BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 20. Over four million people worldwide live in slums, Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlements Program (UN-Habitat) Anacláudia Rossbach said at the event "Transforming Informal Settlements and Slums for Housing the World" within the framework of the 13th session of the World Forum of Cities (WUF13) in Baku, Trend reports.
"I lived in a slum in Brazil. I dedicated a period of my life to solving problems in this direction," she recalled.
According to her, millions of people in Africa and South Asia are facing this problem.
"Currently, a large number of people in the world suffer from the problem of slums. They do not have the most basic services such as toilets, electricity, and gas. People have difficulty finding clothes and jobs. All this creates serious social problems.
Health problems are directly related to informal settlements. Climate change and slums are closely related issues. More than four million people around the world live in slums. The current situation is critical. Therefore, we must work to reduce the number of slums. State policy alone is not enough. An integrated, complex framework must be formed for this. Azerbaijan is already supporting Somalia in this direction. It's working to transform the slums in Somali into living quarters," she noted.
Today marks the fourth day of WUF13 in Baku.
The first day included a ministerial meeting dedicated to the New Urban Agenda, a ministerial roundtable, assemblies for women and civil society, business sessions, and discussions on urban prosperity. An official ceremony marking the raising of the UN and Azerbaijani flags also took place.
The second day stood out for the inaugural Leaders' Summit, featuring high-level discussions on the global housing crisis, urbanization policy, and urban resilience. Concurrently, the opening of the Mexico City pavilion took place, serving as a significant platform for expanding cooperation with the Latin American region and preparing for WUF14.
The third day of WUF13 featured a comprehensive program of events covering the global housing crisis, the formation of safe and inclusive cities, climate resilience, artificial intelligence and urban governance, green urbanization, social equity, and sustainable transport.
WUF13, which has attracted more than 40,000 registered participants from 182 countries, will continue until May 22. Held under the theme “Housing the world: Safe and resilient cities and communities,” the forum brings together governments, international organizations, experts, and representatives of civil society to strengthen global cooperation in the field of sustainable urban development.
