Search Tips
sorted by
30 shown of 85 entities
Analysis of two alternative housing policies: rental and collective housing 2013, para. 32
- Paragraph text
- Some countries have been implementing rent assistance programmes in order to address affordability problems (see A/HRC/13/20/Add.4, paras. 10 and 25). However, evidence indicates that such initiatives, in the absence of other policies regulating markets and assisting recipients of housing allowances, are not sufficient to provide adequate and affordable rental housing for low-income households. In countries in which rental supply is limited, subsidies schemes actually lead to an increase in rental prices and shortages of rental stock for low-income earners. Low income households receiving housing benefits often face difficulties in finding and keeping habitable accommodation in adequate locations with access to services, despite the extra purchasing power, owing to the low value of the benefits (given the rise in rental prices) and discrimination against vulnerable groups in the private rental market (see A/HRC/13/20/Add.4, paras. 17-26). In addition, means testing for housing benefits is often complicated, targeting is not always effective and allocation procedures encourage corruption. The tight conditioning of housing benefits on income levels has been criticized for failing to reach all beneficiaries (for example, only 40 per cent of private renters living in poverty in England are in receipt of housing benefit). Furthermore, the substantial cuts in housing benefits currently applied in various countries as part of recent austerity measures are likely to exacerbate the problem (see A/67/286, para. 32).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Centrality of the right to adequate housing for the development and implementation of the New Urban Agenda to be adopted at Habitat III in October 2016 2015, para. 11
- Paragraph text
- Achieving the objectives of Habitat III will rely on the unique ability of human rights to effect transformative change through the application of universal norms and guiding principles to specific contexts and in response to emerging challenges. This essentially describes the key features and benefits of a human rights approach. Human rights can effect the kind of spatial, geographic, social and attitudinal change required to address the structural causes of exclusion and inequality, so that cities become places of opportunity and well-being for everyone - where adequate housing, food, water and sanitation, education, employment and health are realized as fundamental rights.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Centrality of the right to adequate housing for the development and implementation of the New Urban Agenda to be adopted at Habitat III in October 2016 2015, para. 26
- Paragraph text
- Just as cities can become the nests for new and innovative advances in architecture, culture, education and economic growth, they can also become generators of new, vibrant and inclusive exchanges of ideas and information about realizing rights. While the pluralism and diversity found in many cities can be a source of significant conflict and lead to exclusion and violations of human rights, they can also nourish a human rights-friendly culture. Recent years have witnessed the emergence of new and dynamic human rights movements in cities. It is essential to engage with social movements and urban communities, as they can drive and nurture commitments to the right to adequate housing. As a result of some of these struggles, cities have adopted charters, ordinances and other legal mechanisms which affirm social inclusion and the right to adequate housing. Habitat III is an opportunity to harness these rights-oriented urban social movements and create stronger collaborations between them, with the shared goal of the realization of the right to adequate housing.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Centrality of the right to adequate housing for the development and implementation of the New Urban Agenda to be adopted at Habitat III in October 2016 2015, para. 37
- Paragraph text
- In the Special Rapporteur's view, there are five critical cross-cutting areas upon which an urban rights agenda - with the right to housing as a pillar - should focus: (a) social exclusion: stigmatization and housing status; (b) migration; (c) vulnerable groups; (d) land and inequality; and (e) informal settlements.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Centrality of the right to adequate housing for the development and implementation of the New Urban Agenda to be adopted at Habitat III in October 2016 2015, para. 63
- Paragraph text
- A central question at Habitat III will be how to bring coherence and strategic transformation to interactive systems of law and policy so that the new urban agenda genuinely promotes sustainable urban development and access to adequate housing for all. A human rights approach focused on the right to adequate housing is critical to meeting this challenge, because it provides an overarching framework and vision that binds an array of laws and policies within a common purpose and shared set of values.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Centrality of the right to adequate housing for the development and implementation of the New Urban Agenda to be adopted at Habitat III in October 2016 2015, para. 70
