BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22. The Baku Call to Action, which serves as the final
document of the 13th session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13) in
Baku, calls for the strengthening of public and local governance of
land systems to address the rising cost of housing and real estate
speculation, Trend
reports.
"Rising urbanization, mounting financialization and weak land
governance systems are driving increasing land costs, property
speculation, spatial inequality and insecurity of tenure. We call
for stronger public and local stewardship of land systems through
appropriate regulation of land markets, curbing speculation,
property taxation, inclusionary housing, development charges and
land value capture that ensure equitable access to serviced and
de-risked land," the document states.
In addition, the Baku Call to Action contains an appeal to
legislative and executive authorities to enhance accountability in
the land sector.
"We appeal to parliaments and national departments to
decentralize land management to local authorities and local
governments, land institutions, communities and development actors
must strengthen tenure rights and protections while advancing
inclusive and accountable land governance systems," the document
notes.
The thirteenth session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13) was held
in Baku from May 17 to May 22.
Convened by UN-Habitat and co-organized with the Government of
the Republic of Azerbaijan, WUF13 was held under the theme “Housing
the world: Safe and resilient cities and communities”.
The Forum hosted 579 sessions throughout the week, while the
Urban Expo brought together 260 exhibitors, innovators and solution
providers. WUF13 featured 11 heads of state, 9 high-level guests,
88 ministers and 76 deputy ministers, and 130 mayors, alongside
representatives of international organizations, financial
institutions, academia, civil society and grassroots
organizations.
