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“Home is not where you live, but where you belong.”
– African proverb
The United Nations’ World Habitat Day is held on the first Monday of October each year and launches Urban October, which culminates in World Cities Day on 31 October. The aim is to reflect on the state of towns and cities and champion the right to decent housing for all who live there. This year’s global observance focused on the overarching theme of “Adequate Housing for All”. World Habitat Day was first celebrated in 1986 in Nairobi, Kenya, with the theme “Shelter is my right.”
Currently, the global housing crisis has an estimated 2.8 billion people facing various forms of housing inadequacy, and close to 1.1 billion reside in slums and informal settlements, leading to calls for urgent and concerted action.
In Africa, rapid urbanisation is driving accelerated growth in the urban population, which is projected to reach 1.4 billion by 2050, meaning that more than half of the continent’s future urban infrastructure has yet to be built. The continent faces severe housing shortages because annual household incomes are often far lower than the cost of standard newly built houses.
The number of SDGs involved in sustainable housing reflects the complexity of the challenge. The primary SDG that focuses explicitly on housing and the right to safe shelter is SDG 11: sustainable cities and communities. SDG Target 11.1 specifically hones in on ensuring access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services and upgrading slums by 2030.
While SDG 11 is the direct target, several other SDGs are intrinsically linked to housing and shelter. Housing is a foundational determinant of well-being, meaning it deeply impacts several other goals: SDG 1: no poverty (Target 1.4), SDG 3: good health and well-being, SDG 6: clean water and sanitation, SDG 7: affordable and clean energy and SDG 13: climate action.
Across Africa, governments, NGOs and social enterprises are developing innovative approaches to make adequate housing more affordable, sustainable and accessible.
There are a growing number of innovative housing projects across the continent that provide compelling examples of how countries are addressing rapid urbanisation, housing shortages, financing challenges and climate resilience. Many recent housing projects across the continent are integrating sustainability measures such as solar energy, rainwater harvesting systems, energy-efficient designs and locally sourced materials.
A notable example of housing innovation is the social housing project in Bamako, Mali, developed by LEVS Architecten in collaboration with the government. The project uses locally produced compressed earth blocks, reducing construction costs and environmental impacts while creating local employment opportunities. Its modular design allows families to expand their homes over time, and community participation in the construction process helps foster local ownership and skills development.
Rwanda has emerged as a leader in testing zero-carbon affordable housing models that combine environmental sustainability with social goals. These projects incorporate energy-efficient designs and sustainable building materials to reduce carbon emissions while maintaining affordability, demonstrating how housing provision can support both development and climate objectives.
Kenya’s Affordable Housing Programme is one of the continent’s most ambitious attempts to address housing shortages at scale. Through partnerships between the public and private sectors and the use of innovative financing approaches, the programme seeks to increase the supply of affordable housing and improve access to secure homes for a growing urban population.
The Tanzania Women Architects for Humanity (TAWAH) won a UN-Habitat Scroll of Honour Award in 2025 for its rural project that addresses housing poverty and gender inequality by training women in brickmaking, construction and entrepreneurship while supporting them to build affordable, sustainable homes for elderly residents. By combining social inclusion with environmental sustainability, the project empowers vulnerable groups and promotes more resilient communities.
Modular and prefabricated housing is also gaining traction across Africa as a practical response to rapid urbanisation and housing shortages. By manufacturing housing components off-site and assembling them quickly on location, these approaches can significantly reduce construction times, lower costs, minimise waste and accelerate the delivery of affordable homes.
PLATFORMED is a South African social enterprise developing fully modular, prefabricated homes that can be assembled on site in a single day. The units are designed to be affordable for low-income households and can be relocated, offering a flexible housing model for communities where land tenure and housing security are ongoing challenges.
The African Union and the African Union Commission use World Cities Day and the broader Urban October campaign to promote sustainable urbanisation across Africa. Their role focuses on aligning member states with continental urban development priorities, including the Common African Position on Habitat III, Agenda 2063 and the New Urban Agenda. Through policy coordination, advocacy and partnerships, the AU encourages governments to integrate sustainable, inclusive and resilient urban development into national and regional planning frameworks.
Teresa Chissequere, Director of Maputo’s Urban Development Office, identifies major African urban challenges as informal settlements, infrastructure deficits, mobility constraints and climate vulnerability. However, she argues that these challenges also create opportunities for the private sector, including in planning consultancy, housing, transport, digital municipal services and ecotourism, thereby fostering local innovation. [Read the full interview here.]
“Africa is at a defining moment in its urban development journey,” says Oumar Sylla, Director, Regional Office for Africa at UN-Habitat. “The decisions and investments we make today will shape the continent’s cities and communities for generations to come. We must recognise that urbanisation is not merely a demographic trend; it is a powerful force for economic transformation, innovation and sustainable development.” [Read full interview here.]
– This article first appeared in the Green Economy Express newsletter, published by Africa’s Green Economy Summit.
Africa's Green Economy Summit connects industry professionals and organisations to information and each other in a carefully curated live environment. Its purpose is to support in mobilising investments for green projects to scale up and industrialisation, which will have a significant impact on environmental sustainability and economic growth.
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