Architects and engineers have launched a call for free technical assistance in the design, renovation, or construction of social housing—already established by a 2008 law—to "be more than a law; to become a State Policy, as part of the social right to housing guaranteed by the Constitution."
The appeal was made at the opening of the Seminar on Technical Assistance for Social Housing, hosted by CAU/BR and the Federal Council of Engineering and Agronomy (CONFEA) in Brasília on the 15th of this month. If the proposal is adopted, Brazil would have the equivalent of a "SUS" (Unified Health System) for social housing. The proposal is part of the "Open Letter to Candidates in the 2018 Elections for the Right to the City," recently released by CAU/BR and the Institute of Architects of Brazil (IAB).
In Brazil, according to DataFolha, over 85% of the population builds or renovates their homes without any assistance from architects or engineers—the professionals legally licensed to design and manage construction. As a result, this leads to the poor construction quality observed on the outskirts of all major cities in the country, causing health problems and degrading the population's quality of life.
Law 11,888/2008, which turns ten in December, was designed to address part of the problem, but "the law itself does not guarantee success," according to Edson Alves Delgado, vice president of CONFEA. Silvani Alves Pereira, executive secretary of the Ministry of Cities, agreed, stating that "this issue requires the mobilization of all three levels of government, professional associations, and society at large." The secretary represented Minister Alexandre Baldy.
Included in the federal government's Growth Acceleration Program (PAC), projects for providing technical assistance (known as ATHIS) have shown a "mortality rate" well above the average of other housing solutions for the low-income population. This was reported by architect and urban planner Mirna Quinderé Belmiro Chaves, director of the Department of Housing Improvement within the National Housing Secretariat of the Ministry of Cities.
Out of 903 selected ATHIS projects, 730 were canceled—an 81% cancellation rate. In terms of funding, out of R$ 118 million allocated, only R$ 78 million was used, equivalent to 66%. Across all housing modalities, the average cancellation rate is 38% for the number of projects and 32% for financial resources.
One of the causes, according to the architect, is the beneficiaries' inability to afford labor and materials. To alleviate this, in November 2016, the government created the *Cartão Reforma* (Reform Card), which subsidizes up to R$ 9,646.07 for the purchase of construction materials for families with incomes up to R$ 2,811.00, intended for renovating, expanding, or completing housing units. A total of 151 municipalities across 24 states are already covered by the *Cartão Reforma*, benefiting 26,000 families and involving R$ 149 million in resources. "However, the results are below expectations, and we will soon announce restructurings to facilitate access to the program," said Mirna Quinderé Belmiro Chaves.
Municipalities that join the *Cartão Reforma* can receive up to 15% of the total value of materials in Technical Assistance, but the experience so far has presented challenges. Consequently, one of the changes to be implemented is the flexibilization of the federal funding transfer model, allowing municipalities, the Federal District, and states to establish continuous technical assistance services, rather than just addressing isolated projects.
One of the expected outcomes of the seminar is a set of proposals for a national model of technical assistance for social housing, structured along the lines of Law 11,888/2008, to be implemented by the Ministry of Cities in 200 Brazilian cities.
The bill that led to Law 11,888/2008 was first introduced in the Chamber of Deputies in 2002 by architect and urban planner Clóvis Ilgenfritz during his term as a federal deputy. It was based on pioneering work he did in the 1970s in Porto Alegre—the Technical Assistance Program for Affordable Housing—which united the efforts of the municipal government and the local Architects' Union.
Four years later, during the subsequent legislative term, his colleague Zezéu Ribeiro—also an architect, urban planner, and federal deputy—reintroduced the bill, which later became Law 11,888/2008. "The objective of the law is not just to build housing units, but to build more structured and better cities through housing," notes Luciano Guimarães, president of CAU/BR. In his view, the seminar "made history" because of the progress made in the struggle of architects and urban planners for social housing.
Engineer Fátima Có, president of CREA-DF; engineer Francisco Almeida, president of CREA-GO and coordinator of the Board of CREA Presidents; and architect and urban planner Nivaldo Andrade, president of IAB and coordinator of the Board of National Architecture and Urbanism Entities (CEAU), were among the professional leaders present at the opening of the event, which was also attended by 40 architecture and urbanism students from the University of Brasília.
Fátima Có highlighted the unity of engineers and architects who "see affordable housing as fundamental to improving life in society. Above all, our work is driven by social interest," she stated. Francisco Almeida advocated for the participation of architecture, urbanism, engineering, and agronomy interns in ATHIS projects. Nivaldo de Andrade welcomed the "unity" of engineers and architects "at a time when the country is divided."
Via CAU
This article was written by CAU/BR. The translation is powered by AI.
