Best Practices & Local Leadership Programme

Best Practices Partners
SHORTLIST OF 40 BEST PRACTICES FOR THE DUBAI INTERNATIONAL AWARD JURY

Naples 24 - 26 June 2002

Africa

2002 / 021, Program for the Protection of the Environment - Pr.A.P.E., Benin

Cotonou, a city of 1 million inhabitants, is the economic and political capital of Benin. Before the "Programme Assainissement et Protection de L'environnement - Pr.A.P.E." began in 1993, indiscriminate household waste disposal was the rule rather than the exception. The program involves waste and urban management. Its objective is to ensure good sanitary conditions in the community of Sainte-Rita through the sustainable management of household and medical waste while improving revenue-generating activities. Sainte-Rita is one of the 24 municipalities of Cotonou with more than 40,000 inhabitants and a surface area of 3 square kilometers of which half is prone to flooding. Due to the lack of clear devolution of power, Sainte-Rita municipality does not have a juridical status to decide on its own actions and priorities. At the same time the central administration tends to care more for the city centre to the detriment of peripheral municipalities.

The community participates in the program as subscribers while the programme trains and employs youth to collect waste from a total of 2,700 voluntary subscribers (households and organizations), benefiting 80% of the 40,000 inhabitants of the community. Subscribers pay monthly fees for garbage collection of which 95% are recovered. Recyclable plastic and paper are collected by women and sold for reprocessing; organic material is recycled into compost for the initiative's farming operations. Currently, garbage collection activities generate US$ 140,000 per year and professional consulting fees by Pr.A.P.E.'s administrators generate US$ 125,000. An outgrowth of this project has been the creation of a community bank whose net worth is approximately US$ 1,400,000. This credit grant program was created on the basis of local savings including contributions from over 1,500 women, and functions without subsidies. It has granted credits of more than US$ 550,000 to women, youth and other garbage collection associations in Cotonou. The program is a partnership between the community and their leaders, the local authority, Government Ministries of the Environment, of Health and local NGOs and community associations.

Results achieved include:

• the program is fully institutionalized and an NGO has a contract with the community, which defines the role of each of the partners;

• the community contributed towards the establishment of the initiative and works together with the other partners to plan and make decisions on the program in a participatory manner;

• the Program Committee is made up of all the stakeholders and meets regularly to evaluate progress and to identify follow-up activities. The Community also holds monthly meetings;

• 80% of the population in the community subscribe to the collection and disposal of garbage;

• other NGOs wanting to replicate the program in their respective communities have been sending interns to learn from the Sainte-Rita Cotonou initiative;

• the collection of garbage is 100% self-financed; garbage is collected and sorted out;

• 200 jobs have been created (of which 85 are taken up by women) within the initiative and 35 permanent jobs established with the Community Bank whose client base is over 2000;

• a recycling centre was created reducing the cost of transporting garbage;

• the program has become economically and environmentally sustainable.

The program fully meets the basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability as well as the additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, gender equality and social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability. Benin is defined by the UN as a least developed country.

2002 / 409, Incorporating Philanthropy as an Integral Part of Business, Kenya

The town of Mombasa is a major port for Eastern Africa and is Kenya's oldest and second largest metropolis. Club Sun N' Sand is a private, family owned beach resort located in Kikambala, a peri-urban area on Mombasa's North Coast where abject poverty prevails. The per capita income per day in this area was less than US $ 0.50. By forging partnerships with the local Ministry of Health, a prominent NGO, and community-based organizations, the hotel has embarked on a number of initiatives that are having a substantial impact on improving the quality of life of the least advantaged in their area.

Through the initiative a revolving fund scheme was introduced in 1998 and residents can access micro-credit to set-up small-scale businesses and improve productivity on their farms. This micro-financing initiative has gone a long way to supplement income sources for staff members at the hotel who usually have on average of 10 dependants. The hotel has partnered with a local NGO (Aga Khan Foundation) to afford children in the area cognitive and interactive skills by introducing a Madrasa. To date over 100 Kikambala children have benefited from the program. Beneficiaries include girls and boys aged 3-6. Women with basic education from within the community are trained as pre-school teachers and involved in the management and decision-making process of the community through their membership in the school management committees (SMC). Community members that serve on the SMC include parents who receive training in early childhood development issues. In addition Club Sun N' Sand introduced support projects for a local Primary school (affecting 1,600 students). Merit based scholarships are available to outstanding students who otherwise would not have the opportunity to access higher education. The hotel also installed a reverse-osmosis plant to provide purified drinking water producing 10,000 litres/day of which only 5,000 litres/day is needed for the hotel. The remaining water is provided to the villagers at no cost. In addition, a tap supplying well-water can be accessed 24 hours/day by the villagers, and this water is used for bathing and washing purposes. Since this initiative began water-borne diseases have dropped by almost 50% in the area.

The hotel, local residents, The Kenyan government and a local NGO (Aga Khan Health Services, Kenya) partnered to provide the technical and medical support. To date, over 4,000 patients have benefited who otherwise would have no access to affordable health care in the area. Capacity training sessions for local residents in family health issues and HIV/AIDS issues complements the aforementioned service.

The incorporation of philanthropy as an integral part of business is indeed a challenge and inspiration to other enterprises in the private sector to emulate. It is an innovative approach toward achieving more sustainable social and economic development. Through creative partnerships, the initiative is having a substantial impact on improving the quality of life of the least advantage stakeholders in the area. The practice is not only inclusive but also quite integrated. It is an outstanding example of how a private initiative becomes a true engine of local development. The initiative touches on all the key aspects of the community-availing credit, buying their agricultural products for the use by the hotel, providing education, health care and even helping them to set-up their own enterprises to supplement family income. The community's sense of ownership of the practice is demonstrated by the willingness to voluntarily cut their wages during the period that the hotel sector was experiencing hard times in Kenya.

The initiative fully meets two of the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and partially, the criteria of sustainability. It also meets the three additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, gender equality and social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability.

2002 / 033 Reinsertion program in farming environment of Homeless, Madagascar

Madagascar, with a population of 16 million people, is a least developed Island State located in the Indian Ocean. Economic and social crises have affected the country since 1970, increasing overall poverty levels. Hoping for a better life, peasants migrated to the capital city, Antananarivo but many have joined the homeless. In 2001, 10,000 people, including 6,000 children, were living in the streets of Antananarivo. They live off alms and have no access to basic sanitation facilities or medical care, and feed from dumpsters. In response to this pressing social issue the Franciscan family created ASA in June 1991 under the aegis of CIFM, the Inter-Franciscan Order of Madagascar. A.S.A.'s main objective is to reintegrate whole families in farming environment after a series of intense two-year agricultural studies. Their new land is located 200 km west of Antananarivo - in the Maroharona district, in the Mid West of Madagascar - a property covering 15,000 hectare that the Malagasy government has given to the association. The association went a step further to secure the land title for this land and now holds it in trust for the eventual beneficiaries. The main strategy involves a re-integration program to rebuild lives and provide for basic necessities. The progressive re-integration program lasts 3 years. During the first year, the homeless are retrained on societal rules and norms by social workers while at the same time having their papers regularized through registration by the government. The second year, agricultural extension officers train them on productive farming practices on demonstration farms. The 3rd year is the final reintegration stage in mid-west Madagascar. Each family builds a new home on the 5 ha piece of land that they cultivate using agricultural equipment lent and/or donated by the association. Communal wells and a dam were dug to provide water for domestic and agricultural use.

ASA tries to motivate and integrate 20 families each year. Initial contact with the homeless is establishing social workers deployed to identify potential beneficiaries. The association has invested in quality monitoring where professionals undertake follow-up activities at household level for 3 years. ASA has recruited staff who are involved in development and humanitarian projects. A production center, staffed by 34 single mothers, contributes to almost 15% of the project costs. Social workers, all women, provide basic, civic, communication and familial education. A health center, staffed by a qualified physician, treats beneficiaries and neighbours and an ASA sponsored elementary school ran by qualified teachers caters for all the children.

The initiative is a partnership between the Franciscan family, the Central and Municipal governments and the homeless formerly or presently living on the streets of Antananarivo.

Since ASA was formed, 100 families were re-integrated in 7 villages and given plots. The reintegrated and relocated families become autonomous house and landowners. The initiative targets women and girls and health issues are incorporated into the process while soil and water protection awareness are promoted. Cost recovery is routinely practised with financial support
provided and sustained by both national and international organizations.

The initiative meets two of the three basic criteria of impact and partnership and partially the criteria of sustainability. It also meets the additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, gender equality and social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability.

2002 / 002 Relocation of Backyard Tenants, Namibia

Walvis Bay is one of the leading industrial centres in Namibia. Due to its well-developed fishing industry the town has over the years, attracted a number of job seekers and people joining relatives and friends from all over the country. The traditional black suburb of Kuisebmond (a legacy of apartheid) in Walvis Bay, has a large influx of migrants. This development plus natural population growth has resulted in an acute housing shortage in Kuisebmond, which in turn, resulted in a phenomenon of "backyard tenants" housed in shelters constructed using scrap building materials. The result was a multitude of problems ranging from overcrowding and fire hazards to overflowing sewer problems. The excessive demand on the sewerage network has caused unnecessary blockages and overflowing of raw sewerage. Flooding of streets and houses has also occurred. Of the total number of 2,126 dwellings in the suburb of Kuisebmond, half were shacks housing 8 253 people. As many as 13 shacks and 43 squatters were found on one single plot. The average was 359 people sharing a single toilet, which created unimaginable unhygienic conditions and rapid spread of diseases such as tuberculosis.

In March 2000 the Management Committee of the Municipal Council resolved that a plan of action be devised for the relocation of "shack dwellers" to a designated settlement area complete with a set of ad hoc policies, financial directives, rules, regulations and administrative procedures. Various meetings were held between Municipal Councillors and Municipal officials culminating in the decision to establish a settlement area where residents would be allowed to erect informal structures built with non-conventional building materials. A Structure Plan and an Action Plan were approved that involved various activities. The Tutaleni Relocation Steering Committee was composed of affected community members and officials and councillors of the local authority. The Committee was tasked with, among other duties, acquiring ministerial approval for a maximum of four units per erf (plot) and the identification of new sites for future extensions. No legislation existed that would allow the Municipal Council to establish a "resettlement" area that is excluded from the provisions of the Town Planning Scheme. As a result, the Town Planning Scheme had to be amended to allow for four units per plot.

The creation of Tutaleni Village has greatly contributed towards solving some of the problems related to backyard squatting. More than 800 families have been relocated successfully and now enjoy amenities that a little more than a year ago seemed unattainable. In addition to safe drinking water, electricity and refuse bins being provided, other amenities for each unit include a shower and basin, indoor toilet and an open cement floor that can be enclosed with non-conventional building materials or concrete blocks. The units are situated in such a way that they are at least five meters away from those on the adjoining erf, in order to allow movement during emergency situations such as fires. Of the 1,010 structures, which were erected on the 1,094 units allocated, 237 consist of brick structures.

Tutaleni Village remains municipal property and will be treated as an ongoing project. It will be sustained through the joint efforts of the resettled communities, the local authority and the private sector. The recovery of funds by the Council is based on the income levels of tenants, the size of the families, current interest rates, and inflation rate.

