Urban development component of the second economy strategy

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Urban development component of the second economy
strategy

• 31 October 2008

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Problem

• Impact of programmes on economic upliftment has
  been marginal space is exclusionary, rdp
  housing on outskirts, programmes not integrating
  poor into property market..asset rich/income poor
• Growth of informal settlements spatial
  manifestation of peoples place in second
  economy
• Uneven political support for pro-poor agenda, no
  clear national direction on urban land issues
• Cost of transport impacts on ability to look for
  work and remain economically engaged..deep
  locational constraints
• Spatial planning instruments not being utilised
  to effect spatial changes
• Urban services- limited provision to urban poor,
  poor excluded from basic services
• Inner city poor gain foothold in regulatory
  gaps poor living conditions, unstable
  relationships, deterioration of irreplaceable
  building stock
• Lack of coherent strategy for addressing informal
  settlement

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Focus Areas

• Urban component focuses on investment in public
  infrastructure in urban areas and the impact of
  this investment on second economy
• Motivation infrastructure facilitates access to
  income generating possibilities, asset creation
• Focus areas of investigation (17 papers)
• Economic Development
• Spatial planning
• Transport
• Land
• Housing
• Informality housing and economic activity
  (Misselhorn)
• Urban services
• This presentation, brief introduction and focus
  on informal settlement upgrading

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Current spatial forms Persistent inequality-
spatial manifestation Ghettoisation Investment
impacts not optimal Spatial integration
X Economic integration X Unequal access to
benefits of urban living Social/ economic /
spatial exclusion
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NDoH estimate 2.4-million households in informal
settlements
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Urban form

• Poor bear brunt of externalities
• Access to employment
• Poor more dependent on public services (e.g.
  transport, electricity) to access opportunities
  and earn income
• Most likely to live in marginalised conditions,
  weak access to basic services
• Urban inefficiency perpetuates and exacerbates
  other forms of inequality
• Efficient cities work for everybody, but poor
  urban form undermines advantages of cities
• Heightened by global energy crisis
• Not poverty reduction first and sustainable
  development later

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Strategic response Including the poor in urban
fabric

• Public investment must be focused where benefits
  of inclusion are maximized
• TWO framing responses for reducing
  marginalization
• Access focus on providing access to urban
  infrastructure, connecting poor into urban fabric
• Assets focus on living environment that taps
  potential and promotes productivity

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ACCESS Infrastructure focus

• Investment in public infrastructure critical
  because
• Ageing bulk infrastructure reaching capacity
• Low densities high infrastructure/public
  service costs
• Public infrastructure attracts private investment
  housing provision improves living environment
• Extend basic services to poor Consitutional,
  ultimately improves productivity
• But neither infrastructure nor housing is
  automatically poverty reducing location
  dependent
• The optimal poverty reduction benefit of urban
  investment lies in the nexus between city
  restructuring, delivery of public infrastructure
  and shelter provision

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Biggest pro-poor public investment -
shelter BUT How do we shift from housing as
shelter to housing as asset an to sustainable
human settlements? Need an ASSET building focus
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ASSET Sustainable housing settlements
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Core recommendations

• Strategic pro-poor land use and transportation
  planning at municipal level (predictability)
• Transportation corridors and mass transit
• Infrastructure led emergency relief and
  upgrading of informal settlements
• Housing and land delivery
• Area based projects with clear budget line
• Development instruments

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Upgrading of informal settlementsnot slum
clearance

• Huchzermeyer
• SA National target to eradicate informal
  settlements by 2014
• MDG target improving lives of 100million slum
  dwellers by 2020.
• Targets require that circumstances of those
  living in slum' conditions be improved..specifica
  lly through providing access to (at least one of
  the following) water, sanitation, secure tenure,
  structurally sound housing reducing overcrowding
• UN-Habitat the long journey towards cities
  without slums through best practice of
  participatory slum upgrading programmes that
  include urban poverty reduction objectives.
• Clarification of targets and spirit of BNG at
  strategy level and throughout spheres of state.

