Overcoming barriers to affordable housing finance

Affordable Housing

How can we enhance access to affordable housing and scale up housing finance?

Housing is recognized as a fundamental right under Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Despite this, around 2.8 billion people live in inadequate housing conditions, lacking basic services and struggling to afford costs. The situation is projected to worsen, with an estimated 2.5 billion more people expected in African and Asian cities by 2050. Improving access to adequate and affordable housing is crucial for sustainable development. However, formal housing systems often fail low-income communities, with limited policy success and scarce access to housing finance. As a result, many must rely on informal methods, using their own savings and labor for housing solutions.

In this fifth and final episode of the Urban Innovation to Achieve Just & Sustainable Cities peer-learning series, we will focus on effective mechanisms to improve access to finance for those who do not qualify for commercial loans. This discussion aims to highlight successful practices in providing adequate, safe, and affordable housing and accessing finance in the Global South. Additionally, it will examine barriers and opportunities related to housing-related finance for low-income households and explore potential interventions along the housing supply chain to enhance access to affordable housing on a larger scale.

This session is co-organized by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and the Centre for Affordable Housing Finance in Africa, in partnership with Cities AllianceUN-Habitat, ICLEISlum Dwellers International, the African Union for Housing Finance, and the City Diplomacy Lab

Program

Keynote: Illana Melzer, Engagement Manager, 71point4

Moderation: Lorenzo Kihlgren Grandi, Founding Director, City Diplomacy Lab

Speakers:

  • Kecia Rust, Executive Director, Centre for Affordable Housing Finance in Africa (CAHF)
  • Joy Wachira, Programme Lead Green Affordable Housing, REALL
  • Girlie Lopez, Philippines Country Programme Manager, Build Change