Prospects and Challenges of Low-Cost Housing Projects in Addis Ababa
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Date
2008-07
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
As a result of massive urbanization and economic underdevelopment,
housing shortages and poor housing conditions remain as a norm for
major cities in developing countries. These housing crises have resulted
in the emergence of squatter settlements and slum areas in and around
poor countries’ urban centers, further exacerbating nascent strains on
quality of life. The majority developing countries’ populations are too poor
to afford housing costs and hence government intervention in the form of
providing low-cost (subsidized) housing is common. Ethiopia’s capital,
Addis Ababa, faces these chronic housing problems and the lower and
middle-income groups are subject to various social and economical
challenges as a result. This study assesses the prospects and challenges
of the government low-cost housing projects and to suggest possible
options and scenarios to alleviate the city’s chronic housing problems.
The research uses the beneficiaries of low-cost houses and the concerned
governmental offices as sources of data. The findings of the research
show that the low-cost hosing projects of the city failed to solve the
housing problems of the poor and the projects were not completed
according to the time schedule as a result of the shortage of construction
materials. On the other hand, the absence of a national housing policy
had its own impact for the failure of the projects. Accordingly, the paper
presents the overall assessment of the achievements and challenges of
low-cost housing and finally provides possible suggestions for the
assuaging the prevailing problems
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Keywords
Housing Projects, Prospects and Challenges