Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
GLOBAL URBAN OBSERVATORY
MONITORING
HUMAN SETTLEMENTS
with
URBAN INDICATORS
(Draft)
GUIDE
United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat), Nairobi, Kenya, 1997
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Contents
Acknowledgment
Part I. Background and Rationale
A. The need for urban and shelter tools
B. Institutional background
Urban Indicators Programme - Phase 1 (1994-96)
The Habitat II Conference
The Global Urban Observatory
Phase II (1997-2001)
C. Developing indicators for policy
The Urban Indicators Programme and indicators development
Placing urban and housing issues on the policy agenda
Criteria for selecting indicators
Constraints and problems in data collection
D. Uses of indicators
1. Residents
2. National governments and parliamentarians
3. Mayors and city managers
4. Private sector
5. Non-government and community organisations
6. International and external support agencies
Part II. The Abridged Survey
Introduction
List of key indicators
Instructions
Background Data Module
Module 1: Socioeconomic Development
Module 2: Infrastructure
Module 3: Transport
Module 4: Environmental Management
Module 5: Local Government
Module 6: Housing
Part III. Going beyond
A. Tailoring indicators to specific contexts and needs
1. Using a partnership approach
2. Using Extensive indicators
3. Following the Habitat Agenda
4. Developing new modules
5. Developing Indices
6. Integrating indicators in projects
B. Institutionalising monitoring
1. Using the Global Urban Observatory network
2. Local and national Urban Observatories
C. New Tools
1. Software and the DIF
2. Casebook of good practices
3. On-line training
Annexes
List of participating cities
List of extensive indicators
Memorandum of Understanding
Adjusting Money Quantities to US dollars
Glossary
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Acknowledgment
This condensed document is a revised version of the Abridged Survey guidebook which was
prepared for the Habitat II Conference. It summarises the three-volume indicators series, entitled
Volume I: Introduction, Volume II: Urban Indicators Review and Volume III: Housing Indicators
Review. It also provides new perspectives in the spirit of the post-Istanbul phase of the Urban
Indicators Programme.
Part I of this guide is an overview of the Urban Indicators Programme, its background and
rationale. In particular, it presents the strategy for the second phase of the programme.
Part II, entitled The Abridged Survey, which contains a set of key urban and housing indicators,
constitutes a monitoring package for cities. It should be used as a tool for reviewing the condition
of cities, and providing benchmarks for the development of urban conditions and policies over
space and time. The Abridged Survey proposes a series of key indicators which were endorsed by
the Commission on Human Settlements in May 1995, in its Resolution 15/6, and were collected by
220 cities before the Habitat II Conference (June 1996). The results collected up to 1996 have
been analysed and have provided important results on human settlements conditions worldwide.
This guide incorporates a few changes made in the definition of the key indicators as well as
suggestions for their collection and simple checks to improve consistency of the results in the
future.
Part III, entitled Going Beyond, provides guidance for advanced work on indicators development
and application at different operational levels. It proposes a framework for going beyond the
collection and application of key indicators. New directions are: the addition of extensive indicators,
the design of new indicators and the integration of new modules, the implementation of a
participatory process for consulting the major stakeholders, the use of the Global Urban
Observatory network, the integration of new tools, etc.
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Part I. Background and rationale
A. The need for urban and shelter tools
The purpose of the Urban Indicators Programme is to build national and local capacity to collect
and use policy-oriented indicators as part of a strategy for the development of sustainable human
settlements. Human settlements may be defined in the simplest of terms as places where human
activities take place. It is, however, in our urban areas -- our cities -- that we face the main
challenge for the future. Increasingly, the world’s problems are urban problems. How we
anticipate, recognize, measure and interpret urban problems and how we respond to them in policy
will determine the overall sustainability of human development.
For the first time in history, rapid growth of population and its concentration in cities around the
world constitute a crucial element affecting the long-term outlook for humanity. Despite four
millennia as centers of civilization and economic activity, cities never attracted more than ten
percent of the global population until the last half of the 19th century. Now, at the end of the 20th
century, systems of cities have become the world’s social, economic, cultural and political matrix.
In 1970, 35 percent of all people lived in urban areas. By the year 2000, that percentage will
exceed 50 percent. During the period 1990 to 2030, the population of urban areas will have grown
by about 3.3 billion, over 90 percent of which will accrue to cities of developing countries. Cities
have become synonymous with growth, and they are increasingly subject to dramatic crisis,
especially in developing countries. Poverty, environmental degradation, lack of urban services,
degeneration of existing infrastructure, and lack of access to land and adequate shelter are among
the main areas of concern.
For better or for worse, the development of contemporary societies will depend largely on
understanding and managing the growth of cities; the city will increasingly become the test bed for
the adequacy of political institutions, for the performance of government agencies, and for the
effectiveness of programmes to combat social exclusion and to promote economic development.
The pitfalls of uninformed policy
In the context of complex urban dynamics, current characterizations of cities are often too
simplistic and misleading. In some cases there are attempts to frame the role of cities in terms of
such old disputes as urban versus rural, wherein the city is portrayed as a parasite on
development, or the city is the destroyer of genuine, traditional culture. Such mental models -prejudices and assumptions -- easily find their way into public policy, often doing great damage.
The existence of a gap between the magnitude of urban problems and commitments to the urban
sector belies a deeper and, in certain respects, more serious gap, the divide between urban reality
and the ability to comprehend that reality.
Historically, the decision to direct most international assistance to rural rather than urban areas is
not due to mere happenstance; it appears related to the traditionally negative image of the city and
its impact on rural areas. This image has only recently been under reconsideration.
The image referred to tends to depict the city alternatively as:

the perverse result of unequal and unbalanced development -- which leads to conflicts of
interest between the urban elite and rural masses;

the result of the spread of development models formulated in industrialized countries -- a
thesis which encourages the interpretation of the relationship between city and outlying areas in
terms of conflict between urban and rural economies;

the effect of the assimilation of exogenous cultural models by non-western societies -focusing on social and cultural aspects -- in which the rural/urban relationship is seen as a conflict
between the culture of modernization and consumerism and traditional, wholesome culture.
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These conceptions of the relationship between city and rural areas share the idea that cities are to
be avoided if possible, and that their size and influence should be contained. Indeed, international
cooperation policies and those adopted by many governments have sought for several decades to
limit urbanization and migration from outlying areas, mainly through actions aimed at developing
rural areas.
Not infrequently such actions have had the opposite of the desired effect. This is the case, for
example, of actions promoting agricultural mechanization, which reduced the demand for labor in
rural areas and encouraged migration to cities; or, again, of actions aimed at increasing school
attendance in the countryside, which favored the spread of knowledge and skills that were more
useful in urban than rural areas. This is not to suggest that such development policies were wrong.
It does mean, rather, that their results were unanticipated perhaps because of an underestimation
of the creativity released by development and of the natural tendency of creative energy to focus in
cities.
A more alarming aspect, however, is that the negative depiction of urbanization has distracted
attention from the true ills of cities and prevented recognition of the positive elements and
development opportunities inherent in the process of urban growth.
A crisis of information
It seems patent that many of the phenomena and processes that characterize urbanization
continue to be poorly documented and understood, and that the depiction of the city, its problems
and its potentials still remain sorely distorted.
Most cities in the developing world are suffering from an information crisis which is seriously
undermining their capacity to develop and analyze effective urban policy. They have neither a
sustained nor systematic appraisal of urban problems and little appreciation of what their own
remedial policies and programs are in fact achieving. Existing tools for urban policy in both
developing and developed countries have been largely inadequate in providing an overall picture of
the city and how it works. Rarely do they provide the means for understanding the relationship
between policy and urban outcomes, nor do they provide an indication of the relationships between
the performance of individual sectors and broader social and economic development results.
The positive side of the city is that it is the medium for social development and economic growth.
Urban concentration can produce growth and break the cycle of poverty and deterioration,
however, only if the problems generated by dense concentrations of population and activities are
rectified or limited. In determining the causes of urban dysfunction and in monitoring progress
toward achieving sustainable cities, it is increasingly necessary to rely on effective tools to analyze
the performance of cities, within countries and on a world-wide basis. It is also necessary to have
accurate and timely data on key policy variables and performance indicators which measure urban
conditions and changes.
A serious problem for urban policy in both developed and developing countries has been the lack
of appropriate data at the city level. Most major economic aggregates which might measure the
health of the urban economy, such as city product, investment or trade, are not available. Other
data which might measure the condition of the population, infrastructure and the environment, are
available in some places but not others and are seldom collected in a consistent international
framework. Data which measure the internal spatial structure of the city, its economy and the
distribution of opportunities, are not collected in many parts of the world.
Almost everyone is aware of the necessity for data in policy making, to provide objective measures
of conditions and trends, to avoid or to correct mistakes, and to rethink ineffective policy. The
problem is that, while enormous amounts of data are being generated at very high costs
throughout the world, they are understood very poorly and are often inappropriate, inaccurate,
incomplete or not generated for specific policy purposes. There is a global need to build national
and local capacity to collect useful information on urban conditions and trends, to convert that
information to knowledge through appropriate analytic techniques and to apply that knowledge in
formulating and modifying urban policies and programmes. This need is made more urgent by
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national commitments to monitor progress in attaining the numerous objectives of the Habitat
Agenda.
B. Institutional background of the Urban Indicators Programme
1. Phase I (1994-96)
The Urban Indicators Programme of UNCHS (Habitat) was established to address the urgent
global need to improve the base of urban knowledge by helping countries and cities design, collect
and apply policy-oriented indicators data. The programme started in 1988 as the Housing Urban
Indicators Programme, a joint Habitat/World Bank initiative, in response to the objectives of the
Global Strategy for Shelter to the Year 2000. The programme collected policy-sensitive housing
indicators in principal cities of 53 countries during 1991-1992.
The Housing Urban Indicators Programme was to design tools for monitoring the implementation of
the Global Strategy for Shelter calling for the establishment of a legislative and regulatory
environment which could facilitate and enable the accelerated development of the housing sector.
A set of indicators that would be policy-sensitive and easy to collect and update on a regular basis
was proposed for the purpose of producing a framework for monitoring the performance of the
housing sector from different perspectives. Indicators were intended to provide a management
tool for the key stakeholders -- housing consumers, housing producers, finance institutions, local
governments and central governments -- to identify policy imperatives to address the pressing
problems of housing. In examining the links between housing policies and housing outcomes, the
analysis of indicators established that poor housing outcomes are often more the result of
inadequate policies than of levels of income or expenditure.
From housing indicators to urban indicators
The success of the Housing Urban Indicators Programme provided the impetus to develop a set of
urban indicators designed to capture essential information on cities and to monitor the performance
of the urban domain in relation to desired policy goals. The critical role for urban indicators is not
only to assess human settlement conditions and sustainability, but also to assist in policy
formulation and in monitoring overall urban performance.
In 1993, the programme moved toward the broader issue of sustainable urban development,
responding to a major theme chosen for the 1996 Habitat II Conference: "Sustainable Human
Settlements in an Urbanizing World." Following a meeting of experts in Nairobi in January 1994,
an extensive set of urban indicators was selected covering, in addition to housing, a wide range of
urban policy issues. These were endorsed in April 1994 at the first substantive session of the
Preparatory Committee for the Habitat II Conference. UNCHS (Habitat), as the secretariat to the
Conference, was instructed to support the collection of indicators and to provide guidelines for their
inclusion in the national reports that countries would prepare for the Conference.
Indicators formed an integral part of the preparatory process for Habitat II. A list of 46 key
indicators was endorsed by the Preparatory Committee as the minimum set of indicators to be
collected by each country in preparation for the Conference. The results were presented by
countries at Istanbul in their national reports. By the time of the Istanbul Conference, in June 1996,
data on key indicators had been received from 221 cities in 104 countries. These data are now
being verified and entered into a global database by UNCHS (Habitat).
2. The Habitat II Conference
The Habitat Agenda, the main policy document coming out of the 1996 Habitat II Conference,
includes a series of commitments and recommendations relating to the development and use of
indicators. It states that all partners groups, including local authorities, the private sector and
communities, should regularly monitor and evaluate their own performance in the implementation
of the Habitat Agenda through comparable human settlements and shelter indicators.
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It is also stated that, as part of their commitment to strengthening their existing shelter- and
settlements-related data collection and analysis capabilities, governments at all levels, including
local authorities, should develop and apply shelter and human settlements indicators. The key
indicators, augmented by more extensive policy-oriented national and sub-national level indicators
specific to the different regions and other relevant information, will be used by governments and
other partners groups for assessing nationwide progress in implementing the Habitat Agenda. The
indicators should cover such sectoral areas of the Habitat Agenda as shelter, health, transport,
energy, water supply, sanitation and employment as well as the cross-cutting aspects of urban
sustainability, empowerment, participation, local governance and gender-sensitivity. Special
attention is given to the need for age and gender disaggregated data on the impact of urbanization
on vulnerable and disadvantaged groups, including children.
In responding to the guidelines for preparation for the Habitat II Conference, 138 countries in five
regions of the world submitted national reports, 127 of which contained five-year national plans of
action. Countries from all regions identified monitoring and evaluation, specifically the collection
and analysis of indicators, as a priority in their national plans.
3. The Global Urban Observatory
The United Nations Commission on Human Settlements, at its fifteenth session, requested the
Executive Director of UNCHS (Habitat), in Resolution 15/6, to establish a global urban
observatory to permit comparative international evaluation of progress in meeting the aims of the
Habitat Agenda and to draw attention to and provide information on human settlements trends and
conditions world-wide.
The Habitat Agenda elaborates on this responsibility by calling on Habitat to establish a process
for analysing and monitoring major trends in urbanization and the impact of urban policies,
strategies and actions on the provision of adequate shelter and the achievement of sustainable
human settlements development.
In recognition of its proven ability, Habitat is asked:
(i) to provide assistance to establish guidelines for national and local monitoring and evaluation of
the implementation of the Habitat Agenda and;
(ii) to facilitate a global exchange of information about successful policies and programmes for
improving living environments.
To carry out these and related mandates, Habitat has brought together two programmes Indicators and Best Practices - to constitute the Global Urban Observatory (GUO).
The development objective of the GUO is to help Governments, local authorities and other partners
improve their knowledge of human settlements and their capacity to formulate and adopt effective
and appropriate policies and strategies for making settlements more sustainable.
The GUO will establish an open-ended network of resources around the world to form an urban
knowledge infrastructure. For each region, there will be a base of learning and capacity-building
institutions, coordinated through Habitat regional offices, that will work closely with partners within
their regions to link information to policy development. These institutional partners will, among
other things, help local authorities and others create, manage and maintain local databases and
information on development practice, identify indicators of good policy and seek out examples of
effective civic learning and leadership processes.
Part of the knowledge infrastructure will be dedicated to providing local training in appropriate data
collection methods and in the development, adoption and maintenance of databases and
information systems. The benefit from these activities, however, will be realized only when data
and information are effectively used in policy development. This implies that: (i) information
collected must be of relevance to local decision-making processes, and (ii) requisite skills among
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policy analysts and policy-makers exist to interpret them. Regional institutions with such capacity
building skills will be identified and invited to become part of the knowledge infrastructure.
(see also Part III - Going Beyond - B. Institutionalising monitoring - 1. Using the Global Urban
Observatory network)
4. Phase II (1997-2001)
Phase One of the global Urban Indicators Programme revealed a double demand on the
Programme that may be successfully addressed through an integrated set of regional networks.
On the one hand, the UIP was conceived as a global means to collect indicators data that will allow
comparisons to be made between cities, between countries and between regions. On the other
hand, national and local participants have expressed the need for indicators data that reflect their
particular circumstances. Reconciliation of global and local expectations is made possible in two
ways: (1) adoption of both a set of universal key indicators and a set of indicators developed
locally; and (2) establishing a global network of local and national Urban Indicators Programmes
which supports a more refined global analysis over time. Keeping in mind this duality, as well as
the lessons from Phase One and the programme’s capacity building goal, four objectives have
been adopted for Phase Two of the Urban Indicators Programme. These objectives are similar to
those for Phase One and indicate a strong coherence and continuity between the two phases.
OBJECTIVE A: to develop networks for information exchange and capacity building;
In Phase Two, the global Urban Indicators Programme will promote the establishment and
integration of several levels of networks as prerequisites to continuing the UIP.
At the local level, networks between policy-makers and their partners in civil society will be
encouraged and supported. At this level, networks will be composed of existing agencies or
organizations designated as Local Urban Observatories (LUOs) -- the entities responsible for the
technical monitoring and evaluation of urban conditions and trends and of progress in
implementing local plans of action.
Local nodes (LUOs) will be tied together in a mutual support network by national partners -entities designated to help the LUOs develop their technical capacity, to coordinate the data
collection and analysis activities of LUOs and to compile urban information as input to national
urban policy. Governments may designate a national partner, or partners, as a National Urban
Observatory (NUO).
OBJECTIVE B: to develop policy-oriented urban indicators and indices;
Feedback on Phase One activities strongly suggests that the indicators system should be
expanded to include additional policy issues and contextual modifications. Globally, there is little
information about the successful economic performance of cities, even within the developed world.
Information about disadvantaged groups and areas within the cities is also rarely available to policy
makers. Substantive sectoral studies or special local and community-based surveys may be
undertaken to gauge the real dimensions of urban poverty. Other needed research areas for urban
policy include analysis of development impacts on women, children and disadvantaged groups.
There is also a need for the development of a system of indicators on the urban impacts of global
phenomena.
Composite indices, such as the City Development Index which has been developed from the
Phase One global database, help to simplify and explain important issues for greater public
comprehension. The CDI should be made more comprehensive by integrating a complementary
Index that measures social development. Other indices may be developed to describe the
performance of urban systems and to measure progress toward such cross-sectoral policy
objectives as: equity and inclusion; poverty reduction; sustainability; livability; civic engagement;
social solidarity; adequacy of resources; competitiveness; and overall progress. Broad-based
consultations and networks among technical organizations and policy makers will be employed to
engage as wide a range of expertise as possible.
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OBJECTIVE C: to develop tools for collection and analysis of indicators data;
During Phase Two, Urban Indicator Programme activities will include helping local partners to
develop and apply tools for data generation and analysis, control and improvements of data
quality, management of data, analysis of data and presentation and dissemination of information.
A simple software package will be developed and tested for its usefulness in data collection,
management and analysis at the city level. Emphasis will be given to conceptualizing policy issues,
selecting indicators, collecting, verifying and managing data, applying appropriate analytical
methods to the data, presentation of results, rethinking current policy on the basis of analyses, and
establishing processes for revising indicators and data sets over time.
Priority will be given to the design of simple analytical models for measuring the effects of
sustainable human settlements policies in crucial areas, to test the models and to strengthen
institutional frameworks for continuation of monitoring and analysis at all levels. Institutional
capacity will be strengthened, wherever possible, through improved communication infrastructure,
networks and cooperative consultative processes. Good and best practices in each of these areas
will be sought out as objective examples in the capacity building process.
Special attention will be given to the potential of the Internet to facilitate coordination among
distributed databases (as an alternative to actually collecting comparable data in one location) and
as a distance learning device for training in the use of software and application of guidelines and
worksheets.
OBJECTIVE D: to analyze and disseminate global indicators data.
Within the integrated system of regional networks, the global Urban Indicators Programme will
retain its overall facilitation, coordination and analytic roles. Through its central assistance and
monitoring functions, the UIP will ensure that the basket of key indicators collected worldwide
remains comparable and of high quality.
The UIP will be responsible for maintaining a global database of indicators and indices and will
analyze the database annually as a way of tracking progress in implementing the Habitat Agenda.
At the global level, first priority will be given to the consolidation of the global indicators database
and to analysis of Phase One results, exploring the interrelationships between variables and
regional variance. Data collection and analysis capabilities of all partners in the urban
development process will be strengthened and assisted, especially at the local level. The indicator
system will be extended to additional countries and cities which will prepare synthetic reports on
the state of the city or cities periodically for dissemination. Because the UIP will be a de facto
global clearinghouse for a continuous flow of policy-oriented information on adequate shelter and
sustainable human settlements development, it will strengthen its own capacity to quantify global
trends and issues of supra-national concern. On a regular basis, the UIP will synthesize that
information as a substantial contribution to the annual Habitat “State of the World’s Cities” report
on sustainable human settlements.
C. Developing indicators for policy
1. Indicators development
The Urban Indicators Programme is not primarily a data collection programme. It is a policy and
strategy development and technical co-operation programme, which aims to build in-country and
local capacity to collect and use indicators as an integral part of the national and local policy and
development framework. Wherever possible, the indicators are intended to be part of an enabling
process, measuring sector-wide progress of all actors towards achieving social goals, rather than
as a narrow measure of government activity. The indicators of government activity emphasise
sustainability and efficiency goals rather than simple production goals that have been a feature of
government performance indicators in the past.
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The major emphasis of the Programme is on developing sustainable in-country capacity in
establishing indicators that will help national and local policy review and implementation and which
will be collected regularly. The aim is to develop commitment and expertise and to establish a
routine for collecting data in all countries.
Important characteristics of these indicators are that they should be:
easily understood by all stakeholders;
related to the interests of one or more groups of stakeholders;
measurable using immediately available data at the city or national level;
clearly related to urban policy goals and capable of being changed by the use of policy
instruments;
linked where possible to the three themes of economic, social and environmental sustainability.
The indicators should be readily available, easily collected or estimated, and should not normally
require special surveys or studies. The level of country resources spent on collecting these
indicators is expected to be small.
Indicators are not data, rather they are ‘models’ simplifying a complex subject to a few numbers
which can be easily grasped and understood by policy makers and the general public. Indicators
are statistics directed specifically towards policy concerns and which point towards successful
outcomes and conclusions for policy. They are required to be user driven, and are generally highly
aggregated and have easily recognisable purposes. Classic indicators include the unemployment
rate or GDP growth, numbers which are powerful and recognisable indicators of the performance
of the economy.
POLICY
STRATEGY
REVIEW
POLICY
DEVELOPMENT
CYCLE
IMPLEMENTATION
EVALUATION
MONITORING
The policy stages when indicators are of value are shown in the Policy Development Cycle. Policy
begins with the development of a strategy, and at this stage, indicators should be developed to
measure progress towards meeting policy objectives, and included within the strategy. When policy
is implemented, indicators should be used for monitoring the success of the strategy. Finally,
indicators should be used in the evaluation phase to review the success of the strategy, and as
new policies are developed, the indicators themselves should be reviewed.
The methodology developed in the Urban Indicators Programme is a general process whereby
indicators can be established for virtually any broad policy area at any geographical scale. It can
be summarised by asking the question, “What would a well-functioning sector look like, from
the point of view of each of the key stakeholders or players in the arena?”
The answers to this question form a set of qualitative norms for a well-functioning policy sector.
From these norms, a limited set of policy goals or objectives may be derived which will enable
these norms to be met. In turn, a set of indicators may be established which will permit evaluation
of the objectives or of policies designed to meet these objectives.
The underlying philosophy is then, that each indicator must be attached to a policy or norm, and
each policy should have indicators attached. Following this policy, the Indicators system has been
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developed following a wide consultation process, including an expert group meeting, an
examination of the literature and a testing process in a number of countries. The system covers
socioeconomic development, infrastructure, transport, the environment, housing demand and
housing provision. By further consultation and experience, the indicators have been narrowed
down into key and alternative measures, with the key or core indicators comprising the ‘minimum
set’ required for Habitat II.
2. Placing urban and housing issues on the policy agenda
A major long-term aim of the programme is to engage the UN Member States in a lasting process
which will place urban and housing issues on the national policy agenda. Countries should not just
collect data on indicators, but should use them as a tool to monitor and analyse the urban situation
in the country, at first in the major urban areas, and as a tool to monitor the effects of their own
policies on urban and housing conditions.
The major intention is to give every country a precise and defined basis to analyse its own urban
and housing performance. Spatial comparisons between the performance of different cities, and
temporal comparisons which show changing urban conditions, may also be valuable in determining
which kinds of policies are to be preferred and which have the best outcomes.
The aim, however, is not just to provide indicators for governments, but to develop an enabling
process, building up a knowledge of and interest in urban conditions by all stakeholders: national,
local and private.
In the case of housing, national housing strategies have tended to take two often complementary
directions. The first is to support low-income housing through targeted housing subsidies or
construction, for example through social housing. The other is to enable the housing market to
develop into a well-functioning market, which will provide adequate and affordable housing for all
citizens and which will be unsubsidised for middle and higher income earners.
The Urban Indicators Programme can help in achieving these goals, by placing housing on the
political agenda, by focusing on housing for the poor and by enabling the housing market to work.
A particular contribution will be to examine the regulatory framework, since regulatory instruments
of government can have major effects on markets and outcomes that are entirely different from
what was intended.
As well as directing attention to the policy agenda, the Urban Indicators Programme will develop incountry capacity both in policy analysis and in improved data acquisition. The development phase
of the Programme revealed that many developing countries do not have the appropriate capacity to
collect, analyse, interpret and disseminate data, and often only unreliable secondary sources and
inferential aggregates have been used to estimate indicators. Even in developed countries which
are well served by statistical offices, a number of important indicators, particularly relating to land,
have not been routinely collected, and many national statistical offices do not provide policyrelevant data disaggregated by city and town. The Urban Indicators Programme will encourage
national and local efforts in these often neglected areas.
The global phase of the programme will aim to build up capacity to utilize the indicators within
governments and metropolitan areas in all member countries within a few years. Depending on the
interest in each country, the programme will be extended to cover all major cities and, as soon as
possible, the rural areas.
3. Criteria for selecting indicators
An important step in developing indicators has been to establish the criteria by which alternative
indicators may be evaluated. The selection of indicators has been based above all on policy
requirements. However, there are often a number of other reasons why particular indicators might
be used, and in determining the preferred set of indicators, the following criteria were used.
Importance for policy Indicators should be directly relevant to existing or proposed urban or shelter
policy, and should directly measure outcomes.
Comprehensive The indicator "package" should be capable of providing an immediate broad
overview of the economic, social and environmental "health" of the city understandable by
residents and using primarily existing data sources.
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Priority Indicators are based on two levels of priority. The highest priority or 'key' indicators require
only immediately available data, and all countries are encouraged to provide these data. The
second priority or ‘extensive’ indicators contains indicators of a lower policy relevance or which are
more difficult to collect or define.
Easily understood Simple indicators that can be understood by those without specialist knowledge
are likely to have a far wider currency and interest and to be used more accurately and readily.
Complex indicators are likely to be misquoted and accused of unreliability.
Cost-effective and timely Indicators should be able to be collected in a cost-effective way and on a
regular basis which reflects the rate at which the indicator is expected to change. The level of detail
and comprehensiveness of the data collection required should at any one time be within the
resources of the collecting agency.
Measurable Indicators should be capable of showing the magnitude of problems, and should be
capable of being measured on a preferably dimensionless and time-independent scale.
Includes most disadvantaged Where equity is a concern, indicators should focus on the most
disadvantaged rather than the whole income distribution.
Reliable Indicators should provide a convincing demonstration that objectives are being met,
should be based on sound observation, and not be too subject to statistical 'noise'.
Sensitive Should change as conditions change - a measure which stays constant for many years is
likely to have little value. On the other hand, indicators that are too volatile will be hard to interpret
or collect.
Unambiguous Indicators should have a clear definition and refer to a specific objective.
Independence Separate indicators should measure different outcomes.
Available for geographical areas or social groups Indicators which can be disaggregated are likely
to be of greater interest and are likely to be used in a wider variety of circumstances; indicators
should always be disaggregated by sex, age and geographic area where special needs and equity
are policy issues.
4. Constraints and problems in data collection
A major constraint on the implementation of the Urban Indicators Programme is the frequent
absence of up-to-date data available at the city and/or urban level. Many indicators can be
enumerated directly from existing surveys or from administrative city records, and in fact most of
the key indicators have been selected with this in mind. Other indicators can be readily
extrapolated from national figures or updated by a variety of approximation methods, and these
techniques are generally sufficient for the policy purposes of the Urban Indicators Programme.
Nevertheless, typical sources such as a decennial (every ten years) census, income and
expenditure surveys, etc. are frequently not tabulated by urban/city categories, and a few other
indicators have not typically been collected at all. Questions immediately arise of whether it is
feasible or worth-while setting up special surveys, whether the costs of such surveys can be
shared among departments or organisations with common interests in the results, and whether it is
feasible to convert them to a regular data collection instrument at the city or urban level.
Part of the task of the Urban Indicators Programme is to identify difficult indicators and suggest
ways they can be collected or approximated from existing data. For indicators which might
eventually require detailed household or other surveys, we generally suggest obtaining an estimate
or an “educated guess” from a group of expert observers in the field. This activity is the first step in
what is intended to be an iterative learning experience.
In compiling an international database which is to be used for comparisons or for research
purposes, data of high quality and comparability may be difficult to obtain. Different countries
collect their data using different categories or at different time periods, and collect it at different
geographical levels.
The commitment of individual countries to urban and shelter indicators has already been
determined through the process for national reporting for Habitat II, in which participating countries
used the indicators as a framework for their presentations. This process ensures that indicators will
be collected at least once and placed within the national policy context. However, the collection by
governments is likely to raise a whole new series of problems regarding comparability and integrity
of data.
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
In some ways it may be easier to establish a data collection programme in developing countries
than in developed countries, because the latter are heavily committed to the collection of data in
country-specific formats. Changing their collections to match the requirements of the programme
may involve a greater investment of time and resources than in countries who are just beginning
their collection. Some effort will be required to co-ordinate the harmonization effort in developed
countries.
A major task of the Programme is to provide internationally consistent and harmonised definitions
which can be used in future data collection activities. In the meantime, the worksheets deal with
this problem by explaining, in general terms, the information which a particular indicator is intended
to reveal, and rather than attempting to present an exhaustive list of specific collection methods,
the emphasis here is on revealing the value of each indicator in explaining urban performance.
Some specific methodologies are given, but these are intended as suggestions. [Note: During
Phase Two of the Urban Indicators Progamme, a package of simple tools called the
UrbanDataLink will be developed and tested which should allow existing databases of differing size
and content to be tied together for comparison and analysis through a “meta-data” directory. This
should encourage the development and inclusion of context specific indicators in national and local
urban indicators databases.]
For all data collected, the guiding principles are that they should be the best available, the latest
available, and that they should be fully documented. In most cases though, an approximate result
is very much preferred over no result, and may give guidance to improved future collection
methods.
It is necessary to keep in mind the multivariate characterisation of the indicators. The total picture
of each sector and of the city as a whole is more important than a highly accurate value for any
one variable, and highly inaccurate values for all others. Data which might be insufficiently
accurate for a detailed study of a single indicator, or for examining short-term variations in a single
indicator, may be accurate enough for sector-wide evaluations. Precision may be less critical for a
broad, cross-city or cross-country analysis than it would first appear because the error in
measurement will usually be much smaller than the variations between cities.
In many countries, only national data are available for some of the indicators and city data tend to
be extrapolated from the national level. Because an important part of the Programme is to identify
differences within the country, it will be necessary to find methods which will accurately
differentiate between cities, possibly involving direct data collection.
The major differences in collecting urban indicators from the earlier Housing Indicators will be the
larger number of government agencies holding the data. Each sector, e.g. transport, water etc.
tends to be handled by a different authority, and consequently collecting the indicators is likely to
require a larger number of contacts and to take rather longer than the collection of housing
indicators, which typically involved only a few data sources.
Another problem will be the different arrangements for the provision of urban services in different
countries, particularly those with a federal system. In these countries, many typical local
government functions including education, housing, police, water and planning are often
undertaken by state governments, and methodology to maintain comparability with cities where
these functions are carried out by local governments will need to be developed. As well, there are
often a number of municipalities in any city (for example, Melbourne Australia has 52 local
governments), and unless local government statistics are collected centrally in a consistent way,
there may be a good deal of difficulty involved in assembling local government data for the whole
city.
D. Uses of indicators
The structure of the Urban Indicators Programme is devised around different classes of
stakeholders and the types of information they will find valuable in addressing the issues that
concern them. The most important of these are the residents or consumers in the city, but in
addition there are the producers of services, infrastructure and utility agencies, local governments,
financial organisations, private sector businesses and many others.
The major groups of stakeholders who may benefit from the use of indicators are:
residents
mayors and city managers
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
commercial and business organisations
national government agencies and parliaments
sectoral agencies
NGOs or CBOs
external support agencies
Each of these users will have a wide or narrow focus on the urban sector, but all will be involved
directly or indirectly in developing policies, programmes and projects for urban development and
can use indicators to help measure progress within their interest areas and to compare such
progress with other cities or countries.
1. Residents
Residents are very commonly exposed to indicators through the media and often see indicators as
a measure of the health of society and the success of government policy. Residents typically use
such indicators as a guide to voting, in deciding which organisations or activities to support, in
moving to other places, or in making investment, education, health or other major life decisions.
Residents can also expect to benefit from the better governance that a comprehensive Urban
Indicators Programme will encourage, and will generally support the transparency in government
that indicators help to guarantee.
The information needs of residents are for simple and easily understood indicators presented in
easy-to-follow formats without technical detail, and which are relevant to their daily lives.
2. National governments and parliamentarians
Virtually all modern governments see value in indicators and other objective measures as part of
the business of effective government and a means of measuring progress towards desired ends.
For national government agencies seeking to set national urban goals as part of national policy,
indicators can be an invaluable tool for strategy development and in determining progress towards
national objectives. The regular collection of indicators gives governments at central and local level
a powerful tool to monitor if and by how much particular urban sector problems are being
overcome and how changes in policy are influencing outcomes over time. It also allows
comparison between countries and cities as to the relative speed at which problem areas are being
addressed and clues as to why there are inter-city and inter-country differences in dealing with the
problems.
Another important usage of indicators is in the development and exposition of national sectoral
strategies or city action and development plans. National sectoral reports, too, often make use of
indicators as a major expository tool. Most housing and urban strategy documents are structured
around examples of indicators as measures of conditions or of past successes and failures, and
improvements resulting from such strategies are generally anticipated in terms of indicators.
Indicators can be used as a diagnostic tool by new governments, by consultants or agencies who
wish to identify problems and possible courses of action. The analogy with doctors who use
indicators such as temperature, blood pressure, or a description of symptoms as the major guide to
diagnosis and treatment is apt; indicators may show from the example of other cities and other
solutions, exactly what the problem is and how it might be solved.
Parliamentarians, who set national and local policy through legislation, are particularly sensitive to
changes in indicators. The political fortunes of many elected legislators around the world have
been made or broken by the public’s perception of changing urban and housing conditions over the
period of encumbancy. And, because the aim of the Urban Indicators Programme is to provide
better information for better policy, indicators are in demand as objective intelligence for crafting
new legislation and modifying existing legislative programmes, including revenue sharing.
3. Mayors and city managers
Indicators are typically used as guides to which policies to follow and in monitoring the progress of
existing policies. They are also used to monitor performance of the internal programmes of
governments and as measures of whether funds are being properly used by their own units or
other organisations which they are funding.
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
The Urban Indicators Programme will help mayors, city managers and local planning agencies to
prioritise needs and actions in line with urban objectives or strategy plans. A critical role for
indicators is to influence future policy, programme and project initiatives, Major investment
decisions can be monitored through indicators to ensure that desirable outcomes are being
achieved, that target groups are being reached, and that there are not undesirable or unanticipated
side-effects of development.
Indicators should become a regular part of assessment of the urban condition on behalf of all
stakeholders, identifying problem areas for action and successful areas of investment for further
development. A wide range of benefits to stakeholders can be expected through improved
assessments and better use of ratepayers' money, and major political "payoffs" to local
governments may ensue. Indicators encourage transparency and accountability in government and
provide opportunities for citizen involvement through indicator development and monitoring.
4. Private sector
A vast majority of decisions on city development and economic activity are made by private
investors and developers.
The private sector needs timely urban demographic information for production and marketing
purposes and information on environmental conditions, on government performance, on
supply/demand imbalances and on the overall economic and social health of cities for investment
and locational decisions. The Urban Indicators Programme aims to develop the interest and
support of the private sector in helping to collect indicators and to help establish networks of
interested private-sector parties.
5. Non-government and community organisations
Non-government organisations have a major stake in developing successful indicators, partly to
serve better their own constituencies, but particularly because through indicators they can monitor
the performance of governments, in their watchdog role of ensuring that governments are honest
and that policies for their constituencies are working.
NGOs commonly use indicators in funding applications, since in this way they can establish their
bona fides and analytical capacity as well as demonstrating their organisational success,
responsiveness and accountability. Many successful applications for funding have made use of
indicators as a preamble or as a means of laying out the extent of proposed activities.
The Urban Indicators Programme strongly encourages the involvement of NGOs as support for the
Programme, in collecting or helping to collect indicators, in establishing which indicators are
valuable, in using indicators as part of their own policy development system, and through direct
involvement in the Habitat II preparatory process.
6. International and external support agencies
International agencies are beginning to make extensive use of indicators as formats for country
reporting on a variety of issues.
External support agencies, also, have a very great stake in establishing consistent indicator series.
As with all funding agencies, indicators can be a major tool in determining the success of
programmes, the diligence of executing agencies, and the most valuable new initiatives. Indicators
may be used to determine the most needy areas and population sectors for assistance, or to
determine which areas are making the most successful use of aid funding.
From the viewpoint of external support agencies implementing sectoral rather than project by
project assistance, the Urban Indicators Programme will be invaluable in helping measure systemwide impacts of policies and programmes.
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Part II. The Abridged Survey 2
Introduction
List of key indicators
Instructions
Background Data Module
Module 1: Socioeconomic Development
Module 2: Infrastructure
Module 3: Transport
Module 4: Environmental Management
Module 5: Local Government
Module 6: Housing
Introduction
Abridged Survey 2 is a revised version of the first Abridged Survey which was used in 1995-96 for
the first-round data collection before the Habitat II Conference (June 1996).
The first Abridged Survey consisted of background data (Indicators D1 to D9), which were intended
to be collected both at the urban and national levels, 36 Urban Indicators which should be collected
for at least one major city and 10 Housing Indicators to be collected at the city and national levels.
Abridged Survey 2 contains the same background data (Indicators D1 to D9) and a set of 40 key
urban indicators classified in 6 modules:
Module
Background Data Module
Subject areas
basic demographic, economic and
housing data
Module
1:
Socioeconomic poverty,
city
productivity,
Development
employment, health, education,
social investment and social
cohesion
Module 2: Infrastructure
networked
services
including
water, sanitation, electricity and
telephones
Module 3: Transport
transport and roads
Module
4:
Environmental air and water quality, solid wastes,
Management
resources, and disasters
Module 5: Local Government
governance, finance, and local
participation
Module 6: Housing
housing demand, prices and
quality,
land,
finance
and
construction
The major revisions made are the following:
1) new indicators were added at the city level to Module 1 (Socioeconomic development) so that
the calculation of the UNDP Human Development Index (HDI) becomes possible for cities. This
City HDI will be extremely useful if compared to the present National HDI. An Adjusted City
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
2)
3)
4)
5)
Product1(PPP$) will be used for the economic component of the index which also requires the
data on:
 Life Expectancy at Birth (Indicator 5)
 Adult literacy rate (Indicator 6)
 School enrollment rates (Indicator 7)
indicators were revised for inclusion of data disaggregated by sex and by formal and informal
types of settlements;
consistency-checks were added whenever possible, so that verification be made through
cross-checking between indicators and variables;
tables of global and regional results have been added in order to check if the city result is
within an acceptable range at the global and regional levels; and
the two housing modules were combined into one module (Module 6).
The new Survey instrument has been translated into a set of SPREAD SHEETS in order to
facilitate the compilation of data. Instructions on how to use the spreadsheets are below (see
Instructions).
All the indicators are either numbers, percentages or ratios. In a few 'audit' questions, there may be
simply a checkbox for “yes” or “no” answers.
The experience with the indicators programme to date has demonstrated that in order to obtain
good data in a cost effective way:
1) a focal point or principal collector should be appointed; the focal point may be a consultant or a
government official who is knowledgeable in urban or housing policy and has some knowledge
of data and statistics;
2) the focal point should be in direct contact with the existing or former National Habitat II
Committee, and also with the UNCHS Indicators Programme, to allow work to be reviewed and
commented on at different stages;
3) most of the indicators should be sought by submitting the modules to appropriate government
departments for completion; others may be found in published material or statistical collections.
No new primary data collection is expected;
4) the focal point should attend regional or national meetings to discuss definitions, methods of
collection, and policy relevance of the indicators.
The collection of indicators is to be regarded as a process rather than a product, and the collection
is expected to be accompanied by reviews of the indicators and their usefulness, the choice of
alternative indicators which are particularly useful in the national context, and procedures to
institutionalise the collection and use the indicators as a part of national and local policy
development and evaluation. The indicators also need to be integrated within the national
assessment of progress in implementing the Habitat Agenda.
List of Key Indicators
Background data
D1: Land use
D2: City population
D3: Population growth rate
D4: Woman headed households
D5: Average household size
1.
Socioeconomic
Development
D6: Household formation rate
D7: Income distribution
D8: City product per person
D9: Tenure type
4. Environmental Management
18: Wastewater treated
1
The Adjusted City Product ($PPP) will be the City Product converted into US dollars on the basis of the purchasing power parity of
the country’s currency. The system of purchasing power parity has been developed by the united Nations International Comparison
Programme to make more accurate international comparisons of GDP and its components than those based on official exchange
rates, which can be subject to considerable fluctuations.
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
1: Households below poverty line
2: Informal employment
3: Hospital beds
4: Child mortality
5: Life expectancy at birth
6: Adult literacy rate
7: School enrollment rates
8: School classrooms
9: Crime rates
2. Infrastructure
10: Household connection levels
11: Access to potable water
12: Consumption of water
13: Median price of water
3. Transport
14: Modal split
15: Travel time
16:
Expenditure
on
infrastructure
17: Automobile ownership
19: Solid waste generated
20: Disposal methods for solid waste
21: Regular solid-waste collection
22: Housing destroyed
5. Local Government
23: Major sources of income
24: Per-capita capital expenditure
25: Debt service charge
26: Local government employees
27: Wages in the budget
28: Contracted recurrent expenditure
ratio
29: Government level providing
services
30: Control by higher levels of
government
6. Housing
31: House price to income ratio
32: House rent to income ratio
road 33: Floor area per person
34: Permanent structures
35: Housing in compliance
36: Land development multiplier
37: Infrastructure expenditure
38: Mortgage to credit ratio
39: Housing production
40: Housing investment
Instructions
General principles
1. The base year or reference period is 1996.
Stock data (e.g. unemployment, housing stock) should preferably be estimated as the average
value during the year, but can be taken as the value at the middle of the year.
2. A map of the city should be obtained.
This map should show:
 the city proper, or the single political jurisdiction which contains the historical city centre;
 the metropolitan area, or the set of formal local government areas which are normally taken to
comprise the city as a whole and its primary commuter areas;
 the urban area, or the built-up or densely populated area containing the city proper; suburbs,
and continuously settled commuter areas;
 the city centre, or point which is normally taken as the centre for the purpose of computing
road distances to the city. This may be the general post office, a central railway station, or
other point;
 any informal settlements, which should be broadly marked; and
 city districts, communities and/or neighbourhoods.
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
3. The data modules should be completed. These should be filled in or sent to appropriate experts
or departments for checking.
Every effort should be made to complete all the indicators. If data are not available, then estimates
should be made, possibly using groups of experts. A high level of accuracy is not required, only
enough accuracy to make a comparison possible with other cities in the country or with other
countries. "Accurate enough for policy purposes" is the rule to be followed. An approximate result
is better than no result at all, since this will provide a benchmark for future, more accurate
estimates.
For each result, mention the geographic area level, the year, and the sources of data (using a
numbered bibliography list if necessary). This information may be included at the bottom of each
page, in the sources and notes sections.
If the information requested can not be given, then the following codes should be used:
NAV : not available
NAP : not applicable
For those indicators which involve monetary values, these should be converted to 1996 US dollars,
using IMF exchange rates and conversion factors as suggested in the Appendix. Take care to
properly indicate ratios (e.g., per 1000, per 100,000, etc.).
The Survey Instrument is available on spreadsheets
(on Excel , Lotus and QuattroPro formats)
We recommend that you use the spreadsheets which will facilitate the compilation of indicators.
You will also be able to use the tables of the spreadsheets for your own purpose: by printing them
for your reports, for dissemination of information to the potential users, for collecting the data (send
one spreadsheet to each relevant authority in charge of the collection of data), etc.
The spreadsheets include the following functions:
 tables for each module, with ready-made calculations and instructions;
 a ready-made Summary Indicators Report on the state of the city;
 ready-made graphs of results.
Instruction for filling the spread sheets
1. Please fill in one set of spread sheets per city.
If collection is carried out in several cities, please fill in one set of spread sheets per city.
2. The reference year for data collection is 1996.
If data are not available for 1996, please provide estimates for 1996 and values for the year of the
original source.
3. Please insert your results in the highlighted (blue) boxes of the spread sheets where examples
are given for better guidance.
4. Please fill the Note/Source space (highlighted) for each indicator.
Indicate the Source of the data, the year of reference, the institution which has
collected the information and notes on the methodology used if necessary.
5. If data are not available, please indicate: NAV in the Note/Source space.
6. Monetary values: For those indicators which involve monetary values, these should be
converted to 1996 US dollars, using IMF exchange rates and conversion factors (see Appendix)
7. Consistency checks allow verification through cross-checking between indicators and
variables.
8. Global and Regional results have been included in tables (sheet 8) in order to check if the city
results is within an acceptable range at the global and regional levels. These tables should be
consulted while filling the modules.
9. Summary of key results with graphs: A final summary will be edited automatically while filling
the survey in the different modules. Graphs will be also automatically edited. A print out of those
will be extremely useful to make your final checking.
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Name of the City:
Country:
Region:
Supervisor of the collection:
Name:
Title:
Institution:
Address:
City:
Fax number:
Tel number:
Email address:
Date of the collection:
Month:
Year:
City Profile:
Highlight key characteristics of
the city: location, geography,
historical development,
regional significance.
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Background Data Module
Indicator D1: Land use
Indicator D2: Population by sex
Indicator D3: Population growth rate
Indicator D4: Woman headed households
Indicator D5: Average household size
Indicator D6: Household formation rate
Indicator D7: Household income distribution
Indicator D8: City product per person
Indicator D9: Tenure type
These indicators are intended to provide background information or very general, sector wide
indicators which are extremely useful in providing an overview of the city and national position, and
which provide data for calculating other indicators. Indicators D1 to D9 are intended to be collected
at the city level, but values for Indicators D2 to D7, D9 should also be provided at the national level
if possible, as part of the housing indicators.
Indicator D1
Land use in sq. km
The different types of land use are important for determining the spatial location of activity.
The residential area (formal and informal) is important for determining net residential densities.
Metropolitan Area*
1.a.
Residential
km2
(formal)
1.b.
Residential
km2
(informal)
2. Business
km2
3. Agricultural
km2
4. Services
km2
5. Transport
km2
6. Other
km2
7. Total area
km2
8. Conservation area
%
* see definitions in Glossary.
Urban Area*
km2
km2
km2
km2
km2
km2
km2
km2
%
These data should be available from the city plan or from the mapping department.
Mixed zones should be subject to estimates of uses ratios and be converted into surfaces for each
type of use, following the definitions below.
Definitions
Residential (formal) includes land zoned residential or occupied by formal housing.
Residential (informal) includes land occupied by any informal or unplanned settlements.
Business refers to all commercial or industrial land, including land used largely for informal
business activity.
Agricultural refers to land used mainly for agricultural purposes or zoned agricultural.
Services refers to land used for government buildings, schools, hospitals, electricity, water and
other public amenities excluding transport.
Transport refers to land for roads, railways, shipping terminals, airports etc.
Other includes all recreational, agricultural or vacant land or water areas normally counted as part
of the city.
Conservation area includes all surfaces which are protected for environmental or agricultural
purposes or which are classified as protected historical zones, monuments or heritage areas.
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Indicator D2
Population by sex
The level of population and its rate of growth are the major determinants of increase in
demand for urban resources and of changes in urban congestion. Population pressure may be a
major contributor to continuing cycles of poverty.
Most of the information in the following sections should be available from the most recent
population census or from supplementary surveys.
Last population census (year):
last
census
(year) :
Population
1. City proper
2. Metropolitan area
3. Urban agglomeration
4. National urban
5. National
previous
(year):
a. Male
census
b. Female
c. Total
by age group *
6. Age < 5
7. Age 5-14
8. Age 15-24
9. Age 25-59
10. Age > 59
11.
