BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 21. Investments in housing construction generate a multiplier effect on the economy, Anacláudia Rossbach, Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlements Program (UN-Habitat), said, Trend reports.
She made the remarks during a session titled "Housing at the Centre of Crisis Recovery and Reconstruction" held within the framework of the 13th session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13) in Baku.
According to her, the residential housing sector remains insufficiently prioritized even within broader development finance architectures, holding an exceedingly small share across the aggregate portfolios of international development banks.
The Executive Director noted that across most global geographies, resolving the housing deficit anchors itself strictly to the mobilization of domestic financial resources.
''Humanitarian funding secured by United Nations agencies and non-governmental organizations targets life-saving operations and emergency relief as a primary objective, meaning these streams rarely undergo direct allocation toward long-term housing provisions,'' she added.
"In nations unable to build resilient domestic financial frameworks, the housing deficit deepens severely. Consequently, populations undergo forced displacement across wider peripheral areas, aggravating uncontrolled urban sprawl," Rossbach explained.
This structural breakdown operates as a systemic flaw on a global scale, she noted, emphasizing that the international community must collectively engineer comprehensive mechanisms to address it.
Rossbach underscored that even when emergency humanitarian planning operates under hyper-constrained fiscal baselines, housing provision must be classified as a core priority from the initial conceptualization and master-planning phases.
"We must systematically fortify local social capital and community-based capacities. When backed by targeted institutional support, community-led resources can successfully scale into a phased, highly sustainable post-crisis recovery trajectory," she pointed out.
According to her, this localized methodology can undergo partial execution immediately, even prior to achieving sweeping structural transformations across existing global financial systems.
The Executive Director highlighted that local municipal authorities fulfill a uniquely critical role within this matrix. "This stems from the reality that local government bodies operate as the primary anchors ensuring continuous utility service delivery and long-term operational sustainability throughout the reconstruction cycle," she emphasized.
Rossbach concluded that housing should transcend its standard evaluation as a mere social welfare issue, demanding recognition instead as a high-value macroeconomic sector.
"The residential housing sector commands a massive vertical value chain, generating extensive downstream commercial channels for both multinational corporations and small-to-medium enterprises. Direct capital injection into housing stimulates localized economic development, drives employment loops, and triggers substantial income expansion," she stated.
"This comprehensive operational approach exerts a powerful positive influence on a nation's Gross Domestic Product (GDP), allowing initial infrastructure investments to deliver robust multiplier economic effects throughout the broader financial circulation loop," the UN-Habitat chief concluded.
Today marks the fifth 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.
One of the highlights of the third day was the signing of a sister-city memorandum between the Azerbaijani city of Shusha and the Turkish city of Trabzon.
The fourth day of WUF13 featured a broad program of events dedicated to urbanization, climate change, inclusive urban development, housing policy, and sustainable governance.
One of the important events of the UN Special Program for the Economies of Central Asia (SPECA) Cities Forum, held on the fourth day, was the announcement of Almaty’s official accession to the “Declaration of Intent on the Establishment of the SPECA Smart Climate-Resilient Cities Forum.”
Also, for the first time in WUF history and at Azerbaijan’s initiative, the “WUF13 NGO Forum: Global Partnership and Decision-Making” was held.
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.
