Assemblies - Women's Assembly: Breakout session (WUF13)

How can gender-transformative housing policies unlock equality and dignity for all women and girls?

The Women's Assembly is a cornerstone of the World Urban Forum (WUF), providing a platform to elevate women's leadership and ensure gender equality is central to the entire discourse, while ensuring continuity and accountability for commitments made during previous WUFs.

The session is designed as a four-hour participatory and multi-stakeholder dialogue at the beginning of WUF, to ensure that women's perspectives and recommendations are mainstreamed across all subsequent WUF events and outcomes.

The Women's Assembly at WUF13 will situate its dialogue on gender equality within the Forum's theme of "Housing the World: Safe and Resilient Cities and Communities." Around the world, women and girls, particularly those facing intersecting forms of discrimination, experience disproportionate barriers in accessing adequate housing. These are accentuated among the ongoing global housing crisis and include insecure tenure, exclusion from property ownership, lack of access to finance, unsafe living environments, and vulnerability to climate impacts or forced displacement.

The Assembly will examine how gender-transformative housing policies can address structural inequalities, promote gender equality and advance inclusive urban development. It will provide a platform to discuss evidence based on gender statistics, share impact practices and mobilize commitments toward housing systems that serve all women and girls. Led by women's groups, human rights defenders and activists, the Assembly will provide a space for everyone working on gender equality, including national and local authorities, urban professionals, private sector and academia.

This will be done under a participatory format mixing plenary segments with thematic deep dives focused on aligning priorities, connecting with ongoing processes such as the review of the New Urban Agenda and showcasing practices. As a result, recommendations to support governments in advancing gender-responsive housing policies will be integrated into the Baku Call to Action, while activating international networks and mechanisms to monitor progress, share innovations and support implementation.

Guiding questions

How can housing policies move beyond gender-responsive to become truly gender-transformative?

How can women's leadership in housing and urban planning drive climate-resilient models that integrate local knowledge and community priorities?

How can housing policies and planning frameworks integrate care, mobility, and service provision to create inclusive, equal, and sustainable living environments for women in their diversity and their communities?

Expected outcomes

A set of recommendations supporting UN-Habitat, partners and governments in advancing gender-transformative housing policies.

​​​Integration of gender-responsive priorities into the Baku Call to Action

Activation of international networks and cooperation mechanisms for monitoring progress, sharing innovations, and supporting implementation.

Global visibility for case studies, innovations, and replicable models.

Objectives Mainstream gender equality across global urban dialogues

Identify solutions for women's access to land, property, and climate-resilient housing, with particular attention to marginalized women and girls.

Promote an intersectional approach capable of addressing the multiple and overlapping forms of discrimination that hinder women's and girls' access to adequate housing.

Build and strengthen multi-level partnerships

Develop actionable and measurable recommendations to be incorporated into WUF13 outcomes

Build networks, coalitions, and platforms to consolidate advocacy efforts and ensure sustained follow-up and implementation beyond WUF13.