Well-being in social housing in Algeria: The case of 800 housing units, Batna

Despite the considerable efforts undertaken in Algeria to produce social housing, the problem of well-being in these dwellings remains unsolved. Occupants of social housing continue to suffer from numerous ailments, mainly related to the quality of their housing. Based on the essential criteria influencing well-being in housing, this research aims to assess the quality of life of occupants in social housing in Algeria and examine its impact on their satisfaction. With the aim of generalizing, the 800-unit El Menchar housing project in Batna, a medium-sized city in eastern Algeria, will serve as a case study. The research adopts a qualitative survey combining a questionnaire and on-site observation. This approach yielded 293 responses, representing 36.63% of families. The results of the analysis show that of the 14 essential well-being criteria analyzed, including housing quality, environmental comfort, social interactions, and socioeconomic context, only two are taken into account in the design of social housing in Algeria. This reflects the negative impact of poorly designed social housing on occupant satisfaction and overall well-being.