Population
in
informal settlements*
*in the urban agglomeration
Note that national urban population (line 5) is the population living in urban areas according to the
national definition used in the most recent population census.
Please provide the national definition of urban areas:
..................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................................
Residential density (Rd) can be calculated with Indicators D1 and D2
for the Urban Agglomeration (UA) and the Metropolitan Area (MA):
Residential density : Rd = P / 100(Rf + Ri)
(UA)
in number of persons/hectare
with:
P = total population (ind. D2.2 or D2.3)
Rf = total formal residential area in km2 (ind. D1.1a)
Ri= total informal residential area in km2 (ind. D1.1b)
Indicator D3
Annual population growth rate
22
(MA)
Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Defined as the annual rate of population growth which includes net migration rates and
natural growth rate in the city (metropolitan area and urban agglomeration).
Population
Growth
Rate
TOTAL
GROWTH
RATE
1. Metropolitan area
2.
Urban
agglomeration
3. National Urban
4. National
NET
MIGRATION
RATE
5. Metropolitan area
6.
Urban
agglomeration
NATURAL GROWTH
RATE
7. Metropolitan area
8.
Urban
agglomeration
Indicator D4
Women-headed
households
1. City (UA)
2. National
% female
% male
% total
Woman-headed households
Total woman-headed
households
% of total
households
%
%
Defined as the number of households headed by women in the City (Urban Agglomeration)
and at the national level.
Provide as well the value in percentage of total households.
If data are not available at the urban agglomeration level, provide data for the metropolitan area.
Indicate the geographic area of reference in the notes.
In population censuses in most countries, the head of the household is defined as that
person in the household or the family who is acknowledged as such by the other member.
However it is important to recognize that the procedures followed in applying the concept may
distort the true picture. In the most biased cases, it is assumed that no woman can be head of any
household that also contains an adult male2. Women are not enumerated as heads of households
unless they are living alone (one-person households) or there is no adult male in the household.
If household headship is not established in the census, then number of households
consisting entirely of women or women and children can be a substitute, although it has some
limitations.
This indicator is important for a number of gender related issues. It gives a useful indication
of the number of households where women have sole responsibility for supporting the household.
It has been found that in most countries, there is a much higher level of poverty and disadvantage
in female-headed households.
Indicator D5
2
Average household size
UN, DESIPA, Compendium of Statistics and Indicators on the situation of Women, 1986”
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Defined as total population divided by total households.
Intermediate variables:
Number of households
Urban agglomeration
National
total
formal
informal
Average household size
1. Urban agglomeration
2. National
total
formal
informal
Average household size is a commonly used measure which will be affected by both
numbers of children and the existence of shared households or extended families. Household size
is decreasing in many countries, and along with population growth, the change in household size
determines household formation and demand for housing. Household size tends to be larger in the
informal sector
Indicator D6
Household formation rate
Household formation
1. Metropolitan area
2. Urban agglomeration
3. National Urban
4. National
% total
% formal
% informal
Defined as annual rate of growth of numbers of households.
This is the prime indicator of housing demand, representing the required growth in the
number of occupied dwellings per annum. It can change quite rapidly according to economic
conditions (since households form when they have the financial resources to do so) or in response
to supply restrictions, which limit the ability of new households to find suitable housing. If estimates
of numbers of households are not available for two different periods, then it may be possible to
estimate the indicator as the sum of the population growth rate and the estimated percentage
decline in household size. The latter component is likely to be as large as the population growth
rate, since household size is declining rapidly in many countries.
Errors are frequent for this indicator. The results should be compared with the annual
population growth rates and analysed with the change in household size and the city product. In
most cities, the household formation rate is greater than the rate of population growth. It means
that the average household size is decreasing, which generally occurs when GDP increases.
Indicator D7
Household income distribution
Annual household income by quintile, income range and average income at the city (UA)
and national levels.
City (UA)
Quintile
Q1
Q2
Q3
Q4
Interval ($US ‘96)
Min.
Max.
$US ‘96
Average
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Q5
Income disparity Q5/Q1=
National
Quintile
Q1
Q2
Q3
Q4
Q5
Interval ($US ‘96)
Min.
Max.
$US ‘96
Average
Income disparity Q5/Q1=
Quintiles are obtained by dividing households into 5 equal groups ordered by income:
 the bottom 20% of households receive an annual income of Min. Q1 and Max. Q1, with an
Average annual income of Av. Q1.
 the second 20% of households receive an annual income of Min. Q2 and Max. Q2, with an
Average annual income of Av. Q2.
 50% of the households are below Average Q3 and 50% are above;
 the fourth 20% of households receive an annual income of Min. Q4 and Max. Q4, with an
Average annual income of Av. Q4.
 the top 20% of households receive an annual income of Min. Q5 and Max. Q5, with an Average
annual income of Av. Q5.
Income disparity is calculated by dividing Average Q5 by Average Q1.
Information is generally available from a household expenditure or income survey. Incomes should
include all forms of earnings: wages, supplements, business earnings, government transfers,
consumption of stock etc. If households are typically underreporting income because of informal
earnings, then household expenditure should be used. Intervals and average incomes should be
inflated to 1993 values, if the survey is in an earlier year, using the Table in the Appendix.
If household income is not available in quintiles but in some different format (e.g. numbers of
households within some other set of intervals) then it is possible to estimate quintiles from these
data. Please contact the Indicators Programme.
Indicator D8
City product per person
Defined as total city product per year divided by population.
This indicator is the most important single indicator of urban productivity, being essentially
the “GNP” of the city. It is seldom available from direct data sources. However it can be estimated
readily from National Accounts figures and employment data.
METHOD A
This method estimates the urban product by presuming that the product of the city in each
sector is proportional to the employment in the city, possibly adjusted by differential wage rates. It
should be used when employment by industry sector is known.
The following table should be filled out for each industry sector.
This method has the advantage that it shows the industrial structure of the city, and if
possible, the employment by sector in column (3) should be provided as an intermediate variable.
Sector
National
product
(US$milli
National
employment
City
employment
25
Wage
ratio
City
Produc
t
Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
on)
(1)
1,2. Agriculture
and mining
(2)
(a)
(3)
(b)
(a)
(4)
(b)
(a
)
($millio
n)
(5)
(b
)
3,4,5.
Manufacturing,
utilities,
construction
6,7. Wholesale
and
retail
trade, transport
and
communication
8.
Finance,
insurance, real
estate
and
business
services
9. Community,
personal and
other services,
domestic,
Government
Other
Total
(a) formal sector ; (b) informal sector.
Definitions
Gross National Product (GNP) by industry sector is contained in National Accounts. These figures
should be updated to 1996 values using the USD price index in the Appendix.
The classification used here is an abbreviated form of the SITC standard industry classification,
which is used for standard national accounting3.
National and city employment. Economically active persons by industry, preferably including the
informal sector (column a: formal; column b: informal). If activity is not customarily defined in
these categories, either estimate or group the categories - for example, at the minimum,
agriculture, manufacturing, and total service employment are generally known.
Wage ratio. If city wages and national wages are known to be significantly different, then this ratio
should be an estimate of average city wage in the industry divided by average national wage (e.g.
if city wages are 20% higher than the national average for this industry, the ratio is 1.2). Otherwise
the ratio should be taken as 1.
The city industry product (Column 5) is then estimated as :
Column (5) = [Column (1) x Column (3) x Column (4)] / Column (2),
which is the national industry product times the fraction of national employment in the city times the
wage ratio.
3ILO,
International Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic Activities, Geneva 1968.
26
Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
The final category, row (g), Other, cannot be estimated by this method, since it includes
items such as ownership of dwellings which do not involve employment. It can be estimated by
presuming it is the same fraction of city product as for the national product, using the table as
follows:
Sum Column (1), row (a) to
row (f)
Sum Column (5), row (a) to
row (f)
Column (1) row (g) Other
Column (5) row (g)
(i)
(ii)
(iii)
= (iii)x(ii) /
(i)
The total city product is then obtained by summing Column (5), and the product per person is
obtained by dividing by city population.
Overall, this is the preferred method of calculation, as it provides important intermediate data
about the industry and employment structure of the city, which are key indicators in their own right.
For this reason, please include the intermediate steps above in the worksheet, if data are available.
METHOD B
If industry employment figures are not known, then the city product can be estimated
approximately from average household income figures as follows.
GNP
(i)
Total national household
income
(from national accounts)
Households (city)
(ii)
(iii)
Average household income
(city)
City product
(iv)
=
(i)x
iii)x(iv)/(ii)
This method presumes that the ratio of GNP to household income is the same at the national and
city levels. This is very approximate, taking account of household income but not of the activities of
large firms and companies who retain or expatriate earnings.
Consistency checks:
 Compare the City Product with the Gross National Product per capita. The City Product is
generally higher than the GNP since the bulk of economic activities is generated and
concentrated in cities.
 The average income per person should normally be 40% to 70% of the city product per person.
40% of City product < Average Q3 (D7)
< 70% of City Product
Average Household size (D5)
Indicator D8.1
City Product to GNP ratio
Defined as the City Product divided by the Gross National Product in the same year.
City Product per person (US$ ‘96)
US$
27
Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Gross National Product per capita US$
(US$ ‘96)
City product to GNP ratio (%)
%
This indicator measures the level of economic development in the city vis-à-vis national economic
development.
The ratio should be higher than 1.0 since City Product is generally higher than GNP, the bulk of
economic activities being generated and concentrated in cities.
Indicator D9
Tenure type
Housing tenure refers to the rights of households over the housing and land they occupy,
particularly rights over land. The percentage of households in different tenures should be collected
both at the city level, for urban indicators, and national level, for housing indicators.
Percentage of households in tenure categories, at both city and national levels.
Type of tenure
1
Ownership
1a
Purchased, acquired
1b
Purchasing
2
Tenancy
2a
Private rental
2b
Social Housing
2c
Sub-tenant
2d
Rent free
3
Squatter
3a
with rent
3b
without rent
4
Other
Total
City (UA)
National
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
Owned refers to households with a clear title or ownership (formal housing) of the house and land
they occupy, possibly through a company structure or as condominiums or strata title, or long
leasehold of land.
Purchasing is owner-occupiers in formal housing with a formal mortgage or lien over the property.
Private rental is households in (formal) housing for which rents are paid to a private landlord who is
the legal owner.
Social housing includes all households in public, parastatal or NGO-owned or operated housing,
including government employee housing and housing owned or operated by co-operatives.
Sub-tenancy refers to households who are renting from another household who is renting the
premises.
Rent free refers to households occupying housing formally owned by someone else, and who do
not pay rent.
Squatter - no rent Households in squatter housing, or housing which has no title to the land on
which it stands, and who pay no rents.
Squatter - rent paid Households in squatter housing who pay rent.
Other includes nomads, persons in institutions or hotels, and any other tenures.
If data are not available at this level of detail, then groups should be aggregated (this
should be indicated).
28
Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Notes - Background data Module
D1: Land use
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
D2: City population
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
D3: Population growth rate
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
D4: Woman headed households
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
D5: Average household size
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
D6: Household formation rate
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
D7: Income distribution
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
D8: City product per person
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
D9: Tenure type
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
Regional results
Sub-Saharan Africa
Arab States
Asia Pacific
Industrial countries
Latin America &
Caribbean
Transitional Countries
Developing countries
All
Indicator Indicator D4 Indicator Indicator
D3
D6
D5
Population Woman-hd Household Household
growth households formation
size
rate
5.1%
23.2%
4.3%
6.1
4.5%
15.1%
5.7%
5.1
3.2%
10.8%
4.3%
5.0
0.6%
23.7%
1.2%
2.5
the
2.4%
24.6%
3.2%
4.2
0.0%
3.5%
3.1%
21.3%
20.1%
20.7%
0.6%
3.7%
3.3%
29
3.0
5.0
4.6
Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Regional results
Sub-Saharan Africa
Arab States
Asia Pacific
Industrial countries
Latin America &
Caribbean
Transitional Countries
Developing countries
All
Indicator Indicator D7 Indicator Ind. D1-D2
D7
D8
Income
Income
City
Residentia
product
l
quintile 3
disparity
density
1465
12.3
$701
152.1
4167
10.2
$2 114
202.3
1146
6.7
$1 059
236.7
22777
10.5
$21 434
68.6
the
3271
17.7
$2 655
156.1
3845
2222
4983
6.1
10.7
10.7
$3 204
$1 546
$4 411
102.3
168.3
154.3
Module 1. Socioeconomic Development
Indicator 1: Households below poverty line
Indicator 2: Informal/undeclared employment
Indicator 3: Hospital beds
Indicator 4: Child mortality
Indicator 5: Life expectancy
Indicator 6: Adult literacy rate
Indicator 7: School enrollment rates
Indicator 8: School classrooms
Indicator 9: Crime rates
General Information
The performance of the urban economy and the macro-economic conditions in which the
city operates determine the overall envelope within which cities can grow. While the potential exists
for new economic growth in all cities, in many countries unfortunately a vicious circle exists.
Economic crisis in cities exacts a heavy toll, with rapidly rising poverty, increasing unemployment
and under-employment, which places a further load on urban resources. The indicators in this
module relating to socioeconomic development are designed to respond to the major policy
challenges of the city: alleviating urban poverty , improving urban productivity and employment
opportunities, providing health care and education, and reducing urban crime and violence.
Indicator 1
Households below the poverty-line
Defined as the percentage of households situated below the poverty-line.
The poverty line should be an ‘absolute’ poverty line, taken as the income necessary to
afford a minimum nutritionally adequate diet plus essential non-food requirements, for a household
of a given size. The common method for setting the poverty line proceeds by fixing a food intake in
Calories, and then finding the consumption expenditure or income level at which a person typically
attains that food intake, then applying a multiplier to account for non-food items4.
Another common convention is to calculate the poverty line for a single adult, then multiply
by the number of persons in the household, allowing for each child as half an adult.
4World
Bank, Poverty Reduction Handbook, Washington 1993.
30
Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Poverty lines will differ between countries, not only because of different costs, but also
because of different food requirements and different social definitions of essential non-food
requirements, reflecting the cost of participating in everyday life of society. Some countries also
have poverty lines that differ in different parts of the country and which depend on local prices for
food, housing and other necessities.
City (UA)
Total
Number
% of households
Households
Poor Households
Poor
Woman-headed
hhlds
Poverty line in US$ per month:
One person
Two persons
Average households
100%
%
%
US$/month
US$/month
US$/month
Children may be counted as half an adult. The poverty line for the average size household
should be quoted (in some countries, this is the only poverty line).
Please provide the definition of poverty line used at the city level or, if not at the city level,
at the national level:
..................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................................
Indicator 2
Informal employment
%
Defined as the percentage of the employed population whose economic activity is part of
the informal sector.
Definition:
The informal sector includes persons employed in (a) all unregistered commercial enterprises, and
(b) all non-commercial enterprises that have no formal structure in terms of organisation and
operation5. These units typically operate at a low level of organisation, with little or no division
between labour and capital as factors of production and on a small scale. Labour relations - where
they exist - are based mostly on casual employment, kinship or personal and social relations rather
than contractual arrangements with formal guarantees.6
The informal sector has played an increasing role in the expansion of production in rapidly growing
cities in developing countries. The informal sector has great freedom of action, being by definition
free of government interference, and will tend to deliver labour resources to productive areas of the
economy. Nevertheless it is typically under-capitalised, with no access to business finance, little
access to the formal parts of the economy, and lacking resources for export development or for
expansion. Workers in the informal economy have no legally defined rights, no access to
government welfare in the event of illness or old age, may work under unsafe conditions, and are
usually dependent on their wits for survival.
In developed countries, the informal economy is not so important, and data are rarely available.
However, structural adjustment of industrial economies has meant that the informal sector has
been steadily increasing even in developed countries, due both to the changing nature of work and
the movement of industrial jobs offshore.
5Sethuraman,
6ILO,
The urban informal sector: concept, measurement and policy, International Labour Review, July-August 1976.
International Conference of Labour Statisticians, 1987
31
Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Indicator 3
Hospital beds
Defined as number of persons per hospital bed.
Includes beds in both public and private hospitals. Total population should be divided by number of
beds.
City (UA)
Public hospitals
Private hospitals
Other (specify)*
Total
Number
person**/bed
Number of
beds
of
*Other:..................................................................................................................................
**Population of the urban agglomeration . If not available, take the population of the metropolitan
area (number of beds should be calculated according to the geographic area chosen as basis of
calculation). In that case, indicate the area chosen in the notes.
Indicator 4
Child mortality
Defined as the proportion (in percentage) of children by sex who die before reaching their
fifth birthday.
City (UA)
Female
Male
Total (female
male)
Child
mortality
and
National (female and
male)
%
%
%
%
Child mortality is a major indicator of health care and sanitation conditions, which can vary very
widely over time and space. Small children are the most likely to be affected by poor sanitary
conditions and lack of medical care, and in some countries this mortality rate is very high.
This indicator can be estimated by dividing the number of deaths of children under five years old
during the current year by the average annual number of births during the last five years.
Child mortality =
number of deaths for children below five year old during the year
average number of live births during the last five years
Indicator 5
Life expectancy at birth
Defined as the number of years a newborn infant would live if prevailing patterns of
mortality at the time of birth were to stay the same throughout the child’s life.
City (UA)
Life
expectancy
32
Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
female
male
total
(female
male)
and
National (female and
male)
years
years
years
years
The result of this indicator will be used for computing the Human Development Index at the city
level.
Indicator 6
Adult literacy rate
Defined as the percentage of persons (male and female) age 15 years and over who can,
with understanding, both read and write a short simple statement on their everyday life. If
the national definition of literacy is different, it should be stated.
City (UA)
female
male
total
(female
male)
Adult Literacy
%
%
and
%
National (female and
male)
%
The result of this indicator will be used for computing the Human Development Index at the city
level.
Indicator 7
School enrollment rates
The gross enrollment ratio is the number of students, by sex, enrolled in a level of
education, whether or not they belong in the relevant age group for that level, as a
percentage of the population in the relevant group for that level.
School Enrollment
primary enrollment (a)
secondary enrollment
(b)
tertiary enrollment (c)
combined a,b,c
male
female
total
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
The result of this indicator will be used for computing the Human Development Index at the city
level.
Indicator 8
School classrooms
Number of school children per classroom in primary and secondary schools.
Total number of schoolchildren at each school level should be divided by the numbers of physical
classrooms.
Result should also be given in number of schoolchildren per square meter of usable classroom.
33
Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
primary
schools
City (UA)
secondary
schools
number of classrooms
classrooms
total
surface (m2)
total
number
of
schoolchildren:
girls
boys
TOTAL
number of children/
classroom
number of children/ m2
These indicators measure the crowding of educational facilities. Total number of schoolchildren at
each school level should be divided by the numbers of classrooms.
Indicator 9
Crime rate
Number of reported crimes (number of victims, male and female) annually per 1000
population at the city level.
City (UA)
Murders (per 1000)
Thefts (per 1000)
Rapes (per 1000)
male victims
/1000
/1000
/1000
female
victims
/1000
/1000
/1000
total victims
/1000
/1000
/1000
Reported figures on crime may be misleading, depending on the confidence by victims in law
enforcement and the type of crime (for example, sexual crimes and family violence are notoriously
unreported in many societies). However, the reported rates for murder and theft are likely to reflect
the true incidence of these crimes.
Notes - module 1
1: Households below poverty line
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
2: Informal employment
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
3: Hospital beds
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
4: Child mortality
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
5: Life expectancy at birth
34
Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
6: Adult literacy rate
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
7: School enrollment rates
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
8: School classrooms
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
9: Crime rates
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
35
Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Regional results
Indicator 1
Indicator Indicator 4
3
Poor
Poor woman Hospital
Child
househol
beds
mortality
ds
hd hhlds
38.8%
45.8%
999.7
11.3%
Sub-Saharan Africa
28.5%
14.5%
495.3
8.2%
Arab States
20.1%
11.9%
565.7
5.6%
Asia Pacific
12.9%
21.6%
132.3
0.6%
Industrial countries
39.0%
37.6%
276.8
5.4%
Latin America & the
Caribbean
23.5%
43.4%
79.8
2.5%
Transitional Countries
31.4%
34.8%
589.7
7.3%
Developing countries
29.6%
32.9%
517.5
6.7%
All
Regional results
Indicator 8
Indicator 9
school classrooms
Crime rate
Primary Secondary murders
thefts
sch.
62.7
51.3
0.135
12.7
Sub-Saharan Africa
42.0
40.1
0.111
4.0
Arab States
40.2
46.2
0.097
1.3
Asia Pacific
23.4
23.5
0.058
55.1
Industrial countries
34.1
38.4
0.633
5.3
Latin America & the
Caribbean
31.7
32.4
0.132
15.7
Transitional Countries
47.3
44.0
0.200
9.0
Developing countries
43.6
40.8
0.180
17.6
All
Module 2. Infrastructure
Indicator 10: Household connection levels
Indicator 11: Access to potable water
Indicator 12: Consumption of water
Indicator 13: Median price of water, scarce season
General Information
The quality and reliability of local infrastructure services are taken for granted in highly
industrialised countries, but limited access to or poor quality of infrastructure services in developing
countries can be major impediments to business productivity, and major sources of health risk and
frustration to the population. The poorest households in developing countries cannot generally
afford household connections of telephone and electricity, and often only have access to unsafe
water supply and primitive sewage and solid waste disposal systems. As well as reducing the
quality of life in settlements, the absence of adequate water and sanitation systems makes
communities living in informal settlements particularly vulnerable to disease and epidemics.
Indicator 10
Household connection levels
36
Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Percentage of households connected to:
Household
Connection Levels
Water
Sewerage
Electricity
Telephone
formal
informal
settlements settlements
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
all
settlements
%
%
%
%
These are the primary indicators of access by households to the principal networked services.
Indicator 11
Access to potable water
Defined as percentage of households with access to potable water.
Access is defined as having safe or potable drinking water located within 200 metres of the
dwelling.
Households with:
access
to
formal
informal
settlements settlements
potable
%
all
settlements
%
%
water
Potable water is water free from contamination and which is safe to drink without further treatment.
Piped water which is normally regarded as safe to drink is potable; river water containing
microorganisms or in which people wash or excrete is not.
Indicator 12
Consumption of water
Defined as average consumption of water in litres per day per person, for all uses.
liters/pers./day
%
formal
informal
settlements settlements
l.
all
settlements
l.
l.
Consumption of water per person depends on the availability and price of water, the climate, and
the uses to which water is customarily put by individuals (drinking, bathing, washing, gardening).
Consumption only includes household use (excludes industrial and agricultural use).
Indicator 13
Median price of water, scarce season
Defined as median price paid per hundred litres of water in US dollars, at the time of year
when water is most expensive.
$/m3 (100 liters)
highest price
lowest price
median price
formal
settlements
$/m3
$/m3
$/m3
informal
all
settlements
settlements
$/m3
$/m3
$/m3
$/m3
$/m3
$/m3
37
Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
This measures the cost of water at times when it is most scarce. The price of water may rise to
very high levels in some areas at some times, and can take a significant proportion of the
household budget.
If more than 50% of households have piped water, then the median price of water will be the userpays marginal cost of piped water. If there is no user-pays charge for piped water, this should be
indicated.
Notes - module 2
10: Household connection levels
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
11: Access to potable water
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
12: Consumption of water
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
13: Median price of water
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
regional results
Sub-Saharan Africa
Arab States
Asia Pacific
Industrial countries
Latin America & the
Caribbean
Transitional Countries
Developing countries
All
Indicator 10: Household connection to
services
Water
Sewerage Electricity Telephone
37.2%
12.9%
42.5%
10.8%
75.3%
54.8%
89.3%
31.4%
63.4%
37.3%
86.1%
25.9%
99.4%
97.1%
99.4%
79.5%
76.6%
62.2%
91.6%
41.2%
96.6%
60.2%
66.0%
88.7%
42.7%
51.4%
99.2%
73.2%
76.6%
regional results
61.6%
29.3%
36.7%
Indicator 11
Indicator 12
Indicator 13
Access to
Consumption Median price
potable water
of water
of water
68.4%
53.7
$1 .33
Sub-Saharan Africa
87.0%
157.9
$0 .53
Arab States
89.0%
162.8
$0 .90
Asia Pacific
99.6%
283.0
$2 .18
Industrial countries
86.9%
182.8
$0 .99
Latin America & the
Caribbean
99.1%
304.1
$0 .54
Transitional Countries
81.4%
143.6
$0 .99
Developing countries
84.2%
164.9
$1 .17
All
Module 3. Transport
38
Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Indicator 14: Modal split
Indicator 15: Travel time
Indicator 16: Expenditure on road infrastructure
Indicator 17: Automobile ownership
General Information
Transport is a major consumer of non-renewable energy resources, and different transport
solutions may have very different impacts on national energy-use patterns. Too-rapid growth
without a corresponding increase in infrastructure provision often shows itself most directly in road
congestion. Despite huge investments in transport infrastructure in many countries, transport and
traffic congestion remains a major problem in most of the world’s largest cities. Traffic congestion
is associated with air pollution, accidents, reduced productivity, and general frustration for the
population.