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur believes that it is also important to consider various redistributive and cost-recovery mechanisms in cities from a human rights standpoint. Expenditure on public space, infrastructure, recreational facilities and cultural and artistic activities too often benefits more advantaged households to the detriment of the needs of the vast majorities. Pricing of rental housing, water, sanitation and electricity should ensure affordability for low-income households rather than direct cost recovery. Private providers of housing and infrastructure must be regulated in a manner that accords with the fact that, while housing and infrastructure are often treated as commodities, they are fundamental human rights, requiring significant adjustments to prevailing business models. Adjusted pricing of services for low-income households, for example, has been proven to be an efficient business model which at the same time facilitates access to housing, water, sanitation and electricity that might otherwise be denied. Human rights-based tax audits have also been effective in ensuring that revenue collection at the city level is aligned with obligations to apply the maximum of available resources to realize the right to housing.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Centrality of the right to adequate housing for the development and implementation of the New Urban Agenda to be adopted at Habitat III in October 2016 2015, para. 76a
- Paragraph text
- [The Special Rapporteur recommends that the urban rights agenda should:] Elaborate, concretize and give meaning to target 11.1 of the proposed sustainable development goals regarding access to adequate housing for all, while also safeguarding its vital link to binding international human rights obligations;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Centrality of the right to adequate housing for the development and implementation of the New Urban Agenda to be adopted at Habitat III in October 2016 2015, para. 76j (iv)
- Paragraph text
- [The Special Rapporteur recommends that the urban rights agenda should:] The implementation of an urban rights agenda must include the following baseline human rights requirements: The use of human rights-based indicators to monitor the implementation of the urban rights agenda, measuring both the process of implementation and progressive outcomes. Indicators should focus not only on housing quality but also on access to justice for all aspects of the right to adequate housing, including security of tenure, non discrimination and positive obligations of governments towards marginalized groups.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Financialization of housing and the right to adequate housing 2017, para. 14
- Paragraph text
- The tripartite obligations of States in relation to the management of financial markets and the regulation of private actors are often interpreted too narrowly. Under international human rights law, States' obligations in relation to private investment in housing and the governance of financial markets extend well beyond a traditional understanding of the duty to simply prevent private actors from actively violating rights. The assumption, bolstered by neo-liberalism, that States should simply allow markets to work according to their own rules, subject only to the requirement that private actors "do no harm" and do not violate the rights of others, is simply not in accordance with the important obligation to fulfil the right to adequate housing by all appropriate means, including legislative measures.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Financialization of housing and the right to adequate housing 2017, para. 17
- Paragraph text
- The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has suggested that the obligation to fulfil incorporates both an obligation to facilitate and an obligation to provide. In the context of the critical relationship between housing and financial markets, the articulation of a State's fulfilment obligation to not only provide housing when needed but also to facilitate the implementation of the right to housing is helpful in capturing the wide range of States' obligations to ensure that financial markets and the actions of private investors work towards the realization of the right to adequate housing.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Financialization of housing and the right to adequate housing 2017, para. 38
- Paragraph text
- Patterns of inequality are often starkest in developing countries. In Africa, if current trends continue, the number of households living in informal settlements will continue to increase while the number of ultra-high-net-worth individuals is predicted to rise by almost 50 per cent in the next decade.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Financialization of housing and the right to adequate housing 2017, para. 64
- Paragraph text
- Despite the growing attention to the importance of business and human rights and despite the fact that housing represents the largest global business sector, very little attention has been paid to the obligations of business enterprises and financial corporations operating in the real estate and housing sector with respect to the right to adequate housing. The "Practical guide to ESG integration for equity investing", for example, makes no reference to human rights in relation to investments in housing and other real estate. The International Organization of Securities Commissions, whose members regulate more than 95 per cent of the world's capital markets, has not addressed the central role that human rights in general and the right to housing in particular should play in the regulation of capital markets.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Financialization of housing and the right to adequate housing 2017, para. 66
