SHELTER AND HOUSING

Our main approach to achieve the goal adequate shelter for all include:

• Providing support the formulation of National Housing Policies and the preparation of housing programmes;
• Improving access to adequate shelter by advocating secure tenure;
• Facilitating access to housing through supporting improvement of access to land and housing finance;
• Strengthening the construction sector through promotion of energy efficiency;
• Promoting utilization of appropriate building materials and technologies;
• Building local capacities in self-help and community construction techniques;
• Promoting housing conservation as well as restoration of traditional city areas and reconstruction of old housing stock.

Community services
The office recognizes the importance of involving local communities.  In this respect, it seeks to build local capacities to provide, manage and maintain community services effectively, and to improve the poor’s access to basic services such as water and sanitation, education and health facilities.  It does this by developing skills and awareness to enable communities to identify their own problems and priorities and to seek appropriate solutions.

Disaster Management
ROAAS has operations in many post conflict areas and those that have suffered natural disasters including Somalia, Rwanda and Liberia, among others.  The office enhances peace efforts through reconstruction, rehabilitation and development and works to reintegrate returnees and accommodate internally displaced persons through a comprehensive planning approach.

SUSTAINABLE URBAN DEVELOPMENT

To achieve the goal of sustainable urban development in the region ROAAS seeks to build local capacities for effective and efficient provision, management and maintenance of urban infrastructure.  It also supports improvements in the access to basic urban infrastructure such as roads, drainage systems, street lighting etc. for all including the urban poor as part of the efforts to reduce overall poverty levels and increase socio-economic growth.
 
Environmental Planning and Management:
ROAAS works with countries to ensure that their towns and cities environmentally sustainable by helping them to improve their environmental planning and management.  This is done by providing better environmental Information, supporting better environmental decision making and enhancing managerial capacities of local authorities and assisting with the development of implementation strategies to ensure that resources are used effectively.
 
Urban Governance and Institution Building
The regional office reinforces the agency’s Global Campaign for Urban Governance at regional and national level by promoting local policy and decision-making through broad-based participatory processes and supporting effective and efficient urban management in both large and small agglomerations.  Through training and providing technical expertise to countries, ROAAS helps to build local urban institutional capacity to improve settlements management and to establish transparent and accountable systems in local urban institutions.

Disaster Management
To accelerate the pace of recover and mitigate future risk, the office helps to reinstate governance, particularly at local authority level, in post disaster areas of recovery.  It also promotes peace through reconstruction and rehabilitation process and helps to rebuild urban management capacity.