Public housing policy and the housing need of residents in informal settlements in Ethiopia: the case of Addis Ababa

Abstract

The research, entitled "Public Housing Policy and the Housing Need of Residents in Informal Settlements in Ethiopia: The Case of Addis Ababa", aims to examine how the socioeconomic status of informal settlers and housing policies affect the provision of affordable public housing for low-income households living in the Bole and Yeka informal settlements, located in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. This research is based on selected theoretical concepts, such as "Housing by people" by Turner; "A shack as a house in process"; "Progressive housing development";"Creating an enabling environment" by Mangin, and "Self-improvement" by Abrams, among others. The study is centred on the people who live in the informal settlements of Bole and Yeka. These areas do not adhere to the spatial planning regulations of the city, thus making them vulnerable to eviction by city officials. The study used a mixed-methods research design, incorporating both quantitative and qualitative methods. The research shows (amongst others) that the traditional approach to constructing public housing, despite its flaws and past failures, remains prevalent in developing nations, such as Ethiopia. Despite poor housing conditions, lack of basic services, and social amenities, there is a strong sense of ‘place attachment’ amongst informal dwellers in Bole and Yeka informal settlement areas. This study has shown that self help housing for settlement upgrading may be a more effective solution for housing needs in informal settlements, such as Bole and Yeka, than relying solely on conventional public housing models and policies. Yet, this study shows how the dominance of self-help housing without secured tenure in informal settlement areas, such as Bole and Yeka in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, does not promote high satisfaction levels amongst informal dwellers. The study findings also make it possible and appropriate for the researcher to critique Turner’s concept of informal settlements as a “temporary solution” to the urban housing shortage. Key study recommendations include adopting settlement upgrading through self-help housing as an alternative to conventional public mass housing provision approaches and policy discourse. This unlocks the potential of urban informal settlers through self-help housing, and adopting a proactive approach to deter future peripheral development of new informal settlements in urban areas, such as Addis Ababa. The study recommends a broader model called ‘supported self-help housing’, intended for a holistic, affordable, and responsive low-income housing provision to address housing needs, particularly in cities, such as Addis Ababa. This model also sought to contribute to the existing body of knowledge and further the development of assisted self-help housing theories.