July 10, 2012
The UN Special Rapporteur on the right to adequate housing, Raquel Rolnik, is visiting Rwanda from 5 to 13 July 2012, at the invitation of the Government.
During her nine-day visit, Ms Rolnik will meet with Government officials, human rights groups and other stakeholders. “This will be a great opportunity to look into how the most densely populated nation in Africa is managing land and housing issues in a way that takes into account equality and non-discrimination,” the Special Rapporteur said.
“It is paramount that allocation of land and housing does not result in injustices that impede the reconciliation that Rwanda has long been striving for,” she added.
At the end of her visit, on Friday 13 July 2012 at 10 am, the Special Rapporteur will hold a Press Conference at the Mille Collines Hotel, to present the preliminary findings of her mission.
You are cordially invited to this press conference. In addition, there will be opportunities for separate interviews with Ms Rolnik on the same day.
Raquel Rolnik (of Brazilian Nationality) was appointed as Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living, and on the right to non-discrimination in this context by the UN Human Rights Council in May 2008. Her mandate was renewed in 2011.
Raquel Rolnik is an architect and an urban planner, with over 30 years of experience in planning and urban land management. She has a large experience in the implementation and evaluation of housing and urban policies.
Based in Sao Paulo, she is a professor at the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism of the University of Sao Paolo and is the author of several books and articles on the urban issue.
In her career, she has held various government positions including Director of the Department of Planning of the city of São Paulo (1989-1992) and National Secretary for Urban Programs of the Brazilian Ministry of Cities (2003-2007) as well as NGO activities, such as Urbanism Coordinator of the Polis Institute (1997-2002).
She has advised national and local governments on policy reform and institutional development as well as on planning and management of housing and local development programs.
Source: Hope Magazine
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