affordable land and housing in asia - International Union of Tenants

9.3 square metres in 1998. 62 A study of ninecities in China shows an even more notableachievement—an almost doubling of living spaceper household member from 8.0 square metres in1988 to 15.8 square metres in 1999. 632.2 QUALITY ANALYSIS OFEXISTING HOUSING STOCKAND SHELTER DEPRIVATIONSUN-HABITAT uses an operational definitionof slums that has five measurable indicatorsat household level, known also as ‘shelterdeprivations’ (see Table 3). Four of the fiveindicators measure physical expressions of slumconditions: non-durable housing structures; lackof water; lack of sanitation; and overcrowding.The fifth indicator, security of tenure, has to dowith legality. This, however, is less easily measured,as it is often dependent on de facto or de jurerights, or lack of them. Information on numbersof slum dwellers and the shelter deprivationsthey suffer from most enables the design ofinterventions targeted at the most vulnerable anddisadvantaged urban populations. 64With urban growth in Asia continuing apace,by 2030 the region will have the largest urbanpopulation of all the continents, however manycities will be characterised by urban povertyand inequality, and urban growth will becomevirtually synonymous with slum formation. 66The proportion of households living in slums,which are characterised by inadequate but moreaffordable housing, is growing at an alarming ratein many cities. 67It should be noted that concepts such as thoseof overcrowding and ventilation and lightingstandards have, however, been criticised for beingbased on foreign notions that are inconsistentwith the cultural and climatic contexts inmuch of Asia, and where interiors of dwellingsserve a different purpose to those in developedcountries. 68 Nevertheless, while the limitations ofsuch normative standards are recognised, they arebeneficial in enabling cross-country comparisonsat the macro-level.Although the data suggests a completely negativepicture, it should be noted that in many parts ofAsia housing quality is improving. Comparedwith other developing regions, Asia is leadingthe world in improving the quality of its housingstock in absolute terms. While in some Asiancountries and cities housing quality is notdrastically improving, there are many in whichhousing quality is improving and the proportionof households with multiple deprivations isdecreasing. One example is the Indonesian citiesof Bitung and Jaya Pura that have demonstratedtheir ability to increase housing supply andimprove the quality of slums and informalsettlements. 692.2.1 Housing durabilityHousing durability—the permanence ofresidential structures—is directly associatedFigure 12: Urban population and slum proportion in Asian countries in 2007Percentage of slum population9080706050403020100200000180000160000140000120000100000800006000040000200000Lao PDR*CambodiaBangladeshYemenTotal slum population (Thousands)MongoliaNepalLebanonIraqPakistanMyanmarPhilippinesViet NamIndiaChinaThailanIndonesiaSaudi ArabiaJordanTurkeySyriaCountryPercentage of slum populationTotal slum populationPercentage of urban population living in slums and total slum population for selected Asian cities, 2007.Source: UN-HABITAT, 2006b:23.20PART two