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Celebrations around the world
| Country |
Event |
| Africa |
| Benin |
The Union for the Dignity and the Development
of the Underprivileged Family Communities of Porto-Novo (UDUCP)
and the Benin Association for the Well-being of Orphans and
Abandoned Children (A.BE.E.A) will celebrate World Habitat
Day with a conference on poor health from water and degradation
of the urban environment. |
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Benin will has scheduled a week of conferences, public meetings television and radio programmes to mark the World Habitat Day 2005 theme on the Millennium Development Goals and the city. The formal ceremony on 3 october will be personally launched by the Minister of the Environment, Habitat and Urbanism. The daily events will range from concerts in the slums to seminars on subjects ranging from urban finance to urban transport, and slum upgrading.
For details in full, see HPM’S REPORT |
|
Botswana |
The Housing
department of the government of Botswana will commemorate
World Habitat Day. |
| Burundi |
In the build-up to World Habitat Day there will be a nationwide television and radio debate on applying the Millennium Development Goals to cities in Burundi. Participants will discuss how ECOSAT, a social building a housing company created with donor support in 1987, can join UNDP and UN-HABITAT in further enhancing the cause of human settlements in Burundi. ECOSAT won the UN-HABITAT Scroll of Honour Award in 1991. The Head of State will preside at special WHD ceremony in Gatumba, 15 km from Bujumbura. |
| Cameroon |
World Habitat Day celebrations in Cameroon were organized by the Ministry of Urban Development and Housing (MINDUH) in collaboration with the UN Development Programme in Cameroon. Various activities took place to mark the occasion. As a build up to the day, the MINDUH Department of Housing and Architecture, the prime mover of the activities, contacted all the ten provinces in the country to raise awareness of the Millennium Development Goals. The main activities to mark the day were held in Yaoundé and were widely attended. Top government officials including four cabinet Ministers, the Mayor of Yaoundé, the Director of Housing and Architecture, the UNDP Resident Representative and other partners from all sectors of society took part in the celebrations. |
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Cameroon will mark World Habitat Day 2005 with a series of events. These will include a World Habitat Day ceremony at which the messages of the UN Secertart-General, the Exeuctive Director of UN-HABITAT and the Government will be read out. At the national and local level there will be special visits to slum upgrading projects in Yaoundé, as well as a series of seminars involving civil society, NGOs, the Government, municipal officials and others working to improve the urban living environment. |
| Chad |
Chad is planning a series of events on World Habitat Day. These will include a cultural programme centred on a poety competition for young people on the them of the capital city, Ndjamena in 2005. There will be a football match for men, a women’s basketball match and a marathon race. There will be a special seminar, a nationally broadcast radio and television debate with senior government officials and development partners on the Millennium Development Goals and how they can be locally applied at city-level. |
| Congo |
In October, the city of
Brazzaville will be marking its 125th anniversary and
the city authorities are gearing up for a double birthday and
World Habitat Day celebrations. |
| Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) |
The Union Genérale des Sociétées Coopératives Mutualistes et Associatives (UGSCOMA) will hold two World Habitat Day events. On Saturday 1 October, a visit to various slums, followed by a news conference on the theme, The Millennium Development Goals and the City, a youth football match and an evening reception. On Monday 3 October itself, the occasion will be marked by a special parade of school children, a film and a reception with speeches by the local representatives of UGSCOMA and UN-HABITAT.
The Minister of Urban Affairs and the Habitat, Hon. John Tibasima Ateenyi, delivered the keynote World Habitat Day speech.
For more details see the programme |
| Egypt |
The Ministry of Education and the Governor of Alexandria will mark World Habitat Day by raising awareness of school children about the Millennium Development Goals, slums and clean water. A symposium on slums is planned for the 2 October. |
| Eritrea |
In Eritrea, the Ministry of Public Works has prepared a nationwide television and radio show to mark World Habitat Day. It has also arranged a seminar with the participation of UN and local government representatives that will discuss shelter provision for internally displaced persons, slum upgrading and other human settlements problems. Banners will be posted up in the main streets of the capital Asmara announcing the occasion. |
| Ethiopia |
In Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the Action-Professionals’ Association for the People
APAP broadcast a World Habitat Day programme carrying the statements of UN Secretary-General Kofi Anan, Mrs. Anna Tibaijuka, UN-HABITAT’s Executive Director and an interview with APAP’s Executive Director Ato Debebe H/Gebriel. This was followed by a Panel discussion involving Ato Kebede Abebe, Executive Director of Habitat for Humanity, Dr. Solomon Mulugeta, academician from Addis Ababa University and Mr. Gebriel of APAP. The discussion focused on the Millennium Development Goals and housing, international and national human rights instruments on the right to housing, state obligations on the right to housing, urbanization and its effect on the expansion of slums etc. APAP is a local human rights NGO established in 1993 to disseminate legal and human rights knowledge among the Ethiopian public, as well as lower level judiciary and law enforcement agencies. It also used the occasion to hand out leaflets in Addis Ababa on the right to housing. |
| Kenya |
The Ministry of Lands and Housing will host this year’s 2005 national celebration of World Habitat Day in Kenya at a glittering celebration at the Makadara Stadium in the Municipality of Mavoko. The event scheduled to last all morning starting at 9.00 a.m., will include speeches by the Minister for Lands and Housing, the Minister for Local Government, the Minister for Water and Irrigation, the Minister for Planning and National Development, the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry for Lands and Housing, the Representative of the Government of Kenya to UN-HABITAT, the Representative of UN-HABITAT, and His Worship, the Mayor of Mavoko. There will be choirs, traditional dances, drama and comedians to mark the occasion.
