Architecture is never complete. The theoretical discourse of the thesis explored the need of a building to change. This change is unpredictable, though expected. The project proposal within the informal context of Phumolong, Mamelodi, aimed to address this unavoidable nature of architecture. The focus of the project was to provide improved services within an informal settlement, whilst generating social upliftment. The thesis investigated the current and future requirements of the informal dweller. It explored the possibility of generating public space through the establishment of a catalyst. The connection of services and public amenities has been exploited to generate an environment where the building acts as generator and it supports social interaction. Inevitably the servant core provides implicit reasoning as renewed stimulus to public gathering. The project proposal addressed the integration of the informal user with a building system through the architectural process. This is achieved through phased development, investigating assembly and use of civic programmes. A quantitative approach towards the research was initially undertaken. However, the fluid nature of the informal settlement enthused a more qualitative approach. The need and right of the informal dweller to be served, and have access to public services and amenities justified the design proposal. The changing fabric, user, programme and needs of the community contribute to the rate of change of a building. The changing context of Phumolong required a flexible and adaptable design intervention allowing for future interpretation. These variables influenced architecture as a cognitive process. The design as a product within the realm of architecture represents the process of learning from the past, reacting to the present and preparing for the future. Ultimately the design intervention exists as an ongoing process of progressive change. Copyright / Dissertation (MArch(Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Architecture / unrestricted

The study examines the issue of living conditions in informal settlements, using the case study of Imizamo Yethu informal settlement in Cape Town. Affordability, lack of space, job related issues, a relatively small formal housing stock available in many urban centres, and deregulation, in terms of both access to land and finance, forced lower income groups to seek accommodation in informal settlements. Here people are exposed to unhealthy living conditions. The study reveals that living in informal settlements often poses significant health risks. Sanitation, food storage facilities and drinking water quality are often poor, with the result that inhabitants are exposed to a wide range of pathogens and houses may act as breeding grounds for insect vectors. In informal settlements people often live in temporary homes constructed with impermanent, basic materials. These inhabitants frequently have little option but to live on marginal land (flood plains or steep slopes, for example), with the consequence that they are the first to suffer the effects of cyclones and floods. In addition, a combination of overcrowding, the use of open fires and flammable buildings leads to danger from accidental fires, burns and scalding. The post-apartheid South African government has tried a number of housing initiatives to help alleviate the housing problem since 1994 when it came to power. These have included the Botshabelo Accord (1994), the Housing White Paper in 1995, the National Urban and Reconstruction Housing Agency in 1995, the Housing Subsidy Scheme in 1995, the Housing Act No. 107 of 1997 and the Policy on People’s Housing Process (1998). The government set itself a target of delivering one million houses within five years. By all indications the government did not fully comprehend the gravity of the problem in relation to available resources. In 2004, the Department of Housing declared its intention to eradicate informal settlements in South Africa by 2014. This followed the unprecedented housing backlog, proliferation of informal settlements, social exclusion and the inability of municipalities to provide basic infrastructure to urban poor households. However, despite these bold interventions by government, the study demonstrates that the provision of low-cost housing can be viewed as a wicked problem. Wicked problems are described to be “ill-defined, ambiguous, and associated with strong moral, political and professional issues”. The study, therefore, concludes that given the complexities surrounding the provision of low-cost housing in South Africa, the government’s ambitions to resolve housing backlogs by 2014 appear to be a far-fetched dream.

Thesis (MPA.) -- University of Limpopo, 2017. / Refer to document

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) are fundamental to health and are regarded as a fundamental human right for survival, dignity, productivity, reproductive health and happiness. In low socio-economic communities and settings, especially those who are residing in informal urban settlements, where appropriate WASH interventions are not in place, the risks of mortality and morbidity from especially infectious disease are high. A participatory action research (PAR) study was conducted to address the poor WASH conditions in the Havana informal urban settlement in Windhoek, Namibia. The study comprises of four phases.