The initiative fully meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability as well as the additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, gender equality and social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability. The initiative has resulted in policy changes.

2002 / 008 Durban Metro Water Services: Sewage Disposal Education Programme, South Africa

Durban is the main port of the Republic of South Africa. It is situated on the East Coast of South Africa, approximately 600km South East of Johannesburg. It is the commercial center of the province of KwaZulu Natal. Durban Metro Water Service's Sewage Disposal Education Programme arose out of the need to curb high levels of sewage pollution and maintenance costs incurred through the abuse and misuse of sewerage systems in the Durban metropolitan area. This education programme has become a vehicle of broader social reconstruction and development. Directed by Durban Metro Water Services, it involves public / private partnerships, and aims to establish a climate of civic responsibility, calling on communities to support their local government and businesses in the construction and development of their living environments.

The main objective of the Sewage Disposal Education Programme is to create a better understanding of the workings of the sewerage system amongst communities, especially first time users of these services. This is done through a number of innovative educational interventions, which encourage interactive and participative learning. Educational resources and toolkits have been designed for use in schools and at informal education settings, such as clinics. Roadshow and street theatre performances are presented at informal settings to a broad spectrum of the community, reaching out to less literate members of communities.

Durban Metro Water Services has pioneered the Sewage Disposal Education Programme in South Africa. As a result of an invitation to present an aspect of this educational programme to the World Bank Water Supply and Sanitation Forum in Washington, Durban Metro Water Services has received an invitation to help develop a toolkit in Kenya, for improving delivery of water supply and sanitation services to low income urban communities, which could be utilised by service providers throughout Africa

Actual improvements achieved include:

• The education programme has made a quantitative impact. In Umlazi (population 262,000) for example, blockages have been reduced from approximately 1300 per month to 300 - 400 per month, after a period of about one and a half to two years. Sewage blockages throughout the Metro area have resulted in savings equivalent to US$ 200,000;

• Rewarding public/private partnerships have resulted from the programme, with buy-in from industry;

• Emphasis has been placed on community capacity building and skills development, and the employment of women has been encouraged. By-laws have been passed and formalised in the form of a Legal Framework for Pollution Management. Over thirty facilitators are now fully employed. In additions the program provides employment to thespians who perform on the streets;

• Once the abuse of sewers was reduced, design aspects and capacity problems of sewer pipes were addressed, and upgraded accordingly through the employment and training of local contractors (SMMEs);

• The education campaign has reached 141,646 learners and 212,104 adults. The entire education programme has been introduced in 226 schools and many clinics. In addition, within the period of one year, 550 street theatre performances were held in the Durban metropolitan area, reaching approximately a further 35,600 adults and 40,000 school children.

• The initiative fully meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability as well as the additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, gender equality and social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability. The initiative has resulted in changes to the legal framework and is engaged in south-to-south exchange with Kenya.

2002 / 045 Partnership in Service Delivery for Sustainable Rural Water Provision in South Africa

South Africa's Department of Water Affairs and Forestry (DWAF) initiated a Community Water Supply and Sanitation Programme, which focuses on the delivery of water and sanitation to rural populations, previously disadvantaged by apartheid. Initiated in 1997, DWAF appointed a single contractor known as Programme Implementation Agents (PIA) for each province using a competitive tender process to carry out the implementation of water and sanitation projects. A key component of the contracts is the Build, Operate, Train and Transfer (BoTT) that is designed to empower community members while ensuring sustainability of the projects. The BoTT contract is an adapted version of the contract for Turnkey Projects and facilitates for the transfer of many client responsibilities to the PIA. The intention was not to replace the existing approaches to delivery but rather to supplement these with an approach that will assist in accelerating delivery. The PIA complements existing resources by bringing in additional capacity and provides the provinces with an integrated team for all phases of a project. Capacity building in the state and the community is a key element of the PIA responsibilities and the community retains key decision making responsibility.

The contract places emphasis on the partnership required between the PIA, the Department, Local Government and the community. The state provides the capital for infrastructure as well as setting the overall planning and delivery objectives. The private sector provides the project management and technical resources required to integrate the physical project with the social and institutional component provided by community development facilitators. In addition the PIA provides the continuity of responsibility to take the project through its full cycle from initiation through construction, sustainable operation and maintenance. The PIA has the contractual responsibility to empower and train the local authority and community to take over the scheme within a prescribed period. This ensures that local government and the community are the ultimate beneficiaries of the programme as the schemes are transferred to them. DWAF is in the process of adapting the BoTT programme to suit local government requirements by addressing such issues as decentralization and transfer of responsibility for projects to local authorities.

Over a 4-year period, the BoTT programme in the four provinces has provided water to approximately 4,000,000 people. In addition, BoTT contracts have proved to be a speedy mechanism to address specific problem areas such as:

• The mobilization of NGO's and job creation

• Rapid response to disaster in the Northern Province when large floods affected the region

• A rapid response in KwaZulu natal to a cholera epidemic both in terms of sanitation and clean water supply.

• Support has been given to water services institutions, notably to water services authorities (local government) and water boards.

These are long-term contracts, kept flexible to cater for a changing legislative and social environment. DWAF will eventually move away from being a delivery agent and will serve as a fund administrator for future water and sanitation, provide policy and strategy guidelines, specialised contractual support, and monitoring and evaluation for water and sanitation sector support programmes.

The initiative fully meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability and meets two out of the three additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability.

ARAB States

2002 / 351 Experiment for Sorting out garbage and Recycling in Metropolitan Amman, Jordan

Jordan is a small Arab country with a total population of 5.2 million covering an area of 92,300 square kilometres. Solid waste is one of the critical environmental problems facing urban areas in Jordan. The Al Rusaifa Dump, the biggest dumpsite in the kingdom, occupying an area of 700,000 square metres, serves around 2.25 million people. The dump receives around 2,300 tonnes of garbage daily. The pilot project in waste management was initiated by a group of young men and women under the umbrella of the Jordanian Environment Society. On April 15, 1998 the Recycling Coalition was established as a partnership between the Jordanian Environment Society, the Royal society for protecting nature and the Arab Women's Organization.

A study was conducted to assess the existing waste collection, sorting, transporting and recycling practices. Greater Amman Municipality held a meeting where a plan of action was adopted to implement the methodology and establish a mechanism to involve citizens, and to define the role of each partner (the Municipal Authority, the Private Sector and the coalition).

Easy-to-handle cloth bags and containers were designed for use by each family. An awareness raising campaign was launched in Amman. As a result of the pilot project, collection time has been reduced while households undertake separating waste at source. The private sector collects and transports the recyclable garbage. More companies were encouraged to compete resulting in more jobs being created and a large number of women being employed in the waste management business.

The initiative has since expanded to cover than 250 neighbourhoods. Full collaboration is achieved between municipal authorities, the coalition and the private sector. UNDP, Canadian funds and the World Environment Utility are also supporting the initiative and providing technical guidance. The experiment has proven to be highly cost-effective.

The pilot project illustrates the complementary roles of government, non-governmental organizations and community members in seeking sustainable solutions to the problems they faced. As a result of the project, investors were encouraged to set up private companies to collect and recycle used materials. This helped create new job opportunities for both men and women in the kingdom and improved their social and economic conditions. Industries have since embarked on utilising environment friendly materials in their production endevours.

2002 / 405 Women's Contribution in Sustainable Rural Development, Lebanon

Lebanon is located in the Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Israel and Syria covering 10,400 square kilometres. Deir El Ahmar, with a population of 550,00, is part of the Bekaa valley. People in this area face myriad economic hardships where per capita income is US$ 50 per month and the immigration level is very high.

In 1991, a group of women voluntarily got together to establish an NGO (WADA) aiming at sustainable rural development, through economic, financial and political empowerment. The objectives of the NGO included building the capacity of rural women to launch awareness programmes in environmental management, healthcare and eco-tourism. The municipality provided them with 1.5 hectares of fertile land.

WADA has accomplished about 70% of its objectives for the "Rural Development Center", which includes playgrounds, theatres, day-care center, capacity training and production center for women, multi-purpose hall and a local library. The programmes have gone a long way in building women's capacity to respond to day-to-day challenges. Agro-food products were cultivated and handcraft business started. Their products are sold locally as well as exported (total sales in 2001 were US$ 50,000). Educational and training programmes have been conducted for women in the areas of health care, environment protection and tourism promotion.

WADA collaborated with organizations representing various sectors of the community to help solve pressing problems. The NGO works with Creative Associates (USAID), Union Cities, CBOs, school representatives and the municipality. WADA is also a member of the '' Lebanese Women's Council'' whose basic principle is to advocate gender equality and raise legal awareness on women's rights.

The TAC felt that this case of Deir EL Ahmar village in Lebanon is a flagship, in which women get together voluntarily to promote sustainable rural development by focusing on economic, social and political empowerment. WADA has greatly and effectively contributed to the "after 20 years of armed conflict programme" and they have formed partnerships involving local authorities, civil society, private sector and international organizations.

This initiative fully meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability as well as the additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, gender equality and social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability.

2002 / 284 Support to the Creation of Rural Micro-enterprise development in Morocco

Water supply has always been a problem in rural areas and Morocco is no exception. Traditional supply methods don't work because large water supply companies are not interested in the low returns and margins involved. Starting in 1996, the national office for drinking water began an initiative for rural water supply based on establishment of community -based micro-enterprises.

This involves provision of micro-credit and training of young agents in technical and management skills for operations and maintenance, assistance in legal and administrative procedures for registering enterprises to access credit and marketing as well as other forms of assistance during an initial two-year start-up period.

Since 1990, micro enterprises have been installed each providing 10 to 15 jobs for local youth in rural areas in Morocco. A pilot project initiated in collaboration with UNDP and involving women-operated enterprises was also implemented focusing on quality control aspects and providing useful lessons on how best to mainstream and promote such enterprises.

Other lessons have been applied to decentralize and simplify contracting and procurement procedures. The sustainability of the initiative is evidenced by growth of initial revolving fund, which is now being used for micro-enterprise start-ups in other sectors.

The initiative meets two of the three basic criteria namely impact and partnership, and partly meets the criteria of sustainability. It also meets the three additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, gender equality and social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability.

Asia

2002/083 Poverty Eradication and Living Environment Improvement in Zhulin, China

Zhulin is a town with a population of 10,000 inhabitants located in the mountainous region of Henan province. Before 1995, Zhulin was an obscure village situated in the eastern mountain area of Gongyi City, Henan province. Poverty was pervasive affecting to a larger extent the women of the village. 60% of the women were illiterate and none had received a college education while only 5% of the women had jobs outside their families. Everyone in the village perceived the urgent need to diversify the local economy in order to create alternative sources of income and to improve their livelihoods. A series of meetings and discussions were held involving expert consultants to look at the possibilities of diversifying the economy.

