News

From Rooftops Canada / Abri International e-Bulletin - August 2008 / Issue #38

"Survivors of the post-election violence are afraid to return to their communities. They don’t know how they will live in the burned-out wreckage that was once their home or business. Jamie Richie, Rooftops Canada Technical Advisor with NACHU". To read more about the full effects of the recent violence in Kenya on housing cooperatives click here.

Rooftops Canada have announced a new opening for a Senior Technical Advisor - Housing Development and Microfinance. This position is for two years, full-time, based in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, starting January 2009 (earlier if possible). The deadline for applications is September 05, 2008. Please click for further information.

'Growing Sustainable Housing Microfinance Options in Sub-Saharan Africa:
Enhancing the relevance and scale of housing finance for the poor.'

From 19-23 May 2008, at the Giraffe Ocean View Hotel in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, the FinMark Trust, Rooftops Canada and Habitat for Humanity International co-hosted a workshop on housing microfinance. Supported by a variety of organisations, the workshop hosted 127 participants (including investors, financiers, and donors; experienced intermediaries; and retailers including HMFIs, MFIs and NGOs) from over 20 countries, 16 in Africa. Over four days, the workshop addressed topics relating to:
State of housing finance in sub-Saharan Africa, Getting housing on the ground,
Scale lending, Identifying opportunities; and hot topics.

Please click here to read the presentations and further information from the conference.

The Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada (CHF Canada), the peak body for housing co-ops in the region, has launched a new initiative to help housing co-ops face the challenges of an uncertain future.