UN-Habitat to hold first session of expert working group on housing for all in Kenya
The first session of the Open-Ended Intergovernmental Expert Working Group on Adequate Housing for All will take place from 9 to 11 December 2024 in Nairobi, Kenya. This session will provide a dedicated platform for Member States to assess progress, share solutions, and discuss the challenges of ensuring adequate housing for all. It marks an important step toward addressing the global housing crisis and will highlight how housing solutions can promote both social equity and environmental sustainability.
Created by the United Nations Habitat Assembly in June 2023 through resolution 2/7, this Working Group is the first of its kind in the UN system to focus specifically on the global challenge of inadequate housing. This new initiative reflects the growing recognition that housing is not just a fundamental human right, but also a complex issue that demands coordinated, multilateral action to resolve.
An estimated 2.8 billion people globally live in inadequate housing, including homelessness, substandard living conditions, and energy poverty. As the crisis grows, it is increasingly important to consider solutions that do not exacerbate climate change, resource scarcity, or biodiversity loss. The housing sector must move towards solutions that promote environmental sustainability while addressing social equity. This session will discuss how to address the housing crisis within the framework of planetary boundaries, aligning housing efforts with broader environmental and sustainable development goals.
Key discussions will revolve around:
Progress on global housing efforts: UN-Habitat will report on the current state of global housing, focusing on key initiatives, challenges, and progress made by various countries in addressing housing needs.
Framework for measuring housing adequacy: UN-Habitat will report on the development of a framework for measuring and reporting on housing adequacy across diverse national and local contexts.
Existing multilateral and bilateral support for housing: UN-Habitat will report on existing multilateral and bilateral support for the development and implementation of effective housing policies and programmes.
