of adequate andaffordable shelter in many countries. It Clm introduceeconomies of scale 'md efficiencies in the supply side to meetchanging patterns of demand. In the long-tenn. infrastructuredevelopment can I~SO increasingly become a function of theprivate sector. leading progressively to a culture of melmingfulcost recovery in this sector. This .... is a necessary ingredient inthe efficient provision of infrastructuraJ services, especially ifsuch services are to be financed hy private capitt~, fromwhatever source. Experience has shown us that Governmentslffe not usually well-placed to implement cost-recoverymeasures as they are often constrained by considemtion orpolitical lmd social expediency."

29

The Secretary-General of Hahiult II urged the African

private-sectorrepresenu.tives to consult with their governmentson how best to participate in the HabiULt II Conference and

encourage them to take part in the Istanbul Trade Fair on Good

Ideas for Better Cities which will take place parallel to theHabitat II Conference in Istanbul.

This private-sector roundtable was coordinated by

Shelter-Afiique on behalf of the United Nations Centre forHumlm Settlements (Habiu,t), the United Nations Economic

Commission for Africa (ECA), the Organization of AfricanUnity (OAU) and the Republic of South Atiica, the host

country. Participants at this Roundtable included housingdevelopers, financial experts, brokers, contractors and

researchers.

THIRD PREPARATORY COMMITTEE SESSIONFOR THE UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE ONHUMAN SETTLEMENTS (HABITAT Il),NEW YORK, 5 TO 16 FEBRUARY 1996

The third and the last Preparatory Committee of Hahiult IIConference succeeded in endorsing, conditiomdly, mItiorportions ofa proposed st.1tementofprinciples and commitmentsas well as the global plan of action to be submitted to theconference in June 1996.

The Preparatory Committee noted that, due to time constraints,portions of the fimd document would be submitted to theconference a~ having been informldly negotiated during theprepanltory process, but not fonmdly approved.

The propused final document, "The Habitat Agenda", isintended l.~ a global call to action at ldl levels and a guidetowards the achievement of the sustainable development of theworld's cities, towns and villages into the first two decades ofthe next century.

Following extended negotiations during the session, a numberof issues remained unresolved in the proposed text, includingthe right to adequate housing, an institutional mmngement forfollow-up to tbe plan of action Imd financial resources neededfor implementation.

One llrea of progress during the thinJ session, as reflected in theproposed text, concerned theideaof partnerships, which wouldbe based on the willingness of national governments 10 workwith local authorities on the Agenda. All partners would beencouraged to work with non-governmental organizations andthe private sector.

Dr. Wldly N'Dow, Secretary-Genend of the Conference, in a

closing statement. said that the negoti..1.lions over the Agenda."have heen long and hard, hut we leave here with mlmy brackets

of issues and phn.,,:ology that have, thus far, delied our most

30

intense efforts". He expressed confidence dlat, in spite of dIe

difficulties, the negotiating process now under way in HabitatPreparatory Committee would succeed, and when it was over

...."and that may not be until Istanbul itself ... we will have aGlobld Plan of Action that reflects a globld consensus".

He went on to say that enormous progress had been made in theevaluation and understanding of the notion of the right tohousing. Gains had also heen made in agreement on theaffinnative obligations of government to help make housinghabiulble, affordable and accessible. He stressed thatpartnership had become acompelling theme forthe Conference.

Noting that some 1,200 non-government.ll represent.1tives fromnearly 400 organizations had been partofthe committee's thirdsession, Dr. Wally N'Dow highlighted the imporkwt roleplayed in the preparatory process by women's groups and byyoung people. He stressed that there would be no retreat inIsumbul from the commitments made in Beijing, Cairo, Rio andat other world conferences.

According to the Chairman of the Preparatory Committee, Mr.Martti Lujanen (Finland), the unresolved issues would be thesubject of informal negotiations in the period leading up to[st.wbul, and would be Wken up again fonnalJy duringpre-Conference consu[t.1tions. In closing the session, he sULtedthat the question of what was meant by good or sustainabledevelopment was, in essence, political. The [stlmbulConference would have to decide on the development paradigmfor the towns and cities in the next century.