In 1983, Mr. Zhao Ming, the then Secretary of the village's Party Committee, mobilized 400 households to pool their savings of about US$ 1000 to open a quarry to exploit the abundant supply of rock and minerals. The quarry was registered as a collective enterprise and per capita income increased about tenfold with fixed capital assets reaching US$ 500,000 within 4 years. With these earnings, the villagers established a refractory plant in 1985 to produce fireproofing materials. Profits from this plant were, in turn, invested in a cement factory that began operation in 1988. To keep in tune with the country's economic reforms, the villagers decided that it was necessary to attract outside capital to expand and help operate their businesses. The Zhulin-Antun Pharmaceutical Corporation was initiated in 1993 with investment from the Antun Company of the US while the Huifa Company and Hengfa Company were established, with bank loans. In 1995, Zhulin became the province's key township with US$ 170 million of collective assets supported by 8 companies and 58 industrial and commercial enterprises.

In 1995, Mr. Zhang Shiping, the Director of the Henan Provincial Institutional Reform Office, sponsored a village-wide consultation on the sustainable urbanization and development of Zhulin. The resulting strategy saw an increase in the annual per capita output with daily per capita income increasing from US$ 600 in 1995 to US$ 1,200 by 2000; the replacement of damp and dim cave dwellings with fully equipped and serviced housing; the reforestation of the surrounding mountains; and the introduction of piped water supply. A strategic development plan was formulated after repeated meetings and discussions between experts and the local population. Funds were raised for various construction projects through collective and private-owned enterprises. The Henan Provincial Construction Department, the Provincial Urban and Rural Planning and Design Institute, the Gongyi Municipal Construction Bureau, Environmental Protection Bureau and Transportation Bureau provided professional expertise in overall planning and management for all phases of design and implementation. Most of the human resources required were mobilized locally with larger projects being contracted out to various companies.

By 2000, Zhulin was able to pay the State US$ 10.5 million in taxes and other revenues, representing a radical departure from the situation prior to 1985 when the municipal budget was continuously in deficit and the village depended on government relief. This economic turn around has enabled Zhulin to bring about major improvements in infrastructure including capital investments of US$ 26 million in all weather roads totaling 23 km; the provision of public toilets; a waste collection and disposal facility with 100 percent coverage; and street lighting - all of which were totally absent in 1985. New housing construction totaling 360,000 square meters has increased per capita living space to a very comfortable 36 square meters, with 90 percent of the population being re-housed in new neighborhoods and housing estates. At the same time, the town has achieved 100 percent coverage in piped water supply, electricity, telephone and cable television. Household ownership of computers has reached 83 percent. Urban greening provides 19m2 of green space per capita within the settlement itself as well as 200m2 per capita reforestation in the surrounding hills. 92 percent of the women in Zhulin aged over 40 are actively engaged in social and economic production.

This initiative fully meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability and the additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, gender equality and social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability.

2002/380 The Urban Drainage System Project of Quanzhou, China

Situated in the southeast littoral of China and as one of the three largest central cities of Fujian Province, Quanzhou belongs to the first group of 24 historic cultural cities designated by the State. It is one of the most economically active and vibrant areas in Fujian Province with a per capita GDP of US$2100 in 2001. The Quanzhou metro area covers 11,000 square km with a population of 7.28 million, of which 680,000 people are living in the central urban area of 40 square km. The former urban drainage system of Quanzhou was originally composed of several urban drainage ditches. As a result of lack of maintenance over time, the ditches piled up with sludge. Whenever typhoons, rainstorms or mountain torrents broke out, the quantity of water combined with tidal forces resulted in water logging. For the past few decades this situation has occurred four or five times each year causing considerable damage to property and creating unsanitary conditions. In Quanzhou's history, every time water logging happens, serious damage to people's lives and properties occurred around the Jinjiang River. The total loss of the water logging since 1949 amounts several hundred millions of US dollars.

In order to solve these problems the Municipal Party Committee and government decided to completely realign the urban drainage system. The key objectives were: realigning the inner city drainage canal with a total length of up to 28.79 km; laying drainage pipes for rainwater and sewage; building three pumping stations in Puxi, Beifeng and Jinshan; two flood detention basins in Xibeiyang and Puxi; and one waste water treatment facility (the Baozhou Waste Water Treatment Plant).

Public consultations were held to ascertain people's unmet needs and priorities. In January 1999, the Municipal People's Congress adopted a resolution on the Construction of Quanzhou Urban Drainage System. The technical objectives involved the implementation of a drainage and storage system that would withstand 100 year flood risk and 20 year torrential rain risk; and a water purification facility with a daily capacity of 50,000 tons. The project design team adopted a phased approach to implementation so as to minimize disruptions to people's lives and commerce. The total investment required amounted to US $86,230,000.

Volunteer Campaigns were launched such as the Sludge Cleaning Campaign, the Hundred-Day Campaign and the Three-Month Campaign to mobilise public opinion, awareness and participation in various aspects of the project. During the project, technical methods were applied to reduce negative impacts on the environment and to reduce inconvenience for the residents. Government official consulted with households in the demolition areas to move people in a timely and stress free manner. Affected households were provided with compensation for re-housing. Poor families, overseas Chinese families and families with disabled or elderly persons were given priority. 1578 people of this category were re-housed. Construction teams used the highest standards possible for on-site quality and security so as to minimize noise and dust pollution and traffic congestion.

The historical profile of Quanzhou as a "Clean spring and fresh flowers" has been restored. The urban ecological condition and living environment have substantially improved. The Xibeiyang Flood Detention Basin has a capacity of floodwater detention of 82.3 hectares and 2 million cubic meters; and the Puxi Flood Detention Basin has a capacity of floodwater detention of 20.1 hectares and 900,000 cubic meters. The project not only solves the long-term menace that threatened life and property of the residents, but has also enlarged urban water and green areas which are extensively used by the citizens for recreation and entertainment. The value of previously undesirable land and real estate around the urban drainage has increased. New residential estates, recreational and commercial areas and office blocks are being built all over the city.

The initiative fully meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability and two of the three additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, and innovation within local context and transferability.

2002/276 Action Programme for Sustainable Guangzhou, China

Guangzhou (formerly known as Canton), situated on the Pearl River, is a city of 7 million people, covering an area of 3,700 km2. It is the capital of Guangdong Province, one of the first cities to have benefited from the economic liberalization policies of the 1980s and is famous for its Trade Fair. As a staging point of the ancient Marine Silk Route, it is also a city with a history of 2,200 years.

Since the mid-1980s, Guangzhou, has witnessed double-digit economic growth and a booming population, placing considerable strain on its infrastructure, environment and cultural heritage. By the mid 1990s traffic congestion became commonplace and the environment was rapidly deteriorating. Citizens, tourists and businesses were constantly complaining about the poor livability of the city, which became a threat to the economic vitality of the city. All these problems arose from two decades of misplaced policies favoring economic development over quality of life.

In 1997, the Municipality initiated an Action Program for improving the living environment so as to maintain and enhance Guangzhou attractiveness both as a place to live and do business. A Strategic Urban Plan was adopted comprising of the following objectives: ease congestion through a multi-modal urban transport system including a ring road, expressways, new bridges, and a 18 km subway system; reduce industrial pollutants, treat domestic sewage, control vehicle emissions and prevent pollution through new environmental legislation; improve the urban ecology, double per capita green space and preserve surrounding mountains, rivers and rural farmland; simultaneously build new estates and renovate historical districts; improve garbage collection, recycling and disposal.

In a major departure from past practice, the municipal government established partnerships with the provincial government and the private and community sectors to finance the plan. Build-Operate and Transfer was also adopted for the construction and management of expressways and bridges. The Transportation Project required the resettlement of more than 14,000 households, businesses and institutions, including many small and informal enterprises and 67 vulnerable families, especially single female-headed households. One-time compensation grants were provided either in cash or credited to new housing and/or facilities in five new locations. Preferential conditions and assistance were offered to small businesses and vulnerable families, especially single female-headed households. Over 300,000 volunteers, including 3,456 women's organizations and thousands of youth groups participated in traffic management and environmental improvement. Millions of citizens take part in tree-planting month of March. Communities, enterprises and NGOs continue to raise funds to implement neighborhood and district level projects. Key municipal projects were approved on the basis of consultations and popular voting.

The first phase of the program was successfully completed in 2001, and resulted in substantial improvements in traffic management, urban greening, sanitation, pollution control and the conservation of the natural and cultural heritage. The renovated downtown area took on a new look. Residents are enjoying a better quality of life and feel proud of their city, more so in light of the fact that they participated actively in both planning and implementation. The achievements of the Program were recognized in December of 2001 when Guangzhou received the National Award for improving the Living Environment, and the Award of Nations in Bloom 2001, an international award for livable communities.

The innovative aspects of Guanzhou's Strategic Plan and the method of implementation, have served as an example for other cities in China.

The submission fully meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability, despite its early stages of implementation. It also meets additional considerations of community empowerment, gender equality and social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability.

2002/140 Post-disaster reconstruction, affordable housing and urban greening of Baotou, China

Baotou (Place of the deer) is the capital of Inner Mongolia, one of China's major industrial centers and the largest in China's autonomous minority regions. It is known as the Steel Capital of the Northwest and harbors the world's largest reserves of rare earth. It covers an area of 167 square kilometers with a population of 2.3 million, made up of several ethnic minorities. The first settlements in Baotou date back to more than 5,000 years, but it first gained prominence in 1923 when a railway link was established with Beijing. After the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949, Baotou had a population of 116,000. As a major industrial center, it gained city status and its population grew to 1.36 million by 1996 with over 350,000 people living in the inner city core. Despite rapid industrial and economic growth, the living conditions in the inner city were very poor. Housing consisted, for the majority of the urban population, of one-story brick houses with a quasi-total lack of infrastructure and basic services. On 3 May 1996, a 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck Baotou, leveling the vast majority of these single-story houses and leaving 500,000 people homeless in the metropolitan region.

Despite the urgency of the situation and ongoing humanitarian relief operations, meetings of the municipal council rapidly concluded that the disaster should be turned into an opportunity for the comprehensive upgrading and reconstruction of the city. The Planning Commission, representing all stakeholders and elected representatives, approved a new set of housing and urban development policies, including a radical change in land-use, improved urban infrastructure and services and, for the first time, extensive green space including parks and gardens within the urban center. In order to fulfill the task of re-housing its citizens in a relatively short period of time, the Municipal Government of Baotou, with the help of experts and lessons learned from other cities, including experiences in post-disaster reconstruction and planning, adopted a set of new housing and urban development policies and strategies. On the housing front, all new construction would be built to withstand an earthquake of magnitude 8.0 on the Richter scale. In terms of affordability for low and limited-income groups, all victims rendered homeless as well as those living in precarious housing were to benefit from a one-time subsidy to move to new housing estates.

The Municipal Government provided incentives to real estate developers in the form of tax and construction fee exemptions amounting to 15% to 30% of construction costs. Real Estate Developers provided approximately 50% of the investment capital in new housing estates, with 30% being provided by private enterprises and 20% from the municipal government. A total of 130,000 job were created in the construction sector, providing much needed employment opportunities. Of these, 18.6% benefited women directly. Post-construction employment has risen to 407,000 jobs in all sectors of which 41.2% are occupied by women, a 9.8% increase over 1996 and a relatively high percentage for a city with a vocation in heavy industry. Under the guidance of the city's master plan, 1.15 million square metres of affordable houses were erected during the period from 1996 to 2001, accounting for nearly 50% of the total housing stock. 140 residential districts came into being, each covering an area of 20,000 m2 or more with complete sets of facilities, providing for 30,000 households who previously did not own their housing, as well as 130,000 households who were in need of better housing. The per capita floor space increased to 22 square metres in 2001 from 16 square metres in 1995 and the building of affordable housing has become one of the municipality's major policies to improve the living environment.

