Akphivat Mean Cheay
First
housing loan turns an eviction crisis into a city-wide learning
opportunity . . .
The
UPDF came into existence in response to an urgent need for housing
loans when 129 families in the roadside settlement at Toul Svay Prey
found themselves threatened with eviction, to make way for a municipal
drainage project. Through
their community saving scheme, the people organized themselves and
negotiated their own planned, voluntary resettlement to new land at
Akphivat Mean Cheay. The community's efforts were helped by some exposure trips to
India (where they saw how other poor communities had negotiated
alternatives to eviction) and by the enthusiastic District Chief of
Khan Chamkar Mon.
The
Akphivat Mean Cheay relocation project was training for everyone
involved, and was the city's first chance to see how effectively poor
communities can plan and undertake a voluntary resettlement process
which works for everyone. The
project was officially inaugurated by the Prime Minister on April 20,
2000 and made a strategic first case for the UPDF because of the
collaboration it involved.
·
The
Community searched
for alternative land and chose the Mean Cheay site from nine options.
·
The
Municipality
purchased the land for the people, using funds from the drainage
project budget, and will grant each family individual land title when
they have repaid their UPDF loans.
·
The
URC's young
architects helped the people draft the layout plan for the new
community, which included 54 square meter plots for all the families,
a community center and several water points.
·
The UNCHS
provided land-filling and basic infrastructure through a system of
community contracts, in which local community people (instead of
outside contractors) were paid to construct
roads, storm drains, pit latrines, water pumps, plant trees and
pave the lanes
·
The
District Chief of
Khan Chamkar Mon helped negotiate the whole process.
·
The
UPDF provided
housing loans of US$ 400 to each of the 129 families
·
The
People built their
own houses in various styles, some based on core housing model
designed by Young Professionals form the Urban Resource Centre
·
SUPF
turned each step of the process into training and inspiration for
communities around the city, through a constant stream of exchange
visits.
·
The Women's
Savings Group
collects loan repayments daily, weekly or monthly, depending on
people's earning, with 20% of the repayment going into mandatory
saving, as a pad against any repayment problems.
Repayments for the whole community are made once a month to
UPDF.
The
availability of housing loans was one of the key factors in persuading
the municipality to give land and the UNCHS to provide infrastructure.
With such housing loans available, there was no reason all
these collaborative elements couldn't come together again in more
projects.
To borrow architect's language, with these first housing loans,
the function determined the form
of what UPDF was about.
From day one, everyone agreed the UPDF would work only if the
people felt the fund was their resource, and only if they were
involved in it fully.
So when UPDF was officially set up, SUPF's $3,000 contribution
made them the first share-holders in the fund, and SUPF
representatives continue to sit on the UPDF board.
