The goal set by the world leaders to improve the lives of over 100 million slum dwellers by 2020 may be a pipe dream if governments do not put in place effective policy frameworks.
It is appalling to note that half the urban population in sub-Saharan Africa lives in informal settlements, with neither legal recognition nor basic infrastructure services.
These settlements continue to grow as the urban population increases. The proliferation of informal settlements is the result of a combination of factors, including poverty, deficient national policy frameworks and weak local authorities.
In many developing countries, informal settlements expand because of inadequate provision of affordable land, a tendency to over-regulate, as well as administrative and institutional frameworks that are insensitive to the needs of the poor.
Residents of informal settlements are constantly under threat of eviction hence they can invest neither their time nor their resources in the development of their dwellings and community.
According to Mr. Offie Akrofi, a principal surveyor (topographic) at the Department of Lands, Surveys and Physical Planning in Lesotho, lack of secure tenure is an impediment to progress and integration of the urban poor into the city.
Many experts agree that the guarantee of security of tenure is the most crucial requirement to bring about gradual process of infrastructure improvement and the integrating of informal settlements into the formal city, thus creating cities without slums.
In Kenya, thousands are classified as squatters and the debate continues as to whether every citizen should own some land.
Questions have been raised whether squatters (those without recognisable right to land) should consider themselves citizens.
With regard to land as a foundation shelter, the exclusion of anyone from shelter is a denial to such individuals of their fundamental human right.
In Kenya where the question of land is a thorny issue, the Kenya Land Alliance, an umbrella network of civil society organisations and individuals, is advocating the reform of policies and laws governing land.
The KLA is campaigning for every Kenyan to have a right to decent shelter, saying a constitutional guarantee that every person shall have the right to land, for shelter is imperative.
This, they said, would help delink the shelter needs from economic and productive needs for land. The alliance is also seeking to delink title deeds as collateral for getting financial assistance.
However, it seems many governments do not see informal settlers as city builders but as a nuisance. They are tolerated as long as they do not take over prime sites, otherwise they are bulldozed with little or no compensation.
Some countries have become more tolerant by enacting anti- eviction laws and providing basic infrastructure and services.
However, few governments take measures to ensure that poorer households find legal alternative through upgrading. In most cases, the upgrading process and the services provided have been too expensive for the targeted group to maintain. This has forced the slum dwellers to resist such projects.
Local governments have a central role to play in upgrading of tenure and since it is a time-consuming exercise, it requires dedicated staff to manage the process.
In some cases, Non-Governmental Organisations and churches have been involved in the exercise, but with much resistance from the squatters.
It is thus prudent that governments should empower local authorities through legislation and by providing the required human, financial and material resources.
The management team should be made up of representatives of the local authority, respected community members, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and other private organisations.
According to Mr. Akrofi, responsibilities of the team should include educating and building capacity in the community to encourage their participation, and liaising between the community, local authority and landowners.
They should work with the community to decide the most appropriate form of tenure, taking into consideration their cultural, social and financial resources.
They should also supervise land acquisition, adjudication, planning and all other aspects of the project.
Informal settlements have no accurate land records. Tenure upgrading requires adjudication of all rights and boundaries.
The adjudication committee should be made up of elected community members of integrity, who know the history of land rights in the community. The local authority and NGOs could provide expertise to the committee. The community should be mobilised and encouraged to participate in the adjudication process.
A broad-based committee with community participation and openness can resolve most conflicts in tenure upgrading. Intergrated planning that makes room for basic infrastructure should follow adjudication.
Physical planning should not be centrally determined or forced on communities as has been the case in many countries, but rather should encourage public participation to access real user needs and affordability.
The technical teams should guide the communities with their expert knowledge to determine appropriate planning regulations to ensure basic health and safety standards.
When guidance is given in a process that is transparent and equitable, regulations would be implemented and the communities will see to their execution.

It has been evident from slum upgrading projects that getting local communities to agree on planned layouts in upgrading initiatives is a futile exercise since most members of the community are not able to relate the layout plans to the actual situation on the ground.

Therefore it is important to ensure the local community agrees with the technical staff on site. Decisions should be reached through dialogue and consensus.

This type of physical planning could eliminate the shortcomings of conventional layout design, minimise demolition and conflicts, and meet specific community needs.