Current Relocation Practices Targeting Disaster Prone Communities in Developing Countries: Case Study San Francisco Libre, Nicaragua

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 299-307
Author(s):  
Judith Cuadra ◽  
◽  
Janet Dilling ◽  
Ralph Brower ◽  
Malaika Samples ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Local Government ◽  
San Francisco ◽  
Affordable Housing ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Urban Poor ◽  
Government Officials ◽  
The Face ◽  
Low Income Families ◽  
Disaster Event

Multiple studies suggest that disaster risk in developing countries is exacerbated by a combination of conditions such as a lack of affordable housing, hazardous location, human vulnerability, government mismanagement and unfavorable political agendas (Quarantelli, 2003; Jha et al., 2010, Viratkapan & Perera, 2006; Horwood & Phillips, 2007; Davidson et al., 2007; Cronin & Gunthrie, 2011; Satterthwaite, 2011). Although this is not a new issue, governments and urban planners continue to struggle to find solutions for safe, adequate and affordable housing for the urban poor. Urban projects and legislation often unintentionally aggravate the situation in these communities (Sanderson, 2000). The pressure to solve the “low-income settler problem” becomes even more poignant in the face of disasters and other occurrences resulting in multiple fatalities. A well-known approach to low-income communities in high-risk areas is to relocate them either before or after a disaster event. According to Jha et al. (2010) relocation remains one of the most common project endeavors in post-disaster recovery. In San Francisco Libre, a community near Lake Managua in Nicaragua, for example, the local government has undertaken a massive relocation project since 2011 floods that left several coastal families homeless. In this study, we describe the current conditions and challenges for relocated families and discuss efforts by local government officials to provide much needed services on reduced budgets. This research benefits from field observations and interviews with government officials and families from affected communities. Horwood and Phillips (2007) observed that in developing countries such as Nicaragua, relocation projects fail due to the rigid inadequate design of relocation housing and a lack appropriate land and services. Knowledge on relocation practices and outcomes could better inform current practices and improve project development to where it actually provides for low-income families in developing countries.

scholarly journals Low-income housing provision: between governmental interventions and informal settlements

2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 39-50
Author(s):  
Hussaen Ali Hasan Kahachi ◽  
Alison Brown
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Affordable Housing ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Urban Poor ◽  
City Planning ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Housing Provision ◽  
Low Cost Housing

Low-cost housing, so-called affordable housing, is an important subject as it affects many aspects of people's well-being and city planning. The urban poor, who form a respectable percentage of cities' residents in many developing countries, are the most affected segment by the availability and affordability of housing. Governments often try their best to provide affordable housing through housing interventions and programs. However, many low-income people end up in informal settlements including slums and squatter settlements. This research analyzes state-led low-cost housing initiatives compared to informal affordable housing in developing countries. The importance of this research is mainly associated with understanding how governmental housing initiatives and laws affect the housing preferences of the urban poor. The research starts by providing a brief background about the subject and its importance from the literature. The research uses mixed methods approach and a case study of Greater Cairo Region following the massive migration during the period between the 1980s and the 2000s to provide an in-depth understanding of the situation. The research then analyzes/discusses some housing initiatives, and uses both quantitative/qualitative data in order to explain potential malpractice and issues. Finally, the research will highlight the key findings and provide some recommendations for change/improvement.

scholarly journals “You run out of hope:” An Exploration of Low-Income Parents’ Experiences with Food Insecurity using Photovoice

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Payge Lindow ◽  
Irene H. Yen ◽  
Mingyu Xiao ◽  
Cindy W. Leung
Keyword(s):  
Food Insecurity ◽  
San Francisco ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Eating Behaviors ◽  
Comparative Method ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Unhealthy Eating ◽  
Low Income Families ◽  
The Impact

