OVERVIEW

In Mexico, housing provision has been the trigger for urban sprawl both in formal and informal production. Even though housing lag has been an issue since the beginning of the XX century, with the conformation of the industrial cities, it only became part of the national public agenda after the mid 50’s, when urban population exceeded rural population. Since the 70’s, the federal government has addressed housing policy to provide workers the option to acquire a house through the generation of ONAVIS (standing for National Housing Organisms). However, these have developed housing complexes each time further from the central city. Although the paradigm that supported housing production for many decades was a Welfare State, the crisis experienced in Mexico during the 80’s and the 90’s, as well as the influence of International Organisms, led to a restructuring of the ONAVIS. As a result, these organisms became funding institutions for housing, and the construction was left in charge of private developers, who gained control not only of the housing market, but of the production of the city.

Therefore, Mexican territory has experienced for decades a housing production model characterized by uneven and accelerated territorial expansion stimulated by the market, and that has failed to coordinate with the local Urban Development Plans. The expansion and creation of new human settlements lack of any type of sustainability, generating a series of external negativities. Additionally, the housing provision scheme managed by the ONAVIS leaves about 50% from the population unable to access the formal housing market, leading to the production of informal housing, which UN-Habitat estimates constitutes about 65% of the total housing production in Mexico. Both modalities tend to be settled in high- risk context, jeopardizing the wellbeing and quality of life of millions of Mexicans. The workshop will address the various challenges in the peri-urban areas in Mexico.