The inner city core has been completely transformed from a densely occupied and congested slum area to a green and clean mix of housing, commercial outlets, offices and large parks and gardens. Within the inner city core of 1.64 square kilometres, 13,600 families were re-housed in adjacent housing estates, allowing for the re-use of 630,000 square metres for new urban development and green space. As a result of the mobilization and participation of the entire population and of women in particular, women now occupy 25.4% of technical and supervisory posts in the public sector, a marked improvement over the past and an incentive to further improve this ratio in the future. New residential districts each have their own parks and gardens, recreational and parking spaces, schools, community health centers and other social facilities, providing for a high degree of accessibility and lowering the needs for transportation. 99% of all residences are connected to piped water supply; over 80% of all homes in the city are connected to district heating and 70% to piped gas, contributing to vastly improved air quality. 80% of residential areas are connected to sewers and 65% of the sewage is treated, with an additional sewage treatment plant under construction. One of the key area of the initiative has been the one-stop shop to facilitate access to and the processing of housing loans, mortgages and access to insurance and providence funds. This one-stop-shop has since been institutionalized in the form of a real estate management bureau providing all the financial, legal and administrative services required to buy, sell or rent any form of commercial, residential and industrial property.

The initiative fully meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability and the additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, gender equality and social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability.

2002/180 Area Based Assessment Of Property Tax In Patna, Bihar (India)

Area based assessment method as initiated in Patna Municipal Corporation has emerged as a legally tested, administratively tried and practically feasible method of property tax (PT) assessment in India. The Patna model presents a simplified assessment procedure based on Location, Construction and Use. This has minimised the discretionary and ad-hoc nature of assessment and has increased acceptability by tax payers and their compliance. The model has also prompted the inclusion of stakeholders in the areas of Municipal Finance such as Central/State Government, urban local governments and political and official functionaries to replicate it in a wider context.

The model initiated in Patna Municipal Corporation in 1993 has facilitated reduction in tax rate from 44% to 9% of annual assessed value. Despite these reduction the current revenues have escalated from US$ 315,660 to 1.34 million. To begin with the model was initiated in 1/27th part of the Patna City and now covers half of the City. It has demonstrated a potential of tenfold increase in revenues while drastically reducing rates. The model has earned legal sanctity from Honorable Supreme Court of India on the grounds of reasonableness and fairness.

Other Corporations of the State of Bihar have also adopted the Patna model. The Government of India has since issued guidelines to state governments to modify their assessment procedure of PT in line with the Patna model. The state government of Uttar Pradesh has already issued notification to enable urban local governments to change their PT assessment to area based method. The government of Madhya Pradesh has also modified its assessment procedure. The Government of Tamil Nadu has formulated new legislation on the basis of Patna model of taxation.

Finally, the model brings additional financial revenue to the kitty of municipal governments along with equity, fairness and acceptability by people. This enables local authorities to better respond to their citizens in terms of basic services, environmental health and safety and preventive health care.

The Patna Municipal Corporation has encouraged the Government of India to issue new policy directives for Tax reform at national level. Simplification of procedures, reduced rate of tax with increased revenue is worth replicating in most developing countries.

2002/352 Improving the quality of life for socially excluded children, India

Kolkata (City of Joy a.k.a Calcutta), with a population of 13.2 million, is one is one of the largest cities in the world. It's the capital city of the Indian state of West Bengal. More than a 100,000 children living in streets, red light areas, slums were left unattended and stayed away from schools. These vulnerable children were involved in menial labour, exposed to sexual exploitation and never had access to formal education. The purpose of the Educational Initiative is to mainstream all out-of-school children (in the age group (5-14 years) into local formal schools (Government aided/Municipal Corporation Schools/ Private run Boarding Schools) with the aim to improve the quality of life of these deprived urban children (Street children, Children living in Slums & Squatter colonies and Children of Sex-workers) who live in very appalling conditions. Priorities include protecting children in vulnerable situations through support by providing them shelter, protection, care and counselling with the Railway authorities, Police and the local public. Stakeholder participation comprised Community representation in Planning, Implementation & Sustainability by forming Apex Committees through the representation of Youth Club members, community volunteers, ward Councillors and parent-teacher committees. The initiative has not only reached out to 15,000 deprived urban children but has been able to enroll 8,000 children into formal schools while reuniting them with their respective families.

The initiative also aims to sustain the effort of the social reintegration of children through local resource mobilization and community participation to create a sustainable environment for the children to be retained in schools. Community based preparatory centres, coaching centres and residential camps are run for the children living in slums and squatter colonies, which help ensure that children remain in schools and to keep them away from forced labour.

Over the years, Children In Need Institute (CINI ASHA), has created a role model in the field of education by evolving its own Bridge Course method (accelerated method of teaching/learning) for out-of-school/ drop-outs/never been to school children. The children are reintegrated according to age and appropriate levels in one year's time. CINI ASHA has thus designed a total package of the Bridge Course Curriculum and training Module in collaboration with UNESCO for training approximately 400 community volunteers to date. CINI ASHA, has also been a pioneer in designing modules and conducting training of NGO representatives in the area of counselling specially for street children in collaboration with National Institute of Social Defence. The innovative strategies have been replicated and recognised by NGOs and the Government at the national level.

The initiative meets two of the three basic criteria of impact and sustainability and the additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, social inclusion and innovation within local context and transferability.

2002/151 Community-based Women-oriented initiative to fight poverty, Kerala, India

Kerala is a small state, tucked away in the southwest corner of India. It represents only 1.18% of the total area of India and has a population of 31 million. A quarter of the population resides in urban centres with a 91% overall literacy rate. Initially, manifestations of poverty were visible in varying intensity in all the 58 urban local bodies of Kerala, inspite of the implementation of several poverty reduction programmes by the Government, owing to the 'top-down' planning approach adopted by the latter. The urban CDS structure flourishing in the state of Kerala, India is an innovative community-based, women-oriented initiative to fight poverty. All urban-based poverty reduction programmes are now implemented through a three-tier Community Based Organisations' structure. This unique and innovative system that evolved out as a result of decentralised planning has already gained International recognition as a highly effective participatory system to addresss urban poverty.

The urban Comprehensive Development Strategies system of Kerala offers poor urban women an open forum to express their anguish, anxieties, aspirations, developmental needs and priorities. After identifying and prioritizing these developmental needs, the poor women themselves formulate micro plans to overcome their problems. Identification and analysis of poverty instances using 'non-economic risk indices', economic and social empowerment of poor women, promotion of micro enterprises for the sustainable development of poor families and educational and cultural upliftment of target class etc. get priority in the CDS structure, formed under Kudumbashree Mission (the State Poverty Eradication Mission).

Within a short span of three years, Kudumbashree Mission has brought about change in the lives of the urban poor of Kerala by converging resources, ideas and programmes of various departments through the CDS system. 169,000 poor urban women of the State have been organized into 7,848 grass root level self-help groups. Among other achievements include mobilization of savings and informal banking have resulted in the disbursement of US$ 1.18 million among members with a 100% repayment rate. The CDS structure has given birth to 12,991 vibrant micro enterprises, with 20,000 women owners. The urban CDSs of Kerala run remedial education centers for helping out poor students in public examinations. RECs of the CDS structure serves to enhance the educational standard of the students belonging to families and provide gainful employment to educated poor women. Community Based Organisations have mobilised their members and partners to construct 21,987 houses and 20,049 toilets for the urban poor with the initiative and resources of the CDSs.

2002/050 Formulating UN-HABITAT Integrated Guidelines and Framework for Eco-city, Korea

The initiative "Creating a 'Green City Hanam'" was conducted with a view to transform Hanam from a rural and carelessly developed city to a sustainable and environmentally sound self-sufficient city with a well-structured urban development and growth management. Since 1971, 98.4% of Hanam's total area has been designated as green belt area (development restricted area) and local residents have been raising a lot of complaints on legal restrictions in most areas. Therefore, there was a need to transform Hanam into a sustainable and environmentally sound city. To this end, in addition to a guideline for sustainable city development, four strategies were formulated based on: green belt deregulation policy; Landscape Ecology; development axis of 2016 Hanam City Master Plan; and expanded town concept.

Hanam generated a comprehensive and long-term framework to achieve this goal. Hanam sought the assistance of UN-HABITAT and UNEP to define the basic direction of an Eco-city and to introduce environmental technologies and international support programs. Four main considerations were used: (1) energy saving, (2) water circulation, (3) land use and transportation, and (4) biodiversity and urban space structure.

As a result of a partnership between UN-HABITAT/UNEP, UNDP, the Environment Promotion Foundation, SNU, Korean and foreign experts of various fields, citizens and NGOs, Hanam was able to realize most of its goals. Among them was the development of a local agenda 21 to realize an Eco-city plan and creation of a database based on an ecological survey conducted by experts. In leading the Eco-city plan to actual implementation, another unique feature has been the use of pilot projects. A trust was established for pilot projects to facilitate Eco-city development focusing on the development of Agenda 21 and investment. Having achieved more environmentally sound and globally sustainable development, Hanam then embarked upon the Hanam Sustainable City Programme (SCP). Forging of partnerships proved that planning can only be effective through a local community base. The 'Hanam's Biodiversity Strategy' was presented at the 'Urban Environment Forum' in Cape Town, September 2000, and the city of Hanam won the '2001 Asia Green City Award' in Singapore, September 2001. TAC recognises that although this is an on-going project, its impact on other cities in Korea is great and the success enjoyed by Hanam is now being used as an Eco-city model all over Northeast Asia.

The initiative meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability although still not complete. It also meets two out of the three additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability.

2002/328 Community Watch Against Domestic and Gender Violence, Cebu City, Philippines

Cebu City, covering an area of 329 square kilometers, has population of 610,417. It is the regional capital of Central Visayas and lies at the heart of the Philippine archipelago, 568 kilometers south of Manila. The city has a literacy rate of 97 percent, however, illiteracy rates among females (3.4 percent) are higher compared to males' (2.8 percent). The Bantay Banay concept or "Family/Community Watch Group Against Domestic and Gender Violence" was conceived in January 31, 1992 in Cebu City by participants to a Forum where it was revealed that 60 % of the women were battered by their spouses. The initial approach was to involve the community members in order to respond and reduce cases of domestic violence. The group members, who include lawyers, regularly met to share experiences and review their objectives and activities. Victims who later become members are afforded temporary shelter, food, medical care and legal assistance. Community members receive training on gender issues, applicable laws and legal process, crisis intervention and mediation and are invloved in networking and advocacy with government agencies, administration, sponsors and policy makers has been instrumental in ensuring success of the programme. A survey on domestic violence was conducted and results presented to an interagency council for urban basic Services (UNICEF sponsored). Members of the council created a task force that was later named Bantay Banay. The task force negotiated with the city hospital for free laboratory services to victims during medico-legal check up. The group approached the mayor for funds to train police personnel on gender sensitivity while the City Health Department was involved in training women on health issues.

