National Housing Program Research Articles

An avenue for providing the integration of distributed PV generation in low-income dwellings in Brazil

The purpose of this study is to analyze the impact on the income of families benefiting from the “Minha Casa Minha Vida” Brazilian Social Housing Program through the integration of photovoltaic (PV) generation systems into housing financing, as outlined by Law 14,620 enacted in July 2023. Given the novelty of this legislation, there is no existing database for analysis. Consequently, simulations of PV generation were carried out for the typical dwellings provided by the program across the five macro regions of Brazil. The simulation takes into account maintenance and equipment replacement costs, tariff rules, and standard adjustment rates in the country. Across all examined scenarios, the installation of residential rooftop PV systems yielded favorable outcomes, resulting in a reduction in electricity costs for the low-income population. Making provisions for a Sinking Fund in the program was identified as crucial to provide sustainability, long-term operation, maintenance and replacement. Additionally, it was observed that civil construction companies play a crucial role in popularizing the proposal. In conclusion, legislation incorporating PV generation into the national housing program represents merely the initial step toward realizing the widespread adoption of this energy generation technology in the country.

Community Participation in Urban Land and Housing Delivery: Evidence from Kerala (India) and Dar es Salaam (Tanzania)

Current approaches to the provision of shelter, largely driven by national governments and/or the commercial private sector, continue to fall short of what is needed to reduce housing deficits. The number of people without access to adequate housing continues to grow, especially in cities of the Global South. Increasing attention is being paid to alternative models for organizing land and housing delivery, such as those led by, or at least including, civil society. In this paper, we consider two national land and housing programs—the 20,000 Plots Project in Tanzania, and Basic Services for the Urban Poor (BSUP) in India—alongside community-led housing initiatives from each country. We explore the extent to which community participation in housing delivery can have social and environmental advantages when compared to ‘business as usual’ methods and find that, given appropriate state support, community-based, and civil society actors (including organizations of the urban poor) have significant potential to contribute to acquiring land, building homes and improving the quality of life of vulnerable segments of the population. This paper echoes calls for community-led housing to become a recognized part of formal housing policy whilst emphasizing the need for theoretical refinement of the process so as to prevent it from being captured by prevailing market-led narratives.

From Doxiadis Class Communities’ Model to “Doxiadis Pattern”.

Doxiadis urban planning ideas have been implemented from 1950ies until the 80ies in a number of Middle East and Asian cities. In 1957 he introduced a model for neighbourhood design which was first implemented in the National Housing Program of Iraq. The model seems to have been adopted in other countries and cities where fast urbanization created urgent need for rapid urban expansions. Variations of the original pattern have been created and have been used as basic units for building new residential areas. This paper will analyse similarities and differences between the original Doxiadis class community models and the “Doxiadis pattern” which has been used for the development of the northern part of Najran city in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the early 80ies. It will try to associate the transformation of the original pattern with the cultural context of the specific society.

The contribution of replicated follow-up studies to improving transitional housing programs for youths aging out of care in Israel

Evaluation research on transitional housing programs (THP) for youths aging out of care resulted in recommendations on how to improve the programs to ensure a more effective response to the needs of care leavers. The aim of the present study was to examine whether implementing the recommendations indeed improved the experiences of care leavers during their participation in the THPs, and their outcomes two to three years after discharge from the program. Study participants were young adults from two cohorts of the same national transitional housing program who participated in two follow-up studies conducted after their discharge from the transitional apartment. We harnessed data from two mixed-methods follow-up studies. The first follow-up comprised young adults who had graduated from the program prior to the implementation of the recommendations, while the second consisted of young adults who graduated from the program after said implementation. The questions addressed the participants’ retrospective evaluations of the program, their experiences of transition to independent living, and outcome measures such as life skills, leisure time activities, satisfaction with social relations, self-reported health (SRH), and life satisfaction. Results revealed that participants in the second cohort evaluated both their experience in the program and the outcomes measures more positively than did their counterparts in the first cohort. In addition, a positive association was found between evaluation of the program’s assistance, relationship with an apartment counselor, life skills, and life satisfaction. We conclude that repeated follow-ups of transitional housing program leavers following the implementation of evaluation recommendations can contribute to significantly improving users’ experiences and outcomes.