Addressing the closing ofthe session, Mr. Jmnes Gustave Speth,Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme(UNDP), welcomed the progress made hy the PreparatoryCommittee. He said that Habitat II provided an unparalJeledopportunity to integrate a range of goals related to such issuesas sust.'linable development, human rights, social development,and population control. The success of the entire continuum ofworld conferences, including Habitat II, would depend onwhether the words were translated into action and on whatefforts were made to follow-up on the conferences.

The UNDP had produced a document on the United Nationsintegrated approach to follow- up to the World Conferences, hecontinued. That document, det.'liled how the World Bank, theUNDP Imd the other United. Nations agencies were worlcingtogether on the follow-up to those conferences. The UNDPawaited the Habitllt II results, so that it could be integrnted intothat approacb.

Also during its third session, the Preparatory Committeeapproved the li~t of non-governmenUd orglmizations and localauthorities recommended for accredit.1tion of the Conference,as well ,.~ the provisional agenda for the Conference and thereport of the Committee on the session.

-

PUBLICATIONS REVIEWPublished by UNCHS (Habitat)

An Urbanizing World - Global Report 011 HumanSettlements 1996This Global Report on all Urballizillg World assessesconditions and trends in the world's human settlemems - cities,towns and vilL~ges. The growth in urban poverty has been oneof the most noticeable trends during the 1980s and early 1990s.Another has been the limited achievements ofgovernmems andinternational agencies in improving housing and livingconditions, including expanding the provision of safe andsufficiem water supplies and adequate sanitation :md drainage.Recent estimates as to the scale of the health burden sufferedby those living in poor quality housing also highlight how littleprogress has been made.

However, while global achievements in improving housing andliving conditions have been limited, there are also manyexamples in the Global Report of success. Certain national orcity governments have gremly increased the proportion of theirpopuL~tion with piped water and good sani~~tion. Manygovernment agencies and non-governmen~1I organizationshave wOlxed with low income groups and their communitybased org:mizations to greatly improve housing conditions andbasic services (water, sanitation, dminage, he.1Ith care andgarbage removal) at low cost.

•

•

•

•

Urban trendsI. Contrary to most predictions, population growth

rates slowed for many cities in the South2. The world is less dominated by mega-cities than

predicted .3. The links between urban change and economic,

social, and political change

The limited social acbievementsI. Rising poverty level2. Long-tenn soci.1I trends

HODsing conditions and trendsI. Poverty and housing conditions2. The enonnous he.1Ith burden of poor quality

housing3. Poverty and insecure tenure4. The growing number of homeless people5. Governments as enablers, not providers

GovernanceI. The new institutional frameworks for urb,m

authorities

There nre new models for housing finance thm c:m allowlow-income households to acquire better quality housing andstill achieve high levels of cost recovery. Perhaps mostfu",L=en~1IIy, there are new exmnples of city authorities thatare more democratic, accountnble and responsive to the needsand priorities oftheir citizens. These emphasise how much gondgovernance matters. Within low-income countries or cities,good governance can greatly improve housing and livingconditions which in turn c:m produce n III to 15 year incrensein nverage life expec~mcies, without compromising goodeconomic perfonmmce through excessive puhlic expenditure.Within higher income countries, good governance can reducepoverty :md deprivation nnd also the problems so oftennssociated with comemporary urb:m living - high levels ofhomelessness, crime and violence, and the concentration of theunemployed :md unskilled in declining city centres or otherdistricts.

Below nre the key issues and messages of this Report under sixhendings:

• The role of cities within development1. The role of cities and urblffi systems in economic

development2. Without competent :md nccountnble urban

governance, much of the potential contribution ofcities to economic and social development is lost

3. Promoting urb,m development does not me,mneglecting rural development

United Nations Centre for Human SeWements (HABITAT),

An Urbanizing World

2. Enhancing the role of citizen groups, communityorganizations, and NGOs

• Towards sustainable developmentI. From environment protection to sus~1inable

development2. The social components ofsus~1inabledevelopment3. New"approaches to planning

559 pp. HS/382/95E, ISBN 0-19-823346-9

Sllelter provisioll alld employmelltgelleratioll

This publication is a collaborative effort of two United Nationsagencies, the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements(Habi~~t) rmd the International Labour Office. joining theirpolicy research and technical cooperation experiences toillustrate the dynrunic linkages between shelter andemployment. Shelter provision brings together issues that are atthe hearth of the 1995 World Summit for social integration. Itis for this rellson that this puhlication is not only a key input ofhoth agencies into the Social Summit. but more importlmtly willhelp put into practice tl,e mlmy recommendations in the fieldsof poverty aUeviation and employment generation that areexpected to come out of the Summit.

