BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22. The fundamental right to secure, adequate housing functions as an unyielding pillar underwriting human dignity, public health, physical safety, and comprehensive social integration, Bahar Muradova, Chairperson of the State Committee for Family, Women and Children Affairs of Azerbaijan, said, Trend reports.
The government official made the remark during the "Women's Roundtable" session, held within the framework of the 13th session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13) in Baku.
Muradova noted that female-headed households, displaced women, elderly citizens, women with disabilities, and those employed within the informal economic sector navigate significantly higher tiers of systemic socioeconomic vulnerability.
"In acute cases of gender-based violence, the absolute lack of safe, adequate housing forces women into an exceptionally harsh dilemma: either remain trapped within an abusive domestic environment or face the immediate, destabilizing risks of systemic poverty and homelessness," she pointed out.
According to her, the strategic discussions taking place at the roundtable mirror the global policy priorities of the Beijing+30 Platform for Action and the New Urban Agenda, both of which mandate the structural design of more inclusive, protective metropolitan ecosystems.
The State Committee head emphasized that formal, gender-neutral public policies frequently fail to yield equitable real-world outcomes in daily practice. Consequently, municipal and national planners must systematically integrate the distinct needs and lived experiences of women into initial urban design solutions.
She highlighted the critical necessity of securing equal access for women regarding land tenure, property rights, affordable credit streams, social housing programs, financial inclusion mechanisms, and targeted social protection nets.
According to Muradova, the government of Azerbaijan treats the active advancement of gender equality as a central priority of its national state policy matrix.
She reminded the delegation that the statutory law of the Republic of Azerbaijan "On Guarantees of Gender Equality" has formally established the provision of equal rights and strategic opportunities for men and women as a baseline constitutional obligation of the state for two decades.
Muradova concurrently reported that over the past six consecutive years, the State Committee has compiled and presented exhaustive annual data-driven reports to Parliament tracking the real-time status of gender equality. Furthermore, the ratification of the nation's new National Action Plan on Gender Equality aims to secure a highly systematic, institutionalized execution of these public policies.
At the municipal layer, specialized gender commissions and monitoring units attached to local executive authorities are working to mobilize community capacity to safeguard women and girls against discrimination and violence.
Turning to the comprehensive post-conflict rehabilitation of the liberated territories, Muradova stressed that Azerbaijan dedicates targeted attention to building inclusive living environments, secure public spaces, universally accessible social services, and resilient community networks.
According to her, housing strategy must be analyzed through a comprehensive, multi-dimensional prism, given that residential security maintains deep, unbreakable structural links with climate resilience, social safety nets, macroeconomic participation, and gender equity.
"Centering the distinct requirements and voices of women directly within executive decision-making loops consistently yields substantially more sustainable and high-performing development outcomes," Muradova stated.
The chairperson reiterated Azerbaijan's absolute readiness to continuously anchor international cooperation tracks, facilitate cross-border knowledge transfers, and drive forward a collaborative global policy dialogue in this critical governance domain.
Meanwhile, today Baku is hosting the final day of WUF13.
On the first day of the forum, a ministerial meeting on the New Urban Agenda, a ministerial roundtable, women’s and civil society assemblies, business sessions, and discussions on urban well-being took place. The forum also featured a flag-raising ceremony for the UN and Azerbaijan.
The second day of the forum was marked by the first-ever Leaders’ Summit. On this day, high-level discussions were held on the global housing crisis, urbanization policy, and urban sustainability. Also, as part of WUF13, the Mexico City pavilion was inaugurated, presented as a key platform for expanding cooperation with the Latin American region and preparing for WUF14.
The third day of WUF13 was also marked by an extensive program of events. Discussions on this day covered topics such as the global housing crisis, the creation of safe and inclusive cities, climate resilience, artificial intelligence and urban governance, “green” urbanization, social equality, and sustainable transportation.
One of the highlights of the third day was the signing of a sister-city agreement between the Azerbaijani city of Shusha and the Turkish city of Trabzon.
The fourth day of WUF13 featured an extensive program of events dedicated to the themes of urbanization, climate change, inclusive urban development, housing policy, and sustainable management.
On the fifth day of the forum, discussions continued on the global housing crisis, the creation of safe and inclusive cities, climate resilience, the use of artificial intelligence in urban management, “green” urbanization, and social equality.
One of the key events of the Cities Forum of the United Nations Special Program for the Economies of Central Asia (SPECA), held on the fourth day, was the announcement of Almaty’s official accession to the “Declaration of Intent on the Establishment of the SPECA Forum on Smart Cities Resilient to Climate Change.”
Also, for the first time in WUF history, the “WUF13 NGO Forum: Global Partnership and Decision-Making” was held at the initiative of Azerbaijan.
The WUF13 Forum, dedicated to the theme “Housing the world: Safe and resilient cities and communities", brought together governments, international organizations, experts, and civil society representatives to strengthen global cooperation in the field of sustainable urban development. More than 40,000 people from 182 countries registered to participate in the forum.
