Lucy Earle: Humanitarian organizations must take into account informal forms of housing tenure

Requirements for formal proof of housing rights result in those most in need being left without humanitarian support, Lucy Earle, Director of Research and Strategic Impact at the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), said at the 13th session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13) in Baku, Report informs.

"Humanitarian agencies often provide housing support exclusively to those who can document their ownership, thereby excluding the most vulnerable-renters and those living informally on land-from programs," noted Earle.

She emphasized that the humanitarian community should more thoroughly analyze land rights systems and various forms of property tenure in each specific city where they operate.

"Serious preparatory work is needed in the area of ​​housing and land relations. It is precisely those without formal documents who are most often in the most difficult situations and, at the same time, are excluded from assistance programs," stated IIED's research director.