For details, see the programme |
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In Vancouver, host city of the third session of UN-HABITAT's World Urban Forum in June 2006, and in Nairobi, Kenya, young people are arranging special World Urban Cafés to mark World Habitat Day. The idea is to give youth a forum to discuss ways of bringing ideas into action. Using the internet, they will engage international, national and the regional youth in urban sustainability dialogue and strategy development concurrent with the World Urban Forum 2006. It will focus on indigenous, global, and urban youth and youth focused cultural enterprises. Its three core aims are to generate and advance global communities of understanding and action on urban and rural youth issues; ensure youth input into international and national outcomes from the Wordl Urban Forum that shape cities, community and youth development; and to support and promote community based youth focused projects targeting a sustainable future. The Nairobi Working Group will meet on World Habitat Day at the One Stop Youth Centre. The Vancouver Working Group will work through Youth Outreach Team of the City Council of Vancouver. They will explore the ways in which youth are directly involved and affected by each Millennium Development Goal, show how young people are contributing to the MDGs, and to provide ‘Ideas to Action’ that governments, the United Nations system, donors and other actors can harness, support, and scale-up in order to support young people in making significant contributions to achieving the MDGs.
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In Siaya district of Kenya,
the Siaya Youth Groups Organization will organize plays
and sports matches to raise awareness of problems faced by youth
in cities such as HIV/AIDS and drug abuse. |
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The Kariobangi South Welfare and Slum Housing Association held a World Habitat Day local clean-up, tree planting and entertainment programme.
For details see:
Report one | Report two
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The Kamukunji Riverside
Tailoring and Ironing Society, a welfare group based in
Gikomba area in Nairobi, will mark World Habitat Day with activities
at the grass root level to raise awareness and stimulate debate
on this year’s theme of The Millennium Development
Goals and the City. The celebrations will be held in the
informal settlements of Majengo and Pumwani in Nairobi at the
historic Kamukunji grounds and the Child Survival Primary School
respectively. |
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In Nairobi, the Kangemi
Women Empowerment Centre is organizing activities to mark
the day. |
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The Alfaer Jekeko International Institute
and Consultancy Centre (The AJIIC Centre), together with
the Chief and women groups and the local church of Kipreres
Location are planning poem recitals, song compositions and pictures
by secondary school students on this year's theme on Millennium
Development Goals and the City. Women groups will make also
make presentations and it is hoped that the District Officer
will attend as guest of honour. |
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The People Ready in Developing Education (PRIDE-Mathare), a nonprofit making self help group is organizing a procession and a free medical camp within the Mathare slum, the second largest slum in Nairobi, to help create awareness of water and sanitation problems. |
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The Soweto Youth Group Kibera, a community based organisation based in Nairobi's Kibera slum is planning a World Habitat Day clean-up campaign that will also feature a series of brief plays to explain through drama the importance of living in a clean environment. |
| Liberia |
World Habitat Day will be celebrated in Liberia at a glittering ceremony with high-level dignatories at the Monrovia City Corporation Hall. It will entail formal readings of the WHD messages of the UN Secetary-General, the UN-HABITAT Executive Director and the Government, as well as the launch in Liberia of the UN-HABITAT RUSPS rapid urban profile programme, and a seminar on localizing the Millennium Development Goals in Liberian urban centres. |
| Lesotho |
The Ministry of Local Government in collaboration with Maseru City Council and other stakeholders celebrate World Habitat Day in a series of seminars, speeches by senior leades and city clean-up campaigns. The newly paved road system serving Maseru East will be officially inaugurated by the Minister of Local Government. The Water and Sewerage Authority will sensitize the public on the importance of access to adequate, safe and clean drinking water particularly those residing in the Maqalika Dam catchment area. |
| Madagascar |
World Habitat Day in Madagascar this year will focus on the bustling east coast city of Vatomandry, where the population has suffered repeatedly the devastating effects of cyclones. The idea will be to promote new housing programmes in the area. The National Guild of Architects will hold a formal ceremony to offer its services in promoting the Millennium Development Goals at local level, and a nationwide publicity campaign will be held.
For details in full, see
HPM’S REPORT |
| Mozambique |
The World Habitat Day 2005 was celebrated in Mozambique with several activities organizing by UN-HABITAT in collaboration with Government and Local Authorities. This year, the theme was "the Millennium Development Goals and the City". UN-Habitat is particularly involved in reaching MDG 7 Ensure Environmental Sustainability Target 11 - By 2020 achieve significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million-slum dwellers. The celebration was an occasion to reinforce the awareness raising campaign that is being held in Mozambique to mainstream the MDGs, and for discussing the implications of the fast "slumization" the cities. FULL REPORT |
| Namibia |
The National Habitat Committee (NHC) through the Ministry of Regional, Local Government, Housing and Rural Development (MRLGHRD) will commemorate the World Habitat Day in each of the 13 political regions of Namibia with a series of events ranging from tree planting and site clearance for urban services, to television and radio talk shows. The ministry is providing N$10,000 to fund the events, along with t-shirts and relevant awareness raising materials.