Local government shift and national housing program: Spatial repercussions on urban growth

This paper contributes to understanding the territorial politics of urban growth, especially concerning the strategies and means of controlling urban expansion (transformation of natural or rural land into urban, built-up areas). We analysed the urban growth/expansion processes resulting from three consecutive periods of master plan implementation practices in a medium-sized Brazilian city (Araraquara). The goal was to quantitatively assess whether a national market-oriented housing program (MCMV) could be accountable for disparities in spatial outcomes of physical growth associated with different territorial governance arrangements during contrasting local government mandates. Although the MCMV program introduced extensive peri-urban expansion, especially towards headwater preservation areas that nowadays juxtapose social and environmental vulnerabilities in Araraquara, it was not solely responsible for the discernible spatial trends observed after 2009. These results offer insights into how changes in territorial governance arrangements can affect master plan implementation practices.

Canada HomeShare: The Canadian Intergenerational Housing Program

Canada HomeShare is a national intergenerational housing program located throughout Canada ("About," 2022). Within the program, older over-housed adults are paired with under-housed post-secondary students, supporting ageing-in-place for older Canadians while providing students with safe and affordable housing ("About," 2022; National Initiative for the Care of the Elderly (NICE), n.d.). This program has successfully improved participants' well-being and social cohesion, improving public health outcomes for vulnerable populations while proving to be feasible and sustainable as an expanding national program (Mirza, n.d.; NICE, n.d.).

Social housing and accessibility in Brazil's unequal cities

Ensuring equal access to opportunities while assessing the housing needs of low-income populations has been a significant challenge in many global south countries. Social housing programs have been recurrently criticized for reinforcing inequalities by ignoring the poor conditions of urban access. This study evaluates the urban access of a national social housing program, My House My Life (Minha Casa Minha Vida, MCMV), in Brazil, one of the most unequal countries in the world. This program is renowned for building many of its housing projects in urban outskirts. We use job accessibility metrics to identify differences and similarities in MCMV housing production in six large Brazilian cities through a comparative lens. We find that although MCMV beneficiaries have less access to job opportunities than average-income citizens, the program may improve their conditions compared to individuals with similar income levels within central cities. We hope that future studies may expand this work to include the surrounding metropolitan areas, which were not considered due to data restrictions. We also expect to encourage other efforts in the investigation of social housing impacts through spatial data science, especially in evaluating accessibility in large-scale social housing programs.

The Impact of the National Housing Program on Residential Segregation in Costa Rica

Residential socio-economic segregation in Costa Rica had an overall decreasing trend between 1973 and 2011 because of a sustained reduction in the amount of lower income households. However, in 1986, the national housing program was reformed, including a ten-fold increase in housing supply (292 thousand subsidies allocated in 1987-2011, in a country with 1.36 million housing units). The pattern of these subsidies was hypothesized to increase residential segregation in Costa Rica. Segregation indices were estimated per municipality for lower and higher income groups. The impact of social housing subsidies on segregation levels was quantified using a fixed effects model with standard errors corrected for spatial dependence. Social housing supply was found to have historically reduced residential segregation; however, the 1986 reforms created a system that followed the patterns of real estate markets, in turn reducing much of the system’s mitigation effect on residential segregation.

Land Allocation Policies of National Housing Programs and Projects: Proposals and Implementation Mechanisms for Housing Lands in New Cities in Egypt

Egypt has been suffering from a significant housing problem of unbalanced housing provision for all segments of society. During the past decades, the state addressed this problem through successive land allocation and housing policies. However, those efforts were insufficient to resolve the issue, and there is still a gap between the demand and supply of adequate housing types for low-income groups. This paper, aims to come up with proposals Mechanisms for housing and land allocation policies in Egypt. The methodology of this research is based on monitoring and analyzing the development of land allocation and housing policies and programs from 1952 to 2020 to identify deficiencies in the different implementation mechanisms and their effectiveness. Also, three successful international experiences (Singapore, Australia and Morocco) representing various of housing land allocation policies are examined to identify essential lessons applicable in the Egyptian context. From the results of this analysis, and the outcome of structured interviews with Egyptian stakeholders in Housing field comprising housing academia and housing experts and planners. The paper finally proposes several institutional, legislative, planning, financial administrative and informational mechanisms to fulfill the land allocation policies and link them to the policies and programs of the national housing plans in Egypt.

