A Case Study of Luganville Town, Vanuatu

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URBANISATION AND THE QUALITY OF HOUSING: A CASE STUDY OF LUGANVILLE TOWN, VANUATU

LIAH JOHN KALTOI

URBANISATION AND THE QUALITY OF HOUSING: A CASE STUDY OF LUGANVILLE TOWN, VANUATU

Liah John Kaltoi

A Supervised Research Project submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts.

School of Social Sciences Faculty of Arts, Law and Education The University of the South Pacific Suva, Fiji

December 2015

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

The completion of this Supervised Research Project is possible through the assistance and support of many individuals, to whom I am indebted greatly, so I wish to extend my sincere gratitude.

First and foremost, I wish to give glory to the Lord and thank God, for through him I drew strength to complete this Project.

I sincerely thank my supervisor, Dr. Bruce Yeates for his continuous help, patience, and tolerance in going through the drafts amidst his busy schedules. His advice and guidance throughout the writing process had contributed massively to the development of the chapters and the improvement of the overall project.

I wish to thank the Government of Vanuatu, for the sponsorship, making it possible for me to travel to Vanuatu for the data collection; and for the living allowances here in Suva whilst completing the project. I have nothing to offer you back except my deepest gratitude and that I will do my best in sharing whatever I have achieved for the development of our country and our people.

During the fieldwork, two students of the University of the South Pacific, Watson Valele and Julie Iavro, as Research Assistants, had been very helpful in assisting me to administer the surveys in the areas studied. I thank them for their invaluable time taken off studies and accompanying me to the research sites. I believe they have learnt from the process of conducting a research that will take them to further heights of conducting their own in their careers.

The residents of Pepsi Area, Sarakata and Mango Station as respondents to the questionnaires had been very helpful in making the survey a success. I thank them for their invaluable responses, their views, ideas and concerns. The officials were also of great assistance in providing relevant information and documents. Therefore, I wish to thank them sincerely: The former Lord Mayor of Luganville, Trevor Banga Moliva; the Senior Physical Planner of the Government of Vanuatu, Jeffery Kaitip; The former Town Planner of Luganville, Shem Iauko; Senior Officer at the Surveys Section of Department of Lands in Luganville, Philip Koroka; Officer at the National Statistics Office, Erima Kalmet; and officers at the National Housing Corporation Head office in Vila.

Finally, I wish to thank my families back at home; friends and colleagues here in Suva and elsewhere for their constant payers and words of encouragement. For most of them, their house was my home and their company, tolerance, understanding, care, laughter and smile had always been a source of inspiration, strength, joy, comfort and peace especially in time of stress, defeat and crisis.

Last but not the least, to the most important people in my life: I thank my late parents and all my children for everything.

To all of you, thank you tumas.

ABSTRACT

Housing as a basic urban service is a significant issue pertaining to urbanisation in developing countries. It is problematic in developing countries compared to developed countries as the urbanization rate is higher; and the level of capacity and availability of resources to manage urban growth is less exhibited in developing countries. The supervised research project investigates this relationship by focusing on the trend of urbanization into Luganville town, in Vanuatu and the quality of housing provision.

The research has revealed that urbanization into Luganville is increasing tremendously, and this has had an adverse impact on the quality of housing in existence. Three major adverse impacts on the quality of housing in Luganville have been identified. One is the level of income of the urban residents that determines the type of housing they can afford. Secondly, the security of land tenure is vital as to ensure provision of basic urban services such as water, electricity and solid waste collection on registered parcels of land. Illegal settlements on green spaces and other marked off areas in Luganville are denied these basic urban services. Lastly, demand for housing due to rapid urbanisation, has not been keeping pace with supply. The government is not providing public houses or flats for migrants, particularly low income earners. There are no incentives to private institutions to provide housing for the public.

The demand for housing particularly affordable houses for the urban residents is expected to rise with the current trend of urbanisation. The provision of quality housing with adequate basic urban services is an ideal solution to housing problem in Luganville. To achieve that, it requires the efforts of the government, the residents and the housing stakeholders at large. It is important for all the different stakeholders in housing to work together collaboratively to come up with possible solutions. Development is more meaningful, beneficial and sound positive if affordable, quality housing with adequate facilities and basic urban services are available to urban residents. Therefore, there is need for adoption of proper urban planning, policies and management strategies. This project paper is a support for providing necessary contributions to future housing provisions emerging due to rapid urbanisation and may help in framing sound housing policy and strategies and a sustainable urban development.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgement i Abstract ii List of Appendices v List of Tables v List of Maps vi List of Figures vi List of Photographs vi Abbreviation vii-viii

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1-6

1.1: Background 1 1.2: Reasons for the Study 3 1.3: Objectives of the Study 4 1.4: Research Questions 4 1.5: Significance of the Study 5 1.6: Sources of Data and Methodology 5 1.7: Organization of thesis 6

CHAPTER TWO: URBANISATION AND HOUSING: LITERATURE REVIEW AND CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK 7-25

2.1: Introduction 7 2.2: Conceptual Framework and Literature Review 8 2.2.1: Concept of Underdevelopment 8 2.2.2: Urban Development History 8 2.2.3: Physical Planning in Urban Development 12 2.2.4: Urban Service Delivery 14 2.2.5: Urban governance 16 2.2.6: Millennium Development Goals 17 2.2.7: Reviews of similar case studies 19 2.3: Conclusion 24

CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 26-33

3.1: Introduction 26 3.2: Research Methodology 27 3.3: Research Design 28 3.4: Research Area 30 3.5: Research Limitations 33 3.6: Conclusion 33

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CHAPTER FOUR: VANUATU AND LUGANVILLE: A BACKGROUND 34-46

4.1: Introduction 34 4.2: Geography 35 4.3: History 37 4.4: Demography 38 4.5: Economy 40 4.6: Urban Government 41 4.7: Urban Land and Basic Services 42 4.7.1: Urban Housing 44 4.8: Conclusion 45

CHAPTER FIVE: RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION: HOUSING IN LUGANVILLE 47-67

5.1: Introduction 47 5.2: Growth of households in Luganville 47 5.3: Socio-Economic Status 48 5.3.1: Employment 48 5.3.2: Health 49 5.3.3: Education 50 5.3.4: Women 52 5.4: Living Conditions 53 5.4.1: Toilet Facilities 55 5.5: Land 55 5.5.1: Land Availability 56 5.5.2: Land Tenure 56 5.5.3: Land Use Pattern 57 5.6: Housing Pattern 58 5.6.1: Demand and Supply 62 5.7: Basic Urban Services 62 5.7.1: Water Supply 62 5.7.2: Electricity 63 5.7.3: Sanitation 64 5.7.4: Solid Waste Disposal 65 5.8: Conclusion 65

CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION 68-72

6.1 Conclusion 68

6.2 Recommendation 71

BIBLIOGRAPHY 73-80

APPENDICES 81 - 91

Appendix A: The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) 81

Appendix B: Official Survey Questionnaire 82-86

Appendix C: Household Survey Questionnaire 87-90

Appendix D: List of Official Respondents 91

LIST OF TABLE

Table 1.1: Urban Population trends for less Developed Regions 1 Table 1.2: Urban service deprivations in selected Pacific Island Countries 2 Table 3.1: Population, households and density in the Study Areas 32 Table 4.1: Number of households and population by sex in the three areas of study in Luganville 39 Table 4.2: Number of private households in urban areas in Vanuatu: 1999-2009 44 Table 5.1: Number of private households in Luganville: 1999-2009 48 Table 5.2: Composition of females and males in households of the three settlements studied 52 Table 5.3: Family shared households in settlements 54

Table 5.4: Types of toilets used in the three settlements in Luganville 55 Table 5.5: Land area distribution pattern in the three settlements in Luganville 56 Table 5.6: Sources of water supply in the three settlements studied 63 Table 5.7: Methods of solid waste disposal in households of the three settlements Studied 65

LIST OF MAPS

Map 3.1: Map of Santo Island 31 Map 3.2: Map of Luganville 32 Map 4.1: Vanuatu in the South Pacific Map 35 Map 4.2: Map of Vanuatu 36 Map 5.1: Land use pattern in Luganville 59 Map 5.2: Land use pattern in Luganville/Zoning Map 60

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 5.1: Percentage showing reasons of migration into Luganville by Research participants 48 Figure 5.2: Priority illnesses in occurrence in the last three months of research participants 50 Figure 5.3: Level of Education attained by research participants 51

Figure 5.4: House construction materials (Wall of house) in the three settlements Studied 58 Figure 5.5: Access to electricity in the three settlements studied 64

LIST OF PHOTOGRAPHS

Photo 5.1: Typical living conditions of low income earners in Luganville 54

ABBREVIATIONS

AIDS Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome

CBD Central Business District

CEDAW Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women

CRC Convention on the Rights of the Child

EIA Environmental Impact Assessment

FAO Food and Agriculture Organization

HfH Habitat for Humanity

HIV Human Immunodeficiency Virus

LDC Least Developed Country

LMC Luganville Municipality Council

MDG Millennium Development Goal

NHC National Housing Corporation

NGO Non-Governmental Organization

OECD Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

PacLII Pacific Islands Legal Information Institute

SPC Secretariat of the Pacific Community

UNDP United Nations Development Program

UNELCO Union Electrique du Vanuatu Limited

UNESCAP United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific

UNFPA United Nations Population Fund

UN-Habitat United Nations Human Settlements Programme

UNICEF United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund

UNOCHA United Nations Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

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VANWODS Vanuatu Women’s Development Scheme

VIPL Ventilated Improved Pit Latrine

VUI Vanuatu Utility Infrastructure Ltd

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CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background

Urbanisation is the process whereby an increasing proportion of the national population comes to live in the towns (Hardoy and Satterthwaite 1989:22). It is increasing in both developed and developing world; however, in the developing world, urbanisation is increasing at an alarming rate. In 1990, less than forty percent of the global population lived in a city, but as of 2010, more than half of all people lived in urban areas (UNESCAP 2003). Specifically, half of the world’s urban population live in the developing world also known as the Least Developed Countries1 (LDCs). Since 1950, the number of people living in urban areas of these LDCs has been increasing as shown in Table 1.1.

Table 1.1 Urban Population trends for less Developed Regions Year Urban Population Percentage Urban (000) (%) 1950 304,352 17.8 1960 454,424 21.6 1970 674,055 25.1 1980 982,189 29.3 1990 1,439,163 35.0 2000 1,941,249 39.9 2010 2,601,326 46.0 Source: UN-Habitat 2013.

There are a number of factors, predominantly economic, social and physical factors that have instigated this process and have been questioned in almost all Pacific Island nations of whether urbanisation is a cause or a consequence of development (Connell and Lea 1993). These reasons could be classified into push and pull factors in the Social Sciences field, where push factors are negative conditions that motivates a person to leave their area of origin; and pull factors, conditions in the area of destination that encourages a person to leave his or her home for an alleged improvement of lifestyle.

______1 Least Developed Countries are present in regions of Africa, Asia-Pacific (except Japan), Latin America and Caribbean Islands.

Cities have always been centers of political and social transformation (Storey 2006). In the developing countries including the Pacific Island countries, cities are increasingly at the heart of economic change and income generation which is bringing about greater wealth and opportunity. They play a progressively important role in countries’ economies by providing employment and investments. Overall, it is associated with economic prosperity (Hay 1977) and the positive wellbeing of the urban residents.

In the Pacific, though urbanisation plays a vital role in the national economic development, it is threatened by deteriorating infrastructure, growing poverty and marginality and deficient governance (Storey 2005). The alarming rate of urbanisation in the Pacific Island nations has resulted in most urban areas becoming sites of poverty, inequality and social tension; as there are limited resources to cope with such informalities such as strained infrastructures and lack of human resources (Storey 2006). Consequently, many other urban challenges and problems such as basic urban services predominantly inaccessibility to water supply, sanitation, solid waste collection and housing has also emerged. Table 1.2 shows percentages of deprivations of some of these urban services in selected Pacific Island Countries.

Table 1.2 Urban service deprivations in selected Pacific Island Countries

Country % of pop. % of urban % of urban pop. % of urban pop. Below basic unemployment to without access to without access to needs poverty total employment improved water improved line sources 2006 sanitation sources 2006 Fiji 36.7 60.8 57.0 13.0 PNG 39.6 52.9 12.0 33.0 Solomon Is. 22.7 N.A 6.0 2.0 Vanuatu 15.9 69.9 N.A N.A Kiribati 38.0 N.A 23.0 54.0 Samoa 20.3 30.3 10.0 0.0 Tonga 22.3 42.9 0.0 2.0 Source: UNESCAP, 2009; SPC, 2009.

The Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) and Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) reported in 2009 that in the Pacific only forty six percent of the population had access to improved water supply where only thirteen percent of that figure had access to piped water supply. Similarly, improved sanitation covers only forty eight percent. As

2 the table above indicates, the urban population of Fiji and Kiribati is high with fifty seven percent and twenty three percent respectively of those without access to improved water sources in 2006. Similarly, the percentage of the urban population without access to improved sanitation was high in Kiribati and Papua New Guinea with fifty four percent and thirty three percent respectively (Table. 1.2). This data indicated that the majority of the people in the Pacific still lack access to water and sanitation services in the urban areas.

Apart from basic urban services crisis, addressing housing needs of the urban poor is also critical, as decent shelter remains one of the most neglected and unachievable goals in urban development policymaking in the Pacific. In the Millennium Declaration, the world leaders recognized that by 2015, the proportion of people living in extreme poverty will be halved; and one of the targets set by world leaders in 2000 was to improve significantly the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers by 2020. Providing a decent and affordable housing for urban dwellers is a means to achieving all other Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) (Tibaijuka 2009).

Housing and basic urban services in the Pacific and other developing countries are very critical due to the fact that these countries lack the capacity and resources to resolve these problems (Mohanty 2011). These major areas of concern have questioned whether over-urbanization has occurred and whether more realistic and active policies are needed to control and direct urbanization.

1.2 Reasons for the Study

The reason that attributed to this study of the quality of housing provision in Luganville is that there are only a few studies that have been carried out on how urbanisation growth could directly impact on urban services and housing in the urban centers of Vanuatu.

If the Vanuatu government is pressing for policies that encourage a more even distribution of development throughout the country, housing policy and basic urban services provision should be critical areas for the government to address. This has prompted the researcher to do a comprehensive research in this area on what the government and housing stakeholders are currently doing for the urban residents on the quality of housing provision, and basic urban

3 services which the researcher believes could be very informative to their decisions on development policymaking.

1.3 Objectives of the Study

The main focus of this research is to assess the extent and nature of urbanisation and how it has placed constraints on the provision of adequate housing in Luganville. Furthermore, it will try to identify ways to address social and planning issues affecting the housing provision. In line with that focus of this research, there are a number of specific objectives that this research aims to achieve. The following objectives are:

To study trends in urbanization in Luganville; To examine the impact of urbanisation on the growth and patterns of housing in Luganville; To assess the state of housing and the basic urban service provision into homes in Luganville, predominantly in the three areas of study; To identify various agencies or bodies involved in basic urban services and housing provisions, and their developmental strategies relating to the services they provide; To review traditional and administrative structures with respect to adequate housing provision management and administration; and To assess social development needs of urban residents and outline how best these needs can be met.

1.4 Research Questions

From the above objectives, the following research questions have been developed: 1. What are the factors behind the rapid growth of Luganville? 2. What are the consequences of high growth rate of urbanization on adequate housing and basic urban services in Luganville. 3. Are the policies and strategies put in place by the Government of Vanuatu and housing stakeholders addressing the issue of adequate housing in Luganville?

