Ongoing Best Practices

The Messengers of Truth Project uses Hip-Hop as a means of empowering urban youth living in slums and inner cities worldwide. Funds raised through concerts, albums and merchandising will be used to assist ongoing community development projects with a view to strengthening their youth component. Below are a brief description of some of the more than 2,000 “best practices” that have been documented and assessed by UN-HABITAT all over the world. Because of their ongoing nature and proven sustainability, these projects do not require start-up or overhead costs. Funds will be used as seed capital, to be matched with grants or donations from local charities and corporate sponsors. Funds will also be used to have well-known Hip-Hop artists visit these projects to provide them with the necessary visibility and publicity for replication and scaling up.

AFRICA

1. Community Recycling of Domestic Waste by Women, Senegal

The Set-Setal settlement in Dakar, Senegal has a population of 45,000. Before the initiative began, the Municipal services could only collect 35% of the 263 cubic metres of waste produced per day, while 51% of households had no toilet facilities and 76% had no convenient systems to process used waste-water which was consequently poured onto the streets. Unemployment rate for men was 28.6% and 24.1% for women. The settlement had a prevalence of infectious diseases such as typhoid and malaria. This situation was exacerbated by lack of proponents for urban poverty reduction and absence of skills training for urban women. There were no working relationships between the present key partners before the project was initiated. The objectives of the project were to clean up of the urban environment through simple processes ranging from the treatment of waste at home to final elimination or final treatment; generation of income for women through creation of jobs in waste recycling. The results of the women's efforts include: regular waste collection, composting of bio-degradable wastes for use in urban agriculture and tree planting, recycling of metallic and plastic wastes, job creation for off-springs of the female headed households, eradication of disease.

Opportunity: diversification of employment opportunities for young women through additional skills training in areas such as electricity, plumbing, carpentry, and masonry. Inputs could include basic skills training and purchase of tools.

Programme for the Protection and Clean-up of the Environment (Pr.A.P.E.), Benin

Cotonou, a city of 1 million inhabitants, is the economic and political capital of Benin. Before the programme began in 1993, indiscriminate household waste disposal was the rule rather than the exception. The program involves waste and urban management. Its objective is to ensure good sanitary conditions in the community of Sainte-Rita through the sustainable management of household and medical waste while improving revenue-generating activities. Sainte-Rita is one of the 24 municipalities of Cotonou with more than 40,000 inhabitants and a surface area of 3 square kilometers of which half is prone to flooding. The community participates in the program as subscribers while the programme trains and employs youth to collect waste from a total of 2,700 voluntary subscribers (households and organizations), benefiting 80% of the 40,000 inhabitants of the community. Subscribers pay monthly fees for garbage collection of which 95% are recovered. Recyclable plastic and paper are collected by women and sold for reprocessing; organic material is recycled into compost for the initiative's farming operations. Currently, garbage collection activities generate US$ 140,000 per year and professional consulting fees by Pr.A.P.E.'s administrators generate US$ 125,000. An outgrowth of has been the creation of a community bank whose net worth is approximately US$ 1,400,000. This micro-credit program was created on the basis of local savings by 1,500 women, and functions without subsidies. It has granted credits of more than US$ 550,000 to over 2,000 women, youth and other garbage collection associations in Cotonou. 200 jobs have been created (85 for women) by the initiative and 35 permanent jobs established with the Community Bank. The program is a partnership between the community, the local authority, Government Ministries of the Environment, of Health and local NGOs and community associations.

Opportunity: diversification of income generating opportunities for young men and women through the use of compost for urban agriculture to provide a healthy source of food to the local market. Inputs could include basic skills training in marketing.

Incorporating Philanthropy as an Integral Part of Business, Kenya

The town of Mombasa is a major port for Eastern Africa and is Kenya's oldest and second largest metropolis. Club Sun N' Sand is a private, family owned beach resort located in Kikambala, a peri-urban area on Mombasa's North Coast where abject poverty prevails. The per capita income per day in this area was less than US $ 0.50. By forging partnerships with the local Ministry of Health, a prominent NGO, and community-based organizations, the hotel has embarked on a number of initiatives that are having a substantial impact on improving the quality of life of the least advantaged in their area. Through the initiative a revolving fund scheme was introduced in 1998 and residents can access micro-credit to set-up small-scale businesses and improve productivity on their farms. This micro-financing initiative has gone a long way to supplement income sources for staff members at the hotel who usually have on average of 10 dependants. The hotel has partnered with a local NGO to afford children in the area cognitive and interactive skills by introducing a Madrasa.

