social issues for urban planning practice

it describes about the social issues for urban planning

1. Chapter Five Social issues of urban planning

2. Session objectives Explain the social dimensions of urban planning Discuss on the social problems related to the implementation of urban planning Identifying the key issues and trends of urban life in developing countries Explain the key challenges of urban development Explain Key approaches in addressing urban issues and challenges Discuss on the issue of socio-economic Development in Addis Ababa Structural Plan Preparation.

3. Social issues of planning To be effective urban planning needs to make a difference in the lives of all people . With respect to the defining issues , here are five fundamental socio-economic problems that urban planners face: 1)Can cities and regions prosper more fairly(focus on poverty alleviation )? 2) Is the "affordable" housing crisis in desirable places solvable? 3) Are our cities prepared for significant demographic and cultural changes in the future? 4) Should urban plans and projects be analyzed for public health impacts? 5) Should transportation planning reorient from cars to pedestrians ?

4. Social issues of planning Baxamusa describes the need in each of these five areas for planner involvement Urban sprawl &inefficient use of land Urban sprawl & inefficient use of land causes housing affordability problems, transport problems, and uses up a finite resource of land due to Leap frogging. Transport : In most cases roads dominate, and the development does not support public transport, and is unfriendly for walking and cycling.

5. Social issues of planning N ew H ousing M arket The new housing market is characterized by a drastic increase in rents, a decrease in new households receiving federal assistance, and low-income workers having to dedicate a large percentage of their income to housing costs. Insecure E mployment and Insecure H ousing The condition of working poverty today, then is one of double precarity marked by insecure employment and insecure housing .

6. Housing insecurity and employment insecurity While social scientists have documented severe consequences of job loss, scant research investigates why workers lose their jobs. We explore the role of housing insecurity in actuating employment insecurity, investigating if workers who involuntarily lose their homes subsequently involuntarily lose their jobs. Initiatives promoting housing stability could promote employment stability.

7. Costs of loosing job What are the costs of losing a job beyond the immediate and drastic loss of income? First, because prospective employers presume terminated workers to be unproductive or irresponsible, laid off workers commonly experience long stretches of unemployment (Gibbons and Katz 1991). This is especially true for less-educated workers seeking low-wage work ( Kletzer 1998). Long spells of unemployment themselves can serve as a barrier to reentering the job market.

8. Consequences of job loss Job loss can stop attempts at asset building—especially if families drain their savings to survive unemployment spells (Mortensen 1986)—and can damage workers’ mental and physical health and well-being (Linn, Sandifer , and Stein 1985; Paul and Moser 2009; Young 2012). Daniel Sullivan and Till von Wachter (2009) even link job loss to mortality, estimating a 10 to 15 percent increase in annual death hazards for 20 years post displacement. If this increase is indefinitely sustained, it implies a 12- to 18-months loss of life for a worker let go at age 40.

9. Unemployment and underpaid employment Poverty researchers interested in labor market dynamics primarily have focused on two major problems: unemployment and underpaid employment . To address chronic joblessness in disadvantaged neighborhoods, researchers have proposed various strategies for bringing jobs back to the inner city (Porter 1995; Wilson 1996). To address insecurity and poor labor conditions, researchers have proposed increasing the minimum wage, strengthening wage subsidies, and helping low-wage workers unionize ( Shulman 2007; Uchitelle 2006).

10. Consequences of prolonged unemployment Much less attention, however, has been dedicated to developing effective policies designed to help those who have a job keep it. Job loss can lead to prolonged unemployment ( Kletzer 1998), push workers into insecure jobs (Farber 2005), result in long-term earnings losses (Couch and Placzek 2010), and compromise physical and mental health (Paul and Moser 2009).

11. Social welfare and social security Other than modest government allocations for pensions, labor and social welfare for public employees, Ethiopia has no comprehensive public welfare or social security programs. Retirement is set at age 55/60 for public employees. Retired employees receive 30% of their average monthly salary during the last three years of employment. Most of the population depends on subsistence agriculture in deprived rural areas and therefore falls outside the scope of this limited retirement system.

12. Role of women in national economy and society Women have traditionally been restricted to subordinated roles in society. In rural areas, women are burdened with most of the strenuous agricultural and domestic work, while in urban areas, women are limited in their job opportunities . The civil code discriminates against women in family law and property issues. Domestic abuse is pervasive; societal norms inhibit most women from seeking intervention from the authorities. Young women are still abducted for the purpose of marriage and subject to female genital mutilation in rural areas.

13. Poverty and poor sanitation Although conditions are drastically better in cities, all of Ethiopia suffers from poverty, and poor sanitation. In the capital city of Addis Ababa, 55% -70% of the population lives in slums. Although there are some wealthy neighborhoods with modern buildings, most people make their houses using walls made of mud and wood. Sanitation is the most pressing need in the city, with most of the population lacking access to waste treatment facilities. This contributes to the spread of illness through unhealthy water . Ethiopia's main health problems are said to be communicable diseases caused by poor sanitation and malnutrition

14. Social trust and confidence It is shown that social trust and confidence in institutions are highly associated with increased participation in local associations and pattern of reciprocity among inhabitants. These findings provide qualified support for the systemic model of local social organization but challenge theories of social disorganization that predict lower levels of social capital in impoverished communities.

