UNITED NATIONS		A	HS
	General Assembly	Distr. GENERAL A/CONF.165/PC.2/6 HS/15/3/3/Add.4 1 February 1995 ORIGINAL: ENGLISH
	Commission on Human Settlements

I. Description of mid-term review survey findings

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1. A questionnaire was sent to each Government inviting it to provide information on a selected fist of key components of an enabling shelter strategy. Replies have been received from a large sample of 74 countries to the Mid-term Review (MTR) survey, including countries from each region at a maximum rate of 40 per cent, as shown in table 1. The findings of the survey do not represent a comprehensive, definitive guide but represent a "snap shot" of how countries are progressing with the adoption and implementation of national shelter strategies (NSSs). The following analysis corresponds with the sequence of questions in the questionnaire.

(a) Political commitment to enabling strategies

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2. Of the 74 member countries replying to the MTR survey, 54 (or 73 per cent) indicated that they had adopted or had in place an NSS. No single region stands out in not adopting the Global Strategy for Shelter to the Year 2000 (GSS), which is basically accepted everywhere that UNCHS (Habitat) operates.

(b) Mechanisms for coordination of shelter policy

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3. Two thirds the of countries answered positively. Latin American and Caribbean and sub-Saharan African countries provide the weakest responses, including Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Bolivia, Côte d'Ivoire and Mali. Samoa was the only State to reply "not at all applicable", while China, Cyprus, Finland and the United States of America also provided negative replies. The majority of industrialized Member States have an NSS or equivalent in place. Outside the industrialized countries, many have made considerable progress in adopting an NSS, most notably, Botswana, Fiji, India, Jamaica, Jordan, Nepal, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

4. As would be expected, a strong link exists between those countries which have officially endorsed the GSS and those countries that have established institutional mechanisms for the coordination of shelter policy;, equally, the reverse is true. In between the two extremes the correlation is also clear, with countries developing institutional mechanisms in association with the adoption of an NSS.

(c) Regular provision of comprehensive policy statements and strategic plans

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5. Over 64 percent of countries replied positively, with the highest concentration among industrialized countries and a poor performance among Latin America and Caribbean countries.

(d) Participation of all actors in all stages of NSS

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6. Some 52 per cent of all respondents started that there was general participation from all actors involved in shelter and 18 per cent stated that it was "always applicable"; (Australia, Canada, Central African Republic, Chile, Comoros, Germany. Japan, Namibia, Singapore. South Africa, Spain, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland). Negative replies included over three quarters of Latin American and Caribbean countries and 60 per cent of Arab and European countries. There exists a strong correlation between those countries which have endorsed enabling strategies and those which have all actors participating.

(e) Clear roles for public and private institutions

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7. Some three quarters of all countries provided a positive reply. Countries which have adopted an NSS, but which have not as yet adopted clear roles, include Botswana, Comoros, Jamaica and Romania.

(f) Institutions to coordinate discussions among stakeholders are maintained

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8. Forty per cent of countries responded positively. Among all respondents, Benin, Comoros and Lebanon do not have any long-term coordination mechanisms in the housing sector to draw upon, nor would it appear do such Arab States as the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya. the Syrian Arab Republic and Tunisia, all of which responded negatively. Wholly positive responses were received from Austria, Canada, Central Africa Republic. Chile, Germany, Liberia, Namibia, the Netherlands, Papua New Guinea, St. Lucia, Singapore, Spain and Sri Lanka. Lower-income countries perform poorly in this area.

(g) Local administrations are strengthened to undertake shelter-related tasks

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9. Responses to this instrument were divided approximately 50-50 per cent with all the industrialized countries (bar New Zealand and the United States of America) replying positively. Excluding industrialized countries, 44 per cent of countries provided a partly or wholly positive reply. Overall negative responses were registered by Latin American and Caribbean and sub-Saharan African countries.

(h) Regular collection of housing sector performance data

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10. Fifty-four percent of respondents undertake regular collection and distribution of data. However, excluding industrialized countries, the proportion monitoring housing performance falls to approximately 38 per cent, indicating that the instrument is highly income-related. About three quarters of sub-Saharan African and some 60 per cent of Latin American and Caribbean countries gave negative responses.

(i) Summary of status of remaining enabling instruments

(i) Regulating land and housing development

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11. Question 3.1. Regulations protect public health and safety. 82 per cent of countries replied positively. Most of those countries responding negatively are in Latin American and the Caribbean or sub-Saharan Africa.

12. Question 3.2. Regulations not complex: Some two thirds of replies indicated a "generally applicable" or "always applicable" reply. Over 60 per cent of income group 1 replied negatively.

13. Question 3.3. Deregulation undertaken: 56 per cent of countries replied positively. Countries with least progress are concentrated in the Latin American and Caribbean and Arab regions.

14. Question 3.4. Affordable standards and regulations: Over 63 per cent provided a positive answer to this instrument. Poorest responses came from Latin American and Caribbean and sub-Saharan African countries,

15. Question 3.5. Allowance for traditional materials: Overall some 70 per cent answered positively. Negative replies were concentrated in the Latin American and Caribbean, sub-Saharan African and East Asian and Pacific countries.

(ii) Developing land and property rights

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16. Question 4.1. Comprehensive land registration: The majority of responses for all regions were positive and were positively correlated with income. Comoros, Papua New Guinea, Uganda and Venezuela indicated a wholly negative response.

17. Question 4.2. Private landownership: Burkina Faso, Botswana, China and Zambia were the only four member countries who responded negatively to this instrument. The remaining countries replied positively giving "always applicable" responses,

18. Question 4.3. No landownership concentration: 76 per cent of countries responded positively although lower income countries fared poorly. From income group 1, for example. China, the Gambia and Nigeria replied "not at all applicable".

19. Question 4.4. Private ownership of rental housing permitted: With over 90 percent answering positively and 81 per cent "always applicable", considerable development has been achieved in this instrument. Botswana, Ethiopia, Fiji, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Turkey and Zambia responded negatively.

20. Question 4.5. Simple property transfer: Approximately 60 per cent of responses were positive. Countries that indicated a wholly negative reply included the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Lebanon. Lesotho, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Uganda and Zambia.

21. Question 4.6. Squatter-settlement upgrading: Excluding the industrialized countries, where squatter housing is not usually of significance, some 50 per cent of countries indicated that they were addressing the issue.

22. Question 4.7. Privatization of public housing: 57 per cent of responses were positive with only 11 countries stating "not at all applicable".

23. Question 4.8. Tenants rights protected: The majority of responses were positive in each region, positively correlated with increasing national income. Only 14 negative responses were registered, mainly in the "somewhat applicable" category and mainly from Latin American and Caribbean, Arab and European countries.

24. Question 4.9. Property owners' rights protected: 86 per cent of countries responded positively with only foot wholly negative replies from Comoros, Mali, Madagascar and Swaziland.

25. Question 4.10. Equal housing opportunities: Two thirds of countries responded positively. As would be anticipated, all responses from industrialized countries and income group 5 were positive. Beyond these groups performance fluctuated with countries and territories such as Anguilla, Bolivia, Comoros, Liberia, Madagascar and Swaziland appearing not to have equal rights/opportunities for all groups.

26. Question 4.11. No forced evictions: 86 percent of countries, from all regions, responded positively to this instrument including 100 per cent from the industrialized, Latin American and Caribbean, and South Asian countries.

(iii) Developing long-term housing finance

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27. Question 5.1. Private lending permitted and ongoing: Some 74 per cent answered positively. including the industrialized countries (100 per cent), South Asia (100 per cent) and Latin American and the Caribbean (71 per cent). Wholly negative replies were received from Ethiopia, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Mali and Papua New Guinea. This component is strongly income-related.

28. Question 5.2. Public/private lending on equal terms: Approximately 68 per cent of member countries responded positively including all the industrialized and South Asian countries. Again this component is income-related.

29. Question 5.3. Private rental lending permitted: 66 per cent of all responses were positive for this instrument. Negative replies are concentrated in sub-Saharan African and Latin American and Caribbean countries.

30. Question 5.4. Positive real interest rates: 65 percent of responses were positive. Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, China, Egypt, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Mali and Papua New Guinea all responded wholly negatively.

31. Question 5.5. Range of lending instruments permitted: Some three quarters of countries indicated that they are using a range of lending instruments. Negative responses were concentrated in sub-Saharan African countries.

32. Question 5.6. Housing-finance regulation exists: Responses to this instrument were positive, albeit to a varying degree. Only eight "wholly negative" replies were registered, six from within the sub-Saharan African region, namely Benin, Botswana, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Comoros and Djibouti, plus British Virgin Islands and Papua New Guinea.

33. Question 5.7. Mortgage insurance exists: 52 per cent of countries replied positively. Over 26 per cent of countries replied wholly negatively.

34. Question 5.8. Secondary markets: Approximately 66 per cent of countries responded negatively to this instrument, 42 per cent wholly so. This component is little developed outside industrialized countries.

35. Question 5.9. Equal borrowing opportunity ensured: Over 65 per cent of responses to this instrument were positive with all the regions performing well except the sub-Saharan African group. The instrument is positively income-related.

(iv) Rationalizing subsidies

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36. Question 6.1. Direct public involvement in housing production: Over 60 per cent of countries indicated government involvement is minimized. The sub-Saharan African region has a high degree of government involvement, including Benin, Central African Republic, Djibouti and Mali, with the four remaining "wholly negative" responses being from Antigua and Barbuda, China, Cyprus and Panama.

37. Question 6.2. Explicit housing subsidies: 46 percent of countries responded positively to this instrument, including 70 per cent of the industrialized countries, 80 per cent of Arab States and 67 per cent of European countries. 73 per cent of the sub-Saharan African group responded negatively.

38. Question 6.3. Well-targeted subsidies: 50 per cent of replies for this instrument were positive although 73 per cent of sub-Saharan African and all of the Eastern European countries replied negatively.

39. Question 6.4. Subsidies provided directly: 63 per cent responded negatively, 40 per cent "wholly so". Income groups 1-3 are once again the poorest performing groups.

40. Question 6.5. Few or no rent controls: Over 65 per cent of countries, spread widely across the regions, indicated rent controls exist.

41. Question 6.6. Rents close to market values: Only 30 per cent of countries responded positively to this instrument.

(v) Providing infrastructure

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42. Question 7.1. Infrastructure is provided for all: A highly income-related question with over 90 per cent of income group 5, 100 per cent of group 2 and 78 per cent of group 3 responding positively. The proportion is lowest in sub-Saharan African and South Asian countries,

43. Question 7.2. Provision matches growth: This instrument is again highly income-related Over 53 per cent of countries responded negatively. 57 per cent within Latin American and the Caribbean. 90 per cent in sub-Saharan Africa including Kenya, Mali, Malawi, South Africa. Uganda Zambia and Zimbabwe. Answering negatively in income groups 4 and 5 were Austria, New Zealand and South Africa.

44. Question 7.3. Infrastructure costs are largely recovered: Almost half of the countries replied positively, with more success in Fast Asia and the Pacific and industrialized countries.

45. Question 7.4. Private sector provides infrastructure: Only four countries, Canada. China, the United Kingdom and the United States, answer "always applicable" for this instrument. 64 per cent of countries have minor or no private-sector participation in infrastructure provision particularly in the lower income countries. European transition countries (e.g., Poland, Romania and Slovakia) responded negatively.

46. Question 7.5. Secure financial basis for infrastructure agencies: 60 per cent of countries responded positively, including those in the industrialized region which registered a 100 per cent positive response. The instrument is income-related, some 75 per cent and 92 percent of income groups 4 and 5 countries responding positively against 41 per cent for group 1.

(vi) Organizing the building industry

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47. Question 8.1. Building-materials monopolies are restricted: Overall 52 per cent of countries do not have monopolies. Negative replies are concentrated in the sub-Saharan African, South Asian, and Asian and Pacific regions. This instrument is highly income-related, over 83 per cent of income group 1 and 50 per cent of group 2 responding negatively.

48. Question 8.2. Few restrictions on building materials supply: 52 per cent of countries stated there are few restrictions on the private-sector supply of building materials. The higher income countries tended to respond most positively.

49. Question 8.3. Competition in materials production encouraged: Three quarters of countries encourage competition and small-firm entry. Arab, sub-Saharan Africa and industrialized countries responded most positively.

50. Question 8.4. Fewer import controls: Over 60 per cent of countries indicated a positive response to this instrument. Sub-Saharan African, European transition and Latin American and Caribbean countries perform poorly.

51. Question 8.5. Private land development encouraged: 83 per cent of countries responding encourage private-sector involvement.

52. Question 8.6. Private-sector participation in house construction: Virtually all countries responded positively: 75 per cent responded "always applicable".

II. Effective enabling approaches

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53. Chapter IV of the companion document (A/CONF.165/PC.2/5; HS/C/15/3/Add.3) identified in broad terms the links between enabling policies and outcomes under each major broad component of housing supply and demand. The present chapter focuses on examples of "best practice" in each component area. Limitations of space mean that only one or two examples can be shown for each component. It is emphasised that there is no universal policy panacea to implement the GSS: by definition many of the issues involved are country-specific (land, property rights, community involvement etc.), but the examples are chosen to represent approaches which most, if not all. countries could build on, with an emphasis on programmes which can be "scaled up" to make significant impacts against overall demand.

A. Policy and institutional framework

1. Strengthening institutional framework at the national level - the Costa Rica National Shelter Strategy

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54. Costa Rica is an example of success in institutional reorganization as a direct output of the NSS. The NSS, formulated under the UNCHS (Habitat)/FINNIDA (Finnish International Development Agency) support programme, was, in addition, responsible for the conceptualization of the housing and human settlements sector in Costa Rica and introduction of a new agenda for the sector.

55. The reorganization of the sector has been achieved gradually and by consent. It consisted first in the identification of public and private agencies, finance institutions, community and professional associations, and NGOs working in low-income housing. Areas of common action were identified with a more precise definition of specialized roles, responsibilities and interdependencies. Based on this, an integrated housing plan was initiated by the project. creating opportunities for all agencies to participate in, and to develop a new sense of collaboration.

56. The conceptual contribution of the NSS to a new understanding of housing in Costa Rica has also been considerable. Housing has been enlarged to include not only new housing but also upgrading of squatter settlements and urban renewal. The NSS also has developed the concept of integrated housing which has been incorporated in several programmes implemented by municipalities.

