UN-HABITAT

Organizational Structure

Habitat operates in three main divisions: the Shelter and Sustainable Human Settlements Development Division, the Monitoring and Research Division, and the Regional and Technical Cooperation Division. The Shelter and Sustainable Human Settlements Development Division coordinates Habitat's advocacy functions. Its departments include the Shelter Branch, which focuses on water, sanitation, and access to basic services; the Training and Capacity Branch, which serves to strengthen local authority and management through training and organization development; and the Urban Development Branch, which runs Habitat's Global Campaign on Urban Governance, as well as the Safer Cities Program, the Urban Management Program, the Risk and Disaster Management Program, and the Localizing Agenda 21 program.

Habitat's Monitoring and Research Division runs three subdivisions: the Monitoring Systems Branch, which keeps watch over the conditions of human settlements; [Page 574]the Policy Analysis, Synthesis, and Dialogue Branch, which aims to enhance Habitat's policies and report publications; and the Urban Economy and Finance Branch, which deals with employment issues in urban areas and different ways to develop housing finance systems.

The first-day cover stamp and envelope marking the United Nations Conference on Human Settlements, 28 May 1976

Steve Prezent/Corbis; used with permission.

The Regional and Technical Cooperation Division is responsible for overseeing Habitat's technical programs and projects around the world, as well as its regional offices.

Programs

Habitat heads up and is involved in a number of programs that work to promote sustainable living and adequate shelter for all people; these programs include Best Practices and Local Leadership, Cities Alliance, Gender Policy, Global Urban Observatory and Statistics, Housing Policy, Housing Rights, International Forum on Urban Poverty, Land and Tenure Section, “Localizing Agenda 21,” Managing Water for African Cities, Risk and Disaster Management, “Safer Cities,” Sustainable Cities Program, Training and Capacity Building Branch, Urban Economy and Finance Branch, Urban Environment Forum, Urban Management Forum, and Urban Transport Forum. Each of these programs targets a specific aspect of urban issues and works to ensure that future problems surrounding urban living do not arise.

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