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Warsaw 2009
Financing affordable housing and infrastructure in cities: towards innovative land and property taxation system is the theme of the UN-HABITAT Central, Eastern and South-eastern European Regional Conference to be held in Poland from 15-16 October 2009. The Conference will focus on innovative tools for land and property taxation and sustainable urban development in countries with economies in transition. The Conference is being organized by UN-HABITAT Warsaw Office with financial support from the Global Land Tool Network (GLTN) and funds from the governments of Norway and Sweden. The goal of the Conference is to enhance and share knowledge and experiences and to disseminate lessons learnt from the region on policies and instruments for social equity, affordable housing and land and property taxation, and generate further synergies with countries in the region. The Conference is looking for papers and contributions in three thematic areas:
Contributors should consider cross-cutting issues such as information, governance and transparency, capacity development, innovative practices/tools, gender, grassroots/community participation, and sustainability. Papers covering more than one country, providing regional perspectives and countries comparisons are encouraged. Contributions are sought for innovative tools for land and property taxation to support sustainable urban development in countries with economies in transition, particularly in Central, Eastern and Southern European countries. Land and property taxation is the practice of creating local and/or state revenue from land and properties holders or users. A well managed land and property taxation can benefit the low-income groups via i.e. cross subsidies regarding infrastructure, services, affordable housing, land provision, etc. Without land and property tax there is vast amount of speculation in land and housing market which is pushing the prices sky high and making them unaffordable for the low income earners in cities. This is especially important for Central, Eastern and South-eastern Europe where many countries, with economies in transition, have recently initiated land and property taxation policies and instruments. At the same time, several countries in the region are committed to improve and integrate their housing and urban planning and management. Land and property taxation has taken a central stage in countries in Eastern Europe, particular countries transiting to market oriented economies with private ownership. In the region, new/innovative and various approaches to land and property taxation policies, reforms and instruments have been experimented for a range of purposes including revenue generation for financing urban infrastructure and development, support to decentralization, ensure affordable housing, maintaining urban infrastructures and investments. These innovations in land property taxation should be documented for knowledge sharing and lessons learning, especially with the view to improve urban land and property management. In this context, the UN-HABITAT Warsaw Office was established in October 2006 with the support of the Government of Poland. The Warsaw Office is supporting operational activities in Central, Eastern and Southern Europe to effectively address human settlements concerns in the region. The UN-HABITAT Warsaw Office convened two special ministerial-level Advisory Council meetings – an inaugural session in Warsaw in February 2007, followed by a meeting in Bucharest, Romania. These meetings offered Ministers and high-level officials responsible for housing and urban development in the region, a platform for enhanced cooperation and knowledge sharing and a mechanism to keep housing and urban management challenges high on the agenda. The meetings also resulted in the Warsaw Declaration in which participating countries demonstrated their commitment to implement improved housing and integrated urban planning and management strategies. Both Advisory Council meetings demonstrated the need of exchanges at the regional level, including on land administration systems and recommended to the Warsaw Office to organize two regional Conferences that would be dedicated to a deeper presentation of UN-HABITAT concepts and tools and relevant experiences for the region. This Conference is responding to that request. The Global Land Tool Network (GLTN) will sponsor the Conference. GLTN aims, amongst other, to improve the general dissemination of knowledge on land, improve and develop pro poor land management and land tenure tools, contribute to poverty alleviation and the MDGs through land reform, improved land management and security of tenure. The Network approaches land and related development objectives through consultations, knowledge exchange and cooperation at the global, regional and national levels, while tool development and documentation are realized on the national and local levels in various participating countries. The project goals of the Global Land Tool Network focus on the development of pro poor, gendered and large scale land tools. When identified and sufficiently supported, these land tools will unblock current development obstacles and enhance the delivery of the MDGs. Land Value Capture is one of the five core themes in the land sector the Network and its partners have identified. GLTN principles include pro-poor, governance, equity, subsidiarity, affordability, systematic at scale, gender sensitiveness. The Conference will contribute to identify innovative land and property taxation tools and enhance knowledge, documentation and dissemination on land management and land and property tax reform in the region.