57. The NSS has also shifted the role of the Government from a preoccupation with building houses to a wider range of initiatives, including legal and structural consolidation of the sector, implementation and evaluation of integrated plans, generalization of norms and procedures leading to affordable housing, decentralization of the sector by reinforcing regional and municipal capabilities, to respond to local needs and to disseminate this experience to other countries in Central America.

58. The process of the formulation of the NSS contributed to the establishment of the Ministry of Housing and Human Settlements (MICAH) as the lead institution of the sector.

2. Participation and coordination of all actors involved in shelter - the Uganda National Shelter Strategy

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59. The Uganda National Shelter Strategy was prepared during 1990-1992 under the coordination of an Inter-Agency Steering Committee with technical development by a Task Force under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development as implementing agency and with technical assistance from UNCHS (Habitat)/FINNIDA. Organizations at the national and district levels were identified to participate in the formulation of the strategy including government organizations, NGOs, CBOs, opinion leaders, private developers, contractors, women's groups, technical schools and consulting firms. During preparations for the strategy a pilot phase was carried out in Masaka District. For the main phase, four sample districts representative of all regions were used to develop the strategy, using the computer model SHELTER. Group training workshops were held for the various actors with the object of participants preparing their own shelter programmes. The Task Force drew on these recommendations to prepare draft shelter strategies which were further discussed with the district-level actors. Based on the agreed District Shelter Strategies, an NSS was evolved: supplemented by in-depth consultancy studies in various topic areas. The draft NSS was discussed by representatives from all 38 districts of Uganda at two regional workshops and a national workshop. At these workshops the NSS was endorsed for adoption nationally. A detailed implementation strategy, the National Shelter Programme, was prepared and is now under implementation.

3. Involvement of NGOs and CBOs in shelter strategies

(a) Belo Horizonte, Brazil

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60. The Associazione Volontari Servizio Internazionale (AVSI), an Italian NGO, has been involved in several integrated approaches to slum upgrading in Brazil since 1984. In the case of the Alvorada project in Belo Horizonte, AVSI began work with local CBOs and municipalities on projects which eventually benefited some 140,000 slum dwellers in 27 slums. The main benefits included legalisation and granting of title to residents, environmental and social services in five slums, establishment of social and vocational training centres, training and strengthening of local institutions in cooperation with URBEL, a focus agency for slum upgrading under the Municipality of Belo Horizonte, and installation of a computer-based system for speeding up cadastral mapping and titling. A second tranche of activity began in 1991. involving lateral extension of the slum-upgrading programme on requests from other municipalities in Brazil. The AVSI programme shows the critical indicators of NGO success, e.g.. continuity of involvement, mediation and facilitation of CBO demonstration effects, and sustainability through training and education.

(b) FUNDASAL, El Salvador

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61. The Fundación Salvadorena de Desarrollo y Vivienda Minima (FUNDASAL) (El Salvadorean Foundation for Development and Basic Housing), was established in 1968. It has undertaken housing programmes and carries out a range of secondary activities in health, education, economic development and research. It has projects in each of El Salvador's five cities and had constructed by 1990 some 15,000 housing units with mutual-help and self-help methods. FUNDASAL draws support from national and municipal authorities in El Salvador, from external support agencies such as the World Bank and from international private voluntary organizations. It is a membership organization and its highest decision-making body is the General Member's Assembly, which elects an Executive Council, executive director and general manager. Funds raised from abroad cover some project costs (preparation of site. installation of basic services, construction of roads. schools and other community facilities). while land and housing construction costs are charged back to those participating in its projects. FUNDASAL has also been involved in negotiating tenure for those living in illegal settlements.

62. The programme shows that it is possible for an NGO to have a major impact in the construction of houses for low-income families through the large-scale replication of the mutual-assistance and progressive-development model, despite operating in a political climate characterized by repression and despite disagreements on certain objectives between FUNDASAL and external support agencies,

(c) CONAMUP, Mexico

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63. CONAMUP (the National Coordinating Body of Mexican Popular Movements) illustrates the critical role of national NGOs in policy- and decision-making. It is a federation of grassroots groups, CBOs and NGOs representing over a million people. It campaigns and lobbies the Government on land and other issues and provides financial and technical support to members. It is also now a political force, having won power in a number of locations and can thus influence the political process vis-à-vis popular housing. The Government has supported CONAMUP through the financial support it offers to NGOs in the shelter sector via FINHAPO, the National Fund for Popular Housing (UNCHS,1991).

(d) Grameen Bank, Bangladesh

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64. The Grameen Bank is a well known example of the scaling up of an innovative approach to the national level, in this case centred on the provision of credit to the poor. The keys to its success have been: basing the credit programme on small groups, relying on peer pressure of other members to repay loans on time; recognizing the uncertainty and irregularity of members' incomes; group meetings on a weekly basis attended by bank staff; financing of a wide variety of income-generating activities as well as housing construction; and increased social status for women, since most housing loans are given in the name of a female head of household. The Bank's activities now extend to thousands of villages across Bangladesh (UNCHS, 1992).

65. Grameen Bank loans benefited over half a million people in some 16,000 communities between 1976 and 1992. Housing loans began in a small way in 1984 and expanded rapidly, some 54,000 people had benefited up to 1989. The Bank's targeted housing loans for the 1989-1992 period were set at some USS37 million.

(e) Sulabh International, India

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66. Sulabh is a successful NGO specializing in the development of low-cost sanitation in urban areas of India. Despite the enormous scale and sensitivity of the programme. Sulabh has assisted in constructing over 50,000 individual latrines and many hundreds of community latrines at a high standard of quality. cleanliness and maintenance. along with enforcement of charges for use of public latrines and maintenance of private latrines (UNCHS. 1991).

4. The importance of women's groups in shelter

(a) India: Self-Employed Women's Association (SEWA)

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67. SEWA was founded in Ahmedabad to help provide finance for small business, housing and other activities among low-income women. The NGO is well-run with a solid financial base and with a high level of participation among its members in decision-making, which encourages financial responsibility. SEWA also gives advice on small-business development, marketing, health and nutrition. SEWA has also had success in lobbying in favour of women's interests in the shelter sector. e.g., combating discrimination in existing systems of land allocation and tenure security (UNCHS, 1991).

(b) India: Society for Promotion of Area Resource Centres (SPARC)

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68. Many NGO/CBO initiatives focus on women's pivotal role in shelter provision as in the example of the Grameen Bank above and Sulabh International. The latter specifically consults with women before providing hope with latrines. Another example is SPARC, a Bombay-based NGO which has worked since 1984 to help women pavement dwellers in Bombay to improve their own shelter conditions. SPARC assists local CBO efforts by creating area resource centres where the poor can come together to discuss common problems and seek solutions. It provides information, advice and training for women to design their own settlements process, and has expanded over the years to include understanding and predicting government's perceptions of pavement dwellers' problems, developing a strategy for short- and long-term actions for providing adequate shelter. and developing and strengthening community committees. SPARC achieves its objectives through two NGOS, Manila Milan and the National Slum Dwellers Federation. In the longer term, SPARC expects to assist in extending grassroots networks in providing shelter for the urban poor throughout India (UNCHS,1992a). While this is a noteworthy example of integrating the practical needs of women into shelter strategies. there has been less progress in addressing women's strategic gender needs such as their role in shelter production and improvement, and their particular needs for employment location, welfare needs etc.

