TOUR OF THE HABITAT WORLD SEEN BY CIVIL SOCIETY

Bolivia

#Mots-clés : Dernière mise à jour le 7 June 2019

ELEMENTS OF CONTEXT

HISTORY

DEMOGRAPHY

According to official statistics from the National Population and Housing Census 2001 and the projection of the National Statistics Institute (INE) in 2006, the population would reach 9,400,000 2,265,963 inhabitants forming households. The housing stock would reach 2,621,607 housing units, of which 59% are in urban areas and 41% rural. About half of this population called “urban” no access to health, education, housing and the financial sector (1).

SOCIO-ECONOMICAL CONTEXT

ODIOUS PUBLIC DEBT (2)

The debt has the characteristics of being contracted without the consent or approval of the population, against the interests of the citizens and with knowledge of the situation by lenders. Was contracted during the military junta of 1964-1982, amounting to 3 Bn in 2010.

Bolivia has benefited” from the Multilateral Debt Forgiveness Initiative, a program to eliminate debt very poor countries. But rather try to cancel unpayable debts that have brought the country to suspend repayments. The debt relief is conditional on the implementation of a series of neoliberal measures that degrade the lives of much of the population, violate their rights to human development and weakens the economies of the countries concerned through their submission to the competition local producers can not meet. In Bolivia, the IMPD was arrested in 2001.

HABITAT

HISTORY OF CITIES – HERITAGE

URBAN HOUSING

There is a tool to collect and systematize information on Urban Land conflicts in Bolivia: https://conflictosurbanosbolivia.crowdmap.com/

RURAL HOUSING

RIGHT TO HOUSING

The new Constitution of the Plurinational State of Bolivia, approved by referendum in 2009, provides that (Article 19):

  • “Everyone has the right to adequate housing and habitat, that dignify the family and community life
  • “The State, at all levels of government, promote plans affordable housing through appropriate financing systems, based on the principles of solidarity and equity. These plans will be used in preference to low-income families, disadvantaged groups and rural area

One of the struggles of social movements in Bolivia aims to have a new Housing Act to encourage and support alternative urban habitat in collective ownership.

FORCED EVICTION

In recent years there have been situations of forced evictions, especially in the area of the Bolivian Chaco for mining and logging concessions. While the actions taken by the State support to these groups, measures to respond adequately to the housing demand of this population are required.

The occupation of public and private land in urban areas, and the evacuation of settlements in risk areas has in turn lead to violence. Likewise, increased evictions by foreclosure, because many families have chosen to buy a home at costs that exceed their actual ability to pay, in parallel, the high rate of mortgages has generated limited access to housing through modalities such as anticrético.

LAND RIGHTS

Existence of Law 1454 of 2011 organic law on national land use planning.

LAND GRABBING

VULNERABLE GROUPS

SOME INTERESTING PRACTICES

Social and economic aspects

HOUSING MARKET

The market: tenures

With regard to the forms of housing tenure, census information defines that 63% have their own home (52% urban and 83% rural), 20% access to housing tenancy or anticrético and 17% are homeless via transfer of kinship.

Social production and self-help housing

Thus, to understand the housing problems of the most vulnerable sectors of society should be noted that the vast majority of homes produced in Bolivia are generally outside a commercial logic, as there are built to be sold or purchased but to be used by the promoters themselves or owners. It is built to meet the housing needs of households in various forms of self. This process begins with the more or less formal acquisition of land on which to build; the building is progressive and often begins with the self-produced materials such as bricks and others, which are developed in the grounds, both in urban and rural areas.

Difficulties in obtaining land is a major concern for those who require housing – have lot is to have married, or between that required in the future. This has accelerated the consumption of land in areas of urban sprawl. The Bolivian housing, according to the National Network of Human Settlements (RENASEH), turn that meets the housing needs is a form of savings, since its foray into the commercial circuit due to contingencies of family or household, such as core illness, change of place of residence, and others not necessarily imply rationality of profit.

QUALITY OF HOUSING

A quantitative and qualitative deficit

According to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the quantitative deficit is 200,000 housing units, which are added each year 30,000 households claiming a place to live. Meanwhile, the qualitative deficit reached nearly a million homes, which means 46% of the total. It is located generally in peri-urban settlements where people live without basic services, overcrowding, with legal uncertainty, insecurity, poor quality materials, physical hazards and environmental units. 54% of households live in overcrowded; 48% use calamine (iron) on the ceiling and 34% have floor; 33% have no drinking water, 32% have no health service.

