Habitat’s support of Sustainable Development Goal 11

Housing is an important component of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and an essential driver for achieving many of the Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs. In particular, SDG 11 aims to make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.  

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

In 2015, 193 national governments came together at the U.N. and adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development — also known as the Sustainable Development Goals — to address global development challenges through an intersectional approach. This collection of 17 goals and 169 targets forms a framework to guide global development.

Addressing the rapid growth of cities

It’s projected that by 2050, two-thirds of humanity — 6.5 billion people — will be urban, especially in the developing world. Governments cannot achieve sustainability without significantly transforming the way we build and manage our urban spaces. To address this reality, Habitat has focused our attention on advocating for and supporting commitments to SDG 11 and its targets.

SDG 11 recognizes the need to make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. Specifically of note is target 11.1: “By 2030, ensure access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services and upgrade slums. Integrated housing frameworks support economic, social and environmental policy planning and infrastructure linkages across the urban-rural ecosystem, building increased resiliency.”

Habitat’s support of SDG 11

Habitat works to ensure that the countries that adopted the SDGs prioritize working toward SDG 11. In order to do so, we promote the development of the tools, training and data sources that a national government would need to build its capacity for reporting. To achieve SDG 11 by 2030, all stakeholders must work together to find success. That’s why we engage the U.N., local and regional governments and civil society organizations to play a role in supporting commitments to this target.

SDG 11 recognizes the need to make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. Specifically of note is target 11.1: “By 2030, ensure access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services and upgrade slums. Integrated housing frameworks support economic, social and environmental policy planning and infrastructure linkages across the urban-rural ecosystem, building increased resiliency.”

In Progress Report: Sustainable Development Goal 11, released by Habitat for Humanity International, SDG 11.1 is one of the few SDG targets where — even prior to the impact of COVID-19 — we witnessed a reversal from previous progress made. The global backtracking of this target is attributable to multiple factors, including a lack of prioritization of housing in development programs, a lack of recognition of the complexity of the housing ecosystem, lack of cooperation among key stakeholders, lack of progress in other SDGs, and shortcomings of data collection and reporting. In sum, equitable access to adequate housing is one area, globally, where much progress must still be made.