access to finance, access to land, rules and
regulations and government policies and strategies.
An analysis of housing in any given country usually
involves a distinction between formal and informal
housing processes, and rural and urban locations,
in order to acknowledge important differences in
how housing is built or acquired accordingly. In
urban areas, for instance, land is often limited
and expensive, resources must be purchased, and
various standards and regulations apply. However,
in rural areas, land is plentiful, housing resources
are often available in the natural environment,
and mutual aid is common too. Furthermore, rural
housing is often also informal. In informal housing
standards are commonly ignored, houses are not
registered, and construction is predominantly
guided by traditional knowledge and access to
finance and land. The three main processes can be
distinguished as shown on page 1.
After a major disaster, agencies undertaking
large programmes need to develop a good
understanding of the above three major processes,
and in large countries they may also have to
identify regional variations. Agencies who focus
on smaller areas can undertake a more limited
analysis.
Formal urban housing processes include
individual privately built houses (built, either for
owner-occupancy or for rent), or housing schemes
(including multi-occupancy buildings) built by
the public or the private sector. They are usually
designed by professionals (planners, architects,
engineers), which makes them expensive.
According to Yahya et al. (2001), less than half of
the urban population of developing countries can
afford to build in accordance with prevailing formal
standards. The poor have insufficient access to
land or finance for housing,and lack the power or
Construction with stabalised soil
This house is being built with stabilised soil
blocks in Bondeni, a century old low-income
settlement of Nakuru, Kenya. Practical Action
collaborated with others in Kenya to campaign
for the adoption of performance building
standards to replace prescriptive standards.
Thus, construction with stabilised soil is now
permitted. In addition, the NGO worked with the
municipality of Nakuru to speed up the building
permit process. This makes it easier for low- to
medium income urban households to build
houses formally, and to end up with registered
titles.
House is being built with stabilised soil blocks in Bondeni,
a century old low-income settlement of Nakuru, Kenya
the right connections to improve their access. To
overcome some of those problems, the provision
of serviced sites, sometimes with a core or starter
house, was introduced and became quite popular in
the 1970s. Owners were expected to finish the sites
themselves but since official standards still applied,
Factors that influence disaster performance of formal urban housing
+ housing that is designed and built following the
standards is generally more resistant to disasters,
particularly if those standards incorporate disaster-
resistant construction
+ formal housing is often in locations that are less
vulnerable to natural hazards
+ formal housing makes greater use of building
professionals and qualified builders which should
enhance its quality
+ formal housing tends to use durable materials and
is often maintained well, which should maintain its
disaster resistance
+ Formal housing is built on documented land, which is
key to legal ownership titles.
- standards can be circumvented by landlords,
builders or corrupt inspectors, leading to poor quality
construction; rental housing at the lower end of the
market often suffers from this
- many countries lack adequate capacity to enforce the
implementation of standards
- in order to facilitate people’s access to formal
housing, there is an encouraging tendency to reduce
standards and simplify procedures; but there is a
delicate balance with maintaining sufficient quality to
resist disasters
- good urban land is scarce and expensive, tempting
people to opt for locations that are cheaper but riskier
- disaster risks are often poorly understood or mapped,
or can be underestimated; even formal housing can
be on vulnerable sites
- extensions or modifications to formal housing may
weaken their disaster-resistance
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