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Infrastructure-led emergency relief upgrading of
informal settlements

• New paradigm
• away from IS as illegal, dysfunctional
• importance of IS as reception areas, able to
  address accommodation needs at scale
• A paradigm that is unambiguous in policy and in
  practice (current rhetoric slum eradication,
  upgrading or slum clearance?)
• Programme of positive, active upgrading of IS..A
  national strategy to unlock funding for municipal
  level upgrading of informal settlements (IS)
• Premise integration of the poor into the urban
  fabric is not only a housing responsibility

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Community Survey 2007 by province and type of
main dwelling
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Informal settlement upgrading and second economy

• Quick, affordable access to city, reception areas
• Reach most vulnerable relief in short term
• Focus on livelihoods access, location, rather
  than top structure on the causal conditions of
  informality through access to land,
  regularisation (recognition), economic focused
  interventions, rather than the symptoms through
  clearing of shacks
• Focus on functional tenure security and assets,
  productivity and potential
• Once settlements have been formally recognised
  and infrastructure is put in place, people feel
  secure enough to start investing in their
  dwellings.
• Link between housing outcome and savings,
• housing support

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Direct actions for upgrading IS

• Progressive upgrading (sophisticated)
• Scanning and grading IS
• A plan for emergency relief and progressive
  upgrading
• Dedicated funding
• Blanket recognition of well located IS
• Fast-tracking emergency relief or progressive
  upgrading
• Enabling tools for full upgrading of settlement
• Getting ahead of IS land release, limit
  densification
• Monitor

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• 1. Rapid identification and grading of informal
  settlements
• Inputs
• Assessment of status and upgradeability of all
  settlements. Includes
• Environmental information
• Site visits
• Deeds office assessment - land ownership
• Initial meeting(s) with community leadership to
  identify key emergency issues
• Existing structures of support and gauge levels
  of community organisation.
• Outputs
• Schedule of existing settlements showing their
  extent, approximate size (no. hh), their A, B
  or C status...potential for upgrading
• A. Full upgrade in short term
• B1. Emergency relief only
• B2. Emergency relief incremental / long term
  upgrading
• C. Must move no interim relief

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2. Feasibility (plan of action for each
settlement)

• Tailored response
• Detailed planning and budgeting exercise
  involving line function City departments,
  professional team and community leadership,
  financial institutions, NGOs
• Detailed plan of action for a package of
  emergency relief measures
• Capital budget
• Funding application
• Action plan
• emergency relief
• land acquisition
• Full upgrading

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3. Finance

• State subsidisation focuses on engineering,
  social and educational infrastructure
• Streamlined funding mechanism
• Quick
• Flexible
• Non bureaucratic
• Plan-based may be area-based
• Subject to regular audit
• One pot funding stream, grant alongside MIG
  Treasury local government
• Group saving and Housing micro finance
• In a context where a household has been ensured
  security of tenure (whatever form that may take)
  and given infrastructure other services, the
  literature suggests that there is sufficient
  incentive for households to then improve their
  housing situation

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4. Recognition of informal settlements

• Legal recognition
• Benefits to households and municipality
• Crucial step in asset creation, citizen
  responsibility, securing of rights to municipal
  services
• Various legal options
• Municipal town planning scheme special zones
• DFA

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5. Fast track emergency relief

• May include
• Sanitation portaloos, sanitation blocks, VIPs
• Fire protection fire hydrants, buckets, local
  fire committees with stipends, portable fire
  extinguishers, rapid callout response protocol
  for helicopter / aeroplane bombers
• Standpipes
• Solid waste disposal
• Footpath access with basic storm-water controls
• Storm-water controls and drainage
• Access ways for emergency vehicles
• Transport
• High mast lighting

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6. Enabling instruments to facilitate full
upgrading

• Funding strategy
• Procurement that brings in private sector and
  NGOs
• Housing support services
• Streamline municipal planning approval plans and
  advice
• Pro-poor municipal transport plans
• Social infrastructure
• LED
• Link housing delivery to provision of
  micro-finance (savings based)

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7. Getting ahead of informal settlement

• Land acquisition (for full upgrading and
  greenfields)
• Implied in BNG- necessary for proactive response
  to informal settlement

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IS upgrading integrally linked to wider urban
planning

• Develop pro poor transport strategies
• Implement appropriate service levels
• Identifying, acquiring and servicing alternative
  land
• Mechanisms for recognition
• Addressing land-legal obstacles
• Procurement
• Conclusion Enter the policy space created by
  BNG, NUSP, various metro initiatives