Shelter is much broader th,m housing. Investments in shelternOlonly improve and expand the available stock of housing units,but furthennore improve both the wolking and livingenvironment. The shelter strategies analyzed here can helpreduce poverty while at the same time generating newemployment opportunities for the poorest population groups.However, in addition to expanding the qUlmtity ofemploymentopportunities, shelter provision can ldso improve the quality ofemployment. particularly for those working in the urbaninfonmd sector, where the home and the wor!.l'lace are oftencombined.

This publication has been produced as a follow-up to arecommendation made by the fourteenth session of theCommission on Human Settlements cldling upon UNCHS(Hahitat) and!LO to intensify cooperation in coordinating theirresearch :md operational activities on employment-generation

". .and labour-mtenslve progrrunmes. It ldso links UNCHS(Habitat)'s goals for adequate shelter for ldl with the !LO's gOldof promoting full employment lmd improved workingconditions.

The mlun premise of this joint puhlication is that investment inshelter are productive investments. rather than consumptionexpenditure. Investments in shelter generate income, andincrea,e the labour productivity of the occup,mts. This has onem!\ior implication for development policies: It implies thatshelter provision is not only a gOld but, more importantly, it isa tool of development policy. Any investments in housing,infrastructure or services have effects on the national incomethat go far beyond the direct investment itself. Shelter provisiontriggers additional investments - and employment - inhuilding-materilds production, transport and marketing. Thisadditional employment in tum leads to higher demlmd for avariety orIocld goods and services - mrunly hy semi-skilled andunskilled workers with little propensity of buying importedgoods - and thus increased employment in the production ofsuch goods as well.

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In addition, low-cost housiIJg and basic infrastructure andservices such as drainage, access roads and solid-wastemanagement generate more jobs per unit of investments thanhigh-cost housing and primary infrastructure since they aremore suitable to labour-intensive methods. The involvement ofsmall-scale informal construction enterprises - and indeed localcommunities - in the execution of housing and infrastructureprojects should therefore be supported, as they use moreunskilled labour, fewerimportsand less hard currency than theirlarge-scale, formal-sector counterparts. There is thus an urgentneed to facilitate the activities of the infonnal sector in shelterprovisions, which includes increasing its productivity and itsability to adhere to acceptable health, safety and labourstandards.

The interagency collaboration which this publication representsis just one facet of the rapidly growing partnership between theUnited Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat) and theInternational Labour Office. Other elements of thiscollaboration include the umbrella Urban Poverty PartnershipProgramme which, through a series of hands-on demonstrationactivities in collaboration with low-income communities, willhelp put many of this book's findings into practice. The UrbanPoverty Partnership's "Seeing is Believing" approach usefullycomplements the findings ofthis publication. Likewise, the!LOwithin its mand.ate is supporting UNCHS (Habi~~t) as itprepares for the Second United Nations Conference on HumanSettlements (Habi~~tm in 1996, with a view to turning cities ofdespair, faced with growing unemployment and homelessness,into cities of hope.

249 pp. HS/339/94E, ISBN 92-2-108523-6

Tile lIumall settiemellls cOllditiolls ofllle world'surballpoor

More than one billion people are currently living in absolutepoverty, with incomes too low to meet their daily requirementsin terms of food, clothing and other basic needs. A similar, oreven larger number of people do not have access to safe andhealthy shelter. The k~uerhalf of the twentieth century has seenthe continuous transfer of the world's population into urbanareas. In 1950, less than 30 per cent of the world' s popuk~tion

was urban. By 1995 this figure has increased to 45 per cent.Within the next ten years, more than every second human beingwill live in cities and towns.

