01
Cooperative housing capacity development
Mobilizing and supporting communities to establish, strengthen and sustainably manage member-led housing cooperatives. We develop leadership, governance, accountability, decision-making and peer learning.
What we do
Support for cooperative housing
Our domains of change
Connected work for lasting community change
We connect cooperative organization to finance, land, technical guidance, skills and livelihoods so that communities can lead their own housing development.
02
Financial inclusion and literacy
Training in household financial management, savings, responsible borrowing and cooperative finance. UHOCU’s Housing Cooperative Development Fund helps PHCS and community groups access affordable credit for housing, business and day-to-day needs.
03
Skills development
Practical construction and livelihood skills help members participate directly in housing development, reduce costs and create income. Training includes brick laying, walling, welding, roofing, tiling, plumbing and ISSB production.
04
Economic empowerment and livelihoods
Income-generating activities, small business support, farming, urban agriculture and enterprise development help households grow savings and build the financial base for land and housing.
05
Technical support for land and housing
Land search and due diligence, site planning, surveys, house design, prototype plans and legal guidance help cooperatives move from land identification to secure, well-planned housing.
06
Land rights, gender and inclusion
Community dialogue, women’s and youth land-rights awareness, inclusive financing and advocacy for secure tenure help widen participation in housing decisions.
07
Water, health and sanitation
Community outreach supports access to safe water, proper sanitation, hygiene, nutrition and clean, healthy residential environments.
08
Environmental sustainability
UHOCU promotes Interlocking Stabilized Soil Blocks (ISSBs), clean energy, efficient stoves, sustainable land management and turning waste into useful products and income.
09
Advocacy, networking and partnerships
Working with communities, government, civil society, development partners and private-sector actors to promote adequate housing, secure tenure and appropriate housing finance.
Land access in practice
Help members make informed land decisions.
Overlapping tenure systems, title fraud and unplanned development can expose communities to costly disputes and insecure housing. UHOCU supports cooperatives with land identification, title searches and verification, surveys, boundary opening and physical planning before major investments.
Alternative building technology
Interlocking Stabilized Soil Blocks (ISSBs)
ISSBs are made by mixing local soil with about 5% cement, compressing it in a manual press and sun-drying the blocks. They offer an alternative to fired clay bricks, helping reduce pressure on forests and the need for mortar while building stable walls.
Our approach
Housing through cooperative action
Communities combine resources, knowledge, skills and collective bargaining power to address challenges that are difficult to solve alone.
Community mobilization→Cooperative societies→Savings and finance→Technical support→Land access→Skills development→Housing→Sustainable livelihoods