Projects

Project name 
Slum Upgrading Facility (SUF)

Client 
United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat)

The Slum Upgrading Facility (SUF) programme was an initiative of the Human Settlements Financing Division of United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT) designed to assist low income groups to improve their living environment.  The central objective of the SUF programme was to assist developing countries to mobilise domestic capital for their own slum and urban upgrading activities.

The principle behind the SUF concept is that grant money, which has traditionally been the mainstay of finance for upgrading projects, can be used more effectively if it is leveraged through its use as ‘credit enhancement’ rather than as direct project funding. Credit enhancement can take a number of forms, but is essentially seed funding that subsequently enables communities gain access to other sources of credit.

Happold Consulting were part of the pilot team working with the local finance facilities and in-country teams to develop the project financing and implementation plans for slum upgrading projects. We facilitated links among local actors and packaged the financial, technical and political elements of development projects in such as way as to provide a holistic approach and creation of projects more bankable and able to attract such investment.

SUF was rolled out as a pilot in four countries - Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Ghana and Tanzania. In each country, the pilot team established local facilities which engaged local stakeholders, from the community and from the public and private sector, in administering the financial instruments and supporting the development of projects. The partnerships formed were to ensure long term project sustainability and potential for significant scaling up. Given the nature of the programme, the full extent of the success of the Facility can only be measured in years and may not be completed realised for another ten years.

Partners 
Emerging Markets Group