Urban LandMark annual conference
"From land rights to property markets"

Wednesday 27 and Thursday 28 August  2008
DBSA Vulindlela Academy, Gauteng

This conference, hosted by Urban Landmark, highlighted recent research that traced the evolving frontier between urban growth and poverty.

For two years, Urban Landmark has been conducting research on the relationship between urban land markets and poverty reduction policies. In many cities, and particularly in South Africa, poverty is inextricably tied to a lack of access to land or entrenched by an urban infrastructure that marginalizes those who cannot afford to participate in the formal land market. Following the imperative to make urban land markets work for the poor, Urban Landmark has mapped out three critical areas in which urban resource allocation and poverty intersect.

• Security of tenure and the recognition of alternative rights to land: Engaging with local practice to broaden the channels of land access and to leverage livelihood opportunities that exist outside formal market and legal parameters.
• Urban land market dynamics: Identifying the processes and actors that shape the urban land market and the policies that contribute to its efficient and equitable operation.
• Structures of governance: Exploring the spatial interface between urban planning, housing policy and infrastructure provision in order to secure functional land management and effective service delivery.

The conference showcased the recent work of Urban Landmark and acted as a forum to exchange perspectives and formulate new directions.

See all conference presentations