Housing Demands Simultaneous Climate Resilience And Social Affordability - UNEP Official

(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 20. Solutions in the housing sector must simultaneously ensure climate resilience, energy efficiency, and social affordability, otherwise they entrench long-term inequality, Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, UN Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), said, Trend reports.

The official made the remarks during a panel session titled "The Climate-Housing Nexus" held within the framework of the 13th session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13) in Baku.

"We must understand how important a home is for every person, regardless of social status. This means, first of all, that we need to ensure that housing in every community is decent, climate-resilient, energy-efficient, and environmentally sustainable," she noted.

According to her, ensuring housing affordability for all segments of the population remains a critical issue.

"When we speak about housing, especially in a social context, we are talking about who can and who cannot afford to secure it. Our main priority is to guarantee housing affordability for the entire community," she added.

She also emphasized the importance of using eco-friendly building materials and adopting a systemic approach to sustainable construction.

"We know that billions of people around the world live in homes, and a significant portion of them reside in informal settlements," Mrema said, pointing out the necessity to overhaul incentives in the construction sector and eliminate market imbalances that affect the quality and sustainability of housing.

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