- Paragraph text
- Business and human rights guidelines in the housing sector must recognize the responsibility of private investors and the obligations of regulators of capital markets to ensure that the needs of vulnerable and marginalized groups are adequately addressed through inclusive investment strategies and to contribute to the realization of the right to housing and the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the New Urban Agenda.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Financialization of housing and the right to adequate housing 2017, para. 77b
- Paragraph text
- [The Special Rapporteur suggests that the way forward requires a shift to take hold so that States ensure that all investment in housing recognizes its social function and States' human rights obligations in that regard. That requires a transformation of the relationship between the State and the financial sector, whereby human rights implementation becomes the overriding goal, not a subsidiary or neglected obligation. The Special Rapporteur believes that can be achieved with more constructive engagement and dialogue between States, human rights actors, international and domestic financial regulatory bodies, private equity firms and major investors. In order to create those new conversations and achieve that shift, the Special Rapporteur recommends the following:] Strategies developed by States and local governments to achieve target 11.1 of the Sustainable Development Goals and the New Urban Agenda should include a full range of taxation, regulatory and planning measures in order to re-establish housing as a social good, promote an inclusive housing system and prevent speculation and excessive accumulation of wealth;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Guiding Principles on security of tenure for the urban poor 2014, para. (N/A)
- Paragraph text
- The plight of the urban poor presents one of the most pressing challenges to security of tenure, especially in an increasingly urbanized world. These principles aim to provide guidance to States and other actors to address this challenge in order to ensure adequate housing for poor and vulnerable people in urban and peri-urban areas.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Guiding Principles on security of tenure for the urban poor 2014, para. 2a
- Paragraph text
- [In order to improve security of tenure, especially for vulnerable and marginalized persons and groups living in urban poor settlements, States, including relevant authorities, should take the following measures:] Conduct citywide assessments of tenure arrangements;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Guiding Principles on security of tenure for the urban poor 2014, para. 2h
- Paragraph text
- [In order to improve security of tenure, especially for vulnerable and marginalized persons and groups living in urban poor settlements, States, including relevant authorities, should take the following measures:] Allocate sufficient funds to ministries, municipalities and local governments for the implementation of these measures; and
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Guiding Principles on security of tenure for the urban poor 2014, para. 4e
- Paragraph text
- [Property has a vital social function including adequate housing of the urban poor. States should balance property rights with the social function of property in designing and implementing housing and other relevant policies. In particular, States, including relevant authorities, should promote access to secure and well-located housing for the urban poor through, inter alia, the following measures:] Adopt inclusive urban planning strategies and regulations;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Guiding Principles on security of tenure for the urban poor 2014, para. 5d
- Paragraph text
- [Non-discrimination on the basis of tenure status must be guaranteed in the context of, inter alia:] Land administration programmes;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Guiding Principles on security of tenure for the urban poor 2014, para. 5e
- Paragraph text
- [Non-discrimination on the basis of tenure status must be guaranteed in the context of, inter alia:] Housing legislation and policies;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Guiding Principles on security of tenure for the urban poor 2014, para. 5f
- Paragraph text
- [Non-discrimination on the basis of tenure status must be guaranteed in the context of, inter alia:] Urban planning;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Guiding Principles on security of tenure for the urban poor 2014, para. 8
- Paragraph text
- Contrary to dominant discourse on tenure, freehold titles are not the sole instrument of tenure security. Often, policies that promote individual freehold simultaneously reduce support to other tenure arrangements. Such policies risk excluding and undermining the tenure status of large segments of urban and peri-urban populations, particularly the poorest, leading to retrogression in the enjoyment of the right to adequate housing. Conversely, policies favouring diverse tenure forms can improve secure access to housing for different population groups.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Guiding Principles on security of tenure for the urban poor 2014, para. 8
- Paragraph text