1.5 Significance of the Study

This study will contribute to the existing body of knowledge on urbanization and its impact on housing and urban services provision in Vanuatu. For urban areas, precisely, the three settlements of Pepsi Area, Sarakata Area and Mango Station in Luganville, this study will bring to surface, the realistic issues occurring has an impact of urbanisation and social policies. With the rising urban growth rate, urbanization needs to be assessed to give us the opportunity to strategize solutions, since housing is one of the basic needs of people and a critical urban issue. Precisely, it would be useful to the government and housing stakeholders to set further strategies to improve access to adequate housing that encourage healthy living as was quoted by Atieno (2013) that “a properly housed population is a healthy nation, hence a wealthy nation”.

This study looks at the factors that contribute to the quality of housing and urban services provision; therefore, contributes to the existing body of knowledge on urban housing, planning and management. Important urban issues that this study will also deal with are urban land issues and poverty in urban Luganville especially the three settlements studied.

In general, the research itself is set out to place the housing problem in a wider context by looking at other areas that influence the quality of housing, which are to be discussed thoroughly in the remaining chapters. The results seek to enlighten the urban residents throughout Vanuatu to become creative and demonstrate ways of making their urban residential housing safe and healthy in all aspects for a positive wellbeing.

1.6 Sources of Data and Methodology

The information and data for the thesis are collected from both the primary and secondary sources. Primary sources include fieldwork research that was carried out in three settlements of Luganville, and relevant offices. The fieldwork research involves a questionnaire survey and observations in the three urban settlements of Pepsi Area, Sarakata Area and Mango Station in Luganville. Additionally, secondary data and information were collected through archival research. The Secondary sources data were mainly collected from national census reports, government’s publications and other urban issues reports. All data collected were then analyzed and tabulated. Detailed explanation of the thesis methodology is dealt with in Chapter three.

1.7 Organization of thesis

There are six chapters in this thesis. The first chapter is an introduction, which covers the urbanisation process and its repercussions on emerging housing and basic urban services crisis in developing countries including Vanuatu. It also outlines the reasons and objectives of the study, the research questions, significance of the study and methodology.

Chapter two presents the theoretical discussions and conceptual framework on urban housing and its inter-linkages to positive urban wellbeing. It further provides a detailed review of literature on the works done on urban housing in the Pacific Island countries with particular reference to urban Vanuatu.

Chapter three explains the research methodologies and approaches undertaken in carrying out the research. Additionally, it defines the research study area, and the reasons behind the selection of the study areas, their location and the limitations encountered.

Chapter four basically provides background information on Vanuatu and Luganville. It will outline Vanuatu and Luganville geography; their history, precisely, why and how urbanisation emerged; the demography; economy; government development agendas, precisely the mechanisms that address urban issues; urban land and basic services including housing.

Chapter five presents the results and findings of this research. These are the interpretations and analysis of data and findings that were collected from the fieldwork in Luganville areas of Pepsi, Sarakata and Mango Station. The findings based on related issues of urban services and housing will be presented on tables, graphs and pictures for clarity and authenticity.

The last chapter, chapter six, is a concluding chapter, summarizing the findings of the thesis. It further suggests some guidelines that future researchers could follow by presenting the gaps in present research and other issues that have been overlooked on the subject.

The following chapter deals with literature review and conceptual framework. It will establish the connection between urbanisation, urban services and housing issues to development plans and MDGs, and the works done on the same, predominantly in Vanuatu and other Pacific Islands.

CHAPTER TWO

URBANIZATION AND HOUSING: LITERATURE REVIEW AND CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

2.1 Introduction

The world has become more urbanized. In 1996, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) declared that urbanization was ‘the single largest influence on development in the 21st century’ (UNFPA 2007). It was estimated that in 2008, for the first time more than half of the world’s population were residing in cities and towns (ibid.), and it was expected to increase in the years to come.

The growing phenomenon of urbanization provides both opportunities and challenges to urban migrants, businesses and governments of States worldwide. Opportunities such as entertainment, education, better health services and employment are some of few reasons why people migrate into urban areas. On the other hand, predominately in developing countries, urbanisation has generated greater demand for housing, infrastructural and basic services including water supply and sanitation, solid waste management, drainage, health, and road and transport (Mohanty 2011).

The greater demand for housing, in particular, has become a crisis and is a complex and critical development issue caused by many factors, which have significantly contributed to its emergence (McKay 2009). Housing is a basic need and is more than the physical structure of four walls and a roof. Ogu (1999) defines housing as “including….the service infrastructure, the associated modes and mechanisms of production, distribution and land tenure system”. This complexity in defining housing has brought to the surface the importance of housing as being a bundle of services and an array of economic, sociological and psychological phenomena resulting in extensive literature on the topic.

This chapter presents the conceptual framework and literature review. Firstly it will conceptualize the idea of urban housing by exploring the inter linkages it has with other key concepts such as underdevelopment, history of urban development, physical planning, urban services, urban governance and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Constantly through the chapter, it will show how this study relates to, and builds upon the existing

7 knowledge base and lastly, it will review the literatures and works done on urban housing in the Pacific and Vanuatu in particular.

2.2 Conceptual Framework and Literature Review

2.2.1 Concept of Underdevelopment

The concept of underdevelopment is associated to poverty. The terms poverty and underdevelopment often go together, and is apparent in developing countries. Both these notions of poverty and underdevelopment, though prevalent in most developing countries, were also once present in developed countries today as it was an outcome of changes that had happened in Western Europe in the sixteenth to the nineteenth century.

According to the works of Durkheim, Marx and Weber, the changes that happened had eventually transformed Western Europe and North America into what they are today, developed countries (Roxborough 1979). It is assumed that all societies were once ‘traditional’ and ultimately they will go through sets of changes as had happened in the West, and would become ‘modern’ (ibid). However, this belief was criticized by theorists, notably A.G. Frank (1969).

Frank (1969) argues that there exist a whole series of mechanisms in which the modern sector exploits the traditional sector. This exploitation eventually generates underdevelopment in the traditional sector (ibid.). To justify his argument, Frank (1969) illustrates that the underdevelopment in Latin America was caused by Europe as they extracted wealth there. Capital and wealth in Europe was accumulated through centre-periphery relations at the expense of its periphery, hinterland, and its rivals (Frank and Gills 1993; Wallerstein 2004). The disparity of development proliferated to other parts of the world, causing underdevelopment to developing countries that include the Pacific region because of their incorporation into the capitalist world system through colonialism.

2.2.2 Urban Development History

Urban development history in the world could also be traced to colonialism particularly in developing countries. The cities and towns of the developed world today and much of the rapidly urbanizing developing world are heirs to the legacy of the European urban development (Dick & Rimmer 1998). All cities are social creations reflecting the historical and contemporary cultural

8 influences of their inhabitants. Still, they share in common certain social and structural characteristics that enable us to draw some general principles regarding their social, physical, and economic order and the way in which they influence and are influenced by their inhabitants.

A few factors have to be in place in order for urban growth to occur. Historical evidences (e.g. Mumford 1961) suggested that urban development in medieval Europe progressed around the commercial, artistic, cultural and sacred aspects of people’s lives. The settlement and movement of people into urban areas revolved around trade and commerce, high culture and the church. This is evident in cities of Europe where values, beliefs and creative expression of the people are exhibited in the work of artisans, in museums and how other institutions such as church cathedrals dominated the urban spaces.

During the industrial revolution in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in Europe and North America, there was a rapid increase in urbanization but this has slowed down since the 1950s. The western governments have had time to plan and provide for the needs of increasing populations in the cities which results in urbanization decelerating (Frey 1993; Popjakova & Blazek 2015).

The historical urban development in Pacific countries is different from the way it is defined and understood in the developed nations. The Pacific Island countries’ urban centers have arisen as consequences of the European colonial enterprise. These urban centers emerged as administrative, commercial and missionary centers of colonizing powers (Spoehr 1960). Historically, as colonial settlements grew into small towns that fulfilled the functions and goals of colonial influence, these new urban centers began to do two things (Puamau & Teasdale 2007). First, they overtook adjacent villages, thus expanding the urban area. And second, many people were attracted to the towns where the seats of government and commerce were centered.

Following these developments by colonial settlements, rural people have continued to migrate to urban areas for various reasons such as perceptions of greater opportunities in towns and cities fueled by population pressures and underdevelopments in rural areas. However, the consumption and production of marketed food, for example, are spatially separated. Most of what is enjoyed in urban areas is being produced in rural areas. Production is primarily in rural areas where there

9 is much land to cultivate and cheap labor while consumption is in urban areas where purchasing power is present.

As urban centers grew, particularly after independence, which is a relatively recent phenomenon in the Pacific, many undesirable consequences arose. With the rapid growth of urbanization, there is more demand for land, housing, health care, education, waste disposal and utilities, that is, water and electricity.

Payne (1977) and Hardoy and Satterthwaite (1989) did researches on why urban housing has become a crisis in developing countries. They concluded that the housing crisis in urban areas and the insufficiency of urban services in the developing countries is a colonial legacy. They have pointed out that during the colonial era, many colonial government’s laws, norm and codes governing housing, building and planning were not applicable and appropriate to developing countries as they were derived from European models and practices. Moreover, indigenous people were deprived from living in better housing as houses were reserved to accommodate the European Administrators. This relationship between developed countries and developing countries has been critically discussed in terms of dependency and capitalist world system theory. That is, developing countries were mostly underdeveloped due to the dominance of colonial powers taking over the peripheries of developing countries. Furthermore, these theories claim that due to the dominance of colonial powers, the developing countries were incorporated into a capitalist system as in the case of Latin American countries and India (Frank 1969; Chilcote 1984). This colonial experience of developing countries along with other factors discussed above have therefore led to the urban housing crisis.

There are theoretical approaches that help in understanding urban development. Drawing from the work of Weber in 1978, the model for the pattern of urban development which first appeared between the ninth and twelfth century in feudal Europe was strongly influenced by two crucial aspects - the economy and politics (Weber 1978). Weber (1978) claims that cities are defined or emerged as a result of trade or commercial relations such as markets. He explains that:

A city then is always a market centre. It has a local market that forms the economic centre of the settlement and on which both the non-urban population and the townsmen satisfy their wants…by means of exchange on the basis of existing specializations in production (Weber 1978).

Trade was the opportunity for diversity in diet, clothing, and material life and settlements emerged to avail themselves of the opportunities whenever they could.

In support of Weber’s theory, German geographer, Walter Christaller’s Central Place Theory claims that producers needed a central place to trade or sell their surplus and urban centers developed in those central places (Bounds 2004). In addition, Adam Smith’s Trading Theory claims that the surplus was not as important as were the specialists who knew how to create it and do other occupations (Schumacher 2012). There must also be a transportation route and other infrastructures in support, such as river, trail, valley, railroads, harbors, or oceans. Once producers and settlers move in, the city will flourish or fail depending on its ability to continue to draw in people seeking opportunities.

Weber’s claim was also supported by Marx and Engels who argued that human condition of urban areas or cities was a result of economic structure (Bounds 2004). Marx’s and Engel’s theory claims that people in preindustrial or traditional societies were generic and are tribal beings. However, the rise of urban development begins with the transition from barbarism to civilization. People tend to realize the political and economic freedom; hence they control their own means of production. This theory further states that this social evolution of humans is not complete until capitalism was transformed into socialism. This is reflected in the Surplus Theory which claims that as skills increased, a surplus of production existed. So if it was agriculture skills that have increased, for sure there would be surplus basic food stuff that existed. The surplus freed certain people from having to produce their own food and let them develop other occupations which could be services provision to others who pay to use them. Hence, people with certain skills and trades tend to move to where there are markets, mainly in urban areas, were they can exchange these skills for professions that generate income for better livelihoods.

According to the works of Karl Marx in 1847 (Bounds 2004), capitalism constitutes the exploitation of the mass of laborers with nothing but their labor power to exchange for their livelihood. Market relationships, became the determinant of human productive activity. As a result of the development of capitalism, two great classes emerged; the bourgeoisie or capitalist and the proletariat or working class. These two classes are defined by their relation to the means of production. Capitalists, whether wealthy or poor, own the capital such as land, machinery, stock, and other factors of production, whereas the proletariat, whether wealthy or poor, have

11 only their labor to contribute to the production process. These theories stress the emphasis of economics and the problems of inequality and conflict that revolves around urban development.

This concept of class existence and wealth disparities is also supported by the Systems School. The Systems School argues that poor housing or squatting is one of the manifestation of inequalities, imbalances, and uneven of resources caused by the nature and direction of urbanization (Walsh 1978). This is evident in developing countries whereby majority of urban dwellers are the urban poor who are always neglected by the system itself. For instance, the quality housing provisions that are provided by the state or authorities would only cater for those who can afford them.

The level of income determines the type and condition of housing that people live in. Low income earners often live in crowded and poor condition housing. Payne (1977) and Hardoy and Satterthewaite (1989) have explored this correlation by stating that in developing world, a large proportion of urban dwellers are low income earners. This group of people would resort to cheap accommodation therefore settle in slums and squatter settlements as they cannot afford expensive rent, hence the increase number of slums and squatter settlements in and around urban areas.

Furthermore, the capital and materials provided for self-help housing provided by the government and other housing entities are focused and given to the low-income earners whereas the poor are left out as they just could not afford. These poor urban dwellers therefore resort to slums and squatter settlements for housing hence the increased number of these types of settlements. The Systems School, according to Walsh (1978), claims that this is a result of inappropriate or absence of overall planning, and more generally to the principal social and economic positions of developing countries.

2.2.3 Physical Planning in Urban Development

To achieve an ideal coordination of different human activities for the enhancement of the quality of life in an area, physical planning is highly important. Normally this planning is carried out by the state, or by local government organizations for the general good of the community. This is the designing of the ideal physical infrastructure of an administrative land unit prominently in urban areas, such as transport facilities – roads, railways, airports, harbors; industrial plants and storage of produce; mining and power generation, and facilities for towns and other human

12 settlements, which includes playgrounds and recreational parks. This planning of such facilities, which is referred to as ‘zoning’ is constantly important, in anticipation of population increase and the socio-economic development of a nation (FAO 1995).

Zoning is the technique through which land use plans segregate parcels of land of special use for example residential, industrial, commercial, education, and recreational (Oduwaye 2006).It is a means of controlling urban sprawl, population density, traffic, and other urban problems (Dowall & Giles 1997).

Drawing from Ernest Burgess' work on Concentric Zone Theory, the social structure extends outwards from the Central Business District (CBD), where jobs, industries, entertainment, administrative offices and other businesses are located. In regards to human settlements and the quality of housing status, this means that the lower classes live closer to the city center, while the upper classes live farther from the city center because they can afford to commute. Therefore, the further from the business district, the better quality housing with higher costs and commuting time (Marshall 1998). It is assumed that the poor cannot afford to commute long distances, and also that they must live in the older and cheaper houses near the center; hence, low class residential areas are near the CBD.

The Turner Model, according to Brett (1974), rests on a relationship between man and his dwelling. Depending on income, housing can be vehicle of expression of identity, opportunity and security. Housing can be a reflector of social status and identity for the upper-income groups while for the poor and low-income groups, housing is a decisive determinant of short-term economic opportunities, and in the longer term, act as a means of security. This shows clearly that opportunity and security rather than identity are priorities of the poor. Hence, the location of housing is more important than the type of housing. That is, accessibility to sources of casual employment overrides the poor environmental conditions in which the poor live.

