Existing housing finance systems remain fragmented and inaccessible for millions of people, while unequal access to credit and limited public investment continue to exacerbate housing inequality and spatial segregation.
“Elchi” reports that this is stated in the “Baku Call to Action” adopted at the conclusion of the 13th session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13).
The document notes that current housing finance mechanisms often fail to reach low-income families and communities.
The authors of the call advocate for a rethink of the entire housing finance chain to increase inclusivity and scale up support through strengthening municipal finance, expanding financial autonomy, and developing revenue-generation strategies.
The document also includes a call for development banks and the private sector to prioritize expanding access to credit and creating predictable, long-term financial mechanisms that account for territorial characteristics and target the most vulnerable population groups.
Furthermore, the “Baku Call to Action” emphasizes the need for collaboration between the private sector and national and local authorities, central banks, financial institutions, and public savings structures to develop new mechanisms for risk assessment and management, targeted subsidies, expanded access to credit, and blended finance.
Parliamentarians and national treasuries have been urged to diversify public subsidies while considering various housing approaches, as well as to more actively mobilize private and public savings.
The document also notes that fragmented planning systems continue to reinforce spatial inequality and inefficient urban sprawl by separating housing from land, infrastructure, transport, income sources, and basic services.
In this regard, the authors of the call advocate for integrated and systemic approaches to planning that incorporate housing policy into broader territorial and urban strategies, with an emphasis on equity, inclusivity, spatial justice, and the right to the city.
It was emphasized that the implementation of such approaches should be carried out through empowering local authorities, civil society organizations, local community movements, and the private sector to co-design solutions.