Comparative Study Between the Management Models of Social Housing Programs: SAV-BID and SIV, of the Province of Azuay Between the Years 2010 - 2020

The creation of management models for the construction of Social Interest Houses in the province of Azuay has been one of the relevant actions to mitigate the existing housing deficit in the territory in the last ten years. Within this period, two management models have played a leading role: the SAV-BID National Social Housing Program and the SIV National Social Housing Program. Models created and promoted by the Ecuadorian State, with the help of various actors, that try to correct the housing problems present in the vulnerable socioeconomic strata of the country. With this background, a comparative study of the management models applied in Ecuador is proposed, through which the similarities and differences between each of them are evidenced, as well as the potentialities and weaknesses that have characterized them, both in their management as in your application. The study begins with a referential framework, where central issues are considered such as: characterization of the concept of Social Interest Housing, housing deficit in Ecuador, and the essential components required for the design and implementation of a housing management model, with the purpose to define and understand the context of the investigation. For the development of the study, a qualitative methodology is proposed, which uses a deductive-inductive system; where dimensions, sub-dimensions and variables are raised in order to approach the study of management models from the general to the particular. The dimensions are defined as the great considerations and aspects that determine the models; The subdimensions are the analysis components where the results of the execution and application of the models are produced, and the variables are made up of the unique aspects or particularities of the study. The results show similarities in the planning and structuring of the two models. However, there are differences in the source of financing and in the characteristics and obligations of the project stakeholders. The study concludes that there are some differences that have allowed the SAV BID National Housing Program management model to generate greater production of Social Interest Housing. These differences are closely related to the active and continuous participation of the managers or home builders, a fundamental aspect that has allowed the success of the projects developed through this management model.

Wealthier-but-poorer: The complex sociology of homeownership at peripheral housing in Cartagena, Colombia

In the last two decades there has been a large and simultaneous expansion of delivery-based national housing programs in the global South. This paper draws on an investigation of living conditions in Ciudad del Bicentenario, a large-scale housing project on the outskirts of Cartagena. Based on a sample of seventy-five lengthy semistructured interviews with low-income residents and ten other stakeholders, we reached three paradoxical findings that reveal the high costs of free housing: the immediate improvement of overall quality of life but the impoverishment of economic prospects; the dual social condition of the residents who felt socially and economically isolated but also shared a widespread perception of being ‘revueltos’ or scrambled within the community of Ciudad del Bicentenario itself; and the growth of economic and physical informality in a project intended to counter the informal settlements in the inner city. These paradoxes reflect more than simple processes of impoverishment of living conditions: they demonstrate how this type of public policy systematically complexifies the daily life of relocated families. Sociologically, these findings reveal a new type of peri-urban poverty in the global South. We argue that the productive informalization of the formal housing projects constitutes a central, but previously understudied, aspect of what it means to develop equitable housing.

Skuteczność Narodowego Programu Mieszkaniowego w zakresie społecznej polityki mieszkaniowej

In the first 20 years of the 21st century, the social housing policy in Poland underwent many changes. They resulted from the lack of consistency in this respect and low patience of the ruling parties, which led to profound modifications in the approach to the housing policy practically with every new government. Until the implementation of the National Housing Programme (NHP), the housing policy in Poland was characterised by fragmented solutions, without any comprehensive approach to the issue in question. The aim of the article is to verify the effectiveness of the NHP, especially in terms of its social part, i.e., Mieszkanie Plus [Apartment Plus] package. The programme was described using the framework of theoretical assumptions of the social housing policy and the implementation of this policy in Poland after the year 2000. The author claims that the NHP is the first housing policy in Poland which applies a holistic approach and moves away from the practice of short-term, fragmented solutions. He recommends that those who are in power should exercise patience and refrain from introducing alterations after a very short period from the point of view of investment processes, as the implementation of such a complex housing policy as the NHP is planned for many years.