Indicator 14
Modal split
Proportion of work trips undertaken by:
1 Private cars
%
2 Motorcycle
3 Train and Tram
Train
Tram
4 Bus
and
minibus
Bus
Minibus
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
5 Nonmotorised
Bicycle
Walking
Other
6 Other
%
TOTAL 1-6
%
%
%
%
%
Where several modes of transport are used for a given trip, the hierarchy: train, tram or ferry; bus,
car, taxi or motorcycle; bicycle or other non-motorised; is employed to determine the principal
mode.
Private car includes any motorised vehicle being used for private purposes.
Bus or minibus includes road vehicles other than cars taking passengers on a fare paying basis
Other includes ferry, taxi, animal or rickshaw.
In the absence of a comprehensive transport study, an approximate estimate can be obtained by
taking an impromptu survey for an half hour in the morning rush period in the downtown area or in
several key work place locations.
Indicator 15
Travel time
Min.
Defined as the average time in minutes for a one-way work trip.
This is an average over all modes. It may be necessary to estimate average times for each mode
and then make use of Indicator to obtain an overall weighted average. Train and bus times should
include average walking and waiting times, and car times should include parking or walking to the
workplace.
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Indicator 16
Expenditure on road infrastructure
$
Defined as the per-capita expenditure in US dollars on roads (three year average).
Expenditure should include capital and maintenance expenditure on all roads in the urban area,
averaged in constant value terms over three years. Where some roads are built or managed by
non-city authorities (i.e. national or state) the amount spent in the urban area should be estimated.
Indicator 17
‰
Automobile ownership
Defined as the ratio of automobiles to 1000 population.
Automobiles in this case are taken to include all private motorized vehicles exclusively used for
personal transport (including sedans used for business). This indicator can be obtained from
surveys, or possibly from car registration figures, making allowances for the fact that some vehicles
registered in the city may be used elsewhere.
Notes - module 3
14: Modal split
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
15: Travel time
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
16: Expenditure on road infrastructure
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
17: Automobile ownership
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
regional results
Indicator 14 Indicator Indicator Indicator
15
16
17
Work trips
Mean
Road
Automobil
by car
travel
infrastruct
e
time (mn)
ure
ownership
12.8%
37
$6
29.9
Sub-Saharan Africa
29.2%
32
$33
63.3
Arab States
9.2%
32
$3
66.2
Asia Pacific
57.2%
25
$127
419.3
Industrial countries
25.2%
37
$15
95.8
Latin America & the
Caribbean
18.8%
37
$20
162.9
Transitional Countries
15.7%
36
$11
74.0
Developing countries
24.0%
35
$29
133.0
All
Module 4. Environmental Management
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Indicator 18: Percentage of wastewater treated
Indicator 19: Solid waste generated
Indicator 20: Disposal methods for solid waste
Indicator 21: Regular solid-waste collection
Indicator 22: Housing destroyed
General Information
Concern with global degradation of the environment has accelerated in recent years, as the
effects of increasing human activity and concentration of population have become more evident.
Awareness has increased as to the global importance of environmental issues following the Rio
Earth Summit, and Agenda 21 has stressed the necessity for the environmentally sustainable
management of human settlements. Monitoring and improving the urban environment in both
developed and developing countries has become a major priority, particularly with the explosive
growth of cities in developing countries. The key issues considered in this module relate to waste
water, solid waste, and disasters.
Indicator 18
Percentage of wastewater treated
Defined as per cent of all wastewater undergoing some form of treatment.
Wastewater
Treatment
% wastewater
formal
settlements
%
informal
settlements
all settlements
%
%
treated:
It includes primary, secondary and tertiary treatment.
The treatment of wastewater is a vitally necessary part of maintaining hygienic urban conditions.
Clean water is vitally necessary to human life, and many major diseases are waterborne, so the
pollution of water supplies through indiscriminate disposal of wastewater is a major source of
environmental degradation.
Indicator 19
Solid waste generated
Defined as solid waste generated per person, in cubic metres and tonnes per annum.
Solid
Waste
Volume: M3/pers./year
Weight: Tonnes/pers./y
ear
formal
informal
settlements settlements
all
settlements
This indicator may be difficult to collect, because of the problem of accounting for waste which is
informally disposed of, incinerated or composted; however it is the major measure of the total
pressure on the environment due to solid waste, and estimates should be made. The indicator
needs to be measured both in capacity and in weight units, if possible, because the density of solid
waste in developing countries tends to be very much higher than in developed countries which
have much bulky packaging.
Indicator 20
Disposal methods for solid waste
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Proportion of solid wastes by weight disposed to :
1
2
3
4
5
6
Sanitary landfill
Incinerated
Open dump
Recycled
Burned
Other
TOTAL
%
%
%
%
%
%
100 %
The form of disposal of solid wastes is a major policy indicator.
Indicator 21
Regular solid-waste collection
Defined as proportion of households enjoying regular waste collections.
Solid Waste Collection
Percentage
households:
formal
settlements
informal
settlements
of
%
Median
number
of
times per month waste
is collected:
/month
all
settlement
s
%
%
/month
/month
Regular waste collection can include household collections and regular 'dumpmaster' group
collections, but not local dumps to which the household must carry garbage.
Indicator 22
Housing destroyed
Defined as proportion of housing stock destroyed per thousand by natural or man-made
disasters over the past ten years.
Housing
Destroyed
Housing
destroyed:
stock
formal
informal
all settlements
settlements settlements
/1000
/1000
/1000
This indicator measures the exposure of the housing stock to disasters and its ability to withstand
these disasters.
Total housing destroyed (i.e. removed from the stock due to disasters) during the past ten years
should be divided by the present stock.
Natural disasters include typhoons and storms, floods, bushfires, earthquakes, avalanches and
coastal erosion. Man-made disasters include war, riots, insurrection, fires, and other events where
housing may be destroyed.
Notes - module 4
18: Wastewater treated
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
19: Solid waste generated
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Note: ..........................................................................................................
20: Disposal methods for solid waste
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
21: Regular solid-waste collection
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
22: Housing destroyed
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
regional results
Indicator 18
Indicator 19
Wastewater
Solid waste
treated
weight (Tonnes)
15.7%
0.23
Sub-Saharan Africa
49.5%
0.31
Arab States
24.5%
0.30
Asia Pacific
86.8%
0.51
Industrial countries
18.1%
0.30
Latin America & the
Caribbean
64.0%
0.47
Transitional Countries
28.8%
0.30
Developing countries
37.8%
0.33
All
Module 5. Local Government
Indicator 5: Major sources of income
Indicator 6: Per-capita capital expenditure
Indicator 7: Debt service charge ratio
Indicator 8: Local government employees
Indicator 9: Wages in the budget
Indicator 10: Contracted recurrent expenditure ratio
Indicator 29: Government level providing services
Indicator 30: Control by higher levels of government
General Information
Local governments may take many different forms and may fulfill many different functions,
but in most cases they are the major organisations for governance of the city and provision of local
services, and the first point of contact with government for most citizens. The functioning of the city
depends to a large extent on the effectiveness of local government and the quality and cost of
services and infrastructure that it provides. The indicators for local government relate to financial
resources and financial sustainability, the provision of services, and independence from higher
levels of government.
Productivity in local government is measured by number of employees and by the Personnel
expenditure ratio, while the involvement of the private sector is measured by the Contracted
recurrent expenditure ratio.
Definitions :
Local government comprises all local-level governments, whether they be:
a)
legally, fiscally and politically autonomous jurisdictions;
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
b)
centrally influenced but legally distinct local governments (municipality with centrally
appointed mayors);
c)
some forms of quasi-government organisation which exist to deliver service locally.
Indicator 23
Indicator
23.1
Major sources of income
Local
government
income
per-capita
Defined as total local government sources of funds in US dollars annually, both capital and
recurrent, for the metropolitan area, divided by population (three year average).
1994
1995
1996
3 years average
Indicator 23.2
US$/capita/year
US$/capita/year
US$/capita/year
US$/capita/year
Sources of income
a. Taxes
a.1. Income taxes
a.2. Other taxes
b. User charges
c. Other own-source income
d. Transfers from higher levels of
government
e. Borrowings
f. Other income
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
%
Income in each category should be recorded as follows:
Taxes include municipal rates and levies, any local taxes on the transfer of property, and any other
taxes such as entertainment or hotel taxes, motor vehicle taxes, and taxes on business, which do
not reflect the direct provision of services.
User charges include any local government charges for services provided, such as water,
sewerage, refuse collection, or building permits.Betterment levies should also be included.
Other own source income includes interest and principal received, sales of capital items, (but not
donations, voluntary contributions or aid).
Transfers include formula driven payments (such as repatriation of income tax) or other grant
donations from national or state governments.
Loans include borrowing from all sources, including bonds.
Other income includes any other income such as donations or aid.
The average should be taken over three years in real terms (allowing for inflation).
Indicator 24
Per-capita capital expenditure
Defined as the capital expenditure in US dollars per person, by all local govern-ments in the
metropolitan area, averaged over the last three years.
1994
1995
1996
3 years average
US$/capita/year
US$/capita/year
US$/capita/year
US$/capita/year
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Expenditure on both fixed capital and plant as per the capital account should be included.
This indicator measures the degree of responsiveness of local government to the infrastructure
needs of business and residents. It should be a three year average because infrastructure
investment may be spread over time in an unequal manner. The amount of investment is affected
by the ability of local governments to obtain loan finance for capital investments and by grants from
higher levels of government.
Indicator 25
Debt service charge
Total principal and interest repaid, including bond maturations, as a fraction of total
expenditure by local governments.
A. Total expenditure by local
governments
B. Total principal and interest repaid
Debt service charge = B/A x 100
%
This indicator measures the debt burden of local government, which may reflect on its financial
viability. Local governments can become excessively indebted if care is not taken. One simple
measure of their capacity to carry debt is the ratio of debt repayments to expenditure.
Indicator 26
Local government employees
Defined as total local government employees per 1000 population.
Total local government employees
Total population
Local government employees/1000
pop.
This indicator measures the number of employees required to deliver local services to the
population, and is a crude measure of efficiency. It will differ according to the number of services
provided by local government, to the labour intensity of production, and to the level of contracting
out of services.
Indicator 27
Wages in the budget
Defined as proportion of recurrent expenditure spent on wage costs.
Total recurrent expenditure (1996)
Total recurrent expenditure in wages
(1996)
Wages in the budget
%
A high value for this indicator implies that the city has very few funds left for operations, and that
there may be excessive numbers of employees.
All forms of personnel expenditure should be included: wages, salaries and overheads.
Indicator 28
Contracted recurrent expenditure ratio
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Defined as the proportion of recurrent expenditure spent on contracted activity.
Total recurrent expenditure (1996)
Total recur. expend. in contracted
activities
Contracted recurrent expenditure
ratio
%
This provides a measure of the involvement of the private sector in activities which are the
responsibility of local government. It will not however indicate those activities that have been
completely privatised.
Indicator 29
Government level providing services
Which types of agencies deliver urban services to the population? Check boxes if
significant services (more than 20%) are provided by organisations of this type.
Services provided
Local
National State/
governme governm Region
nt
ent
Semi- Private
public
water
sewerage
refuse collection
electricity
telephone
public
or
mass
transport
emergency
(fire/ambulance)
road maintenance
education
health care
public housing
recreation/
sports
facilities
Leave row blank if there are no services of this type.
Statutory authorities and other semi-independent government bodies which are not fully
commercial should be included in the level of government to which they report.
Indicator 30
Control by higher levels of government
Check appropriate boxes in answer to the following questions.
1 Can higher levels of government (national, state/provincial):
a. Close the local government ? *
yes
no
b. Remove councillors from office?
yes
no
2 Can the local government, without
permission
from
higher
governments:
a. Set local tax levels (property tax
all some none
etc.)?
b. Set user charges for services ?
all some none
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
c. Borrow funds ?
d. Choose contractors for projects ?
all some none
all some none
3 Is the amount of fund transfers from higher governments
known in advance of the local budget setting
process ?
all some none
if some (give %):
%
*e.g. appoint an administrator or a new council, call new elections
Notes - module 5
23: Major sources of income
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
24: Per-capita capital expenditure
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
25: Debt service charge
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
26: Local government employees
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
27: Wages in the budget
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
28: Contracted recurrent expenditure ratio
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
29: Government level providing services
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
30: Control by higher levels of government
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
regional results
Indicator Indicator Indicator Indicator
23
24
25
26
LG
LG Capital
LG
LG wages
income expenditur employee
e
s
$15
$10
5.3
41.5%
Sub-Saharan Africa
$47
$31
22.5
43.6%
Arab States
$78
$7
10.0
41.4%
Asia Pacific
$2
763
$1
109
23.7
38.8%
Industrial countries
$201
$98
19.3
39.1%
Latin America & the
Caribbean
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Transitional Countries
Developing countries
All
$258
$108
$551
$79
$54
$221
3.8
8.9
11.2
16.0%
36.9%
37.2%
Module 6. Housing
Indicator 31: House price to income ratio
Indicator 32: House rent to income ratio
Indicator 33: Floor area per person
Indicator 34: Permanent structures
Indicator 35: Housing in compliance
Indicator 36: Land development multiplier
Indicator 37: Infrastructure expenditure
Indicator 38: Mortgage to credit ratio
Indicator 39: Housing production
Indicator 40: Housing investment
General Information
The key housing indicators monitor the shelter sector, and they are intended to be
collected at the city and national levels for international comparisons. If they cannot be collected at
the national level, they should be collected for urban areas as a whole, or for a principal city. This
should be noted in the Notes.
The major housing concern of citizens and the main reason why governments are
involved in housing is to ensure that all citizens have access to adequate hosing at an affordable
price. In a well functioning housing market, housing expenditures should not take up an undue
portion of household income. If this condition does not hold, it is an indication of an underlying
problem which is restricting affordability, or causing instability in the supply of housing.
Conversely, if housing costs are very low, it is a sign of subsidy or market restriction.
The system of housing provision is the manner through which housing is provided, and
involves land development, the construction industry, housing finance, government involvement
through taxes, subsidies and public housing, and the regulatory system. The provision system may
be very different in otherwise similar countries, which accounts in most cases for the different
housing outcomes which are to be found.
Indicator 31
House price-to-income ratio
Defined as the ratio of the median free-market price of a dwelling unit and the median annual
household income.
If there is a single indicator which conveys the greatest amount of information on the overall
performance of housing markets, it is the House price-to-income ratio. The ratio takes values
ranging from around 1 in sub-Saharan Africa to values as high as 15 in metropolitan Tokyo. The
considerable variation in values in apparently similar countries directly reflects the availability of
housing and land under different policy regimes.
Median house price (A)
Median
annual
household
income (B)
House price to income ratio
(A/B)
$
$
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Median household income
Household income is defined as gross income from all sources, which include wages,
salaries, incomes from businesses or informal sector activities, investment income, and where
information is available, income in-kind such as consumption of agricultural produce which might
have been sold. [Note to CA: This is a slightly different definition that in D7 in the
Background Module. Shouldn’t they be the same and shouldn’t they be cross-referenced?
There should be an instruction to cross-check with the median value of Q3 in D7, if that
value has been obtained.]
The following methods for calculating median household incomes are suggested:
1. Many countries may have recent household surveys containing information on median urban
household incomes or expenditures which can be used directly, as in Indicator D7. Expenditures
data rather than incomes data may be used to estimate incomes if these data are more readily
available (in fact, for lower income earners or where incomes are routinely concealed,
expenditures may be a better measure of income than reported incomes).
2. Mean incomes are often easier to obtain as a recent estimate (for example, by dividing
household income or household expenditure in the National Accounts by the number of
households). If a survey is available as well which has mean and median incomes, but which is
too old to yield good estimates of household income, the ratio of median to mean incomes may
still be used to obtain a new median from the new mean, because the distribution of incomes
does not change as rapidly as incomes themselves.
3. Taxation departments maintain records of gross incomes for taxable purposes, though these
are usually on an individual level rather than a household level. An approximate estimate for
household income may be made by multiplying the median level of individual income by the
mean number of income-earners per household. This method is not very reliable however,
because not all incomes are reported, particularly those of informal workers or low-income
people.
Median house price
Housing value is defined as the price at which a house would sell if placed on the market
for a reasonable length of time by a seller who is not under pressure to sell.
The median-priced house in the urban area is that house which has 50% of the houses
priced below it, and 50% of the houses priced above it. The calculation of the price of the medianpriced house should, therefore include all housing, both new and old, and both formal and informal.
If, for example, the majority of the housing stock is informal, and the informal housing stock is
generally cheaper than the formal housing stock, then the median priced house will probably be an
informal unit. [Note to CA: This implies that all houses in a city must be put into the matrix,
even those that are not or have not been on the market. If so, the process is very
cumbersome and expensive, and in megacities may involve well over 1 million houses,
unless there is a sample survey, which many cities/countries may have done. What is the
intention here? Should there be mention of the sample survey?]
For blocks of apartments or multiple-family dwellings which are usually sold as a single
building, the value of one dwelling unit should be estimated as a pro rata share of the total sale
price. This is particularly relevant for countries in Africa where the majority of housing is of this
type.
The following methods are available for estimating the median.
Method 1. Where the informal sector is small and data are reliable, median house price
can be determined directly from published (formal) sales figures or from recent surveys.
49
Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Method 2. If recent average prices are available, they can be converted to median price
by using a median/mean ratio from an older household survey. In much of the research done on
housing markets in developing countries, it has been found that median prices are generally about
70 per cent of the average. This figure is higher when housing is more equally distributed and
lower when housing is more unequally distributed.
Method 3. If no direct data are available, then prices need to be estimated for each
submarket as follows. Enter percentage of all housing units and price range per unit in a table. This
information should then be graphed as in the following example.
In this example, the median priced unit will be an apartment. Apartment prices range from
15 to 40 price units. Informal dwellings are 30% of the total, and apartments cover up to 55% of the
total. The median priced dwelling will be an apartment for which 50% of all dwellings will be
cheaper, ie 20/25 of all apartments will be cheaper. The median price is therefore 20/25 of the way
up the price range for apartments, viz:
Median price = 15 + 20/25*(40-15) = 35
presuming apartments are distributed evenly within the price range. So in this case the
median price is 35 units.
In some cases, the price ranges of several different kinds of dwellings may overlap around
the median, so that the median dwelling could be of either type. The median can still be estimated
by a variant of the above procedure. Please contact the Indicators Programme for instructions.
Newspapers, or a number of developers and real estate agents, can be consulted to get
estimates of house prices for single-family or multi-family housing in the formal sector. In urban
areas with large informal sectors, an approximation may be obtained through unstructured
interviews with households, businesses, and NGOs involved in this sector. Areas of the urban area
embodying different types of housing should be identified, and interviews held with people involved
in the housing market in that area.
Indicator 32
House rent to income ratio
Defined as the ratio of the median annual rent of a dwelling unit and the median household income of
renters.
Median annual rent (US$)
Median annual renter household
income (US$)
House rent to income ratio (%)
$
$
%
This indicator, like the house price-to-income ratio, is a key measure of housing
affordability. In a well-functioning housing market, housing expenditures should not take up an
undue portion of household income. As in the case of the house price-to-income ratio, this indicator
conveys information on more than just affordability, however. A relatively high value for this
indicator is often a sign that the supply of rental housing is failing to meet demand, which is
sometimes associated with lower than necessary housing quality. A particularly low value for this
indicator is a sign of the prevalence of public housing, or of rent-control measures.
If controlled or public rents are significantly different than uncontrolled rents, then
the indicator should be estimated separately for each sector, and the weighted average
taken. This is necessary to prevent anomalous results.
Incomes should be median gross income of private and public renter households. Where
renter household income data do not exist, median income of all households can be used. Rents
50
Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
should be contract rents or the amount paid for the property alone and not for utilities such as
electricity, heating etc.
If median rent data cannot be located, then an estimation procedure similar to that of
Method 3 of the previous indicator may be used, with ranges of rents estimated separately for
different categories such as public housing, controlled rents, one bedroom and two bedroom
furnished and unfurnished apartments, and single family houses of different types. The median
price will be part way up the price ranges of the median dwelling types.
Indicator 33
Floor area per person
m²
Defined as the median floor area per person in square metres.
This indicator measures the adequacy of living space in dwellings. Floor area per person
is the outcome, to a considerable degree, of market forces, which are in turn shaped by a variety of
housing policies. A low value for the indicator is a sign of overcrowding. Floor area per person and
an alternative indicator, persons per room, are highly variable among countries and are highly
related to each other.
The floor area should include all living space, along with bathrooms, internal corridors and
closets. Covered semi-private spaces such as corridors, inner courtyards or verandahs should be
included in the calculation if used by the household for cooking, eating, sleeping, or other domestic
activities.
If data from household surveys or from a recent census are available, they can be used.
In the absence of better data, the floor area of the median priced dwelling may be used as an
approximation, although this may not be an accurate estimate. If the median cannot be estimated,
then the average should be provided instead.
The median floor area of a unit should be divided by the average numbers of persons per
household (Indicator D5).
Indicator 34
Permanent structures
%
Defined as the percentage of dwelling units which are likely to last twenty years or more
given normal maintenance and repair, taking into account locational and environmental
hazards (e.g. floods, typhoons, mudslides, earthquakes).
This indicator is one measure of the quality of housing, particularly of its durability. Very lowquality housing is usually made of semi-permanent or temporary materials such as straw,
cardboard or cloth, which fail to provide adequate shelter from the elements and which deteriorate
rapidly in the absence of frequent maintenance and repair. Permanent structures usually provide
better protection from the elements and a higher standard of structural safety, and require a higher
level of initial investment.
The indicator generally refers to wall structure rather than roof durability, so that stone or
wood dwellings with a thatched roof may be regarded as permanent, whereas bamboo dwellings
without a stronger frame are not.
Although many countries have definitions of stock durability, this particular indicator has been
found to be relatively straightforward to measure, and distinguishes housing conditions in
developing countries readily. Yet because the indicator attains its maximum value, 100 percent,
among countries at only a modest level of GNP per capita, other housing adequacy measures
which permit distinctions to be made among countries at higher levels of economic development
are necessary.
Indicator 35
Housing in compliance
%
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Defined as the percentage of the total housing stock in urban areas which is in compliance
with current regulations (authorised housing).
This indicator refers to urban housing, and measures the extent to which the urban
population is housed legally. Only housing which both has a clear title to the land on which it
stands, and which is constructed with all required building, land use, or land subdivision permits
should be regarded as in compliance. A low value for this indicator is a sign that housing
development is proceeding without proper government controls, and that government is either
tolerant of housing which does not comply with its regulations or is unable to prevent trespasses.
Unauthorised housing is not recorded in housing statistics, and information must be
gathered through conversations with builders, developers, officials or researchers. Housing in
compliance excludes two major categories of housing: firstly all squatter housing, and secondly
housing which does not meet building regulations. Small additions or modifications to a unit in
compliance should not change the status of a unit to unauthorised.
Indicator 36
Land development multiplier
Defined as the ratio between the median land price of a developed plot at the urban fringe in
a typical subdivision and the median price of raw, undeveloped land in an area currently
being developed (ie with planning permission).
This indicator measures the premium for providing infrastructure and converting raw land
with planning permission to residential use on the urban fringe. It reflects in part the extent to which
windfall profits exist in developing land for housing as a result of bottlenecks in infrastructure
provision. It is thus an indirect measure of the availability of infrastructure, as well as the
complexity of the development process. It also measures indirectly the existence of monopolistic
practices in residential land development. A high value for this may be a sign that there are
shortages of urbanised land for housing.