Beneficiaries include girls and boys aged 3-6. Women with basic education from within the community are trained as pre-school teachers and involved in the management and decision-making process of the community through their membership in the school management committees (SMC). Community members that serve on the SMC include parents who receive training in early childhood development issues. In addition Club Sun N' Sand introduced support projects for a local Primary school (affecting 1,600 students). Merit based scholarships are available to outstanding students who otherwise would not have the opportunity to access higher education. The hotel also installed a reverse-osmosis plant to provide purified drinking water producing 10,000 litres/day of which only 5,000 litres/day is needed for the hotel. The remaining water is provided to the villagers at no cost. Since this initiative began water-borne diseases have dropped by almost 50% in the area. The hotel, local residents, The Kenyan government and a local NGO partnered to provide the technical and medical support. To date, over 4,000 patients have benefited who otherwise would have no access to affordable health care in the area - the nearest health care centre is 10 kilometers away.

Opportunity: Provide immediately employable skills training to boys and girls graduating from primary school in such high demand areas as electricity, plumbing, carpentry and masonry. School could benefit from a few computers and Internet connectivity to serve the entire community.

Mathare Youth Self-Help Slum and Environmental Cleanup Project, Kenya

The Mathare Youth Sports Association started in 1987 as a self-help youth sport and community service project in Mathare valley, Nairobi’s largest slum settlement. Uncollected garbage and contaminated water in blocked drains are major causes of disease, disability and deaths in Mathare. MYSA has successfully responded to this problem by linking environmental clean up with sport. Youth football teams participate in environmental clean-up projects that earn them points in their league. Each completed garbage collection project, for example, earns a team 6 points while a match victory earns the team 3 points. MYSA has acquired garbage/tipper trucks and tractors and periodically clears all the accumulated garbage. The association has grown to a membership of 24,000 youths aged 11-18 years participating on over 800 boys and 250 girls teams playing over 10,000 matches a year. More recently, a girl’s league has been established with great success. Mathare United Football Club, an offshoot of MYSA has featured among the top Kenyan soccer teams and represented the country in regional tournaments.

The Mathare slums have high rates of HIV/AIDS infection. Since 1994, over 300 young boys and girls have received intensive training and are able to reach out to over 100,000 youth with critical information on AIDS prevention. Under the Gender Partnership Project started in 1996, over 3,500 girls are now members. Half the part-time staff are
girls who earn wages on weekends to pay for their own school fees. Under the Leadership Awards Project MYSA also pays the school fees for over 50 top youth leaders.

MYSA projects outside the Mathare slums include providing lunch for jailed kids at the Juvenile Court and renovating the cells and toilets. In 1998 MYSA set up a self-help sports and community service programme for 30,000 refugee children at Kakuma Camp in northern Kenya. MYSA is run for and by the youth of the Mathare slums. Most of the several hundred elected MYSA officials, staff, trainers, leaders, volunteer coaches and referees are under 16 years old.

Opportunity: offering skills training targeting youth girls from low- income areas and providing them with mentors to assist them to break out of destructive life patterns

Othandweni Project, Johannesburg, South Africa

Othandweni was a feeding scheme initiated in 1995, which later changed to a non-profit organisation. In 1995 Othandweni conducted a needs assessment test so as to identify the gaps in service delivery to street children/youth in the city. Two areas were identified for implementation of two projects, namely the Street Youth and Health Care. Othandweni aims at empowering the street children/youth of Johannesburg through four projects: Basic Care & Human Rights, Health Care, Sport & Recreation and Entrepreneurial Training. Othandweni reaches out to an average of 600 people monthly through its four projects.

Othandweni follows a developmental approach and its focus is to fill the gaps in the service delivery system. In line with the 1994 democratic elections in South Africa, children and youth voted through ballot so as to determine the name of the project. The biggest challenge was to gain trust in the street from both male and female. Initially all the staff stayed within the community and this helped to build relationships. When Othandweni was established it was evident that there was need to co-ordinate services to the street children and youth. The original networking meeting has since developed into
Regional Johannesburg Alliance for Street Children, the provincial Gauteng Alliance for Street Children and the National Alliance for Street Children. Through the alliance a network is available which makes it possible for Othandweni to refer the children to the projects. The projects vary, for example some projects focus specifically on children under 16 and foster care placement.

