UNHabitat lays out plan for Pink City

UN-Habitat has identified multi-hazard vulnerabilities, urban sprawl, weak urban mobility and “green-blue disconnect” as the pressing issues for Jaipur city.

Key findings made by UN-Habitat:

• Jaipur got an overall sustainability rating of three on the Urban Sustainability Assessment Framework (USAF) based on the information collected for 87 of its 131 parameters.
• The Urban Sustainability Assessment Framework (USAF) developed under the Sustainable Cities Integrated Approach Pilot (SCIAP) project, implemented by United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and UN-Habitat.
• The UN-Habitat highlighted the following problems which are faced by the city:
  • Weak access to a public transportation system, with less number of buses and poor route delineation.
  • Extreme levels of drought during summer and also urban floods.
  • Lack green cover which has resulted in the urban heat island effect that has disrupted biodiversity.

Urban Sustainability Assessment Framework (USAF):

• USAF was developed by UN-Habitat under the Sustainable Cities Integrated Approach Pilot project
• UN Habitat has followed the people centred process and implemented USAF in Bhopal, Guntur, Jaipur, Mysuru and Vijayawada.
• The project has received funding from the Global Environment Facility (GEF-6) to estimate the carbon sequestration potential of Indian cities.

Integrated Approach Pilot (IAP) program on Sustainable Cities:

• Aim:To promote sustainable urban development through integrated models of urban design, planning, and implementation.
• The program adopted two interrelated and complementary components:
  • Direct investment in sustainability solutions in cities
  • Global Platform for Sustainable Cities (GPSC) as a global convening space for developing and sharing knowledge to promote integrated urban planning and investments.

About UN-Habitat-

• The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) is the United Nations programme for human settlements and sustainable urban development. 
• It was established in 1978 as an outcome of the first United Nations Conference on Human Settlements and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat I) held in Vancouver, Canada, in 1976. 
• It has its headquarters at the United Nations Office at Nairobi, Kenya. 
• It is mandated by the UNGA to promote socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities with the goal of providing adequate shelter for all. 
• It is a member of the United Nations Development Group.
• The mandate of UN-Habitat derives from the Habitat Agenda, adopted by the United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II) in Istanbul, Turkey, in 1996.
• The twin goals of the Habitat Agenda are adequate shelter for all and the development of sustainable human settlements in an urbanizing world.
• UN-Habitat works in more than 70 countries in five continents focusing on seven areas:

1. Urban legislation, land and governance;
2. Urban planning and design;
3. Urban economy;
4. Urban basic services;
5. Housing and slum upgrading;
6. Risk reduction and rehabilitation;
7. Urban research and capacity development.