We are, however, not only living in an urbanizing world. We

are also living in a period which can best be described as theage of the 'urbanization of poverty'. By 1985 some 330 millionurban dwellers in developing countries had incomes so low thmthey were characterized as living in absolute poverty. Ten yearslater, in 1995, the figure is estimated at430 million. At the sametime, more than 600 million urban residents in developingcountries live in health-threatening houses and conditionscharacterized by lack of basic services such as piped water,sanitation and health care.

There is aconsidernble regional variation to this general picture.While three qulUters of the poor in Latin America and theCaribbean, and in North Africa and the Middle East. live inurban areas, a similar proportion of the poor Iive in rural areasin sub-Sabaran Africa The trend, however, is general. Rapidurban growth in all regions is accompanied by a relative (andin most cases also an absolute) increase in the number of urbanpoor. The explosive growth of informal settlements in manysub-Saharan African cities is a visible manifestation of this.

There are many reasons forthe increasing 'income poverty' and'housing poverty' in urban areas. One of these is the process ofurbanization itself. When this occurs at a time of worldwideeconomic recession - and as we are increasingly realizing thatpresent policies for human settlements development fail to caterfor the special circumstances of the groups affected by extremepoverty - it is not surprising that a large proportion of the 65million people that are added to the urban populations ofdeveloping countries each year end up unemployed orunderemployed, living in very poor shelter conditions.

It is against this reality that the fourteenth session of the UnitedNations Commission on Human Settlements requested theUnited Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat) toreport to the second United Nations Conference on HumanSettlements (Habitm II) on the human settlements conditions ofthe world's urbrm poor. This publication has been prepared inresponse to that request to present recommendations on how to

address the shelter problem of the poorest groups within thecontext ofenabling shelter strategies.

The dual problems of urhrm poverty rmd inadequate humansettlements conditions in developing countries constitute twoof the most fundamental challenges to politicians and

policy-makers throughout the world. The growth of theinformal sector is a symptom ofthe inability ofthe formal sectorto absorb the labour potential of an increasing number of urbandwellers. Yet, the informal sector is also the most importantarena for shelter provision, and in many cases the only arenaopen to the urban poor.

The Global Strategy for Shelter to the Year 200 calls for theintroduction of enabling shelter strategies which implies achange from policies ofgovernment intervention to policies ofenablement. Yet. as is acknowledged in the GSS, this processof liberalization embodies certain dangers to the urban poor.Increased demand for Lwd and housing is accompanied byincreased'commercialization' of these markets. As choice is apositive function of income, many among the poor may end upwith no choiceatall. Thus, although liberalization is a necessarycondition for the success of the GSS, it is by no means asufficient one.

This is not an argument for abandoning the enabling approach.Yet, if we are to improve the human settlements conditions ofthe poorest groups it means going beyond enabling shelterstrategies..Enabling shelter strategies does not imply that thepublic sector should withdraw from shelter provision·completely. In fact. it is only by enabling the "not-so-poor" tohelp themselves, that governments can make resourcesavailable for direct assisl.wce to the poorest groups.

215pp, HS/391/96E, ISBN 92-1-I3I300-7

The humansettlements conditions of

the world's urban poor

UNtTEO NATtONS CENTRE FOR HUMAN SETTLEMENTS IHabitati

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Multilingual glossary ofllUmall settlements termsA provisional glossary of !enns relating to H.-mitat was issuedby the Documentation and Tenninology Service of the UnitedNations Secrelar~~t in May 1976, primarily for use by thetranslation and interpretation teams at Habitat: United NationsConference on Human Settlements, which was held atVancouver, Canada, from 31 May to II June in that year, Thatglossary, issued in Arabic, English and French, provided a listof 650 tenns in those languages.

In the 15 years since the Vancouver Conference. the need hasarisen for a more complete glossary of tenns, and thispublication is an attemptlo address thatneed. It does not pretendto coverlhe whole range ofhuman settlement !enninology: thatcould only be done by.publication running into several hundredpages and several volumes.

What makes this glossary different from any predecessor is theinclusion ofa definition for each tenn. This feature should helpusers to avoid ti,e trap of selecting an inappropriate usage whentwo or more words or phrnses in one language may translate asingle word or phrase in another, a trap that could involvemisunders~wding,disagreement or embarrassment.

155 pp.. HS/252/92A/C/EfF/R/S, ISBN 92-1-131176-4

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