If other stakeholders have children in need of health care, they are referred to Othandweni. The stakeholders are now a united force lobbying for the rights of street children globally. Through these efforts new policies and guidelines have been tabled, both locally and nationally. Social amenities have considerably improved since 1994 and there is a wide range of health services available to the homeless community. There are also additional training options available to the street youth and guardianship programmes for those who are in conflict with the law. In addition Othandweni piloted the first training programme for girls in June 2001-July 2002. The revised financial policy by the Department of Welfare now makes it possible to include programmes such as Othandweni.

Opportunity: offering skills training targeting youth girls from low- income areas and providing them with mentors to assist them to break out of destructive life patterns

LATIN AMERICA

Income Generation, Dignity and Citizenship, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

This initiative empowers young black youth (aged 14-21 years) from low-income families by training them as Afro-Brazilian Beauty Specialists. The objective of the initiative is to generate alternative sources of income for young black girls, thus reducing poverty levels from communities on the periphery of Rio de Janeiro. The process not only provides the women with technical skills, but also builds up their self-esteem as a minority group. Resources were provided by the "Solidarity Community Program Support Association (AAPCS)" and the federal government. The program, which runs for 6 months, has expanded its trainee-base from 30 in 1996, to over 900 in 2004. Students train for 720 hours and cover courses in world issues, critical thinking, administration, aesthetics, black culture, gender and ethnicity. In addition, the modules provide opportunities for discussions on women's reproductive health, chronic diseases such as HIV/AIDS, education, sanitation, environment etc. Girls graduating from the program are absorbed into the mainstream labor force in salons in Rio, or in their own neighborhoods, thus meeting the needs of the Afro-Brazilian clientele. The process of inserting qualified persons in the market has been forged ahead by the creation of new partnerships with associations, beauty parlours and individuals. Results have shown that with the increasing employment opportunities, the girls are able to support their families, re-enroll in higher education, afford better housing in well-serviced neighborhoods, and increase their self-esteem. As a result, the girls gain a renewed sense of citizenship, identity and self-awareness. The program continues to expand by holding workshops in other poor communities, thereby reaching more youth.

Opportunity: Expansion of the project to include micro-credit facility to help young graduates to establish small and medium size businesses. Use of seed capital to establish of a central procurement facility for the bulk purchasing of beauty products at wholesale prices using mobile telephones as a means of placing and receiving orders.

“Circo Volador (Flying Circus): Youth and Popular Culture in Mexico City”, Mexico

Mexico has approximately 25 million young people ages 12 to 24, at least half of whom are living in poverty or extreme poverty, and no social policy has been designed to deal with their problems. Action-Research began working in 1987 to assess the situation of working-class youth identified as “gangs” to curb the growing violence and find mechanisms that would enable them to be reincorporated into a society that regarded them as “adversaries”. This gave rise to the Flying Circus, whose name comes from meetings held in the streets.

The Flying Circus Center of Art and Culture provides an outlet for youth to voice their opinions. The organisation has constructed social networks with groups such as Neighborhood Assembly, Jamaica Market Assembly, and Assembly of Street Salesmen in the Metro. The organisation has also held 50 Training Workshops (over the past 3 years), 2 Summer Courses for boys and girls, 350 Radio programs with youth-based themes, Young Artists’ Competition, Popular Youth Culture Festivals and over 250 Concert and Musical Performances. Youth at the centre were involved in the creation and design of a website www.graffitiarte.org, a page on graffiti resulting from a research project undertaken years before, which contains articles on the history and development of graffiti in Mexico and the world, with photographs divided into categories and types of graffiti.

The First Festival of Sub-metropolitan Popular Youth Culture “Youth Cult” was held, with the support of NCCR N-S (Switzerland) which sought to “stimulate and promote the participation of young people in processes that develop the creation of alternative spaces to the exclusion caused by global changes.” This event enabled young people to be incorporated into broader contexts, which in turn allowed them to interact with non-governmental organizations, the mass media, government and private enterprise.

Opportunity: Skills training for boys and girls to capitalise on their graffiti skills and apply them to desk-top publishing and graphic arts. Further enhance skills training in radio production

The Youth of the willow Project, Brazil

Pinhais is a suburban community near the city of Curitiba, with a total of 120,000 inhabitants. Pinhais, caters for 76% of all the water supply of Curitiba and the surrounding region. Large part of the poor population built their shacks near the rivers and as a result, a lot of litter created pollution of rivers, and much of the vegetation was destroyed. The general aim of the initiative is to influence and change the environmental practices in the community, thus creating the basis for sustainable ecological and social solutions.