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| Nigeria |
The Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development (FMHUD), in collaboration with UN-HABITAT Programme Support Office in Nigeria, has arranged a major national World Habitat Day celebration that will include nationally broadcast speeches by senior officials and a panel discussion on theme, the Millennium Development Goals and the City. Key messages will be delivered by Dr Olusegun Mimiko, Minister of Housing and Urban Development, the FMHUD Director of Urban and Regional Development, the UNDP Resident Representative, and keynote lecture by Ms. Aisha Ibrahim, Senior Adviser to the President on MDGs. There will be play on the state of Nigerian cities, and an exhibition at which various groups dealing with human settlements in Nigeria will showcase their activities, achievements and best practices in line with the theme of the celebration. The Government has designed a special World Habitat Day poster carrying a message about the theme in the three major languages of the country, Hausa, Yoruba and Igbo. In a follow-up, to the day’s events, the National Network Television Service, will devote its “Tuesday Life” show to a panel discussion on the Millennium Development Goals and the City aimed at making the public more aware of urban management, good governance and urban poverty reduction. The panelists include the Minister, the Permanent Secretary, Ms. Ibrahim, the Habitat Programme Manager, an NGO representative, and a human settlements specialist. World Habitat Day will also be celebrated at the State level in Nigeria. |
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The Development Initiatives Network (DIN), a registered non-governmental organization based in Lagos with a focus on policy research and advocacy on problems such as urbanization, will mark World Habitat Day with the release of its new series, "Urban Sustainability in Nigeria". It will present current thinking and ideas on how urban challenges in Nigeria can be addressed through improvements in policy making, project implementation and resource use. Currently available issues deal with improving urban policy design and implementation in a Federation, legal and institutional challenges of informal land developments, and sustainable urban land planning and administration. The DIN was an NGO delegate at the 20th Governing Council of UN-HABITAT in April 2005. |
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ACT RIGHT INTERNATIONAL, an non-governmental
organization based in Abuja is planning to mark this year’s
World Habitat Day by organising a rally and seminar within the
Abuja city territory to raise local awareness. |
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The Nigeria Grassroot Youth forum,
is also planning an event to mark the Day. |
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The Youth Welfare Forum for Sustainance
of the Nation will hold a lecture with participation from
over 30 local governments in Oyo State. The theme of the lecture
will be in line with this year's World Habitat Day theme. |
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The National Union of Tenants (NUT) of Nigeria are organizing a series of events to commemorate World Habitat Day. These will start on 29 September with an assembly of Union members, government officials, representatives from civil society and the private sector, and the wider public. Other activities include a visit to social housing units, donations to help homeless communities, a church service for the victims of the tsunami and for the homeless, and on World Habitat Day itself, the highlight of the celebrations will be the launch of an Urban Slum Upgrading Programme. |
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The African Initiative for Environmental Sustainable Network will hold a World Habitat Day seminar in the southern Delta State town, Ughelli, that will look at urban decentralisation in the region. The agenda will include discussions on unplanned urban settlements, and access to water and sanitation. The Community Urban Settlement Initiative will make a special presentation on cleaning up the urban environment with a view to creating a better understanding among local people. |
| Rwanda |
Rwanda will take its national World Habitat Day celebration this year to the eastern border town of Gisenyi, and publicise the occasion in national and radio television debate with the Minister of Infrastructure.
For details in full, see HPM’S REPORT |
| Senegal |
Enda (Environmental Development in Action) will organize commemorative events with public institutions
and civil society focusing on the theme of World Habitat Day.
For details in full, see programme |
| Sierra Leone |
World Habitat Day in Sierra Leone is spearheaded this year by the Ministry of Works, Housing and Technical Maintenance. A series of meetings are planned as well as a poster and publicity campaign. A message from the Minister of Works, Housing and Technical Maintenance will be nationally broadcast on radio and television, including a special programme on the selected slum areas of Kroo Bay, Susan’s Bay and Moa Wharf.
For details in full, see HPM’S REPORT, |
| Sudan |
The Minister of Environment and Physical Development will mark the occasion in a nationwide television address during which he will discuss the Millennium Development Goals and their application at the local level. Regional Phyusical Planning Department Directors will hold a seminar to discuss partnerships and empowering city managers. |
| Tanzania |
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Lands and Human Settlements Development will address a nationwide television and radio broadcast marking World Habitat Day, and special messages by the Minister and housing directors will be carried in the national press. A series of visits is being arranged for senior officials to see at first hand new low cost urban housing developments. |
| Togo |
The National Consumer and Environment Association of Togo held a nationally broadcast public awareness seminar with some 150 participants on World Habitat Day to sensitize the public, key partners and organizations dealing with urban issues about this year's theme, The Millennium Development Goals and the City. A keynote speech was delivered by the Prime Ministerial Special Advisor on Administratative Affairs, Dr. Agokla Kossi Mawuli. He said major reforms were required in the shelter sector because of « runaway urbanisation » and burgeoning, unregulated growth of slums.