- Multilateral and bilateral development agencies should ensure that their operations and projects promote and do not undermine security of tenure, including by adopting binding safeguard policies that aim to give effect to the right to adequate housing. Such agencies should support States lacking sufficient resources to take all necessary measures to strengthen security of tenure of the urban poor.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Guiding Principles on security of tenure for the urban poor 2014, para. 9c
- Paragraph text
- [Urban poor individuals and communities are essential actors in strengthening tenure security. States should be accountable to the urban poor for the implementation of these guiding principles by, inter alia:] Guaranteeing free, informed and meaningful participation of the urban poor in the design and implementation of measures to secure their tenure status;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Guiding Principles on security of tenure for the urban poor 2014, para. 9d
- Paragraph text
- [Urban poor individuals and communities are essential actors in strengthening tenure security. States should be accountable to the urban poor for the implementation of these guiding principles by, inter alia:] Developing contextually appropriate indicators and benchmarks against which to measure progress and regressions; and
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Guiding Principles on security of tenure for the urban poor 2014, para. 23
- Paragraph text
- Local authorities should conduct a citywide assessment of existing tenure categories and the degree of security of tenure that each provides. The assessment should ascertain the underlying causes of tenure insecurity, such as inadequate urban planning, exclusionary zoning and building regulations; market forces; the political economy; or cultural and social factors, including discrimination. Authorities should identify settlements and groups throughout the urban and peri-urban area that lack tenure security and other aspects of the right to adequate housing, including homeless populations. They should also identify areas subject to gentrification and sudden raises in rents and housing prices that could produce future tenure insecurity.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Guiding Principles on security of tenure for the urban poor 2014, para. 46
- Paragraph text
- Inclusive urban planning. Inclusive urban planning is instrumental in promoting integrated communities and ensuring that well-located housing is available to the poor. Inclusionary zoning requires that a proportion of neighbourhood property be allocated to low-income dwellings; and, if combined with a mandate to maintain affordability over time, it can provide adequate housing for the urban poor. Inclusive parcelling and development regulations require that a proportion of new housing developments is reserved for low-income housing. For example, in France, 25 per cent of all new housing developments in an urban area with a population of more than 50,000 must be allocated to social housing. Similar policies exist in Canada, Colombia, Chile, Ireland, Maldives, the United States, England and Scotland, among others. A ceiling on plot sizes in residential zones can also lower housing costs by promoting higher-density accommodation.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Guiding Principles on security of tenure for the urban poor 2014, para. 68
- Paragraph text
- If potential adverse impacts are identified, business enterprises should take all relevant measures to prevent them. They should ensure full disclosure of information, in accessible formats, about potential impacts on security of tenure; and transparent, free and fair negotiations regarding any interference with or transfers of tenure rights, whether or not legally recognized, with full respect for the right of people or communities to accept or reject offers. Other measures include making adjustments to project design, locations, and planned business relationships. Businesses should communicate through an appropriate channel with potentially affected groups in order to explain the risks and consult on prevention strategies. If a business enterprise finds that it is not possible to prevent adverse impacts, it should abandon or terminate the proposed or active operation, investment or business relationship. For example, a proposed business venture that would foreseeably result in forced eviction should be either adapted to avoid human rights violations or abandoned altogether.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Homelessness as a global human rights crisis that demands an urgent global response 2016, para. 15
- Paragraph text
- Different definitions of homelessness serve different purposes. A universally applied definition with common measurement, as proposed by the Institute of Global Homelessness could play an important role in promoting enhanced State accountability and informing development goals.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Homelessness as a global human rights crisis that demands an urgent global response 2016, para. 17b
- Paragraph text
- [In light of these considerations, the Special Rapporteur proposes the following three-dimensional approach anchored in human rights:] The second dimension considers homelessness as a form of systemic discrimination and social exclusion, recognizing that being deprived of a home gives rise to a social identity through which "the homeless" is constituted as a social group subject to discrimination and stigmatization;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph