SELAVIP MONGOLIA April 2010 E.J. Anzorea, SJ Community Driven City-Wide Process in Mongolia Housing Project in Tunkhel Village Project Scope Central part of the Tunkhel Village was built in • 1st kheseg of Tunkhel village, 55 residents of 1957. Maintenance period of the clay walls which are 16 households. 30 to 35 years old was ended. However, 55 persons from 16 households still live in very bad environment. Lesson Learned People who live here need to work together to We learned that in order to make city-wide improve living and housing conditions using all their change, it is more effective to start in small tasks. combined resources and capability. In order to become a city-wide process, we should have paid more attention to activities directed Project goal to benefit more communities. In Erdenet, Valentine • To support community-driven saving group SG implemented a project only within their fences, activities which did not affect other people. • To improve housing conditions of several Building bio latrines and waste classification households activities affected only people living near their • To have working asset for housing loan in fences. local level To provide sustainable operation of the SGs and 59 SELAVIP also, to build capacity, there is an essential need to develop short, medium, and long term plans. SGs also have to broaden their strategy for further development. • To find a solution to document the activities To improve cooperation between the local local area’s special characters and to create administration and SGs, there is a need to coordinate transparent reporting mechanism. SGs activities with local development strategies and • To organize joint meetings for SGs. During city planning activities. this kind of meetings, they share a lot of useful information among themselves. Lesson Learned • To advertise SG activities nationwide in • To find and strengthen leaders in the newspapers and television. community. • To develop manuals and handbooks for Conclusion upgrading of their lives. Particularly, how to build Urban Development Resource Center housing and infrastructure, setting street lighting, implemented “One City, One Slum and One Village” building pit latrines, playground and etc. program under the ACCA program in 2009. • To establish participatory monitoring and As a result of the program, local authorities evaluation system gradually. Some of the SG admitted that city-wide changes should be based on members have the attitude that it is enough just to local residents’ idea and initiative. give daily savings. Because of this tendency, SG Implementing city-wide process in different activities have become less active. places was effective. Local television channels in • To strengthen established SGs and to provide each project implemented site were broadcasting conditions for them to operate sustainably. about the SG activities, which reached and mobilized • Local people who worked together to improve local people. their living environment were interested in doing People’s behavior and attitude changed. Local small and medium scale business. Therefore, we need residents understood that working groups or teams is to conduct trainings and give constant advice. much more effective than solving problems 60 SELAVIP individually. Projects implemented by the SGs prove this. In seems that, in order to start city-wide change, it is better to start from ordinary things. In addition, making change in smaller areas can eventually influence greatly on bigger areas. The village wide-Tunkhel program is an example of it. For further information [email protected] 61 SELAVIP 62 SELAVIP 63 SELAVIP 64 SELAVIP MYANMAR E.J. Anzorea, SJ April 2010 Rebuilding Awapeik and Nyi Naung Villages The situation of Awapeik Village before Nargis • Total Housing after Nargis – 55 houses • Total population before Nargis – 450 people • Total Number of students – 13 students • Total housing before Nargis – 150 houses • Total number of Students – 50 students Nyi Naung Village • Destruction caused by Nargis – all the assets After Nargis • Total number of housing after Nargis – 65 houses • Destruction after Nargis – All the buildings • Total number of population – 195 people • Death caused by Nargis – 295 people • Death caused by Nargis – 91 people • Population after Nargis – 151 people The whole village homeless after Nargis A rebuilt Awapeik Village 65 SELAVIP The situation of the houses after Nargis A damaged monastery in Nyi Naung Village Discussing with the monk and the head of the village 66 SELAVIP Community Participation A New Asset for the Poor Houses with Documents Rebirth of the Monastery 67 SELAVIP A new school after Nargis. Hope for the children. We now have a house. The rebuilt village – Nyi Naung The New Monastery 68 SELAVIP NAMIBIA E.J. Anzorena, SJ April 2010 Namibia Federation First steps In January 1989, the editor of Selavip Newsletter visited Namibia for the first time. This was during the