see full report |
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The National Consumer and Environment Association of Togo will organise public awareness raising gatherings and broadcast radio and TV messages to sensitize the public, key partners and organizations dealing with urban issues about this year's theme, The Millennium Development Goals and the City. |
| Uganda |
The Ministry of Works, Housing and Communications has arranged a panel of experts to address the World Habitat Day theme on the Millennium development Goals and the City in a nationwide television programme on the eve of the event. It will also join Kampala City Council in a clean-up campaign of the city's Kisenyi slum. Kampala will also host a workshop on the theme, Cities without Slums, and the Ministry will publish a special WHD issue of its Shelter Newsletter. Kampala city council will run a workshop to review the performance of partners and stakeholders in the Cities Without Slums strategy, and widespread coverage is planned in the local printed media. |
| Zambia |
Zambia will celebrate World Habitat Day with a march past to a settlement where water infrastructure was recently installed for some 20,000 people who only recently were without access to clean water. Guests invited include the Minister of Local Governmentt and Housing, the Mayor of Lusaka and the area councillor. They are expected to address the gathering on what central and local governments are doing towards the realization of MDGs. Also lined up is a performance by a local drama group. |
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| Asia and the Pacific |
| Bangladesh |
MASES (Manab Sheba Shangstha
- Save The Human Being) a regional based NGO in Bangladesh
which is acting in the areas of urban and rural housing, sanitation
and safe drinking water will hold a seminars, a rally and symposium
to mark World habitat Day 2005. Besides this, a children's drawing
exhibition on environment and healthy housing will be organized
at Keshabpur municipality, Jessore prefecture. |
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Activities lined up for the day include a rally, a seminar, a symposium and a competition of acting drawing on healthy urban housing. The Government Administration and local Municipality Chairman are expected to lead a World Habitat Day rally with participants drwan from the local community , students, NGOs workers, political leaders, community leaders as well as government officials. The seminar will be conducted with the cooperation of local government. A schools drama competition is also planned. |
| Cambodia |
In Cambodia, the day will be marked by brief remarks and presentation of the message of the Secretary General of the United Nations Mr. Kofi Annan by Mr. Douglas Gardner, UN Resident Coordinator, Phnom Penh as well as presentation of the UN-HABITAT Executive Director Mrs. Anna Kajumulo Tibaijuka's message by Dr. Ramesh Munankami, the UN-HABITAT Representative in Cambodia. There is also a planned launch of the Do’s and Don’ts in the Strategies of Improving Urban Poor Communities for Achieving Millennium Development Goal Number 7 - by 2020 to have achieved a significant improvements in the lives of 569 poor communities in Phnom Penh” by Mr. Kep Chuk Tema, Governor of Municipality of Phnom Penh. Mr. Mann Chhouern, Vice Governor of Municipality of Phnom Penh will also make a presentation.
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| China |
As part of celebrations to mark this year's WHD, Council of Human Settlements, a national NGO specializing in human settlements and environment research and development discussed about actions to implement MDGs in China. It also organized an exhibition to observe the day in Hangzhou, the capital of Zhejiang Province at its annual forum on "Green Human Settlement, Harmonious Society" held on 24 to 26 September 2005. |
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The China Housing Industry Association,
a large non-governmental organization set up in 2001 which promotes
and has built a huge amount of ecologically sound housing and
is looking at housing solutions for low-income households will
organize commemorative activities focusing on the Millennium
Development Goals involving enterprises and experts. |
| Fiji |
The Fiji Local Government Association will hold a two day convention (in the town of Ba. The Convention will be opened by the Minister of Local Government, Housing, Squatter Settlement and Environment who will read out the messages of the UN Secretary-General and the Executive Director of UN-HABITAT. The theme of the Convention will be 'Local Government to be Innovative' and include discussions on the role of local government in the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, decentralization, squatter settlement/peri-urban area upgrading, municipal fiancé, good governance and other urbanization issues. It will also be an occasion to gain support for the Fiji Good Local Governance Campaign. The event will be attended by Government officials, municipal officials, NGOs and local urban experts and observers. The Fiji Good Local Governance Campaign and the Foundation for the Peoples of the South Pacific International Secretariat (FSPI) and FemLINK Pacific,will hold a nationwide radio show on topics including how the Millennium Development Goals apply to women, women in local government, why women should vote and pro-poor participatory budgeting. The Ministry of Local Government, Housing, Squatter Settlement and Environment and the Fiji Good Local Governance Campaign will publish articles in the Fiji Times on Monday 3 October. The Fiji Good Local Governance Campaign will also assist in raising awareness of school children about the Millennium Development Goals by showing a video documentary on the theme at the University of the South Pacific and the Fiji International School. |
| India |
The Uttar Pradesh Housing and Development Board, the Uttar Pradesh Regional Chapter, and town and country planning organizations organized a seminar to commemorate the World Habitat Day in Uttar Pradesh, India. The theme of the seminar was the "Draft National Housing and Habitat Policy - 2005". The seminar was inaugurated by the Principal Secretary of the Housing and Urban Planning Government of Utter Pradesh. Its objective was to draw the attention of various public and private sector agencies including town planners, academicians, architects, and financial institutions and others to the vital goal of "Shelter for every person" and to consolidate the policy options and strategies for improving the quality of life for the under privileged. The seminar concluded with a summary of comments and recommendations towards a "Draft National Housing and Habitat Policy" to be submitted to the government for its consideration. |
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The Centre for Human Settlements International (CHS-Habitat), Kolkata, observed World Habitat Day in a ceremony that brough together residents of slums in Collate, officials of the Local Government (KMC), Research and Development Institutes, and NGOs.
Also in attendance were the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, who are involved in developing and upgrading the slums, the local Municipal councillor, the Mayor in council (Slum), the experts on Slum projects (Calcutta University, C.M.D.A.) and representatives of civil society and N.G.O’s.