Intervention programmes include isolating victims from abusive environment, affording them medical legal and economic support to get ban on their feet. The Bantay Banay programme has been replicated in 60 cities and municipalities throughout the Philippines. Many of the member groups were financially sponsored to build their capacity to respond to such cases. Direct response to victims is the responsibility of these partner agencies. In Cebu city alone, 50 out of 80 barangays (wards) have their own Bantay Banay volunteers who respond to cases and refer them to appropriate authorities. The Bantay Banay council has succeeded in lobbying for retention of the Gender Development Budget allocation by the municipality. The group has also been instrumental in lobbying for enactment/revision of the anti-rape law, sexual harassment law and pro-women laws.

The overall group activities currently involve 1,500 community volunteers in Cebu City and Bantay Banay. On average 2,000 cases are handled annually by the groups network. Women's rights as human rights are recognized and a 'Gender and Development code' has been passed providing for protection of women victims of violence in the Philippines. The most important lessons from this program are that good governance results from the interplay of the many actors. Government alone cannot do it without participation of the people.

The initiative fully meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability and the three additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, gender equality and social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability.

2002/077 Central Council of Disabled Persons, Sri Lanka

Recent figures show that 7.4% of the people in Sri Lanka are disabled and the growth rate is higher than the normal by 0.04%. The idea of setting up a Disabled Persons Organisation was a brainchild of 15 disabled people who met regularly in hospitals while undergoing treatment and rehabilitation. The aim was to create a forum that addresses the special needs of the disabled and is primarily run by the disabled. It would also address the vocational training and unemployment situation of the disabled as many face discrimination at the work place even when fully qualified.

With the compensation received from the government for disability sustained after an attack by robbers, an individual - Mr. Marasinghe invited other disabled people to team up and start an income generation enterprise. Some of them had prior training in handicrafts and volunteered to train their colleagues. An offer was received to display and sell wares to tourists at an up-market hotel on recognition of the quality of work and the dedication of the group. This brought a measure of success and gave a degree of independence and thus the Foundation for the Independence of Disabled (FID) which was later renamed Central Council for Disabled Persons (CCODP).

To counter resistance from the local community caused by the traditional beliefs and myths that disability is a curse, the CCODP embarked on an aggressive awareness campaign on the causes, treatment and reality of disability. They sought and received support from local leaders who provided assistance in organising workshops at the village level. Many families in the villages approached the group with questions on how they can receive assistance for a disabled family member. School heads and religious leaders provided overwhelming support and sensitisation campaigns were done in schools, using school leavers and religious services resulting in a change of attitude in the population. As the initiative received wider ownership and recognition, officers from the Ministry of Social Services offered the use of Government machinery and network to involve other local CBOs. This partnership culminated in a study carried out together with the National School of Social Work on the disability prevalence in the district. The results of this study were an important milestone as for the first time, tangible data on the magnitude of disability was available in the district.

CCODP attaches great importance to the disabled persons' ability to operate independently and to compete on a level playing field with the able-bodied. In this light, CCODP has initiated several programmes aimed at addressing various concerns which include Social Development Programme, Women's Programme, Research and Development Unit, Computer and Language Training, Enterprise Development Programme, Environmental Programme, Housing for Rural Disabled and Micro finance for Women. Through these programmes, CCODP has over the years, offered direct and indirect support to over 20,000 disabled and disadvantaged people from all over the island. The support has been provided through direct training and bursaries to disabled student and direct employment or loans to set up their own enterprises. CCODP has also funded a number of local seminars, organised leadership training for people with disability and an international conference on community based rehabilitation. CCODP prefers to compete for government tenders with other manufacturers as an equal rather than invoke the special treatment and quota reserved for the minority groups and currently generates more than 80% of its income from the enterprise development programmes. 40 acres of land have been set aside to implement a tree planting programme to replenish what is used up in the production of the various products whose raw materials is mainly timber.

2002/246 Development of Informal Financial Institutions, Tashkent, Uzbekistan

The Association of Business Women of Uzbekistan was established with the aim to improve the status of women living in Uzbekistan and achieve economic empowerment of the population living in rural areas. In Uzbekistan, women make up 51% of the total population and 45.1% of the workforce. Under conditions of economic transition, from a controlled to free market economy, unemployment levels were extremely high affecting the entire population and impacting strongly on women who were in most cases marginalised in comparison to men, a situation made worse by the strong traditional beliefs. Before 1996, the state could solve the unemployment problem using administrative sanctions since the path towards the liberalization of the market economy had been started. In 1997, the government stopped the process of liberalization; foreign currency conversion was cancelled; governmental management of export and import operations and a strict system of taxation were introduced. The changes in the macro-economic policy resulted in feminization of poverty with women accounting for over 90 % of the unemployed persons; gender inequality in access to social services, labor-market and financial resources and a financial/bank system that did not support growth of the private sector.

To address this situation, the Association launched the 'Integrated Program on Improvement of the Situation with Women in Rural Areas of Uzbekistan.' Taking into account the peculiarities of the rural Uzbek woman: low mobility; part time employment orientation; desire to work not far from home and prevalence of gender stereotypes, the program includes: education modules on legal issues, job training, professional development, involvement of women in micro-finance and the establishment of credit unions. A "Legal integrated literacy of women" program was introduced to empower women. This programme was deemed necessary to counter the then existing stereotype that depicted women as being mere servants to their husbands without any rights. The Association partnered with Winrock International, USAID\Eurasia Fund and a network of local NGOs. The achievements of the initiative include:

• 12,000 women were trained and 2,500 business women obtained credits;

• Creation of jobs for women;

• The government's attitudes toward the activities of NGOs has changed positively;

• The program well satisfied the goal of gender equality by providing various services and improved the life of women in Uzbekistan.

Europe

2002 / 206 Launch and Development of the Cordoba, Spain

Prior to 1999, an Equality Plan implemented by the Provincial Women's Centre in Cordoba was not transversal in nature and did not create the impact intended. With the transfer of some of the staff and responsibilities to the Cordoba's Women's Institute under the auspices of the Andalusian Regional Government, the remaining duties were taken up by the Department of Women of the Cordoba Provincial Council.

The Transversal Gender Committee developed the first transversal gender plan "Equal Opportunities Plan" 2000-2003 in the Provincial Council of Cordoba. The aim of the plan was to create work and mutual support networks to foster the exchange of experiences and actions related to gender mainstreaming and equal opportunities for women and men, as well as developing positive synergies around this topic at all levels: political, technical and in the social and business fabric of the province. Active lobbying was done to keep politicians and technical staff of all departments informed on the development of the Transversal Plan and related activities. The strategy that was applied was to prioritise gender training among the technical and political staff of institutions related to the Provincial Council. With the political support of the Councillor of the Presidency, the Transversal Gender Plan was transferred to the Department of the Presidency of the Province of Cordoba, which has a stronger influence on all other departments requiring them to make financial contributions every year and appoint one staff member to sit on the Tranversal Gender Committee.

In March 2000, a sensitization campaign dubbed "Route for Equality" was organised to inform members of the public of the Equal Opportunities Plan and to provide community members an opportunity to raise their concerns and views on the same and 75 specific action plans were drawn up. A training programme for unemployed women was initiated to enhance their chances of securing a job. 45 women have so far benefited from this scheme which came complete with free transportation to attend the training courses and childcare for their children while they were in class.

This initiative successfully incorporated the gender perspective into provincial and local Agenda 21 environment programmes in the province of Cordoba. The Plan has been successful in incorporating a fixed gender clause when drafting all agreements to be signed by the Provincial Council with public and private organisations. A vast number of organisations have been involved in the project and include 75 municipal councils in the Province of Cordoba, the Provincial Economic Development Consortium, various women's associations, financial institutions and the private sector.

The initiative meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability and the additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, gender equality and social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability.

2002 / 205 Protection and Rehabilitation of the Historical World Heritage, Spain

The City of Santiago de Compostela has a population of 120,000 and is in the region of Galicia, Spain. The historical City had over the years deteriorated and was faced with migration of inhabitants from the area leaving 16% of the houses empty, an aging population, traffic congestion and abandoned river beds. 40% of the houses required rehabilitation to be made safe for human occupation and open space was not well maintained.

In 1994, the Municipal Council of Santiago de Compstela approved the Special Plan of Historical City Protection and Rehabilitation that had gone through various phases of public information, cultural and social debate. The main objective was to give the City a facelift through a comprehensive rehabilitation programme that encompasses the creation of green space and development of a new traffic system that regulates the use of motor vehicles. The state, regional and local administrations, the residents and people working in the city financed the Plan. The rehabilitation projects are now eligible for funds from the general housing policies. The projects initially faced opposition from the public but extensive sensitisation and training programmes were established to encourage and share the cost of small-scale rehabilitation. The reintroduction of traditional materials and the introduction of compatible low-energy cost technologies were faced with strong resistance due to deep-rooted habits and strong interest in real estate while the construction of pedestrian lanes and car parks was opposed by many shop owners.

This unique initiative provides improved housing to residents at an affordable cost while improving the aesthetical value of the City. Among other achievements, more than 650 projects, with public aid have been rehabilitated with 80% already occupied. The Programme has reversed the trend of the systematic destruction of the wooden interiors of historical architecture. Following the success of the projects, a further 400 have been initiated exclusively by the private sector - a stable and growing trend that bodes well for the goal of comprehensive rehabilitation. Despite the shortage of land, 23 ha have been zoned as new public parks that are maintained by the City Council. There has been a noted change in the resident's attitude towards their natural environment with overwhelming financial and technical support in the process. A field of specialisation and employment has arisen for small businesses, professionals and technicians. The historical city has been reunited with its natural surroundings, restored pedestrian lanes and institutionalized a stable inter-administrative cooperation entity. A series of training courses were organised for architects and various technical experts designed specifically for the rehabilitation of buildings. The city is currently a partner to the Finestra (Recite II) programme that encourages the exchange of public-private collaboration experiences with other cities in Europe.

The program fully meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability and two of the three additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, and innovation within local context and transferability.

2002 / 212 Coruna Solidarity Co-operation Network, Spain

The City of Coruna doubled its population between 1940 and 1980, resulting in chaotic and overcrowded buildings. Since 1985, Coruna has undergone a thorough renewal with the opening of the City to the sea, the construction of the Promenade, the removal of military installations, improvement of road networks and introduction of cultural, educational and tourist infrastructure. There however was lack of a strategic development plan in Coruna addressing the issue of social welfare with local welfare policy and social entities working separately. The Municipality of Coruna created The Coruna Solidarity Cooperation Network as a model for citizen participation in the implementation of social welfare policies through the strengthening of the city's non-profit sector and coordination with other Municipalities.

A group of experts in consultation with the non-profit sector formulated the objectives of the Network complete with plans and projects and their implementation defined in different stages. The biggest challenge was to reconcile the objectives of the individual non-profit organisations. Taking this into account, the model had to have aims sufficiently generic to be accepted by the diverse groups while maintaining specific content to develop work plans. The fundamental point was to create a system for citizen participation for the development of the city's non-profit sector with the ultimate aim of improving citizen welfare in a sustainable way.

