UN-Habitat launches 11 mln USD slum upgrading projects

The United Nations Human Settlements Program (UN-Habitat) on Monday unveiled 11 million U.S. dollars in funding to support slum upgrading projects in Africa, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) states.

Officials said the European Commission (EC) will provide the money that is embedded in the third round of Participatory Slum Upgrading Program (PSUP) for the ACP countries covering 2017-2021.

UN-Habitat Deputy Executive Director Aisa Kirabo Kacyira said the new funding will boost access to decent housing among the urban poor in the ACP member states.

The UN housing agency will implement the third round of Participatory Slum Upgrading Program that has roped in 40 countries in the Africa, Caribbean and Pacific region.

Participating countries will also contribute funds toward implementation of the new slum upgrading program for the global south.

The four-year project will revolve around capacity development, policy formulation and knowledge sharing to stimulate urban renewal in the developing world.

Kacyira stressed that adequate financing coupled with a friendly regulatory environment and adoption of new technologies is key to hastening implementation of slum upgrading projects in developing countries.

Statistics from the UN-Habitat indicate that Africa, Caribbean and Pacific states comprise the bulk of 1 billion people globally who currently live in urban slums.

"Slums and informal settlements are the physical manifestation of inequalities. They stand for abject poverty, exclusion and stigmatization," said Kacyira.

Multilateral agencies have endorsed the participatory slum upgrading program to transform the lives of the urban poor through access to basic amenities like shelter, clean water, health and education.

Rafael Tuts, the director of Programs Division at UN-Habitat, said that investing in slum upgrading will boost a country's economic growth and speed up social renewal. Endit