15. Key issues and trends of urban life in developing countries Rapid urban population growth Rise of megacities High urban poverty level Inadequate basic services Environmental degradation

16. Key challenges of urban development Sustaining urban areas as engines of growth Managing urban growth Bridging supply and demand gap on infrastructure services Strengthening urban management capacity Decentralizing urban administration Responding to globalization

17. Key approaches in addressing urban issues and challenges Stakeholder partnerships(PPP) Formulation of city development strategies Inter-local cooperation Cities as ecosystems(urban areas are social-ecological systems)urban land scape and urban human communities interact with other landscape elements .Urbanization has a large impact on human and environmental health as a result the study of urban ecosystems has lead to propose sustainable urban design. City leaders as economic managers

18. End of session One

19. The issue of socio-economic Development in Addis Ababa Structural Plan Preparation In case of urban planning, report produced by the World Bank on the urban planning practices experienced by developing countries in the world, indicated that one of the problems related with urban plans in most of these countries is the fact that the plans fail to take economic as well as social development issues.

20. Socio-Economic considerations cont’d… The plans are prepared without giving attention to socio-economic dimensions . Socio-economic studies are conducted merely to provide spatial proposals (housing units, schools, health institutions, etc ). Unlike previous planning efforts experienced in the country in general and in Addis Ababa in particular , the current plan integrates social development issues in such a way as to, among other things , minimize the negative impacts of the implementation of the plan, and strategize to address challenges which negatively affect the planned development.

21. Socio-Economic considerations cont’d… Negative impacts of plan implementation include the displacement of residents because of proposed inner city redevelopment , deterioration of social relations and social values as a result of potential displacement and technological advances. Challenges to development include unwillingness and attitudes that prohibit the proper use of the outcomes of development (infrastructure , public amenities, etc ), irresponsive actions and negative interventions against sustainable urban development, and perpetuation of social dissatisfaction that is detrimental to social and economic development.

22. Socio-Economic considerations cont’d… Existing Challenges Displacement of Farmers. There is a regulation regarding compensations to be paid to those households displaced because their farmland had been reclaimed for urban activities however, data collected indicates that most claim have been mistreated, and some have not been properly compensated .

23. Socio-Economic considerations cont’d… Some of the causes were Administrative and management problems : There is inadequate stakeholder consultation before displacement . Compensation calculation fails to account current price of crops and houses. Lack of subsequent programs to help these household use their compensations productively by integrating into a new (urban) way of life, for instance by organizing them into MSEs has resulted in wasting their money and remain without any source of livelihood.

24. Socio-Economic considerations cont’d… Corrupt practices : The overall compensation process, from valuation to payment, lacks transparency and accountability . Even though farmlands are measured properly, incorrect information regarding the size of the farm (lower than the actual size ) is given to the farmers in a piece of paper . Those who had filed complaints were mistreated. Others had been asked to pay bribes in order to receive their compensation.

25. Socio-Economic considerations cont’d… Service and infrastructure problems : Farmers relocated are often settled in areas where there is lack of adequate social services and local roads . Displacement from Inner Cities The Urban Renewal Program that started 10 years ago in the capital has two objectives. The first objective is to change the image of the city, while the second is to provide better residential units to low and middle income residents . Meanwhile , it also enables the City Government acquire land that it can lease off for office buildings, commercial establishments, real estate development, thereby generating significant revenue. On the other hand, the City Government also uses this newly acquired land as an instrument for achieving its social objectives (construction of condominium houses, social services , etc ).

26. Socio-Economic considerations cont’d… However, there are a number of problems observed in these processes . Administrative and management problems : Even though the policy is to give priority to affected households with proper capacity to redevelop their landholding, this is usually not followed and implemented. Moreover , the City Government fails to keep its promise of relocating displaced households within 5km of their previous locations , which forces many to commute long distances to and fro their work places.

27. Socio-Economic considerations cont’d… In many instances, the City Government has also failed to provide condominium houses and shops according to the preference of displaced households as promised . Failure to resettle as a group those displaced households at least in an area where they can maintain their old social ties has contributed to the disintegration of the social fabric of the city. The fact that the compensation amount fails to consider location value and proximity to economic activities has made most unhappy . Affected households also face excessive difficulties to get their compensations.

28. Socio-Economic considerations cont’d… Corrupt practices : The overall compensation process, from valuation to payment, lacks transparency and accountability. Those who had filed complaints were mistreated, and complaints are usually not addressed. Households asked to pay bribes in order to increase or even receive their compensation.

29. Socio-Economic considerations cont’d… Service and infrastructure problems : Resettlement areas do not have adequate social services, including those related with security . Economic problems : There is a high number of unemployed persons in these displaced/resettled households; some had lost their employment because of additional transport costs or failure to arrive at work place on time . Their relocation to new (often far) localities had forced many, especially those that depended on their networks in their original localities to earn their daily income, may feel hopeless.

30. Socio-Economic considerations cont’d… Higher rental cost in these new localities depletes the disposable income of those employed. In addition, the increased prices of commodities in new settlement sites that are far from the centre, and the inconveniency of the new units to continue petty trading activities are the new faces of economic problems the displaced households have to struggle with . However, the new structural plan of A ddis A baba was designed to solve the mentioned social problems and minimize the challenges.

31. Focus areas of the final exam Social issues of urban planning Housing and socio-economic development Participatory urban planning Sustainable livelihood framework Pro-poor targeting Linking urban plans and finance

32. End of Session Two