To date, the Network is made up of 140 institutions representing foundations, charities, philanthropist associations, trade unions, professional organizations, neighborhood associations, federations of associations, municipal representatives and groups of people who suffer social and health problems. The groups work in the city for the welfare of people in specialized fields such as health, disability, immigration, senior citizens, children and youth, drug addiction, women, social exclusion, the environment, cooperation in international development and aid. The network as a whole operates with 1800 volunteers, 28000 members who provide financial support, and generate employment for 950 people.

The TAC commends this initiative for its success in strengthening the community by providing a support structure for the development of the non-profit sector. Various specialised service networks have been established including the Municipal Women's Service that has benefited over 800 women, the Municipal Children and Family Service that has served more than 6,500 families and the Municipal Drug Addiction Service that has more than 3,700 users. The Municipal Social Inclusion Service develops programmes for the eradication of sub-standard housing, social emergencies and social inclusion that have been used by more than 2,200 people. A Municipal Plan for Sexual Equality has been introduced to encourage the active participation of women in the programme and provide specialised services that meet the needs of women. These include the creation of a Women's Centre where gender policies are developed, women's shelters and a mobile phone alarm service for women facing harassment. The Coruna Solidarity Cooperation Network is incorporated in the Municipal Welfare Plan.

The program fully meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability as well as the three additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, gender equality and social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability.

2002 / 054 Mother Centre International Network / AG International, Germany

The Mother Centres International Network is the result of a grassroots women's movement that started in Germany as a consequence of a research project at the German Youth Institute in Munich. Following the economic transition and war that was occuring in many countries in Central and Eastern Europe, the role of civil society has been systematically dismantled and family and neighbourhood networks destroyed. Unemployment, war trauma and unprecedented poverty often led to disorientation and retreat into depression and apathy.

Mother centres were created to address the needs of women and children and recreate family and neighbourhod structures in the community where modernisation in the West and totalitarian systems and war in the East have destroyed them.They empower mothers and create new channels for female participation and leadership in communities and local governance. They are an innovative model on how to strengthen civil society and democracy by revitalising neighborhoods and community culture. They are melting pots in the community for women of diverse class and ethnic backgrounds to meet and join forces to deal with everyday life issues, to create community services and to rechannel resources to the grassroots level. Mother centres are consulted regularly by municipal agencies as well as by local, regional and national governments. They advocate on gender and family issues and have had impact on national legislation and urban planning .

The first three model Mother Centres were funded by the German Government Department for Family Affairs. Following the transition in Central and Eastern Europe Mother Centres were created from the bottom up as self help initiatives in the Czech and Slovac Republics, in Bulgaria, Russia, Georgia and Bosnia Herzegowina. World wide there are now some 700 mother centers, including Africa and North America. The centres operate as a switchboard for information, skills, support and resources for every day life and survival issues. Depending on their size and how long they have been working, mother centres reach between 50 and 500 families in their neighbourhood and have proven to be successful with training and job re-entry programmes as well as creating new businesses and income generating opportunities.

This practice demonstrates the importance of gender issues for the Habitat Agenda and that gender concerns are conditional elements in the strengthening of communities and neighbourhoods that in turn is necessary in improving the quality of the living environment.

2002 / 312 Sustainable Urban District Freiburg-Vauban, Germany

The city of Freiburg bought the Urban District of Freiburg-Vauban, which had been used as an army base for over 50 years. The area occupies a 42 hectare site and is being developed for a population of 5,000 inhabitants by the year 2014.

"Forum Vauban", an NGO created in 1994, has become the official body for extended citizen participation in municipal affairs. The City of Freiburg formed a special committee to spearhead activities to transform the Freiburg-Vauban for use by the civilian population. Regular meetings took place between the Forum Vauban and members of the City Administration with special roundtables and workshops sessions where necessary. The process is guided by stipulations in the master plan including specifications on the height of the buildings, standards for low-energy use and consumption, the general structure of the development site and other regulations concerning rainwater infiltration and the greening of facades and roofs. To address social issues, city welfare institutions were established to provide services and support to specific target groups - children, youth, families and to enhance conflict resolution while supporting grassroots initiatives.

The current neighbourhood houses 1,200 citizens, 10% of whom are children below 10 years of age. All houses have been built to improved low energy standards. Production of carbon dioxide has been reduced by 60% through the use of insulation and efficient heat supply systems utilising solar power and a co-generation plant. Traffic has reduced drastically with 35% of households agreeing to live without a car and the introduction of a car sharing system. Play grounds and public spaces have been reserved for green development. Building owners have come together to form an organisation that develops schemes that enable the low-income earners to gain access to home ownership. An extremely high level of citizen participation characterizes the housing project, not only in planning but also in construction.

The ecological housing scheme has made solid contributions to the European sustainable development debate on energy conservation, reduction in car use and the creation of a green living environment for children and community activities.

2002 / 244 Sustainable Urban Development in the City of Malmo, Sweden

The city of Malmo has a population of 259,579 with a large majority being foreign citizens. The Western Harbour of Malmo was a landfill with polluted soil and a former industrial estate belonging to the Kockums shipyard. The Augustenborg district built as a post-war model in the 1950s could not cater for the needs of the growing population and was faced with a myriad of social and economic problems. Building new and revitalizing old residential areas were identified as priority needs for the region.

The municipality of Malmo taking into account the Local Agenda 21 action plan, the Comprehensive Plan for Malmo 2000, the Environmental Programme and the Gender equality plan adopted by the City Council in 2001 embarked on two comprehensive housing projects in the Western Harbour of Malmo.

A local housing company in partnership with the City of Malmo and the local community initiated the Ekostaden Augustenborg project. 1,800 dwelling units were rehabilitated with 95 of them being reconstructed for people with special needs. A pilot recycling project was established, and an electric car pool set up as a means of affordable shared transport. Green space is better maintained and local treatment of surface water run-offs has decreased the risk of flooded basements during heavy rain.

The Bo01 - City of Tomorrow was initiated to transform the Western Habour from a polluted wasteland to an ecologically leading edge example of sustainable urban development. The process started with large efforts made at cleaning the polluted soil. Infrastructure for traffic, energy, waste and water were established and 600 new dwellings constructed to accommodate the different needs of the elderly, students and families. The district is supplied with 100% locally produced renewable energy. The "Quality Programme for Bo01" guides the programme by outlining minimum level of quality required.

As a result of these projects, the City of Malmo has noted a change in people's attitudes and behaviour with increased recycling of household waste and increased popularity of the bicycle as a means of transport. A wide range of innovative "green" products and services have resulted from the projects e.g. green roofs, low energy villas and renewable energy solutions. The TAC is of the opinion that this concerted effort and commitment of the local authorities and its partners demonstrates that Local Agenda 21 is a viable concept. In the City of Malmo, it has helped guide comprehensive sustainable urban development.

The program fully meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability as well as the three additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, gender equality and social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability.

2002 / 041 SODIS, Solar Water Disinfection, Switzerland

The Swiss Federal Institute for Environmental Science and Technology (EAWAG) challenged by the alarming statistics of disease infection and death rates due to the lack of access to safe drinking water, developed a very simple but extremely effective low-cost device for water purification that can be applied worldwide. The priorities were outlined with the rural population in developing countries in mind. The new method for water purification had to produce safe drinking water, be applicable at the household level, be simple in application, rely on local resources and renewable energy and be replicable with low investment costs.

Researchers carried out comprehensive laboratory and field-tests to develop and test the effectiveness of SODIS - the device developed for the purification of drinking water using solar energy. The principle behind SODIS is that radiation in the spectrum of UV/A and increased water temperature destroy pathogens that cause disease. A solar radiation intensity of at least 500W/m2 is required over a period of 5 hours for SODIS to be effective. To do this, all that is required is a simple plastic container such as disposable mineral water bottles with one side painted black and a cover to reduce the risk of re-contamination. Through a massive publicity campaign, including demonstrations, SODIS is in use in many developing countries where assessments have shown a decrease in infection rates and drastic improvements in children's nutritional status. Time and fuel consumption have been saved and less effort is required in purifying water using traditional means such as boiling. A survey carried out indicates that 84% of current users appreciate the new technology and will continue to use it in future. SODIS promotion and dissemination initiatives and activities are in progress or have been initiated in Latin America, Indonesia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, India, Nepal, Kenya, Liberia, Angola, Mexico, Brazil amongst other developing nations.

The TAC is of the opinion that this technology provides a solution to both rural and urban low-income households with lack of access to safe drinking water supply and an alternative to chemical treatment processes. In addition, SODIS contributes to the sustainability of the environment through the re-use of plastic bottles.

2002 / 095 Orchard Park and North Hull Enterprises Limited, United Kingdom

Orchard Park and North Hull were established as resettlement areas for residents following the decline of the fishing industry in the 1960s and the subsequent slum clearance of the Hull docks. Since then, these two neighbourhoods suffered from high levels of unemployment, exclusion from the local economy, a high welfare dependency rate, poor housing and a disproportionately large number of single parent households as well as drug abuse and a high crime rate.

The Orchard Park and North Hill Enterprises was established in 1989 as a community-business partnership, independent of local and national government. It works on a non-profit basis and aims to improve the local economic structure through creation of jobs that, at the same time, contributes to enhanced self-belief and dignity.

Since its inception, over 4,000 residents have been assisted in getting employed, 339 new businesses formed and 735 new jobs created. A training centre was also created, which has provided training to over 1,000 persons. Every year about 34,000 people visit OPNHE and seek advice on employment, training and business support issues. Several projects have been initiated including the UPBEAT project which is a successful intermediate labour market model that provides participants with a year of full time, waged employment in a local small-scale micro enterprise, coupled with related vocational training. This project simultaneously assists disadvantaged people to get training and jobs. Another initiative that was used to socially re-engage the socially and economically excluded residents was through the use of arts. The Achieving Real Transportation (A.R.T) project provides free arts activities for local people that raises their aspirations and self-esteem. Through its business support unit, OPNHE supports new businesses and stimulates locally based economic activity by providing a range of intensive help for start-ups, micro-firms and small scale micro-enterprises. All projects are available to men and women, regardless of age, race, sexuality and disability.

This practice shows how employment creation can contribute to social rehabilitation and inclusion when sufficient commitment is generated through local initiative.

Latin America and the Caribbean

2002 / 602 Humanitarian News Agency (a Red Solidaria project) Argentina

The Humanitarian News Agency, created in 1995, provides mass media with information about disturbing situations of marginalisation, and about solidarity initiatives taken by ordinary citizens to revert such situations. The goal of the initiative is to communicate and generate interest, initiatives and opportunities for solidarity. The credibility of the Agency with the media is based on the work, transparency and trustworthiness of Red Solidaria, a network organisation of volunteers who guide and create bridges between those in need and those willing to help, using the telephone. It is funded by contributions from companies and foundations.

The Agency systematically maintains daily contact with journalists, producers and media executives, social leaders and other individuals. The first successes were in 1997 and 1998 when the largest national newspapers started "solidarity ads" (ads about particular needs and the services offered) and regular weekly "solidarity supplements". Then one national TV program included a 10-minute slot on social entrepreneurs and others followed suit, with campaigns to generate participation in particular cases. The guiding principles are:

• To approach the media realistically, with cases that have "news-value";

• Ascertain that media exposure will not add to people's suffering;

• To rely on a solid organizational background;

• To develop a clear identity as a news agency, nationally and internationally credible and independent;

• To avoid the "solidarity ghetto", focusing on mass media, rather than specialist media.

