User-Initiated Extensions in Government-Built Estates in Ghana and Zimbabwe: Unconventional but Effective Housing Supply

Many countries in Sub-Saharan Africa have large stocks of government-built housing, which, for various reasons, is in poor physical condition and/or does not conform to occupants' expectations. In many countries, occupants of such housing make unauthorized but quite considerable changes and extensions to their dwellings for their own use and for renting out. These changes and extensions are generally known as "transformations," and may contain useful models for future policy concerning existing housing estates and policy on new developments.