A sustainable eco-neighborhood for vulnerable women in the Dakar region
Based on the findings of the growing need for affordable housing for vulnerable people excluded from the banking system and the precarious and vulnerable situation (tenant and lodger status) in which women find themselves, our partners the Senegalese Federation of the Inhabitants (Fédération Sénégalaise des Habitants – FSH) and urbaSEN decided to change the scale of intervention and to launch, with the support of urbaMonde, the pilot project of the Cité FSH.
The project consists of the construction of an eco-neighbourhood of 150 self-managed houses and facilities, ensuring security of tenure and long-term affordability. To this end, the FSH has set up a residents’ cooperative to enable its members to benefit from the project.
A legal and financial arrangement (currently being finalised) will ensure there is no speculation in the land, with collective ownership of the land by the cooperative and ownership of the housing by the members (subject to a restrictive resale clause).
This project aims to be linked to the Senegalese government’s 100,000 housing programme, which will provide state support with a bank guarantee, a solidarity fund, and the primary development of the land via the Société d’Aménagement Foncier (SAFRU). This linkage also enables strengthening advocacy with state institutions to develop the necessary tools and mechanisms to support operators in producing (truly affordable) social housing.
Sustainable construction is at the heart of the project, as bioclimatic design principles have guided certain layout choices and the architectural design of the houses. These houses will be built using compressed earth bricks (briques de terre compressée - BTC) produced in a dedicated brickyard. This choice is the result of a growing focus on local and sustainable materials in the activities of urbaSEN and FSH. For several years, efforts have been underway to raise awareness among residents in order to promote these materials and generate income-generating activities from their use. Training artisans in the production and implementation of sustainable materials is also a cross-cutting element in various projects, and is central to the aforementioned FSH project. A booklet summarising the experiences carried out in this area since 2019, and outlines the training pathway, combining theoretical and practical learning.
The Cité FSH project benefits from the support of the French Ministry of Ecological Transition and Territorial Cohesion, for an adaptation to the Senegalese context of the eco-neighbourhood approach.
The Cité FSH project: an example of cooperative production of affordable housing
The Cité FSH project served as the basis for a study on affordable and collaborative housing, published at the end of 2021, commissioned by the Center for Affordable Housing Finance Africa (CAHF) and written by urbaMonde with the support of urban development and housing experts.
Available in French only
The Senegalese Federation of Inhabitants in « Sous les toits du monde » (Under the roofs of the world)
