United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. By 2030, ensure access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services; provide access to safe, affordable transport systems for all, improve road safety, expand public transport; reduce the adverse environmental impact of cities, paying special attention to air quality and municipal and other waste management.

Before the pandemic, cities had rising numbers of slum dwellers, worsening air pollution, minimal open public spaces and limited convenient access to public transport. The direct and indirect impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic are making it even more unlikely that this Goal will be achieved, with more people forced to live in slums, where quality of life is deteriorating and vulnerability increasing.

The number of slum dwellers has continued to grow over the years, exceeding 1 billion in 2018. Slum dwellers are most prevalent in the three regions of Eastern and South-Eastern Asia (370 million), sub-Saharan Africa (238 million) and Central and Southern Asia (226 million).