5. Strengthening local government - the Philippines Shelter Strategy

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69. In parallel with development of the NSS, the Philippines Government has taken significant steps to strengthen local government. The Local Government Code was enacted in 1991 and made cities and provinces responsible for most aspects of shelter planning and development. It allows local government to reclassify up to 15 percent of agricultural land to urban uses, raise local revenues, levy taxes, fees and charges including an idle land tax, secure grants from local or foreign sources, all without clearance from higher levels of government. Local governments can also utilize private-sector financing, construction and maintenance of infrastructure through BOT agreements. The Municipal Financing Program was launched in 1993 whereby local governments can float bonds to finance projects, guaranteed by the Government. The shelter-related tasks for local government are contained in the 1992 Urban and Housing Development Act. There has been criticism that insufficient resources are available at the local government level to carry out mandated tasks: however, those deficiencies are being addressed by, for example, technical assistance from central-government organizations such as the National Housing Authority (NHA) and the current enactment of the Shelter Finance Act which seeks to provide sustained funding to the shelter sector through automatic annual appropriations, strengthening of government institutions, enabling more efficient housing delivery and encouraging private-sector funds into the mainstream of housing finance.

6. Use of housing sector data

(a) The Kenya Pilot Project

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70. A joint approach by UNCHS (Habitat), the Government of Kenya and the Government of Italy has established the Kenya Pilot Project under the global City Data Programme, with the objectives of (a) designing a national urban data collection and dissemination system and (b) strengthening the statistical capacity of eight project cities and key ministries of the Government of Kenya To date, workshops in the project cities have been held, questionnaires tested, PC hardware and software installed and key urban indicators identified.

(b) GIS inland management: Bangladesh and Sri Lanka

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71. Geographical information systems (GIS) are now common in member countries of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development and are starting to be used in developing countries. (In the latter case. GIS is an example of the beneficial use of technology to aid short-staffed local government faced with the incessant demands of rapid urban growth).

72. In Dhaka, Bangladesh, a GIS system has been installed in the City Planning Office as part of the in-depth reorganization of the Planning Department and the introduction of a new typology of plans (with assistance from UNCHS (Habitat)). It is anticipated that the system will not only benefit the day-to-day work of the Planning Department (e.g., development control, local and action planning etc.). but will also benefit the City Council as a whole, by providing the hardware and software for updating property valuation, land transactions and other land-related responsibilities of the Government.

73. In Sri Lanka, the Urban Development Authority is currently installing GIS to help in its planning, development control and other responsibilities for the Greater Colombo Area and other urban centres throughout the country. It is hoped to link this system with a new GIS being installed by the Government Survey Department. Again, a major benefit of GIS should be to eliminate the large backlog of land sub-division applications and address improved land registry functions in both urban and rural areas.

B. Land management

1. Land development

(a) Land readjustment in Colombia and India

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74. A variant on the land-sharing approach (called land adjustment) has been used with some degree of success in Colombia and India In Gujarat, over 38 schemes have been executed in 20 cities, involving more than 10,000 hectares of land. Here, small parcels of land are brought together, consolidated, and redeveloped (or "readjusted") by providing better infrastructure and services. They are then returned to the original landowners for their own use, on condition that they return 50 per cent of the unearned increase in land values that has been created, as a contribution towards the costs of the redevelopment. Hence, the local authority acquires the land temporarily without having to pay compensation, while the landowner and residents receive a higher quality environment. However, the Indian experience also illustrates some of the difficulties involved in land adjustment: costs often escalate during the development phase, full cost recovery has to be enforced to prevent windfall gains, betterment charges have to be levied on the basis of current market value, and the average gestation period has to be reduced from the current five or six years. In Colombia, landowners taking part in adjustment schemes can receive payment for their land in the form of completed dwellings, which they are then free to sell or use as they please (UNCHS, 1991).

(b) Land readjustment in Bangladesh

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75. On the fringe of Dhaka, a group of landowners have designed a land-readjustment project covering some 30 hectares, now in process of implementation with only minimal government involvement. The objectives are to bring access roads. school sites and other social services into the neighbourhood by a process of plot readjustment. The technique also permits the replotting of land holdings into more rational and hence more viable holdings for sale or development. The benefits of such schemes to the landowners are clear. They are returned replotted land with higher value and better access to services. The costs and benefits of the land-readjustment process are shared among the owners equitably, and they are free to develop their land according to individual needs. The benefits to the city are also clear, the opportunity to structure urban fringe development in a timely manner and to provide appropriate infrastructure and land for public use at little or no cost to government.

(c) Guided land development in Indonesia

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76. The guided land development approach. first considered in Jakarta in the early 1980s and now being developed in other cities. incorporates elements of public-private coordination in land development with an emphasis on encouraging the legal participation of low-income groups in urban development. The programme includes the incremental construction of roads to induce growth into preferred urban expansion areas, the incremental introduction of essential urban services into these areas, starting with land drainage and, at a later stage water supply mains, and the creation of an administrative. planning and financial structure to ensure an effective joint public/private management and implementation of such growth.

(d) The Joint Venture Program (JVP) in the Philippines

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77. The goal of the J VP is to utilize the resources of the NHA to draw in investment and involvement from the commercial private sector, allowing the NHA to expand its capacity for delivery of housing to its target market to families below the 50 per cent of urban-income distribution. Resources, expertise, risks and profits are shared in proportion to each partner's contribution. Private-sector profits are based on high volume and rapid turnover to allow for lower margins and affordability. Projects under the JVP may be sites-and-services development, upgrading, or new housing. The NHA can provide a maximum of 40 per cent of total project costs in the form of land and/or finance. To promote affordability, NHA stipulates that at least 60 per cent of units must be sold at prices not exceeding the amount of the loan, plus the lowest interest rates available. plus 5 per cent. The remaining 40 per cent of units can be sold on the open market.

78. In terms of roles, the NHA assists the private developer by obtaining necessary clearances, accredits and shortlists the partners, provides equity. arranges for development finance from State financial institutions and provides technical advice on design and engineering. The commercial partner is responsible for preparing detailed feasibility studies and plans, provides the balance of the equity, develops the land. services and housing units, and controls marketing of the final product.

79. The types of joint venture include:

• (a) The NHA is the landowner while the private sector partner is responsible for all aspects of shelter development (the most popular arrangement of the 56 joint ventures approved up to 1993);
• (b) The NHA is landowner plus holding part of the financial equity. while the private partner provides the remainder of funds and is responsible for construction. development and marketing;
• (c) The land is owned privately. construction and marketing is handled by the private partner and both public and private sectors contribute to financing;
• (d) The Land is owned privately and the developer assumes responsibility for all aspects of development. with the NHA providing technical assistance only:
• (e) The land is owned by local government and the NHA provides finance. develops land. constructs and markets housing; where private-sector involvement is limited to infrastructure:
• (f) The land is owned by local government, finance is provided by NHA and the private sector while construction and marketing are undertaken by the developer,
• (g) The land is owned privately, finance is provided by the NHA and local government, construction and marketing may be undertaken by either public- or private-sector partner or by both.

