Speaking via video message to the World Urban Forum in Baku on Monday, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres delivered a stark warning: the global housing crisis is accelerating and hitting wealthy and developing nations alike. “No society is immune, from fast-growing cities in the developing world to advanced economies with high rents and rising homelessness,” he told the assembled delegates.
The forum, now in its thirteenth edition, has drawn more than 40,000 registered participants from 182 countries, making it one of the most attended in its history. Guterres linked the crisis to wider economic and geopolitical instability, urging governments to place housing “at the centre of sustainable development.” He drew on his own experience volunteering in poorer neighbourhoods of his native Lisbon, noting, “I saw how profoundly housing affects people’s health, education and future.”
Baku as a Case Study in Urban Transformation
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev used the platform to showcase Baku’s redevelopment, particularly the transformation of a former oil-contaminated industrial district into a mixed-use area known as White City. “Baku was the first city in the world where oil was produced, back in 1846,” Aliyev said. “Today we have White City, the model of urban development. It’s a city inside the city.” He also noted that over the past two decades, the city has created more than 100 parks and squares.
Annalena Baerbock, president of the United Nations General Assembly, expanded on the consequences of inadequate housing. “Without safe housing, health erodes, education is disrupted, insecurity deepens, inequality hardens, and communities become more vulnerable to climate shocks and disasters,” she said. Baerbock highlighted that more than 1.1 billion people live in informal settlements or slums, and over 300 million are homeless. She stressed that construction alone is insufficient: “What is required is a systematic approach that connects housing with infrastructure, basic services, climate resilience, financing and inclusive planning.”
Anar Guliyev, Azerbaijan’s national coordinator for the forum, noted that for the first time in the forum’s history, a dedicated session at heads-of-state level had been convened, at Azerbaijan’s initiative. “The World Urban Forum is more than a conference,” Guliyev said. “It is a key platform for advancing global urban policy, strengthening partnerships and supporting the implementation of the New Urban Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals.” He added that “cities now sit at the centre of challenges linked to climate change, housing affordability, migration and infrastructure resilience.”
Nga Kor Ming, president of the UN-Habitat Assembly, praised Azerbaijan’s hosting and framed Baku as a symbol of urban transformation and international cooperation. “It is a profound honour to stand before you in the historic city of Baku, at the crossroads of the ancient Silk Road and a city of the future with its modern skyline on the Caspian Sea,” he said. He thanked “the government and the people of Azerbaijan for their extraordinary hospitality and vision,” and issued a stark reminder: “As Baku becomes the capital of the world during this 13th World Urban Forum, let us recall a fundamental promise: when we fail to provide housing, we are breaking a promise to our children.”
The housing crisis is a pressing issue across Europe, from Lisbon to Berlin, where rising rents and homelessness have sparked political debate. The forum’s discussions come as the European Union grapples with short-term rental regulations that aim to balance tourism and housing affordability. Meanwhile, the crisis demands cross-border solutions, as highlighted in related coverage from the same forum.
Guterres’s warning underscores that no country, regardless of wealth, can afford to ignore the housing challenge. As the forum continues, delegates are expected to explore financing mechanisms, climate-resilient construction, and inclusive planning to address a crisis that affects nearly 3 billion people worldwide.
