Ethiopia’s Major Human Settlements Programs

The planning, development and management of human settlements is a very complex and gigantic task in the world today. The problem is particularly more acute in the developing countries of the world where rapid population growth, uncontrolled urbanization and lagging economic growth have aggravated the living conditions of the vast majority of urban dwellers. Rural stagnation has made rural life one of deprivation in which such basic amenities as water supply, health, education etc. are invade .jauntily provided.

To meet the growing challenge Le of shelter and: infrastructure for the vast majority of the poor especially in the developing countries, the United Nations Generally Assembly has designated 1987 as the International Year of Shelter for the Homeless (IYSH). By so doing, the United Nations hopes to stimulate action oriented policies and programs that will contribute towards meeting the housing needs of low known; population groups.

In Ethiopia, the IYSH has been given concrete policy and program support through a number of human settlements related policy guidelines and action programs. Among these, the following four programs deserve special attention:-

1. The National Villagization Programs

This program has the broad objective of improving the living conditions of the rural population of Ethiopia through the establishment of new communities on a planned and rational basis. The program aims at distributing the rural population of the country in planned villages taking into account the balance between natural resources and population concentrations and improving the quality of life of the new communities through the phased provision of such services as clean water supply, education, health, etc… The program has shown phenomenal success since it started in 1986. During the year, 6488 villages were established in 3569, Kebeles’ 316 Woredas and 63 Awrajas & 13 administrative regions. 8123 54 houses and 154,993 kitchens s were constructed. The program is continuing with the more vigor in 1987

2. The Resettlement Program

This program was launched in order to save the lives of hundreds and thousands of people who were critically threatened by the 1984-85 droughts. Its broader objective is to facilitate the resettlement of people from environmentally degraded areas of the North & Northeast to the fertile, well-watered and productive parts of the country in the west and south. In barely a year, ow: 600,000 i people were resettled in Wollega, Illubabor, Kati Gojjam, Gondar and Southern Shoa. Today, the resettled people are leading productive, self-reliant and meaningful lives in the new sites.

3. The New urban Housing Policy:

Ethiopia is one of the new developing countries of the world in which the right of the individual to free access to land has been given structural solution. Hence, all Ethiopians are entitled to plot of urban land for constructing a house and buildings for business purposes. In order to stimulate the construction of more houses for low income groups, a new urban housing policy was enacted in 1986. The new policy not only created better conditions for Cooperative housing development but also significantly reduced the interest rate for housing loans to increase the. Affordability of houses to lower income groups It is hoped that, the housing stock of our urban centers will grow significantly in the coming years.

4. The Urban Upgrading and Improvement Program

This program is conducted with the basic objective of improving areas that are extreme congressed and-or upgrading the existing level of infrastructures and services through selective interventions. Because of the vastness and complexity of the task. the program is carried out through conventional urban development programs and in a few cases through a special project like the World Bank assisted ,Tekle Haimanot upgrading scheme’ in Addis Ababa. In both cases, the improvement of the living conditions of the people through various modalities in the ultimate objective of the program.

Ethiopia’s commitment to improvement of the well-being of the broad masses has found concrete manifestation in the human settlements sphere of national development. Since meeting the housing and infrastructure needs of a growing population is a long term strategic task that requires policy, material financial, technical and organizational support, our future national development efforts will have to be framed from such vantage points.

Finally, Ethiopia’s participation hi the global observance of the International Year of Shelter for the Homeless has been expressed both in the form of policy support and concrete action program to benefit the broad masses of urban and rural communities. The Four Postal Stamps released to commemorate this global event are a clear testimony of our firm support of- the international Year of Shelter for Homeless.