Parallel to urbanization, Asia is undergoing rapid motorization. Asia is now home to around half a billion vehicles. It has been estimated that by 2035, both the vehicle population and motorization index will at least double in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region, China and India from current levels (2012). In many countries, vehicle growth rates are higher than gross domestic product (GDP) growth rates. Despite projected high number of vehicles for 2035, the projected motorization index for Asia will still be considerably lower than the current motorization index of the developed world.

This publication (in the form of a Strategy Paper) highlights the global problem of slums and advocates for using streets as tools for urban transformation. A street-led approach to citywide slum upgrading is promoted which advocates for a shift from piecemeal project based to programme scale upgrading. This publication draws from many slum upgrading experiences worldwide and encourages a relatively easy to implement approach. It views slums as integral parts of a city system which are spatially segregated and disconnected due to an absence of streets and open spaces. Therefore, taking advantage of streets as the natural conduits that connect slums with the city, UN-Habitat suggests a fundamental shift towards the opening of streets as the driving force for citywide slum upgrading.

Successful urban places are based predominately on streets and the connected street life. Streets serve as democratic, open public space and as platforms for economic and social development. Therefore, streets play a fundamental role for the public life in cities, and particularly in slums where open space is scarce.

This report explores the role and potentials of streets in slum upgrading, using the street upgrading project in the Korogocho slum in Nairobi, Kenya as a case study. It focuses on the experiences and perceptions of the residents in Korogocho, and the changes on the ground.