The qualitative deficit is largely due to the fact that most of the housing stock is self-produced by the villagers themselves, without state support or stimuli that qualify these efforts. In fact, production systems housing market annually provide about 9,000 housing units to satisfy -enfocadas sectors middle and high income are creditworthy Hipotecario while the state has historically produced some 3,000 housing solutions per year using mixed credit subsidy mechanisms. Thus, the contribution of formality is estimated at 11,000 homes a year, while about 60,000 households, 85% of total annual new units are built on the initiative of families either individually or organized under the system social housing production.

INFORMAL HOUSING / SLUM / HOMELESS

Movements Homeless (3)

The emergence of movements called “homeless” is a phenomenon occurred since 2008 and whose leaders promote settlements and invasions in urban land for residential purposes that are publicly or privately owned. Apart from the discussion about the illegality of these processes, these are a sample of the limitations of state intervention to generate the conditions for secure land access for residential purposes. After legal and administrative processes that take owners to ensure their constitutional right to private property, these invasions are usually subjected to forced evictions, in some cases with ingredients of violence by law enforcement.

ROLE OF PUBLIC AUTHORITIES

Since 1997

In 1997, the Ministry of Human Development approved the Guidelines for a National Housing Policy. The proposed guidelines on a funding system are included, and as a condition precedent determines the liquidation of the National Fund for Social Housing (FONVIS). Proposes a system of direct demand preferred application sectors most vulnerable subsidy. Define municipal powers for access to housing, and proposes guidelines regarding training, research and technological development. It was possible to institutionalize the National Advisory Committee on Human Settlements as a consultative body on issues related to urban development, housing and basic services involving public and private organizations, professional associations, social organizations, academia, research institutes, among others.

That same year 1997 Housing Policy and Basic Services that included two components are approved. For one, the National Program for Housing Subsidy (PNSV) supported by resources from the 2% employer contribution; This program was operationalized through four sub-programs:
  • Neighborhood Improvement;
  • Direct Subsidy Demand;
  • Emergency Assistance for Natural Disasters;
  • Housing Improvement in Endemic Areas of Chagas or other vectors.
The second component was the development of the secondary mortgage market, which sought expanding population base that should be addressed by the conventional financial system. According FOPEVI, this component “in practice has failed structural limitations of national economic”. This approach guided the actions in housing until 2006.

Since the new Constitution (2009)

The National Development Plan to 2013 includes housing on the shaft entitled “Productive Bolivia” and main objectives:
  • That housing and urban development will constitute a reactivation “dynamic”, promoter, facilitator and productive and social development, to live well;
  • Establish the conditions to achieve a basic, social, equitable and inclusive livability that enables universal access to housing as a human right.
It established a policy of access to housing subsidies and loans considering targeted to the poorest. This policy includes the following programs and their respective goals :
  • National Program for Social and Solidarity Housing whose goals are: 100,000 Housing Solutions and generate 60,000 direct jobs and 60,000 indirect.
  • Development Programme Bank Public Lands whose goal is to have a land bank in 50 prioritized municipalities that could facilitate access to land by regulating the price of land, urban renewal and social distribution.
  • Municipal Urban Cadastre Program is to establish the basis for the planning, management and land use planning for urban areas. The goal is to implement cadastral systems with the intention of achieving 60 consolidated urban areas (60 municipalities).
The view of civil society

In 2009, Evo Morales enacted the Recovery Wallets, Contributions and Certification Housing Solutions, which seeks to benefit 33,000 families. The regulation announced aims to recover the contributions and titles of the houses of those over 20 years contributed to former National Fund for Social Housing (FONVIS). The new law would reflect the government’s social policy. It also states that financial institutions that managed the resources of former FONVIS must return the capital to those who contributed but have not had the opportunity to access housing.