The Turner Model, for example, highlights that squatting is more prevalent among low-income groups. As the commercial and the industrial areas expand, squatting is enhanced resulting in the acceleration of land-values towards the center of the city. This results in increasing density of slum areas since rents are affordable for poor households. However, rents increase too, leaving a

13 significant proportion of migrants with no option but to settle illegally on pockets of vacant land or interstitial zones adjoining central commercial areas (Brett 1974).

The School of Human Ecology discussed by Suguta (1987) also reflects some aspects in the Turner Model discussed above. According to the Ecological School, squatting transpires through the process of segregation, invasion and succession. Segregation refers to “….specific functions in different areas or to the congregation of similar types of people, because of ethnic background or as affected by prejudice or poverty…” (Suguta 1987:137). Therefore, squatter communities could be classified under the latter category. However, due to invasion, the squatter communities change in character because of the penetration of a segregated area by an institutional function or population group different from the one that is already established there. Cities and towns that grow rapidly, the commercial or industrial districts invade residential areas, pushing residences outward resulting in squatting at the fringes of the city. In their place, a new type of institution or population is established in the area, thus succession has occurred. Among the new population are squatters, who prefer to live in the city within proximity to their workplaces.

Furthermore, squatter settlements emerge as a result for limited supply of housing due to high demand in urban areas. Suguta (1987) argues that if housing were sufficient, there would be no squatting on the urban fringes. This is in support of the supply-and-demand school, which argues that squatting indicates that the supply of housing is insufficient. However, Walsh (1978), in support of the argument made by the Elemental school, claims that there is short supply of housing in urban areas due to the availability of affordable and desired housing. Therefore, squatting emerges due to the lack or shortage of land, capital in the form of money and materials, building skills and labour, and managerial skills among administrators (Walsh 1978).

2.2.4 Urban Service Delivery

Urban services include water and sewerage systems, solid waste management, roads and transport, drainage and flood protection, and electricity supply (Mohanty 2011). Urbanization provides internal migrants the hope of opportunities for employment, education, health services and socioeconomic development. However, as a consequence of economic development, it provides both opportunities and challenges.

The United Nations Human Settlements Program (UN HABITAT), United Nations Human Rights and United Nations Development Program (UNDP) to mark World Habitat Day published articles in The Fiji Times (2013) that outline what adequate housing is. They stated that an adequate or quality housing is more than just four walls and a roof. There are certain criteria that are essential for the right to adequate housing of which accessing urban services is a priority. Housing is not adequate if its occupants do not have safe drinking water, adequate sanitation, the energy for cooking, heating and lighting, means of food storage, garbage disposal; and are unable to meet housing costs that threatens a person’s other basic needs such as food, education and access to health care. There has to be a security of tenure for a quality house which guarantees legal protection against forced eviction, harassments and other threats. Adequate housing should also provide for adequate space, and protection from threats to healthy living such as cold, damp, heat, rain and wind. Quality housing is one that is accessible to the needs of disadvantage and marginalized groups such as the poor, people facing discrimination, persons with disabilities, or victims of natural disasters. More importantly, location is an important aspect of house quality. Adequate and quality housing must allow access to employment options, health-care services, schools, child-care, and other social facilities and should not be built on polluted sites or be close to pollution sources.

Escalating urbanization has generated a greater demand for urban services predominantly, housing, infrastructural and basic services including water supply and sanitation, solid waste management, drainage, health, and road and transport. Hence, effective urban service delivery in meeting the growing demand is crucial. It is alleged that the welfare of citizens both in urban and rural areas are the responsibility of a government (Beyer 1965), however, urban service delivery has often been organized as a complex network of relationships between multi-purpose units of local government, central government, and private firms (World Bank 1995).

Shotton and Winter (2007) claimed that a key part of any strategy for poverty reduction and for achievement of the MDGs lies in improved delivery of basic public infrastructure and related services which include adequate housing. This point has been forcefully made in numerous global meetings, where the international community has called for a major increase in funding for public investments, for poor people and in poor areas – and also for the rapid deployment of locally appropriate and replicable delivery system such as appropriate policies to ensure effective

15 absorption of funds for delivery of this infrastructure on the scale required. The challenge is to devise or to reform local infrastructure systems, to ensure that resources allocated for local public expenditure on pro-poor investments are used effectively, efficiently, equitably and accountably.

2.2.5 Urban governance

There is no doubt that the livelihoods of the urban poor are deeply affected by how urban areas are governed and managed (Devas 2004). Rashid, Jusoh and Malek (2009) defined urban governance as the integration of effort between the community, private sector and the urban authorities. The urban authorities would perform the coordinating role and determine the quality of the microeconomic environment and local that is favorable to attract investors and people. Private sector, in most cases, would provide the much needed financial assistance and business expertise to operate independently or in association with the public sector. The community provides the individuals who are employees, consumers or are beneficiaries of the governance process.

Empowering urban authorities and communities is an important part in a more sustainable urban future (Storey 2005). UN-HABITAT (2002:7) has stated that:

Without the participation of those at the local level – local authorities and the urban poor – sustainable city-wide strategies cannot be achieved. Gaventa (2001) has argued that a key challenge for development in the 21st Century is the building of new relationships between citizens and government; the apex of this is the local, and particularly, local government and governance. Predominantly in developing countries, local governments are often ill-equipped and under-resourced to deal with increasing demands of basic services, shelter, land and greater representation (UN-HABITAT 2002), since greater proportion of urban populations are low-income earners or the poor. This makes it difficult for local urban governments throughout developing world to face demands that outstrip their material and nonmaterial capacities.

In the Pacific Island Countries, Storey (2005) recommends that appropriate, affordable and relevant forms of governance must be found, in order for urban issues and tensions such as land

16 shortages; rapidly increasing informal settlements, and a lack of affordable and relevant private housing; incomplete, inadequate, and failing infrastructure and services; and inadequate institutional capacity and human resources to deal with issues among others, are to be effectively managed in a context of rapid demographic growth and change coupled with globalizing economies which are vulnerable to external shocks (Storey 2005).

Inappropriate and ineffective urban policies have also been one of the underlying causes of housing crisis in urban areas of most developing countries (Eritai 2003). Moreover, the World Bank (2000) described the potential of urbanization for improved living standards as being jeopardized by a lack of vision of the kind of economic, social and physical environment desired by town dwellers, an absence of appropriate policies, and poor urban management and service delivery.

In the Pacific Island Countries, the World Bank (2000) has concluded that there are several obstacles that stand in the way of good governance. National and local governments tend to be organized along western institutional models, which are poorly integrated with traditional structures and processes. Decisions are mainly top-down where formal government bodies do the planning and budgeting which often does not make sense in traditional views on how decisions should be made, nor do they accurately reflect local level priorities for development. Therefore, to deal with the worsening problems caused by urbanization and realizing its potential to increase living standards, calls for an appropriate and effective policy and institutional response is highly recommended for the developing world including the Pacific Island Countries.

2.2.6 Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

On the basis of the growing poverty problem, the United Nations (UN) member states in 2000 agreed on eight specific goals to be achieved by 2015 (Appendix A). These goals are generally referred to as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and were laid out as a comprehensive set of development goals for countries to achieve by 2015.

Since housing is an important sector of any national development, it will be impossible to achieve these goals without paying adequate attention to the provision of housing and related infrastructure. Hence, housing is directly or indirectly related to these goals and can be a lead sector in achieving the objectives; it contributes to the reduction of social problems, enhances

17 social harmony, opens up economic-generating opportunities, improves health conditions, and contributes to sustainable environmental development (Tibaijuka 2009).

Tibaijuka (2009) discusses how housing could play a role in achieving the MDGs. She elaborated that to achieve goal number one of the MDG which is ‘eradicate extreme poverty and hunger’, adequate housing could play a role in achieving it. Residential activities can provide job opportunities and income and thereby allow urban poor to invest in food and other basic needs. Not only that but residential activities also contributes to a nation’s wealth through taxes and savings, and allow governments and agencies to invest in social oriented programmes to reduce poverty. Furthermore, improved housing conditions also raises worker productivity.

Adequate housing also aids in attaining Goal number two of MDG which is to achieve universal primary education. Improving, and access to housing in appropriate locations lowers absenteeism from school; improving, and access to housing increases educational productivity; and secure tenure allows parents to engage in income-generating activities allowing them to cater for educational expenses.

Goal number 3 of MDG which is to promote gender equality and empower women can also be achieved through adequate housing as secure tenure contributes to household stability and provides women with peaceful atmosphere to engage in economic-generating activities. Furthermore, good housing reduces stress and contributes to women’s productivity.

To achieve goal number 4 of the MDG which is to reduce child mortality, good housing and provision of services such as water, electricity and sanitation in them would reduce the risk of diseases among children.

Goal number 5 of the MDG which is to improve maternal health could be achieved by simply improving housing standards which lowers the need for health service for women. Secure tenure also reduces stress among slum dwellers, especially women and furthermore it safeguards procreation and nurturing of the young.

To achieve goal number 6 of the MDG which is to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, access to adequate housing reduces homelessness and risks of social problems associated with street people; good housing brings comfort, reduces overcrowding and limits the

18 transmission of communicable diseases such as tuberculosis, it facilitates and enhances care- giving. More importantly, health conditions depend largely on good living environment.

Goal number 7 of the MDG which is to ensure environmental sustainability could be achieved by having good housing conditions and related services such as proper sanitation contributes to a good environment. The use of environmentally friendly building materials, including energy- efficient materials, contributes to environmental protection. Furthermore, good housing and urban design are cornerstones for mitigating ecological footprints of settlements and reducing vulnerability to climate change.

Goal number 8 of the MDG which is to develop a global partnership for development, could be recognized through the partnership between national government and international development agencies to create collaboration and reduces duplication of programmes. Partnerships between national government and international agencies for housing also ensure realistic policies and programmes and sharing of best practices. Furthermore, programmes that involve partnerships among national governments, international development agencies, local communities and slum dwellers have a better chance of long-term sustenance.

2.2.7 Reviews of similar case studies

There have been studies done in the Pacific region on urban housing crisis; and these have highlighted that the problem of urban housing follows the same patterns and trends with other developing countries.

Storey (2006) generalizes that urban housing problems in the Pacific region is mainly caused by the trend of migration from rural to urban areas. Its towns and cities are becoming places of acute poverty and growing inequality, predominantly, where housing and informal settlements are placing enormous stress on communities, and authorities alike. Institutions and housing stakeholders are failing to cope with the demands placed on them. The quality of housing is the indicator of people’s income, their level of security and their access to resources such as land. Although informal settlements do not always house the very poor, the fact that Pacific middle classes have little choice but to live in poor quality housing areas is an indication of low incomes and high relative cost of living in many Pacific cities. However, the Pacific cities have not received policy or research attention appropriate with their significance as emphasized by Storey.

He concluded that there is more need to be done in terms of research and sharing of best practices.

Storey’s findings were in support of Saini’s (1966) analysis of urban housing in Papua New Guinea and the Pacific region. Saini generalizes that these migrants from rural to urban areas either build makeshift housing or stay with friends or relatives resulting in overcrowding and the lowering of living standards. The housing crisis in urban areas, in his view is caused by poorly governed administration, coupled with no proper planning and confusion and overlapping functions of bodies involved in the housing administration.

Walsh (1978; 1979) thoroughly examines the problem of squatting in Suva, Fiji. He ruled out that squatting is mainly caused by gaps between supply and demands for housing and a series of shortages in terms of capital in the form of money and material, building skills and labour, urban land, and managerial skills among administrators. Walsh further discusses that inappropriate housing policies also play an important part in the rise of inadequate housing and slums and squatter settlements. He indicated that in 1973, 80 percent of housing applicants could not even afford the cheapest Home Purchase Plan housing available, although these flats were subsidized by the government. Moreover, due to non-rental payments of Housing Authority’s flats, tenants were evicted. The layout design of rooms in low and medium cost flats at Raiwaqa and Nabua in Suva even do not meet the tenant’s expectations. As a consequence, housing built by squatters were preferred than the accommodations provided by the Housing Authority.

Koto (2010) analyses the institutional role in service delivery in the form of housing provision for a squatter settlement in Suva. She states that because the establishment of such settlements is often illegal; residents are seldom provided with basic infrastructure and services such as road, water supply, sanitation and solid waste collection. However, with better and more efficient strategies established by institutions such as the government, Non-government Organizations and local community groups; by working in collaboration, they provided better social and economic opportunities for such settlements. The squatter settlements were upgraded into a formal residential subdivision with an opportunity for security of land tenure and proper housing.

For urban areas in Vanuatu, though not much work has been done, the few studies and works (Storey 2006; UN-Habitat 2003, Mckay 2009; Bryant-Tokalau 1995 & World Bank 2000) that

20 are discussed below have revealed a similar situation of urban housing problem as experienced in other countries of the Pacific region. The problem of urban housing and related services is envisaged to the high urbanization growth rate predominantly from rural to urban areas.

McKay (2009) claimed that internal migration continues to fuel the expansion of squatter settlements in urban areas of Vanuatu. Settlements in the capital Port Vila, on Efate and in Luganville, on Espiritu Santo island, are reported as “…..some of the more dramatic examples of rapidly growing squatter settlements in the Pacific (Storey 2006). A report by UN-Habitat in 2003 revealed that around 37 percent of Vanuatu’s urban population lives in slums and squatter settlements, lacking basic services such as water supply, electricity and proper sanitation (UN- Habitat 2003).

A significant shortage of affordable shelter and land, high levels of youth unemployment and problems of pollution is already experienced in Port Vila (Storey 2006). However, still more migrants are flooding the urban areas and which are likely to join the already overcrowded squatter settlements. The conditions of the squatter settlements are poor; and the problems that were described more than ten years ago still remain (Bryant-Tokalau 1995), which include inadequate or nonexistent waste disposal and sanitation, and septic tanks overused in the crowded conditions, polluting Port Vila lagoon (World Bank 2000). There is no public service provider for sanitation and there are no sanitation master plans for either Port Vila or Luganville. Informal settlements depend on shared pit toilets, sometimes very close to water courses and subject to flooding. Approximately two-thirds of households have no access to piped water supply, hence in some areas, many families share communal standpipes and water quality is poor (McKay 2009).

Affordability is a significant issue in relation to accessing power. McKay (2009) has reported in her research that even where power lines have been installed in some communities, most households continue to use kerosene lamps, coconut oil, dry coconut shells and firewood to light their homes as they cannot afford the connection fees and other charges.

Low income urban residents in Vanuatu are particularly vulnerable in finding adequate housing. They could pay up to fifty percent of their income for a room with no water or electricity and to a shared pit latrine toilet (World Bank 2000). Though the living conditions for low income earners

21 are already susceptible, the number of renters is increasing. Storey (2006) states that in some settlements in Port Vila, almost eighty percent of people rent to landlords who also live in the settlements. Most flats that are being rented out are in deteriorating conditions. And if tenants are trying to make improvement to the housing conditions or tenancy at their own costs; still landlords would claim compensations for any developments done. As a result, the tenants are more likely to have insecure living status and poor housing conditions. Hence, they constantly move from settlement to settlement in order to avoid paying high rents.

The housing crisis has resulted in an increase of health problems in urban areas in Vanuatu. The second Pacific Regional Urban Workshop held in Nadi, Fiji Islands in 2007, reported that the overcrowded and unhygienic living conditions in Port Vila have resulted in a significant increase of water borne diseases, such as scabies; an increase in cases of pneumonia affecting babies and young children; a high prevalence of tuberculosis; and in increase of fish poisoning cases as a result of contamination to Port Vila harbour (UNESCAP 2007). Furthermore, in Luganville, it was reported that poor households are concentrated in a swampy area, leading to high incidence of malaria, gastric disorders and other health problems (ibid.).