The objectives of the initiative are to increase the forest cover of water-willows (salix viminalis) as a means to replenish the dwindling tree population on the banks of a local river. The main approach is to encourage the youth to plant willows in the water catchment areas while at the same time raising awareness on use of willow-wood as an alternative to rainforest-wood for production of furniture. The water-willow is also used in handicraft-production providing income for young people from poor background.

The local authority has supported the project by providing the necessary machinery and tools needed to work with the willow trees. As a result of this initiative, 625 families were relocated; 50,000 water-willow plants were planted; 100,000 native plants were planted; 400 young people returned to school; and 200 young people, have been employed. In addition, people living on the riverbanks have been able to change their fuel consumption behavior.

Opportunity: offering skills training targeting youth girls from low- income areas and providing them with mentors to assist them to break out of destructive life patterns

ASIA

Improving Quality of Life for Socially Excluded Children, Kolkata India

Kolkata (City of Joy a.k.a. Calcutta), with a population of 13.2 million, is one is one of the largest cities in the world. It's the capital city of the Indian State of West Bengal. More than a 100,000 children living in streets, red light areas and slums were left unattended and stayed away from schools. These vulnerable children were involved in menial labour, exposed to sexual exploitation and never had access to formal education. The purpose of the educational initiative started in 1989 is to enroll all out-of-school children of (5-14 years) into local schools. Priorities include protecting children in vulnerable situations by providing them with shelter, protection, care and counseling with the involvement of railway authorities, police and the local public. The initiative has not only reached out to 15,000 deprived urban children but has been able to enroll 8,000 children into formal schools while reuniting them with their respective families.

Over the years, Children In Need Institute (CINI ASHA), has created a model in the field of education by evolving its own Bridge Course method (accelerated method of teaching and learning) for children not in school and drop-outs. The children are reintegrated according to age and appropriate levels in one year's time. CINI ASHA has designed a package of the Bridge Course curriculum and training module in collaboration with UNESCO for training approximately 400 community volunteers to date. CINI ASHA, has also been a pioneer in designing modules and conducting training for NGO representatives in counseling street children in collaboration with National Institute of Social Defence. NGOs and the Government have replicated the innovative strategies at the national level.

Opportunity: Provide immediately employable skills training to boys and girls graduating from primary school in such high demand areas as electricity, plumbing, carpentry and masonry. School could benefit from a few computers and Internet connectivity to serve the entire community.

Upbringing of ecologically competent youth – Kazakhstan

Western Kazakhstan is located in the depth of Eurasia. The climate is sharp, continental and prone to drought. The landscape is poor. The Western-Kazakhstan area has many places where the very vulnerable natural landscapes are still preserved. The Ural River and its tributaries are extremely important for the area.

In the past few years, drought has plagued the area. Other negative influences include reduced economic activity, cutting of trees along the river, pollution and agricultural activity. These and other factors have resulted in the deterioration of ecological conditions and the integrity of the ecosystem.

The initiators of "Jaik-Ural" came to the conclusion that without the ecological education of the youth it would be impossible to change the attitudes of the population to nature. The decision was made to organise an expedition to raise awareness of the situation. The expedition was named "Jaik-Ural", after the river in language of local inhabitants. The purpose of the initiative is to educate youth to enable them to raise awareness of environmental concerns so as to affect decision making. Youth carry out ecological expeditions to study and monitor the effects of human impact on the Ural River and to carry out projects to improve the environment. The youth come from a number of areas of the Republic of Kazakhstan, from the Russian Federation, and also from various cities including Almaty, Arkalyk, Atyrau, Moscow, Noginsk, Orenburg, Orsk, Semipalatinsk and Chimrent.

Since its initiation, over twenty thousand have taken part in 10 annual expeditions. The expeditions have also created awareness of ecological education to youth. The expedition have resulted in higher test scores in natural sciences studies among those youth that took part, interest in natural sciences is also higher.

Opportunity: provide more opportunities for young women to gain interest in sciences and to participate in the expeditions. Provide scholarships to study forestry and natural sciences to youth from low income families. Provide education on different irrigation methods and alternatives to logging of trees to youth

EUROPE

National Social Rehabilitation Centre, Sofia – Bulgaria

National Social Rehabilitation Centre (NSRC) was founded in 1991. It is the first Bulgarian organization that is working for the welfare of disabled people, offering social services and aiming at assuring better working and life conditions and social integration. Adolescent age is the most important period in one's life in the preparation of public life, especially for disabled youngsters. This is a period that the youth need the most intensive rehabilitation and training, to compensating of the deficit - mobile or sensorial and skills formation. Aiming at improving the general psychophysical situation of young disabled, and supporting the process of forming of knowledge and social skills for more successful inclusion in life and labour, a center for training and rehabilitation of young people with disabilities "St. George" in the town of Pomorie was established. The centre is entirely adapted for wheelchair users and people with sensorial problems. All places and facilities in the building are accessible. Disabled youngsters have the chance to develop their vocational and communication skills by attending vocational and motivation training and to receive rehabilitation services.