80. The scale of the JVP is small when compared with overall housing needs and has only limited direct impacts on low-income shelter strategies overall. However, such partnerships are not irrelevant to the urban poor at the least helping to relieve pressures in the low-income market by providing efficiently for higher-income households which in turn can widen the potential rental market possibilities for low-income households.

(e) Land joint ventures in São Paulo, Brazil

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81. In São Paulo, the Municipality has made imaginative use of its own landholdings and zoning regulations to attract the private sector into joint ventures. A Development Corporation was formed. incorporating both public and private interests, while the Municipality offered land and selective applications of its planning powers to benefit both the commercial private sector (for building luxury apartments) and the urban poor (for rehousing favela and cortico dwellers). Special use was made of density bonuses, through which private developers were allowed to exceed density regulations in return for concessions to low-income households and the Municipality.

2. Planning and building regulations

(a) Low legal standards in the Philippines

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82. In the Philippines, the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board has responsibility for planning regulation and control, while building regulations come from the National Building Code. Standards for housing and land use now allow for legal authorization of "social/marginal" shelter. These shelter standards allow for a unit of 18 m² minimum floor area in a 32 m² town house or 54 m² in a detached or duplex house. Minor roads, alleys and footpaths can be constructed with levelled and graded earth.

(b) Programmed subdivision of land in Jordan

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83. Large areas on the fringe of Amman were subdivided and serviced in the 1980s but remained vacant since (a) the plots were mostly laid out to too high a standard for prevailing demand: and (b) there was no disincentive for holding land in an undeveloped state. The 1987 Jordan National Housing Strategy recommended that owners of vacant plots should be allowed to apply for the re-division of their plot. resulting in clear ownership titles for each sub-plot. Buildings on the sub-plots would have to be entirely within the parameters as defined by the zoning regulations applying to the original plot, and sub-plot titles would have to specify access rights to back plots should the plot configuration require it. Minimum sub-plot areas would be specified and each new plot would have to access to the street to conform with the existing planning law. The resulting semi-detached built form would not vary appreciably from what is allowed under current building regulations. Since existing building bulk regulations would be respected, maximum densities would not be increased, nor would the quality of air. light and open space be affected. The advantages of this modification to the original subdivision would be numerous: the landowner could probably gain more by selling subdivided plots than by selling the original plot, and the developer could provide a greater variety of infill and semi-detached row house opportunities to meet the needs of the much larger lower-income housing market.

3. Property rights

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84. The subject area of property rights is wide: land registration, property transfer procedures, legalisation of informal settlements, protection of owners and tenants rights etc. This is also an area where individual country social. cultural and legal characteristics make universal solutions unrealistic.

(a) Legalisation on unregistered subdivisions in Jordan

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85. In the fringe areas of Amman many unregistered subdivisions are made on land which was granted decades ago to various tribal groups. Although the Government does not legally recognize such claims, and still officially considers the land to be in public ownership, individuals representing the tribes have been able to subdivide the land and sell off individual plots, using hejah or customary contracts. The boundaries of the parcel are inspected and physically marked it is in the buyer's interest to immediately construct a wall, or at least boundary corners, if there is likely to be any confusion. The buyer can hold the land vacant for as long as desired, but most begin at least some symbolic construction. Once the building is roofed it is considered inhabited and demolition cannot take place. The Government began a process of legalizing individual holdings in the early 1970s and is now establishing rights-of-way for roads etc., as a recognition that these areas will form a permanent component of the expanding city.

(b) Occupancy licenses in Zambia

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86. In Lusaka, under the Housing (Statutory and Improvement Areas) Act, 1974, an occupancy license was introduced to provide tenure to squatters without the necessary costs and complications of issuing legal titles. The license gives the right to occupy a building for 30 years: the occupant does not own the land, but, subject to paying municipal charges for services, he is legally protected from eviction. He or she can improve the house, sell it, or mortgage it, without restriction. Once the land has been gazetted as an Improvement Area, all existing house locations are numbered using an air photograph of the areas. This demarcation forms the basis for identifying the property and is properly entered in a register of titles. Land disputes in the upgraded squatter areas are resolved by community leaders, subject to customary law. While the licence does not address the issue of the original ownership of land nor the issues of its legal transfer, which thereby brings out disputes involving claims and counter claims by various owners and tenants of individual houses, it does have the major benefit of simplicity in providing tenure security without complicated surveys, legal proceedings and bureaucratic forms. It may be gradually upgraded into a legal title scheme as property boundaries become consolidated and eventually recognized.

C. Housing finance

1. Innovations in lending instruments in Mexico

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87. In response to the impacts of inflation on banks mandatory interest rates, the Central Bank of Mexico devised a form of mortgage instrument to serve the interest of both borrowers and lenders. This instrument. known as the dual-indexed mortgage (DIM), had the following characteristics:

• (a) Indexing to cover inflation. In the standard design of a DIM, a real interest rate is applied to the indexed balance. yielding a positive rate of return:
• (b) Indexing to maintain affordability. Payments are typically established as a maximum percentage of household income. If payments are indexed to the trend in wages, payments can be increased to pay down the loan while never exceeding the defined maximum portion household income;
• (c) Adjustable repayment period. If the required monthly payment exceeds the maximum percentage of household income, the difference can be capitalized and the term of the mortgage extended beyond its original 15 years. To put an upper limit on the term, the Central Bank agreed to cover all balances not paid at the end of a 20-year term.

88. The new instrument was an immediate success. With the elimination of the implicit interest rate subsidy, banks expanded their discretionary lending for housing, the mandatory lending requirements ceased to be binding and were eliminated in 1988 (World Bank. 1993).

2. Community mortgages in Bangkok, Thailand

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89. The Urban Community Development Office (UCDO) was established in 1992 to strengthen slum dwellers' and the urban poor's capacity to obtain increased and secure income and appropriate housing with secure terms and improved living conditions, using an initial capitalization from the Government of US $53 million with financial sustainability based on interest from loans. UCDO, in effect, acts as a wholesaler. Community savings and credit organizations apply for one of four types of credit, which can be up to 10 times the amount saved and provided that a sound management structure for the organization can be demonstrated The savings group then manages the credit facility, in turn on-lending to individuals and groups. Credit for housing loans is restricted to 30 per cent of the total fund since the main thrust of UCDO is to use credit as a catalyst for community development. At Thailand's current sage of development, income generation is seen as a higher priority for credit than housing alone. Current goals for UCDO are to help generate more than 850 savings-and-credit organizations in urban communities by 1996 with a membership of over 120,000 households and at least 80 per cent of members having secure jobs/incomes. In addition, UCDO aims to collect repayments at rates acceptable to general financial institutions, to show an appropriate "profit", and possibly transform itself into an autonomous entity. Given that UCDO is a facilitator, there is in theory no limit to the scale at which it can operate (no doubt requiring further capitalization and operating on a decentralized basis).

3. Low-income housing finance in Indonesia

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90. The Bank Tabungan Negara (BTN) (National Savings Bank) in Indonesia has developed a housing finance package "Triguna" which helps housing associations/cooperatives acquire housing in three sages: land acquisition; site development: and house construction. Finance is only given to a group or community as a debtor, to be disbursed in stages. To obtain credit. the community has to submit a project proposal explaining:

• (a) The profile of the community;
• (b) The goals and objectives of the project:
• (c) Amount of credit needed;
• (d) Method and schedule of repayments;
• (e) Technical documents relating to the project.

