UN-Habitat and United World Infrastructure Partner to Develop Affordable Housing Projects
UN-Habitat and United World Infrastructure Partner to Develop Affordable Housing Projects
UN-Habitat and UWI partnership demonstrates a global shift towards greater private sector involvement in development projects with social, environmental, and economic gains.
Abu Dhabi UAE, February 10, 2020 – In keeping with the Sustainable Development Goal 11 to ensure access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services and upgrade slums, UN-Habitat and United World Infrastructure (UWI) have signed an MoU to develop affordable housing projects.
“Investors are often drawn to high-end or luxury developments because of the perceived higher margins and lower associated risks. This has caused large housing shortages around the world, and especially in those cities experiencing rapidly growing populations. But, we see strong investment opportunities in affordable housing in these markets,” Dr. Imran Markar https://www.uwi.com/leadership/ , Principal at UWI, shared. “We will be working with UN-Habitat to help identify these opportunities to create our signature yield-driven models for housing which is affordable and seamlessly integrated into larger thriving communities,” he added.
UN-Habitat will help select appropriate sites, ideally owned by a government, with a guarantee for government off-take for the affordable housing and facilitate these partnerships with governments that have fully developed proposals aligned with a long-term development agenda. UWI will manage the multi-stakeholder partnerships to design, finance, and develop projects that meet or exceed the criteria for Environmental, Sustainability and Governance (ESG) goals.
This partnership reflects an emerging UN-Habitat trend to build partnerships which achieve sustainable development. Sustainable Development Goal 17 sets expectations for governments and businesses to create innovative public-private partnerships which will advance these Sustainable and Safe Communities.
UWI will participate next week as a judge and mentor to city leaders in UN-Habitat’s Cities Investment Platform showcase at the 10th World Urban Forum at the Abu Dhabi Exhibition Center. The Cities Investment Platform provides support to urban leaders from around the world in attracting investment to key development projects, including affordable housing.
UN-Habitat emerged from a need identified in the 1970’s to address rapid urbanization. Since then, the initiatives and institution has continued to evolve with the urgency for a global approach to urban development across communities with diverse populations, land and climate, and systems. By 2050, the urban population will have surged by 60%. In just the next 15 years, cities will be accommodating 1.2 million people. There are currently more than 330 million people around the world who need more affordable housing options.
The World Urban Forum is free and will be taking place at the Abu Dhabi Exhibition Center from February 8 – 13. Over 23,000 delegations from around the world are expected to attend. The Cities Investment Platform will take place on Monday, February 10, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM.
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ABOUT UWI:
Operating globally, United World Infrastructure (UWI) invests in the acquisition, development, and management of real-estate and infrastructure assets to stimulate economic growth, technology transfer, and foreign direct investment. Committed to people-centric communities, UWI transforms underutilized land into real-estate assets that attract development catalysts such as theme parks, hospitals, and schools. Its infrastructure assets for new cities include: road networks, water and drainage systems, sewage systems, electricity, telecom networks, and systems for renewable energy and recycling to ensure environmental sustainability. UWI’s financial products, including yield-driven development models and infrastructure and commercial concessions, optimize returns to city investors. Recently, UWI began offering advisory services to governments and government-linked entities to advance the development of happier cities through measurement and targeted policy, infrastructure, and service recommendations.
