NAIROBI, Oct. 2 (Xinhua) -- Kenya should adopt innovative financing models in order to expand access to housing among low-income groups in the country's rapidly growing cities, a senior official at the United Nations housing agency said on Monday.
The executive director of UN-Habitat, Joan Clos, who acknowledged the growing housing crisis in Kenyan cities and towns, said that affordable credit facilities, land tenure and new construction technologies are key to expanding access to decent shelter among the poor.
"There is need to adopt pragmatic policies and legislation to ensure Kenyans living in cities have access to affordable housing," Clos said during an occasion marking World Habitat Day in Nairobi. "Pro-poor housing can be realized through establishment of credit schemes for low income population in urban areas."
The theme of the 2017 World Habitat Day is "Housing Policies: Affordable Homes."
Clos noted that new efforts had been channeled toward UN sustainable development goal (SDG) 11, which calls on countries to make cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.
"There is a linkage between urbanization and sustainable development," Clos said, adding that African governments have heeded the call to invest in decent shelter for the poor.
He singled out Kenya and Ethiopia for making headway in alleviation of urban housing crisis thanks to political goodwill and enactment of sound policies.
"In Kenya, we have witnessed improvements in a number of urban informal settlements. Ethiopia is also recognized for its pragmatic approach to promote affordable housing," said Clos.
Kenya is committed to expanding access to basic amenities like shelter, water, sanitation and health in low-income urban settlements as stipulated in the country's constitution and Vision 2030 growth blueprint.
The country's permanent representative to the UN-Habitat, Anthony Andanje, said both national and county governments have committed new resources to bridge housing gaps in urban areas.
"We have rolled out a new urban housing strategy that calls for new investment to ensure that access to decent shelter among low-income earners in cities is no longer a mirage," Andaje said.
A public-private partnership model is in the works to support construction of 150,000-200,000 new housing units required in Nairobi annually.
