Affordable Housing Key to Sustainable, Inclusive Cities

Organized under the critically important theme of “Cities 2030, Cities for All: Implementing the New Urban Agenda,” the 9th Session of the World Urban Forum is in progress in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The global convening focuses on the New Urban Agenda as a tool and accelerator for achieving the Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals. The World Urban Forum is the largest United Nations conference on sustainable urban development and cities.

Although cities are the focus of attention here, a poster displayed at the UN Habitat Pavilion caught my attention. It was entitled “Housing at the Centre,” with a headline saying “Over the next 15 years 3 billion people (40% of the world’s population) will need adequate housing.” The New Urban Agenda necessarily requires robust adequate housing policies. The availability of adequate housing is in fact a prerequisite for inclusive cities. Without sufficient public and private investment in housing, many of the new residents in urban areas will end up living in substandard conditions, challenging the livability and sustainability of cities. Consequently, the effective implementation of SDG 11 is indisputably important.  It calls for making cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable, including, as a target, by ensuring access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services and upgrade slums.  This is why the housing components of the NUA are so imperative.

This is not the first time a global convening has prioritized the global housing agenda. “Adequate shelter for all” and “sustainable human settlements development in an urbanizing world” were considered “two themes of equal global importance” in Habitat II held in 1996. The Habitat Agenda adopted then had many specific recommendations to achieve the goal of adequate shelter for all. Although some progress has been made since then, much work lies ahead of us.

We need clear guiding principles and better strategies and measurable outcomes to make a more meaningful difference this time. What is needed is even greater clarity and agreement on what needs to be done to achieve this goal, by whom, and with what resources.

The way forward isn’t easy, but it is achievable.  First, we need an integrated approach that comprises housing supply, housing finance, and subsidies. Second, housing must be understood not in isolation, or as a stand-alone sector, but more holistically, – particularly in relation to land use, transportation and the availability and location of jobs. Third, we need to secure sustainable financing mechanisms for both housing and urban infrastructure to ensure required investment in housing with adequate infrastructure. Fourth, roles for national and subnational governments, as well as for the private sector and civil society, must be defined in a clear and complementary way. Fifth, in light of the tightening budget constraints facing governments in many countries, it is important to minimize the need for subsidies. Sixth, we need markets to work efficiently to deliver adequate and affordable housing options to the largest share of population. Seventh, policies and programs for housing subsidies need to be reformed to consider the needs of all income groups that deserve government assistance. Finally, effective implementation of the NUA requires systematic data collection, analysis of data, and the capacity to measure and monitor progress.

We are humbled by the housing challenge ahead to achieve our goals by 2030. Sound policies engaging the key stakeholders will deliver on this important and Achievable global agenda.

Kyung-Hwan Kim is a Perry World House Visiting Fellow and a professor of economics at Sogang University where he has been on the faculty since 1988 and was academic dean from 2003 till 2006. He is a former vice minister of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport of the Republic of Korea (May 2015- June 2017). Mr. Kim is a fellow at the Weimer Graduate School of Advanced Studies in Real Estate and Urban Land Economic, a Penn Institute for Urban Research (IUR) scholar, a fellow of the Asian Real Estate Society (AsRES), a member of the editorial board of Journal of Housing Economics, and of the international advisory board of Housing Studies.