The right to adequate shelter is central to the mandate of UN-HABITAT and expressed through the campaigns on “Urban Governance” and “Shelter for All” and is even more important when addressing the needs of communities affected by disasters. Shelter is often the primary need in the post-disaster phase, but the delivery of immediate shelter needs must be undertaken within a long-term shelter strategy. The very same applies to the overall reconstruction and rehabilitation of other infrastructure and services. In parallel, the displacement of populations as a result of natural or human-made disasters is one of the key issues informing UN-HABITAT’s disaster management strategy. Re-establishing livelihoods, planning and management of settlements and basic services for these vulnerable groups is a key priority of UN-HABITAT’s settlements crisis management programming. Being aware of the complexity of the problem, UN-HABITAT has elaborated a set of integrated strategies taking into account the specific needs of refugees and IDPs: Creation of strategic partnerships for resettlements rehabilitation and housing for IDPs/refugees in emergency, local integration and reintegration phases; security of land and property tenure; and development of productive economic activities. Subsequent to designing and operationalizing the Iraq Settlements Rehabilitation Programme in 1997, DMP/UN-HABITAT continues to provide substantive backstopping in the areas of post-conflict reconstruction strategies, capacity building of local governments, urban planning and gender analysis. In Kosovo, for example, DMP/UN-HABITAT continues to support UNMIK attending to four key areas; the rehabilitation of the municipality administration; development of new spatial planning legislation; the regularization of housing and property rights; and the restoration of property and land registries. In Sudan, on the other hand, DMP/UN-HABITAT supports road rehabilitation projects focusing on improving transportation infrastructure to increase the access for communities in the country and enhance local self-reliance through improved transportation and exchange of goods and services.
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Displaced Populations and Human Settlements