The event involved two activities: drawings by pupils from the “Shiksa Niketan” school which is run by CHS-Habitat-Kolkata aimed at raising their awareness about improving their surrounding and a discussion involving the officials of the K.M.C, local development authority, C.M.D.A. experts from the Universities including representatives, CHS-Habitat, Kolkata, other N.G.Os and local people. The aim was to highlight the policies to be adopted and actions to be taken for Local Slum development and Upgrading Projects in Calcutta and which can be replicated in other cities of India and in the adjoining Asian countries.
At the event, messages from the United Nations Secretary General, Mr. Kofi Annan and UN-HABITAT Executive Director Mrs. Anna Tibaijuka were read out.
Dr. Pabitra Giri, Director of Centre for Economics, University of Calcutta, highlighted that about 33% of the city’s population constitute the Urban poor. However, in the newly planned Rajarhat New Town, there is no provision for the settlements of Urban Poor.
Prof. K.P. Bhattacharjee, Executive Director , Centre for Human Settlements, highlighted that improving the living Environment of not only Slums but also that of squatter/ informal settlements of Kolkata is very much essential, not only for the dwellers, but also for other habitants of the city.
He emphasized that low cost shelters and or Affordable Housing (ownership/ rental) must be available in the market so that the migrant farmers, labours from the different districts of the state and the neighbouring states can take shelter in these affordable houses. Subsequently, when their economic conditions improve, they can move to better houses.
On behalf of Mayor in Council(Bustee), Sri Gora Chand Mondal (D.G.), read his paper, which informed the participants that the K.M.C. is making and re-laying of water lines with the financial assistance from Asian Dev. Bank . An exhibition of drawings by slum children were displayed and best 3 drawings were given prizes .
Speakers and participants complemented CHS-Habitat for taking the initiative to make children of slums aware about need for better living environment for healthy living, since the young generation may be better equipped to improve the living environment of the slums and informal settlements.
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The Centre for Human Settlements International ( Northern India Chapter ) and the University of Birmingham Alumni Association, ( India Chapter ) in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA), New Delhi, held a World Habitat Day panel discussion in the capital, New Delhi on Monday. The guests were welcomed by Mr Vijay K. Saluja, Convenor , CHSI (Northern India Chapter) and the former chief civil engineer of New Delhi Municipal Council. The panelists included former member of Parliament and Sercretary of the Planning Commission, Dr Nitish Sengupta, IAS (retd.), Dr P. S. Rana, Chairman & MD, HUDCO, Mr Chetan Vaidya, Principal Infrastructure Advisor, Indo-US FIRE Project, Professor Jaya Indiresan, Advisor, Asian Centre for Organisation Research & Development [ACORD], and Dr. P. S. N. Rao, Professor of Urban Manag ment ,IIPA. Dr P. L. Sanjeev Reddy, IAS (Retd.) and Director, IIPA, moderated the debate. The Rapporteur was Dr Sachin Chowdhry, Assistant Professor, IIPA. A vote of thanks was proposed by Dr Seema Joshi, Associate Professor, IIPA
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The Uttar Pradesh Housing & Development Board and U.P. Regional Chapter of Institute of Town Planners India is organising a World Habitat Day seminar on National Housing & Habitat Policy-2005. The seminar will be chaired by Smt S.K. Sandhu, Principal Secretary, Housing & Urban Planning, Government of Uttar Pradesh (India). The other guest of honour is Mr. Neeraj Kumar Gupta, Housing Commissioner, Uttar Pradesh, and Mr. Avinash K. Srivastava, Secretary, Housing Urban Planning of the Government of Uttar Pradesh. Eminent participants in a panel discussion include Professor D.C. Thaper, Dean and Director of Architecture, Integral University, Lucknow, and Mr. S.K Garg, President, Uttar Pradesh Real Estate Developers Council. The Theme presentation will be made by Mr. B.N. Singh, Former chief Regional Planner, N.C.R. Planning Board, New Delhi. The seminar will be attended by prominent town planners, engineers, administrators, architects, builders, social cientists and other experts.
For details of the programme, see: clickable link to programme |
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The Krityanand UNESCO Club in Jamshedpur,
India will organize a one day conference involving members of
communities, industry authorities, media and press, and builders
on the theme ‘Plant one tree for every Home and plant
five trees for one Industry for balancing our Environment.’