91. In addition, the community has to provide its contribution in the form of cash savings or equity (e.g., land), termed Dana Mitra (counterpart fund), as well as an additional amount to the monthly instalment, i.e. Dana Solidaritas (solidarity fund), a compulsory saving to cover possible defaults in individual repayments,

92. The Three Component Loan Scheme (Kredit Triguna) has been tested out in a UNCHS (Habitat)-assisted community-based low-cost housing project in three cities in Indonesia. Jakarta, Bandung and Samarang and was adopted as part of the country's national housing strategy in 1993 (UNCHS, 1994b).

D. Rationalizing subsidies

1. Rationalizing housing subsidies in Finland

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93. Finnish housing policy has undergone a thorough review in the past few years. A key element is the rationalization of subsidies, as follows:

• (a) Steps to terminate rent control on all non-subsidized renal housing (about 10 per cent of the housing stock) began in 1991. In 1992 all new tenancies were released from control. A new Tenancy Law will be enacted which, inter alia, will abolish constraints on the duration of tenancies.
• (b) An aim of housing policy is to shift emphasis from support to housing production to support to individual needy groups, i.e., low-income households, the elderly and students. At present, about 220,000 people or 10 per cent of all households, receive housing allowances. In recent years the need for housing allowances has increased with the deterioration of the national economy and an associated increase in unemployment. In 1993, the eligibility criteria for housing allowances were revised so that amounts received by beneficiaries remained at an adequate level. The net result was that a large number of previous recipients were excluded from the system while at the same time a large number of new households became eligible for allowances.
• (c) Subsidies to support renovation and upgrading of the existing housing stock is available in the form of soft State housing loans, interest subsidies and lump-sum subsidies. Sate loans have been increasing, and in 1995 the aim is to increase the number to the same level as loans for new housing development, i.e., some 20.000 dwellings. Subsidies for housing repairs are administered by municipalities using State funds. Subsidies apply to specific repair categories and amount typically to 10-15 per cent of total repair costs, with the remaining finance provided by the recipient. Limited State support is thus used as an incentive to mobilize much larger investment. The increased subsidies have also been targeted at housing companies, the most common type of ownership in Finland. Apart from limited benefits to the recipient households, housing repairs generate more employment than new construction which, in Finland, is highly industrialized. During 1993, 200,000 homes were repaired through this form of subsidy. In 1994, the number was forecast to decline to about 25,000, reflecting the improved situation in the construction sector. It is relatively easy to vary the scope of the programme because the administration of these subsidies in municipalities is very straightforward.

2. Redeployment of housing subsidies in Hungary

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94. As part of Hungary's transition from a planned to a market economy, there has been a gradual phasing out of general subsidies in favour of targeted, means-tested subsidies. Until 1989, the only source of credit, the National Savings Bank, originated mortgage loans with a fixed 3 per cent interest. compared with market interest rates of over 30 per cent in 1989. Consequently the share of housing subsidies in the budget expenditure was 17.3 per cent in 1989. In that year a new form of housing loan repayment subsidy was introduced based on the number of children in the borrower's family - a move which reduced the share of housing subsidies to 6.7 per cent, typical of countries in the European Community. As part of the landmark resolution on the transformation of the housing sector of May 1993, subsidies on interest now replace housing loan repayment subsidies, reducing the budget contingency by 50 per cent. In addition. a new means-tested housing benefit was introduced in 1993 within the framework of the Social Law. As a result; local governments can provide monthly support to the housing costs of needy households conditional on their income status. Local government can also provide mortgage repayment subsidies, if agreed.

3. Targeting housing subsidies in Chile

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95. Beginning in 1974, the Government of Chile moved from large, unmeasured, unpredictable and poorly-targeted credit subsidies and direct production in the housing sector to direct, explicit, one-time demand subsidies which allowed households to purchase housing on the private market. This programme targeted households with some savings capacity and emphasised access to private ownership. Households deposit their savings in a housing account at a financial institution, receive a certificate which can only be used to purchase housing and does not have to be repaid, and receive a mortgage loan for the balance of the price of the house at terms which are similar to commercial ones (an average real interest rate of 8.5 per cent for 20 years). All discretionary elements are removed from the allocation process, and the household can build or purchase a new or existing unit. The system is widely perceived as fair by households, further increasing its possibilities for success.

96. One continuing problem with the programme, however, has been with high arrears on loans for low-income households, which were made initially solely on loans by the Housing Ministry and also by a public-sector bank. By permitting high levels of arrears without loan foreclosure, many of the advantages of subsidy targeting and transparency inherent in the Chilean subsidy system are lost, with public-sector mortgage financing to blame. Thus despite having many admirable features, even the Chilean housing-subsidy system has considerable room for improvement (World Bank, 1993).

E. Infrastructure provision

1. Integrated Urban Infrastructure Development Programme in Indonesia

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97. The Integrated Urban Infrastructure Development Programme (IUIDP) is an excellent example of improved infrastructure-planning coordination. In its idealized form, the process entails the following steps: (a) meetings are held with provincial governments to prioritize cities for attention; (b) project teams in the selected cities (local staff with technical assistance provided from the centre) review and update local overall plans or develop a new "structure plan" where none is available; (c) teams then use those plans as a guide in developing a proposed local multi-year investment programme (PJM) integrated across several sectors; (d) the teams are also required to prepare a complete financing plan (RIAP) that covers the enhancement of local revenues and borrowing, as well as support from the central budget and/or external donors, (e) plans (LIDAP) are also prepared for building the capacity of local government to assume ever-increasing responsibility for infrastructure development, operation, and maintenance; (f) on the basis of the multi-year PJMs, individual cities prepare annual budget requests (g) the programme and budget requests so defined are reviewed at the provincial and central levels and decisions are made about the allocation of central loan and grant funds.

98. Despite over-ambitious targets in the early years, IUIDP has generally been regarded as a major accomplishment. Its basic characteristics (integrated planning across sectors based on city-specific conditions, the linkage to financial discipline through the RIAPs and to capacity-building through the LIDAPs) in and of themselves have been a dramatic improvement over the approach of the past. Also, efforts continue to be made to rectify problems as they are identified by revising IUIDP guidelines.

2. The role of the private sector in infrastructure provision; public- and private-sector roles in water supply in West Africa

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99. Based on public/private partnership models originating in France, commercial companies have expanded their role in the provision of piped water to middle- and lower-middle-income areas of cities in francophone countries in West Africa. In Senegal, for example, community groups provide drainage, garbage collection and other facilities on contract from government and supervised by a private company, AGETIP. As of 1994. AGETIP had promoted over 490 projects in 150 communities. As well as being more efficient than public provision in providing some urban services, such partnerships offer invaluable opportunities for promoting greater community participation in the management of shelter (UNCHS, 1994a).