Land and property taxation (LPT) is a means to finance urban infrastructure and services, land provision and low-income housing. LPT can support decentralized land administration and local urban governance. Considering the justifications, paying land and property tax can encourage land and property owners to develop or improve land and housing to the full extent that its value warrants, or to make way for others who will. Sites and investments are consequently used more efficiently, dilapidated inner-city areas and buildings are returned to good use, which reduces urban sprawl and decay. LPT may deter speculative land holding, reduce rent-seeking behaviour and enable a society to provide sustainable and wider access to the use of land and property. This allows women and men, low income and affluent citizens, uneducated or well educated, all to gain access to land and property in more affordable manner. It enables secure tenure by owners willing to pay for the land and property advantages they find important. This approach to revenue production stimulates new business and new employment, reducing the need for government assistance and improving buildings safety and security. Economically LPT makes sense because, it does not distort market mechanisms or otherwise burden the economy the way most other taxes do. It is a cheap and efficient levy to administer because much less effort is required to track land ownership and value than to track income or sales transactions. Tax evasion on land and property is much more difficult than on financial wealth because land and buildings cannot be hidden, removed to a tax haven, or concealed in an electronic data system. Even in low income communities, the tools are readily available to implement this policy. Mechanisms such as Land Value Capture (LVC) can be used to produce revenue for public purposes and for fostering more efficient use of land, including natural resources There are also compelling moral reasons for LPT. For example, land (unlike goods and services) has no cost of production. If an ample supply of land of equal desirability were available everywhere, there would be nothing to pay for its use. In reality, land and housing acquire a scarcity value owing to the competing needs of community members for living, working and leisure space. Thus land value, for instance, owes nothing to individual effort and everything to the community at large. It belongs justly and uniquely to the community. Conversely, the reward for individual effort of improving land and housing rightfully belongs to the one who earns it. Because of differences in location, fertility or natural resources, housing standards, some places are more advantageous than others. Only demand for access to these advantages gives land and property their value. Land and property values are created mainly by factors that are not necessary the result of the owner's own effort. For example, the creation of new infrastructure, new public transportation, or re- zoning, can all radically change the value of a piece of land or a house. LPT provides a method of recouping windfall changes to land and property value that occur as a result of investment by the community, placing less of the burden on taxpayers who do not directly benefit. This could then lead to the reductions in existing taxes on labour (wages) and enterprise (sales). The LPT is progressive because the land tax, for example, cannot be passed on to a tenant; competitive markets, and not owner overheads set rental prices. The natural world is rightfully the common property of all persons, and therefore the LPT can be seen not at a real tax, but simply the collection of rent (a user fee) on behalf of the community. For eight thousand years worldwide, different tools of LPT have been used as the primary basis for producing public revenue and is easy for people to understand. This is important for investment in urban and peri-urban infrastructure and services, and provision of affordable housing. LPT is the appropriate instrument for the urgent fight against global inequity and poverty. Land and property taxation is also a means to finance the maintenance of dilapidating communal buildings, public space, parks, and social services. Functioning LPT tools exist in a context of institutional arrangements that clarify roles and responsibilities; the implementation of transparent procedures for decision-making; the existence of information technology and systems for collecting, processing, archiving and dissemination of land, property and valuation information; procedures, services and information which are accessible, affordable and user-friendly.
Each of the three thematic areas cuts across several issues including information, governance and transparency, capacity development, innovative practices/tools, gender, grassroots/community participation, and sustainability. Contributors should attempt to identify which thematic area their paper best fits and reflect cross-cussing issues where and when applicable. Paper covering regional perspective and providing countries comparisons are encouraged. The Conference will bring together researchers, practitioners, local and central government officials to exchange knowledge and good practices, increase awareness of, propose solutions to land and property taxation challenges in the Central, Eastern and South-eastern European countries.
Organising and Steering Committee will ensure the smooth preparation of the Conference, from calling for papers to selection and organisation of sessions. The Committee will include a representative of each of the partners:
Review Committee will select the papers to be presented at the Conference from the proposals (Abstracts) received and to be subsequently published in the Conference’s proceedings. The Review Committee consists of Clarissa Augustinus (UN-HABITAT and Chief Editor), Szilard Fricska (UN-HABITAT), Claudio Acioly (UN-HABITAT), Remy Sietchiping (UN-HABITAT), Solomon Haile (UN-HABITAT), Tatiana Roskoshnaya (UN-HABITAT), Gwendoline Mennetrier (UN-HABITAT-Poland), and two other personalities to be appointed in due course. Interested contributors should submit an Abstract (250-500 words) of their proposed paper in English by April 15, 2009. The Abstract should indicate the thematic focus (up to two of the thematic areas above) in which the paper is submitted. It should outline the objective of the paper, methodology, integration with and/or connection to other themes or cross cutting topics, data sources (if applicable), regional perspective/comparisons, and state what the author(s) asserts to be the contribution of the paper to the body of literature on the subject. The submission should also be accompanied by a CV of each author/co-author. Submittal forms (link), abstracts, and CVs should be sent by email to: gltn@unhabitat.orgThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it and copy to gwendoline.mennetrier@unhabitat.orgThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , clarissa.augustinus@unhabitat.orgThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it and remy.sietchiping@unghabitat.org.This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Selections of Abstracts will be made in April 20 2009. The authors of accepted papers will be notified by 1 May 2009 (where proposals list multiple authors, the first author listed on the submittal form will be notified). A full draft of each paper is due by 30 June 2009. The final version is due 1st August 2009. All accepted papers will undergo individual review. Selections of Abstracts will be made in April 20 2009. The authors of accepted papers will be notified by 1 May 2009 (where proposals list multiple authors, the first author listed on the submittal form will be notified). A full draft of each paper is due by 30 June 2009. The final version is due 1st August 2009. All accepted papers will undergo individual review.
Deadline for Abstract: 15 May 2009 |
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