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Planning in process: AORTA as a new instrument for the upgrading of informal settlements in developing countries <strong>ENHR</strong> <strong>2007</strong> International Conference ‘Sustainable Urban Areas’ Planning in process: AORTA as a new instrument for the upgrading of informal settlements in developing countries Moritz Groba, Jochen Hansen, Christian L. Krause, Christoph Ruckert Department of Landscape Architecture RWTH Aachen University, Faculty of Architecture, ruckert@la.rwth-aachen.de Phone +49-241-8095053 Fax +49-241-8092274 Keywords: Informal settlements; Slum upgrading; Infrastructure; Open space; Participation Abstract Due to their strong concentration of social, economic and ecological problems, informal settlements are of outstanding significance for the future development of urban agglomerations in developing countries. These quarters are mostly characterized by existential indigence, insufficient infrastructure and difficult living conditions. Main problems are the lack of basic supply, an inadequate hygienic situation, the missing access to education, information and medical support. In most cases, the development of these settlements is neither being initiated nor controlled by urban planning authorities. ‘Formal’ approaches as for example official housing programs often fail because of their lack of adaption to the economic and social requirements of the residents. Therefore planning instruments which are flexible enough to react to unexpected changes and decision making structures which are able to integrate all participants have to be developed. Planning interventions in informal settlements means reducing the final formulation of the plans to a minimum: an intervention that is characterized by its continuous proceedings, improving with every step and based on experience. Skills and potentials of local residents have to be supported and brought in action within the planning and construction process. Therefore, the main focus is on developing a system to satisfy the basic needs of the residents: an elevated infrastructural element with different add-on modules which can be used in various urban situations, combining social, technical and security functions. Structuring and upgrading the open space, it will serve as a development corridor in dense urban quarters as well as in non-defined vacant sites. This urban ‘AORTA’ reacts in a flexible way to growing communities and can be easily expanded. Participative tests in different settlement Workshop: Housing and Sustainable Urbanisation in Developing Countries Author: Moritz Groba, Jochen Hansen, Christian Krause, Christoph Ruckert 1
Planning in process: AORTA as a new instrument for the upgrading of informal settlements in developing countries development scenarios with an 'AORTA toolbox' generate a sustainable basis for decision making of planning authorities and residents. Fig. 1: Perspective, design example of AORTA 1 Introduction Urban and landscape planning in cities worldwide always means dealing with the phenomenon of informal settlements. In the beginning of the 21 st century about 1.000 million people – 30% of the world's urban population – live in such settlements without security of tenure. In threshold and developing countries this value can reach up to 50%. Prognoses say that – due to the ongoing urbanization – the number of people living in informal settlements can reach 2.000 million within the next 30 years. Problems in informal settlements are manifold: most households have only a low and sporadic income and the inhabitants are often excluded from political decisions and social processes. Access to public health care, to information and education is difficult; crimes and violence often menace the public order as well as the personal safety. Living conditions are mostly characterized by inadequate hygienic conditions and the lack of basic supply e.g. drinking water, electricity or communication systems. Houses are often made of insufficient material and most quarters have a very high population density. Public and private open spaces e.g. squares, streets, gardens or parks – the most important areas for social life in many countries – are rare and often in a bad state. Due to this strong concentration of social, economic and ecological problems and because of their high dynamic – the informal housing sector produces the majority of all new housing units in the cities of developing countries – informal settlements are of outstanding significance for the future development of urban agglomerations worldwide. 1.1 Change of strategy In most cases, the emergence of these settlements is neither being initiated nor controlled by urban planning authorities. In many countries disregard or rejection of informal settlers have been the only reactions to the ongoing process of urbanization. Also many 'formal' planning approaches such as official housing programs failed because of their lack of adaption to the economic and social requirements of the residents. But changes in the strategy of problem solving appear: meanwhile more and more importance is attached to the upgrading of living conditions within existing informal settlements. The active involvement of local communities and their potentials and resources thereby become an existential part of the planning, implementation, monitoring and management process. 1.2 A new instrument Considering the living conditions in informal settlements there are two aspects of increased significance for further development steps: 2 Workshop: Housing and Sustainable Urbanisation in Developing Countries Author: Moritz Groba, Jochen Hansen, Christian Krause, Christoph Ruckert
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