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INTRODUCTION
There have been housing development activities with urbanpoor communities around Asia which are generally implementing many effective, community-led housing and upgrading projects, which are sometimes successfully being developed to a national level, and yet, for various reasons, the poorest of the poor may still find themselves marginalised, and unable to participate in and benefit from improved and secure housing. Therefore, there is still a missing link in the community housing process. ACHR's "Decent Poor" activity attempts to direct funds to support housing for these poorest in urban areas, as identified by and to be supported by their fellow community members, to ensure they are fully included in the housing and community development process.

This is an extension of Thailand’s Decent Poor program to other countries in the region, funded by SELAVIP. The activity attempts not only to direct funds to the poorest, but also help to change the attitudes of the relevant organisations and actors, increasing understanding of the very poorest and how they can be made a part of housing development activities. The target areas for implementation of this proposal are South East Asia, and South Asia and East Asia. This program is an important element for the poorest of the poor incorportaion into the Asian Coalition for Community Action (ACCA) Program


 Participating family in Laos:


 

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The objectives of the Decent Poor Fund 2014 are as follows:

• To support the poorest who are unable to afford access to secure land and housing through the implementation of ACCA;
• To bridge the gap in city-wide upgrading so as to reach all of the poor, and to lead to innovation in how the very poor can also be active participants in housing activities;
• To boost awareness of the ACCA housing movement so that it can be inclusive, for all the poor in communities, not only the ones with more money;
• To demonstrate how national wide,  city-wide networks and communities can solve problems of the very poor, together, through a community-based model which also serves as a protection mechanism for the longer term livelihood prospects of the very poorest;
• To demonstrate a very cheap, simple and practical model of how housing for the very poorest can be solved with a subsidy of only 500 USD.

Participating countries:
This year, the Secretariat would invite the 14 coalition members to participate to the DPF 2014 in the whole Asia

• 7 countries in South East Asia:, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand.
• 5 countries in South Asia : Nepal, Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
• 2 countries in East Asia and Pacific:  Mongolia and Fiji

Target families
The target poor persons or families to be supported through the Decent Poor program should be the very poorest in the communities in question. These persons or families should be selected by the community network at different levels :national, city and community. The common potential recipients are following include:

• Persons who are elderly; have no relatives; or have too many dependents;
• Persons who have financial and other burdens, such as sickness or unemployment;
• Persons who are victims of a calamity or disaster such as a fire;
• Persons who may already have benefited from housing but face unexpected financial difficulties in repaying loans, arising from injury, sickness, unemployment, debt;
• Persons who are active participants in the community process such as by joining the savings group, and are generally involved in community activities.

 

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Watch the story of the Decent Poor activity in Indonesia in the 5 minute video from Arkom Jogjakarta.

Watch from  Vimeo





 

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Quick SNAP SHOT:  Decent Poor Update December 2013  

1 page










 

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FLASHBACK to The launch of the Decent Poor Fund in Asia 

- March 2011 one page 

 

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