A South African project wins the first René Frank Habitat Award 2004 which recognises the most outstanding real estate projects which improve the living conditions of the urban poor.

 
27th May 2004, Houston, TX, USA  - Fiabci recently bestowed the inaugural Fiabci René Frank Habitat award at a prestigious ceremony during the annual FIABCI World Congress, held this year in Houston, TX, USA.

This award seeks to recognise and reward the efforts of those public and private organisations which work to improve the quality of life of people living in slums, squatter settlements and shantytowns around the world. Already supported by UN-Habitat, UNDP, The Wall Street Journal, NAR, COMADIM and the MIPIM international real estate trade show, the ultimate objective of the award is that the winning projects be used as models for other cities and countries trying to resolve similar issues. Judged by an international panel of experts, all highly specialised in the fields of slum upgrading and urban renewal, the winner of this year’s award was so honoured on the basis of a number of criteria including land use and title transfer availability, quality of construction, funding, amenities and access, community and environmental impact.

The winner of this year’s award, who was presented with a trophy, also received a cheque for 15 000 USD sponsored by NAR (the National Association of Realtors) which is to be distributed amongst the community associations representing the beneficiaries of the rehousing project.

The winner of the Fiabci René Frank Habitat Award 2004 is Westlake Estate (Westlake, South Africa), entered by Rabie Property Projects and Cavcor

Before redevelopment, the occupants of this 95-hectare derelict site on the Cape peninsula were living in corrugated iron and cardboard shacks with no roads, running water or sewage facilities. In the old days, the authorities would probably have moved in with bulldozers and police dogs, smashed down the shacks, confiscated the materials and pushed the problem away until it sprang up somewhere else. But, in the post-apartheid era, such a so-called ‘solution’ was unthinkable.

Over a period of 5 years from 1997-2002, this site was completely redeveloped in cooperation with the inhabitants to provide both formal housing for the 700 squatter families and integrated community facilities such as roads, churches, sports fields, schools, offices, business parks, other housing and a clinic. 80% of local suppliers, labour and materials were used in the project, and contractors had to agree to employ local residents wherever possible. To ensure fair and equal property rights, the squatters received government and land subsidies to be able to buy their home, which they would subsequently have the right to extend and improve upon. The housing itself went far beyond the government’s minimum standards for social housing, with features such as cavity walls, tiled roofs, hot and cold running water and high-quality finishes. Westlake aimed to solve pressing socio-economic issues whilst simultaneously providing investment and employment opportunities and this project illustrates how a holistic development plan, organised in the form of a public-private sector partnership, can contribute positively to a country’s social and human development, as private developers help governments to meet their obligations towards the emerging sectors of society.

Highly Commended in this category was given to : Condominio dos Anjos (Porto Alegre, Brazil) entered by the Departamento Municipal de Habitação DEMHAB

Previously an overcrowded inner-city squatter settlement of 60 families with no sanitation or water supply, the Condomino dos Anjos was built to rehouse these families on the same plot of land. As the families did not want to leave the area even during construction, temporary accommodation was built whilst the development took shape. Consisting of 12 three-storey blocks, the housing units all have a kitchen, bathroom and laundry. Occupants pay a monthly fee of approximately 5 USD on average for the right to live in these units, and all families are offered the possibility to buy their house cost-price and interest-free with proposed repayments of between 22-44 USD per month over a period of up to 20 years. Spearheaded by the Municipal Housing Department DEMHAB, it was financed by the City Hall and the Federal Union of Brazil. A major driver for the project was the community association with a community facilitator being appointed to the development committee to ensure ongoing mutually beneficial relationships between the squatters and the authorities.

The situation in general ……

Increasingly desperate global circumstances mean that over 40% of city inhabitants in developing countries live in slums, shanties, or simply on the streets. Recent estimates put the number of slum dwellers at over 924 million, or about one third of the world’s urban population, a figure which is set to double by 2030 if nothing is done.

Under UN-Habitat’s definition, these urban poor lack access to facilities such as improved water, access to improved sanitation facilities, sufficient living space, dwellings of sufficient durability and structural quality and security of tenure. But it is not only a question of housing, inasmuch as slums also exclude their inhabitants from the generally recognised advantages of urban life such as safety and law enforcement, education and health, decent transport, adequate incomes, voting rights, access to goods and services – elements which most inhabitants of developing countries will take for granted. A simple thing such a registered address can mean the difference between being able to enjoy the attributes of full citizenship or living in a state of complete exclusion.

Living in desperation, the future of these people will often depend on joint public- and private-sector initiatives. Constructing decent housing is a major step towards participatory democracy for developing countries and their inhabitants, with the result that previously marginalized people can build tangible and durable ties to mainstream society, which itself leads to a measurable decrease in rates of absolute poverty. Straight slum clearance or demolition cannot be the answer, as this just transplants the problem elsewhere and disrupts already difficult lives. Informal housing is not the conscious desire of any community – on the contrary, it exists because the urban poor have no other alternative.

A far better solution is the improvement and regularization of existing informal settlements, involving direct participation from the beneficiaries themselves. Minimum local housing standards can be implemented, while simultaneously stimulating the country's socio-economic development by using local materials, labour and technology appropriate to local conditions. The ultimate objective is to provide a true and safe title to the property occupied by each dweller who can henceforth benefit from private property rights and the associated rights of full citizenship.

This is what the Fiabci René Frank Habitat award aims to recognise and reward.

This award was inspired by another Fiabci initiative, the Global Housing Foundation (GHF), which functions in partnership with the UN-Habitat agency. Founded in 1999 by René Frank, honorary deputy President of Fiabci, this non-profit organization seeks to raise funds to house the homeless around the globe by combining private and public sector resources. René Frank explains :

“The goal of the GHF is to build low-cost sustainable housing for those living in overall and absolute poverty, providing security of tenure and title deeds. This creates a global win-win situation, as new owners enjoy private property rights and the real estate industry can demonstrate its social responsibility to the poorest of the poor.”

Communities, municipalities or developers who are interested in participating in next year’s award should complete the preliminary application form in the awards section of www.fiabci.org or contact Fiabci directly at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Mipim, the international trade show is an enthusiastic supporter of this initiative, and indeed as from 2005, the Fiabci René Frank award will be presented on the occasion of the Mipim awards ceremony, organised during the Mipim international real estate trade show which is held every March in the city of Cannes (France).

FIABCI The International Real Estate Federation, was created in 1949 and is a multi-disciplinary, multi-sector and multi-lingual Federation serving the interests of real estate professionals in over 60 countries around the world. For more information on FIABCI, please visit www.fiabci.org ENDS

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