time of the apartheid, under the control of South Africa. There he met Lindi Hartung, and Edith Mbanga who, from 1987 were working in a parish developing in Windhoek city, for the housing of the poor backyard renters. The people were mobilized with weekly and monthly savings. The first projects were single lot with full services, which resulted to being too expensive. To do the work in a larger scale, Edith, Lindi and Pastor Kamieta formed the Saamstaan Housing making projects for blocks of 30-45 households. At that time, Anna Mueller finished her master’s study of architecture and began to support the work of Lindi. Namibia Federation Edith formed with them in 1992, the Namibia 1.8 million Namibian Dollars for 1,322 Housing Action Group (NHAG), a non-governmental households. organization (NGO), to assist low-income housing The sources of the housing financing: groups. In1998, the savings groups came together as Twahangana Fund a nationwide network to form the Shack Dwellers Federation of Namibia (SDFN) and NHAG became the support NGO for SDFN. Saamstaan became Twahangana Fund incorporated to the Federation Edith is the National Members repay: 22% facilitator of Shack Dwellers Federation of Namibia. Donations (private, Spain, Germany): 22% MRLGHRD Build Together: 30% The Federation Situation at the End of 2009 MRLGHRD Donations: 30% Total savings Namibian dollars 5.5 million Note: MRLGHRD stands for Ministry of (1US$= 7.4 Namibian dollars) Regional and Local Government, Housing and Rural There were 22,894 members saving in 574 Development. Namibia. groups. 3,530 households obtained land tenure. Result of a Preliminary Nation Wide Survey of 1,550 houses were built (240 houses in 2008) Settlements by SDFN Loans worth 26 million Namibian dollars were Namibia has 13 regions. From a total population disbursed to 4,600 households. of 2 million, estimated informal population is around House loans worth 23.4 million Namibian 135,000 households with 540,000 persons (1/4 of the dollars for 1,638 population) living in 235 informal settlements, in 110 areas. 69 SELAVIP house-loans. They made the bricks, built the houses and some communal toilets. In a second stage the community decided to change from a common meter for water to have houses connections with individual meters. However, the members of the cooperative will check the amount of water used, receive the money and pay the water supplier together. If the household does not pay and do not notify the group in advance, their connection will be cut. There are problems with some male-headed households who do not pay and do not communicate their problem with the representatives (majority of them were women) and who get upset when the water is cut. In the beginning, everybody in this community were very enthusiastic about of the federation but when people started owning In the second stage of the survey of the houses, fights began about bills and for many population of settlements, the objective is to register other reasons. The federation’s goal is not only build all the families living in the informal settlements houses, but also, to create communities. Leaders of the federation and the NGO experimented with the In Windhoek city “Non-Violent Communication” for mitigating the SDFN already has an MOU with the problems. Nonviolent Communication is a global government of Windhoek to jointly handle with the network of people and communities committed to government the problem of land for the informal living and teaching NVC to resolve conflict and meet settlements. One example is the organization of 4 the needs of all people. groups of dwellers who had bought the land in Otjomuise. They are in the process to register the For further information: land that was sold cheaper than normal due to incremental services and lower standards. Namibia Housing Action Group In November 2009, SDFN were going to build P.O.Box 21010, Windhoek, Namibia the community center. [email protected] They were forming groups 1) for construction who are receiving training; 2) for security of the equipment; and 3) for logistics (register for accomplishment of the tasks) and receive the materials. The History of a Community in Coreangab (Windhoek City) Built by Mutual Help. In February 2000 400 families were facing eviction. Seventy-four (74) of them decided to save to acquire the land. The head of 21 households were male and 53 were women and they formed a cooperative. People in 2003 received 70 SELAVIP 71 SELAVIP 72 SELAVIP NEPAL April 2010 E.J. Anzorean, SJ In A Cleaner EDGE Sharada Adhikari Two (2) years ago, life for the squatters of Narayan elders shared the toilet facilities, children defecated Tole was dreadful. Situated along the banks of the openly and all the waste was discharged directly into polluted Samakhusi river, Narayan Tole was one of the river. “The paths around the area were very the most polluted slums of the Capital where the slippery due to mud and other wastes.