Informal settlements are more than just a collection of corrugated iron units. They are not a building type but an urban phenomenon that is prevalent in South Africa due to reasons such as housing backlog (Huchzermeyer, 2010:132) and the need for livelihood (Huchzermeyer, 2011:33). It offers choice, it gives people what they want and it is affordable (Mills, 2012:1). “Informalization is a process where the poor evade rules to produce outcomes that they need, but that are otherwise too controlled for them to reach” (Cross, 2005:3). Urbanisation in South Africa is increasing every day (Mills, 2012:1) and the poor in shacks continue to deliver housing to themselves using informal mechanisms (Cross, 2005:2). There is a need to recognise and appreciate the economic, social and environmental benefits that informal settlements can bring to the urbanisation process (Mills 2012, pp1). Informal housing exists due to the gap in the market where the poor are unable to afford the available kind of housing (Cross, 2005:3). One must understand that formalising the informal does not always have to be through eradication of existing slums according to MDG seven Target 11 (Huchzermeyer, 2011:16) and it can also take place as an in situ upgrading (Huchzermeyer, 2011:30). It can sometimes be an “invisible” form of development of the community which leads to a self-sustaining future upgrade such as project that Nabeel Hamdi pioneered namely ‘the Buffalo Project’ (Hamdi, 2010:106). Sometimes the existing abandoned structures such as a community hall can be reactivated, resulting in an improvement of an area in terms of addressing the needs of the community for a market space (Hamdi, 2010:109) or changing the appearance of an informal settlement resulting in a change in people’s perceptions of the area (Feireiss, 2011:114). In this way the “small change” can grow over time and result in the development of an entire settlement by its own residents. This dissertation explores the importance of the architectural facilitator as the “missing” profession amongst other professionals who are involved with upgrading projects such as architects, engineers, NGOs, government entities, private stakeholders and many more (Hamdi, 2010:96). The architectural facilitator will be able to accommodate the gaps that have been challenging the Upgrade of the informal settlements in South Africa by creating an understanding between the issues that exist in an informal settlement, prioritising the needs and selecting interventions that address the most pressing needs in an informal settlement. The aim is to create a universal understanding of how one can approach the issue of upgrading informal settlements in order to derive a strategic framework that will lead to a long-term sustainable development. A revised toolkit is introduced to guide the decision-makers such as the Architects, government entities or anyone with an understanding of Architecture, to be able to organise their findings in a prioritised manner and implement interventions according to what the priority needs in the context are. The important thing to highlight in this paper is the theoretical importance of livelihoods to the understanding of poverty in the urban context and the implication of these theories in practice (Hamdi, 2010:185). Therefore, designing an upgrade plan and intervention which will be a long-term project, accepted by the community and accommodating the community’s need for livelihood. Topics such as ownership through tenure security and identifying existing nodes of energy are the main focus of this thesis document. / Dissertation (MSc (Applied Science) )--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Architecture / unrestricted

Includes bibliographical references / From 1994 to 2008, South Africa's national government disseminated numerous policies, laws, regulations and strategies to support its objective of providing basic sanitation access to the urban poor by 2014. The state has yet to attain this objective - ostensibly due to poor municipal execution of national policy. This thesis challenges this assessment, as it overlooks how non-municipal actors have shaped implementation and ignores possible weaknesses in policy. After assessing the delivery of sanitation services in Cape Town informal settlements, I found that disputes among municipal implementers, policy beneficiaries and social advocates about broadly framed policy, as well as policy gaps in servicing informal settlements, contributed to the City's failure to achieve national objectives. The local actors'differences and policy gaps necessitated the re-formulation of sanitation policy and programmes in Cape Town according to conflicting rationalities that accommodated the'lived' and 'practical' realities of servicing informal settlements. In light of these circumstances, this thesis argues that there is a disproportionate focus on turning national policy into practise - for this viewpoint misses how policy oftentimes is re-formulated according to local actors' perspectives and experiences. Understanding the complex interplay between policy rationales and implementation realities can contribute to more constructive means of effectively providing sanitation services for South African informal settlements.