The Habitat Centre for Human Settlements International in Calcutta will invite local communities including slum dwellers , administrators and politicians to join hands to work towards the Millennium Development Goals. Particular attention will be given to targets 10 and 11 on halving the population without access to clean water and improving the lives of slum dwellers. Participants will be given a chance to make contributions on how they can jointly improve their habitat. |
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The School of Architecture and Planning
of Anna University, Chennai will organise a seminar
and competition to mark the day. |
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The Institution of Engineers in Kolkata
also plans to mark the day |
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The Director of the Allahabad Centre
for Research and Development will deliver lectures
at schools and colleges to raise awareness among students and
teachers of the Millennium Development Goals and the target
on improving the lives of slum dwellers. Mr. Sharma will also
organize students to help slum dwellers in the Allahabad to
improve their conditions. |
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The Osmania Medical College Doctors' Forum in Hyderabad will observe World Habitat Day 2005 with a news conference to highlight water and sanitation problems in the city's slums. |
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The City Managers’ Association Orissa (CMAO) together with the Housing and Urban Development Department of the State Government will organise a workshop to raise awareness of the Millennium Development Goals among city managers. The event, which will feature an exhibition and video documentary, will be attended by a wide variety of partners from local urban bodies, senior government decision makers, politicians, NGOs, local urban experts and the public. |
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The Center for Human Settlements[Northern India Chapter] will celebrate World Habitat Day by organising a panel discussion. Leading urban experts, UN officials, ministry representatives, local government officials, members of the media, diplomats, academics and other leading citizens and members of NGO`s will discuss the Millennium Development Goals and the City. |
| Japan |
In Japan, CITYNET will work with its members
to organize activities to mark World Habitat Day. |
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UN-HABITAT's Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (ROAP) is coordinating the organization of an Expert Group Meeting in Fukuoka under the theme Towards Sustainable Cities - Indicator Assessment for Sustainable Cities. As a side event, the 5th World Habitat Day children's drawing contest on Disaster-Resilient Communities will be held. To enter for this contest, which is open to grade 4-6 pupils please see www.fukuoka.unhabitat.org. |
| Nepal |
The Nepal International Consumers
Union will hold a seminar to mark World Habitat Day. |
| Pakistan |
The National Rural Support Programme
(NRSP), the largest rural support programme in Pakistan
whose activities include low-cost sanitation and housing aimed
at creating neat and clean towns and villages in Pakistan will
mark the day. |
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SKYIANS welfare organization,
an NGO is organizing events including essay and poster competitions
to mark the day. |
| Papua New Guinea |
The Department for Community Development will raise awareness of the Millennium Development Goals and particularly poverty reduction. |
| Thailand |
Bangkok, 11 October 2005 – During the week of World Habitat Day 3-8 October UN-HABITAT launched its Global Campaign for Secure Tenure and Cities without Slums programme in Thailand.
The first of these events was the celebration of the Baan Mankong Programme that was engaged in 2003 under the auspices of the Global Campaign for Secure Tenure and in conformity to its principles. In preparation of the official launch, model homes were built in Sanam Luang to show how the programme would bring new benefits.
Read More |
| The Philippines |
The Housing and Urban Development Coordinatng Council will spearhead the Government of the Philippines' commemoration of World Habitat Day |
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In Leyte Province, the Harigi Han Leyte Youth Development Inc. will organize a forum involving the private sector and other actors and organize an exhibition with educational materials to raise awareness of the theme. |
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The Rhema Foundation, which supports
multidisciplinary programmes in housing, education and health
care in rural and urban communities, is planning a variety show
on the theme of this year's World Habitat Day. |
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The Philippines will celebrate World Habitat Day with a month-long campaign that will focus on deepening and expanding the localization of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in the cities. It recognizes the key role of the city as the economic, social and cultural hub that will lead the concerted attack on poverty, illiteracy, hunger, unsafe water, disease, and urban and environmental degradation by translating the set of eight goals into local actions. A highlight of the occasion will be a news conference by Philippine Vice President and Housing and Urban Development Secretary, Noli de Castro, the Secretary of the Department of the Interior and Local Government, together with the mayors and local champions from the 14 MDG Localisation Resource Cities.
For details in full, see HPM’S REPORT |
| Sri Lanka |
In Sri Lanka, World Habitat Day is being celebrated on a nationwide basis under the auspices of the Ministry of Housing in association with the Sustainable Cities Programme. The World Habitat Day activities will include a national programme on the 3 October and a number of activities at city level commencing from the 26 September. The main event will be a seminar with the Minister of Housing. Other guests of honour expected include the minister of Urban Development and Water Supply, the Mayor of Colombo and the Resident Representative of the UNDP. There will also be speeches by the winners of an essay competition and art competition conducted among schools in Sri Lanka. At the city level there will be seminars among the city stakeholders creating awareness on the MDGs in the 10 SCP cities and other activities on housing, water, sanitation as well improvement of poorly served informal settlements. |
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The Women’s
Bank in Sri Lanka will celebrate this year’s
World Habitat Day on the 3rd and 4th of October with the participation
of the Prime Minister as the chief guest. It is expected that
about 30,000 member families of the organization and another
25,000 will participate in the two-day events which will include
exhibitions, seminars and workshops, competitions and cultural
events. |
| Arab States |
| Afghanistan |
The main World Habitat Day ceremony in the capital, Kabul, was cancelled because of a suicide attack a couple of days before. Nevertheless, the staff of UN-HABITAT in Afghanistan volunteered to do to manual labour with local people in the slums of Mazar-e-Sharif, Jalalabad, Farah, Kandahar, Bamyan, Herat, Parwan, Panjshir and Kapisa, an initiative that was hailed by community members, mayors, and governors of different provinces. In Farah, staff visited a neighbourhood water supply project funded jointly by the local municipality and UN-HABITAT. The objective of the project is to supply potable water to 1,000 internally displaced families. |
| Palestine |
World Habitat Day will be celebrated in the Palestinian Territories in a special media blitz in which the messages of the UN Secretary-General and UN-HABITAT's Executive Director will be widely publicised. |
| Yemen |
The UN Resident Coordinator in Yemen, Ms. Flavia Pansieri delivered a keynote address during the Word Habitat Day celebration in Yemen during which she explained how the Millennium Development Goals can be applied at local level in the City. The Chairperson of the National Women Committee Ms. Rashida presented addressed women’s housing rights and the problems affecting Yemeni women due to lack of housing. She recommended the establishment of special laws to protect widows and divorcees. Ms. Yasmin Awadi, General Director of the Ministry of Public Works and Roads gave a speech outlining the Ministry's plan. She also talked of the Ministry's efforts in the squatter development programmes and the Government’s implementation of housing projects for poor people living in the slums of Sana'a.
