Ministerial Segment of the 78th Session of the Committee of Housing and Land Management

Madam Chair,
Minister,
Excellencies,
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen,

It is my honour to welcome you to the UN Office in Geneva, and on my own behalf and that of the UNECE Executive Secretary Ms. Olga Algayerova, who is today at the UN General Assembly in New York and sends her regrets for not being with you at this important meeting.

Let me start by congratulating you on the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the Committee. Together, through regional cooperation, you have achieved much success in the UNECE region during these 70 years. Yet, it is also evident that the region still faces pressing housing and urban development challenges. The high level of participation at this 78th session of the Committee and its Ministerial Meeting clearly demonstrates a strong political commitment to cooperation and to jointly addressing these challenges.

You will hear today how low fertility and an ageing population are changing the population structure in the region. How increasing migration into the UNECE region affects the housing sector. From 2010 to 2015, the number of refugees received in the UNECE region has risen from 2 to 4.8 million. Increasing urban expansion not only reduces the land available for other uses, but compounds existing concerns about sustainability, especially in the context of climate change, natural disasters and associated economic and social losses.

The majority of people today are living in cities. It is estimated that in the next 30 years, the population living in cities across the world will have grown to 6 billion. We have very little time to make the transformative changes that will help us confront this growth and provide the services we need in a sustainable manner. UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed stressed rightly in speaking about the New Urban Agenda, “it is clear that it is in cities where the battle for sustainability will be won or lost.”

Why is this? On the one hand, employment and economic prosperity is at the core of urban areas where 80 per cent of the global GDP is produced. With new strategies of low or no carbon development, cities are at the centre of environmental innovation with sustainable transport, energy efficient buildings and “smart” technology. Just as importantly, they also provide the space needed for the cultural activities, diversity and social experiences that underpin human interaction. I invite you to visit just above us the joint UNECE-UNOG exhibit called “Geneva-The Habitats Within”, which proves this last point in particular.

We know that cities are where some of the greatest human challenges lie. Cities consume most of the energy available and produce the greatest amount of carbon emissions. In the UNECE region, buildings alone account for approximately 40 per cent of energy consumption and 40 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions. Unsustainable urban development creates even greater inequalities, and marginalizes the most vulnerable populations. Air quality is a serious concern for cities, where poor planning increases traffic congestion.

Adding to the complexity is the limited access to affordable and adequate housing and infrastructure, especially for vulnerable groups such as the young and the elderly. This is detrimental to multiple aspects of living in cities and other human settlements.

The UNECE Committee on Housing and Land Management is a unique platform for governments and other stakeholders to cooperate on these shared housing and urban development challenges. The Committee has proved over the last 70 years that it is committed to ensuring decent, adequate, affordable and sustainable housing for all. Congratulations again for re-confirming this commitment in the Ministerial Declaration, and integrating the new global commitments to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development with its 17 Sustainable Development Goals, the New Urban Agenda and the Geneva UN Charter on Sustainable Housing.

I, and my colleagues at the United Nations Office in Geneva have established excellent working relations with the UNECE over the years. The joint exhibitions of disaster risk housing, the World Habitat Day annual joint exhibitions and celebrations, and the joint workshops are important vehicles to communicate to Geneva and the wider international audience, on the challenges of housing and urban development. We are closely following the establishment of the Geneva International Cities Forum, which will be an important platform also for the cooperation with your Committee.

I look forward to our continued cooperation, and wish you a fruitful and successful meeting.

Thank you.