About PUPR

	UN-HABITAT
	United Nations Human Settlements Programme

Background
UN-Habitat has been supporting the Municipality of Phnom Penh (MPP) and the urban poor communities in Phnom Penh in their common effort to find sustainable ways of addressing issues of urban poverty since 1996. Building on the project CMB /95/009 “Support to the Phnom Penh Squatter Communities and Municipality for Participatory Urban Development” which came to an end in October 2000, t he Municipality of Phnom Penh launched the project CMB /00/003 and CMB /01/009 - "Phnom Penh Urban Poverty Reduction" which was completed in March 2004. The project was funded by UNDP and UK-DFID with technical assistance by UN-HABITAT. The project focused more on upstream policy advice and capacity building of the government. To complement the upstream policy advice, to maintain direct intervention at the grass roots level and to demonstrate specific approaches to upgrading, “Partnership for Urban Poverty Reduction – Phase I” (FS/CMB/01/SO1) was implemented during 2001-2002, benefiting 2,095 urban poor and squatter families and 3,500 students directly.

Objectives
As in Phase I, the aim of the project is to strengthen the self-confidence, competence and dignity of the urban poor by reducing their poverty, vulnerability and social exclusion through directly empowering their communities to improve their access to affordable basic services and better living environments. This phase of the project will draw on and benefit from a range of lessons learnt based on the Phase I to optimise the outcomes of the community based infrastructure and basic services provision in slum and squatter settlements in Phnom Penh.

Expected Output
A Community Human Security Fund (US$650,000) will be established to support the implementation of approximately 260 Community Action Plans (covering areas of water and sanitation, drainage, solid waste disposal, access roads and walkways, health, livelihoods) based on the needs expressed by the community members themselves over the two years. The project will assist in achieving the target of upgrading 100 slum-settlements over the coming five years announced by the Prime Minister in May 2003. Strategies

	The project will work with communities with a view to empower them to restore their human dignity and
	simultaneously to build capacities of the Municipality to become responsive to the needs to the poor
	communities by promoting sustainable partnerships.
	The mechanism on how the Fund will be detailed out in close consultation with the Sangkat Council Fund,
	UPDF and other initiatives in assisting slum upgrading in Phnom Penh towards achieving the same goal.
	The activities will contribute to continue to implement pro-poor policy of the Municipality of Phnom Penh.
	Specifically, they will also contribute to the MPP's Poverty Reduction Action Plan 2004-2005 as an
	implementing tool towards Urban Poverty Reduction Strategy within the framework of the revised National
	Poverty Reduction Strategy.

Human Security Fund (HSF)
The Government of Japan established the UN Trust Fund for Human Security in March 1999 in the United Nations for financing programme activities through UN Agencies that could provide “secure life” for the poor, improve peoples' livelihoods and enhance human dignity throughout the world.

UN-Habitat has been supporting the Municipality of Phnom Penh (MPP), Cambodia and the urban poor communities in Phnom Penh in their common effort to find sustainable ways of addressing issues of urban poverty since 1996. To complement the upstream policy advice, to maintain supports at the grass roots level and to demonstrate specific approaches to upgrading, Partnership for Urban Poverty Reduction—Phase I (CMB/01/SO1) was implemented during 2001-2002 in Phnom Penh with financial supports from HSF. Based on the success of Phase I, UN-Habitat accessed the supports from HSF to implement Phase II FS/CMB/04/SO1 (April 2004 - March 2006) for enhancing Human Security of the urban poor in Phnom Penh Municipality.