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Security of tenure: Conditions and trends131subjected to various forms of discrimination that may impactupon their security of tenure and/or their exposure tovarious forms of evictions. Moreover, the consequences ofevictions may be harder to bear for some groups. Whatfollows is a brief overview of the conditions experienced bysome such vulnerable groups.The urban poorPoverty and inequality remain the key determinants ofvulnerability from tenure insecurity. Generally, the poorer aperson or household is, the less security of tenure they arelikely to enjoy. Despite a variety of well-intentioned efforts –such as campaigns to end poverty and the MDGs – allrelevant indicators point to poverty levels increasing in muchof the world. Likewise, global income inequalities seem to beat the highest level since measurements began. The richest 2per cent of adults in the world now own more than half ofglobal household wealth, and the richest 1 per cent of adultsalone owned 40 per cent of global assets in the year 2000.The richest 10 per cent of adults accounted for 85 per centof the world’s total wealth, while, by contrast, the bottomhalf of the world’s adult population owned barely 1 per centof global wealth. 55While national GDP levels have increased in manynations, this has not always resulted in improved housingand living conditions for lower-income groups. In fact, thereis some evidence that society-wide economic progress canactually reduce tenure security for the poorer sections ofsociety as land values, speculation and investment in realestate all collude to increase the wealth of the elites, thusmaking it much more difficult for the poor to have access tohousing that is secure and affordable. The widespreadhousing price boom of the past 15 years in many countries,for instance, certainly benefited existing owners of homesand those able to obtain mortgages in many countries, butalso priced millions out of the housing market.At the national level, the economic boom in China, forinstance, has significantly reduced security of tenure. Some50 million urban residents in China (not including migrantworkers) are now highly vulnerable, often subject to evictionfrom the affordable homes they have occupied for decades.Few of these residents can afford to buy or rent new housingin the districts where they now reside, given recent propertyprice increases, and new and affordable rental units are farscarcer than the numbers needed. 56In recognition of the fact that rising real estate priceshave made the dream of homeownership increasingly distantfor many lower-income groups, access to security of tenuretakes on added significance. In many settings, enjoyingtenure security is far more important to dwellers thanhomeownership or being providing with a title to a land plot.During recent years, there has been a major policy shift awayfrom more conventional approaches, to informal settlements,to more simplified, innovative, cost-effective andlocally driven efforts to procure security of tenure. Withgovernments unable and/or unwilling to commit theresources required to raise levels of housing adequacy, andcivil society and NGOs largely sceptical of any efforts by thestate or private sectors to improve housing conditions, it isnot difficult to see how the international community hasreached the view that the provision of security of tenureshould be seen as a cornerstone of efforts to reduce poverty.TenantsIf there is any particular group of urban dwellers who isunder-protected and under-emphasized and frequentlymisunderstood, it is surely the world’s tenants. Whileprecise figures are lacking, the number of the world’stenants may well be measured in billions. In terms ofsecurity of tenure, tenants most certainly can be providedwith levels of tenure security protecting them from all butthe most exceptional instances of eviction; but all too rarelyare the rights of tenants and the rights of title holders tosecure tenure treated equitably under national legal systems.However, if the question of tenure is viewed from theperspective of human rights, it is clear that tenants, ownersand, indeed, all tenure sectors – formal and informal –should enjoy equitable treatment in terms of tenure securityand protection against eviction.There would seem, as well, little justification fortreating tenants in a fundamentally different way fromowners or title holders when regularization processes areunder way within a given informal settlement. Suchprocesses should be fair, equitable and of benefit to all of thelower-income groups. In Kenya, for example, the Mathare4A slum upgrading programme fell short of its objectivesbecause of the lack of considering the impact of upgradingon the security of tenure of tenants. 57 In terms of rentalmarkets, there is a growing appreciation that tenure securitycan assist, and not hinder, in increasing the prospects oflong-term rental contracts, which, in turn, can strengthensecurity of tenure rights in this sector. The insecurity oftenure prevalent throughout much of Latin America, forinstance, is seen as a key reason why long-term tenancyarrangements are so rare in the region.Tenants are rarely a topic of focus within globalhuman settlements circles. Moreover, when they are, theyare frequently neglected (or even treated with disdain) in thecontext of urban development and slum regularization initiatives,and also in the context of post-conflict housing andproperty restitution programmes. 58 Although faced withprecisely the same circumstances that lead to their displacement(which can include crimes such as ethnic cleansing,etc.), some restitution measures have clearly favoured therestitution rights of owners over those of tenants when thetime to return home arrives. While the procedures under theCommission on Real Property Claims that emerged from theDayton Peace Accords in Bosnia-Herzegovina gave fully equalrights to both formal property owners and those holdingsocial occupancy rights to their original homes, as did therestitution regulations of the Housing and PropertyDirectorate in Kosovo, it remains common for former ownersto be treated more favourably than tenants despite thesimilarity of the origins of their displacement. 59The issue of tenants and security of tenure is also vitalwhen examining the various policy debates under way on theGenerally, thepoorer a person orhousehold is, theless security oftenure they arelikely to enjoySociety-wideeconomic progresscan actually reducetenure security forthe poorer sectionsof societyTenants … arefrequently neglected… in … urban developmentand slumregularization initiatives,and … in …post-conflict housingand property restitutionprogrammes