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NDCs
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Number of pages
64
Publication date
2022

Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) White Paper

This White Paper offers a preliminary analysis of the urban content of Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) submitted to the Secretariat of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) from March 2017 through the end of September 2021. It also trials an in-depth country level analysis that includes, to a limited extent, related national climate policies. A draft of this document was launched at COP26 in Glasgow, in November 2021. Stakeholder comments have seen been incorporated. A more comprehensive Policy Paper is under preparation for launch at COP27 with a view to provide guidance for Parties to the UNFCCC to strengthen the urban dimension in their NDCs and Implementation Mechanisms with a view to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement.

The 2021 global analysis of the urban content of the NDCs shows that: (1) 84% of the NDCs contain strong or moderate urban content; (2) NDCs with urban content have significantly increased in comparison with the 2016 analysis; (3) NDCs with strong urban content have significantly increased from 16 percent in 2016 to 45 percent in 2021.

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Analysis Sub-saharan Africa
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Number of pages
68
Publication date
2020

Analysis of Multiple Deprivations in Secondary Cities in Sub-Saharan Africa

Sub-Saharan Africa is the only region in the world that is expected to record a positive increase in its child and youth population by 2050. Demographics across the region show that the urban population is predominantly youthful. More children and youth will be living in urban areas and cities, than in rural areas in Sub-Saharan Africa, by 2050, with the biggest proportion of urban population residing in secondary towns of 300,000 people or less.  It is within this context that UN-HABITAT and UNICEF identified the need to analyze current conditions in secondary towns and cities, and to strengthen evidence on how to make secondary cities and towns more livable.

This Analysis Report uses the Index of Multiple Deprivations as an effective diagnostic tool for measuring relative deprivation and inequalities in small areas, such as secondary cities and towns. The analysis shows that by 2050, 6 out 10 people in Africa will live in urban areas and 70 per cent of them will be children and youth. The urbanization trends particularly around secondary cities means heightened levels of multiple deprivations for children on the continent in areas of WASH, Health, Housing and Shelter for children.  

The Call for Action outlines key messages to the leaders and all stakeholders in sub-Saharan Africa including:  the recognition of secondary towns and cities as current and future frontiers of urban growth and development in sub-Saharan Africa; placing children and youth at the core of policy development, funding and programming for secondary cities; embracing pro-active planning , strong data systems and use of data to monitor and determine future needs and sustainable plans for secondary towns and cities; and the need to anchor the development of secondary towns and cities on a strong and sustainable economic base.

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Community Driven Public Space Rehabilitation in Turkana, Kenya
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Number of pages
40
Publication date
2017
Publisher
UN-HABITAT

Community Driven Public Space Rehabilitation in Turkana, Kenya

UN-Habitat’s Public Space Programme has been supporting the engagement of communities internationally in revitalizing their neighborhoods through public space designs, such as the creation of court yards, streets and shared facilities etc. Participants are taught in an engaging and creative way on how to visualize the potentials of public spaces within their neighborhoods. Not only can this provide for better management of public spaces within the Kalobeyei New Settlement or Kalobeyei Town, in Turkana County, Kenya, it also supports the Kalobeyei New Settlement’s transition from a short-term, emergency planning to long-term, sustainable development model.

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Fundamentals of Planned Urbanization: Training Companion - cover
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Number of pages
101
Publication date
2019
Publisher
UN-Habitat

Fundamentals of Planned Urbanization: Training Companion

The Fundamentals of Planned Urbanization is a training companion on the principles of planned urbanization. It supports UN-Habitat’s efforts to develop human resources and institutional capacity for the implementation of the New Urban Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goal 11 (SDG 11).

The companion includes eight modules on the state of urbanization in the world, global agreements on urbanization, fundamentals of planned urbanization, planned city extensions, housing, urban mobility, slum upgrading and climate change. All modules are accompanied by presentations, interactive exercises, case studies, and opportunities for peer-to-peer exchange, and can be conducted over the course of a five-day training. Depending on interest and time available, the training can be tailored to focus on more specific topics and/or made shorter.

The training companion builds upon a working paper, “Principles of Planned Urbanization” and a series of discussions with UN-Habitat staff and consultants. The initial draft of the training companion was tested during a training programme for senior managers from national and local governments from Asia, held in January 2017 in South Korea. The publication was subsequently applied in a training targeting senior public officials from national and local governments of Indonesia, which convened in Surabaya in November 2018. In March 2019, UN-Habitat tailored the companion at an executive training for city leaders and representatives from academia in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

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The Housing Rights Index. A policy Formulation Support Tool
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Number of pages
25
Publication date
2020
Publisher
UN-Habitat

The Housing Rights Index. A policy Formulation Support Tool

The Housing Rights Index (HRI) is a decision-support tool developed specifically for the use of housing practitioners and policy makers who are involved in the Housing Practitioners Labs and tailor-made training developed and conducted by UN-Habitat. It is based on the right to adequate housing1 as enshrined in international human rights instruments2 and included in the Habitat Agenda (1996)3 and the New Urban Agenda (2016)4. It is understood as the right of every individual and community to gain and sustain a safe and secure home in which to live in peace and dignity.