Storey (2006) has reemphasized the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific’s (UNESCAP) stand by stating that without positive intervention, environmental conditions in informal settlements will deteriorate and threaten the health of residents and ultimately environmental and health conditions in the wider urban area. There is need for the government to take a more proactive approach with squatter settlements particularly in promoting a greater understanding of rights and services (ESCAP/POC 2002).

There are certain barriers that are impediments to improved housing in Vanuatu. Firstly, there is lack of planning in Vanuatu to address improved and better housing for its citizens. It has no specific national planning policies or strategies for managing urban growth and according to UNESCAP, “…..little capacity…in the public or private sector to this task” (Storey 2006). There are no building codes, national housing policy or the urban redevelopment and renewal policy that the parliament has endorsed (UNESCAP 2007).

Secondly, Vanuatu has no national housing scheme to provide for affordable housing. The once set up NHC could only provide 49 houses which was beyond low and middle-income earners

22 financial reach (Storey 2006). Moreover, the formal subdivisions that was administered by this Corporation was quite expensive that urban residents could not afford, hence adding to the informal settlements growth.

The lack of securing land tenure was also an obstacle into improving housing in Vanuatu. According to UNESCAP, land around the urban fringes of Port Vila and Luganville are very sensitive to development hence it is likely an area of major conflicts and explains the lack of response to these trends (Storey 2006).

In 1980 at the independence of Vanuatu, all the land was declared by the government as customary-owned apart from a small amount retained as government owned. However, individuals and companies can acquire land from customary land owners and have it registered at the Department of Lands. However, parcels of land with ownership or boundary disputes are not registered.

Complex planning regulations and high building costs are also a hindrance to adequate housing provision in Vanuatu. The cost of registering a land and building in compliance to statutory instruments such as the Municipalities Act 1980, Land Leases Act 1983, Physical Planning Act 1986, Decentralization Act 1994, Public Health Act 1994, and Customary Land Tribunal Act 2001 in Vanuatu is too high to meet even before any building could be erected (McKay 2009). Moreover, no leases of housing can be issued until the plots have been adequately serviced by inspectors and law enforcement officers of the above Acts. Therefore, these requirements have removed any incentives for private sector involvement in the provision of low-cost housing, although on a small scale, some success has come from some Non-Government Organizations (NGOs).

A small number of houses around Port Vila have been constructed by Habitat for Humanity (HfH), in partnership with Vanuatu Women’s Development Scheme (VANWODS), a microfinance organization for women. HfH adopts a ‘sweat equity’ approach to housing where the homeowner uses their own labour in construction to keep the costs down. There has been considerable demand since this housing scheme was established. In addition to establishing homes for low-income earners, there has been showcasing of cheaper building materials,

23 including interlocking blocks used in the Philippines and materials that people can construct using their own labour such as building tiles (Storey 2006).

There have been efforts to address inadequate housing. Resolving land disputes has been one priority for the government Land Tribunal Office by providing capacity-building training and support to regional non-government land tribunals. These Tribunals define boundaries and identify landowners in preparation for land registration at the clan level (Storey 2006).

Declaration of public ownership over parcels of urban land are being addressed and resolved in court level. This makes it possible for the government to provide secure title to squatters and/or assuming responsibility for the provision of basic infrastructure to settlements (UNESCAP 2003).

2.3 Conclusion

Cities are playing an increasingly important role in the economy of any nation; and have been centers of political and social transformations. However, this comes with its problems such as growing populations, limited resources and strained infrastructures.

The provision of urban housing and relevant basic services are critical problems in the Pacific region cities including Luganville in Vanuatu. In terms of urban housing, there is shortage of formal housing provision and the emergence of informal housing like squatter settlements are the major housing problems. Often these informal housing do not conform to the building standards and not in compliance with statutory instruments and relevant authorities knowledge.

The unplanned and uncontrolled movement of people into urban areas along with the emergence of squatter settlements has put tremendous pressure on the provision of basic urban services. The lack of basic urban services into households has really had impacts to urban residents’ wellbeing. Most critical are the lack of water supply, sanitation and proper means of waste disposal as they could prompt other issues such as health and environment.

These growing problems of urban housing and lack of basic urban services are instigated by various factors. As mentioned above, unplanned and uncontrolled urbanization and growth of urban population, shortage of land, lack of finance and materials and importantly, the dysfunctional urban governance by poor urban planning and urban management.

To provide remedies for the above problems and for a provision of quality housing, it is essential to merge housing provision along with other basic urban services through appropriate policies as they are inseparable. Therefore, urban planning and urban management would be appropriate solutions.

The remaining chapters focus on the study of the quality of housing provided in Luganville, Vanuatu in the light of high urbanization growth. The next chapter deals with the research methodological approaches.

CHAPTER THREE

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

3.1 Introduction

Research is a creative work undertaken in a systematic way in order to increase the stock of knowledge, including knowledge of man, culture and society and the use of this knowledge to invent new applications (OECD 2002). Typically, it encompasses concepts such as paradigm, theoretical model, phases and quantitative or qualitative approaches in researches (Irny & Rose 2005).

The qualitative approach in research is primarily an exploratory research. It is used to gain an understanding of underlying reasons, opinions, and motivations. It provides insights into the problem or helps to develop ideas or hypothesis for a potential quantitative approach in research. The qualitative approach in research is also used to uncover trends in thought and opinions, and dive deeper into the problem. The common methods include focus groups (group discussions), individual interviews and participation/observations. The sample size is normally small, and the respondents are selected to fulfil a given quota (Wyse 2011).

On the other hand, a quantitative approach in research is used to quantify the problem by way of generating numerical data or data that can be transformed into useable statistics. It is used to quantify attitudes, opinions, behaviors, and other defined variables – and generalize results from a larger sample population. Compared to qualitative approach in research data collection, quantitative approach is more structured. Its data collection methods include various forms of survey, such as online and paper surveys; face-to-face interviews and telephone interviews; longitudinal studies, websites interceptors, online pools, and systematic observations (Wyse 2011).

In order to get the required data and information for this research project, a combination of qualitative and quantitative approaches were entailed. The two research approaches were necessary for an in depth understanding of the problem that is being investigated.

Therefore this current chapter focuses on how the research was conducted. It explains the research methodology involved; how the research was designed and the limitations encountered while conducting the research. Furthermore in this chapter, is a description of the research area in which the study was focused.

3.2 Research Methodology

To obtain the required and relevant data and information for this project, two sources of data were used. The primary data was obtained by observation and through surveys. Prior to the survey, some preparation had to be done. Firstly, questionnaires were prepared. Two sets of questionnaires (Appendix B and Appendix C) were prepared for two separate surveys. The first survey was for relevant government officials, while the second survey was intended for households in the study areas. An important consideration in the preparation of questionnaire was to identify the kinds of questions to be asked so that relevant information was obtained, and unnecessary questions were avoided.

The selection of who was to participate in this research from the households in the study area was done randomly. On the planned date of survey, with the help of two research assistants, questionnaires were given to randomly selected participants from the three research areas as they carried out their daily tasks in their residences.

In order to code and transform data from the household surveys, the ‘Statistical Package for the Social Sciences’ (SPSS) Software was used. The information processed was then tabulated. Tables which appear in Chapter 5 give specific information relating to housing conditions and quality. These included types of house, house ownership and households having access to basic urban services such as electricity, water supply and sanitation. Statistics available in Government reports and documents also gave background information required for analysis. These statistics were also used to determine the trends of population, urban population, and to calculate the population density in the study areas.

To examine the growth and patterns of housing in Luganville, there were several approaches that were undertaken. Firstly, recent statistics on the number of households, squatters, population, and housing constructed and demanded were obtained from reliable sources. Accordingly, current statistics were then compared with statistics available for the last 10 or 20 years.

Secondly, was the use of maps and photographs as they illustrate the spatial growth and the types of housing people live in or constructed in the past years. Thirdly, was the use of the Map Info Computer Programming Software. The Land Management Department of Vanuatu had been using this Software since 1995 to assist in drawing a variety of maps and in providing statistics and detailed information depicted on the maps such as land area and land use. Finally, a general observation of formal and informal housing around Luganville was done to examine the different architectural pattern of housing.

The other type of research used was archival research. This was based on secondary sources of information collected from the work of others in academic papers, reports, archival records and other secondary sources.

All data collected from both the primary surveys and secondary sources were then analyzed and interpreted. The methods used to collect the data were both descriptive and qualitative. Statistics were measurements used to summarize quantitative information. On the other hand, the content of secondary sources was analyzed through the qualitative approach. That is, the content of reports, books, newspapers, documents and other written sources relevant to the topic were examined and interpreted. Materials on urbanization, urban housing and basic urban services in the developing countries and particularly in Luganville, Santo had been consulted as well. This methodological approach had become the basis of data analysis and interpretation, resulting in the production of this Supervised Research Project thesis.

3.3 Research Design

To make it easier to collect relevant data, the research was designed in such a way that data and information regarding housing situation and the provision of basic urban services in Luganville, Santo was clearly outlined. The questionnaires used in the two surveys were consistent throughout and were in a logical format. The officials’ questionnaire (Appendix B) was divided into six sections and had a total of twenty five questions. Section A of the questionnaire was on housing provisions and contained questions on what the government and other housing stakeholders’ are doing on the housing sector, on housing policies; building codes and legislations regarding housing provision for urban residents. Section B dealt with application procedures in order to have access to government housing. Section C focused on informal

28 housing or squatter settlements. This section questioned the percentage of urban residents living in squatters, areas in Luganville that squatters are present, upgrading programmes for squatters and how squatters could be an obstacle in urban planning. Section D focused on access to land as it is an important component for housing. Section E dealt with finance as it is a significant contribution to the provision of housing. The last section, section F, focused on urban basic services, particularly the problems and access of water supply, sanitation, sewerage, solid waste and electricity.

Interviews were conducted on five officials in both Government and statutory bodies that dealt directly with housing, and other matters relating to housing. These included: the National Housing Cooperation, the Luganville Municipality Council, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Infrastructure and Public Works Utilities and Vanuatu Utilities and Infrastructure Limited (VUI).

The questionnaire for household survey (Appendix C) had twenty eight questions altogether and was divided into five sections. Section A dealt with the socio-demographic characteristics of the members of the households which include questions such as the age group, the gender, their marital status, their educational level, the type of occupation they do and how much they earn for the job they do. Section B focused on questions regarding their movement into the urban area. Section C dealt with their health status in their current living environment at the time of research. Section D was concerned with the housing conditions and its characteristics in terms of the basic services supplied into the houses such as electricity, water and sanitation; the construction materials used for the houses and the type of toilets used. Lastly, Section E focuses on the land and housing tenure. Questions of how many people sharing the house and who owns the house and the land, how the tenants pay for the rents and problems they face whilst living in the land and house were asked. All these questions asked would basically reveal the quality of housing that tenants live in and how the government was intervening in the provision of quality housing in these research areas.

Questions asked in the questionnaire were a mixture of open and closed-ended questions. The open-ended questions allowed the participants to provide answers freely to the questions asked and allow them to add more to the information given. On the other hand, the close-ended questions restricted the participants as they were allowed to only tick the answers provided for

29 them. However, in some cases, participants were asked to specify their answers to some of the questions.

A sample of thirty households was randomly picked to participate in the survey. From each household randomly picked, only one adult household member would answer the questionnaire prepared for the survey. From the three of the research sites, namely, Mango station, Pepsi Area and Sarakata, ten households were randomly selected in each. A ‘household’ in this research is considered to be everyone who occupies a single housing unit. Therefore, there were thirty participants who took part in this survey.

3.4 Research Area

The study focused on Luganville, the second largest town in Vanuatu and is located in Santo, the biggest island in Vanuatu (Map 3.1). The boundary of Luganville, has been clearly marked, however, few settlements rising around the boundaries marked, have initiated a difficult task for authorities to monitor as it expands legal urban boundaries. Luganville had become the Vanuatu northern town where government administrative offices, communication and commercial center for the northern part of Vanuatu were located.

Rather than selecting Luganville as a whole to do the research; Mango Station, Pepsi Area and Sarakata (Map 3.2), were the focus of the study because Luganville included many rural and urban villages within it with both rural and urban features respectively. These three selected areas of the research were the most densely populated settlements and overcrowded areas making them prone to urban basic problems. They account for sixty percent of Luganville population.

Map 3.1: Map of Santo Island

Luganville

Source: Australian National University, 2003

Map 3.2: Map of Luganville

Pepsi Area

Mango Station

Sarakata Key:

Source: Luganville Municipality Council, 2013

The three urban settlements selected for the research survey are discrete in terms of the number of households, the population and the land area they occupy. Sarakata Area is the most densely populated area with a population of 668 living in only 1845 households. Sarakata covers a land area of 0.9 square kilometers. Pepsi Area has a land area of only 0.35 square kilometers, but with a large population of 740 people living in 152 households. Mango Station has a population of 541 living in 87 households in only 0.6 square kilometers of land area.

Table 3.1: Population, Households and Density in the Study Areas

Urban Settlement Population (2009) Number of Households Total Land Area (Km2)

Sarakata Area 668 149 0.9 Pepsi Area 740 152 0.35 Mango Station 541 87 0.6

Source: Government of Vanuatu, 2010

32 3.5 Research Limitations

The lack of information required was the main limitation confronted during the fieldwork, and during both the online and library research. During the fieldwork, nearly all the offices and authorities that were visited lack the required data and information. They could not provide me with maps and aerial photographs made or taken at different year intervals, which are needed to analyze the growth and patterns of urban housing in Luganville. Records of squatters and private housing over the years were also not kept at relevant offices which make it hard to see the growth patterns and the basic urban services provision in them. In some cases records were available; however, most are out of date, incomplete and have a degree of flaws and inaccuracies.

Another point to note is that this research is limited to the three settlements chosen to collect data from. This is done with the hope that this would be representational on the whole Luganville town where there are other settlement and housing existence. However, there are other settlements that exist in and around the Luganville municipality boundary but have been listed and included in the Luganville municipality; which in that case, are not included in this study.

In addition to the research limitation encountered, time constraint and funding especially in conducting the survey were a great setback to carry out this research successfully in time.

3.6 Conclusion

To obtain relevant data and information to report in a research, it is necessary and important to employ appropriate methodologies to carry out the whole research. However, while carrying out this research, constraints were confronted both in the field and in consulting secondary sources. A major setback was the lack of sufficient information and other relevant data on and related to housing in Vanuatu. This setback hinders an in depth and fuller understanding of the subject that is being examined. Nevertheless, the amount of data and information collected through primary and secondary sources made it possible to discuss the findings.

The next chapter focuses on the background of Vanuatu and Luganville in terms of its geography, its history, the demographic trends, economy and urbanization processes, national and local government authority and the urban basic services delivery including housing.

CHAPTER FOUR

VANUATU AND LUGANVILLE: A BACKGROUND

4.1 Introduction

The Republic of Vanuatu, like other Melanesian2 Pacific Island countries, has a youthful, fast growing population (Chung & Hill 2002). This population is becoming more mobile within the country from rural to urban areas. There are only three urban centers in Vanuatu: Port Vila, the capital; Luganville, the second biggest town on the northern island of Espiritu Santo and Lenakel, on the southern island of Tanna.