ABSTRACT Objective: Using an adaption of the Photovoice method, this study explored how food insecurity affected parents’ ability to provide food for their family, their strategies for managing household food insecurity, and the impact of food insecurity on their well-being. Design: Parents submitted photos around their families’ experiences with food insecurity. Afterwards, they completed in-depth, semi-structured interviews about their photos. The interviews were transcribed and analyzed for thematic content using the constant comparative method. Setting: San Francisco Bay Area, California, USA. Subjects: 17 parents (14 mothers and 3 fathers) were recruited from a broader qualitative study on understanding the experiences of food insecurity in low-income families. Results: Four themes were identified from the parents’ photos and interviews. First, parents described multiple aspects of their food environment that promoted unhealthy eating behaviors. Second, parents shared strategies they employed to acquire food with limited resources. Third, parents expressed feelings of shame, guilt, and distress resulting from their experience of food insecurity. And finally, parents described treating their children to special foods to cultivate a sense of normalcy. Conclusions: Parents highlighted the external contributors and internal struggles of their experiences of food insecurity. Additional research to understand the experiences of the food-insecure families may help to improve nutrition interventions targeting this structurally vulnerable population.

scholarly journals Municipal finance for housing: local government approaches to financing housing in cities

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Feather
Keyword(s):  
Fiscal Policy ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Housing Policy ◽  
Affordable Housing ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Urban Poor ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Municipal Finance ◽  
Housing Needs ◽  
National Governments

Housing policy is usually seen as the domain of national governments, and in many countries local authorities have relinquished direct engagement in the promotion of adequate housing. High costs associated with related policies and programmes are often cited as justification for minimal involvement, leading to fewer community-level interventions on affordable formal housing. This article presents financial approaches for local government leaders and decision-makers to consider in furthering affordable access to adequate housing for their citizens. The article argues that when local governments engage on housing with innovation and financial pragmatism, the housing needs of the urban poor and vulnerable can be better served. KeywordsMunicipal finance, local government, affordable housing, fiscal policy, cities, capacity-building

Deprivation in slums and child poverty: study on Kolkata

2016 ◽  
Vol 43 (7) ◽  
pp. 739-759 ◽  
Author(s):  
Indranil De ◽  
Tirthankar Nag
Keyword(s):  
Political Economy ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Urban Poor ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Urban Poverty ◽  
Systematic Sampling ◽  
Income Poverty ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Basic Services

Purpose – The study attempts to look into the poverty and deprivation in slums across various social and religious groups and its bearing on the children. It not only analyses income poverty but also looks at derivation of access to basic services including water, sanitation and drainage. The purpose of this paper is to compare and contrast the income and non-income deprivation of childbearing and non-childbearing households. Design/methodology/approach – The study is based on a survey of 541 sample households selected from 23 slums of Kolkata, India. The authors have adopted a mixture of cluster sampling and systematic sampling technique. The slums of Kolkata have been segregated into three regions and further segregated by overlaying the population and average monthly income of slums. Slums have been selected randomly from these stratums. Households have been selected from the slums by systematic sampling method. Findings – The Muslim and backward caste households are more deprived with respect to income and access to basic services as compared to Hindu general (upper) caste. Deprivations with respect to income and basic services are more pronounced for households having child than for households not having child. Childbearing households are less likely to receive better water supply, sanitation and drainage services as compared to others due to their religious and residential identities. Slum children get affected by the complex political economy of basic service delivery. The study also finds that electoral competition has positive and political clientelism has negative impact on access to basic services. Research limitations/implications – The study is based on results obtained from survey in one city of India. Hence, these results cannot be generalized for India or for the developing countries taken together. Further studies across cities of developing countries are required to arrive at any generalized conclusion. Practical implications – The study suggests that public policies should attempt to disentangle minorities and children from the local political economy. Otherwise, deprivation and disparity even across low income households living in slums would persist. Deprivation of child bearing households would lead to a deteriorating future for the slum children. Social implications – This paper have pave the path for new generation public policy for the urban poor and minorities. Originality/value – This paper highlights the incidence of deprivation of minorities and childbearing households vis-à-vis other households in the slums. It contributes to the overall understanding on urban poverty.

