Shelter and Settlements Alternatives (SSA)

What Shelter and Settlements Alternatives (SSA) does

Shelter and Settlements Alternatives (SSA), operating as SSA: UHSNET (Uganda Human Settlements Network), is a Ugandan civil society network organization established in 1999 by a group of eminent Ugandans concerned with the state of human settlements. The formal network was constituted in May 2010 following stakeholder workshops supported by Rooftops Canada and the Swedish Cooperative Center. SSA brings together NGOs, community-based organizations, private sector actors, professionals, and individuals to lobby, advocate, and share information for better policies, programs, and practices related to adequate housing, secure land tenure, water and sanitation, and community empowerment in Uganda. The network operates through a secretariat of approximately 10 staff based at its headquarters in Ntinda, Kampala, supplemented by member organizations, working groups, and government committee representation.

SSA delivers its mission through a portfolio of grant-funded programs rather than commercial products. Active and completed programs include the Women's Spaces Project (Gender-responsive land and housing rights across four peri-urban districts), the SPACE Project (Supporting Participation, Accountability and Community Empowerment, 2023-2025), Promoting Inclusive Human Settlements in Uganda (PIHS, 2018-2022), the Decent Living low-cost housing initiative, Skills for Sustainable Housing, the Housing Investment Chronicles research project, PECTIS eco-friendly construction, and Household Energy/Water/Sanitation improvement. Funding flows primarily from international development partners including We Effect, Rooftops Canada, the Government of Canada/Global Affairs Canada, SIDA CIVSAM, the Swedish Postcode Lottery, SELAVIP Foundation, and SDF-PSFU, supplemented by membership fees. There is no proprietary technology stack; the platform is organizational, built on multi-stakeholder convening, community mobilization, research, policy engagement, and direct advocacy. SSA does not sell commercial products or services and has no public pricing model.

Name

Shelter and Settlements Alternatives (SSA)

Legal name

Shelter and Settlements Alternatives (SSA)

Website

https://ssauganda.org.ug

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Shelter and Settlements Alternatives (SSA) is a Ugandan civil society network established in 1999 that advocates for adequate housing, secure land tenure, and basic services, serving low-income urban communities, women in informal settlements, and member NGOs through policy engagement, community mobilization, and grant-funded development programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civil Society Advocacy and Human Settlements Services

NAICS

Community Housing Services (62422), Individual and Family Services (6241), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133), Civic and Social Organizations (813410)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Infrastructure, Housing & Community Development (BPAGABAL)

Keywords

• Civil society advocacy
• Human settlements network
• Housing rights programs
• Community development
• Policy advocacy services

Headquarters

HQ city

Kampala

HQ country

Uganda

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Funding and Grants: SSA operates primarily through funding from international development partners and donors. The organization receives grants and funding support from partners such as the Government of Canada, We Effect, Rooftops Canada, SIDA CIVSAM, and others to implement projects related to housing, land rights, water and sanitation, and community empowerment.
2. Membership Fees: SSA functions as a national member-based network. Organizations and individuals can join as members, with membership criteria and forms available on the website. Members receive benefits including partnership in activity implementation, participation in research, access to workshops and training, and access to information resources.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

SSA is a national civil society network in Uganda that brings together NGOs, community-based organizations, individuals, and private sector entities to lobby, advocate, and share information for better policies, programs, and practices toward sustainable improvement of human settlements. Its core work includes policy advocacy and research on housing and land rights, community mobilization and empowerment, capacity building for member organizations, formation of housing cooperatives, and direct implementation of development projects focused on adequate housing, secure land tenure, water and sanitation, and women's rights in informal settlements.