If this urban growth is not planned for and properly accommodated, Port Vila, Luganville and Lenakel could become overwhelmed with social, economic and environmental problems. Already in Luganville, the rate of urbanization is occurring so quickly that it is overwhelming the capacity of urban services such as water supply and housing.

Housing, in particular informal settlements are an important characteristic of Luganville. As more people from the islands migrate into this urban area, they either find a place to rent for themselves and their families or they tend to settle in with families who have established their living on the urban areas on the outskirts of this town. However, most of the informal settlements are on land with disputed tenure around the formal boundaries (McKay 2009). As was reported by the World Bank in its 2000 report3, the housing needs of most of the Vanuatu urban migrants have traditionally been met by the extended family, resulting in increased dwelling occupancy and household size; and the kinship groups, resulting in increased density as extensions are added to buildings. This growth of informal settlement reflects the shortage of affordable housing in urban areas.

______2 Melanesian: Countries that make up Melanesian are New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and Fiji. 3 Cities, Seas and Storms: Managing Change in Pacific Island Economies, Vol.1, Summary Report, World Bank, 2000.

The living conditions in the informal settlements are also critical in the overall development of Vanuatu. In the Vanuatu Poverty Analysis conducted by the National Statistics Office in 2005, it was noted that poverty was more than simply a low income, but also inadequate access to clean water and sanitation, education, health care and other basic services including housing which is the main focus in this research. By these criteria, living in the informal settlements particularly in an urban area, generally means living in poverty (Narsey 2012).

This chapter covers background information on Vanuatu and Luganville in particular, in terms of geography, history, demography, economy, urban government and provision of urban basic services including urban housing.

4.2 Geography

Composed of 83 islands, Vanuatu covers 2,530km of coastline and a total surface area of 12,190 square kilometers. The “Y” shaped archipelago stretches over 850 kilometers in a north-south direction, lying 13-22 degrees south of the equator. The closest neighbors to Vanuatu are the Solomon Islands to the north, New Caledonia to the south, Fiji to the east and Australia to the west (Map 4.1).

Map 4.1 Vanuatu in the South Pacific Map

Source: Tourism Vanuatu, 2013

In the South Pacific, Vanuatu has been rated as one of the highest disaster-prone countries. The United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) noted in its assessment that Vanuatu is one of the most natural disaster prone countries in the world and is

35 highly vulnerable to the impacts of natural disasters (Pacific Disaster Net 2008). Risks for Vanuatu include cyclones, floods, storm surges, droughts, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and tsunamis. The isolation and terrain of many islands extends the devastating impact of natural disasters that could have on the livelihoods of remote communities.

Espiritu Santo, most commonly known as Santo, is the biggest island of Vanuatu with an area of 3,955.5 km2 (Map 4.2). The western side of the island is rugged mountainous terrain whereas the southern and eastern edges of the island are vast and flat, ideal for plantations and grazing cattle. Hence, copra, cattle farming, fishing, coffee and vanilla remain the major resources of the island, with a growing tourism sector.

Luganville, the second largest town in Vanuatu is located on the south eastern part of Santo where it is a vast stretch of coastal plain. Whilst Luganville may not be the administrative capital; with the newly built international airport, along with the thousands of hectares of very fertile land around Santo, it stands a very good chance of becoming the economic capital of Vanuatu one day.

Map 4.2: Map of Vanuatu

Source: Constitutional Centre of Western Australia, 2011.

36 4.3 History

Vanuatu was a colony of the French and British governments and was called New Hebrides before it gained its independence in 1980.

During World War II (WWII) in the early 1940s, Vanuatu went through big changes in urban life. A large contingent of US military was stationed where what are now the urban centers in Vanuatu. It was during the WWII that Luganville town was developed as a major military supply base to service the Pacific Theatre. More than 100,000 US servicemen were stationed around Vanuatu between 1942 and 1945; which in turn attracted around 10,000 Ni-Vanuatu workers who worked for the American forces in stations that developed into Port Vila and Luganville. For most Ni-Vanuatu workers, this was their first contact with urban life. After the war, the employment and mobility patterns was influenced greatly by this urban experience (Haberkorn 1989).

The Ni-Vanuatu migration to town during the WWII period has reflected economic trends in the country. In the 1950s, due to migration to town, there was rural labor shortage; therefore, copra prices were shifted to a higher price rate to encourage more locals to produce their own copra. As a result, many Ni-Vanuatu had to go back to rural areas and work on plantations. This migration trend from urban to rural flow created a shortage of European plantation labor, which saw indentured Vietnamese workers and Wallisian and Tahitian workers being hired to work. However, they too moved to town as their work contracts expired, hence, developing multiracial residents in newly established towns throughout Vanuatu. The colonial government had to be lenient and relaxed its controls on Ni-Vanuatu employment and mobility as a result of the shortage of plantation labor. Though still a small minority in the emerging towns, the number of urban Ni-Vanuatu grew quickly, largely through in-migration (Haberkorn 1989).

From then on, the urban economy has progressively grown and diversified, attracting more locals to town seeking wage employment. Moreover, in the early 1960s after the Vietnamese workers were repatriated, more jobs were available for local workers, hence, more influx of rural urban migration into emerging towns.

After independence in 1980, the growth of emerging towns accelerated. Jobs in the public sector expanded which employed more locals. In addition, over the years, opportunities for formal education were extended, providing many more locals with the opportunities and aspirations for wage employment, which were mainly located in the urban sector. However, though the urban population was dominated by the locals, in search for opportunities and aspirations for better welfare and wellbeing, most of these locals live in peri-urban areas and the informal settlements that dot the town and mark its fringes (Chung & Hill 2002).

In 1980, the Luganville Municipality was gazetted; but much of the land that the township uses was not compensated by the government. As a result, tensions arose between the three political arms, namely parliamentarians, municipal councilors and local government [SANMA] councilors. Most informal settlements are on government owned land, and on the land that has been assumed by Government but for which final compensation has not been paid (Chung & Hill 2002).

In Luganville, the three urban settlements which data was collected from are on land that has been assumed owned by the government but has not been compensated for. The long established settlement at Mango, was originally a Vietnamese settlement, constructed from old scrap metal taken from war wrecks left behind by American troops. After the repatriation of Vietnamese in the 1960s, the company that owned the land, Ballande Vanuatu, used the settlement to house its Ni-Vanuatu employees. These people came to Santo from all over Vanuatu, to work on Ballande Vanuatu’s plantations, docks, stores and ships (Ala 1987). Pepsi, on the other hand, is a quite large settlement on the Sarakata River bank, and grew mainly through political patronage (Chung & Hill 2002). Sarakata settlement consists of people mainly from the northern islands. People moved to settle in this area mainly because space was available and the Luganville Municipality could not enforce regulations to maintain it as a water reserve. Pepsi and Sarakata are the fastest growing settlements along the banks of Sarakata River.

4.4 Demography

It is estimated that in 2012, Vanuatu had a total population of around 247,000 (United Nations 2014). According to the National Census Report (2009) the urban population was comprised of 24.4 percent of total population in 2009, an increase from 21.5 percent in 1999. In figure, the

38 urban population has increased from 40 thousand people in 1999 to 57 thousand in 2009. Even the 1999 urban population statistics is one third larger than in 1989 when only twenty six thousand and three hundred people were living in the two urban areas in Vanuatu. This figure has indicated that more people are moving into urban areas and/or more children are being born in urban areas.

Out of the total population of 253,000 people, some 78% of the population lives in rural areas, with some 16% in Port Vila (the capital) and only 6% in Luganville. However, there were 10, 738 people living in Luganville in 1999 and the number has risen to 13, 167 people in 2009 (Government of Vanuatu 2010). The annual urban growth rate for Luganville is two percent but is estimated to increase in the years to come as the population is increasing.

Vanuatu has a fast growing population of youths. With the fast rate of social changes happening in Vanuatu, the youth population is becoming more mobile within the country, from rural to urban areas seeking entertainment and opportunities.

In the three selected research data collection sites, Sarakata has a total of 668 people living in 149 households. Pepsi area has 740 people in 152 households whereas Mango station has 541 people living in 87 households (Table 4.1).

Table 4.1 Number of Households and population by sex in the three areas of study in Luganville.

Total Pepsi Area Sarakata Mango Station Total 2131 740 668 541

Male 1066 380 328 271 Female 1065 360 340 270

Number of 436 152 149 87 Households Source: Government of Vanuatu, 2010

4.5 Economy

In the last five years, Vanuatu had experienced a positive growth in its economy and it is projected to continue and gain momentum in to the future. There are major factors that contributed to this positive growth which include increase in exports, relative political stability, and a focus on the productive sectors of the economy. The Vanuatu economy also has been relying heavily on tourism sector, agriculture, public infrastructure expenditure funded by donor partners and financial services (Prasad & Giacomelli 2012).

Vanuatu’s commodities of export are beef, copra, kava, coconut oil, timber and cocoa. However, highly recognized by the government, is tourism sector which is also another main foreign exchange earner and is a key sector in Vanuatu’s economic development. The government and private sectors are investing more on tourism sector as it not only brings good revenue to the country but it also provides more employment opportunities for its young and rapidly growing population.

The government recorded a trade deficit of One Thousand, One Hundred and Sixty Three (1,163) million Vatu in the December 2010 quarter as a result of the population relying heavily on imported products such as rice, wheat flour, frozen chicken wings and canned foods as well as fuel and manufactured goods (United Nations Children’s Fund 2011).

Formal employment opportunities in Vanuatu are limited. People who are actively engaging in producing or selling their own food are labeled as self-employed as defined in the National Census Report in 2009 (Government of Vanuatu 2010). The definition of work for pay or work to support one’s self makes up the productive sector, including those who are subsistence farmers. For example, in 1989, sixty one percent of the labor force was in the informal sector compared to twenty one percent in the formal sector (Connell & Lea 1993). One in three adults working for pay or profit in towns are considered to be living in poverty and these working poor are unable to meet their basic needs such as housing, hence, increasing number of squatter settlement in urban areas accommodating people seeking better life and opportunities.

4.6 Urban Government

The Municipalities Act No.5 of 1980 (CAP 126) (Pacific Islands Legal Information Institute 2015) provides for the establishment of the Municipalities which can be referred to as urban governments. The Municipalities Act establishes the towns of Port Vila (Efate), Luganville (Santo) and Lenakel (Tanna) in which its municipality councilors are popularly elected by the urban population and are headed by a mayor.

This legislation outlines the functions, duties and scope of the legislative powers of a Council which are limited only to the control, manage and administer the affairs of these municipalities. Under their jurisdiction they are able to make bye-laws for the purpose of: the safety of the inhabitants; the maintenance of the health, wellbeing and maintain law and good order; and the prevention and suppression of nuisances. Their authority also go to an extent that they develop, control and manage land taken on lease from any statutory land authority including any housing estates. However, despite these outlined scope of authority, these municipalities despite their status as urban government, most of them have not provided housing for their citizens.

These Municipalities obtain their funds to operate through taxes levied on their citizens or residents for property, business, vehicle and building permits to name a few. It is important to note that since Independence in 1980, none of the municipalities has ventured into the provision of housing, however, any development or redevelopment of land in any urban area for which there is general land use plan requires a written permission. That is, any person wishing to erect any building or do any development has to lodge in an application for a building permit to the municipality council within that urban center for approval (Chung & Hill 2002). However, the municipality council can take up the application to the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources for further consideration in regards to its Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) under the Department of Environment and Conservation for final approval (ibid.). Thus, no one can construct a permanent building or do any development within urban jurisdiction of Vanuatu unless the relevant municipality council or the Department of Environment and Conservation under the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources grants approval.

4.7 Urban Land and Basic Services

Land is a vital commodity especially for housing. In 1980 at Independence, Vanuatu government declared all land to be customary land, apart from a small amount that was retained as government-owned. Hence, only two percent land is owned by the government while ninety eight percent is customary land, compared to other Pacific Island countries (Connell & Lea 1993). However, use of customary land is always problematic, especially land that is leased by the government or private sector even for the purpose of public service provision such as water supply and waste disposal since owners of customary land usually oppose regulations that might restrict their rights (World Bank 2011).

Customary lands at the periphery area of urban boundaries are becoming an option for a large and growing proportion for rural-urban migrants to live there, creating squatter settlements. This has resulted in illegal land occupancy where secure tenure and basic services are lacking. However, land in urban areas can be acquired legally, by obtaining a lease from the government through the Minister of Lands; and from people who have acquired land from the government through the same process as provided by legislation passed in Parliament. But importantly to note, the high costs of registering land as well as building in compliance with these legislations passed in Parliament have removed any incentives for private sector involvement in the process of land acquisition and provision of low-cost housing initiatives (McKay 2009).

Since 1939 (World Bank 2014), power generation and distribution in the main urban centers of Port Vila, Luganville, East Malekula and Tanna are under a concession arrangement to a private, French company, Union Electrique du Vanuatu Limited (UNELCO). UNELCO, for twelve years, also managed and operated the Port Vila water supply system. However, UNELCO’s concession for Luganville ended in 2010, as a new power utility, Vanuatu Utility Infrastructure Ltd (VUI) won the concession. Recently in 2013, UNELCO successfully implemented a prepayment metering system where customers can choose the amount of electricity they wish to purchase by refilling smart cards. This makes it possible for customers to monitor their own consumption and usage. This project has proved to be very successfully and efficient for low income earners using this service provided by UNELCO (Government of Vanuatu 2009).

Water supply is provided by several authorities in Vanuatu. The Department of Rural Water Supply within the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources is responsible for the rural water supply systems countrywide; whilst the Public Works Department under the Ministry of Public Utilities and Infrastructure is responsible for the Luganville town piped water supply and for a number of provincial centers in the country. The Ministry of Health is responsible for water quality surveillance of all water supply systems, reinforced by the 1994 Public Health Act (Pacific Islands Legal Information Institute 2015). Therefore, though the cost of electricity and water supply under the concessions of private company or the government is relatively high, the quality is of a good standard.

It is important to note that not all houses are connected to electricity and water meter. Water supply in urban areas is also accessed from groundwater via open wells and bores, and from surface water sources such as rivers, springs, wells and rainwater collected from drums and water tanks. However at most places other than the main urban center, water supply systems are either quite poor or do not exist. The quality of water is inadequate in many cases, and water sources are subject to contamination (Government of Vanuatu 2006).

Sanitation in Vanuatu is critical. There is no public service provider for sanitation and there are no sanitation master plans for its urban areas (Mckay 2009). There is a lack of properly designed facilities for treatment of wastewater causing environmental problems. Wastewater disposal is mainly dumped into septic tanks, which after some time needs emptying out and would cost Fifteen Thousand Vatu (15,000 VT) (ibid.). This discourages many households from using this facility. Informal settlements within urban boundaries depend on shared pit toilets, sometimes very close to water courses and are subject to flooding (ibid.). Only a few big hotels and the central hospital have a small sewage treatment plants, though they are not well maintained. Moreover, there is an absence of storm water drainage in the main urban centers. From past experiences, this has triggered wider dispersal of polluted wastes mainly into the near shore waters; and also creates foul smell from blocked drainage pipes around urban centers.

Solid waste management in Vanuatu is only operative in urban centers and is under the relevant municipality councils. The coverage and reliability of the collection services are good as the municipality introduces innovative programs to involve unemployed youths in city cleanliness programs. However, the maintenance of equipment and facilities is poor and long-term

43 sustainability is in doubt as the management itself consistently lacks sufficient financial resources and technical expertise. Affordability and willingness to pay for solid waste collection is also questionable, particularly for low-income households which had resulted in solid waste accumulation beside roads and surrounding environments.