In the South African context, the number of informal settlements are increasing. A problem arises when one observes the conditions that informal settlers are forced to live in, which are diminishing livelihoods and do not fulfill basic human needs. Informal settlements are described as parts of a city that have been neglected and that have been illegally occupied by the urban poor (Huchzermeyer 2006:2). South Africa is currently experiencing a major housing backlog and sometimes the houses that are provided don’t satisfy human needs. It is important to provide elements that will improve the livelihoods of the residents. Thus, the aim is to provide people with elements that not only provide protection against natural elements but also make a positive contribution to the livelihoods of the residents. / Mini Dissertation (MArch (Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2020. / Architecture / MArch (Prof) / Unrestricted

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / This research investigates the engagements between community activists and urban authorities in the provision of sustainable sanitation services in the informal settlements of Khayelitsha Cape Town. Since 2008, there have been contestations on the exclusion of informal settlements in the planning and delivery of sanitation services by the City of Cape Town. The planning and decision-making of sanitation services in the informal settlement is complex due to numerous stakeholders involved and thus not clear on how sustainable sanitation can be achieved. The challenge has been on understanding the level where decision-making in the provision of sanitation services is more effective for sustainable sanitation.

Deparment of Urban and Regional Planning / MURP / The frequency of natural disasters in informal settlements has been on the increase globally, Yet approximately 1 billion people still live in informal settlements world-wide. In South Africa, about 1.2 million people live in informal settlements characterised by inadequate infrastructure, lack of effective land use and spatial planning, high densities and are highly exposed to the risk of disasters. In general, there is a close link between informal settlements as spaces of habitation and exposure to disaster risks. Reflecting on disaster risk reduction strategies for informal settlements is therefore imperative particularly from an urban and regional planning perspective. Therefore, this work uses a case study of Hlophekane an informal settlement located in Greater Giyani Local Municipality under the Limpopo Province's Mopani District in South Africa to illustrate these concerns. The main purpose of this study is to develop disaster risk reduction strategies for Hlophekane Informal Settlement. The study sought to identify and characterize the nature of disasters in Hlophekane Informal Settlement. Data was collected from 90 households that live in Hlophekane Informal Settlement through a questionnaire survey and 3 key informant interviews were conducted. Furthermore, the study mapped disaster risk zones in Hlophekane Informal Settlement using GIS. Collected data was analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) making use of a thematic analysis and descriptive statistics. Microsoft computer software packages and Geographical Information System (GIS) were used to map disaster hotspots zones. Data was presented through the use of tables, graphs, and maps. Qualitative data was analysed making use of a range of processes and procedures to generate explanations, understanding or interpretation of the experiences of people and situations in the disaster context. The study findings in disaster risk reduction strategies are expected to provide lessons for reducing disasters in the area from an urban and regional planning perspective. Disaster Risk Reduction strategies suitable for informal settlements such as Hlophekane must be sustainable, cost effective and involve the community. A combination of the multi-sectoral and multi-displinary approaches is one of the disaster risk reduction strategies that can be implemented. This strategy integrates different sectors, government departments, NGO’s and the affected communities. Out of this strategy, several projects were identified such as in situ upgrading, roll over upgrading and complete relocation. From those projects, in situ upgrading is the most suitable, convenient and cost-effective strategy that can be implemented. / NRF

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Architecture; and, (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Civil Engineering, 1982. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 205-208). / Housing low-income groups, who cannot afford even the most minimal shelter, remains a dominant issue in most developing countries. However, all the solutions advanced so far depend on large investments, either by the Government or by the individuals concerned, which neither of them can afford. This thesis examines squatter settlements in Aurangi, Karachi (Pakistan) and identifies issues related to housing and the policies currently being implemented. The results of that investigation indicate that housing the low-income, given the economy and housing policies in most developing countries, can most effectively be realized by encouraging self-help methods. before self-help methods. can be realized construction techniques have to be simplified. This thesis proposes an alternate construction method which promises to simplify some of the building tasks in construction of low-rise dwellings, and hopes to reduce the overall material costs in construction. This method relies on using fabrics as formwork in construction. This formwork is used in making walls, beams, and domes. A cost comparison is made with the current construction techniques in the country and the proposed building strategy is found to be highly competitive. / by Javed Sultan. / M.S.