Archive for the ‘Academic paper’ Category

Academic paper: Baan Mankong: going to scale with “slum” and squatter upgrading in Thailand

Friday, August 28th, 2009

This paper describes the ambitious national slum and squatter upgrading programme launched by the Thai government in 2003 and imple-mented through the Community Organizations Development Institute (CODI).  The programme centres on providing infrastructure subsidies and housing loans to low-income communities to support upgrading in situ wherever possible and, if not, to develop new homes close by. (more…)

Augmented informality: South Africa’s backyard dwellings as a by-product of formal housing policies

Monday, August 24th, 2009

Insufficient and inadequate housing for the urban poor has a long history in South Africa, as in other African cities. Nearly one-fifth of urban households in South Africa reside in an informal dwelling. While most live in informal settlements, significant proportions have erected informal structures (essentially ‘shacks’) in the backyard of another property, a distinctly South African phenomenon. (more…)

History of shack dwellers international

Sunday, August 16th, 2009

This paper describes the formation and development of Slum/Shack Dwellers International (SDI), an international people’s organization which represents member federations of urban poor and homeless groups from 11 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America. (more…)