4.7.1 Urban Housing

A high proportion of urban housing and settlements in urban areas in Vanuatu is owned by individuals and residents; and are located mainly around the peri-urban areas with only a few near urban centers. The government, under relevant departments owns a small proportion of housing for government workers in senior positions mainly around or near the government office vicinities. This housing provision for government workers was constructed during the colonial days; however, they are all run-down and have not been maintained.

The number of households in urban areas has been increasing over the years, and so has the population. According to the latest Population Census Report (2009), the main urban centers had an increase from eight thousand two hundred and eighteen (8,218) households to eleven thousand six hundred and nine (11,609) households (Table 4.2). There was an annual growth rate of three point five per cent.

Table 4.2 Number of private households in urban areas in Vanuatu: 1999 – 2009 No. of Private Change in households from 1999 to 2009 Households Urban Area 1999 2009 In numbers In % Annual growth Rate (%) Port Vila 6,115 9,055 2,940 48.1 3.9 Luganville 2,103 2,554 451 21.4 1.9 Total 8,218 11,609 3,391 41.3 3.5 Source: Government of Vanuatu, 2010.

The parliament has not endorsed any building codes, the national housing policy or the urban redevelopment and renewal policy (UNESCAP 2007). However, in 1988 the National Housing Corporation (NHC) was established by an Act of Parliament Cap.188 (Pacific Islands Legal Information Institute 2015). NHC is a body corporate governed by a board of directors appointed by the Minister of Internal Affairs. The function for NHC was to produce affordable houses and land plots for low income families at a minimum cost. However, so far only fifty two (52) houses were built and eight hundred and eighty nine (889) plots were allocated to middle income-earners and mostly senior government officers instead of low-income earners who were the intended beneficiaries when the scheme was initiated (World Bank 2011).

There are International Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) who are also contributing to the housing development initiatives around the country. In 2001, Habitat for Humanity (HFH) started working in Vanuatu mainly in urban areas. This NGO works to improve building techniques for sustainable living, empower the community with home-building skills and focus on helping more of the marginalized citizens. For people living with disabilities, HFH has helped target this portion of society and has built houses for the blind and physically disabled. Additionally, a prototype disabled washroom was also designed for disabled recipients.

4.8 Conclusion

Vanuatu has experienced a massive influx of migrants from rural areas into urban centers making it one of Pacific Island country with highest urbanization growth rate (Connell & Lea 1993). Along with the increasing national population, problems imposed by this process of urbanization are already occurring in urban centers. Housing provision is already being affected by increasing urbanization.

In fact, housing provision with access to basic services such as electricity, water, sanitation and solid waste removal is a catastrophe being encountered by the government and housing stakeholders in urban centers. Moreover, Vanuatu has no specific national planning policies or strategies for managing urban growth and has little capacity in the public and private sector for this task (Storey 2006). However, International NGOs and other stakeholders are also

45 intervening with strategies that could help ease the problems encountered to provide quality housing for urban residents which in turn not only improve individual wellbeing but of the country as a whole.

The following chapter is the analysis and discussions of the findings of this research. I will present an in depth findings of the housing situation and issues relating to housing provision in Luganville with particular reference to Mango station, Pepsi area and Sarakata.

CHAPTER FIVE

RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION: HOUSING IN LUGANVILLE

5.1 Introduction

Housing in Vanuatu is significantly associated with identity and status within its society. As a valuable possession, the quality is determined by the skills one has in housing construction, in terms of its structure and also how hard-working the members of a family are on the maintenance of their house and its surroundings, keeping it clean and organized. But notably, as is the focus of this research, the quality of housing is also determined in terms of the basic service provision, such as water, electricity, sanitation and waste collection, into the buildings where residents call home.

This chapter focuses on the quality of housing in Luganville as an urban center. The findings will be discussed according to three main headings that are significantly linked to the quality of housing. These are land, housing pattern and the characteristics of housing in existence. Under these three main headings, issues pertaining to housing are also considered such as the demand and supply, household size and the basic urban services. The discussion on housing in Luganville is based primarily upon the data derived from data collected during the household survey and the interviews done with government officials and housing stakeholders.

5.2 Growth of households in Luganville

According to the statistics collected during the past national censuses, there has been an increase in the number of households emerging in Luganville (Table 5.1). As Table 5.1 shows, in 2009, there were 2,554 households in Luganville compared to the 1999 that recorded 2,103 households. This figure gives an annual growth rate of 1.9 percent. Although the figure may project a small increase, it has revealed that people are moving into this urban area and would relentlessly increase over the years.

Table 5.1: Number of private households in Luganville: 1999 – 2009

Change in the number of private households from 1999 2009 1999 to 2009 In numbers In % Annual growth Rate (%) Luganville 2,103 2,554 451 21.4 1.9 Town Source: Government of Vanuatu, 2010.

5.3 Socio-Economic Status

5.3.1 Employment

Employment was a driving factor that moved migrants into Luganville town (Figure 5.1). As the Vanuatu constitution provides for free population movement throughout the country along with established urban developments, jobs were created that attracted people from rural areas into Luganville.

Figure 5.1: Percentage showing reasons of migration into Luganville by research participants

90 80 70 Key: 60 % 50 Employment 40 Education 30 Other reasons 20 10 0 Pepsi Area Sarakata Area Mango Station

Source: Household Survey, 2013

However, over seventy percent (70%) of the research participants indicated that they are being employed by private sector in low skilled jobs, earning about five thousand Vatu (5,000 VT) to twenty thousand Vatu (20,000 VT) as their average monthly income. This figure has revealed

48 and supported Chung and Hill’s (2002) research which identified low income earners in urban Vanuatu to be living in housing conditions which ranges from adequate to very poor with the little money they earn. The minimum wage in Vanuatu is thirty thousand Vatu (30,000 VT) a month and one hundred seventy Vatu (170 VT) an hour. It was gazetted in 2012.

The cost of rentals is high relative to household incomes. Research participants, who were paying rent for housing, have indicated that they are paying rents of eight thousand vatu (8,000 VT) to fifteen thousand vatu (15,000 VT) per month. If rent is not paid in monetary terms it is settled in other forms, such as food and mats. The living conditions in these cheap accommodations are generally very poor with crowded living conditions; poor drainage, very limited water and electricity supply, poor sanitation and little or no solid waste removal by relevant authorities. These findings correlate McKay (2009) of Habitat for Humanity Vanuatu’s report that urban residents around Port Vila fringes also pay up to fifteen thousand vatu (15,000 VT) for small, barrack-like building, often crowded and with little ventilation and poor living condition as that is what they can afford.

As discussed earlier in literature review chapter, housing has many attributes that are influential in people’s lives. The successful operation of the economy of a nation is one important aspect that depends on quality housing provision for the workforce. If the workforce lives in adequate and quality housing with good living conditions, they would have better health that would reflect in their production in the economy. Good housing for the workforce also facilitates to break the poverty cycle. When the workforce is in good health, their production is high and so they make more money. With more money, they have choices; they can make better living; children will have access to better education and good study environment that would eventually get them to well-paid jobs and make a better living.

5.3.2 Health

There are correlations between the quality of housing and the living conditions; with the health of occupants.

Research participants were asked to identify which illnesses that they have been sick with, in the last three months (Figure 5.2). From the three research areas, diarrhea, flu, scabies and body sores were named by thirty percent of participants as an illness that they had developed and were

49 sick with over the three months. High blood pressure, arthritis and body aches were also named but only a few of less than ten percent of participants indicated that.

Figure 5.2: Priority illnesses in occurrence in the last three months of research participants

25 Key: Diarrhoea % 20 Flu 15 Scabies and Body sores

10 High Blood Pressure

5 Arthritis and body aches

0 Pepsi Area Sarakata Area Mango Station

Source: Household Survey, 2013

Neither of the participants had listed housing conditions as a cause to these illnesses. However, despite other reasons provided, through participatory observational evidences, both housing and living conditions were instrumental in shaping the health status of the participants.

Families used outdoor toilets and used water from unhygienic water sources for washing and bathing. The close proximity of water source, mainly dug wells and waste disposal was observed to be a disastrous combination for their health. The housing and poor living conditions affect all members of the household, but children are particularly susceptible.

5.3.3 Education

The quality of housing could have an impact on educational attainment of tenants and vice versa. Educational level of participants was examined in order to verify their chances to secure themselves paid jobs; and the quality of housing and the type of living conditions that they can afford.

Over half of the participants were only educated at the primary education level; with no further formal education from then on. That is from only classes/grades one to six. Forty three percent of the participants were educated till their secondary level of formal education; and only three percent had a chance to attend some form of tertiary education (Figure 5.3). These figures are in correlation to the type of jobs that the participants are engaged in. Seventy percent of the participants are employed in private sector doing low skilled jobs which they earn five thousand vatu to twenty thousand vatu in a month. Vanuatu is listed as one of the expensive country in the Pacific. With the amount of money earned in a month by low income earners, poor living conditions are apparent, by way of opting for cheap or low quality housing; and as a result, their overall wellbeing is exaggerated.

Figure 5.3: Level of Education attained by research participants

Level of Education Attained

Key:

43% 53% Primary Secondary Tertiary

Source: Household Survey, 2013

The quality of housing and the living conditions not only affect the adults who have gone through their education stage, and are in the workforce now, but it does affect children who are also living in these households. Forty percent (40%) of the participants in this research were children of six to seventeen years old in the households surveyed. This reflects that they would be school aged children. Therefore, quality of housing and living conditions in households is essential for positive education outcomes for these children in terms of access to electricity,

51 water and a proper study environment which is healthy and hygienic for positive development of these children.

Vanuatu ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in 1993 (UN Women 2013). This CRC is a comprehensive charter on the rights of children, setting minimum standards that governments should meet in providing healthcare, education, legal and social services in their countries. The fifty four articles of the convention affirm four basic principles, namely: a child’s right to survival; a child’s right to development; a child’s right to be protected; and a child’s right to participate in his/her community (ibid.). Therefore, to provide quality housing and a good living condition for these children can be seen as a pillar to meet all the four basic principles of the rights of a child that CRC addresses.

5.3.4 Women

Women and children are the most affected in housing with poor living conditions in Luganville town. The data collected has revealed that there are more females than males in households and a high number of these females are unemployed compared to males (Table 5.2).

The data collected has also revealed that a high percentage of women are living on their own with their children, and so they have become head of households. It has been indicated that their partners and husbands have travelled out either to other islands of Vanuatu or out of the country; working for salary to support them.

Table 5.2: Composition of females and males in households of the three settlements studied

Area Percentage (%) of Percentage (%) of active Gender of head of employment households (%) Female Male Female Male Female Male Pepsi Area 60 40 10 90 60 40 Sarakata Area 90 10 40 60 45 55 Mango Station 70 30 30 70 65 35 Source: Household Survey, 2013

As interviews were done during the fieldwork, women were observed carrying out their daily routines as rearing children, drawing water from wells and community pipes or doing chores

52 such as clothes washing. This has indicated that though women were not in paid jobs, they were fully engaged in household chores for the wellbeing of the family.

Secure, adequate and quality housing does affects the health and well-being of women in many ways. It does so by enhancing their safety and security; by improving their health and economic status; and by providing a foundation or stable base from which they can upgrade their education, access jobs and other social support networks.

Rights to land, housing and property are essential to women’s equality and wellbeing. The Vanuatu Government ratified the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in 1995 (UN Women 2013). This CEDAW Convention specifically requests States to undertake all appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination against women, and to guarantee their enjoyment of adequate living conditions including adequate housing (CEDAW article 14.2).

In addition, the UN Habitat II Conference in Istanbul in 1996 and its Istanbul Declaration and Habitat Agenda (United Nations Conference on Human Settlements 2001), provides a Plan of Action on rights, including rights of women in human settlements development. It commits governments to assure security of tenure and equal access to land of all people, including women and people living in poverty.

5.4 Living Conditions

Overcrowding is existent in households of Luganville. The degree of overcrowding was examined in terms of the number of families living in each household surveyed and the number of people sharing facilities such as kitchen and toilets. According to Table 5.3, there are households with more than one family, living in communal fashion. Mango Station had more number of families in one household. Pepsi Area had forty percent whilst Sarakata Area had the least percent of families sharing homes with others. Reasons were noted why there were other families sharing one household. Reasons given were – Other families were renting rooms of that same building to the owner of the household; they were family members who had to move closer to workplaces in town and living in temporarily until they find a place that they can afford; and notably, members of household were older children of household owners, but have lived-in with their spouses and children as extended families living under one roof.

Table 5.3: Families shared households in settlements

Area Family sharing Number of households with houses (%) families sharing (%) Yes No 2 3 4 Families Families Families Pepsi 40.0 60.0 20.0 10.0 10.0 Area Sarakata 30.0 70.0 10.0 20.0 __ Area Mango 80.0 20.0 20.0 50.0 10.0 Station Source: Household survey, 2013

With the condition of the houses that families live in, most of the people in these settlements lived in congested households with limited space. Local kitchens are constructed outside of the main sleeping house. In most cases in the three settlements, there is only one local kitchen that all the families use to prepare their food and dine inside (Photograph 5.1).

Photograph 5.1: Typical living condition of low income earners in Luganville.

Communal Kitchen water source

Source: Liah, 2013

5.4.1 Toilet Facilities

In Luganville, different types of toilets were used. Table 5.4 identified the three different types of toilets used in the households surveyed. Interestingly, these different types of toilets are not only used by household members but are also being shared with neighbors who do not have their own toilets. The most common type of toilet used in Pepsi Area is Pit Latrine or VIP toilet. Only ten percent of the surveyed households used flush toilet. In Sarakata Area, seventy percent of surveyed households had flush toilets and thirty percent used water sealed toilets. Households in Mango Station were all using both pit latrine, water seal and thirty percent using flush toilet.

Table 5.4: Types of toilets used in the three settlements in Luganville.

Types of toilet Proportion of households (%) Pepsi Area Sarakata Area Mango Station Pit Latrine/VIP 90.0 40.0 Water seal 30.0 30.0 Flush 10.0 70.0 30.0 Source: Household Survey, 2013

A reason why the surveyed households in the three settlements were using different toilets is due to access of water supply. As Sarakata Area is fairly close to town, they have access to piped water that the town uses, hence the proper toilet system they use, that is flush and water seal toilet. Further towards the end of town, Pepsi Area, most households are using communal sharing water source as they lack piped water; and this is reflected on the types of toilets they are using, similarly to Mango Area.

The expertise to build a flush toilet is limited and the materials are quite expensive to afford especially for low income earners; as these were given as reasons as to why they could not have proper toilets in these three settlements.

5.5 Land

Luganville has a total land area of approximately 255.99 hectares. The government owns only two percent of land at the CBD, while the surrounding land is customary land and is owned by individual landowners who have leased them to the traditional landowners (Ala 1987).

5.5.1 Land Availability

The three research settlements make up a total of 126 hectares of land in Luganville urban area of which Sarakata Area had the large proportion of ninety hectares, followed by Pepsi Area with thirty hectares and Mango Station with only six hectares (Table 5.5). However, Pepsi Area and Mango Station are located at the periphery area of the town which more land could be used for further urban development particularly housing for residents.

