Project 3. City Poverty Reduction Strategies

Intended Outcomes

Outcome No. 1: Efficient and Effective Urban Development Management
Outcome No. 2: Access to Quality and Affordable Housing and Basic Services
Outcome No. 3: Strengthened and Institutionalized Participation

Key Result Areas

KRA NO. 3: Capacity Building
KRA NO. 4: Resource Generation and Management

Rationale

With the rapidly growing urban poverty there is a need to directly address urban poverty issues. These will require an integrated approach, which will involve addressing the specific concerns of the urban poor. These concerns primarily include limited access to housing, housing finance, access to credit and employment, lack of skills, and inadequate urban utilities and services.

This project involves enabling the urban poor, including the informal sector in improving their social and economic situation by integrating access to housing efforts with livelihood opportunities and basic services provision. It builds on on-going poverty reduction projects such as the Development of Urban Poor Communities and Shelter Project (DPUCSP). Further, it focuses on specific and targeted poverty reduction initiatives that can serve as demonstration efforts from which lessons and replication of benefits can be drawn. It also draws and applies lessons and best practices from the DPUCSP and other related projects.

Synchronized with the overall framework and urban development strategy, the cities in coordination with national government agencies, civil society, business, and people’s organizations will formulate the urban poverty reduction strategy and design as well as implement specific poverty reduction projects, focusing on secure tenure, community development, and integrated site development.

It will specifically address the need to mainstream the urban poor in the development process by giving them the opportunity for economic empowerment, secure tenure, and participation. The urban poverty reduction strategy will be city specific and will emanate from the cities themselves.

Objectives

1. To mainstream the urban poor in the development process through improved access to housing, livelihood and adequate basic social and economic services.
2. To improve the capacities of cities to plan and implement effective urban poverty reduction programs.
3. To improve the capacities of people’s organizations and the urban poor in general to participate effectively in the design, implementation, maintenance and management of viable urban poverty reduction programs and projects.

Project Components/Scope of Work

1. Developing Capacities of City Governments for Urban Poverty Reduction
2. Developing Capacities of People’s Organizations and Beneficiaries for Effective Participation in Poverty Reduction Programs
3. Design and Implementation of Poverty Reduction Projects through Integrated Housing and Employment/Livelihood Initiatives
4. Program Performance Review and Documentation of Lessons and Best Practices

A. Developing Capacities of City Governments for Urban Poverty Reduction

This will involve generating more knowledge, and developing specific capacities of city governments in the planning, design, administration and evaluation of urban poverty reduction programs, and will include such activities as:

• Urban poor mapping and demographic data base development
• Inventory of land available for socialized housing
• Designing and mobilizing public and private resources for socialized housing and employment/livelihood generation
• Developing integrated housing and community development programs
• Designing beneficiary-city government partnership in program implementation
• Assessment of city urban poverty reduction programs and their implications for program improvement
• Research and design of alternative housing tenure and housing density alternatives

The urban development strategy should provide incentives that enable the business sector to strategically position themselves within the opportunities, facilities, and services to be provided under the strategy. ↑

B. Developing Capacities of People’s Organizations and Beneficiaries for Effective Participation in Poverty Reduction Programs

This component involves building the capacities of the beneficiaries and people’s organizations to effectively participate in the formulation and implementation of urban poverty reduction programs and will include such activities as:

• Training of beneficiaries in site maintenance and management
• Organization of beneficiaries
• Training of people’s organizations in participation and civic engagement
• Supporting research and project design for alternative tenure and city-beneficiary partnerships
• Livelihood training ↑

C. Design and Implementation of Poverty Reduction Projects through Integrated Housing and Employment/Livelihood Initiatives

This component involves the identification and development of actual slum upgrading, site development and construction of housing facilities and basic utilities, community/beneficiary organization, design and financing of economic/enterprise development program, design of financing and cost recovery arrangements, linkaging with private/government financing institutions, and estate maintenance management.

A key feature of the project is the design and implementation of larger scale community enterprises that can potentially lead to strategic business enterprises owned by the poor communities. This departs from the current livelihood programs that focus on individual livelihood assistance and selected group responsibility arrangements. ↑

D. Program Performance Review and Documentation of Lessons and Best Practices

Performance reviews will be undertaken at the program and individual project levels. Lessons learned and best practices will be documented and analyzed with respect to their implications for improving local policy, capacity and program planning and implementation management. ↑

Expected Outputs

1. City urban poverty reduction strategies
2. Implemented capacity building programs for LGUs
3. Provision of estimated 100,000 socialized housing units within an integrated economic and physical development process in identified sites and communities
4. Implemented capacity building programs for POs/ beneficiaries
5. Documented lessons and best practices

Project Management Arrangements

The Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) will be the executing and coordinating agency for the project with the cities as implementing agencies. The HUDCC will lead a committee comprising of mayors and administrators of the city beneficiaries, urban poor organizations, DILG, and representatives from Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) institutions. A financing institutional mechanism to manage the loan funds will be identified. The HUDCC will provide a core group to form the full-time project management office, which will provide direction to the cities and individual project implementers.

Project Duration

10 years

Estimated Cost

Capacity Building US$ 4,000,000
Loan 370,000,000