The United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat) was established in 1978, two years after the United Nations Conference on Human Settlements held in Vancouver, Canada. Based in Nairobi, Kenya, UNCHS (Habitat) is the lead agency within the United Nations System for coordinating activities in the field of human settlements and in the implementation of the Habitat Agenda adopted at the second United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II) held in Istanbul, Turkey, in 1996. With an explicit focus on the urban poor and using universal principles of social justice and equity to guide its work, the Centre is a global advocacy agency dealing with human settlements issues in the context of an urbanizing world. Strategies of the Centre in implementing its work programmes include enablement and participation, capacity-building and institutional development on the two main themes “adequate shelter for all” and “sustainable urban development”. To address these themes effectively, the Centre is initiating two global campaigns on secure tenure and urban governance. Further information can be found on the website at www.habitat.unchs.org

The Institute of Public Administration (IPA) is a private, non-profit organization concerned with building capacities for effective governance. It is headquartered in New York City where it was established in 1906, and operates worldwide with a programme of research, technical assistance and training organized around three themes: public sector governance and management, public finance and fiscal reform, and sustainable urban development. IPA is affiliated with the Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at New York University, and is governed by a distinguished Board of Trustees. Further information can be found on the website at www.theipa.org.

In June 1998, UNCHS (Habitat) and IPA signed a Memorandum of understanding to establish and develop cooperation modalities to join their capacities in the implementation of the Habitat Agenda and relevant aspects of Agenda 21, with specific focus on initiation of a research project aimed at “improving living conditions of older persons in human settlements” as a contribution to the “International Year of Older Persons, 1999”.