Does Location Matter? Performance Analysis of the Affordable Housing Programs with Respect to Transportation Affordability in Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) Metropolis

2018 ◽  
Vol 2672 (3) ◽  
pp. 194-205 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shima Hamidi ◽  
Jinat Jahan ◽  
Somayeh Moazzeni
Keyword(s):  
Affordable Housing ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Public Transit ◽  
Transportation Cost ◽  
Housing Affordability ◽  
Transportation Costs ◽  
Fort Worth ◽  
Housing Programs ◽  
Low Income Families ◽  
Almost All

Transportation costs are the second largest expenditure for a family, thus have a substantial influence on housing affordability. In an auto-oriented region like DFW, the situation is exacerbated for low-income families due to limited transportation options. This study seeks to evaluate the efficiency of major affordable housing programs for low-income people in terms of transportation affordability. This study uses a rigorous methodology that involves a solid transportation cost modeling with disaggregated data available at property level for housing assistance programs in DFW. Our findings show that about 69% of the assisted units in DFW are unaffordable in terms of transportation costs. The majority of them are spending about 17% to 20% of their income on transportation. The most affordable program is Low-Income Housing Tax Credit with 58% affordability rate and the least affordable program is the Continuum of Care with 9% affordability rate when accounting for transportation costs. We also found that almost all affordable units (regarding the transportation costs) are located in main economic hubs of the region such as Dallas and Fort Worth which have better access to jobs and public transit. In contrary, almost all housing properties in the areas between Dallas and Fort Worth are unaffordable. These are areas adjacent to the University of Texas at Arlington with a high number of transit dependent population and in Arlington, the biggest midsize city with no public transit. Our findings urge HUD to consider modifying these programs by incorporating the location-efficiency factors to ensure true affordability.

scholarly journals Optimizing prefabricated construction techniques in UAE as a solution to shortage of middle-income housing

2018 ◽  
Vol 221 ◽  
pp. 01006
Author(s):  
Mohamed Elkaftangui ◽  
Mohamed Basem
Keyword(s):  
Affordable Housing ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Land Values ◽  
Infrastructure Development ◽  
Construction Costs ◽  
Mena Region ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Capital Costs ◽  
Construction Techniques ◽  
Low Income Families

Housing is a major subject in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, JLL, the world’s leading real estate investment and advisory firm, highlights the social and economic impact of a marked shortfall in the required supply of middle-income housing, suggesting that significant efforts are needed to address the current imbalance. For an equal standard and life style in UAE and KSA, the gap of sale and rent prices raises many questions. The middle-income sector of the market represent almost 40 percent of all households in the UAE. Several factors that have contributed to the current shortage of affordable housing, high land values, High capital costs for associated infrastructure development, low adoption of prefabricated construction techniques have contributed to higher construction costs, lower financial returns, making such developments less attractive for developers, limited access to suitable finance for low income families, due to generally immature mortgage markets. Resolving the shortage of middle-income housing requires a concentrated effort involving government agencies, private developers and other stakeholders. This Study will investigate the UAE Housing market to propose solutions for a better progress of the precast sector and focusing on the promotion of sustainable and industrial approaches to construction.

scholarly journals The Significance of Community Training Centers in Building Affordable Housing and Developing Settlements

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (7) ◽  
pp. 2952 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Bredenoord ◽  
Joon Park ◽  
Kyohee Kim
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Affordable Housing ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Building Materials ◽  
Community Empowerment ◽  
Living Environment ◽  
Housing Provision ◽  
Governmental Organizations ◽  
Self Help ◽  
Non Governmental Organizations

This paper examines the visions and the roles of community training centers (CTCs) in community development and housing provision in developing countries from the perspective of assisted self-help housing. It reviews a Korean community center that contributed to community-led self-help housing for low-income groups in the 1970s. It also reviews a few notable CTCs from India, Uganda, Nepal, and three countries in Central America to examine the functions and contributions of the CTCs. It was found that CTCs play a central role in community empowerment and the production of affordable building materials receiving technical or financial assistance from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and governments. The paper makes a compelling case for CTCs by drawing on these exemplary cases to provide a development model that has the potential to facilitate the improvement of the living environment in developing countries.

scholarly journals Severe canine distemper outbreak in unvaccinated dogs in Mozambique

2016 ◽  
Vol 87 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Julieta Zacarias ◽  
Alberto Dimande ◽  
Sara Achá ◽  
Paula T. Dias ◽  
Elisa M. Leonel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Animal Welfare ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Immunohistochemical Staining ◽  
Canine Distemper Virus ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Clinical Signs ◽  
Canine Distemper ◽  
Animal Suffering ◽  
Low Income Families

Although significant animal suffering caused by preventable diseases is frequently seen in developing countries, reports of this are scarce. This report describes avoidable animal suffering owing to a suspected canine distemper (CD) outbreak in unvaccinated dogs owned by low-income families in Mozambique that killed approximately 200 animals. Affected dogs exhibited clinical signs, and gross and microscopic lesions compatible with CD. Immunohistochemical staining confirmed the presence of canine distemper virus (CDV) in the kidney of one dog from the cohort. This brief communication again illustrates that large outbreaks of CDV in unvaccinated dogs occur and that large-scale avoidable suffering and threats to the health of dogs and wild canines continue. Mass vaccination supported by government and non-government organisations is recommended.Keywords: Canine distemper; dogs; outbreak; animal welfare; Mozambique

scholarly journals Housing provision and improvement programmes for low income populations in the developing world. A review of approaches and their significance in the European context

2012 ◽  
Vol 18 (18) ◽  
pp. 29-38
Author(s):  
Jakub Gałuszka
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Affordable Housing ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Developing World ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Housing Provision ◽  
European Context ◽  
The World ◽  
Slum Upgrading ◽  
Incremental Housing

Abstract.The paper deals with the issue of affordable housing provision for low income populations in the developing countries and its significance in the European context. My goal is to discuss this topic through the analysis of different approaches to household provision and improvement with special focus on the involvement of communities in various upgrading procedures. Separate sections of the paper refer to the most important approaches developed in the 20th and 21st centuries. These include: site and service, slum upgrading, incremental housing and communityled upgrading which are analysed through the prism of several examples coming from various parts of the world.The discussion of the strategies formulated in the developing world is linked with the new approaches towards housing provision that are presently promoted or are spontaneously emerging in various cities of Central Europe. These include the issues of container-houses construction in Poland and the creation of informal settlements by Roma populations in Polish and Slovakian cities.

DESIGN CONCEPTS FOR THE INTEGRATION OF BAMBOO IN CONTEMPORARY VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 223-241
Author(s):  
Shahryar Habibi
Keyword(s):  
Affordable Housing ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Financial Stability ◽  
Home Ownership ◽  
Vernacular Architecture ◽  
Design Strategies ◽  
Construction Costs ◽  
Design Concepts ◽  
Housing Systems ◽  
Low Income Families

This paper discusses the development of design concepts for a row of typical bamboo houses, including the layout configuration and the function/aesthetics properties that are important from an architectural perspective. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the role of bamboo in investigations of structural and sustainability benefits and to highlight key research ideas that are important for industrialized production and cultural systems. The development of bamboo housing systems can advance efforts directed at securing home ownership for low-income families through lowering the construction costs to levels that are within their budgets. This paper aims to demonstrate approaches for using bamboo as a structural material for low-income and affordable housing. Bamboo housing can improve the financial stability and economic sustainability of low-income families. This paper presents a review of examples of vernacular architecture and building elements and then highlights the design of two bamboo-structure residential houses based on bio-climatic design strategies.

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