The World Urban Forum opens in Baku as the housing crisis and climate shocks escalate

That conferencehosted by PBB-Habitat together with Azerbaijan, it will bring together world leaders, mayors, urban planning experts, as well as representatives of governments, the private sector, civil society and international organizations.

An ambitious goal: to accommodate the world

The theme of this forum is a call to action: Housing the World: Safe and Resilient Cities and Communities. According to the UN, nearly 2.8 billion people currently live in inadequate housing conditions, while more than 300 million people have no place to live at all. With nearly 70 percent of the world’s population expected to live in cities by 2050, this crisis will only get worse.

In an interview with UN Video, chief PBB-HabitatAnacláudia Rossbach, describes the situation as a “global housing crisis”.

“This crisis has long been the most severe and structural crisis in Southern countries, but now this crisis is also being felt in Northern countries.”

According to Ms Rossbach, the rising cost of living has become a major problem, while international crises, including wars in the Middle East and risks related to global supply chains, have further exacerbated the situation.

More than just a house

This crisis is more than just a physical crisis. Housing is increasingly seen as a cornerstone of human dignity, urban resilience, and even global stability. The UN warns that the impact will impact every aspect of life – overwhelming health and education systems, weakening the economy and undermining the social fabric.

Francine Pickup, Deputy Director of the United Nations Development Program and head UNDP WUF13 delegate, said the agency hopes to use the forum in Baku to strengthen partnerships in promoting integrated urban solutions that combine housing, climate resilience, governance and local financing.

“The global housing crisis we are experiencing is not primarily a construction problem,” Pickup said. “We need to look beyond just building houses and housing, but also look at urban conditions and see the housing problem as a complex problem.”

Informal settlements: challenges and opportunities

One of the central themes of this forum is rapid growth informal settlementsor unplanned areas where residents have no legal claim to land and live in dangerous housing.

Currently, about 1.1 billion people live in slums, and projections show that figure could increase by another two billion in the next few decades. Children are the most vulnerable group: between 350 and 500 million children are estimated to live in slum conditions.

At the same time, UN-Habitat is calling for a change from an approach that views informal settlements as simply a problem. In many cases, these environments are the only way for millions of people to find shelter in cities.

Rebuilding after conflict

Another issue that may arise, against the backdrop of ongoing conflict and crisis, is how cities recover after war and disaster. By the end of 2022, more than 123 million people had been displaced worldwide, according to the UN, with more than 60% seeking refuge in urban areas.

Losing a home is more than just losing a roof. This can mean the breakdown of communities, loss of livelihoods, and deep insecurity. In Baku, the focus is not just on providing housing, but also on rebuilding lives – from restoring the environment and creating jobs to helping people find their way back to normalcy.

He added that discussions in Baku would also focus on reconstruction and recovery in countries affected by war and disasters.

“There is an urgent need not only to provide housing, but also to rebuild communities in a way that is inclusive, resilient and sustainable,” said Ms. Rossbach.

Climate shocks

Another line of discussion will focus on climate problems. Experts warn that the climate crisis is fast becoming a major driver of the global housing crisis. Extreme weather events – including floods, storms and forest fires – displaced more than 20 million people in 2023 alone. Estimates suggest that climate change could destroy 167 million homes worldwide by 2040.

At the same time, buildings remain one of the largest sources of emissions: the construction sector accounts for 34 percent of global energy-related CO2 emissions. Therefore, this forum will seek answers to two interrelated questions: how to build more housing while avoiding worsening the climate crisis.

“The theme of this Forum is housing. We will explore housing from a variety of perspectives – including informality, finance, sustainability and resilience,” said Ms. Rossbach.

“Now more than ever, we must be fully aware of the impact of climate change and the stress it is placing on housing systems. What we build, how we build, and where we build all have consequences for natural resources, climate resilience, and society’s ability to withstand shocks and disasters.”

A joint effort

The central theme raised in this forum was the need for collective action – bringing together everyone from government and local authorities to universities and grassroots communities.

“The World Urban Forum is our biggest platform to bring together stakeholders,” said Ms. Rossbach. “We hope to see a strong and diverse community come together in Baku and emerge from WUF13 with a stronger global coalition to tackle the housing crisis.”

“We cannot solve the global housing crisis alone. We need governments, local authorities, civil society, academia, communities and the private sector to work together,” he added.

The New Urban Agenda, 10 years later

The Baku Forum will also mark an important political milestone: this year marks the tenth anniversary of the New Urban Agenda adopted in 2016.

Next, in July, the UN General Assembly in New York City will conduct a midterm review of the Agenda, and discussions in Baku are expected to help determine how far the world has progressed in creating more sustainable, safe and affordable cities.

About the World Urban Forum

The World Urban Forum was founded by the UN General Assembly in 2001 and is hosted by UN-Habitat. Held every two years, it is considered the leading international conference focused on sustainable urbanization and the future of cities.

This forum brings together governments, urban planners, researchers, civil society groups and private sector representatives to examine how rapid urban growth is affecting society, the economy, infrastructure and climate. Since the first session in Nairobi in 2002, the forum has been held in various cities around the world. More than 27,000 participants registered to take part in the Baku forum.