The comparison should be between raw land and serviced land in an area where
residential development is allowed, i.e. where planning permission is given and zoning regulations
for residential development are in effect. Where land subdivisions are not common, the comparison
should be between an unserviced and a serviced plot of land located on the fringe of the urban
area.
A. The median price of one square meter of raw land that
has not been subdivided, and with no roads, electric,
water, or sewage services, in an area of the urban fringe
undergoing active development:
B. median price of one square meter of a building plot in a
development which has been subdivided and provided
with road access, electric, water, and sewage services, in
an area of the urban fringe undergoing active
development:
Land Development Multiplier = A/B
US$/m2
US$/m2
Average prices should be used where medians are difficult to calculate. Prices refer to a typical 50200 unit subdivision on the urban fringe.
In some countries, only roads are provided in new developments, whereas in others, a full range of
services are provided. The type of services which are typically provided should be notes, being:
Roads
Water
Electricity
Drainage
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Indicator 37
Infrastructure expenditure
Defined as the ratio of total expenditures in US dollars by all levels of government
(including private utilities and parastatals) on infrastructure services during the current
year, and the urban population.
Total local govt expenditures on
infrastructure
Total population
Infrastructure expenditure/ person
(1996)
US$
US$/pers.
This indicator is designed to measure typical or normal expenditures on infrastructure per
year. The indicator properly belongs as part of the infrastructure module in Module 2,
Infrastructure, and may also be considered an indicator of local government (Module 5), but it has
traditionally been a key housing indicator, so has been retained here. Total infrastructure
expenditure interacts strongly with new land development and construction, and also with improved
access to services by households. Low levels of infrastructure expenditures result in land supply
bottlenecks and thus in higher prices for land and housing. They also result in inadequate provision
of residential amenities, such as water, sewerage, drainage, electricity, and transportation facilities
all of which can affect the quality and price of housing.
Infrastructure includes operations, maintenance, and capital expenditures on physical
infrastructure such as urban roads, railways, sewerage, drainage, water supply, electricity, and
garbage collection, but not social infrastructure such as health and education expenditure.
Infrastructure expenditures are comprised of three major components, capital
expenditures (construction costs), recurrent expenditures (operations, maintenance, salaries, etc.),
and capital servicing (debt service and depreciation). If there were unusually high capital
expenditures during the last year for which figures are available, then they should not be included
in the key indicators, but only their first year depreciation should be considered as expenditure in
the current year. If, for example, there was a large capital investment project budgeted in 1993
which will distort this indicator, include only 10 per cent of this investment as recurrent
expenditures, assuming a depreciation rate of ten percent per year.
Figures for this indicator should be obtained from expenditure accounts of local and
central governments. Only real outlays or real transfers should be counted as expenditure. If debts
(e.g. to the central government) are not actually paid, or depreciation payments are not actually
transferred to a sinking fund, they should not be counted as expenditures.
Indicator 38
Mortgage to credit ratio
%
Defined as the ratio of total mortgage loans to all outstanding credit in both commercial and
government financial institutions.
Housing loan
Housing loans refer specifically to loans from the formal financial sector to households. In
general, a loan should be included if its originator is a formal financial intermediary and the final
recipient is a household or individual which uses it for housing occupancy whether it is secured by
the property or not. Group loans to cooperatives which are used for housing for cooperative
members and block loans to developers which are passed on to purchasers should be included.
Non-financial intermediaries such as employers who provide credit for housing are specifically
excluded.
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
The Mortgage to credit ratio is a measure of the relative size of the housing finance sector
and its ability to provide households with the funds necessary to smooth their consumption
patterns over time. If mortgages form only a small part of total credit, it is quite likely that housing
finance institutions are poorly developed, or face legal or institutional constraints making it difficult
for them to meet the demand for housing finance.
Total credit will be available from reports of the Reserve Bank or similar. For outstanding
credit, include total credit from commercial and government banks and non-bank lenders. Total
housing finance will be available from the Reserve Bank, from statistical offices, national housing
finance institutions or from the mortgage lending institutions or regulators.
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
For housing credit include total outstanding mortgage credit held by:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
savings and loans (savings banks):
commercial or trading banks:
merchant banks:
government agencies:
quasi-government institutions:
credit unions:
trust or finance companies:
insurance companies or pension
funds:
9 Total Mortgage (sum row 1 to row
8)
10 Total Credit
11 Mortgage to credit
Indicator 39
%
Housing production
Defined as the net number of units produced (units produced minus units demolished) last
year in both the formal and informal sectors per 1000 population.
Formal housing produced
Informal housing produced
Total population
Housing production/ 1000 persons
/1000 pers.
This indicator is a traditional measure of the ability of the housing supply system to increase and
replenish the housing stock. It should measure new units completed plus subdivisions of existing
units, less demolitions and conversions to other usages.
Both the construction of new informal units, and demolitions and conversions, may be difficult to
estimate from any formal source, and it may be necessary to rely on informed estimates from
professionals in the area.
Indicator 40
Housing investment
Defined as the total annual investment in housing construction or improvement (in both the
formal and informal sectors) as a percentage of annual gross national, total urban or city
product.
Total annual investment in housing (A)
City product (B)
Housing investment (A/B*100)
%
This indicator measures the proportion of aggregate economic activity devoted to housing
investment. It forms part of the National Accounts and measures the contribution of housing to the
economy.
Investment in housing includes value of work done on new construction, alterations and additions,
but not repairs or the purchase of existing housing.
Housing investment can be difficult to estimate where most construction is informal. In this case,
the contribution of formal and informal housing should be estimated separately. Formal sector
investment is usually directly obtainable from building inspection or contract registration records,
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
while informal investment can be obtained as the product of the number of informal units
constructed in the year times the estimated average value of each unit (excluding land).
Notes - module 6
31: House price to income ratio
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
32: House rent to income ratio.
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
33: Floor area per person.
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
34: Permanent structures.
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
35: Housing in compliance.
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
36: Land development multiplier
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
37: Infrastructure expenditure
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
38: Mortgage to credit ratio
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
39: Housing production.
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
40: Housing investment
Source: ......................................................................................................
Year: ..........................................................................................................
Note: ..........................................................................................................
regional results
Sub-Saharan Africa
Arab States
Asia Pacific
Ind. 31
House
price to
income
ratio
Ind. 32 Ind. 33 Ind. 34 Ind. 35
House Floor Permane Housing
rent
area
nt
in
to
per structure complia
income person
s
nce
ratio
6.9
27.3%
8.0
61.4%
48.6%
9.7
17.8%
12.6
84.1%
74.1%
9.4
23.7%
9.5
72.9%
58.8%
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Industrial countries
Latin America & the
Caribbean
Transitional Countries
Developing countries
All
4.4
3.8
18.9%
20.2%
34.5
14.7
98.3%
80.0%
97.8%
73.6%
12.2
7.9
7.5
4.4%
21.5%
21.2%
17.8
11.2
13.6
98.2%
73.0%
76.3%
94.3%
64.0%
68.7%
regional results
Ind. 36 Ind. 37 Ind. 38 Ind. 39 Ind. 40
Land Infrastru Mortgag Housing Housing
dev.
ct.
e
producti investm
multiplie expend. to credit
on
ent
r
5.2
$22
8.4%
5.7
8.9%
Sub-Saharan Africa
6.0
$71
9.5%
5.5
8.8%
Arab States
3.8
$25
5.0%
9.3
9.0%
Asia Pacific
3.9
$623 35.1%
5.2
3.5%
Industrial countries
4.6
$138 24.0%
7.3
7.0%
Latin America & the
Caribbean
5.5
$86
8.2%
2.6
3.9%
Transitional Countries
4.9
$59 10.7%
6.2
7.6%
Developing countries
4.8
$96 13.4%
6.1
7.3%
All
Part III. Going Beyond
A. Tailoring indicators to specific contexts and needs
1. Using a partnership approach
2. Using Extensive indicators
3. Following the Habitat Agenda
4. Developing new modules
5. Developing Indices
6. Integrating indicators in projects
B. Institutionalising monitoring
1. Using the Global Urban Observatory network
2. Local and national Urban Observatories
C. New Tools
1. Software and the DIF
2. Casebook of good practices
3. On-line training
Introduction
This chapter proposes a framework for going beyond the collection and application of indicators.
While the key indicators contained in the Abridged Survey (Part II) provide a quick overview of
urban conditions and trends, replying to basic questions such as the number of inhabitants in the
city and the number of households connected to basic services, it is important to think of different
ways of developing the indicators system for particular uses and contexts. For this purpose, a
comprehensive system of indicators has to be designed in relation to the particular context in which
it will be applied.
This chapter suggests new directions for extending and consolidating the integration and
application of indicators at all levels of decision-making. Among these are:
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey







the implementation of broad-based participatory processes for defining indicators tailored to the
needs of cities;
the definition of indicators frameworks tailored to specific national and local need using ;
a set of extensive indicators and new indicators designed through participatory approaches and
broad-based consensus;
a framework of indicators based on the Habitat Agenda;
the institutionalisation of participatory processes into National and Local Observatories;
the use of the Global Urban Observatory network;
the adaptation of new tools for managing indicators data and maximizing their application at all
levels of urban development activities.
Innovative methods for the collection, use and application of indicators may be proposed by
communities, cities and countries to enrich their knowledge and inform their actions with regard to
urban development. Any new initiative in this area may be documented in Good Indicators
Practices Presentations and disseminated through the Global Urban Observatory network.
A. Tailoring indicators to specific contexts and needs
1. A partnership approach
Indicators are measures that summarize information relevant to a particular area. More, they are
measures which point to particular problem areas, giving a reasonable proxy in response to
specific needs and questions asked by decision and policy makers. They can assist in analysing
trends and in thinking more systematically about impacts of policies. They are powerful tools for
clarifying values and informing decisions with regard to development planning.
The impact, usefulness and responsiveness of indicators increase with their adaptation to the
policy context and to stakeholders needs. It is therefore crucial that any indicator for the city be
determined through a broad-based partnership approach involving all levels of decision-making
and all stakeholders which have interests in urban development issues.
Citizens should be able to see on a regular basis what progress has been made by local
authorities in terms of road maintenance, delivery of services, control of pollution, etc. Mayors and
Government officials should be able to identify emerging problems where immediate action is
required. The private sector will want information on conditions that affect investment. Builders
may want to know what is the price of land throughout the city and the cost in time and money for
obtaining building permission. NGOs should be able to determine the effectiveness of their
participation in decision making, etc.
Sustainable Seattle
The Sustainable Seattle project, which is a result of a broad-based participatory
approach, tells us how useful participants felt indicators were:
“Indicators provide more than just glimpses of our activities. They compel us to
seek understanding of linkages within and among human and natural systems.
They imply connections and interactions, causes and effects. They suggest different
criteria for making decisions and measuring our progress. For example, can we say
our economy is sustainable if we have a growing number of children living in
poverty, or a dwindling supply of natural resources ? Can we make decisions about
the future shape the character of our neighborhoods and schools without thinking
about trends in the juvenile crime rate or the use of automobile? How do choices in
our personal lives -- such as the amount of waste we generate, or the amount of
money we save -- affect our society’s long-term viability ?”
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
In 1992, Sustainable Seattle convened a Civic panel of more than 150 citizens from
many different sectors of Seattle society. The Civic Panel proposed 99 indicators
grouped into 10 topic areas. In 1993, the Task Team began a technical review
process with the goal of refining the list of indicators and to a manageable size.
Data collection began shortly thereafter, and data availability further modified the
selection of indicators.
The community-based experience of Sustainable Seattle and other participatory approaches show
that what makes a good indicator is mainly the fact that it can be understood and accepted by the
all stakeholders. Since indicators are tools, they should respond to the needs and concerns of the
decision-makers and stakeholders. Since indicators are also policy-oriented, they should be
selected and designed by the decision-makers and stakeholders themselves.
Therefore, to proceed with the development of an indicators framework for the city, it is advisable
to set up a working group representing the major stakeholders interested in developing and using
indicators.
Before undertaking any initiative in order to build an indicators framework, a set of crucial
questions should be addressed:



How many stakeholders have particular interests in developing and using indicators ?
How many stakeholders are committed to developing an indicators framework ?
Why particular stakeholders, while being interested, cannot be committed to such an approach
?
These questions should allow clarification of representation of the working group. Representation
will naturally be reflected in the indicators framework. A working group composed only of local
authorities and NGOs will raise issues and conceive indicators adapted to their own needs and
may exclude concerns of other groups.
A set of priority areas of concern should be agreed-upon and defined by the Indicators Working
Group. This may require long discussions on priorities between the partners but this consensus is
crucial before any definition of further policy-objectives and indicators.
Before defining useful indicators, which are responsive to the needs and demand of all actors
involved in the process, it is important that priority areas and objectives are as clear as possible.
Clarity in objectives generally implies clarity in outlining activities, processes, methodologies,
tools, etc. These, if well defined, will easily generate indicators which will monitor and assess
different levels of concern.
Indicators can also sometimes help in defining objectives, activities, processes. Working on the
definition of indicators forces to be clearer in objectives and to be more systematic in the overall
approach. But indicators should mostly help in redefining objectives through measures and
assessment of success in attaining them.
Define and rank your priority areas:
Priority area 1
Priority area 2
Priority area 3
ex: Environmental quality of open spaces
ex: Sustainable renewable energy use
ex:
Management
of
solid-wastes
generated and recycled
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Priority area 4
Priority area 5
Priority area 6
etc.
For each priority area, define policy objectives, indicators and targets:
Priority area 1:
Policy statement
Programme objective(s)
Proposed actions to implement the objective
Indicator
Definition
Linkages
Targets
Evaluation
Example 1:
Priority Area 1:
Sub-area 1.1:
Policy statement:
Programme
objective:
Action 1:
Action 2:
Indicator 1:
Definition:
Linkages:
Linkage to
indicators:
Targets:
Evaluation:
Environmental quality of open spaces
Pedestrian streets
The city should encourage modes of
transportation other than automobile. Existing
streets can be modified as well as new streets
built to provide appealing pedestrian areas. The
pedestrian environments are vital public spaces
supportive of social interaction which is a strong
component of urban sustainability.
Create pedestrian-friendly streets within the
historical city center
Review the City center functional map
Implement special programmes to improve
pedestrian areas
Percentage of pedestrian-friendly streets
Pedestrian-friendly street according to functional
purpose criteria, physical and operating
characteristics as defined by the City Council.
Walking improves health, is non-polluting,
promotes social interaction and is an
inexpensive form of recreation. Improvement to
pedestrian facilities will expand mobility and
safety for everyone, and especially for elders,
people with disabilities and children.
other  Percentage of respiratory-diseases
 Percentage of non-motorized work trips
By the year 2002, 50% of streets in the historical
city center will be pedestrian-friendly (with an
annual progress of 10%).
There is no historic data to make comparisons,
but the city has expressed commitment to
providing a safe and appealing pedestrian
environment in all neighborhoods. This indicator
will be further developed to reflect improvements
in data collection and analysis.
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Note that indicators can also be defined for monitoring the implementation of Action 1 and Action
2. They will constitute process- or management-oriented indicators which would measure the
progress in implementing the actions.
Example 2:
Priority Area 2:
Sub-area 2.1:
Policy statement:
Programme
objective:
Action 1:
Action 2:
Indicator 1:
Definition:
Linkages:
Linkage to
indicators:
Targets:
Evaluation:
Access to water
Affordability of water
Citizens should have access to clean water at
affordable price, even during the dry season.
Access to water, as a basic need, is vital for the
population to insure a minimum hygiene and
meet drinking standards. The city should
guarantee access to cheap and clean water to
all populations of formal and informal
settlements.
Insure that all populations can afford water for
their basic needs.
Review pricing policy of the Water Corporation
Implement special water subsidy programmes in
selected low-income areas
Median price of water, all seasons
Median price of water paid per hundred litres of
water for each season
Easy access of population to water improves
health
and
medical
expenses
reduce
accordingly. Availability of cheap water
increases productivity of enterprises.
other  Infectious diseases mortality rate
 Expenditure in health care services
Median price of water should not exceed 0.5
$/1000 litres of water during the year. Maximum
to Minimum should be less than 2.
At present, data have not been collected
systematically,
especially
in
informal
settlements, where water is generally bough to
street vendors. Some investigation should be
made in those areas in order to make a proper
evaluation of the situation.
2. Using Extensive indicators
The Indicators Working Group can also work on the basis of the list of extensive indicators
proposed by the Urban Indicators Programme.
The extensive indicators have been designed according to the six indicators modules and
complement the key indicators of the Abridged Survey:
Background data
Module 1: Socioeconomic development
 poverty
 employment
 productivity
 health and education
 social integration
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
Module 2: Infrastructure
 access and affordability
 water
 sewerage
 electricity
 telephone
 infrastructure operations
Module 3: Transport
 general
 road infrastructure
 road vehicles
 public transport
Module 4: Environmental management
 air quality
 water
 solid wastes
 resources depletion
 disaster mitigation
 urban enhancement
Module 5: Local Government
 local finance
 local participation
Module 6: Housing
 access to affordable housing
 adequate housing for all
 rural housing
 land
 finance
 construction
 taxes and subsidies
 public housing
 regulation
(see annex for complete list and definitions of extensive indicators)
Each module of extensive indicators may be reviewed by the Working Group, which can select the
most appropriate indicators for describing and measuring the problems identified.
3. Follow the Habitat Agenda
The following tables below present a list of actions and indicators for each of the chapter of the
Global Plan of Action covering the following:
A. Adequate shelter for all
B. Sustainable human settlements in an Urbanizing world
C. Capacity-building and institutional development
It provides with a comprehensive framework for reviewing human settlements conditions and policy
development which can be used for defining priority areas and indicators for the city.
INDICATORS FRAMEWORK for evaluation and monitoring
the implementation of the HABITAT AGENDA
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
A. Adequate shelter for all
Table A.1. Background
ACTIONS
a) improve and insure equal and effective protection against discrimination in access to housing
b) provide legal security of tenure and equal access to land for all
implement and carry out policies aimed at making housing habitable, affordable and accessible
c) ensure effective monitoring and evaluation of housing conditions
INDICATORS
 Housing in compliance with current regulation
 Permanent structures
 Tenure types (% of households by tenure categories)
 Ratio of the median free-market price of a dwelling unit to the median household income
 Ratio of the median annual rent to the median household income of renters
 Median floor area per person (m2)
 Squatter: % of the housing stock occupying land illegally
 Homelessness (per 1000)
 Qualitative indicators (review of the legal framework and the effectiveness of its implementation)
(disaggregated results by sex of households and other categories as appropriate)
Table A.2. Shelter policies
ACTIONS
a) decentralize shelter policies and their administration
b) integrate shelter policies with macroeconomic, social, demographic, environmental and cultural
policies
c) formulate and implement policies that promote the enablement approach to the development,
maintenance and rehabilitation of shelter in both rural and urban areas
d) adopt and implement a cross-sectoral approach to policy development
INDICATORS
 Qualitative indicators (review of the policy framework and the effectiveness of its
implementation)
Table A.3. Shelter delivery systems
ACTIONS
a) ensure market efficiency
b) facilitate community-based production of housing
c) ensure access to land
d) mobilize sources of finance
e) ensure access to basic infrastructure and services
f) improve planning, design, construction, maintenance and rehabilitation
INDICATORS
 Ratio of the median free-market price of a dwelling unit to the median household income (also in
table A.1.)
 Ratio of the median annual rent to the median household income of renters (also in table A.1.)
 Land development multiplier
 Infrastructure expenditure
 Ratio of total mortgage loans to all outstanding credit
 Annual number of housing units produced / 1000 pop.
 Total annual investment in housing construction
 Effective taxation rate per dwelling paid by household
 % of urban area covered by a land registration system
 Median length in month to get approvals, permits and titles
 % of dwelling that have housing loans
 Ratio of total new mortgage loans for housing to total investment in housing
 Share of self-built housing in the overall housing production
 Construction cost per m2
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
 Construction time to build a median housing unit
Table A.4. Vulnerable groups and people with special needs
ACTIONS
a) remove barriers and eradicate discrimination in the provision of shelter
b) provide for the shelter needs of those belonging to vulnerable groups
c) reduce vulnerability
INDICATORS
 Annual number of households evicted from rental and squatter dwelling
 Squatter: % of the housing stock occupying land illegally
 Lease security: % of tenants who have formal lease agreements
 Female property rights (qualitative assessment)
 % of mortgage loans for women
 Ratio of median annual rent for a public housing to median household income of renters
(disaggregated results by sex and other categories as appropriate)
B. Sustainable human settlements development in an urbanizing world
Table B.1. Sustainable land use
ACTIONS
a) Support the efforts of human settlements to establish sustainable land-use patterns and
planning
 legal framework
 land-use control
 fiscal incentives
 land markets responsive to demand
 encourage partnership among the public, private and voluntary sectors
 Promote urban planning that discourage the sitting of hazardous industrial facilities in
residential areas
 Prevent or minimize pollution and exposure to pollution from industrial facilities
 integration of land-use, communications and transport planning
 integrated coastal zone management plans
b) Develop and support improved and integrated land management
 use of tools and the development of capacities for transparent urban monitoring
 integrated land information and mapping system
 development of land markets through an effective legal framework
 comprehensive and environmentally sound land-use strategies
INDICATORS
 % of land used as residential (formal and informal), commercial and industrial , agricultural,
services, transport, other
 Qualitative indicators :
 review of land use strategies
 review of land use controls
 review of the monitoring tools
 % of urban area covered by a land registration system
 Land information systems (yes/no)
Table B.2. Social development:
eradication of poverty, creation of productive employment and social integration
ACTIONS
a) Promote equal access to and fair and equitable provision of services in human settlements
b) Promote social integration
c) Combat poverty
 stimulate productive employment opportunities that generate income
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Monitoring Human Settlements - Abridged Survey
 safeguard the basic rights and interests of workers
 cost-effective and labour-intensive investments
 access to credit and innovative banking alternatives for women and the poor
 community-based cooperative banking
d) promote productive enterprises, including micro-enterprises and small-scale private and
cooperative sector enterprises
e) Promote gender-sensitive planning and management
f) Develop the full potential of young people and prepare them to take a responsible role in the
development of human settlements
g) Promote disability-sensitive planning and management
h) Promote the continuing progress of indigenous people and to ensure their full participation in
the development of the rural and urban areas
i) Prevent, reduce and eliminate violence and crime
j) Protect vulnerable and disadvantaged people
INDICATORS
 Households (%) connected to water, sewerage, electricity and telephone
 Households (%) with access to potable water (less than 200m from their dwelling)
 Household expenditure in food, housing, travel, other (%)
 Malnourished children under five
 Annual expenditure in social services ($ per person)
 Hospital beds (number of person/bed)
 Informal employment
 Unemployment rates
 Employment growth
 School classrooms (number of children/classroom in primary/ secondary schools)
 Adult literacy rate
 School enrollment rate
 Child labour
 Crime rates (murders, thefts, rapes, etc.)
 Qualitative indicators (review of legal frameworks and implementation)
(disaggregated results by sex and other categories as appropriate)
Table B.3. Population and sustainable human settlements development
ACTIONS
Address population issues affecting human settlements and to fully integrate demographic
concerns into sustainable human settlements
 Ensure that population/demographic issues are appropriately addressed within decisionmaking processes
 Set up or enhance databases
 Increase the awareness, knowledge and understanding of the impact of population change and
development variables on human settlements
 Consider the need to plan, design and build sustainable new human settlements
 etc.