Since the establishment of Red Solidaria

• 275,000 phone calls and e-mails have been received, half reporting needs, and half seeking to collaborate;

• An active relationship is maintained with 350 NGO's around the country;

• 17,000 cancer and HIV-Aids patients have received medicines and treatment;

• 180 food centres, 70 foster children and single mothers, 250 rural schools receive support;

• 505 missing children have been found;

• A four-month Post-Graduate Program on Solidarity Culture was created in 1998 (320 professionals have completed it);

• 80 Community Orientation Volunteers have been trained;

• Establishment of 23 Red Solidaria coordination centres in Argentina, and three abroad (Paris, Sao Paulo, New York).

2002 / 594 Urban Agriculture For Agroecological Development, Argentina

Camilo Aldao in the province of Córdoba covers an area of 402 ha and has a population of 5,302. The main economic and income generating activity is agricultural, as the region is very fertile. The "Urban Agriculture For Agroecological Development" project originated following the 1995 economic crisis that led to the closure of the agricultural cooperative and of two mutual savings and loan clubs. The once highly profitable production of cash crops had brought neglect of activities like the production of vegetables, and fruit and rearing of animals. Fruit and vegetable supplies were brought in from urban centres located between 170 and 300 km away.

The Municipality brought together actors from different sectors to form the "Solidarity Action Center", to establish a sustainable local development strategy. The aim was to involve the community in activities they knew about, to avoid emigration, and to generate alternatives from local resources and potential. Different schemes were initiated engaging community members to exploit the potential of the rural land and provide for local consumption and contribute to the region's economy. The schemes included the communal dairy farm, which utilised land donated by the municipality and a 1,300 liter communal milk cooler acquired by loan to collectively sell milk delivered by individual families. The Productive use of Domestic Waste plan involves sensitization and continuous training of the population separate of household waste through young volunteers formed into Ecoclubs. The Homemade Jam Factory began in the Integral Educational Center, which trains handicapped students. In 1993 they cooked meals with their own farm produce to take home. Then they brought fruit from home and started making jam. The chicken farming for self-consumption project was initiated with 20% of the production being delivered to a welfare institution. The organic community farms started in March 2001 with the municipality loaning vacant land. Now a group of 25 families has been formed with priority given to single mothers, long-term unemployed, handicapped, and pensioners, who use the land and sell the produce to the community.

The initiative's efforts have thus far achieved the following results:

• 85% of the community participate in separation waste at origin;

• The community takes care of its own environment, and consumes local products;

• The "Ecoclub" of youngsters 7 to 17 years old was established that controls, promotes and incorporates education awareness activities;

• 107 families have learned how to produce their own food ecologically, improving the quantity and quality of their diet and generating their own income;

• 20% of vacant land is now in production, and the landscape is improved;

• Social policy has changed from social assistance to production for consumption and income generation, and enabled the reinsertion of women, elderly, and the handicapped into mainstream social life;

• The community is increasingly involved in decisions affecting its own future well being;

• Inter-municipal Committees discuss strategies for good environmental and financial administration, the generation of employment for the participating Municipalities, and assistance in setting up their own programmes.

2002 / 279 Ecocitizen Programme - Rio de Janeiro

Macaé City produces 80% of the national oil, which has been heavily exploited since 1980. Located 182 kilometres from Rio de Janeiro, Macaé has a 40-kilometre coastline and a diverse ecosystem with beaches, forests and mountains. Between 1980 and 2000 there was population growth from 40,000 to 120,000 leading to unequal growth and environmental deterioration accompanied by lack of basic urban services to meet the demands of the growing population. A daily mobility of 35,000 workers linked to the Petroleum Company (Petrobras) coming from neighbouring towns presents a major challenge to the city maintenance.

The Ecocitizen Programme was initiated in Macaé to raise social awareness on the protection of the environment, as a means to improve quality of life. The process was institutionalised in 1999 by an NGO, the Environmental and Contemporary Culture Studies Centre. Through questionnaires given to several sectors of the community, priorities and needs were outlined. Strategies were created to "wake up" the citizens, making them notice that their attitudes and actions impact on the environment. Funds come from local government, in which a systematic annual budget is institutionalised, together with private sector partnerships, making possible all events, campaigns and material for education and general sensitisation of the population. Schools, religious groups and local organisations provide volunteers and open space to different activities. Technical support comes from local and international universities with the collaboration of local co-operative groups. Creativity and social engagement were the main forces strengthened through the process. The blind get material written in Braille so they too can actively participate in the programme's activities. To date, the programme has been working closely with schools, petrol stations, markets, churches, banks, industries, beaches, individual homes and other associations within the city. The changes in social behaviour have been monitored by field research. This programme engages different sectors of the community in an innovative way to address health and environmental issues. It has yielded the following results:

• Reduction of dumping waste onto the streets by 4 tons per day;

• A 70% increase in use of public garbage containers;

• Separation of garbage at source has increased by 70%;

• Work related accidents among garbage collectors have decreased by 87%;

• 15% of fishermen have started using sun protection;

• Contributed to the creation of a recycle industry that processes waste into bricks that are donated to the needy;

• The garbage collectors income has increased by 40% per month through sale of recyclable material which is becoming more popular among the population;

• Improved aesthetical value of the city that has helped tourism activities as well as business and entertainment.

2002 / 282 Regional Integration for Availability of Water - Sao Paulo

The rapid increase in population to (4 million inhabitants in 62 municipalities) in the Piracicaba, Capivari and Jundiaí river basin region in addition to the withdrawal of water from the river basin to supply the greater Sao Paulo metropolitan area resulted in depleted local water supply. In addition there was low coverage at 3% of sewage collection and treatment in the region.

The Consortium PCJ was created as a result of the need to have a regional body to resolve issues related to water resources in the region which in the past was under conflict. Initiated in 1989, the Consortium involved 11 cities, a number that has grown to 42 cities and 34 companies. The project also contributes to the economical, social and environmental sustainability of the region.

The main strategies and the setting of priorities were identified through open meetings and events for local leadership development, involving stakeholders from different sectors. Regional integration, planning and management for sustainable water supply and awareness raising on environmental protection, have been taken as priority. An integrated support programme was developed for the implementation of the Consortium that outlined specific projects such as Cities Support, Technical Co-operation, River Basins Management, Industrial and Urban Waste Treatment, Domestic and Health Solid Waste Management, Protection of Water Springs for Public Supply, Public Water Distribution Systems Management, Replanting Forest Areas and Environmental Education.

Social mobilisation was carried out by local groups, and co-ordinated largely by women. The responsible citizenship and awareness raising for environmental management was stimulated though schools and youth groups, and the programme has been carried out with the support of local governments and the private sector and voluntary contributions have been crucial to the process.

A Water Collection and Production Plan for the Piracicaba and Capivari Rivers was elaborated and a Basin Committee founded. The PCJ Consortium has assisted the creation of other similar initiatives, which replicate most of the successful mechanisms used, such as: cost recovery, budgeting and priority definition, executive secretariat structure, environmental education, participatory process model and methodology, etc. The experience has contributed to the definition of a River Basin Management Policy.

The program fully meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability as well as the three additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, gender equality and social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability.

2002 / 347 Solidarity in Literacy Programme - Brazil

Illiteracy is a major social problem in Brazil with 1997 statistics showing an illiteracy rate of 55% in the 15-year and older age group in 38 municipalities. The Solidarity in Literacy Programme was created in 1997 by the Solidarity Community Council, a national forum for the development of social actions based on partnerships between central government, private organisations and civil society. The programme is managed by a non-governmental organisation, the Association for the Support of the Solidarity in Literacy Programme. The programme's objective is to provide education to the illiterate at national level targeting the regions with highest illiteracy rates and adopting a model to meet the specific characteristics of each region.

The Programme's model is based on modules of semester literacy training that take place through a simple alliance between the government, civil society and the academic community that runs for 6 months. One month is dedicated to the training of the literacy trainers who are selected from within the community that will be served. The other five months are used to offer classes to the illiterate community. The programme targets the youths and adults, giving priority to the youth ensuring continuity in education after participation in the programme. The majority of the students are from rural districts.

Financial resources are assured by the National Fund for the Development of Education, with the collaboration of the Brazilian Ministry of Education, raised by the Mayor's Office. Members of the public, the private sector and individuals also contribute towards the programme.

By the end of 2001, 70% of the municipalities involved had increased the number of student enrolment by 114%. The programme qualified over 100,000 literacy trainers. The programme created a wide discussion among the academic partners, resulting in the emergence of solutions that address illiteracy in the country. Specific subjects in the area were absorbed at the curricular level and specialisation courses developed including theoretical and practical guidelines. Before the creation of the programme fewer than 10 higher learning institutions worked with education for youth and adults, a number that has since risen to 204. A specific programme was created at the federal level, the RESTART Programme and from 2002 on, resources will be redistributed by the National Foundation for the Development of Education. The programme began in 38 municipalities is currently working in 2,010 municipalities, which corresponds to 45% of the municipalities of the country. The programme is being replicated in East Timor, Sao Tome and Principe, and Mozambique.

2002 / 554 Gender and Citizenship within the Integrated Programme for Social Inclusion Santo Andre

Santo Andre, with a population of 625,654, is part of the Sao Paulo Metropolitan Area, one of the largest mega-cities of the Region. Developed as a centre for industrial production some 30 years ago, Santo Andre has been dealing with a large crisis, generated by the crash and substitution of its original economic model. As a result, during the last decade, the living conditions for the majority of the population has decreased and a number of favelas, areas of extreme poverty, have appeared in the city. The municipality is promoting an Integrated Programme of Social Inclusion as a strategy to alleviate poverty.

The Integrated Program of Social Inclusion, a pilot program, has as its purpose the establishment of new ways of managing local public policies addressing social inclusion. The programme addresses decentralisation and participatory management and is comprised of projects spearheaded by the Municipal Administration emphasising on the social inclusion of sectors that were previously ignored. Four priority groups were chosen to develop the Integrated Program (PIIS) as a pilot project assuming a further expansion all over the remaining town. The four slum nucleus are: Sacadura Cabral, Tamarutaca, Capuava and Quilombo II. The objective of the initiative is to integrate community participation in the local management actions of social policies, giving the slum population an opportunity to develop social inclusion strategies through integrated actions. During the first stages, the Program elaborated on developing criteria and an efficient methodology to fight against social exclusion. Through a discussion of specific objectives, there was formation of three management teams working in co-ordination in order to maintain up-to-date communication channels to offer prompt information about the works in course and its subsequent developments (planning, execution and evaluation).

The project has seen the improvement of basic services in some of the worst regions in the area. Micro-credit facilities have been made available to small-scale entrepreneurs while health care is more accessible with community health agents appointed to provide medical attention within neighbourhoods. Recreational facilities have also been made available with open spaces being allocated as playing grounds. An index that is used to measure social exclusion/social inclusion has been elaborated and data collection is done on a regular basis. This exercise helps in the identification of the areas of weakness that would require extra effort at improvement. One of the most important victories achieved was the engagement of all the teams involved without losing the specificity intrinsic to each project, opening a strong channel of communication between the technicians and the local agents.

The program fully meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability as well as the three additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, gender equality and social inclusion, and innovation within local context and transferability.