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In Yemen, the
Ministry of Public works and Highways is organizing a two day
workshop on issues relating to the Millennium Development Goals
and the Habitat Agenda. |
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| Europe |
| Belgium |
The UN-HABITAT Brussels Liaison Office to the European Union and Belgium is organizing a European celebration of World Habitat Day 2005 in collaboration with the Regional United Nations Information Centre (RUNIC). There will be a presentation of UN-HABITAT's Global Report on Financing Urban Shelter. The guest of honour will be Mr. Abdou Abarry, Ambassador of Niger to Belgium and the EU. There will be presentations by senior EU officials, academics and civil society representatives. |
| Hungary |
A series of seminars, arranged by the Habitat Information Office in Budapest, were held to mark World Habitat Day this year. They focused on ensuring that the Habitat Agenda is applied to the planning and implementation of new urban policies in the region that are expected to conform with European Union guidelines. The celebration afforded an opportunity to publicize the Habitat Agenda.
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World Habitat Day in Hungary will be observed in a series of conferences around the country organised by the National Development Office, which is working with the European Union to devise a new National Development Plan. The events will get a boost from radio and television coverage and debates on the WHD theme that have been arranged for Monday, 3 October. |
| Italy |
World Habitat Day will be observed at the University of Rome “La Sapienza” ‘s first faculty of architecture. The event is being organized by the Centre for Urban Research for Developing Countries of the Ddepartment for Territorial and Urban Planning. It will celebrate this year’s theme with the presentation of the Millennium Task Force’s report “A Home in the City” and the presentation of “Global Studio”, a worldwide partnership engaged in the involvement of human settlements professionals in participatory planning and design with the urban poor.
See programme: |
The Netherlands
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The Dutch Habitat Platform is organizing
an interactive 'fair' focusing on targets 10 and 11 of the Millennium
Development Goal 7, which aim to improve the lives of slum dwellers
and halve the number of people without access to clean water. |
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Crown Prince Willem-Alexander of The Netherlands and the Minister for Housing Spatial Planning and Environment will open this year's World Habitat Day celebrations in The Netherlands. The event has been arranged by the Dutch Habitat Platform. |
| Norway |
For the fifth time, World Habitat Day 2005
will be celebrated with a conference organized by Habitat-Norway
in collaboration with the Ministry of Local Government and
Regional Development, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the
Norwegian Agency for Development. The Norwegian Minister for
Housing is invited to open the conference and representatives
from UN-HABITAT, Cities Alliance and a housing cooperative in
Tanzania are invited to speak. The conference will take place
in Oslo. |
| Spain |
World Habitat Day was celebrated by the City Council of Madrid at a seminar covering key issues on this year´s theme, the Milennium Development Goals and the City. The event was designed as a meeting point for essential actors dealing with shelter projects. The aim was to identify good practices and learn from the failures. The conference was promoted by the City Council of Madrid and organized by the Federation of Non-Governmental organizations in Madrid. A press release was issued in order to draw the attention of civil society to habitat problems as well as to the importance of keeping on providing post-disaster support to countries affected by last December's Indian Ocean tsunami. The Department of International Cooperation in the City Council of Madrid reaffirmed its continued support to UN-HABITAT programmes around the world. |
| Switzerland |
A World Habitat Day workshop is being held by the non-governmental organisation, "Urbanistes sans Frontières". Later in the month, from 1 to 13 October, there will be a major international conference in Geneva on the theme, "Sustainable Urbanization: Promoting new alliances to manage the present and the future." |
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Urbanistes Sans Frontières,
a Swiss non-governmental organization that promotes exchange
of information and best practices on post conflict and natural
disaster reconstruction, will organize a seminar and a workshop
related to this year's World Habitat Day theme. |
| Ukraine |
The Municipal Management Centre (Habitat) in Ukraine this year conducted eight international conferences around the country to mark World Habitat Day on the theme, ‘Ukraine-Habitat – Best Practices’. The idea is to share the experience of cooperation between Local authorities and organizations of the UN System in Ukraine, aimed at poverty eradication, solving major local problems and ensuring the sustainable development of human settlements of Ukraine. For details see programme: |
| United Kingdom |
To mark World Habitat Day 2005, the Development Planning Unit (DPU) of University College London is organising a lunchtime panel discussion, jointly with the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) and Homeless International (HI). The event is titled "From Aspiration to Implementation: The Challenge
of the Millennium Development Goals in Cities of the South". Speakers include Caren Levy (DPU), David Satterthwaite (IIED) and Ruth McLeod (Homeless International). In questioning the degree of active incorporation and implementation of the Millenium Development Goals to date in urban development practice in urban centres of the South, the speakers will address the engagement of various actors involved in this process, including aid agencies, multi-tiered government and people's organisations. The presentations will be followed by an open discussion.
