Homelessness
is a serious problem around the world. There are more than 100 million people
who are homeless, and most of them are women and children. In addition, more than
600 million people live in places that are unsafe or polluted -- making them life
threatening or dangerous for their residents' health. Poverty is the primary reason
that people live in these conditions.
The
Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted by the United Nations in 1948
describing the basic human rights to which all people should be entitled. Adequate
shelter is one of those basic human rights the world agreed upon. The United Nations
Centre for Human Settlements (UN-HABITAT), is the UN agency that is dedicated
to working for the achievement of adequate shelter for all and promoting socially
and environmentally sustainable human settlements development.
The
countries of the world agreed in the United Nations Millennium Declaration to
improve the lives of 100 million people who live in slums by the year 2020. Even
though this is only a fraction of those who live in these conditions, since that
agreement in 2000, the number of people living in slums hasn't improved -- in
fact it has grown by over 75 million people! One of the biggest challenges humanity
faces is the fact that half the world now lives in cities. In 1950 less than 1/3
of the world's population were city dwellers. By 2050 it is expected that 2/3
of the world will live in cities. Cities are the center for much of the world's
economic opportunities, but they are also hubs for crime, disease, pollution and
poverty. Some cities around the world have more than half their populations living
in slums with little or no access to water, shelter or proper sanitation.
The
United Nations designated the first Monday in October every year as World Habitat
Day to raise awareness about the basic right to adequate shelter for all and to
remind our leaders about our goal of promoting environmentally sustainable cities
and towns. (The date was chosen to mark the anniversary of the first UN international
conference on human settlements in Vancouver, Canada in 1976.) Since poverty is
the primary cause of homelessness and slums, World Habitat Day is also an opportunity
to rededicate our commitment to ending global poverty.
| "The
future of our human settlements - from hamlet to megacity - will not be determined
by 'bricks and mortar' alone. More housing is needed and rebuilding decaying infrastructure
is essential - the litany is a long and familiar one. But for all we do about
it, the malaise that now eats at the heart of our cities will not disappear unless
we also pay attention to the urban soul, unless we advance the human solidarities
that transform the built environment into human - and humane - settlements: the
livable neighbourhoods of our interdependent world. History,
geography and social change create the context for human solidarity; rational
processes build cities, but faith, loyalty, honour and trust among its members
create communal life. Beyond 'bricks and mortar', therefore, our cities, towns
and villages need the social capital provided by a human solidarity of tolerance,
mutual respect and shared values - social and spiritual - that generate close
community bonds and trust, the bedrock of healthy human settlements." --
Wally N'Dow |