Table 5.5: Land Area Distribution pattern in the three settlements in Luganville

Area Land Area Hectares Pepsi Area 30.0 Sarakata Area 90.0 Mango Station 6.0 Source: Luganville Municipality Council, 2013

5.5.2 Land Tenure

Land ownership in these three settlements is distributed between the government, private companies and private landowners in the early nineties. The government through the Luganville Municipality Council (LMC) initiated the project to subdivide land into plots at Pepsi Area in the early 1990s. The land was government land acquired presumably by government from the custom land owners under the Land Acquisition Act (CAP 215). The LMC obtained the land from the Government, had it surveyed and subdivided into plots where people could purchase them. Under the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act (CAP 135), the Government could acquire land by compensating the Custom owners.

Land at Mango Station was owned by pre-independence French Company, Ballande New Hebrides. In 1980 and 1981, by political patronage, it was negotiated with the French Company to have the land subdivided for people to purchase and build houses (Ala 1987).

Land at Sarakata Area is state land, acquired by the State via the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act (CAP 215). People who live there purchased it from the Government via the Minister of Lands and have a lease as per the provisions of the Lands Leases Act (CAP 163).

Green space4 were also clearly marked and allocated among the subdivided plots in the three research settlement areas.

Overall, there is potential land available for quality housing in these three settlements. As plots are clearly marked, sold and are property of buyers, any development that occurs in each plot is at the discretion of the owner.

5.5.3 Land Use Pattern

Maps 5.1 and 5.2 show the land use pattern in Luganville. An analysis of land use pattern in this urban center has revealed that; ‘residential areas’ dominated the type of land use in this town. The remaining proportions comprised of other land use such as ‘Business and Commercial’ or CBD, ‘Institutional5’, ‘Industrial’, ‘Recreational’ and ‘Restricted’ areas mainly to keep people and other developments out of areas mainly the water catchment areas.

However, the data collected from the survey has revealed that settlements have emerged from other zones apart from residential zone as allocated accordingly (Map 5.2). In reality, Mango Station is a settlement that has emerged from an industrial marked zone. With its settlement history dated back to 1960s, the workers of Ballande New Hebrides lived in this area belonging to this private company. After independence, the company left Vanuatu, but the workers remained on the land which now belongs to the government. The government through LMC then subdivided the area into plots and sold them out to those who were already living in the area.

However, as rapid urbanization took place after Vanuatu’s independence, illegal settlements emerged, and were erected on the green space allocated by LMC to accommodate those who will be taking the plot of land that has been subdivided. This was the main reason why water and electricity power lines could not be connected to certain areas in the three research settlements.

______

4 Green space is a piece of land that is left undeveloped, with no buildings or other built structures, and is accessible to the public for recreational purpose. 5 Institutional includes Education, Church, Hospital and Airport

Pepsi Area and Sarakata Area are the fastest growing settlements along the banks of Sarakata River, which is marked off as ‘Restricted’ zone. People moved to settle in this area mainly because space was available and LMC could not enforce regulations to maintain it as a water reserve.

As the rate of urbanization increased, settlements expanded and Sarakata Area was established in the general and light ‘Industrial’ zone; whereas Pepsi Area was established in the flood prone area which was reserved and marked off partly as ‘Recreational’ zone and ‘Restricted’ zone as it was near the water catchment area (Map 5.2).

The establishment of these settlements in different allocated zoning does influence greatly on planning of resources and urban development, particular urban service provision for Luganville as a whole.

5.6 Housing Pattern

The residential area in Luganville consists of only private housing. Public housing or housing that the government provides for its workers are found in the ‘Institutional’ area where the government buildings and offices subsist, as outlined in Map 5.2.

Figure 5.4: House construction materials (Wall of house) in the three settlements studied

60 Key:

50 Concrete % 40 wood

30 local materials

20 Corrugated iron/kapa 10

0 Pepsi Area Sarakata Area Mango Station

Source: Household Survey, 2013

Map 5.1: Land use pattern in Luganville

Source: Luganville Municipality Council, 2013

Map 5.2: Land use pattern in Luganville

Source: Luganville Municipality Council, 2013

The land owners of the plots subdivided by LMC are responsible to construct their own housing. This has instigated different housing pattern, mostly self-help houses that exists in this urban center. Reasons that research participants have identified which may have contributed to the quality of housing they live in, in terms of the construction materials are: Cost of building materials; research participants had different level of income so whatever materials that is affordable and accessible, is what their homes are made of; there is need for skilled people to build houses such as a carpenter and importantly, is land security.

As shown in Figure 5.4, the surveyed households were evaluated upon the materials used in the wall construction of their houses. Although the pattern and design of the private housing were different, they type of construction materials of the walls used was the same across. Sarakata Area had seventy percent of concrete houses, followed by Mango Station with thirty percent and Pepsi Area with only ten percent of concrete houses. While sixty percent of surveyed houses in Pepsi were built with local materials, there was none in Sarakata Area and only twenty percent in Mango Station. More surveyed houses in Mango were built in wood compared to the two other areas. Surveyed households in Pepsi Area and Sarakata Area had equal twenty percent of households built with corrugated iron or kappa with only ten percent in Mango Station.

The result of these house construction materials from the three areas has indicated that there is more permanent housing in Sarakata Area, followed by Mango Station, then Pepsi Area. These findings correlate to the land use pattern in Luganville. Sarakata Area was a general and light ‘Industrial’ zone; still settlements emerged, as it was more close to the CBD compared to the other two areas. Pepsi Area was established in the flood prone area, as the area is a ‘Recreational’ zone and part of it as ‘Restricted’ zone. The area is also located at the fringe of municipal boundary, 8 kilometer away from CBD, hence the life style and living condition was more of rural setting. Similar to Mango Station, emerging from an ‘Industrial’ marked zone, the houses constructed in subdivided plots were concrete whilst those erected on other available spaces such as green spaces were more temporary in nature, built with local materials.

The house construction materials identified in this research supports McKay (2009) and Chung and Hill’s (2002) report that most housing in urban areas in Vanuatu is self-built from whatever materials are available, mainly corrugated iron, wood, traditional thatch and bamboo, and recycle pieces of tin and plastic. It is important to note that there is no building code in Vanuatu, that

61 residents should adhere to when constructing houses and buildings; as was revealed by Mr. Jeffery Kaitip, the Senior Physical Planner of the government of Vanuatu.

5.6.1 Demand and Supply

The demand for housing in Luganville is high due to urbanization but the supply is limited. This is clearly reflected in the number of families living in a household (Table 5.3). Research participants were asked to identify what were some reasons that they were living under one roof with other families. Two significant reasons identified were, lack of finding a place and an affordable flat to rent.

The government does not provide public housing for urban residents in Luganville other than housing for public servants in few government ministries. The rented flats are private housing by individual owners as accommodation businesses. However, in the three researched settlements, the living conditions in the rented flats vary from medium to low or poor; and they are mainly catered for low income earners.

5.7 Basic Urban Services

The provisions of basic urban services such as water supply, electricity, sanitation and solid waste collection in houses in Luganville are both the responsibility of relevant authorities and individual home owners. The Public Works Department of the government is responsible of water supply; and VUI Company is responsible of electricity. Solid waste collection is done by LMC whilst proper sanitation is the sole responsibility of home owners or household members.

5.7.1 Water Supply

The sources of water in the three research settlements vary and households have at least two water sources for their daily use. As shown in table 5.6, both Pepsi and Sarakata Area had to harvest rain water in tanks for usage though one hundred percent of the households in Sarakata Area had access to piped water from Public Works Department. This is reasonable as Sarakata Area was much closer to the CBD compared to the other two settlements. Mango Station households harvests rain water in tanks as well but only seventy percent of the households do, while they also have access to piped water, water pumps and thirty percent had to share water

62 with others using a communal water source. Twenty percent of households in Pepsi Area are also using a communal water source, ten percent had water pumps and sixty percent had to dig ground well to get water. Only ten percent of households in Pepsi Area had access to piped water. It was also revealed that Pepsi Area and few plots in Mango Station have not been serviced with the main water supply as the main pipes connecting these areas have not yet been dug and laid; many households were not serviced as they were built on green space, and Pepsi Area is a flood prone area, which could pose a risk to the water supply piped system once it floods. Therefore, water supply in Sarakata Area was better compared to Pepsi Area and Mango Station.

Table 5.6: Sources of water supply in the three settlements studied

Source of water supply Proportion of households (%)

Pepsi Area Sarakata Area Mango Station Piped water 10 100 60 Ground well 60 __ __ Water tank (Rain harvest) 100 100 70 Water pump 10 20 30 Communal water source 20 __ 30 (piped/hand pump) Source: Household Survey, 2013

5.7.2 Electricity

Not all households in the three settlements had electricity connected to it. Lighting was the main purpose for a household to have electricity in these three settlements. As shown in Figure 5.5, seventy percent of households in Sarakata Area had access to electricity while thirty percent had to use either kerosene lamp, or solar energy. Ninety percent of households in Pepsi Area had no electricity whereas only ten percent had. A reason for no connection of electricity in this settlement is the risk of flooding which prompted the prolonged positioning of power lines right to the area. In Mango Station, seventy percent had electricity whilst thirty percent were not connected to electricity (Figure 5.5). Electricity could be connected to either formal or informal housing as long as there are power lines or posts connected near the residences and owners could

63 afford the connection fees which could cost up to fifty thousand vatu (50,000 VT); and the bills for usage every month depending on how much electricity a household has consumed.

Figure 5.5: Access to electricity in the three settlements studied

100 90 80 70 % Key: 60 50 Yes 40 No 30 20 10 0 Pepsi Area Sarakata Area Mango Station

Source: Household Survey, 2013

5.7.3 Sanitation

In the three research settlements in Luganville, the sanitation is very poor. The provision of facilities and services for the safe disposal of wastewater, human urine and faeces or ‘sewage’ is inadequate; and is a major cause of illnesses and overall poor health both in households (Figure 5.2) and across communities.

The toilets, washrooms, kitchens and washtubs in all the surveyed households lack a proper sewage disposal system and are increasingly impacting on the quality of adjacent water sources and ecosystems. Overall in Luganville, there is no sanitary sewerage system. Domestic wastewater from toilets is collected in septic tanks and dries up in the soak-away system. There is no control mechanism on the septic tanks to check whether they are properly built and operated. Other wastewater is let to run-offs. This is very risky not only for Pepsi Area but whole of this urban center, as they use dug well water sources (Table 5.6); live in a flood prone area; and importantly, the water catchment area is only 3 kilometers away from settlements.

5.7.4 Solid Waste Disposal

The methods of disposing household wastes in the three researched settlement varies. Table 5.7 showed three main approaches used in the three settlements. In Sarakata Area, sixty percent of the surveyed households’ waste is being collected, and forty percent of Mango Station; whilst no waste collection is done in Pepsi Area. The remaining forty percent of households in Sarakata Area and fifty percent in Mango Station either burned their wastes or dig holes to bury them. When households in Pepsi Area do not burn their wastes, they place their wastes in rubbish dumps within the community.

Table 5.7: Methods of solid waste disposal in households of the three settlements studied

Means of waste Proportion of households (%) disposal Pepsi Area Sarakata Area Mango Station Buried __ 20 10 Burned 70 40 50 Collected __ 60 40 Others 30 __ __ Source: Household Survey, 2013

According to the Lord Mayor, Mr. Trevor Banga, LMC is only responsible for solid waste collection for households in Luganville town that pay their property taxes (rates). However, in 2015, LMC is introducing its pre-paid red garbage bag, a user-pay system, that will ensure that all waste collection from households will be done unless each household pays for a red garbage bag being sold by them for only 80 cents. LMC also imposes fines on illegal dumping and back yard burning on households within the urban boundary.

5.8 Conclusion

Housing in Pepsi Area, Sarakata Area and Mango Station is inadequate to the increasing number of people living there. People are living in poor housing conditions such as overcrowding and poor quality of construction materials used. Overcrowding is common where members of households are low income earners and where there are only one or two rooms at the most. As a result, these households have an average household size of about ten persons.

Owners of private housing, earning a low income are using poor quality construction materials. The unavailability of good quality construction materials has allowed them to use any available materials for their housing.

With the trend of movement into urban areas, a certain housing pattern has emerged. The number of informal housing is increasing as most residents are low income earners and could not afford formal housing construction and high rents. As a result, illegal settlement in marked off areas for certain activities such as green spaces; and poor living conditions are happening. These findings have revealed that having a house to live in, is far more important than the conditions of the house or the basic urban services it has. Hence, most housing in residential areas in Luganville do not have access to urban basic services such as electricity; piped water; proper sanitation and toilet facilities; and proper methods of disposing solid waste materials.

This research also confirms some of the statements and findings by previous writers and researchers. It confirms certain barriers that are impediments to improved housing in Vanuatu. For instance, there is lack of planning in Vanuatu to address improved and better housing for its citizens. Storey (2006) claimed that that are no national planning policies and strategies for managing urban growth. Moreover, UNESCAP’s (2007) findings were that the problem of Vanuatu urban housing was that there were no building codes, national housing policy or the urban redevelopment and renewal policy that the Parliament has endorsed. Almost 10 years after, still there has not been any development of these frameworks despite recommendations from these previous findings and reports; as is the finding of this research.

Furthermore, this research finding confirms that Vanuatu has no relevant national housing scheme to provide for affordable housing. The established NHC by an act of Parliament was to assist low income earners acquire housing at a minimum cost. However, since its establishment, it has only provided 49 houses which were expensive, hence, low income earners could not afford. The NHC 2012 financial statement, reports that the Corporation’s operation for that financial year, did a net operation loss of 62,051,253 Vatu (Government of Vanuatu 2015).

The findings of this research further confirms the study of UNESCAP (2007) and Storey (2006) that land around the urban fringes of urban areas in Vanuatu are very sensitive to development, which makes it a likely area of major conflicts. The lack of securing land tenure is an obstacle

66 into improving housing in Luganville, with the increasing rate of low income earners living in the urban fringes and mark off areas. In 2013, the Vanuatu government had passed new land reform laws making it mandatory that all members of customary landowner groups give their prior informed consent to any leases over their land (Wilson & D’Almeida 2014). This new law will help protect the land for sustainability sake; however it is applicable to both foreign investors and local citizens. Compared to the past, the new land reform means more thorough land registration and approval process which is costly and takes much longer time for processing.

Overall, the problem of housing and the lack of urban services make the problem of access to quality housing even worse. The solution could only be met if there is collaboration amongst the owners of private housing, the government, relevant authorities and housing stakeholders.

This chapter has presented the findings and discussions of this research. More people are moving into Luganville in search for jobs. The money they earn, determines the standard of living in this urban center. There are also other underlying factors that determine the quality of housing provision. This includes the availability of land, land use pattern, demand and supply of housing; and access to basic urban services, such as water, electricity and solid waste disposal. The next chapter is the final chapter of this thesis and it will outline the implications, and highlight the need for relevant policies that will contribute to positive development relating to the wellbeing of urban residents.

CHAPTER SIX

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

6.1 Conclusion

Urbanization or the movement of people into urban areas has significantly improved the economic prospects and quality of life for a large and increasing proportion of the people in the Pacific and around the world. However, in Luganville, as a result of this fast transformation to urban living; rapid urbanization is overwhelming the capacity of urban services; and also had outpaced the capacities of the Vanuatu government and relevant authorities to provide and plan for sustainable and productive urban habitats.

The current chapter will provide a summary of previous chapters. A brief summary of the research findings of other researchers and organization who have written on urbanization in Vanuatu and its relevance to this research will be conferred. It will further discuss possible strategies and issues that the government and relevant authorities could consider in urban development planning.