For further information see:
http://www.ucl.ac.uk/dpu/events/upcoming/index_forth.htm |
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| North America |
| Canada |
In Vancouver, host city of the third session of UN-HABITAT's World Urban Forum in June 2006, and in Nairobi, Kenya, young people are arranging special World Urban Cafés to mark World Habitat Day. The idea is to give youth a forum to discuss ways of bringing ideas into action. Using the internet, they will engage international, national and the regional youth in urban sustainability dialogue and strategy development concurrent with the World Urban Forum 2006. It will focus on indigenous, global, and urban youth and youth focused cultural enterprises. Its three core aims are to generate and advance global communities of understanding and action on urban and rural youth issues; ensure youth input into international and national outcomes from the Wordl Urban Forum that shape cities, community and youth development; and to support and promote community based youth focused projects targeting a sustainable future. The Nairobi Working Group will meet on World Habitat Day at the One Stop Youth centre. The Vancouver Working Group will work through Youth Outreach Team of the City Council of Vancouver. They will explore the ways in which youth are directly involved and affected by each Millennium Development Goal, show how young people are contributing to the MDGs, and to provide ‘Ideas to Action’ that governments, the United Nations system, donors and other actors can harness, support, and scale-up in order to support young people in making significant contributions to achieving the MDGs.
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| USA |
The city of Los Angeles celebrated World Habitat Day with City Council resolution calling for formal recognition of the occasion. The National Policy and Advocacy Council on Homelessness (NPACH), with support from the Ford Foundation, joined UN-HABITAT and the City of Los Angeles to mark World Habitat Day on Monday. Los Angeles City Councilman, Mr. Eric Garcetti, chair of the Council’s Committee on Housing, Community, and Economic Development, introduced the resolution. NPACH urged the community to celebrate by volunteering time, donating to homeless service agencies, and asking their elected officials to support policies dedicated to eliminating homelessness and poverty. “As we have all learned over the last year, we are all only one job loss, one hurricane away from being homeless,” said Councilman Garcetti. “Here in Los Angeles, more than 90,000 people are homeless every night. We must join with governments around the world in redoubling our efforts to help provide our people with the most basic of rights: the right to a roof over our heads.” Almost thirty two percent of the world's urban population- roughly one billion people- live in slums, mostly in or on the edges of cities across the developing world. In the United States close to 15 million people pay over fifty percent of their income on housing, more than one million children experience homelessness each year and thirty seven million Americans live in poverty. According to a survey conducted by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, more than 90,000 people are homeless on any given night in the city. Said NPACH Executive Director, Dr. Brad Paul, “In celebrating World Habitat Day, Los Angeles is to be applauded for drawing the important link between poverty locally and human suffering everywhere. NPACH is delighted to be part of this celebration as the UN's Millennium Development Goals help provide a framework for us to pursue housing rights for all.” For further information see: http://www.npach.org |
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In New York, Habitat for Humanity International, the Earth Institute at Columbia University and UN-HABITAT, with generous support from the Rockefeller foundation, will bring together UN diplomats and representatives from faith based and civil society organizations to take part in voluntary activities with families at a New York City worksite in Harlem. There will also be a discussion on Building Urban Partnerships to achieve the Millennium Development Goals with Jeffrey Sachs, the Director of The Earth Institute who is also Director of the UN Millennium Project and Special Advisor to United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan on the Millennium Development Goals will be the keynote speaker. |
| Latin America and the Caribbean |
| Argentina |
Various NGOs, expert groups and civil society in organisations in Argentina on Monday used the occasion of World Habitat Day to issue a statement of concern at the state of urban reform in the country. Their statement can be seen on: [see statement ] |
| Bolivia |
La Paz municipality will mark World Habitat Day with an outdoor public meeting in one of the main city squares and hold seminar on the right to shelter for government and nongovernmental institutions. |
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Brazil |
Caixa Economica Federal in cooperation with the Ministry of Cities and the Ministry of Social Development will link its 2005/2006 Caixa Best Practices in Local Management Award to this year's World Habitat Day celebration. |
| Colombia |
In Bogota, a seminar will be held on the occasion of WHD with the participation of local authorities including the Mayor, the academic community, the private sector and other experts in urban issues. The one day seminar is thematically linked to local urban initiatives and the MDGs.
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| Haiti |
The Urban Development and Slum Improvement Department will mark World Habitat Day with an awareness raising campaign 3-5 October on the challenges and perspectives of urban space in Haiti, where by the number of people living in urban areas is expected to rise from 40 percent currently to 60 percent of the population by 2015. For Haiti, there will be a nationwide media campaign 26 September - 5 October, after which a weeklong photographic exhibition is planned at the science faculty at the State University of Haiti. There will also be a special two-day debate 3 and 4 October on the evolution of urbanisation in Haiti.
For details in full, see HPM’S REPORT |
| Mexico |
Our office in Mexico is marking World Habitat Day 2005 with a week of glittering array of events that will culminate with the presentation of the national Habitat Prize by President Vincente Fox. Another highlight will be a video news conference with ministers and senior officials from the Latin America region who will comment on how various countries are meeting their obligations under the Millennium Development Goals. The Ministry of Social Development is holding a conference on urban transport in Puebla State, and will also release a series of publications, including the latest data gathered by Local Urban Observatories. |
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The Habitat International Coalition (HIC), an independent, international, non-profit movement of some 400 organizations and individuals working in the area of human settlements, is planning a Housing and Land Rights Day 2005: The Right to the City to coincide with World Habitat Day. HIC’s initiative calls on local, national and regional organizations, social movements, NGO's and academic institutions to organize public actions and events related to the Right to the City. |
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