UN-HABITAT.:. E-Library | Best Practices

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China Merchants Property Development impressed the jury and was awarded the Habitat Busines award in 2009 for its development of “The Hills” project, which is described as “a green, creative and international community.” Based on an ‘Integrated Community Development’model, the initiative seeks to impact the regional economy, industry and lifestyles, create local employment opportunities by attracting a number of small and medium-scale companies from the creative industries to settle in. http://www.gzcmpd.com

Affordable Housing Solutions

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Mexico

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One of the largest cement companies in the World, CEMEX, was awarded the Habitat Business Award in 2009 for the Community Blockers and ‘Patrimonio Hoy’ initiatives for innovative steps to empower the poor to build their homes. The two outstanding initiatives are innovative business models that demonstrate the social and economic returns at the bottom of the pyramid in the housing sector. http://www.cemexmexico.com/

Cementos Mexicanos, CEMEX

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Mexico

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For helping more than 1 million poor people build their own homes, and more

Crime reduction and enhancing road safety

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Kenya

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Adopt a Light, a private-public partnership project to light-up the streets and slums of Nairobi, Kenya, was awarded the Habitat Business Award in 2009 for its unique business model that allows the financing of installation and maintenance of efficient public lighting infrastructure in slums, streets and other public areas to reduce crime, enhance road safety and improve the urban environment. http://www.adopt-a-light.com

Designing and building energy efficient buildings

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India

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The Indian IT giant, WIPRO Ltd., won the Habitat Business award in 2009 for its initiative to design and build energy efficient buildings. The objective is to reduce energy and water conservation, and to manage pre- and post-construction waste for all its new facilities across India. http://www.wiprocorporate.com/ecoeye/

Dr. Eusebio Leal Spengler, Historian of the City of Havana

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Cuba

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Dr. Eusebio Leal Spengler, Historian of the City of Havana, Cuba, is personally awarded the 2007 UN-HABITAT Scroll of Honour for his many years of charismatic leadership and painstaking dedication to the restoration and conservation of the Historical Centre of Havana.

Experimental Reimbursable Seeding Operations

Country:	Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa & Arab States, Asia & Pacific, Europe & Former Soviet Union States
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In April 2007, the Governing Council of UN-HABITAT adopted Resolution 21/2 on the Medium-term Strategic and Institutional Plan for 2008-2013 (MTSIP) and Resolution 21/10 on “Strengthening the Habitat and Human Settlements Foundation: Experimental financial mechanisms for pro-poor housing and infrastructure”. GC 21/10 requests the Executive Director of UN-HABITAT to establish a trust fund within the Foundation for a four-year experimental period from 2007 to April 2011 to support the implementation of Experimental Reimbursable Seeding Operations (ERSO) and other innovative financial mechanisms. Projects will be designed to catalyze domestic investment capital and domestic savings through the provision of seed capital, other innovative financial mechanisms, including credit enhancements, and technical assistance in a comprehensive and structured financial package. ERSO seed capital in the form of loans or credit enhancements will be provided to domestic financial institutions (banks, microfinance institutions) to enable loans for low-income housing, upgrading and infrastructure in combination with technical assistance to catalyze investments in pro-poor housing, related infrastructure and upgrading in close partnerships with national and local governments and support by local intermediaries. The target groups of ERSO products are either low-income clients themselves or actors involved in the provision of lower-income shelter.

Fast, secure, efficient and cost effective money transfer

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Kenya

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Details

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Safaricom was awarded the Habitat Business Award in 2009 for its M-Pesa Money Transfer Service, a state-of-the-art mobile phone based service that enables customers, especially the unbanked population, to transfer funds amongst each other and to their families in the rural areas in a fast, secure, efficient and cost effective manner. The initiative boots urban entrepreneurship and clearly demonstrates the role and impact of innovative IT solutions for sustainable urbanization. http://www.safaricom.co.ke

Housing and Development Board

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Singapore

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English

The Housing and Development Board (HDB) is awarded for providing one of Asia's and the world's greenest, cleanest and most socially conscious housing programmes. For over half a century, HDB has housed a growing population and played an integral part in Singapore's nation building. Today, more than 8 in 10 Singaporeans live in HDB apartments and more than 9 in 10 of them own the apartment in which they live. HDB and Singapore are global pioneers in when it comes to thinking of the needs of various sectors of society – young couples, the elderly, or disabled, to cite a few and to develop housing and surrounds that cater to their needs.

