A/HRC/37/53 reliance on private actors in most housing systems, governments cannot simply ensure that private actors do no harm by, for example, preventing illegal evictions or demolitions. They must also ensure that the actions of private actors and investors are consistent with the State’s obligation to fulfil the right to housing. In that regard, housing strategies may, for example, require investors to produce affordable rather than luxury housing; include a percentage of accessible units for persons with disabilities; or ensure that in situ upgrading is done in accordance with choices made by residents. 122. The challenges posed by the financialization of housing require a significant shift in the way in which States regulate private actors and direct the activities of financial markets. Strategies must affirm the social function of land and housing and adopt measures to curb speculation, stop the production of unneeded luxury housing and prevent the privatization of public land. 123. Strategies should promote and recognize alternative forms of housing investment to combat privatization of land and housing. Community land trusts, collective ownership models and social housing should be prioritized over reliance on private sector investment. 124. Strategies should create mechanisms for rigorous oversight of public private partnerships and other relationships between public authorities and private developers. They must ensure that displacement or land acquisition for “public purpose” is not abused for private gain. Zoning amendments and land use decisions should be subject to independent oversight to ensure transparency, accountability to communities and absence of corruption. 125. Housing strategies should protect and support the informal economic activity on which people rely for livelihoods, including caregivers, domestic workers, street vendors and those who produce or sell goods from their homes. 126. In rural areas, housing strategies should ensure that the right to housing, including the right to water, food security, land and livelihood, are protected from extractive industries and corporate agro-business, prevent land-grabbing and protect the rights of indigenous peoples in accordance with the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Persons. In practice 127. In Argentina, the Fair Access to Habitat Law requires large property developments, such as country clubs and gated communities, to relinquish 10 per cent of the land or of the cost of property to be used for social housing. The law also prohibits evictions from informal settlements and allows for an increase in taxes on property when its value increases because of neighbourhood development. The funds collected are applied to upgrade informal settlements and improve precarious housing conditions. 128. In India, parliament passed in 2016 the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act to remove unnecessary delays and promote transparency in real estate developments. The law requires the registration of development projects, identifying all individuals and corporations involved. The act is expected to expedite affordable housing projects and improve the accountability of the real estate sector. It does not, however, regulate property speculation or mandate the provision of affordable housing for low-income households as urged by the organization Housing and Land Rights Network. 54 129. Many local governments require developers to ensure that at least a minimum proportion of new housing units are affordable. In Montreal, Canada, 15 per cent of units are required to be affordable, whereas in London, that figure is 25 per cent, and in the Plaine Commune in Paris it is 40 per cent.55 54 55 18 See Housing and Land Rights Network, Housing and Land Rights in India: Submission to Habitat III (New Delhi, 2016). Available from http://hlrn.org.in/documents/Housing_and_Land_Rights_in_India_Report_for_Habitat_III.pdf. Submission by United Cities and Local Governments for the present report.