Kayole-Soweto is one of only a few informal settlements in Nairobi that have been comprehensively surveyed and planned, its development guided by a subdivision that allocated the land for residential and social infrastructure uses.
In the last decade, households in Kayole-Soweto received a number of infrastructure investments including roads, drainage, public lighting and the public realm under the Kenya Informal Settlement Improvement Project (KISIP), Some of the major impacts of the infrastructure investments in Kayole-Soweto have been experienced by women and girls (for example water availability and lighting for security) though further progress could be achieved with a further explicit focus on gender in design and planning to increase co-benefits for women, girls, and other groups.
Source: KDI, 2021
The Caracas Slum Upgrading Project
The Caracas Slum Upgrading Project (CAMEBA) enhanced the quality of life in various Caracas neighbourhoods through community-driven, sustainable infrastructure improvements. The project focused on pedestrian access, water distribution, sanitation, housing, and other essential services. Extensive outreach ensured significant women's participation, resulting in women comprising the majority of meeting participants and developing project proposals. Women also supervised the projects, ensuring efficiency and effectiveness. Their participation and leadership improved household livelihoods and led to a more equal voice in household decision-making
Gender Mainstreaming in Belén Master Planning
In Belén, Costa Rica, incorporating gender into master planning involved two key strategies. First, municipal staff and senior management attended capacity-building workshops with local women's organisations to better understand women's needs and perspectives. Second, a monitoring and evaluation system was established to ensure municipal engagements met gender inclusion goals and addressed the needs and considerations of target beneficiaries in master plans and guiding documents (Gender Mainstreaming - UN HABITAT, 2008).
SafetiPin application to document safe and unsafe zones in Bogota, Colombia
In 2017, over 85% of female respondents in Bogota, Colombia felt unsafe and 64% had experienced sexual harassment on public transportation. The City of Bogota started working with the SafetiPin app, which enables women to document where they feel safe or unsafe within the city. Nearly 18,000 entries have been made in the app, informing public awareness campaigns and transit staff training on women’s safety issues. In addition, plainclothes officers (of which over half are women) were created to visibly arrest men caught sexually harassing women on public transit.