3. Funding of infrastructure investments

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100. Local government is the focal point for infrastructure services delivery even where one or more forms of private sector involvement exists. As the trend to decentralization of decision-making to local governments continues, so there are changes in the way local governments obtain funds for investment. Municipal credit institutions (MCI) are an increasingly popular means of administering such programmes - attempting to combine the commercial incentives of private lenders with the financial backing of central governments. MCIs represent an attempt to put an arm's-length between government and the lending process, thus separating lending and loans administration in an entity that enjoys some legal and bureaucratic separation from the government budgeting process, and establishing clearer allocation and recovery needs, while still carrying the financial backing of government. However, the experience of MCIs is mixed and they are unlikely to thrive where local governments are not creditworthy or where economic conditions are unstable. These drawbacks have affected the Infrastructure Development Fund (IDF) evolved by the Federal Government in Nigeria, designed to create a pool of long-tern loan funds to assist state and local government in co-financing urban infrastructure. The most interesting aspect of the IDF (distinguishing it from infrastructural programmes during the 1970s) is that commercial banks play the key role in supervising the activities of the borrower, collecting repayments, and bearing the risk. In all of these projects new partnerships have been forged at state and local levels among government agencies, private banks, consultants and contractors.

101. IDF has run into a number of difficulties which need to be resolved quickly if the approach is to be taken up on a Larger scale. Long delays have been experienced in project implementation. The banks themselves are concerned that the risks they are expected to carry are simply too high to justify their participation in IDF. If this element of IDF fails to come to fruition, it will not be sustainable. Whatever the precise shape of the scheme in the future, IDF already represents an interesting experiment, within the framework of the Global Strategy for Shelter to the Year 2000, in channelling more private sector funds to infrastructure investment (UNCHS, 1991).

III. Role of external support agencies

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102. The GSS sees a clear role for the work of United Nations bodies and other external support agencies (ESAs) in supporting the implementation of the Strategy. The GSS also emphasises the need for coordination among ESAs in supporting GSS goals: that ESAs should review their programmes and policies in other sectors and be ready to modify their institutional structures to reflect new perceptions of interactions based on the GSS: and monitoring and evaluation of ESA efforts directed towards supporting the GSS should be carried out in addition to national organization's efforts.

103. There has been considerable progress in the work of ESAs which addresses the above goals, thanks in large part to the work of UNCHS (Habitat) as the designated coordinating agency and the work of the biennial sessions of the Commission of Human Settlements in reporting progress, exchanging information and preparing follow-up work programmes. The first half of the GSS. 1988-1994, has been a learning session about shelter for many ESAs as well as national governments, for example, in understanding the importance of shelter as a productive rather than consumption sector, in recognizing the importance of the urban sector to national economic development and in widening their support to the shelter sector. for example, by providing technical assistance in areas such as land management.

A. Evolving focus of support

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104. The volume of financial support to the sector by ESAs, including housing, infrastructure, services and support to urban management, represented less than 1 per cent of the total Official Development Assistance by members of the OECD Development Assistance Committee and less than 3 per cent of non-concessional loans, in the period 1980-1991. Among ESAs, the popularity of lending to the urban/shelter sector has varied considerably according to particular priorities for development assistance in anyone period. These priorities have been both sectoral and geographic. Again, bilateral assistance agencies have changed their support depending on whether particular countries had priority for assistance in general. The clearest example is the emphasis in the past two or three years on assistance to "transitional" economies in East Europe and the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republic. Several bilateral agencies have given low priority to the urban sector and, hence, to many critical areas of shelter policy, in favour of rural projects and/or other sectors such as energy. However, partly as a result of national government pressures, partly through the two-way learning process already mentioned and partly through the impact of the GSS itself, most ESAs now seem to accept urban and/or shelter sector assistance as a suitable area for their support. even though the proportion of assistance devoted to the sector may be small.

B. Multilateral assistance agencies

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105. This area of international support through credit is dominated by the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the regional development banks such as the Asian. African and Inter-American Development Banks. In the case of the African Development Bank, support to the sector is made with Shelter Afrique: the African Housing Fund and has supported various poverty-focused projects in several countries.

1. World Bank/IFC

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106. As the Bank itself has moved away from a project approach in its lending programme related to shelter, so it has increased assistance to policy areas such as land and housing regulation, infrastructure provision, improved land tenure, registration, transactions and urban management, particularly at local levels. The impact of the GSS is obvious from the following quotes from the World Bank's recent housing policy paper. "Governments should be encouraged to adopt policies that enable housing markets to work. This move has been given an official mandate with the endorsement of the Global Strategy for Shelter to the Year 2000 (UN Centre for Human Settlements 1988) by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 1988. The strategy recognises the important contribution of the private formal and informal sectors to housing and focuses specifically on enabling the private sector to meet housing needs more effectively in the future. Making the concept of an enabling strategy concrete requires a better understanding on how the housing sector functions and on the influence of policies on housing sector performance". Indeed this purpose is the central objective of the Bank's housing policy paper. The Bank's policy paper, Housing: Enabling Markets to Work (World Bank, 1993), identifies the following changes in the perception of the housing sector by the Bank:

• (a) Focusing on the housing sector as a whole.
• (b) Sequencing discussions of lending operations and sectoral reforms (i.e.. a country-specific approach);
• (c) Introducing housing into macro-economic planning:
• (d) Assisting the public sector in enabling activities (i.e.. the components used in the MTR survey);
• (e) Targeting assistance to institutions with potential for reform (i.e., increased focus on regulatory institutions);
• (f) Requiring commitment to reform and removal of major distortions as criteria for assistance.

2. Asian Development Bank (ADB)

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107. The ADB field of operations has evolved from lending for basic services such as water supply and some direct support to low-income housing in the 1970s to an an increasingly integrated set of infrastructure and service projects, including sanitation, solid-waste management, land development for low-income groups, urban transport and slum improvement. Lending to the social infrastructure sector increased by 13 per cent in 1992 (ADB, 1993) . Total loans for urban development projects amount to some USS 3 billion by end-1993. Bank support has been directed to some of the larger cities in the region such as Bangkok, Dhaka, Karachi, Manila, Pusan and Shanghai, as well as assistance to several hundred secondary towns. There has been an increasing emphasis on developing the technical, financial and managerial capacities of local governments. The ADB is providing major support to particular components of enabling strategies in Asia. This emphasis is reflected in its overall objectives for the urban sector.

• (a) Promoting equity and services for urban poor,
• (b) Improving efficiency in urban economies:
• (e) Enhancing the urban environment:
• (d) Strengthening institutional and financial capabilities for sustainable management of urban areas.

108. Currently, ADB is supporting, through its lending programmes, several key components of the GSS, i.e., land management. infrastructure. property taxation. urban management, community participation between governments and NGOs/CBOs, and environmental protection, and is also considering possible involvement in strengthening housing finance. Overall the Bank is very supportive of and influencing enabling strategies in the shelter sector in Asia.

C. Bilateral assistance agencies

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109. Many bilateral agencies are supporting loan, grant and technical assistance programmes which directly or indirectly influence and implement components of the GSS. Thus the Danish International Development Agency has expanded its cooperation with UNCHS (Habitat) on the Community Development Programme and the Women In Development Programme. The United Kingdom's Overseas Development Administration (ODA) supports the GSS through its programmes for improving shelter and living conditions in urban areas, and direct support to the Urban Management Programme. The Finnish International Development Agency has supported national shelter strategies and the HIP as well as technical assistance to many countries. Similarly, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States of America support components of the GSS directly or indirectly.