Literature on urbanization and the quality of urban services in Vanuatu is limited; however, this research has confirmed the prominent analysis that international organizations working in Vanuatu and outside researchers have analyzed, regarding urbanization and quality of urban services. It confirms findings and analysis of Storey (2006), UNESCAP (2007), McKay (2009), Bryant-Tokalau (1995) and World Bank (2000) on certain barriers that are impediments to improved housing in Vanuatu. There are no national housing policies, no building codes, no urban redevelopment and renewal policy; and strategies that the Parliament has endorsed for managing urban growth in Vanuatu.

Vanuatu has no relevant national housing scheme to provide for affordable housing. The National Housing Corporation that that government has established had not met the objectives and missions that it serves.

The parcels of land around the urban fringes of urban areas are very sensitive to development which makes it a likely area of major conflicts. Illegal settlements in green spaces and no proper

68 registration of land titles are underlying factors determining the current inaccessibility of basic urban services to settlements and households.

Almost 10 years after, still there has not been any development of these frameworks despite recommendations from these previous findings and reports; as is the finding of this research.

The research has found that the factors that have contributed to the inefficiency of the quality of housing provision are rather insecurity of land tenure, the land use pattern, household low- income status, and inaccessibility to basic urban services of water, electricity, proper sanitation and hygienic solid waste disposal.

Firstly, the security of land tenure is vital for quality housing provision in Luganville town. The government owns only two percent of land in Luganville town whilst the rest of the land is subdivided and owned by individuals who have leased it from either the government or the custom landowners. Land that has been acquired legally through this process is being developed at the discretion of the owners as to what type of housing pattern and the standard of the construction materials that they can afford to use. Land that has been acquired illegally, predominantly in green spaces as in the case of Pepsi Area and part of Mango Station; the quality of housing is poor and so is the residents’ living conditions. As a result of illegal acquisition of land; limited to no access of provision of water and power lines of electricity are accessible to homes in these areas.

Secondly, houses emerging from different land use area or zoning also affects the quality of housing provision. Pepsi Area partly emerged from ‘recreational’ zone and ‘restricted’ zone, as it is a flood prone area. Urban services such as water and electricity provision into this area is limited. Therefore only ten percent of households had access to water and only ten percent had access to electricity provision in this area. Mango Station emerged from an ‘industrial’ zone; however, a high proportion of households have access to electricity and piped water; excluding households that had sprung from green spaces using communal water sources and no access to electricity. The proximity of Sarakata Area to CBD, though it had emerged from a partly ‘light industrial’ zoning area, makes it accessible to water and electricity provision to one hundred percent of households in this area.

Furthermore, the household income status determines the quality of housing provision for urban residents. Low income earners in Luganville town are identified as those living in poor quality housing and living conditions. With the high cost of housing construction materials, low income earners are unable to afford good quality constructed housing and therefore resort to self-help housing with cheap, non-quality materials that they can afford and is readily available. Low income earners are those who could not afford to secure land leases, therefore they opt to rent out in cheap accommodations that they are able to afford. Most of these accommodations are in poor living conditions and are always crowded. These low income earners also settle illegally in green spaces and where the government has marked off as other land use pattern, apart from ‘residential’ zone as in the case of Pepsi Area and Mango Station. Low income earners also could not afford to pay high cost fees to get water and electricity connected; as well as solid waste collection fees, therefore living in houses without these basic urban services.

Lastly, the arrangements of provision of urban services accessible to urban households by the housing stakeholders also determine the quality of housing provision for urban residents. In Pepsi Area, less than ten percent had access to water and electricity, because there was no electricity power lines connected; and piped water connection connected to this settlement and part of Mango Station. In addition, property taxes (rates) are not collected in the peripheral areas of urban boundary which tend to leave these settlements to deal with their own solid wastes disposal. This has resulted in pollution due to burning and unhygienic disposal of rubbishes.

Quality housing provision in Luganville is not only liable to individual urban resident, but to the government; relevant authorities responsible for urban services; and housing stakeholders as a whole. The migration of people into Luganville was in search for better life that urban life has to offer. However, their dream of better life would not become reality and their contribution to the positive development of Vanuatu, unless there is improvement and optimistic development for a good quality housing provision. Good quality housing provision has positive lateral connections to other aspects of both human and nation’s wellbeing; therefore, collaboration between housing stakeholders and individual urban resident is vital.

In conclusion, the lack of urban services including housing as the fundamental need was a major obstacle for improved wellbeing for migrants into Luganville. The urban services including housing as the fundamental need, was a major obstacle for improved wellbeing for migrants into

Luganville. The issues identified in this research could aid in establishing strategies for development that the government and housing stakeholders in Luganville could work in partnership to address. However, improving housing policy analysis requires as comprehensive an understanding of expectations, aspirations and processes as possible, for which we may need to seek out a wide range of indicators and informants through future policy researches and analysis.

6.2 Recommendation

Major issues that may be of interest for future research and analysis could include reconsideration of the new Customary Land Management Act and significant reform of the existing Land Reform Act. These new legislative instrument overturn ministerial rights to grant leases on behalf of disputing land owner groups, which was the basis for land grabs, and to lease state land without approval of the Council of Ministers (Tobin 2014). Though this new land reform laws may protect the indigenous landownership rights, there should be sanctions placed on specific land demanding acquisition particularly in urban areas; and who is acquiring that land. Preferential treatment should be given to Ni-Vanuatu urban migrants, developing residential areas within the urban boundary.

The government could provide incentives for private sector involvement to increase low-cost housing supply. The National Housing Corporation that that government has established had not met the objectives and missions that it serves. The government should have sought alternatives on how to intervene in the housing problems in urban areas. The investment that the government had put on National Housing Corporation was a great financial loss.

Relevant authorities could take appropriate actions through regulation and policies to prevent people from establishing settlements on green spaces and urban water catchment areas. Encroachment of green spaces and water catchment area is a major issue in the three areas studied. It was a major factor contributing to the inaccessibility of urban basic services to a number of households.

The development policies of Luganville need to be revised by Luganville Muncipality Council. Luganville has experienced the development of many unplanned and unauthorized residential settlements in different zonings leading to unhygienic conditions, lack of infrastructure,

71 inaccessibility of urban services and many a times law and order problems. It is evident that there has been extensive development of unauthorized settlements in the urban area which is a challenge for the properly planned development.

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Appendix A

Box 1: The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

Goal 1: Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger

Target 1A: Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people living on less than $1.25 a day Target 1B: Achieve full and productive Employment and decent work for all, including women and young people. Target 1C: Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people who suffer from hunger. Goal 2: Achieve universal primary education Target 2A: Ensure that, by 2015, children everywhere, boys and girls alike, will be able to complete a full course of primary schooling. Goal 3: Promote gender equality and empower women Target 3A: Eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education preferably by 2005, and at all levels by 2015. Goal 4: Reduce child mortality rates Target 4A: Reduce by two-thirds, between 1990 and 2015, the under-five mortality rate. Goal 5: Improve maternal health Target 5A: Reduce by three quarters, between 1990 and 2015, the maternal mortality ratio Target 5B: Achieve, by 2015, universal access to reproductive health. Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases Target 6A: Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the spread of HIV/AIDS. Target 6B: Achieve, by 2010, universal access to treatment for HIV/AIDS for all those who need it. Target 6C: Have halted by 2015 and begun to reverse the incidence of malaria and other major diseases. Goal 7: Ensure environmental sustainability Target 7A: Integrate the principles of sustainable development into country policies and programs; reverse loss of environmental resources. Target 7B: Reduce biodiversity loss, achieving, by 2010, a significant reduction in the rate of loss Target 7C: Halve, by 2015, the proportion of the population without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation. Target 7D: By 2020, to have achieved a significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum- dwellers. Goal 8: Develop a global partnership for development Target 8A: Develop further an open, rule-based, predictable, non-discriminatory trading and financial system (includes a commitment to good governance, development, and poverty reduction – both nationally and internationally). Target 8B: Address the Special Needs of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) (includes: tariff and quota free access for LDC exports; enhanced programme of debt relief for HIPC and cancellation of official bilateral debt; and more generous ODA (Official Development Assistance) for countries committed to poverty reduction). Target 8C: Address the special needs of landlocked developing countries and Small Island developing States (through the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States and the outcome of the twenty-second special session of the General Assembly provisions). Target 8D: Deal comprehensively with the debt problems of developing countries through national and international measures in order to make debt sustainable in the long term. Target 8E: In co-operation with pharmaceutical companies, provide access to affordable, essential drugs in developing countries. Target 8F: In co-operation with the private sector, make available the benefits of new technologies, especially information and communications technologies. Source: Tibaijuka, 2009

Appendix B

OFFICIAL SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE

I. To be filled by the Interviewer

Name of Official: ………………………………………………………

Date: ……………………………………………………….

Position: ………………………………………………………..

Department/Organization: ……………………………………………………

______

A. Housing Provisions

1. Does the government provide any housing for residents in urban areas, particularly in Luganville?

Yes No a) If Yes, then how many houses/flats are there altogether?

Luganville – ………………………………………….

Port Vila – ……………………………………………

2. How many houses are being built annually by the Government?

……………………………………………………………………………………………………

3. What are some criteria that tenants should comply with to occupy a flat from the government?

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

4. In terms of construction, do you use Building Codes?

Yes No

82 a) If yes, please explain the building codes used?

……………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………………………………

5. What are some of the legislation for implementation of housing provision in urban areas in Vanuatu?

6. Do you think the legislations are adequate?

7. Does the Vanuatu government have any urban housing policy?

Yes No a) If yes, what are some significant features of this policy?

……………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………………

8) Please identify some constraints that are confronted in implementing the policies for improving urban housing in Luganville?

……………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………..……………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………..………

9) Do you think that there would be more demand for houses in Luganville for the next 10 years or so?

Yes No

If Yes, Please specify:

10) Does the private sector involve in housing provision in Luganville?

Yes No a) If yes, how many houses are constructed annually through private agencies?

B. Application procedures for housing

11) Do people have to apply to obtain a government-built house?

Yes No a) If yes, what criteria do you consider in applications for a house?

C. Informal Housing (Squatter settlements)

12) What percentage (%) of residents in Luganville live in squatters? ………………………..

13) Please identify the areas where squatters are located in Luganville town?

14) Are there any programmes for the improvement of squatters?

Yes No

If yes, please list them below:

……………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………......

15) Do you think squatter settlements are a major challenge in urban planning in Luganville?

Yes No

If yes, please explain how:

16) What are some of the major obstacles in urban planning in Luganville?

……………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………

D. Access to Land

17) Please provide statistics on the distribution (%) of land in Luganville. a) Government owned:……………………………c) Freehold: …………………… b) Private: …………………………………………d) Any other category (Please mention)

……………………………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………….………………………………………………………..

18) How much land in percentage (%) does the government owned in: a) Mango Station ………………………………………………………………. b) Pepsi Area…………………………………………………………………… c) Sarakata……………………………………………………………………….

19) How much land does the government have available for housing? (%) ………………….

20) Please identify the problems that the housing sector is facing in Luganville?

E. Access to Finance

21) Does the government give any housing subsidy for housing purposes in Luganville?

Yes No

If yes, please give the following details: i) Name of agency: …………………………………………………………………….. ii) Amount (Vatu): ………………………………………………………………………. iii) Criteria Used: …………………………………………………………………………..

F. Basic Services Provisions 22) What percentage (%) of households are connected to piped water supply in Luganville?

…………………

23) What are some of the basic problems in Luganville town regarding the following: a) Water and Sanitation: ………………………………………………………………… b) Solid waste: …………………………………………………………………………… c) Sewerage: …………………………………………………………………………… d) Electricity: ……………………………………………………………………………

24) What are the main type(s) of toilet facilities do urban residents use in Luganville?

1. …………………………………………………………………………………….

2. ……………………………………………………………………………………..

3. ……………………………………………………………………………………..

25) What are some of the major obstacles that the Municipal council and other urban authorities face over solid waste disposal and management in Luganville town? 1. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………

2. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………

3. …………………………………………………………………………………………………..

4. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………

Thank you for your time to answer this questionnaire

Appendix C

HOUSEHOLD SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE

TOPIC: Investigating the relationship between the growth of urbanization and the quality of housing provision in Luganville Town, Vanuatu.

Code No: ………………………………….

Settlement: ………………………………….

A. SOCIO – DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS Please tick (√) the appropriate box.

1. Age Group: 0 – 20 21 – 40 41 – 61 62+

2. Gender: Female Male

3. Marital Status:

Never Married Married De facto Separated/Divorced Widowed

4. Education level: Primary Secondary Tertiary

5. Occupation: Self-employed Government Private Sector

Student Unemployed

6. How much do you earn in a month? Please tick (√) the appropriate box

5,000 – 10,000vt 11,000 – 20,000vt

21,000 – 50, 000vt 51,000vt and over

B. URBAN MIGRATION

Please tick (√) the appropriate box OR circle the letter of your response and fill in your answers in the space provided.

7. Which island in Vanuatu are you from? …………………………………………………..

8. What year did you move from your island to Luganville? ………………………………..

(If don’t know the year, then approximate age when moved here)

9. What are some reasons for your migration to Luganville?

Education Employment Just for a visit Other reasons

10. Where were you living right before you moved to this settlement?

……………………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………………………

C. HEALTH

11. Is anyone sick in the last 3 months in your household? Yes No

12. What kind of problem did they have? Type of illness (eg. Malaria) or long-time disability.

13. Where did they get the treatment?

Local Clinic Hospital Home Traditional Medicine

D. HOUSING CONDITIONS

14. What is the house made of? Concrete Wood Tin Local Materials Other

15. Do you have electricity connected? Yes No

16. Where do you get your water from?

Own meter Community pipe Buy from neighbor Well

Household tank Other

17. Where does your water drain to?

Septic tank Sewer Open train Don’t know

Other

18. a. Do you have your own toilet? Yes No

b. With how many families do you share it with? …………………………………………

19. What type of toilet do you use? Pit VIP Flush with septic tank Pour flush

None Other

E. LAND AND HOUSING TENURE

20. a. Do other families share this house? Yes No

b. If Yes, how many? ……………………….

21. a. Who owns this house / room(s)?

Household member Relative Government Church

Custom Landowner Other

22. How did you get this house/room?

Rented Bought Built by yourself/family Other

23. Who owns the land the house is on?

Household member Relative Government Custom owner

Church Other

24. Do you pay rent for the land? Yes No

If Yes, how much (on average) each month? ……………………………………………..

If you don’t pay in money, do you give other things to the landowner? …………………

25. Do you pay rent for the house? Yes No

If Yes, how much (on average) each month? ……………………………………………..

If you don’t pay in money, do you give other things to the landowner? …………………

……………………………………………………………………………………………..

26. Have you ever had problems with your house or land owner? Yes No

27. Has anyone (including the government) ever tried to make you move? Yes No

If Yes, what happened? ……………………………………………………………………

………………………………………………………………………………………………

28. Does anyone in the household own any land? No Yes, in this settlement

Yes on this island Yes, on another island in Vanuatu (Island name)

Island Name………………………………………………………

Thank you for your time in answering this questionnaire

Appendix D

LIST OF OFFICIAL RESPONDENTS

Mr. Trevor Banga Moliva Former Lord Mayor of Luganville Town

Mr. Jeffery Kaitip Senior Physical Planner at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Government of Vanuatu

Mr. Shem Iauko Former Town Planner of Luganville Town

Mr. Philip Koroka Senior Officer at the Surveys Section of Lands Department in Luganville Town

Ms. Erima Kalmet Officer at the National Statistics Office, Government of Vanuatu