1970s
Summary
Government as Provider
Amid growing concern about squatter settlements and basic needs of the poor, international finance institutions increase project lending. Governments play a chief role in low-income housing and urban programs, directing plans and policies, which are executed by parastatal housing agencies, development banks, and public works authorities. Special project implementation units are set up in ministries and national agencies to design and manage local projects.
It is a time of innovative approaches including sites and services, expandable core housing, slum upgrading, and micro-credit for home improvements. Donors develop methodologies for shelter sector assessments and housing policy guidelines. In 1976, the Habitat I Conference in Vancouver builds consensus for the establishment of the UN Center for Human Settlements in Nairobi.
The "Green Revolution," which improves agricultural productivity and the development of rural farm-to-market infrastructure, has an unintended effect of accelerating urbanization.
The government-led project approach proves too slow to keep up with need. Subsidies are costly and hinder cost recovery; increasing affordability becomes necessary to reach more beneficiaries. Once viewed as a problem, informal housing begins look like a solution to the housing shortage.
Influences
- Concern about basic human needs and food supply
- Earth Day 1970
- Environmental movement gains momentum in the U.S.
- Housing by People, John Turner
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Institutional Roles
- Policy making by Ministries of Finance, Planning
- Policy execution by line ministries, e.g., Housing, Construction
- Parastatal agencies preferred by international finance institutions to develop land, housing, urban services
- Savings and Loans expand globally
- Declining authority of municipalities in many developing countries; mainly responsible for maintenance, solid waste, and other public services
- UNCHS (Habitat) established
- Private sector principally active in commerce, construction, building material production, and other development activities
- Nongovermental organizations emerge as watchdogs to promote and defend the interests of poor and environment
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Methods, Tools, and Practices
- Low-income housing approaches: land banking, sites and services, and core houses
- Urban upgrading, often with land tenure and socioeconomic elements, including micro-credit
- Upgrading: Mellassine, Tunisia – Brazil's favela movement – Peru's organized squatter invasions
- Core houses: Cameroon - Mauritius - Pakistan
- Karachi Master Plan
- Sites and services: Metroville and Shah Latif Town in Pakistan, Dakar, Madras
- Calcutta-inspired urban economic development planning methodology
- USAID Shelter Sector Assessment and Housing Policy Guidelines
- Bertaud model
- Savings and Loan model
- Aerial photographic and satellite image interpretation for planning and project identification
- Tools of the trade: dictaphone - portable typewriter - calculator - telex
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Lessons and Outcomes
- Physical master plans largely unimplemented
- Sites and services schemes often slow to complete and occupy
- Housing and shelter investment needs are daunting — and still growing
- Project-by-project approach not working
- Small housing loans costly to administer
- Need to reduce subsidies, increase affordability and cost recovery to reach more beneficiaries
- Development of farm-to-market infrastructure accelerates urbanization
- Informal housing begins to be seen as solution to housing shortage, not the problem
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