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Housing and Land Management

Introduction

The UNECE Housing and Land Management Unit is a secretariat to the UNECE Committee on Urban Development, Housing and Land Management and its Working Party on Land Administration (WPLA), the Real Estate Market Advisory Group (REM) and the Forum of Mayors.

The Commitee on Urban Development, Housing and Land Management (CUDHLM) works to promote:

Affordable, adequate, climate-neutral housing, including for those with special needs and vulnerable population groups
Compact, inclusive, circular, resilient, smart and sustainable cities
Transparent and efficient land use, and property registration

This work is based on principles and objectives of key United Nations policy documents on housing and urban development, including, the Geneva UN Charter on Sustainable Housing and Place and Life in the ECE – A Regional Action Plan 2030. The proposed activities support implementation of decisions of the annual sessions of the Committee on Urban Development, Housing and Land Management.

Key areas of work

Affordable Housing

Energy Efficiency

Urban Development

Smart Cities

Land Administration

Country Profiles

In focus

Sixth meeting of the UN Forum of Mayors "Cities Delivering for a Sustainable Future” (Geneva, 12-13 October 2026)

The 6^th meeting of the UN Forum of Mayors will bring together mayors and local leaders from across the UNECE region and beyond to exchange experiences, discuss challenges and share best practices on the most pressing topics, and adopt an outcome document reflecting shared priorities, emphasizing the essential role of local actors in delivering a sustainable future.

The meeting will align with the 2026 session of the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (New York, 6-15 July 2026) and will focus primarily on Sustainable Cities and Communities (SDG 11), while also addressing cross-cutting Sustainable Development Goals.

For more information about the event, please visit the UN Forum of Mayors’ website at: https://land.unece.org/forumofmayors/events/sixth-meeting-un-forum-mayors-2026/.

UN4UkrainianCities

The UN4UkrainianCities project, implemented by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and supported by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH., is a comprehensive initiative aimed at revitalizing urban development in Kharkiv and Mykolaiv.

The project comprises five key components, including the revision of national housing and urban development policies, the creation of an online Toolbox for reconstruction support, development of future scenarios based on economic and demographic assessments, formulation of urban planning and architecture pilot projects, and establishment of a monitoring system and investment tracker.

The project's holistic approach, incorporating policy revisions, strategic planning, investor engagement, and community involvement, reflects a concerted effort to foster sustainable urban development and resilience in Ukrainian cities.