110. The Government of Finland has been a leading source of assistance to governments preparing national shelter strategies since the start of the GSS. Under the FINNIDA-UNCHS (Habitat) Joint Support Programme for preparing National Shelter Strategies, technical assistance was provided to Costa Rica, Indonesia, Nicaragua, the Philippines, Uganda and Zimbabwe. In each case, work has beets carried out by a national task force while the Support Programme has facilitated the work with national and international inputs prioritized by the task force. The results of the Programme's assistance to Costa Rica and Uganda are shown in Section II.B. Countries both in and outside the Programme have used the SHELTER model developed by the Government of Finland in association with UNCHS (Habitat). The model is a valuable tool in shelter-strategy formulation, including design, affordability and policy-option considerations. It is available to housing institutions and governments free of charge. Dissemination of the results of national activities under the Programme have been effected through publications, training manuals and a film.

111. The United States Agency for International Development Housing Guaranty Program is an interesting example of comprehensive assistance to the GSS. The Program is the vehicle by which the United States Office of Housing and Urban Programs has addressed the shelter and urbanization needs of developing countries through Regional Housing and Urban Development Offices in every region. More recently the Program's focus has moved away from a project-based approach towards urban policy reform and increased private-sector participation in the process by which low-income residents gain access to land housing and basic urban services. The three main areas of the current focus of the Programme are: (a) shelter and housing finance; (b) urban environment and infrastructure; and (c) local government and municipal management.

112. The Office of Housing and Urban Programs has developed a programme performance measurement system. It uses a set of urban and housing indicators which draw on HIP indicators in an attempt to reflect both quantifiable outputs and process-related measures in the 19 countries where the Office operates. The Office is carrying out regular annual reviews which have given a good first impression of the housing and urban sectors. It uses the comparison of given values with regional norms and so highlights the need for intervention in a particular area.

D. United Nations agencies

1. United Nations Development Programme and UNCHS (Habitat)

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113. UNCHS (Habitat), with the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), is the leading agency in promoting the GSS. In addition to acting as the focal point for the GSS, UNCHS (Habitat) has supported a variety of NSS formulation processes, in some cases in association with bilateral agencies such as FINNIDA. Apart from this explicit support to comprehensive shelter strategy formulation, UNCHS (Habitat) provides technical assistance to many countries in specific GSS component areas such as land management. housing finance, building materials and the role of women, as part of its regular Technical Cooperation Programme, again sometimes in cooperation with bilateral agencies, A major undertaking of UNCHS (Habitat), in association with the World Bank and UNDP and a range of bilateral agencies is the Urban Management Progrunme (UMP), begun in 1987. The UMP has five areas of focus all of which relate directly to the GSS, i.e., land management, infrastructure, municipal finance. environment and urban poverty. The overall objective of the UMP is capacity-building in urban management, particularly at the local government level. The fast phase of UMP. 1987-1992, developed a wide range of policy initiatives based on research and experience of "best practice" in countries across the world and began publication of an Urban Management Practice Series aimed at policy workers and technical staff at the national- and local-government level. The second phase of the UMP has seen the decentralization of the Programme to the regional level so that research, policy formation, and interaction with governments, community groups, academics and others can be made as relevant as possible to local conditions and to make capacity building as efficient as possible. UNCHS (Habitat) (Habitat) also launched the Sustainable Cities Programme in 1990, designed to improve environmental planning and management capabilities at the city level, and closely linked with the UMP. Another UMP-related initiative is the Urban Poverty Partnership, which links the poverty alleviation component of UMP with similar interests in UNCHS (Habitat), the International Labour Office and the United Nations Volunteer programme.

2. United Nations regional commissions

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114. United Nations regional commissions (e.g., Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP)) are activity involved in influencing and implementing the GSS. For example, ESCAP is to encourage assisting Member States in the formation of shelter strategies and information exchange and has prepared a biennial review of progress, starting from 1990, towards the goal of Shelter for All by the Year 2000. ESCAP has been active in addressing important components of the GSS in the Asian and Pacific region, i.e., land, infrastructure, finance, planning and 'management, dominated in 1993 by preparations for the Ministerial Conference on Urbanization in Asia and the Pacific. ESCAP also continues to support CITYNET, the Regional Network of Local Authorities for Management of Human Settlements, which has a membership of 30 cities and 30 NGOs across the region. It also organizes seminars, workshops and other capacity-building initiatives.

115. Similarly, the GSS programme is reflected in ECLAC's medium term plan and biennial work programme. Two Ministerial Meetings were held, in 1992 and 1993, and a third is to be held in November 1994 (which is also scheduled as a regional meeting for the preparatory process for Habitat II). The earlier meetings endorsed the role of the GSS in providing the principal means to meet the urbanization challenge in the region. and the view that the focus of national action should be on improvements in living and working environments of the people. ECLAC has also been active in providing inputs to the global database on human settlements and in disseminating information on the GSS. Although not in a position to evaluate or monitor NSSs at the country level. ECLAC states that a general appraisal of GSS implementation in the region is highly positive. shown by the number of endorsements of GSS objectives by Heads of State, and the number of countries which have introduced institutional changes towards creating enabling environments, have adopted new housing policies and financial mechanisms, and have undertaken capacity building at local-government level.

3. Other United Nations agencies

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116. There are many other global and national programmes of action by United Nations agencies which support GSS goals directly or indirectly. For example the cooperation of the United Nations Environment Programme with UNCHS (Habitat) on the Continuum from Relief to Development; the UNIDO/UNCHS (Habitat) First Global Consultation on the Construction Industry; the First International Workshop on Improved Shelter and Environment for Refugees organized by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and various urban-related programmes by the World Health Orgainzation. A long-standing programme which directly supports the GSS goals is the United Nations Children's Fund's Urban Basic Services Programme (UBS). The UBS was begun in the late 1970s with the objectives of developing an integrated approach to urban problems, based on community participation, using networks of neighbourhood committees and NGOs, and emphasising partnerships between local governments, CBOs and NGOs in the areas of water and sanitation, primary health care and nutrition. The Programme has spread to some 170 urban areas in India and to over 40 other countries. It has achieved major improvements in health, access to safe drinking water, social mobilization. advocacy and capacity-building. The UBS approach has shown that significant improvements in urban health and social indicators can be obtained by involving poor people fully in the planning and implementation of their own development efforts, in partnership with local governments and NGOs.

E. Conclusion

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117. This broad review shows that most ESAs are aware of and are involved in activities cinnected with the GSS. Perhaps what is needed most in the next few years is more effective international coordination so that the resources of the many multilateral and bilateral agencies wishing to support the GSS and/or its component parts are utilized by countries to the best effect. Given that UNCHS (Habitat) is the designated agency to implement the GSS, that is, it has a decentralized network available through the UMP and the United Nations regional commission offices, and that it has very strong links with the World Bank, it seems clear that UNCHS (Habitat) should expand its "clearing house" role in the networking process.

References

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1. UNCHS (1991), Evaluation of Experience with Initiating Enabling Shelter Strategies.

2. UNCHS (1992), Improving Shelter: Actions by Non-Governmental Organizations.

3. World Bank (1993), Housing: Enabling Markets to Work, World Bank Policy Paper.

4. UNCHS (1994a), Public/Private partnerships in enabling Shelter Strategies.

5. UNCHS (1994b), Terminal report: Community based low-cost housing project, Indonesia.