The tool has both pedagogic and policy development roles. On the one hand, the deployment of the index will enhance the user’s understanding of the practical meaning of adequate housing rights and enable a better understanding of the policy and practical implications of the seven elements of adequacy that defines the right to adequate housing. On the other hand, the tool supports the user’s assessment of the housing sector with a specific look at the extent to which adequate housing rights are recognized, respected, realized and protected in his/her city.

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The Housing Barometer. A tool to support a rapid housing sector review.
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Number of pages
27
Publication date
2020
Publisher
UN-Habitat

The Housing Barometer. A tool to support a rapid housing sector review.

The Housing Barometer is a tool to support a rapid analysis of the housing sector. It provides a quick overview of the housing sector that feeds directly into the housing policy formulation process. The Housing Barometer relies on qualitative assessments rather than data and empirical evidences. It expresses the perceptions of policy makers, decision makers and housing practitioners about the performance of the various subsectors of the housing sector. The result of housing sector analysis through the Housing Barometer gives an immediate visualization of the performance of the housing sector by means of the scoring given to each dimension and sub-sector of the Housing Sector in the context that it is being utilized.

The Housing Barometer is a practical tool that draws on the housing sector analysis methodology as outlined in the Practical Guide for Conducting Housing Profiles.

The Housing Barometer enables an easy diagrammatic visualization of the weaknesses and strengths of the housing sector in a given city/country, and as a result provides a basis for further policy discussions. It is illustrated as a housing sector diamond (the geometric figure) that suggests areas for further analysis and possible policy response. The Housing Barometer is therefore a problem-solving tool helping in the identification of the problem areas or policy shortcomings that need attention.

The Housing Barometer. A tool to support a rapid analysis of the housing sector - English

The Housing Barometer. A tool to support a rapid analysis of the housing sector - Spanish

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Investigating Grey Areas - Cover image
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Number of pages
216
Publication date
2010
Publisher
UN HABITAT

Investigating Grey Areas: Access to Basic Urban Services in the Adjacent Areas of Palestinian Refugee Camps in Lebanon

This publication is a joint UN-HABITAT and UNDP effort to investigate access to basic urban services in the Adjacent Areas (AAs) of Palestinian Refugee Camps in Lebanon. AAs are informal Palestinian gatherings that are located along the boundaries of official Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon. In terms of access to basic urban services, AAs represent "Grey Areas" since they are denied both public and UNRWA basic urban services, given that the latter are provided within the boundaries of the official camps only. 

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Measuring Individuals’ Rights to Land. An Integrated Approach to Data Collection for SDG Indicators 1.4.2 and 5.a.1
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Number of pages
72
Publication date
2019
Publisher
UN-Habitat

Measuring Individuals’ Rights to Land. An Integrated Approach to Data Collection for SDG Indicators 1.4.2 and 5.a.1

The custodians of SDG indicators 1.4.2 (UN-Habitat and the World Bank) and 5.a.1 (FAO) have joined forces to develop a standardized and succinct survey instrument designed to collect the essential data for computation of both indicators simultaneously. As the data collection requirements for each indicator largely overlap, great gains in efficiency are possible by implementing a joint module in existing survey questionnaires.This document aims to facilitate the successful, efficient, and crosscountry comparable data collection for computation of SDG indicators 1.4.2 and 5.a.1 in line with the methodologies approved by the IAEG-SDGs. The survey instrument discussed in this document was designed with an eye for the integration of essential questions for both indicators into existing survey instruments, with the possibility of stand-alone implementation. Use of the proposed module encourages the standardization of indicator definitions and data comparability across countries and over time.

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unhabitat_pspp_eng2
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Number of pages
86
Publication date
2017
Publisher
UN-HABITAT

Public Space Profile Pristina

The Public Space Profile forms a policy-driven overview of the current practice of public space development and management in the Municipality of Pristina as well as profiling of the public space supply and quality at the city scale. The profile addresses a number of aspects with regard to the institutional, technical and human dimension of Pristina public space, including:

  • The current development and management processes of public space, looking at the entire spatial planning cycle, steps and the applied methodological tools;
  • A brief overview of the legal framework and the relevant municipal mechanisms that support public space development processes at the local level;
  • A stakeholder analysis, with a focus on the municipal organizational setup, supporting municipal partners as well as the civil society organizations and citizens;
  • A brief analytical glance at the municipal spatial planning documents, projects and initiatives for public space development;
  • A baseline analysis of public space supply and quality in the city of Pristina against various parameters among others accessibility, comfort, safety but also the perception by users.

Derived analysis and the respective findings support a set of recommendations, which can pave the ground for a future citywide policy on public space development and management, including maintenance