Income Generation and Jobcreation in Public Housing LaseStudy of Selected condominium Sitesin Addis Ababa
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Date
2014-03
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Addis Ababauniversity
Abstract
The economic effect of housing had been debatable in the past. However, recent global experiences
showed that housing has significant impact on urban economy. It creates jobs for unskilled labor during
construction and stimulates income generating activities for the urban poor. The Integrated Housing
Development Program (IHDP) is a public urban housing scheme designed to use housing as instrument
for poverty alleviation and job creation in Ethiopia. However IHDP, commonly called “condominium
housing program”, is criticized for focusing only on the physical improvement of housing than wider socioeconomic
aspects of the beneficiaries. On contrary, IHDP is praised for its success on job creation
through Micro and Small-scale Enterprises (MSEs).
This study investigates income generating activities and assesses job creation in IHDP projects in Addis
Ababa. It is designed as two fold and dictated by these two key ideas: income generation and job
creation. For the first thesis regarding income generation, case study research method is adopted and
four different cases are selected. For the second thesis, i.e job creation, both desk review and case study
was adopted as a research strategy. The desk review and evidences from this case are cross referenced
for conclusion.
Both quantitative and qualitative methods are employed in the study. Analysis of quantitative data was
conducted using SPSS: a statistical software design for analysis. Based on the empirical evidence from
the case study the following findings are revealed. Two types of income generating activities are
observed in condominiums. These are communal income generating activities operated by community
based associations and home-based economic activities operated by individuals. The frequency of homebased
economic activities operated by individuals varies substantially. Renting is the most frequent
income generating activities which outnumbered the remaining home-based enterprises. Particularly, in
inner-city condominiums sites most units are occupied by tenants. Vending is the second most frequent
income generating activity. The finding indicates that HBEs are common in studied sites in the outskirts of
the city. During field survey 26 home-based enterprises are found in Repi I and Repi II condominium
sites. On contrast HBEs are not common in inner-city sites. Most businesses are operated by women
engaged in small businesses which are the replications of domestic activities. HBEs have vital impact on
the livelihood of operators especially for women and unemployed. No considerable negative impact of
HBEs is observed. Most HBEs are located in the ground while some located in higher floors. In terms of
spatial usage, Kitchen is the most interchangeably used space for income generating activity.
The evidences from Lideta Redevelopment Project and desk review indicate that significant jobs are
created through MSEs. Even though MSEs are involved in small sub-contractual works and construction
material production, they have substantial contribution in creating casual jobs. MSE created sustainable
job rather than safety nets
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Keywords
Public Housing: Case Study