Urban development plans: the key is to integrate the community

Comprehensive development plans represent an effective and valuable strategy for urban transformation. They go beyond public and private projects which, in many cases, focus on the physical and visible construction product: comprehensive plans include methodological intervention aspects and social considerations focused on inclusive citizen relations.

The study, Inclusion de habitantes en la ciudadanía plena. Experiencias de desarrollo urbano e inclusion social en America Latina (CAF 2013). (Inclusion of inhabitants into full citizenship. Experiences of urban development and social inclusion in Latin America) summarizes some of the urban development plans successfully applied in informal settlements in Latin America cities such as Caracas, Medellin, Valparaiso, Buenos Aires, Lima, La Paz, and Rio de Janeiro. The projects that stand out have in common the community participation in decision-making, the careful assistance to young people, and the constant support of professionals in different technical and social areas. 

These plans have been developed based on basic information gathering to learn about the needs of the community since its beginning. During this stage, as highlighted in the CAF report, the integration of the population to the design of projects as a response to the things they lack and the hopes they share has been crucial. This diagnosis was carried out starting with a community census, a land survey of the sector, and the registration of a shared view regarding the community.

After that, plans have been developed where the importance of community organizations prevails, together with the education of children, youths, adults, families, and community leaders. The objective is to reduce the main problems that affect the inhabitants of the slums, such as violence, low educational levels, unemployment, and adolescent pregnancy. 

In addition, physical-environmental interventions have been suggested to respond to sanitation problems such as wastewaters, garbage, and the maintenance of public spaces. In addition, accessibility and organization of housing are important issues for the sustainable development of communities, as well as for the full transformation of its inhabitants into citizens.