Product overview

Shelter and Settlements Alternatives (SSA) is a civil society network organization (not a technology product company) that implements multiple development programs focused on improving human settlements in Uganda. The organization's portfolio includes the Women's Spaces Project (gender-responsive land and housing rights), the SPACE Project (inclusive housing policy advocacy), PIHS (participatory human settlements development), the Decent Living low-cost housing initiative, skills training programs for sustainable construction using ISSB technology, housing finance research, and household energy/water/sanitation improvement projects. These programs are implemented through partnerships with government, community organizations, and international development agencies rather than through a unified software platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Women's Spaces Project A multi-country initiative implemented in Uganda by SSA in collaboration with the Government of Canada and Rooftops Canada, focused on enhancing women's equitable rights to land, housing, and livelihoods in urban and peri-urban informal settlements. Targets 865 female-headed households (3,440 people) directly with paralegal support, plus 2,120 additional households (8,480 people) reached through knowledge and opportunities.
• SPACE Project (Supporting Participation, Accountability and Community Empowerment) A five-year initiative (2023-2025) funded by SIDA CIVSAM in collaboration with WE Effect, aimed at fostering inclusive and equitable housing solutions by strengthening human settlements policies, laws, and plans at national and regional levels. Focuses on policy engagement, community empowerment, and equitable service delivery in urban areas.
• Promoting Inclusive Human Settlements in Uganda (PIHS) A five-year project (2018-2022) funded by We Effect, aimed at empowering organizations and institutions that influence participatory development of human settlements through platforms for meaningful engagement between rights holders and duty bearers.
• Decent Living Project A project funded by the Swedish Postcode Lottery through We Effect, focused on improving living conditions for poor people in slum areas through better access to adequate housing, clean water, and sanitation. Constructed 34 low-cost houses in Bujuuko-Wakiso district; 24 units were handed over to Kwefaako housing cooperative in 2017.
• Skills for Sustainable Housing and Households A project funded by Skills Development Facility-Private Sector Foundation Uganda that equipped participants with practical skills in sustainable housing solutions including production of alternative building materials, cooking briquettes, and Interlocking Stabilized Soil Blocks (ISSBs).
• Housing Investment Chronicles Project (HIC) A research project implemented in partnership with Centre for Affordable Housing Finance in Africa (CAHF), applying qualitative research methods to document housing investment strategies of low-income households in Greater Kampala Metropolitan Area.
• Household Energy, Water and Sanitation Improvement A project funded by SELAVIP Foundation that improved household access to clean energy, water, and sanitation through installation of water tanks, latrine construction, and solar systems distribution.
• Promotion of Eco-friendly Construction Technologies for Informal Settlements (PECTIS) A project promoting Interlocking Stabilized Soil Blocks (ISSB) technologies, a low-cost eco-friendly construction technique not requiring cement, through construction of prototypes in Namuwongo, Makindye Division.
• Participatory Housing Approaches towards Improved Informal Settlements A project focused on empowering slum communities to enhance participation in policies and programs, strengthening knowledge management, with key achievements including empowerment of 10 community groups into housing cooperatives and finalization of Housing Situational Database.

Quantifiable outcome

• 10 community groups empowered into housing cooperatives
• +6 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered major, minor and core.

