Harness ‘transformative potential’ of urbanization for people and planet
UN News
The need is all the more pressing given the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact, UN Secretary-General António Guterres outlined in a message.
“Access to clean water and sanitation, along with social distancing, are key responses to the pandemic. Yet in slums it has proved difficult to implement these measures”, said Mr. Guterres.
“This means an increased risk of infection, not only within slums, but in whole cities, many of which are largely serviced by low-income informal sector workers living in informal settlements”, he said.
Globally, more than a billion people live in overcrowded settlements with inadequate housing, and the number is expected to reach 1.6 billion by 2030.
