Kabul - Rebirth of a City

Abstract

Why is it that some policies have had positive medium and long-term impacts, and some have had negative impacts on the city’s housing and development, when reviewed ten or more years after they were executed? In search of answering this question, this thesis analyzes the impact of a number of the housing interventions that both international humanitarian organizations and the government of Afghanistan had undertaken within the first few years after the fall of Taliban. This thesis identifies two particular trends. First, the impact of the delivery of humanitarian assistance in shelter and settlement is directly correlated with the humanitarian organizations’ ability to co-design and co-implement the projects with full participation of the affected population. Second, resident engagement is not only a major contributor to resilient neighborhoods in post-Taliban Kabul’s housing, neighborhood, and settlement revitalization, but is also an essential ingredient in other aspects of the city’s life, such as the formalization of informal settlements and the conduct of the city government.