Since the mid-1950s, Governments in countries of South Asia have attempted to meet the housing demand
of the poor, and introduced housing policies often backed by public finance to support public, subsidised
and incremental/ self-help housing. With rapid urbanization, rising real estate-prices, transition to marketdriven
housing finance systems and focus on slum-free cities, Governments are implementing
redevelopment projects for central districts of cities. Recently, new housing stock is being created under
reconstruction and resettlement projects in areas affected by environmental disasters and civil unrest.
The legal ownership of a house is important in Sri Lanka - an island nation situated north of the equator
and off the south-eastern coast of India. The island covers an area of 65,610 square kilometres, and except
for the south-central mountainous region, is covered by coastal plains (GoSL 2012a). Over 54 percent of
the total population of 20,277,597 lives in 7 of 25 Districts with Colombo District having a population of
2,323,826 (GoSL 2012b).
The urban housing stock comprises of single, attached and row houses, apartments, line-rooms and
shanties. The preference for single houses is evident since over 92.5 percent occupied houses are single
houses, 3.4 percent are line-rooms, 0.9 percent are attached houses, 0.7 percent are apartments, and 1.6
percent are shanties (GoSL 2012c). The higher income groups have houses on individual or cooperative
society plots, while the poor often live in rented or self-owned houses with limited tenure. While the
estimated annual demand for new houses is around 50,000 to 100,000 units, the supply is increasing
gradually with the involvement of the private sector, and improved housing finance options (GoSL 2011).
Since independence in 1948, the Government has been active in the housing sector as a policy-maker,
regulatory authority, administrator, lender, developer and landlord. Successive Governments have
coordinated land and housing policies, and introduced policies for managing mortgages, land-use, rental
rates, taxes, building material prices, etc. The needs of different income groups for autonomously built,
cooperative, group or rental housing, extensions and upgrading have been addressed through national
housing programmes and sub-programmes. The approach to assisted self-help housing evolved after its
introduction under the Hundred Thousand Houses Programme and extensive promotion under the Million
Houses Programme (MHP). This subsequently influenced the processes and methodology for assisted selfhelp
housing globally. The Sri Lankan experiences therefore offer a unique longitudinal retrospective on
assisted self-help housing during periods of peace, war and emergencies.
This chapter explores housing policies and programmes in Sri-Lanka in a chronological order. The four
sections include an overview of the housing situation, housing policies and evolution of the self-help
approach, efficacy of housing policies, community-centred initiatives, and the processes, tools and
structure that evolved for enabling community participation. The chapter concludes with implications for
Governments and stakeholders involved in housing, urban planning and urban management.