The thirteenth session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13) takes place in Baku, Azerbaijan, from 17 to 22 May 2026. The theme of WUF13 is: Housing the world: Safe and Resilient Cities and Communities.
How can the UN system deliver coordinated solutions to accelerate housing and the SDGs? Adequate housing is central to achieving the SDGs and advancing inclusive, resilient, and sustainable urban development. Yet the global housing crisis continues to deepen, affecting nearly three billion people worldwide and undermining progress across multiple development priorities, including poverty reduction, health, climate resilience, and social inclusion. Addressing this challenge requires coordinated action across sectors, levels of government, and development partners. The One UN Roundtable at WUF13 will convene Resident Coordinators, United Nations entities, national and local partners, and development stakeholders to advance a shared UN system approach to adequate housing as a catalyst for SDG acceleration. The discussion will highlight how the UN development system, under the leadership of the Resident Coordinator system, can strengthen integrated and multilevel responses to the housing crisis while supporting countries in achieving their national development priorities. The roundtable will explore how housing can be more effectively integrated into United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks (UNSDCFs) and national development strategies, recognizing its cross-cutting contribution to multiple SDGs. It will also examine how SDG localization and multilevel cooperation can enable more context-specific and coordinated solutions that connect national policy frameworks with implementation at the city and community levels. Drawing on practical experiences and interagency collaboration mechanisms, including the Local2030 Coalition, the session will showcase examples of coordinated UN support that leverage partnerships, financing pathways, and multistakeholder engagement to scale housing and urban solutions. Particular attention will be given to the role of the UN in bridging gaps in financing, capacity, and data, while fostering stronger collaboration across sectors and institutions. The discussion aims to generate practical recommendations for strengthening system-wide UN engagement on housing and urban development, reinforcing the role of the Resident Coordinator system in enabling integrated solutions and advancing progress toward the SDGs. Guiding questions How can the UN country teams, under the UNSDCF, more effectively operationalize multilevel cooperation to deliver adequate housing in alignment with national priorities and global mandates? What prerequisites should be there to activate the potential? What are the concrete mechanisms, particularly in terms of interagency collaboration, pooled financing, strategic partnership and Resident Coordinator leadership, that can ensure coherence across global, national, and local housing strategies? What concrete actions can UN entities and Resident Coordinators in coordination with UN country teams, Government and other development partners take to jointly deliver housing, land, and basic services in fragile, under-resourced, and rapidly urbanizing areas? Is there any good practice that we can learn from? What practical tools and institutional measures are needed to help Government embed housing and service delivery priorities and budgeting processes into their planning tool, and to jointly implement through UNSDCF? Expected outcomes A joint UN and partners advocacy statement positioning adequate housing as a catalyst for SDG acceleration, underscoring its cross-cutting impact across multiple goals and providing practical recommendations for RCs and UNCTs to prioritize housing within UNSDCF design and implementation. This will serve as internal guidance for strengthened UN-wide engagement. Country- and city-level recommendations to strengthen alignment between UNSDCFs, national housing strategies, and territorial development plans, supporting more coherent and multilevel UN engagement on housing and basic service delivery. A Roadmap to leverage the space offered by the Local2030 Coalition to improve adequate housing at country-level through SDG localization (advocacy, capacity building, financing solutions, monitoring tools). Objectives The One UN Roundtable aims to advance a shared United Nations system approach to addressing the global housing crisis by positioning adequate housing as a catalyst for accelerating progress across the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The session will highlight the role of the Resident Coordinator system in fostering coordinated, multilevel action across UN entities and national and local partners. It will also explore how housing priorities can be more effectively integrated into United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks (UNSDCFs) and national development strategies, while showcasing practical examples of interagency collaboration and partnerships that support integrated housing and urban solutions.
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