INDICATORS
 % of population in urban areas
 Population of urban agglomerations
 Population growth rate
 Average household size
 Household formation rate
 Birth and death rates
 Household types
 Migration rates
 Residential densities
 Total fertility rates
 Qualitative indicators (review of planning practices)
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(disaggregated results by sex and other categories as appropriate)
Table B.4. Environmentally sustainable, healthy and livable human settlements
ACTIONS
a) Improve the health and well-being of all people throughout their life-span, particularly people
living in poverty
b) Improve environmental conditions and reduce industrial and domestic waste and other forms of
health risks in human settlements
c) Recognize the need for an integrated approach to the provision of those environmental
services and policies that are essential for human life
d) Promote a healthy environment that will continue to support adequate shelter for all and
sustainable human settlements for current and future generations
e) Ensure an integrated approach to water resources management that takes cognisance of the
links between water, sanitation and health, between the economy and the environment, and
between cities and their hinterland
f) Improve the liveability of human settlements
g) Prevent transboundary pollution and minimize its impact on human settlements
INDICATORS
 Child mortality
 Life expectancy at birth
 Consumption of water
 Households with access to potable water
 Wastewater treated (%)
 Solid waste generated
 Disposal methods for solid waste
 Types of sewage disposal
 Public latrines/ 1000 population
 Sources of water used by households
 Concentration of coliforms in drinking water
 Wastewater recycled
 Recycling rate of solid waste
 Industrial waste generation (industrial-toxic-radioactive)
 Area of land contaminated by toxic wastes (km2)
 % of urban population exposed to SO2, particulates, ozone, CO and Pb
 Total emissions in tonnes of SO2, Nox and CO2 per capita
 Acute respiratory deaths (% of total death/annum)
 Expenditure in air pollution abatement
 Expenditure in waste collection and treatment
(disaggregated results by sex and other categories as appropriate)
Table B.5. Sustainable energy use
ACTIONS
Promote efficient and sustainable energy use
 planning and design solutions
 promote the use of renewable and safe sources of energy
 promote energy-efficient systems
 etc.
INDICATORS
 Energy use per person (metric tonnes of coal equivalent)
 Fuelwood use (T/pers./annum)
 Renewable energy use
 Transport fuel consumption
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Table B. 6. Sustainable transport and communication systems
ACTION
Achieve sustainable transport in human settlements
 integrated transport policy approach
 coordination of land-use and transport planning
 use of an optimal combination of modes of transport
 disincentive measures that discourage the increasing growth of private motorized traffic and
reduce congestion
 effective, affordable, physically accessible and environmentally sound public transport and
communication system
 quiet, use-efficient and low-polluting technologies
 public access to electronic information services
INDICATORS
 % of work trips undertaken by: private car, train or tram, bus or minibus, motorcycle, bicycle,
walking, other.
 Average time for a work trip (mn)
 Expenditure in road infrastructure ($ per capita)
 Automobile ownership (automobiles/1000 population)
 Transport fuel consumption
 Transport household budget share
 Fuel price (petrol-diesel-LPG or CNG)
 Length or road per vehicle for surfaced and unsurfaced roads (km/road vehicles)
 Vehicles failing emissions standards
 Transport fatalities
 Qualitative indicators (review of transport and communication planning and policies)
(disaggregated results by sex and other categories as appropriate)
Table B.7. Conservation and rehabilitation of the historical and cultural heritage
ACTIONS
a) Promote historical and cultural continuity and to encourage broad civic participation in all kinds
of cultural activities
b) Integrate development with conservation and rehabilitation goals
INDICATORS
 Number of buildings in city on heritage or monument lists
 Expenditure in rehabilitation and upgrading of buildings in city on heritage or monument lists
 Incentives to private owners for rehabilitation and upgrading of buildings in urban areas part of
cultural heritage (yes/no)
 Qualitative indicators (review of planning practices and policies)
Table B.8. Improving urban economies
ACTIONS
a) Establish an effective financial base for urban development
 Formulate and implement stimulating financial policies
 Encourage the formation of new public-private sector partnerships
b) Provide opportunities for productive employment and private investment
 Implement responsive sustainable urban development policies
 Facilitate access to all levels of education and training
 Promote an adequate supply of serviced land for the needs of the business community
 Offer opportunities for urban economic activities
c) Provide opportunities for small businesses and for the micro-enterprise and cooperative
sectors
 Facilitate the extension to the informal sector of the protection of human rights in the field of
labour
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 Promote and strengthen programmes that integrate credit, finance, vocational training and
technological transfer programmes in support of small and micro-enterprises and enterprises in the
cooperative sector/
d) Strengthen urban economies so that they may be competitive in a globalizing economy
 Improve education and enhance job training
 Support the restructuring of local industries
 Review and revise the regulatory framework in order to attract private investment
 Prevent crime and enhance public safety in order to make urban areas more attractive for
economic, social and cultural activities
 Encourage sound financial practices at all levels of government
e) Alleviate the adverse impacts of measures for structural and economic transition
INDICATORS
 City product per person
 Urban product/ National product
 City investment: gross capital formation in the city divided by city product
 Urban investment: gross capital formation in urban areas divided by city product
 Level of infrastructure development (various indicators, see table B.4)
 Level of social development (various indicators, see table B.2)
 Infrastructure expenditure per capita (see table A.3)
 Local Government per-capita income
 Local Government per-capita capital expenditure
 Qualitative indicators (review of urban economic policies)
Table B.9. Balanced development of settlements in rural regions
ACTIONS
a) Promote the sustainable development of rural settlements and reduce rural-to-urban migration
b) Promote the utilization of new and improved technologies and appropriate traditional practices
in rural settlements development
c) Establish policies for sustainable regional development and management
d) Strengthen sustainable development and employment opportunities in impoverished rural
areas
e) Ensure an integrated approach to promote balanced and mutually supportive urban-rural
development
INDICATORS
 Rural population (%)
 Migration rates
 Rural water and electricity connections to households
 Employment growth in rural areas
 Unemployment rates in rural areas
 Qualitative indicators (review of urban economic policies)
(disaggregated results by sex and other categories as appropriate)
Table B.10. Disaster prevention, mitigation and preparedness, and post-disaster
rehabilitation capabilities
ACTIONS
a) Improve natural and human-made disaster prevention, preparedness, mitigation and response
b) Provide appropriate assistance as may be requested for remedial purposes in adversely
affected areas in the field of clean-up and disposal of radioactive contaminants
c) Mitigate disasters
 comprehensive information system
 low-cost, attainable solutions and innovative approaches
 encourage all parts of society to participate in disaster preparedness planning
d) Prevent technological and industrial disasters
 Prevent major technological accidents and limiting their consequences
 measures to control the sitting of new developments surrounding dangerous industrial activities
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e) Prepare for and implementing post-disaster relief, rehabilitation, reconstruction, and
resettlement
 Establish or strengthen disaster preparedness and response systems
 Devise exercises to test emergency response and relief plans
 Establish reliable communications, and response and decision-making capabilities
 contingency plans, management and assistance systems
 arrangements for rehabilitation, reconstruction and resettlements
 strengthen scientific and engineering capacities for damage assessment and monitoring
INDICATORS
 Proportion of the housing stock destroyed by natural or man-made disasters (/1000)
 Natural disaster mortality
 Housing located on land which is subject to natural disasters
 Number of deaths from industrial accidents
 Number of refugees (cities, urban areas, country)
 Cost of injuries and fatalities related to natural disasters
 Test emergency response and relief plan (yes/no)
 Disaster prevention information system (yes/no)
 Qualitative indicators (review of disaster mitigation and prevention measures and policies)
(disaggregated results by sex and other categories as appropriate)
C. Capacity-building and institutional development
Table C.1. Decentralization and strengthening of local authorities and their
associations/networks
ACTION
Ensure effective decentralization and strengthening of local authorities and their
associations/networks
INDICATORS
 Control of local authorities by higher levels of government (questionnaire for review)
 Number of elected and nominated local government representatives by sex, per 10 000
metropolitan population
 Number of associations per 10 000 population
 Qualitative indicators (review of the administrative framework)
Table C.2. Popular participation and civic engagement
ACTIONS
Encourage and support participation, civic engagement and the fulfillment of governmental
responsibilities, through institutional and legal frameworks that facilitate and enable the broadbased participation of all people and their community organizations in decision-making and in the
implementation and monitoring of human settlements strategies, policies and programmes
INDICATORS
 Voters participation rates by sex
 Citizen involvement in major planning decision (review)
 Qualitative indicators (review of decision making processes)
Table C.3. Human settlements management
ACTIONS
Facilitate capacity-building and institutional development for the improvement of human
settlements planning and management
INDICATORS
 Qualitative indicators :
 Capacity building programmes (impacts)
 Institutional development programmes (impacts)
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 Beneficiaries of capacity building and institutional development programmes (number by level)
Table C.4. Metropolitan planning and management
ACTIONS
Address the special needs of metropolitan areas and the needs of all people living in those areas
INDICATORS
 Qualitative indicators :
 Applied metropolitan management guidelines in land, environment, infrastructural, finance and
administration (yes/no)
Table C.5. Domestic financial resources and economic instruments
ACTION
Strengthen national and local economies and their financial and economic base with a view to
addressing the needs of sustainable human settlements
INDICATORS
 Local Government per-capita income
 Sources of income (%): taxes, users charges, other own-source income, transfers, borrowings,
other
 Local Government per-capita capital expenditure
 Debt service charge as fractions of total expenditure by local governments
 Local government employees (/1000 pop.)
 Wages (%) in the budget of local authorities
 Contracted recurrent expenditure ratio
 Change in real per capita total revenue
 Change in real per capita own-source revenues
 Qualitative indicators :
 regulatory audit
Table C.6. Information and communications
ACTIONS
a) Improve the capacity to exploit these innovations to enhance their public good
b) Disseminate experiences that contribute to facilitating access to adequate housing for all and
the development of sustainable human settlements
c) Increase the knowledge and strengthen the information base
INDICATORS
 Number of Internet connections at the Ministry focal point/ Local Governments
 Human settlements information database/system (yes/no)
 Number of best practices collected and analysed
 Qualitative indicators
4. Developing new modules
The Working Group may also define and develop new modules which examine in detail selected
areas of particular concern.
Several modules have been identified as major policy themes to be developed for cities. They are:
 Governance and Local Autonomy
 Urban Economy, Poverty and Employment
 Gender roles and impacts in human settlements
Governance and Local Autonomy
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“Governance is the sum of the many ways individuals and institutions, public and private, manage
their common affairs.”7 This very broad definition shows how large is the scope of governance. In
the particular context of urban development, the question is how well cities are being governed.
Good governance goes beyond the notion of good management. Sustainable development at the
local municipal level can be achieved if processes are transparent, so that political decisions
regarding urban development, provision of services, fees, charges and taxes, etc., are seen as
legitimate and complied with by the entire community. Only an open political process is capable of
eliciting the participation of lower income groups and of bridging the economic, political and social
schisms which separate many urban communities.
What good governance means has been defined in may ways. Several broad principles are often
proposed:
 Accountability
 Transparency
 Predictability
 Information
 Rule of Law
They imply:
 Fiscal hygiene and sound management of resources
 Building capacity for the analysis and formulation of sound economic policies
 Respect for economic agents
 Providing an enabling environment
 Withdrawal of the State
 Equity and social justice in the allocation of resources
 End to corruption
 Legitimately elected representatives
 Independence of community decisions
 Unrestricted people’s participation in decision-making
 Unrestricted flow of communication and information
Objectives/Actions
 strengthening the planning systems for development and budgeting of current resources
 increasing local revenues and access to an equitable part of the State funds
 controlling public expenditure through a proper accounting system and audits
 controlling public investment programmes to ensure the best possible outcome in the public
interest
This actions needs to be translated into indicators, which can be either quantitative or qualitative.
Urban Economy, Poverty and Employment
The urban economy is one of the least understood and most important components of modern life.
National economies are usually divided into sectors for analytical and policy purposes. Sectors,
however, each operate more or less efficiently because of the factors of production and
consumption found in urban areas. Cities, it is argued, are more fundamental economic engines
than are nations. The health of the overall urban economy -- its inputs and outputs -- is more
important to a nation than is the health of individual national economic sectors, because it is the
urban economy upon which national economic sectors are built.
Jane Jacobs argues that sustainable development depends upon import substituting cities.8 How
cities go about creating goods and services in place of those formerly provided from outside, and
how successful they are in doing so, is a problematique to be addressed through the collection and
in “Our Global Neighbourhood - Report of the Commission on Global Governance”, Oxford Univ. Press, 1995
Jane Jacobs, Cities and Wealth of Nations, New York: Vintage Books,1984.
7
8
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analysis of indicators. Because the process of import substitution is an evolutionary one of staging
and transition, from low quality to higher quality and from informal to formal, indicators of the urban
economy should measure the progress and robustness of this process over time and should
include indicators of the dynamics of the informal sector and the sufficiency of goods and services
produced for local consumption as well as for export.
In collecting indicators data on changes in the informal sector and the quality and sufficiency of
production, it will be necessary to do so at the community level as well as city-wide. The variety
and scale of the informal sector and how it intersects with local culture is information that can only
be obtained through micro-study. As with other community-based management and development
activities, generalizations may be possible after a representative sample of experience has been
analyzed.
The concept of poverty implies a deficiency of resources for an individual’s material well-being.
The amount and quality of certain basic needs is constant from one human being to another while
other needs vary according to culture and climate. The quality of both adequate diet and
adequate shelter, for example, vary from place to place. Yet, all humans require more-or-less the
same vitamins, approximately the same caloric energy for sustenance and a place of refuge from
the elements where they can safely congregate in family units. Because, in an urbanized world,
meeting these basic needs is most often accomplished through the formal economy rather than
through the informal exchange of goods and services, poverty is most often defined in monetary
terms (e.g., having an income less than that needed to purchase the basic resources for material
well-being).
The Habitat Agenda, however, recognizes that many basic needs are not purchased with money.
In an urbanizing world, they may be bartered, grown, fabricated and otherwise provided by
individuals, families and communities for themselves, using local resources other than money.
While there is a certain risk inherent in these methods of provision, they can also generate a
solidarity that provides its own assurance that basic needs will continue to be met. Poverty
indicators therefore must acknowledge the existence of informal as well as formal economies.
The issue of urban poverty presents the same duality seen in other indicators modules: how to
identify poverty as a societal problem in specific instances and how to compare the degree of
poverty from place to place. The policy implications of this dichotomy are clear.
Poverty
indicators must be tailored to reflect how basic needs are met, locally, by acknowledging nonmonetized resources and monetary resources from the informal economy. Indicators must also be
normalized to units of measurement that allow comparison for programming purposes.
5. Indices
Many indicators studies have concentrated on combining indicators to produce indices which
represent in a single number, performance over a whole range of outcomes, and which permit
comparisons of cities or countries. These indices include the Human Development Index of the
UNDP, various “liveability” indices produced for cities, and common indices such as the Consumer
Price Index.
In 1997, the Global Indicators DataBase, which contains the results of indicators for 236 cities,
offered the opportunity to develop a prototype index that span a large range of indicators, reflecting
a single aggregate concept called the City Development Index.
The City Development Index
The technique used to construct a City Development Index is similar to that used by UNDP for their
Human Development Index. Separate indices are constructed for:
 Utilities,
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 Health,
 Education,
 Environmental management,
 City product,
and are combined to form a composite index using the indicators and formula shown in the table
below.
Index
Infrastructure
Index
Indicators used
Ind. 10: Percentage of
households connected to
services (water, sewerage,
electricity, telephone)
Ind. 11: Percentage of
households with access to
potable water
Formula
25*(Water
connection+Access
Potable
Water)/2
+25*Sewerage
connection+25*Electricity
connection+25*Telephon
e connection
Waste Index
Ind. 19: Percentage of
wastewater treated
Ind. 21: Solid wastes
disposal methods
Wastewater
treated*50+Garbage
collection*25+(1-Open
dumping)*25
Health Index
Ind. 3: Hospital bed
Ind. 4: Child mortality
(Hospital
beds.08)*50/27.62+(32-Child
mortality)*50/31.92
Education
Index
Ind. 8: School classrooms
(Primary
classrooms.57)*50/6.52
+
(Secondary classrooms.66)*50/8.04
City Product Ind. D8: City product/person
Index
(log City product
2.52)*100/7.94
-
For more information about the CDI, please contact the Urban Indicators Programme.
Composite indices, such as the City Development Index, help to simplify and explain important
issues for greater public comprehension. Other indices may be developed to describe the
performance of urban systems and to measure progress toward such cross-sectoral policy
objectives as: equity and inclusion; poverty reduction; sustainability; livability; civic engagement;
social solidarity; adequacy of resources; competitiveness; and overall progress. Broad-based
consultations and networks among technical organizations and policy makers should be employed
to engage as wide a range of expertise as possible.
All methods of calculating such aggregate indices follow three steps:
1. A set of variables are selected which are available for all cities under consideration, and which
reflect aspects of the aggregate phenomenon to be studied. For example, the Human
Development Index (HDI) uses GDP, life expectancy and educational attainment.
2. The variables are transformed and normalized in some way. The transformations are intended to
counter saturation effects or extreme values, while normalization ensures that the scales of the
different variables are similar.
For example, the HDI takes a square root of income above a threshold level so that the effects of
very high national incomes will be limited, because it is considered that higher incomes add less
than proportionally to human welfare. Then the variables are normalized as a percentage along the
range between the maximum and minimum values, so that the minimum value becomes 0, the
maximum 100, and intermediate values are spaced accordingly.
3. A weighting of the different variables is applied and they are added to obtain an overall index.
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This weighting can be done in different ways: for example the HDI gives equal weighting to each of
its three normalized components, while another common index, the Consumer Price Index, weights
items according to their importance in the average household budget. Statistical procedures such
as principal components analysis or factor analysis are also commonly used to provide weightings
for the constituent variables in order to obtain independent components of the greatest statistical
significance.
Example: Calculating an infrastructure index.
The key indicators which measure the extent of (non-transport) networked physical infrastructure
provision to households are selected as : water, electricity, sewerage and telephone connection
levels (to these could also be added as measures of current effort, infrastructure expenditure or
local government capital expenditure).
An index of attainment in physical infrastructure provision can be calculated in many different
ways. The simplest is to add the values of the four variables. One might however wish to measure
the amount of effort or cost necessary to bring each connection level to 100 per cent. Then it is
appropriate to weight each variable by the average cost of provision of each service per
household, with sewerage being the most expensive.
Other possibilities are to use statistical methods to obtain as close as possible a correlation
between the index and some other variables such as city product (GDP at the city level, see key
indicator D8) or human development. Relationship between utility levels and city product is
however a rather complex one, as saturation levels of almost 100 per cent provision are rapidly
reached with rising incomes, and in this case, logarithmic transformations can reveal relationships
between indicators better than direct comparisons. However, the simplest approach of adding
connection levels for different services, with a possible adjustment for access to potable water,
would be a reasonable approach to forming an infrastructure index.
6. Integrating indicators in existing projects
The Urban Indicators Programme promotes the use of indicators in Human Settlements Projects
within and outside UNCHS (Habitat). Indicators have been proved to be very useful for project
monitoring, assessment of the sub-sector and for defining targets over time during a project.
Integrating indicators in existing projects constitutes a first step in indicators use and application at
the local level. Based on this project approach, the second step may consist in integrating
indicators in urban development policies in general and building capacity for self-monitoring at the
local and national level. The project is used as a first framework for addressing key issues and
understanding the usefulness of indicators. If well-understood by project stakeholders, the process
of defining and using indicators can be internalized in urban policy development in order to
encompass all related issues for the purpose of monitoring and decision-making.
Projects should first establish project working groups on indicators, which will work at choosing
relevant indicators, collecting and using them for the project. This process can be effective if
sufficient advisory service and tools have been provided to the project. Indicators can relate in a
first stage to a specific topic (urban poverty, governance, environment, housing, etc.). They can
then relate to urban development in general, including basic key indicators to monitor the urban
sector.
If well defined and monitored, the process of integrating indicators in projects can have a very
positive impact for the success of the project itself, its sustainability, as well as for the sub-sector
as a whole.
Depending on the objectives and the context of the project, two approaches can be used:
1. establishment of working group on indicators for the project, to be institutionalized at the end
of the project.
2. establishment of an Urban Observatory for monitoring the project and the sub-sector in the
longer term at the city and/or national level.
The second approach requires more investment at the beginning since it implies a working
structure for its functioning (location, tools and methodologies, staff). The first approach is less
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formal; its advantage is to provide a test period (the duration of the project) before
institutionalisation. It provides also more guarantee for a partnership approach.
The ideal would be a combination of both approaches through:
 establishing a working group on indicators involving all partners at the preparatory stage of the
project. The working group will establish a list of indicators, collect them and review them
during the period of the project.
 providing tools (database system, mapping systems, etc) and methodologies, discuss and test
them with a technical working group during the project
 defining the functions, roles and location of the Urban Observatory (can be in an existing
institution) during the last phase of the project - working group integrates functions of the Urban
Observatory.
Activities are suggested below for their inclusion in project documents:







Establishment of a working group on indicators based on all main actors (headed by the
National Project-Coordinator);
Working group to establish a working list of indicators for assessing the sub-sector and
monitoring project performance;
Working group to collect and review indicators on a regular basis during the project;
Working group to establish a list of indicators for monitoring the sub-sector after the project;
Installation and training for use of a database system which integrates the indicators and a
mapping system for the city (or project area);
Working group to be institutionalized for monitoring the sub-sector on an integrated regular
basis;
Establishment of an Urban Observatory or Urban Information System9.
B. Institutionalising monitoring
The broad-based participatory process established in the Indicators Working Groups proposed
above should be institutionalized at the national or city level with the goal of promoting the
sustainable use and application of indicators in decision- and policy-making.
UNCHS (Habitat) proposes a structure for this purpose. It suggests that Indicators Working Groups
be institutionalized, integrate the Local and National Urban Observatories networks and join the
Global Urban Observatory Network.
The objective is to allow Working Groups to integrate a performant exchange information network
at the regional and global levels as well as to enhance the quality of information and analysis on
urban conditions worldwide.
1. Using the Global Urban Observatory network
To facilitate monitoring and evaluation at all levels, UNCHS (Habitat) has merged the Urban Indicators
Programme and the Best Practices Programme into the Global Urban Observatory (GUO), a
networked analytical unit dedicated to improving the information base for urban policy.
Mission of the Global Urban Observatory
Better information for better cities
Goal of the Global Urban Observatory
The GUO is sponsored by the international community to track progress in implementing the Habitat
Agenda and to provide information on urban conditions and trends for improved urban policy.
The GUO will encourage, support and assist Governments and their partners to:
9
Note that Urban Observatories can be thematic: Housing Observatory, Urban violence Observatory, etc..
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



collect and analyse quantitative indicators data and identify best practices in order to
obtain baseline and subsequent comparable information for planning and monitoring
purposes;
organise national competitions, exhibitions, training and leadership development activities
devoted to learning from and exchanging expertise and experience;
engage in the definition and adoption of a standard list of terms and meta-data directory
to foster comparability of information.
build a GUO network by, inter alia, establishing national and local observatories to analyse
and disseminate information on trends and conditions and to inform the Commission on
Human Settlements and the Commission on Sustainable Development of progress in
implementing the Habitat Agenda and Agenda 21.
Strategy of the Global Urban Observatory
Focusing on information needs of policy-makers at all levels, the GUO will work to improve data
gathering, information systems management, monitoring and evaluation of conditions and trends,
application of information in participatory decision-making and communication of information between
governments and organisations of the civil society.
For this purpose, five strategic areas have been identified:
a) Capacity building
One of the primary tasks of the international community in supporting the implementation of
the Habitat Agenda is to develop and strengthen capacity building programmes. This
support may be aimed at strengthening the roles of local authorities, community
organizations and non-governmental organizations in critical areas of participatory
planning, programme design, implementation and evaluation, economic and financial
analysis, credit management, research, information, advocacy and networking. The Global
Urban Observatory will help build capacity in these areas through the development of
resource networks and information infrastructure and through cooperative arrangements
among designated learning centres and research organizations.
b) Networking
In the Habitat Agenda, Member States of the United Nations commit themselves to
promoting equal access to reliable information at all levels, utilizing modern communication
technology and networks. There is a further commitment in the Habitat Agenda at the
international level to enhance cooperation through the exchange of appropriate technology
and the collection, analysis and dissemination of information about shelter and human
settlements through international networking. Networking is recognized as an essential
component of the enabling strategy and as the foundation for capacity-building and
institutional development.
c) Information infrastructure
Governments at all levels are asked in the Habitat Agenda to: develop, upgrade and
maintain information infrastructure and technology and encourage their use by all levels of
government, public institutions, civil society organizations and community-based
organizations; promote the training of all key actors in the use, ways and means of
information technology; develop methods of sharing experience of local initiatives through
electronic means such as Internet, networks and libraries; encourage policies that make
information technology and services available and more accessible to the general public;
promote the free flow of, and access to, information in areas of public policy, decisionmaking, resources allocation and social development. In identifying networking solutions,
the comparative advantages of various modes of communication will be evaluated and
training and technology needs will be addressed.
d) Local and National Urban Observatories
The principle of networking allows a wide range of resources to be activated nationally and
regionally. The Global Urban Observatory will focus available capacity building resources
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on priority regions where several countries cities and towns have established National and
Local Urban Observatories.