2002 / 521 Integrated Solid Waste Management Programme, Ecuador

The City of Loja was characterised by dispersed dumping yards in inhabited areas, which led to an elevation in infections and contagious diseases. There was no consolidation in garbage collection efforts and garbage collectors and recyclers were working in extreme inhumane conditions.

As part of the "Action Plan for Loja - 21st Century", Loja Municipality elaborated the Integrated Solid Waste Management Programme in consultation with members of the public and other stakeholders. The Plan focuses on supporting the poor and marginalised citizens and environmental protection and conservation through use of new technologies.

Through a massive information and educational campaign, the community members actively contributed to the establishment of a sanitary landfill to which they were initially opposed. In a continuous door-to-door campaign, municipal personnel deliver green and black waste bins, informational pamphlets and collection schedules to each household. This initiative where the household waste is separated at source has successfully extended to 80% of the city. A system of fines for non-compliance was introduced to control the separation of garbage. Biodegradable waste is used to produce compost in the worm composting plant and the product is sold as organic fertiliser. All the recyclable material is processed and sold to industries while special arrangements have been made for the toxic and infectious hospital waste to safeguard against hazards.

The program covers more than 80% of the Municipality, with a participation rate of 90% of the population and has resulted in the improvement of the quality of life of Loja residents and changes in their behaviour and attitude towards their environment. The institutional capacity of Loja Municipality has been strengthened at the local and national level as programmes have been put in place to share their experience with other municipalities.

2002 / 412: Activities that promote conservation policies and protect the environment, Panama

Panama has an extraordinary natural heritage, which was being threatened by an accelerated deforestation and destruction in the early 80's.

ANCON, an NGO created to address the deterioration of the environment, established protection and conservation policies which was backed by an organisational structure responsible for overseeing the application of the policies and practices. The main objectives of the organisation were to protect and conserve the natural resources of the Republic of Panama.

Several field studies were conducted including the strategic analysis of needs and resources, to diagnose the nation's ecosystems and to evaluate the existing environmental legislation. By discerning and evaluating the environment areas in danger and the general population's attitude about their surroundings, the organisation was able to target their efforts in the required directions.

The organisation launched an aggressive fund raising campaign that would attract community participation in conservation projects while ensuring the sustainability of the same. Several programmes were successfully developed which included but are not limited to:

The "Adopt an Acre" programme;

The Visa ANCON Credit Card, which generates funds for the activities;

The "Friends of ANCON" program, which recruits volunteers and experts, which number over 3,000 to date.

Through the use of newspaper articles, magazines, conferences and videos, awareness has been raised on the vital importance and urgency of providing environmental protection. To date, ANCON has achieved far beyond its original mission the following results:

The protection and conservation of 2,200,000 acres of threatened ecosystem and species;

The creation of natural preservation and conservation sanctuaries such as the Soberanía National Park, Bastimentos Marine National Park, and La Amistad (Friendship) International Park;

The purchase of environmentally sensitive areas to include Falconett Property, Punta Patiño Natural Reserve, Rio Cabuya Agroforestry, among others;

The creation of a Natural Preservation Reserve/Historical Monument in the hub of Panama City, the Cerro Ancon Nature Reserve, and the Ancon Hill Environmental Interactive Center.

Through the transfer of personnel to the Municipality of Panama City, ANCON has shared lessons learned from their experience to influence national policies and establish Panama as an ecological sanctuary for endangered species known by the international community for its rich tropical flora and fauna.

The initiative fully meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability and one of the three additional considerations of: innovation within local context and transferability.

2002 / 520: Neighborhood Participation in the District of Santiago de Surco, Peru

Surco has a population of 25,000 residents. Following a number of years of mismanagement of Municipal resources, there has been deterioration in the environment, lack of basic urban services reflecting on the quality of life in the neighbourhood. This was further aggravated by the lack of an environmental protection policy at the Municipal level. In 1996, the new Municipal authority started engaging community members in activities to protect natural resources and improve quality of life.

The areas identified as priority areas were service provision - public cleaning and maintenance of parks and gardens, resource management and sensitisation of community members. For each of the priorities identified, strategies were developed to meet the set objectives. As a means to consolidate the efforts being made in service provision being controlled by mafias in Surco, the Municipality took on overall responsibility. The Water Recovery Plant of Rio Surco was established to remediate a river flowing through the area that was highly contaminated. Volunteers from the neighbourhood started a door to door campaign on the environment and started collecting and segregating recyclable material at the Residues Exploitation Plant in the district with 90% of employees being women. Schools were also provided with educational material and initiated a programme where students carry out garbage segregation.

As a result of these efforts, 600,000m2 of land has been designated as parks and gardens and neighbourhood associations tasked with the responsibility of maintaining them. There has been a behavioural change with regard to separation of garbage at source with 193 tons of recyclable material being returned into the market and contributing to the regions' economy. The water recovery plant saves the Municipality US $ 450,000 in water used for irrigation. This initiative successfully engages community members in the management of their living environment making it more sustainable.

The program meets two of the three basic criteria of impact and sustainability and two of the three additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, and innovation within local context and transferability.

2002 / 044 Repapel Paper Collection and recycling in Schools, Uruguay

Prior to 1998, there was no paper collection and recycling facilities in Montevideo and paper from industries as well as industries was being discarded together with other refuse. CEADU, an NGO engaged in environmental activities in Uruguay, organised a discussion workshop involving 50 teachers from 15 urban schools of Montevideo to outline the goals and strategies of the REPAPEL project. Having been declared a public interest project, the general goal of REPAPEL is to generate participatory activities in primary schools, enabling children to gain first-hand knowledge on how recycling benefits the environment.

A program for gathering used newspapers and other types of wastepaper was initiated in each of the participating schools. The children collected newspapers and papers from their homes, neighbours and neighbourhood stores and took them to school. The paper collected by each school was collected systematically, sorted, baled and transported to a paper factory (IPUSA) for recycling.

The factory regularly gave back a volume of recycled-paper products (folders, notebooks, toilet tissue, and packaging paper) equivalent to the value of the newspapers and paper supplied, which were distributed to the participating schools. On average, the project distributed a monthly volume of recycled-paper school supplies equivalent to 40 tons of paper. At the same time, hands-on paper-recycling activities were carried out in the schools to give children the chance to sort and recycle paper themselves, making their own drawing paper and learning the basics of paper sorting and recycling. These activities were complemented by training workshops for teachers to enable them to conduct other recycling workshops.

A total of 96 schools from Montevideo participated in this experience, with over 25,000 children, and several companies, which donated discarded paper to use in the manufacture of the school supplies and to be distributed in schools. Since 1999, U$S 120,000 worth of supplies have been distributed, corresponding to a volume of 950 tons of paper collected in the schools, companies and other organizations that support REPAPEL. The experience has also been carried out in other cities of Uruguay, namely, Trinidad, Melo, Colonia, Salto and Paysandú.

This initiative has had a clear impact in terms of educating children on the importance of recycling and environmental protection. The initiative also results in low-cost supplies to industry, thus lowering cost of production and improving market competition. Paper recycling saves energy, water, trees and reduces pollution. It also provides savings for municipalities in waste collection and disposal costs.

The program fully meets the three basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability and one of the three additional considerations namely: innovation within local context and transferability.

North America

2002 / 259 Liveable Region Strategic Plan (LRSP) for the Greater Vancouver Regional District, Canada

The Greater Vancouver Regional District had been experiencing population growth from 750,000 in 1980 to 2,030,000 in 2002 increasing pressure on greenspace, traffic congestion and resulting in declining air quality. There was a lack of vision and no coordination of development actions within the region.

The 21 member municipalities of the Greater Vancouver region brought various stakeholders together in a series of workshops to develop the Livable Region Strategic Plan (LRSP). At these fora, the protection of a regional network of greenspace held strong interest leading to the creation of a Green Zone as an effective urban containment area while protecting the region's ecology, health and agriculture. The LRSP was developed as Greater Vancouver's official regional growth strategy and is built around four main goals:

Protect the green zone;

Build complete communities;

Achieve a compact metropolitan area and

Increase transportation choice.

The LRSP provides the framework for making regional land use and transportation decisions in partnership with the GVRD's 21 member municipalities, the provincial government and other agencies guided by a shared vision. Urban centres were identified and have been successful in containing development efforts within a concentrated urban area while establishing diverse and more complete communities. The plan led to the establishment of a regionally controlled and operated transit authority (Greater Vancouver Regional Transit Authority) from the previous provincial entities. These initiatives have enhanced the region's social, economic and environmental health. Implementation of the plan is integrated into the budgets of the member municipalities through their official community plans.

As a result of this initiative, the protected green zone has increased by approximately 60,000 hectares since 1991. Air quality improvements have been significant as a result of reductions in emissions from industry and vehicles.

A key contributing factor to the success has been the formulation of a shared vision that guides the development. The LSRP proves that this can lead to large scale impacts on the structure and characteristics of a region. It also shows that partnership between spheres of government and communities is achieving tangible results. What makes the Greater Vancouver Regional District stand out as compared to comparable practices is the scale of its coordinated effort. Vancouver demonstrates that sustainable development is a planning concept that benefits development and the environment.

2002 / 117 New York Avenue Metro Station Corporation, USA

The North of Massachusetts Avenue (NoMa) area has a population of 5,600 of which 90% is African-American. The average income per household is US $ 23,396, which is well below the citywide median of US $ 30,727 with 24% of the residents earning the poverty-level income. Nearly 50% of the households in the target area do not own an automobile, thus making the increased availability of transit very important for increasing economic opportunity. The area was previously a thriving industrial, business and distribution centre but over the years deteriorated and was characterised by abandoned buildings, vacant land and a blighted cityscape.

In 1998, as part of the city's strategic economic development planning process, the DC Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) organised a NoMa development strategy. Working closely with the community and the private sector the plan recommended the creation of the New York Avenue Metro station as the catalyst for developing NoMa as a magnet for technology and media businesses, jobs and housing. Action 29 - New York Avenue Metro Station Corporation is a non-profit organisation responsible for coordinating the private sector role in building the new Metrorail Station.

The key objective of the initiative was to promote sustainable, transit-oriented, mixed-use economic and community development that would promote investment, create jobs, attract and expand businesses, raise incomes, reduce poverty, stabilize and improve housing and neighbourhoods. The main strategy was to develop three key industry networks: media/publications, information technology/telecommunications and the entertainment industry in the NoMa area.

A feasibility study funded by the DC DHCD was used to mobilise finances to construct the station. Major private property owners in the areas, the DC government and the US government provided financial support. This commitment to construct a new transit station and promote neighborhood economic activity has already provided the impetus for large employers to locate or expand in the area, spurring major development activities including the Washington Gateway, the BET Technology Park, the Union Station Telecom Center, and the McKinley High School technology campus. In addition, community improvements such as new streets and streetscape design, new and renovated housing, a bicycle and pedestrian trail, retail stores and other small business opportunities, and education and job training are all part of this creative partnership. This best practice serves as a model for creating liveable neighbourhoods through public - private partnership and infrastructure development and is just one example of a significant trend in North America, Europe and other regions to concentrate housing and commercial development around access to public transportation. This practice will lead eventually to a highly efficient and a more sustainable urban environments.

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