New Secretary for Housing Access Rubén_Pascolini (Photo via Presidencia)
According to President Fernández, the new entity will not be involved in housing construction but will aim to ensure that “informal settlements are legally incorporated into the urban fold by providing access to property deeds.”
She added that the first task for the new secretary, Rubén Pascolini, would be the urbanisation of 100 shantytowns built on state lands, covering a total of around 400 blocks. Around 40 of the targeted settlements are in the province of Buenos Aires.
“The National Constitution and our deepest convictions tell us that every Argentine has the right to a piece of land on which they can build their home and their family can live with dignity,” added Fernández during a national tv address.
“We are going to work on inclusion and urban integration,” Pascolini told local press. “This will generate external benefits because when one neighbourhood improves, the whole context improves, and create social interaction.”
While there is no official national data on the number of villas in Argentina, a survey of seven key territories, including the country’s most important urban areas, by the NGO Techo in 2013 documented at least 1,834 settlements housing 532,800 families.
In the city of Buenos Aires, the number of people living in villas has risen dramatically over the last 20 years. Latest official estimates put the number at 275,000, up from 163,587 in 2010 and representing around 10% of the city population.
Earlier this year, the Corriente Villera Independiente, which groups representatives from all of the villas in the capital, staged a 53-day protest camp at the base of the obelisco to demand the urbanisation of the city’s villas by the municipal government. Almost two thirds of these were in the province of Buenos Aires.
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