A Local Urban Observatory is a governmental agency,
research centre or educational institution that is designated as the “workshop” where urban
indicators are developed and tested. Local Urban Observatories in each city or town should
also be the focal point for urban policy development and planning where collaboration
among policy makers, technical experts and representatives of partners groups is fostered.
The Local Urban Observatories will be the test bed for data gathering and management
tools and for development of appropriate methods for the application and analysis of
indicators.
Networks of Local Urban Observatories will be facilitated by National Urban Observatories
which will coordinate capacity building assistance and will compile and analyze urban
indicators data for national policy development. National Urban Observatories (NUOs) may
be a central government agency, a national university, prestigious private research centre,
an NGO or some other appropriate entity. The goal of this integrated system of networks is
to build sufficient capacity at the local level to provide reliable, locally relevant and
internationally comparable data on urban conditions and trends to all levels of policy
making.
e) Joint programming
The portfolio of outputs for the Global Urban Observatory represents the highest priorities
for the use of programme resources. It is assumed, however, that applicable resources
include not just those that might be made directly available to the Urban Indicators
Programme, but resources applied through other Habitat and UN Programmes for
development of indicators, identification of Best Practices, networking systems, consultative
processes and policy formulation activities.
2. National and Local Urban Observatories
The idea of Local Urban Observatory which emerged after Istanbul as a mechanism to help
implement the Habitat Agenda, responds to the double demand for local adaptability and global
continuity of urban indicators.
A Local Urban Observatory is an institutionalized Indicators Working Group, a unit where a team of
people comes together to develop effective and relevant tools and methods to address common
urban development issues. A Local Urban Observatory is a designated institution at the local level
where partners come together for the purpose of developing tools and methods for setting
community goals and common priorities, for gathering and analyzing data on city conditions and
trends and for monitoring policies and projects for the improvement of the city.
The host institution may be a university faculty, a strong municipal agency, a local branch of a
national or provincial ministry, an urban NGO, a private firm or some other entity dedicated to
strengthening its own capacity to develop, manage and analyze information for urban policy. New
entities should not be created where there are already institutions or organizations that have the
capacity to undertake these functions.
Participants in Local Urban Observatories could be mayors, members of local councils, boards,
and authorities, representatives of ministries responsible for urban development, technicians
involved inter alia in environmental and infrastructure management, statisticians, journalists,
members of consumer groups, private builders, representatives of the civil society and all those
who are interested in identifying key issues, assessing priorities and monitoring living conditions
within their city.
A Local Urban Observatory may be defined through four functions:
Learning structures: identifying conditions, trends and priority issues through research and a
consultative process involving policy-makers and representatives of non-governmental groups and
organizations of the civil society;
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Service providers: developing appropriate indicators, indices and evaluation frameworks for the
city and its communities, maintaining information management systems and undertaking
evaluations at the request of local authorities and the various partners groups;
Training agents: assisting communities and neighboring cities and towns to use appropriate tools
and methods for the generation, management and analysis of urban information and to build local
capacity to apply the tools and methods on a regular and consistent basis in the process of
formulating urban policy;
Networking nodes: participating with other Local and National Urban Observatories in the
sharing of resources, the exchange of substantive and methodological knowledge and the
dissemination of analyses of indicators to the national, regional and global levels.
Local Urban Observatories established in several cities may form a National Urban Observatory.
A National Urban Observatory can also be established to perform the same functions from a single
central place at the national level without Local Urban Observatories. Each government or local
authority may choose its own methods for undertaking the above functions and designating national
and local urban observatories. The common objective, however, is to establish responsibility for
monitoring and evaluating progress in implementing national and local plans of action and to
generate better information for policy dialogue.
National and Local Urban Observatories will become programme focal points for the
development of skills and resources that will eventually constitute a resident capacity to perform
monitoring and evaluation functions at the local or national level as part of the Global Urban
Observatory network.
Each LUO and NUO should be linked to other LUOs and LUOs for the purposes of mutual
assistance and information exchange. Networks of UOs will be facilitated by national level Urban
Observatory partners which will coordinate capacity building assistance and will compile and
analyze urban indicators data for national policy development. A national Urban Observatory
partner may be a central government agency, a national university, a private research centre, an
NGO or any other appropriate entity. UNCHS (Habitat) regional offices will be designated as
Global Urban Observatory agents, managing the network of national Urban Observatory partners
in their respective regions, coordinating technical cooperation projects among countries in the
region and compiling and analyzing regional urban indicators data. The goal of this integrated
system of networks is to build sufficient capacity at the local level to provide reliable, locally
relevant and internationally comparable data on urban conditions and trends to all levels of policy
making.
Working through a network of global and regional institutions, the Global Urban Observatory will
support National Habitat Committees, which were formed before the Habitat II Conference, and
Indicators Working Groups, building on existing institutions and networks that function as “National
Urban Observatories” by:
 facilitating broad-based consultations with partners on urban development issues and
providing mechanisms for the consultative interface between policy-makers and technical
experts;
 analyzing local plans of action to identify common issues that may be the subject of
national policy;
 proposing policy options for harmonizing sectoral policies and strategies;
 monitoring national and local progress in implementing enabling strategies and other
objectives of the Habitat Agenda;
 contributing expertise, experience and know-how in building capacity among local urban
observatories;
 supporting networking among cities and local authorities to facilitate a mutual learning
process;
 organizing training programmes for policy makers and technicians at the national and local
levels;
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



organizing national best practices competitions;
implementing national indicator programmes to monitor implementation of national plans
of action;
establishing access to the Internet by all partners groups; and
designing and maintaining a national Internet homepage and a newsletter for reporting on
National Urban Observatory activities.
Similarly, the Global Urban Observatory will support monitoring and evaluation at the local level by
building on existing institutions and networks that function as “Local Urban Observatories” by:
 identifying conditions, trends and priority issues through research and consultative
processes involving policy-makers, national associations of local authorities, professional
groupings and representatives of non-governmental groups and organizations of the civil
society;
 developing appropriate indicators, indices and evaluation frameworks for the city and its
communities, maintaining management information systems and undertaking evaluations
at the request of local authorities and the various partners groups;
 building capacity among communities and neighbouring cities and towns to apply
appropriate tools and methods for the generation, management and analysis of urban
information on a regular and consistent basis;
 cooperating with other Local Urban Observatories in sharing resources, exchanging
substantive and methodological knowledge and the disseminating analyses of indicators to
the national, regional and global levels;
 assisting other Local Urban Observatories in developing their capacity to collect and use
urban indicators;
 design and maintain a local Internet homepage and a newsletter for reporting on all Local
Urban Observatory activities.
C. New Tools
One of the main tasks of the programme therefore will be to develop, test and disseminate
standard tools for use by Local Urban Observatories and their partners. This will include the
production of manuals and guidelines as well as new tools presented below.
1. UrbanDataLink
The UrbanDataLink in project is will be an inexpensive, easy-to-use package of software for local
collection, verification, management, evaluation, presentation and comparison of policy-oriented
urban indicators data, and a meta-directory to facilitate the compilation of multiple distributed local
data sets into virtual national, regional and global policy-oriented databases.
Its main function will be to link urban indicators databases around the world without actually
collecting the data in one location. This will be done through the application of a special "DIF"
protocol allowing computers and databases to communicate with one another. Incorporated into
this approach would be a search engine, data management software, standard analysis methods,
presentation graphics and a report generation feature. Based on the subject index of the Habitat
Agenda, this approach promises to be a very cost effective way to monitor global progress in
implementing the Habitat Agenda.
The UrbanDataLink will integrate inexpensive shareware into a unified package of software for
improving urban policy analysis at all levels by offering a tool for the collection, verification,
management, evaluation, presentation and comparison of local, policy-oriented urban indicators
data. The package will include a template of universal key indicators (plus additional localized
indicators) as collected for Habitat II, a flat file or relational database, a simple statistics calculator,
a GIS, presentation software and user guide. A subject/concept classification system -- or urban
thesaurus, based on key urban indicators, the Habitat Agenda and Agenda 21 -- will be developed
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using an electronic delphi process involving representatives of the main user groups around the
world. This classification system will provide the foundation for a meta-data directory (compatible
with the Directory Interchange Format or DIF), which will be included with the software package.
The meta-directory will be added to NASA’s Global Change Master Directory (GCMD), which
already contains descriptions of 2800+ environmental data sets. Users of the software package
will, by mutual consent, be able to view all other DIF-compatible urban data sets. Researchers and
policy analysts at all levels will be able to compile virtual databases for comparison, modeling and
theory testing. UNCHS (Habitat) will use the DIF-compatible data sets to monitor progress in
implementing the Habitat Agenda and the urban related chapters of Agenda 21.
2. Indicators Best Practices Casebook
Recalling that the goal of Phase Two of the Urban Indicators Programme is to build institutional
capacity for, among other things, urban policy analysis, this set of activities will seek out and test
methods for using indicators data in the formulation of urban policy. Linking quantitative data to
policy-making is neither universally practiced nor well-understood. Finding suitable answers to the
question of what data represent or measure activities and outcomes of importance to public policy
can involve a wide ranging discussion among a broad base of interest groups. The techniques for
engaging in this often-complex process and for integrating indicators data with policy-making
processes are still being developed and tested in varying contexts around the world.
The Indicators Best Practices Casebook will be a global casebook of good and best practices for
collecting, verifying, managing, analyzing and integrating data and urban policy analysis.
This programme component will result in the identification, analysis, and dissemination of good
examples where policy-making has regularly used good information effectively. During the
preparatory process for Habitat II, the Best Practices Initiative proved valuable in seeking out and
disseminating information on successful strategies for improving people’s living environments.
Best Practices were nominated in virtually all areas of human enterprise related to urban
development, including processes of governance. Since the Habitat II Conference, the Best
Practices and Local Leadership Programme has become well established with its own methods,
procedures and partners.
This programme output will take advantage of the mechanisms of the Best Practices and
Leadership Programme to develop a global casebook of best practices in the collection,
management and use of indicators data in making public policy. Accompanying the casebook will
eventually be video tapes, manuals, and workbooks for the training modules on the use of
information in urban policy analysis. The casebook, with its teaching tools, will be disseminated
through the Global Urban Observatory Network and will be included as part of a training
programme designed to increase awareness and sensitivity of both policy-makers and technical
experts.
3. On-line Classroom
In formulating and evaluating policy for an urbanizing world, new or enhanced analytic skills are
needed at the national and local levels. Many of these skills can be developed through traditional
educational processes and capacity building programmes. The traditional media for learning,
however, have a limited outreach. Student/teacher interaction is normally bounded by the physical
distance that either may travel to meet the other and/or by the resources available for utilities,
space, books and other learning materials.
In a response to these restrictions, technical
cooperation programmes have focused on training trainers -- in effect, setting up learning networks
that multiply the benefits of the original expenditure. The medium of the Internet and its ability to
host the "virtual schoolroom" offer to greatly extend the teacher's outreach with a more consistent
result, geographically, at a fraction of the cost.
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Indicators On-line Classroom will be a global electronic distance learning facility to help develop
national and local skills in the collection, storage, management, compilation, retrieval, presentation
and analysis of indicators data.
The on-line classroom, using the Internet, already exists in many forms. The model proposed for
the Habitat Urban Indicators Programme is the Virtual University, run by Spectrum Universal, an
NGO based in the USA. The Virtual University has been using the Internet as a classroom for two
years and has helped educate 250,000 students from 128 countries. It has demonstrated its
capability to deliver traditional educational materials in a structured environment and to generate a
seminar-like interchange of ideas and experience among students from all parts of the world. At
this time its services are free of charge, supported by several private sector firms.
The curriculum objectives for the UIP on-line classroom would be to make available over the
Internet, at minimal cost to students, standardized training in the use of the basic indicators
software package and training in more advanced analytical techniques and data quality control.
Another curriculum objective is to use the on-line classroom as a virtual expert group meeting
where professionals work with each other in discussion groups to develop and test new indicators
for attainment of objectives in the Habitat Agenda.
Networking objectives would be to create a global cohort of professionals among Local Urban
Observatories and other institutions who will then share their skills and experiences, promote the
further development of indicators and indices, serve as resources for continuing on-line training
and contribute to policy analysis at all levels.
The initial language medium for curriculum development and testing purposes will be English. It is
envisaged, however, that once the effectiveness of the on-line classroom has been established,
partners in each of the official (and other) UN language regions will be engaged to administer the
on-line classroom in its language.
Eventually, the on-line classroom for the Urban Indicators Programme may be expanded to include
other subjects important to urban management and civic engagement. In that sense this output is
a pilot demonstration for a Habitat Classroom On-line that may change the way in which the Centre
engages in training around the world.
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ANNEXES
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
List of participating cities
List of extensive indicators
Memorandum of Understanding
Adjusting Money Quantities to US dollars
Glossary
1. List of participating cities (status in August 1997)
Country
City
Country
City
Albania
Tirana
Cuba
Pinar del Rio
Angola
Luanda
Czech Republic Prague
Antigua
& Antigua
& Denmark
Copenhagen
Barbuda
Barbuda
Armenia
Yerevan
Djibouti
Djibouti
Australia
Melbourne
Ecuador
Quito
Azerbaijan
Baku
Ecuador
Guayaquil
Bangladesh
Tangail
Ecuador
Cuenca
Bangladesh
Chittagong
Egypt
Cairo
Bangladesh
Dhaka
Egypt
Tenth of Ramadan
Barbados
Barbados
Egypt
Gharbeya
Belarus
Minsk
Egypt
Assiout
Belize
Belize City
Ehtiopia
Nazareth
Benin
Porto Novo
El Salvador
San Miguel
Benin
Cotonou
El Salvador
Santa Ana
Bolivia
La Paz
El Salvador
San Salvador
Bolivia
Cochabamba
Estonia
Tallin
Bolivia
El Alto
Ethiopia
Arbaminch
Bolivia
Santa Cruz de la Ethiopia
Jimma
S.
Botswana
Gaborone
Ethiopia
Adigrat
Brazil
Rio de Janeiro Ethiopia
Bahirdar
Brazil
Curitiba
Ethiopia
Nekemte
Brazil
Recife
Ethiopia
Awassa
Brazil
Brasilia
Ethiopia
Diredawa
British Virgin Isl. British
Virgin Ethiopia
Addis Ababa
Islands
Brunei
Bandar
Seri Ethiopia
Mekelle
Darussalam
Begawan
Bulgaria
Sofia
Ethiopia
Harar
Burkina Faso
Koudougou
Ethiopia
Gondar
Burkina Faso
Ouagadougou Ethiopia
Dessie
Burkina Faso
Bobo-Dioulasso Fiji
Suva
Burundi
Bujumbura
France
Marseille
Cameroon
Yaounde
France
Lyon
Cameroon
Douala
France
Strasbourg
Canada
Hamilton
- France
Rennes
Wentworth
Canada
Toronto
France
Bordeaux
Central African Bangui
France
Brest
Rep.
Chile
Santiago
France
Paris
China
Hefei
France
Dunkerque
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China
China
China
China
China
Colombia
Congo
Cote d'Ivoire
Cote d'Ivoire
Croatia
Cuba
Cuba
Cuba
Shanghai
Foshan
Zhangjiagang
Qingdao
Chengdu
Bogota
Brazzaville
Abidjan
Bouake
Zagreb
La Habana
Camaguey
Cienfuegos
Gabon
Gambia
Gambia
Gambia
Georgia
Germany
Germany
Germany
Germany
Germany
Germany
Ghana
Ghana
Libreville
Banjul
Farafenni
Basse
Tbilisi
Leipzig
Koeln
Freiburg
Erfurt
Duisburg
Wiesbaden
Accra
Kumasi
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List of participating cities
Country
City
Ghana
Tamale
Greece
Athens
Guatemala
Guatemala city
Guinea
Labe
Guinea
Conakry
Guyana
George Town
Hungary
Budapest
India
Mysore
India
Madras
India
Lucknow
India
Tumkur
India
Varanasi
India
Gulbarga
India
Bombay
India
Bhiwandi
India
Bangalore
India
Hubli-Dharbad
India
Delhi
Indonesia
Bandung
Indonesia
Surabaya
Indonesia
Banjarmasin
Indonesia
Semarang
Indonesia
Medan
Indonesia
Jakarta
Iran
Mashad
Iran
Tehran
Israel
Tel Aviv
Jamaica
Kingston
Jordan
Amman
Kazakhstan
Almaty
Kenya
Kakamega
Kenya
Nyeri
Kenya
Nakuru
Kenya
Kisumu
Kenya
Nairobi
Kenya
Mombasa
Kyrgyzstan
Bishkek
Laos
Vientiane
Latvia
Riga
Lesotho
Maseru
Liberia
Monrovia
Lithuania
Vilnius
Madagascar
Antananarivo
Malawi
Mzuzu
Malawi
Zomba
Malawi
Lilongwe
Malawi
Blantyre
Mali
Bamako
Malta
Birkirkara
Mauritania
Nouakchott
Country
City
Moldova
Chisinau
Mongolia
Ulaanbaatar
Morocco
Rabat
Mozambique
Maputo
Mozambique
Beira
Mozambique
Nampula
Namibia
Windhoek
Namibia
Oshakati
Nepal
Biratnagar
Nepal
Bharatpur
Nepal
Kathmandu
Nepal
Pokhara
Netherlands
Tilburg
Netherlands
Amsterdam
New Zealand
Auckland
Niger
Niamey
Nigeria
Lagos
Nigeria
Kano
Nigeria
Ibadan
Nigeria
Onitsha
Pakistan
Lahore
Paraguay
Asuncion
Peru
Trujillo
Peru
Cajamarca
Peru
Lima
Philippines
Davao
Philippines
Metro Manila
Philippines
Cebu
Poland
Warsaw
Romania
Bucharest
Romania
Tirgoviste
Russian
Novgorod
Russian
Kostroma
Federation
Russian
Moscow
Federation
Russian
Nizhny Novgorod
Federation
Russian
Ryazan
Federation
Rwanda
Kigali
Federation
Sao
Tome
e Sao Tome
Senegal
Ziguinchor
Principe
Senegal
Mbour
Senegal
Kaoloack
Senegal
Tambacounda
Senegal
Dakar
Senegal
Richard Toll
Seychelles
Seychelles
Slovak Republic Bratislava
Slovenia
Maribor
Slovenia
Ljubljana
Slovenia
Koper
Sri Lanka
Colombo
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List of participating cities
Country
City
Sudan
Khartoum
Sweden
Stockholm
Tanzania
Dar es Salaam
Tanzania
Mbeya
Tanzania
Mwanza
Tanzania
Arusha
Tchad
N'Djamena
Togo
Lome
Tunisia
Tunis
Uganda
Mbarara
Uganda
Kampala
Uganda
Jinja
Uganda
Mbale
Ukraine
Donetsk
United
Arab Dubai
United
Kingdom Cardiff
Emirates
United Kingdom Hertfordshire
United Kingdom Bedfordshire
United Kingdom Glasgow
United States of Des Moines
United
States of Seattle
America
United
States of New York
America
United
States of Hartford
America
United
States of Atlanta
America
Venezuela
Valencia
America
Vietnam
Hanoi
Yemen
Sana'a
Yugoslavia
Belgrade
Yugoslavia
Podgorica
(Serbia)
Yugoslavia
Novi Sad
(Serbia)
Yugoslavia
Nis
(Serbia)
Zaire
Kinshasa
(Serbia)
Zambia
Lusaka
Zambia
Siavonga
Zambia
Livingstone
Zimbabwe
Bulawayo
Zimbabwe
Harare
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2. List of extensive Indicators
This list is an extension to the list of key urban indicators. The extensive indicators may be
selected by countries to provide a fuller description of the urban sectors. More detailed information
on extensive indicators is available upon request to the Urban Indicators Programme.
Background Data
Indicator DA1: Birth and death rates
Crude birth and death rates are defined as births and deaths per 1000 population.
Indicator DA2: Migration rates
Net migration to and from the city : (a) within country; (b) overseas; (c) total.
Indicator DA3: Household type
Percentages of households with: (a) more than one adult and children; (b) single parent
households; (c) more than one adult, no children; (d) one person only.
Indicator DA4: Household expenditures
Proportion (%) of average household income spent on : (a) food; (b) housing; (c) travel; (d) other.
Indicator DA5: Dwelling type
Number of : (a) detached dwellings; (b) medium density dwellings; (c) apartment; (d) total.
Module 1 - Socioeconomic Development
POVERTY
Indicator A1: Illiteracy of poor
Defined as the percentage of poor aged 15 and over who are illiterate.
Indicator A2: Daily kilojoule supply of poor
Defined as the ratio of average food Calories consumed by poor to the average number of Calories
needed to sustain a person at normal levels of activity and health.
Indicator A3: Malnourished children under five
Defined as the percentage of children, from one to five years of age who are more than two
standard deviations from the median weight for age of the reference population. (or WHO
standards).
Indicator A4: Social safety net
Financial or other support provided locally or nationally for disadvantaged groups (check boxes
indicator).
EMPLOYMENT
Indicator A5: Unemployment rates by sex
Defined as the average proportion of unemployed during the year, as a fraction of the (formal)
workforce, by sex.
Indicator A6: Employment growth
Defined as the average annual growth rate of the number of (formally) employed men and women,
aged 15 and above, during the last 5 years.
Indicator A7: Child labour
Defined as the number of employed or economically active persons under 15 years of age.
Indicator A8: Minimum wage coverage
Defined as the proportion of the economically active population whose wage or salary income is
covered by minimum wage legislation.
PRODUCTIVITY
Indicator A9: City investment
Defined as gross capital formation in the city, divided by city product.
Indicator A10: Airport activity
Defined as the average monthly number of passengers having used the airport (both for departure
and arrivals) during the year.
HEALTH AND EDUCATION
Indicator A11: Expenditure on social services
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Defined as the total expenditure, both capital and recurrent, public and private, on social services
in US dollars per person.
Indicator A12: Life expectancy at birth
Defined as expected number of years till death for a new-born child.
Indicator A13: Infectious diseases mortality
Defined as the proportion of deaths due to infectious diseases.
Indicator A14: School enrollment rates
The percentage of children of eligible age, by sex, who are enrolled in : (a) primary school; (b)
secondary school.
Indicator A15: Adult literacy rate
Defined as proportion of adults who can read and write a simple paragraph about their everyday
life.
Indicator A16: Tertiary graduates
Defined as the proportion of male graduates in all adult males, and female graduates in all adult
females.
SOCIAL INTEGRATION
Indicator A17: Refugees
Defined as percentage of the population who are refugees.
Indicator A18: Deaths due to violence
Defined as the proportion of deaths in the city in the past three years that have occurred as a result
of violence of all kinds.
Module 2 - Infrastructure
ACCESS AND AFFORDABILITY
Indicator A19: Cost to household income ratios
Defined as median expenditure on services divided by median household income for :
a) water; (b) sewerage; (c) electricity.
WATER
Indicator A20: Sources of water
Percentage of households obtaining water as a primary source from : (a) piped connection; (b)
communal tap; (c) vendor or truck; (d) well, stream, lake or dam; (e) others.
Indicator A21: Piped water supply reliability
Defined as average number of hours per year that households in the city are without piped water.
Indicator A22: Water leakage
Defined as percentage of piped water unaccounted for and lost through leakage, seepage or
unauthorised use.
SEWAGE
Indicator A23: Sewage disposal
Proportion of households with the following types of latrine facilities: (a) sewerage pipe; (b) underground-individual; (c) under-ground-communal; (d) pan collection; (e) open ground or trench; (f)
other.
Indicator A24: Public latrines
Defined as the number of public latrines per 10,000 population.
ELECTRICITY
Indicator A25: Electricity price
Defined as the price of electricity in US dollars per kwh.
Indicator A26: Line losses
Defined as percentage of power supplied to the city that is unaccounted for or lost before reaching
final destination.
Indicator A27: Capacity to load ratio
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Defined as peak load to certified capacity ratio.
TELEPHONE
Indicator A28: Call completion rate
Defined as proportion of calls made which connect and are not interrupted.
