JAKARTA, Sept. 30 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia will hold commemoration of the World Habitat Day on Oct. 4 - 5 in South Sumatra's provincial capital city of Palembang to support the habitat agenda drafted by the United Nations through Vancouver Declaration 1976 which promotes proper houses for all people.

    The commemoration will be held on collaboration between the Ministry for Public Works, the Ministry for People Housing and Palembang city government.

    Adopting the global theme of Planning Our Urban Future, the commemoration is aimed to increase awareness of the important role of urban planning in materializing urban area as proper and sustainable residence.

    Currently, half of the world's population live in cities and it is expected that it would increase to 60 percent in 2030," said Budi Yuwono, the ministry's director general of Cipta Karya, a directorate concerning on people's housing.

    He said cities are facing big challenge to fulfill suitable residence facilities.

    "In fact, increase of population density in big cities, including in Indonesia, is always followed by growth of slum area because cities are not ready in providing suitable basic residential infrastructures, namely suitable residential quality, drinking water and sanitation as well as land for new residential estate construction," said Budi.

    The United Nations for Development Program (UNDP) predicted that the slum area in Indonesia would increase 1.37 percent a year from 2004 to 2009.

    Data from the Central Bureau of Statistics said that in 2007, at least 21.1 percent of households in Indonesia did not have access to drinking water and 22.86 percent of them have no lavatory.