Jan Peterson of Huairou Commission

Country:	U.S.A
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For championing the rights of grassroots women and their movements for better human settlements Jan is being awarded because of her four decades’ commitment to improving grassroots women’s lives globally. She is a founder of three organizations – the National Congress of Neighbourhood Women, GROOTS International, and the Huairou Commission. Through the latter, Jan has developed a network of networks bringing together women groups in 45 countries. Because of her strong advocacy, Jan has ensured that the global women’s movement incorporates grassroots women’s groups and that it always takes heed of community development priorities for sustainable human settlements. In addition to raising more than USD 4 million for work with grassroots women, Jan has supported pioneering initiatives that include the Grassroots Women’s Academy held each World Urban Forum and the Local 2 Local Dialogue Process, among others.

Kunshan Municipal People's Government

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Making the dream of affordable housing a reality for hundreds of thousands of households

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The Kunshan Municipal People's Government is awarded for an innovative approach to granting migrants the right to essential services in the city. Drawing some 800,000 job seekers every year, Kunshan holds five employment fairs every week. In the last two years it has helped more than 200,000 people get work, in a city where modern, new accommodation has increased per capita living space from 12 sq. metres in 1999 to 40 sq. metres today. The city also ensures that migrants have full access to pension, health and other social security schemes, as well as equal education opportunities, and the same rights to public services as local people.

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Philippines

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Programme details

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Pag IBIG Fund based in the Philippines is nominated for making the dream of affordable housing a reality for hundreds of thousands of households. The fund was set up in 1979 and sustained for 27 years. It offers a rich variety of housing solutions with special attention for investments of Filipino migrants working overseas. By its very name, which stands for “Pagtutulungan sa Kinabukasan: Ikaw, Bangko, Industriya, at Gobyerno”, Pag-IBIG Fund works towards making a reality the vision of a home for every Filipino family. Created on June 11, 1978, the Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF) has a two-pronged mandate: generation of savings and provision of shelter for the Filipino workers.

Neal Peirce, Journalist

Country:	U.S.A
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For a lifetime of journalism dedicated to reporting cities for a better urban future

Peter Oberlander

Country:	Canada
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A founding father of UN-HABITAT - for a lifetime of promoting the urban agenda around the world

Rizhao Municipal Government

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For transforming their city into a green home with new housing and infrastructure Well executed urban planning is what caught the judges’ eyes in this entry. Under the banner Planning an Ecological City and Building a Livable Home, the municipal government embarked on major improvements starting with infrastructure which saw improvements on roads, parks, town squares, water supplies, drainage, sewage treatment as well as garbage disposal facilities. It helped boost the handling capacity of Rizhao Port and Lanshan Port to some 150 million tonnes in 2008; the Heze-Rizhao railway line was double tracked and over 50 new highways were completed. It saw to the restoration and protection of beaches, reefs, forests and parks. Five key rivers were cleaned up. While improving the economy, the project emphasised clean energy whereby it vigorously promoted the use of solar, methane and wind power. Utilization rate of solar power has gone up 99 percent. In recognition of these efforts, Rizhao won the first World Clean Energy Award in 2007, and is still the only city in China to achieve that feat. The economy has improved owing to the project and in 2008 the GDP reached 9.66 billion US dollars. People’s living conditions have improved while the city is still holding dear to the concept of a ‘primitive’ ecological environment featuring a blue sky, a blue sea and golden beaches.

State of Safety in World Cities

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International Conference on the State of Safety in World Cities 2007 Monterrey Forum of Cultures, 1-5 October 2007 Cintermex Convention Centre, Monterrey, Mexico.

Sustainable Urban Renewal Programme

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Austria

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English

Vienna Municipality's Sustainable Urban Renewal Programme is awarded for putting people and their views first in a model urban renovation programme it is imparting to other cities in eastern Europe. Under its so-called "soft urban renewal" drive that started in 1984, the city is careful to consult its residents on changes and take their views into account – rather than opt for the demolition of run down neighbourhoods and compulsory relocation. At the time, more than 300,000 dwellings without toilets or water and sanitation making up some 40 percent of Vienna's housing stock were targeted for renovation. Under the multi-million dollar programme over the years the sub-standard housing stock has been reduced to below nine percent following improvements to more than 5,000 buildings with nearly a quarter of a million apartments.

The Alexandra Renewal Project

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South Africa

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For helping thousands of poor people move into better homes and boosting health, water and electricity services. This renewal project has seen some 7,000 families relocated from the banks of a polluted local river to better settlements. Urban greening was incorporated in the project which led to development of parks and recreation areas. The project also saw the development of new housing, new schools and the refurbishment of many facilities. New clinics improved access to healthcare; while 46,000 hygienic refuse bins have been distributed, drastically improving garbage collection. More than 70 percent of the residents now have access to water and sanitation and 88 percent have safe electricity, a major milestone in a place once referred to as “Dark City”.

The ancient canal city of Shaoxing in Zhejiang Province

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