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Informal settlers in Windhoek participate in the planning for the upgrading of their settlements

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Through the Shack Dwellers Federation of Namibia (SDFN), informal settlers of Tweetheni and Ehangano in Okuryangava together with the Polytechnic of Namibia’s Architecture students and lecturers started a participatory planning workshop on the 8th of April 2014 for the preparations of working models for housing solutions for these two communities. Windhoek experienced uncontrolled urban growth since independence. The situation is further aggravated by authorities not succeeding in delivering sufficient land for housing, to keep pace with the influx. Many new residents therefore had to find their own solutions by settling in informal settlements, legally or not, without security of tenure and access to water and sanitation, and Okuryangava is no exception to that.  The Tweetheni and Ehangano communities were relocated from single Quarters in 2000 due to upgrading purposes. Others came from Otjomuise, Ombili and Kilimanjaro and are leasing land from the City of Windhoek for a...

SDI-AAPS PLANNING STUDIO

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Studio 2 – Participatory Layout Design Following the first studio the community was anxious to embark on the second studio.  These studios have increased in importance considering the introduction of the Mass Housing initiative of the Government of Namibia; NHAG-SDFN proposed the participatory planning process of communities to be a cornerstone for informal settlement upgrading.  The second studio took place from 7 to 10 March 2014, involving the same group of town planning students from the Polytechnic of Namibia that participated in the first studio during September 2013, now doing layout planning as third year town planning students.  The learning during this studio was not limited to academic participants but included officials from the Ministry of Regional and Local Government, Housing and Rural Development, the Opuwo Mayor and Property Officer representing team members from the UN-Habitat Participatory Slum Upgrading Programme, a Community Development offi...

Studio Pictures 2013

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2013 Students Studio VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL