In 1950, almost one-third of the world’s population lived in cities. Within 50 years, our towns and cities grew at a fast rate and became the hub of economic and social progress. These cities offered many opportunities and the number of city dwellers rose to include almost 50 per cent of the world’s population which created problems of space and habitat for all.
Slums began to develop in the cities. In addition to this, pollution and diseases began to spread. It also created problems of clean water, sanitation and shelter. This is where the work of the UN-Habitat comes in.
The goal of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) is sustainable urbanisation. Established in 1978, it was the outcome of Habitat I, the first UN Conference on Human Settlements and Sustainable Urban Development.
The UN-Habitat promotes socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities. It largely looks at the urban poor and works to provide adequate shelter for all.
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