Opportunity: Provide immediately employable skills training to boys and girls graduating from the centre including computer skills to enable them to become productive members of society

ARAB STATES

Prince Mohammed Programme, Saudi Arabia

Prior to the inception of PMPQ&E there was a complete absence of a body responsible for guiding, counseling, training and qualifying Saudi graduates for specific jobs availed by various organizations. The purpose of the Prince Mohammad Program for Qualifying and Employing Saudi Youths (PMPQ&E) is to create a mediatory body, which matches the knowledge and skills of Saudi graduates, from all levels of education, to the existing employment requirements. In addition, PMPQ&E guides, counsels and directs these graduates to jobs, which fit their qualifications and acquired skills/knowledge.

The program has, since its inception successfully established a fund financed by through contributions and donations by various benefactors to train Saudi youths. In addition, there are contributions to summer training programs, which are conducted on yearly basis in collaboration with the Chamber of Industry and Commerce.

In less than two years, PMPQ&E has been able to train, qualify and facilitate recruitment of 3,471 Saudi nationals into various professions. On average, 70% of the trainees were gainfully employed and the skills / knowledge they acquired were adequate from the employers' point of view. In addition, PMPQ&E set up 4 branches for the program in the Eastern province; established 2 women's branches, which train, qualify and help recruit Saudi women in specific jobs required by the employers. The Program has designed and maintains an extensive database, which archives information on both job seekers and opportunities.

Opportunity: offering skills training targeting youth girls from low- income areas and providing them with mentors to assist them to break out of destructive life patterns

IT4Youth

Northern rural areas of the West Bank, population 31,000 and per capita income of US$900 are among the poorest and least served communities in Palestine. The main economic activity of the area comprises small shops for basic goods. Since late 2000, under severe movement restrictions, unemployment and poverty has risen sharply to 70%. The growing poverty adversely affects children and youth, which comprise 70% of the population and they have limited access to higher education or vocational training. The IT4Youth program uses an integrated model to introduce computer-based information technology to young people in rural areas of the Palestinian West Bank. The program involves both school-based and community-based interventions to improve the learning skills and employment rate of its participants, thereby leading to an increased quality of life. The pilot IT4Youth covers a cluster of 11 West Bank villages and communities between Nablus and Jenin, and targets youth aged 10 through 24 in schools and through a regional community center. It provided for the construction/ renovation, and equipping of computer labs in 14 schools and a regional IT center that will be turned over to a Joint Community Services Council at the end of the project.

The IT4Youth project successively mobilized resources on local, national and international levels, and across public, private and non-profit sectors. The local partners (school administrators, village councils and regional heads) participated through mobilizing technical, financial and human resources, providing space for building the center and school labs, facilitating the training of teachers, and maintaining and sustaining the center and labs. They were also instrumental in their role of networking with the private sector for sponsorship of trainees, job placement, marketing and advertising in exchange for in-kind donations, and providing technical advice and commitment to the sustainability of project.

With 300 computers installed in 14 schools, the program has succeeded to develop annually over 4,000 IT-proficient Palestinian youth in a rural setting, 250 teachers, and parents and community members. The fully equipped regional IT center in Silet al-Daher provides an average 50 youth daily with Internet access, computer games, educational programs and vocational training. Youth managers organize the club activities and mentors volunteers to work with younger members. In addition, IT vocational trainees are placed to do internships in the community to get experience in new skills. The program has succeeded in engaging youth in technology through active teaching techniques in computer basics, internet skills and more advanced computer applications, in addition to facilitating leadership and mentoring in the regional IT center.
The program fully meets the basic criteria of impact, partnership and sustainability as well as the additional considerations of leadership and community empowerment, and innovation within local context and transferability.
Opportunity: offering skills training targeting youth girls from low- income areas and providing them with mentors to assist them to break out of destructive life patterns

For more information:

The Best Practices and Local Leadership Programme, UN-Habitat
Email: bestpractices@unhabitat.org