United Nations Commission for Human Settlements (HABITAT)

HISTORY AND PRESENT STATUS

The UN General Assembly, in resolution 32/162 (1977) established the Commission on Human Settlements (Habitat) which replaced the Committee on Housing, Building and Planning. The Commission has the objective of assisting countries and regions in solving human settlement problems and promoting greater international cooperation in the sector. The Commission provides overall direction to the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (UNCHS) which serves as the Secretariat to the Commission and also provides a focal point for human settlements action and the coordination of activities within the UN system. The United Nations Habitat and Human Settlements Foundation (UNHSF) is the extrabudgetary financial arm of the UNCHS and provides funds for UNCHS activities not covered by the United Nations regular budget resources.

South Africa is not a member of the Commission. However, it has been accorded official observer status (enabling South Africa to participate but not vote on issues). In order to participate, the High Commissioner in Nairobi has been accredited to represent South Africa at the UNCHS. The High Commissioner was accredited on 6 April 1995.

The Department of Housing was invited by the Commission for Human Settlements to take the lead in preparing a national input to the Habitat II, Istanbul Conference in 1996. The conference was aimed at gaining global and national commitments to improving human settlements.

A German initiative, proposed by former Chancellor Kohl, to host an international conference in the year 2000 in Berlin on sustainable urban development, was adopted by the Global Environment Initiative (GEI) consisting of Germany, Brazil, Singapore and South Africa. President Mbeki accepted Chancellor Kohl's invitation for South Africa to be a member of the GEI. The conference, which took place during 2000, was known as URBAN 21. Each of the four participating countries hosted a regional conference on sustainable urban development in preparation for the URBAN 21 Conference in 2000. The South African Departments of Housing and Environmental Affairs and Tourism prepared such a conference in SADC context in March 2000, which was titled : "African Solutions: Towards Sustainable Urban Development"

In June 2001 a Special Session of the General Assembly will be convened for an overview and appraisal of the implementation of the Habitat Agenda (Istanbul + 5). In preparation for this Special Session Cabinet approved a South African Country Report, which is available on the web site of the Department of Housing.

OTHER DEPARTMENTS INVOLVED

The Department of Housing is actively involved in UNCHS