INFRASTRUCTURE OPERATIONS
Indicator A29: Operating to staff ratios
Defined as proportion of operating costs spent on staff, for all authorities providing the following
services in the metropolitan area: (a) water; (b) sewerage; (c) electricity.
Indicator A30: New connections to staff ratios
Defined as number of new connections per annum divided by number of staff in supplying
authorities for the following services: (a) water; (b) electricity; (c) telephone.
Indicator A31: Revenue to operating cost ratios
Defined as percentage of all operating costs met from own-source revenues in the following
services: (a) water; (b) sewerage.
Module 3 - Transport
GENERAL
Indicator A32: Transport fatalities
Defined as the proportion of deaths per thousand in the last year from transport related causes.
Indicator A33: Fuel price
Defined as the price in US cents per litre, including tax, of : (a) petrol (gasoline); (b) diesel; (c) LPG
or CNG.
Indicator A34: Transport household budget share
Proportion of total household income spent on all forms of travel by: (a) all households; (b)
households below the poverty line.
Indicator A35: Transport fuel consumption
Defined as the annual number of litres per person of transport fuel (excluding aviation fuel)
consumed.
ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE
Indicator A36: Length of road per vehicle
Defined as total length of roads in km divided by total number of road vehicles, for (a) surfaced
roads; (b) unsurfaced roads.
Indicator A37: Road congestion
Defined as the proportion of roads with Volume/Capacity > 0.8 during peak hour.
ROAD VEHICLES
Indicator A38: Vehicles failing emission standards
Defined as proportion of road vehicles which do not meet local emission standards
Indicator A39: Automobile fuel consumption
Average fuel consumption in litres per 100 km for automobiles for : (a) the whole fleet; (b) new
cars.
Indicator A40: Pedestrians killed
Defined as proportion of road fatalities who are pedestrians.
PUBLIC TRANSPORT
Indicator A41: Public and mass transport seats
Defined as number of public transport seats per 1000 population.
Indicator A42: Cost recovery from fares
Defined as the ratio of fares collected by public transport authorities to operating costs.
Module 4. Environmental Management
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AIR QUALITY
Indicator A43: Air pollution concentrations
Number of days per annum that WHO standards are exceeded, and average annual measured
concentrations for the following pollutants : (a) SO2; (b) Nox; (c) CO; (d) O3 ;
(e) SPM; (f) Pb.
Indicator A44: Emissions per capita
Total emissions in tonnes per capita per annum of : (a) SO2. ; (b) NOx; (c) CO2.
Indicator A45: Acute respiratory deaths
Defined as percentage of deaths due to acute respiratory disease.
WATER
Indicator A46: Percent of BOD removed
Defined as average fraction of BOD removed in major wastewater receiving bodies
Indicator A47: Cost of wastewater treatment
Defined as average cost in US dollars per cubic metre of water treated
Indicator A48: Lowering of groundwater table
Defined as the lowering of the groundwater table in cm in the past year.
Indicator A49: Waste water recycled
Defined as percentage of waste water re-used as 'grey water' for industrial processes or similar.
Indicator A50: Level of treatment
Per cent of water subject to : (a) primary treatment; (b) secondary treatment; (c) tertiary treatment.
SOLID WASTES
Indicator A51: Biodegradable waste
Defined as percentage of all solid waste which is bio-degradable (composed of organic matter)
Indicator A52: Recycling rate
Percentages of (a) paper, (b) glass, and (c) aluminium disposed which are recycled.
Indicator A53: Average cost of waste disposal
Defined as cost in US dollars per tonne of solid waste disposal, for those wastes which are formally
disposed through refuse collection.
Indicator A54: Cost recovery
Defined as percentage of costs of formal waste disposal which is recovered as charges from
producers of the waste.
Indicator A55: Industrial waste generation
Generation per person per annum of : (a) industrial wastes; (b) toxic wastes; (c) radio-active
wastes.
RESOURCES DEPLETION
Indicator A56: Energy usage per person
Defined as the total energy usage per annum per person in metric tonnes of coal equivalent.
Indicator A57: Fuelwood usage
Defined as fuelwood usage in tonnes per person per annum.
Indicator A58: Renewable energy usage
Defined as proportion of energy derived from renewable sources (hydro, wind, geothermal and
solar electricity, combustion of animal wastes, fuelwood where this is being replaced through
reforestation).
Indicator A59: Food consumption
Defined as daily Calorie consumption per person.
DISASTER MITIGATION
Indicator A60: Disaster mortality
Defined as proportion of deaths during last ten years which are due to natural disasters.
Indicator A61: Housing on fragile land
Defined as the number of dwellings in the city which are located on land which is subject to natural
disasters.
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Indicator A62: Fatal industrial accidents
Defined as number of deaths from industrial accidents during last year.
URBAN ENHANCEMENT
Indicator A63: Green space
Defined as percentage of green space in built up area.
Indicator A64: Monument list
Defined as number of buildings in city on heritage or monument lists.
Module 5 - Local Government
LOCAL FINANCE
Indicator A65: Change in real per capita total income
Average annual change in real per capita income over a three-year period.
Indicator A66: Change in real per capita own-source revenues
Defined as average annual change in real per-capita own-source revenues over a three-year
period.
LOCAL PARTICIPATION
Indicator A67: Elected and nominated councillors
Defined as total number of elected and of nominated local government representatives by sex, per
10000 metropolitan population.
Indicator A68: Voter participation rates, by sex
Defined as percentage of adult population (having reached voting age) who voted in the last
municipal election.
Indicator A69: Number of associations per 10 000 population
Defined as number of voluntary non-profit organisations, including NGOs, political sporting or
social organisations, registered or with premises in the city, per 10 000 population.
Indicator A70: Citizen involvement in major planning decisions
(Check box indicator)
Indicator A71: Decentralised district units
Defined as number of separate local governments or administrative units (quarters, wards, regions
or similar) which are responsible for provision of more than two local services.
Module 6. Housing
ACCESS TO AFFORDABLE HOUSING
Indicator A72: Mortgage affordability
Defined as proportion of households who are eligible for and can afford the maximum loan on a
median priced formal sector house.
Indicator A73: Excessive housing expenditure
Defined as proportion of households in the bottom 40% of incomes who are spending more than
30% of their incomes on housing.
Indicator A74: Economic share of housing
Defined as the proportion of national or city product due to rent or imputed rent of dwellings.
Indicator A75: Transaction costs
Defined as proportion of the value of a median-priced formal sector house which must be spent to
both buy and sell the house.
Indicator A76: House price appreciation.
Defined as the average annual real percentage rate of change of house prices over a five year
period.
ADEQUATE HOUSING FOR ALL
Indicator A77: Overcrowding
Defined as the percentage of households who are in housing deemed to have too few bedrooms
for a family of that type.
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Indicator A78: Households per dwelling
Defined as the ratio between the total number of households and the total number of occupied
dwelling units of all types in the urban area.
Indicator A79: Inadequate housing
Defined as the proportion of dwellings that are deemed to be inadequate or in need of major
repairs.
IndicatorA80: Indoor plumbing
Defined as the percentage of dwelling units which contain a complete unshared bathroom within
the unit.
Indicator A81: Squatter housing
Defined as the percentage of the total housing stock in the urban area which is currently occupying
land illegally.
Indicator A82: Homelessness
Defined as the number of people per thousand of the urban area population who sleep outside
dwelling units (e.g. on streets, in parks, railroad stations, and under bridges) or in temporary
shelter in charitable institutions.
Indicator A83: Owner occupancy (by sex)
Defined as the percentage of households which own the dwelling units which they occupy for : (a)
all households; (b) female headed households.
Indicator A84: Vacant dwellings
Defined as the percentage of the total number of completed dwelling units which are presently
unoccupied.
RURAL HOUSING
Indicator A85: Rural water/electricity connection
Defined as the percentage of rural dwelling units with a water or electricity connection in the plot
they occupy.
Indicator A86: Permanent rural housing
Defined as the percentage of rural dwelling units which are likely to last twenty years or more given
normal maintenance and repair, taking into account locational and environmental hazards (e.g.
floods, typhoons, mudslides, earthquakes).
Indicator A87: Rural home ownership
Defined as the percentage of rural residents who own their dwellings.
Indicator A88: Rural house price to income
Defined as the ratio of the median free-market price of a rural dwelling unit and the median annual
rural household income.
LAND
Indicator A89: Land availability
Defined as the number of serviced blocks currently available divided by the present construction
rate in dwellings per month (annual average).
Indicator A90: Planning permission multiplier
Defined as the ratio between the median land price of an unserviced plot on the urban fringe given
planning permission for residential development, and the median price of a nearby plot in
rural/agricultural use without such permission.
IndicatorA91: Formal land transactions
Defined as the percentage of the metropolitan area covered by a land registration system which
allows for buying, selling, long-term leasing, or mortgaging urban land.
Indicator A92: Development time
Defined as the median length in months to get approvals, permits, and titles for a new mediumsized (50-200 unit) residential subdivision in an area at the urban fringe where residential
development is permitted.
Indicator A93: Cost recovery
Defined as the percentage of total infrastructure costs recovered by governments from new
developments during the year.
Indicator A94: Minimum lot size
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Defined as the minimum lot size for a single family housing unit in a new 50-200 unit residential
subdivision.
Indicator A95: Land development controls
Defined as a composite of questions on land use and building code regulations
FINANCE
Indicator A96: Credit to value ratio
Defined as the ratio of new mortgage loans for housing last year to total investment in housing (in
both the formal and informal sectors) last year.
Indicator A97: Housing loans
Defined as the proportion of dwellings that have housing loans from the formal financial sector.
Indicator A98: Mortgage-to-prime difference
Defined as the average difference in percentage points between interest rates on mortgages in
both commercial and government financial institutions and the prime interest rate in the
commercial banking system.
Indicator A99: Mortgage-to-deposit difference
Defined as the average difference in percentage points between interest rates on mortgages in
both commercial and government financial institutions and the interest rate on one-year deposits in
the commercial banking system.
Indicator A100: Arrears rate
Defined as the percentage of mortgage loans which are three or more months in arrears in both
commercial and government financial institutions.
Indicator A101: Mortgage loans for women
Defined as the percentage of mortgage loans granted to women to all mortgage loans made last
year.
CONSTRUCTION
Indicator A102: Construction cost
Defined as the present replacement cost (labour, materials, on-site infrastructure, management
and contractor profits) per square meter of a median priced dwelling unit.
Indicator A103: Construction time
Defined as the average time, in months, required to construct a median housing unit.
Indicator A104: On-site productivity
Defined as the man-hours per square metre on a typical median-priced dwelling in the formal
construction sector.
Indicator A105: Industry concentration
Defined as the percentage of new formal-sector housing units placed on the market by the five
largest developers (either private or public) last year.
Indicator A106: Employment
Defined as the percentage of all employment that is engaged in the construction of residential
dwelling units.
Indicator A107: Wage labour
Defined as proportion of on-site building employees who are employed as wage labour.
TAXES AND SUBSIDIES
Indicator A108: Effective taxation rate by tenure
Defined as the nett annual housing-related taxation per dwelling paid by households to
governments, in US dollars, for : (a) owner occupied housing; (b) private rental housing; (c) public
housing.
Indicator A109: Nett housing outlays by government
Defined as the total expenditure by all levels of government on housing in the current year, nett of
all housing related receipts from the public, taken as a percentage of total government expenditure.
Indicator A110: Property tax rate
Defined as the percentage of the market value of the median-priced dwelling unit which is collected
as annual property tax.
PUBLIC HOUSING
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Indicator A111: Public housing stock
Defined as the percentage of the total number of dwelling units in the urban area that is owned,
managed and controlled by the public sector.
Indicator A112: Privatised public stock
Defined as the percentage of the total number of dwelling units previously constructed or managed
by the public sector that have been privatised.
Indicator A113: Public housing production
Defined as the total production of public housing units as a fraction of all formal housing units
produced during the year.
Indicator A114: Social rent to income
Defined as the ratio of the median annual rent of a public housing dwelling unit and the median
household income of renters of public housing.
Indicator A115: Waiting time
Defined as the average time on waiting lists before allocation of public housing units.
Indicator A116: Operating subsidies.
Defined as the ratio of rent payments to operations costs for public housing.
Indicator A117: Administrative costs
Defined as the administrative cost of operating public housing taken as a fraction of the estimated
market rental value of the dwellings.
Indicator A118: Tenant management
Defined as proportion of the social housing stock managed by tenants, completely, partly or jointly.
REGULATION
Indicator A119: Rent control
Defined as the percentage of the rental stock, including public housing and informal rentals, under
the coverage of a rent control system.
Indicator A120: Rental eviction delay
Defined as the typical time in months, (from the initial proceedings, required) to evict a rental
tenant for non-payment of rent.
Indicator A121: Lease security
Defined as the proportion of private rental households who have a formal lease agreement with
their landlord.
Indicator A122: Evictions
Defined as the average annual number of households evicted from rental dwellings and squatter
dwellings during the past five years.
Indicator A123: Mortgage foreclosures
Defined as the annual number of foreclosures per 10000 registered mortgages.
Indicator A124: Female property rights
(check boxes indicator)
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3. Memorandum of Understanding
A generic Memorandum of Understanding is given below. Institutions wishing to join the Global
Urban Observatory may consider this Memorandum for any proposal of partnership.
Memorandum of Understanding
between
<<Institution>>
and
the Urban Indicators Programme
(Global Urban Observatory)
OVERVIEW
Increasingly, the world’s problems are urban problems. How we anticipate, recognize, measure
and interpret urban problems and how we respond to them in policy will determine the overall
sustainability of human development. The development of contemporary society will depend
largely on understanding and managing the growth of cities; the city will increasingly become the
test bed for the adequacy of political institutions, for the performance of government agencies, and
for the effectiveness of programs to combat social exclusion and to promote economic
development.
The United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat) is mandated by the international
community to build national and local capacity to collect and use policy-oriented indicators as part
of a strategy for the development of sustainable human settlements. Its mission is to strengthen
existing shelter- and settlements-related data collection and analysis capabilities of governments at
all levels, including local authorities. Focusing on the information needs of policy-makers at all
levels, the Urban Indicators Programme will work to improve data gathering, information systems
management, monitoring and evaluation of conditions and trends, and the communication of
information among governments and organizations of the civil society. The indicators should
cover such sectoral areas of the Habitat Agenda as shelter, health, transport, energy, water supply,
sanitation and employment as well as the cross-cutting aspects of urban sustainability,
empowerment, participation, local governance and gender-sensitivity.
THE AGREEMENT
WHEREAS the Urban Indicators Programme has been established by the United Nations Centre
for Human Settlements (Habitat) as a global programme to build institutional capacity for
collection, management, analysis and dissemination of information useful in formulating the
urban policies needed to implement the Habitat Agenda;
WHEREAS <<Institution>> is working in the specific areas of ........... acting as a UIP Partner;
THEREFORE, <<Institution>> and United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat) hereby
agree to co-operate in building national and local capacity to collect and use policy-oriented
urban indicators as part of a strategy for the development of sustainable human settlements.
This cooperation will involve, but not limited to, the following strategy and objectives as
described below.
THE URBAN INDICATORS PROGRAMME (UIP)
The programme strategy
The global Urban Indicators Programme is sponsored by the international community to support
the implementation of the Habitat Agenda at the national and local levels. Focusing on the
information needs of policy-makers at all levels, the UIP will work to improve data gathering,
information systems management, monitoring and evaluation of conditions and trends, and the
communication of information among governments and organizations of the civil society.
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Capacity building
One of the primary tasks of the international community in supporting the implementation of the
Habitat Agenda is to develop and strengthen capacity building programmes. This support may be
aimed at strengthening the roles of local authorities, community organizations and nongovernmental organizations in critical areas of participatory planning, programme design,
implementation and evaluation, economic and financial analysis, credit management, research,
information, advocacy and networking. The Urban Indicators Programme will help build capacity in
these areas through the development of resource networks and information infrastructure and
through cooperative arrangements among designated learning centres and research organizations.
Networking
In the Habitat Agenda, Member States of the United Nations commit themselves to promoting
equal access to reliable information at all levels, utilizing modern communication technology and
networks. There is a further commitment in the Habitat Agenda at the international level to
enhance cooperation through the exchange of appropriate technology and the collection, analysis
and dissemination of information about shelter and human settlements through international
networking. Networking is recognized as an essential component of the enabling strategy and as
the foundation for capacity-building and institutional development.
Information infrastructure
Governments at all levels are asked in the Habitat Agenda to: develop, upgrade and maintain
information infrastructure and technology and encourage their use by all levels of government,
public institutions, civil society organizations and community-based organizations; promote the
training of all key actors in the use, ways and means of information technology; develop methods
of sharing experience of local initiatives through electronic means such as Internet, networks and
libraries; encourage policies that make information technology and services available and more
accessible to the general public; promote the free flow of, and access to, information in areas of
public policy, decision-making, resources allocation and social development. In identifying
networking solutions, the comparative advantages of various modes of communication will be
evaluated and training and technology needs will be addressed.
Local and National Urban Observatories
The principle of networking allows a wide range of resources to be activated nationally and
regionally. The UIP will focus available capacity building resources on priority regions where
several countries cities and towns have established National and Local Urban Observatories. A
Local Urban Observatory is a governmental agency, research centre or educational institution that
is designated as the “workshop” where urban indicators are developed and tested. Local Urban
Observatories in each city or town should also be the focal point for urban policy development and
planning where collaboration among policy makers, technical experts and representatives of
partners groups is fostered. The Local Urban Observatories will be the test bed for data gathering
and management tools and for development of appropriate methods for the application and
analysis of indicators. Networks of Local Urban Observatories will be facilitated by National Urban
Observatories which will coordinate capacity building assistance and will compile and analyze
urban indicators data for national policy development. National Urban Observatories (NUOs) may
be a central government agency, a national university, prestigious private research centre, an NGO
or some other appropriate entity. The goal of this integrated system of networks is to build
sufficient capacity at the local level to provide reliable, locally relevant and internationally
comparable data on urban conditions and trends to all levels of policy making.
Joint programming
The portfolio of outputs for the Urban Indicators Programme represents the highest priorities for the
use of programme resources. It is assumed, however, that applicable resources include not just
those that might be made directly available to the Urban Indicators Programme, but resources
applied through other Habitat and UN Programmes for development of indicators, networking
systems, consultative processes and policy formulation activities. In this regard several UNCHS
(Habitat) programmes could play a significant role in attaining the objectives of the UIP. UNCHS
(Habitat) and its regional offices will collaborate with multi-lateral and bi-lateral technical
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cooperation agencies to attain the objectives of the urban Indicators Programme. Specific areas of
cooperation will include: (1) project staff helping to train Local Urban Observatory staff; (2) projectspecific indicators modified to become key urban indicators or extensive indicators; and (3)
networks for project data collection expanded to urban indicators data collection.
URBAN INDICATORS PROGRAMME OBJECTIVES AND KEY OUTPUTS
Objective A: To develop networks for information exchange and capacity building
Output A1: Global Urban Observatory Network
A global network of regional, national and local Urban Observatory partners
Output A2: Local Urban Observatories
At least 25 functioning Local Urban Observatories in each region or sub-region
Objective B: To develop policy-oriented urban indicators and indices
Output B1: Community-based Indicators
An open-ended set of locally specific indicators and indices.
Output B2: New indicators modules
New modules with worksheets for the collection and analysis of indicators on urban
poverty, gender, governance and the urban economy.
Output B3: Cross-sectoral indices
Synthetic indices of city social and economic development, sustainability, livability, equity
and inclusion, civic engagement, social solidarity, adequacy of resources, economic
competitiveness and overall progress.
Objective C: To develop tools for collection and analysis of indicators data
Output C1: Indicators software and UrbanDataLink
An inexpensive package of basic computer tools for collection, storage, management,
compilation, retrieval, presentation, transfer, analysis and comparison of indicators data
from both single and multiple distributed data bases.
Output C2: Indicators Best Practices Casebook
A global casebook of good and best practices for collecting, verifying, managing, analyzing
and integrating data and urban policy analysis.
Output C3: Indicators On-line Classroom
A global electronic distance learning facility to help develop national and local skills in the
collection, storage, management, compilation, retrieval, presentation and analysis of
indicators data.
Objective D: To analyze and disseminate global indicators data
Output D1: Global indicators database
A database containing a time series of data on key urban indicators and other policysensitive data from major cities and towns in all countries.
Output D2: Annual “State of the World’s Cities” report
An annual analytic report on the policy implications of conditions and trends in the world’s
cities and towns.
Direct assistance to Least Developed Countries
In addition to the programmatic approach to the above objectives, the Urban Indicators Programme
will provide, ad hoc, direct support for indicators collection, verification and analysis in least
developed countries.
OBJECTIVES AND ACTIVITIES OF THE
PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN HABITAT AND <<INSTITUTION>>
The partnership will address all four Urban Indicators Programme objectives, the aim being to
develop region-specific policy-oriented urban indicators on the topic of ............... and to apply
those indicators in assessing national and local policies. This will be done through .......................
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This partnership will involve, but not limited to, the following activities:
1. .
2. .
3. .
4. .
5. .
This agreement may be terminated by either party at any time, with or without cause, upon giving 3
months written notice to the other party.
4. Adjusting money quantities to 1996 dollars
In most indicators, the unit of currency is not important, but in several indicators, particularly
Household income distribution (D7), City Product (D8), Median price of water (13), Local
government income (23), Per-capita capital expenditure (24), and House price to income ratio (31),
the indicators are expressed in 1996 US dollars. As well, key intermediate values in some
indicators such as are to be expressed in dollars.
Conversions to 1996 dollars from local currencies in different years need to be made, and these
can be done most easily by using International Financial Statistics Yearbook 1997, International
Monetary Fund. For each country, a yearly average exchange rate is given in line af or ah of the
country table. The amount in USD can be calculated by dividing the local currency amount by af or
multiplying by ah, depending on which is quoted, for that year. This should then be converted to
1996 dollars by dividing by the US consumer goods price index, which is quoted in the following
table.
Consumer goods price index, United States, 1996=1
Year
Price index
Year
Price index
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
0.724
0.748
0.758
0.773
0.778
0.759
0.775
0.795
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
0.840
0.886
0.903
0.910
0.920
0.948
0.973
1.000
For example, if the median annual household income in Nairobi, Kenya was found to be 22 000
Kenya shillings in 1989, the conversion rate in line (af) for Kenya was 21.6 Ksh/ $ in that year, so
that the annual income in 1989 values was 22000 / 21.6 = $1019 in that year. Converting to 1996
values, the annual income was 1019 / 0.840 = $1213.
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5. GLOSSARY
Adult population:
for employment indicators, this should be taken as persons of 15 years of age or more. In other
indicators relating to family type such as Indicators D1, 11, 13, 18, the term should refer to persons
having reached majority or voting age, or defined as adult for census purposes.
Dwelling unit:
a dwelling unit is a space with a private entrance occupied by one or more households. It may be
part of a larger structure or dwelling. ‘Units’ is used interchangeably with ‘dwelling units’.
Economically active population:
comprises all persons over 15 years of age who furnish the supply of labour for the production of
economic goods and services. The production of economic goods and services includes all
production and processing of primary products, whether for the market, for barter or for own
consumption, the production of all other goods and services for the market, the corresponding for
own consumption. Economically active population includes all persons who are either employed or
unemployed10, or active in the informal sector.
Gross City Product:
the total product of the city as defined in national accounts procedures. This may either be taken
as the total income or value-added (wages plus business surplus plus taxes plus imports), or the
total final demand (consumption plus investment plus exports).
Household:
a person or group of persons who make common provision for food or other essentials of living,
and often share a common budget. A group of people who eat one meal together daily may be
considered a household. This definition includes domestic servants.
Household income:
the total income from all sources of all household members, including wages, pensions or benefits,
business earnings, rents, and the value of any business or subsistence products consumed (e.g.
foodstuffs). Payments such as allowances or board from one household member to another should
not be counted twice.
Metropolitan area:
the politically defined urban area for planning or administrative purposes which combines all local
jurisdictions normally regarded as part of the greater urban area.
Urban area, urban agglomeration:
defined as the city proper along with the suburban fringe and any built-up, thickly settled areas
lying outside of, but adjacent to, the city boundaries.
10International
Labour Office, Yearbook of Labour Statistics, Geneva 1992, p. 3.
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