Wyzwania współczesnej polskiej polityki mieszkaniowej

The article presents the author’s insights into the Polish housing policy in the context of the country’s current housing needs and challenges. Special attention is given to the role of housing policy and citizens’ right to adequate and affordable housing, which are the main determinants of the national housing policy development. The author first defines the housing policy, the principles of its effectiveness, and describes its instruments. Next, she overviews the beginning and the achievements to date of Polish housing strategies and programmes, comparing them with the newest National Housing Programme (NHP). In the final section, the author assesses current housing needs in Poland and identifies how the NHP responds to the challenges of contemporary housing policy. The article draws on national and international statistics and the relevant literature on the subject.

Refusing slum-centric mass housing: indigenous urbanism and national housing programmes in Aizawl, India

This paper addresses the policy encounter between a top-down, national housing programme and bottom-up housing processes in the tribal city of Aizawl, to make two arguments. First, it extends the literature analysing the outcomes of neoliberal housing policies to argue that there are important continuities and differences with Indian and Latin American cities. Similar to other Indian cities, Aizawl was strait-jacketed by national standardised norms into producing large-scale, new housing on the peripheries where dwellers faced multiple exclusions. Ironically, the programme has created slums in Aizawl, which officially had none. Unlike other Indian cities, top-down housing transformation in Aizawl concentrated power in 'modern' state institutions slanted toward individual (property) interests and away from traditional governance associated with indigenous urbanism. The paper's second contribution is the argument that top-down housing transformation was deeply contested in Aizawl because it unsettled a local urbanism rooted in notions of indigeneity. This identity politics contributed to overturning the state's conception of mass housing and selecting a role in subsequent housing programmes that reinforced exclusions based on patriarchal and property lines. The paper reinforces the importance for policymakers of treating housing as process, and supporting tribal community governance institutions while including provisions to redress exclusions.

Room for empowerment

ABSTRACT The South African National Housing Program has sought to address housing insecurity by subsidising millions of low-cost housing units. The policy uses a gender-sensitive approach, by mandating joint titling and prioritising women-headed households as subsidy recipients. This paper examines the extent to which the policy has succeeded at empowering women through housing ownership. The paper finds limited evidence on the policy’s impact as a mechanism for women’s empowerment. No significant change is detected in women’s labour supply or well-being. Women who are co-owners appear to participate less in primary decision-making, but more so in joint decision-making. For women who are sole-owners however, the subsidy seems to increase primary decision-making and decrease joint decision-making. Moreover, the subsidy appears to decrease consensus within in the household about the identity of the decision-makers. Despite ambiguous results, the distribution of housing to women should not be abandoned and remains a pressing policy objective.

Urban renewal concept at slum-flat complex area by applying revitalization program

Established a couple of decades ago, a well-worn low stories apartments in the middle heart of a big city especially occupied by low-middle income societies that become slum-residential areas are the main problem that affects many sectors such as social welfare, security, education, people’s living standard, and economic growth, so it needs to be concerned. Urban renewal program with the revitalization model is an alternative solution, but the challenges are quite difficult, especially in occupants society negotiations to achieve their agreement and understanding. In this renewal program, existed occupants are pleased to be relocated out, so their apartments can be demolished, and new high-rise building apartment and commercialize towers within will be established. After the new buildings are finished, every previous occupant will receive a new single unit which its equal-area must be similar like previous apartments. The program funding is designed to be financed by the profit of other commercialized units. As a result, well-developed occupants will leave easily their previous apartments and get their house renewed, so this method easily becomes a role model for accelerating national urban housing and development programs, especially in the urban revitalization area. Thus, better well-being and social justice can be continued and provided by multi-involvement between existed occupants, landlords, developers, and government without inflicting losses in business and economic growth.

