1. COLOMBIA
HOUSING FOR ALL
Background & oBjectives
Housing Model: In Colombia there is a severe housing shortage that plagues the country’s most
Home Improvement vulnerable populations. Roughly 2.5 million homes are in critical need of upgrade,
including those in urban slums, which are often constructed from low-quality and unsafe
director: Maria Lucia Roa building materials. Housing For All (HFA) Colombia enables sustainable and scalable
(Interim HFA Director) systems to deliver integrated and affordable housing solutions. Technical assistance,
construction materials and financing are offered to those without traditional access.
Program Launch: 2006
number of Partners: core activities
- Citizen Sector: 5
- Business Sector: 6 HFA Colombia fosters partnerships between the citizen and private sector in the home-
improvement market. Collectively these alliances have dismantled numerous barriers
inherent in traditional housing value chains.
Since 2006 a group of citizen sector groups led by two Ashoka Fellows Haidy Duque
and Audes Jimenez, have partnered with Grupo Corona, a leading home improvement
and construction company in Colombia, to provide affordable home improvement
solutions to communities in need. Through this collaboration called “Viste tu Casa”,
Ashoka Fellows and Grupo Corona have led a new and profitable business that is now
active in 6 major cities across Colombia. This business continues to grow with projected
sales for 2012 estimated at USD$25 million.
In order to quickly scale the HFA Colombia model and respond to the need of 2.5
million Colombian people, Ashoka with the support of the Affordable Housing Institute
(AHI) are working together to create a new Home Improvement Financial Entity (HIFE).
This new entity will provide special housing financial products that are integrated with
technical assistance—estimated to be worth more than USD$100M. In addition to this
new financial entity, the program is also supporting the establishment of a new national
distribution network enabling access not only to building materials and financial
services but also the technical and construction services needed to ensure the building
of safe homes. This new phase of HFA Colombia is on track to be launched before the
end of 2010 in the major Colombian cities of Bogota and Barranquilla.

2. COLOMBIA
aLicia Parga. HFA Colombia not only impacts economic realities and housing
conditions, but individuals on a personal level. One recent participant attributed
her ability to move towards financial independence and home-improvement
after her husband left her. With the guidance and support provided by the HFA
program in Colombia she was able to tile her bathroom over the original brick
and cement. She says that “now when I bathe, I feel like a queen.” As soon as she
finishes repaying her first loan, she intends to follow the same process and finish
her bedroom. This home improvement project has fostered Alicia’s self esteem and
confidence—she is now capable of providing a better home and future for her family.
IMPACT OUR MAIN PARTNERS IN THE
usd$11.7 Million in sales
HOUSING FOR ALL HyBRID VALUE CHAIN
have been generated as a
Hybrid Value Chain (HVC) is a new operating framework for transforming
result of 28,000 housing
markets by leveraging the strengths of business and social actors. HVC spread
solutions being delivered
across the economic spectrum and represent a systemic change in the way
profitably
business and citizen sector interact.
The current HFa model has
been replicated across 15
neighborhoods in 6 cities
usd$11.5M in credit
extended to low-income
consumers from 2007 to 2009
Business sector citiZen sector
Housing related Products, aggregators,
Builders & technical assistance complementary services
• Colceramica & access enablers
• Santafe • Fundacion Amanecer
• Aprodefa
Finance Providers • Corporacion Construyendo
• Finamerica • Asociacion Cedecur
• Kairos - Bogota
At Finamerica (leading Financial Institution in Colombia) we believe in this project
and see how quickly it’s spreading across the entire team while inspiring other
players to support this effort. I believe that this project will become a national and
international model.”
Maria Fernanda velez Lotero, Marketing Director, Finamérica S.A.
fec.ashoka.org