In this framework, launched the Social Housing Program and Solidarity (PVS). According FOPEVI, “which offer the Social Housing Program are subsidized loans (sub 2, 3 and 4) housing have proved more efficient than subsidizing capital. Interestingly, the implementation of this financing model despite the resilience of the financial system which argues that it is unfair competition and may jeopardize the microfinance industry in our country. ” However, this forum of civil society asks: “What (is) ensuring that the implementation of current programs the results are transparent, impervious to corruption, cronyism and ensure efficient results and fundamentally based on principles equity and social justice? In practice of sector funds and the FONVIS own intention was to subsidize healthy demand (the beneficiary of the housing) but ended up subsidizing the supply, construction companies “.

Cultural aspects – Religious – Symbolic

Environmental aspects

Bibliography & Sitography

  1. Alianza Internacional de Habitantes, « Políticas alternativas de vivienda en América latina y el Caribe », 2013 coord Paul Maquet Makedonski, pp. 37 a 40.
  2. CADTM – Comité para la Anulación de la Deuda del Tercer Mundo , las cifras de la deuda 2012
  3. RENASEH – informe 2010

MAJOR PROBLEMS BY CIVIL SOCIETY

CLAIMS MAJOR CIVIL SOCIETY

CIVIL SOCIETY ACTORS

  • CEPLAG = center aimed at developing research as input for seminars, conferences, offering participants theoretical and methodological training for their performance in organizational activities, consultancy and research in the public and private sectors. http://www.ceplag.edu.bo/
  • CENTRO DE INVESTIGACIÓN Y SERVICIO POPULAR – CISEP = dissemination, training and management of basic services; Enabling opportunities for analysis, discussion and proposals in the component of access to land in Oruro. http://www.cisep.org.bo/
  • FORO PERMANENTE DE LA VIVIENDA – FOPEVI = construction, validation, editing, publishing and surrender to the authorities of a proposed State Housing Policy. The process has involved the realization of 38 events at local, national and international level with the participation of public and private institutions, social organizations, women, research institutes, universities, among others. Contact : fopevi.rh@gmail.com
  • FUNDACIÓN PROCASHA = promotion of initiatives related to the model of Housing Cooperatives Co in new housing and housing improvement; organization and training of cooperative groups; implementation and management of housing programs and projects; formation of teams of specialized expertise in self-management models. http://procasha.org/
  • FUNDACIÓN PRO-HÁBITAT BOLIVIA = Improvement and building healthy living with Programs. Training and technical assistance appropriate to the social production of habitat, through community participation technologies. Promotion and support in the formulation of public policy and regulatory frameworks of the Right to Housing, Water Rights and the Right to the City. http://prohabitat-bolivia.org/index.php/en/
  • FUNDAPROVI = Run Program Improvement of Housing in the city of El Alto and La Paz slopes which aims to support self-managing production processes progressive social housing from a supply of microcredit and legally assisted technique. C / O Anelise Meléndez – funprovi@gmail.com
  • HABITAT FOR HUMANITY BOLIVIA = working 25 years in the country with families living in precarious conditions, facilitating access to better social housing conditions, through microcredit, comprehensive training, community mobilization and advocacy actions. It’s Intermediary Financial Institution (EIF) and Implementing Entity (EE) Program of Social Housing and Solidarity. http://www.habitatbolivia.org/
  • INSTITUTO DE INVESTIGACIÓN DEL HÁBITAT POPULAR – IIHP/UMSFXCH  = research, training, evaluation and dissemination linked to social housing programs.
  • RED-HÁBITAT = technically supports and advises the National Network of Women Leaders Barriales to promote advocacy processes oriented to the recognition and realization of the rights to housing, housing and the right to the city. As a Pro Tempore Secretariat of the Permanent Forum of Housing – FOPEVI, has prompted the construction of a State Housing Policy, the government officially delivered in April 2009. http://www.red-habitat.org/rh/index.php
  • RED NACIONAL DE ASENTAMIENTOS HUMANO – RENASEH = (from Habitat II), is a free and independent professional voluntary association of NGOs, projects, research institutes, academics and committed to the issues of housing and habitat, and its mission of incorporate these issues into the debate and national and local agenda. Works on time in the following lines: Training, Research, Advocacy, Information and communication and internal strengthening. Thus, it becomes a space for reflection and generating proposals on housing and urban development issues between different actors in the country, in search of social and self-managed production of habitat in Bolivia. Presentation of the network
  • SEVIVE = In research, technological development and technical assistance in the implementation of processes related to PVS.