• Oxfam in UgandamajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Oxfam in Uganda conducted research resulting in the report 'The Effectiveness and Impact of Certificate of Customary Ownership of Land in Securing Women's Land Rights in Uganda' launched in January 2021.
• KCCA (Kampala Capital City Authority)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 March 2017KCCA participated in the Annual Advocacy Agenda Meeting and is a key government stakeholder for human settlements in Kampala.
• Finance Trust BankminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 March 2017Finance Trust Bank participated in the Annual Advocacy Agenda Meeting and made pledges for collaboration.
• Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban DevelopmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 27 October 2015SSA works closely with the Ministry in implementing projects including the Decent Living low-cost housing project inaugurated on World Habitat Day 2015. The Ministry is a key government partner for policy advocacy and implementation.
• We EffectcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWe Effect is a key funding and strategic partner of SSA. The partnership includes multiple projects: SPACE (Supporting Participation, Accountability and Community Empowerment) funded by SIDA CIVSAM in collaboration with WE Effect (2023-2025); Promoting Inclusive Human Settlements in Uganda (PIHS) 2018-2022; and the Decent Living low-cost housing project. We Effect East Africa Regional Director Mr. Hans Lind participated in World Habitat Day 2015 events.
• UN WomenmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUN Women is listed as a partner organization on SSA's website, indicating collaboration on women's rights and gender equality initiatives related to human settlements and land rights.
• WaterAidminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWaterAid partnered with SSA and the Ministry for the World Habitat Day 2015 celebration and low-cost housing project launch.
• Slum Dwellers FederationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSlum Dwellers Federation is a key member and partner. SSA supported the federation to conduct community clean-up drives (e.g., Kisenyi) and participated in tree planting campaigns initiated by the federation.
• Uganda Housing Cooperative Union (UHOCU)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSSA collaborated with UHOCU to introduce, mobilize, and promote housing cooperatives in Masaka municipality. UHOCU is also a partner in land awareness campaigns in the Central region.
• Housing and Land Rights Network of Habitat International Coalition (HIC-HLRN)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHLRN partnered with SSA for the 'Assessing the impacts of women's dispossession from land and home' project (2019-2021) across India, Kenya, and Uganda.
• Centre for Affordable Housing Finance in Africa (CAHF)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCAHF partnered with SSA to implement the Housing Investment Chronicles Project (2018) to document housing investment strategies of low-income households in Greater Kampala.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• UN-Habitat: United Nations agency for sustainable urban development, working on housing, land and urban policy globally. Comparable mandate on human settlements and policy engagement, although at much larger scale than SSA.
• Cities Alliance: Global partnership hosted by UN-Habitat supporting city-level slum upgrading and pro-poor urban development. Directly comparable mandate on inclusive human settlements policy and community-led upgrading.
• Habitat for Humanity Uganda: National affiliate of a global housing nonprofit focused on affordable housing, land tenure and WASH. Overlaps with SSA across housing, land rights and water/sanitation programming in Uganda.
• Rooftops Canada / Abri International: Canada-based international network supporting housing cooperative movements in developing countries. SSA is a long-standing implementing partner of Rooftops Canada (e.g., Women's Spaces Project), making it a comparable network-style housing NGO.

Emerging players

• WaterAid Uganda: Country office of a global WASH-focused NGO active in Uganda. Directly comparable WASH intervention footprint (water tanks, latrines, sanitation infrastructure) and is a listed partner of SSA.
• Centre for Affordable Housing Finance in Africa (CAHF): Africa-wide housing finance research and advocacy organisation. Already a direct partner of SSA (Housing Investment Chronicles Project), with overlapping focus on low-income housing finance and policy in Uganda.

Direct peers

• Shack/Slum Dwellers Federation of Uganda: National federation of urban poor communities in Uganda that organises savings, enumerations and community-led upgrading. Closely overlaps with SSA's community-mobilisation work and is a member and partner of SSA.
• Slum Dwellers International (SDI): Global network of community-led organisations working on slum upgrading, secure tenure and housing rights. SSA is the Uganda counterpart within the same federated network model, and the Slum Dwellers Federation is itself a member of SSA.
• ACTogether Uganda: Uganda-based NGO supporting urban poor communities to engage in city-level planning and upgrading. Directly comparable operating model and beneficiary base (urban slum communities in Kampala) to SSA.
• Habitat International Coalition - Housing and Land Rights Network (HIC-HLRN): Global network advocating for housing and land rights through research, capacity building and litigation. SSA is a partner on multi-country projects (India, Kenya, Uganda), making it a tightly aligned peer in the housing rights space.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/UHSNET
• Facebookfacebook.com/SSA.UHSNET
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/shelter-and-settlements-alternatives-ssa
• Instagraminstagram.com/ssa_uganda?igsh=MXA3a2lubWQzdW9ncw==

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Shelter and Settlements Alternatives (SSA)