© UN-Habitat The 13th session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13), organized by UN-Habitat and the Government of Azerbaijan, is taking place in Baku, Azerbaijan from 17 to 22 May 2026. World leaders gather in Baku for the largest ever UN World Cities Forum Nargis Sheki Economic Development
Housing must be at the very center of sustainable development efforts. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres addressed this message to the participants of the thirteenth session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13), taking place this week in Baku. The forum, organized by the United Nations Human Settlements Program (UN-Habitat) jointly with the government of Azerbaijan, was marked by a record number of participants and the first World Leaders’ Summit in the event’s history.
“Housing as a priority”
In his video message to the forum participants, the head of the UN emphasized that housing directly affects people’s health, education and their future opportunities. “As Secretary-General, I am proud that the Pact for the Future and the Doha Political Declaration recognize housing as a priority,” he added.
“Housing is a human right and the basis of human dignity,” Guterres emphasized, calling on forum participants to make affordable housing “a shared reality.”
The Secretary-General also noted that the housing crisis is no longer limited to low-income countries. “No society is immune, from the fast-growing cities of the developing world to developed economies with high rents and rising homelessness,” he said.
“There are no easy solutions”
The President of the UN General Assembly, Annalena Burbock, said in her video message that there are no simple solutions to the crisis. “Building more housing is necessary, but it is not enough,” she said.
Berbock said a comprehensive approach is needed that links housing with infrastructure, climate resilience, finance and urban planning. She also noted that sustainable urban development is impossible without the participation of local communities, civil society and the residents themselves.
Rapid urbanization
The UN estimates that about 1.5 million people move to cities every week. By 2050, more than two-thirds of the world’s population will live in cities, with almost 90 percent of this growth occurring in Africa and Asia. At the same time, informal settlements continue to expand – in developing countries, more than 30 percent of urban residents live in slums and areas without adequate infrastructure.
UN-Habitat/K.Milhan An informal settlement in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.
Forum participants discuss ways to address these challenges, including ensuring access to basic services, building resilience to climate shocks, and better managing cities. Azerbaijan and Somalia are currently co-chairs of the UN-Habitat Intergovernmental Working Group on the Decent Housing for All Resolution. The group coordinates the activities of member states and develops global recommendations aimed at ensuring safe, sustainable and affordable housing around the world.
Welcoming forum participants on Monday, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev called his country “the place where East meets West.” According to him, this concept of “old and new” is reflected in Azerbaijani architecture. “By hosting this global meeting today, we are once again demonstrating our strong commitment to urban planning and our commitment to making people’s lives better,” he added.UN-Habitat Executive Director Anaclaudia Rossbach called the level of interest in the forum unprecedented. “Never before has a forum of this nature attracted such a large and diverse global audience,” she said. “Despite the heavy rains and thunderstorms that have affected parts of Azerbaijan in recent days, we have gathered here in Baku, full of determination and united by a common goal,” Rossbach added.
UN News Service Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlements Program (UN-Habitat) Anaklaudia Rossbach.
On May 17, a record amount of precipitation fell in Baku and the Absheron Peninsula – 103 millimeters, which is equivalent to 523 percent of the average monthly norm for May. The heavy rain continued non-stop for nine hours. Due to bad weather, the World Leaders’ Summit and some other events had to be moved from the Olympic Stadium to the Baku Congress Center.
Urban Expo
The opening of the largest exhibition in the history of the world city forums, Urban Expo, has also shifted slightly. The exhibition officially started on Monday. The exhibition, covering an area of 3.5 hectares, brought together more than 217 organizations from 66 countries. Governments, universities, international organizations, private companies and start-ups are presenting projects on affordable housing, digital technology, climate resilience and inclusive urban development.
UN-Habitat Pavilion: What is the meaning of the “spiral”?
Pavilions take center stage at the exhibition UN-Habitat, dedicated to the theme “Housing the World”. The concept of the pavilions is built around the image of a spiral – a symbol of the interconnectedness of people, nature and cities.
Speaking to UN News Service, UN-Habitat’s head of communications, Ekaterina Bezgachina, said the idea for the pavilion arose from thinking about what “home” means to a person. “We started thinking about what home means to a person. And we realized that home is also our planet and our Universe,” she said.
UN News Service UN-Habitat Pavilion: Visitors move through several interconnected “spirals”, each dedicated to a different theme.
The spiral is found everywhere in nature – from galaxies to the shell of a snail, which “always carries its home with it.” Visitors pass through several interconnected “spirals”, each of which is devoted to a different topic. One of them talks about the global housing crisis and showcases existing solutions from around the world. “We didn’t want to show only problems. We wanted to show that there are many solutions – people just don’t always know about them,” said the UN-Habitat representative.
Another section traces the path from the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights to the first conference on urbanization. It was held in Vancouver in 1976 and laid the foundation for the creation of UN-Habitat.
The architectural concept of the pavilion also echoes the modern appearance of Baku and its iconic landmarks – the Heydar Aliyev Center and the Flame Towers. The latter are also depicted on the official WUF13 logo. Inside the pavilion is a special UN-Habitat Arena, where 17 thematic sessions will be held in the coming days.