Affordable Housing for Emiratis in the United Arab Emirates: The Case Study of Ras Al Khaimah

ABSTRACT Adequate and affordable housing is a basic human need, and in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a federation composed of seven emirates, housing is treated as a constitutional right of every Emirati national. Using interviews with municipal and housing officials and a survey of the housing beneficiaries, the study evaluates the efficacy of the two national housing programs in the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah that provide subsidies for affordable homeownership—the Sheikh Zayed Housing Program and the President’s Initiative. The study found that the UAE is shifting back to a provider approach to housing for its citizens. The program beneficiaries seemed satisfied with the design of their homes but raised concerns about their locations. The locations and growth spurred by the two programs have significantly shaped the current sprawling urban form of the Ras Al Khaimah municipality. The question of the long-term sustainability of the two programs looms large, funded as they are entirely by the government, with limited participation from the private, nonprofit, or informal sectors. To make housing programs financially and environmentally sustainable, every stakeholder must play a role: the federal government, the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah, the Ras Al Khaimah Municipality, and the individual program beneficiaries.

Assessing the Egyptian Public Housing Policies and Governance Modes (1952-2020), Towards Achieving a Sustainable Integrated Urban Approach

Public housing provision is one of the most urgent problems in Egypt; over the last 70 years, the leading provider was the state, problems were coping with the high demand, as well as the quality of the units concerning household's requirements.This paper discusses and analyzes the development of the international housing policies for low-income categories, from direct provision to sustainable integrated approach, compared to Egypt's public housing policies, governance modes during the last 70 years. This paper divides this period into four main phases according to the state political and economic approach in each phase, starting with the first intention for public housing projects through socialism, passing by the open door policy, capitalism, and the variety of housing schemes. Finally, the state initiatives after 2011 through the national social housing program.

Factors Influencing Implementation of Low-Cost Housing Programme by Kenya National Housing Corporation

The Government of Kenya launched the national low-cost housing programme as part of the big four agenda in order to address the shortage of housing units in the country as well as their affordability levels. Despite the project likely to be of benefit to Kenyans, there has been emergent implementation challenges facing the project. This study thus sought to focus on the project management factors influencing the implementation of the national low-cost housing project. Amongst the aspects that was examined include stakeholder involvement, project managers' competences, and resources availability aspects. The theoretical review of the study was based on the dynamic capabilities' theory and the stakeholder theory. This study used the descriptive research design. The target population of this study was the National Housing Corporation (NHC) officials and staff at their headquarters at NHC house, Aga Khan Walk in Nairobi. There are 57 middle and senior levels officials that are directly involved with the national low-cost housing projects at the NHC. The study found an R value of 0.584, R Square value of 0.341 and Adjusted R Square value of 0.300. The study found there was a positive relationship between the three independent variables of the study and the dependent variable. This is because of positive unstandardized beta coefficients. An unstandardized beta coefficient for stakeholder involvement was 0.144, that for managers' competencies was 0.130 and the unstandardized beta coefficients for resource availability was 0.487. This implied that resource availability had the highest influence on project implementation, followed by managers' competencies and finally stakeholder's involvement. The study found that there was no statistically significant influence of stakeholder involvement on the implementation of national low-cost housing project. The study further found that there was a statistically significant influence of project managers' competences on the implementation of national low-cost housing project. The final hypothesis found that there was a statistically significant influence of resources availability on the implementation of national low-cost housing project.

Exploring the Provision of Affordable Housing in Ras Al Khaimah

Adequate and affordable housing is a basic human need, and in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), housing is treated as a right of every Emirati national. This study examines the efficacy of the two national housing programs in the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah that provide subsidies for affordable homeownership—the Sheikh Zayed Housing Program (SZHP) and the President’s Initiative (PI). Beneficiaries of these two programs seem largely satisfied, but suggest improvement to the approval process, eligibility criteria, housing design and standards, and location decisions. Also, the growth spurred by the two programs, especially SZHP, has significantly shaped the current sprawling urban form of the Ras Al Khaimah municipality. The question of long-term sustainability of the two programs looms large, funded as they are entirely by the government, with little or no participation from the private or informal sector. To make housing programs financially and environmentally sustainable, every stakeholder must play a role: the federal government and the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah need to enable other sectors of the economy to participate in housing provision; the Ras Al Khaimah Municipality will have to strengthen and enforce its development standards; and, individual beneficiaries need to follow local plans, embrace sustainable practices of building and use the programs in a judicious way.