Housing as a Right, not an Investment Curbing Speculation to Ensure Affordable Housing in the Global South

With 2.8B people facing housing inadequacy and 1.1B in slums, housing has become a speculative financial asset. Additionally, Market volatility and "profit-first" development leave 167M homes at climate risk, displacing low-income groups and fueling urban inequality across the Global South This session explores how multilevel governance systems can operationalize housing policies that guarantee affordability. The framework focuses on Investor Attraction through strategic fiscal and regulatory tools, such as tax exemptions, fast- permitting, and land-use incentives. In exchange, developers commit to allocating 50% of their projects to low-cost housing units, leading to: • Economic & Social Value: This functions as a vital in-kind contribution, enabling Local Revenue Mobilization without depending directly on government’s budget, and a steady construction flow creates a powerful Economic Multiplier by generating consistent jobs and stimulating local businesses. • Long-Term Social Multiplier: we protecting these gains, by applying Anti-Speculation laws prevent the resale of subsidized units, ensuring they remain social assets. This securing housing and allowing families to reinvest in health and education, building community resilience and driving sustainable growth This 90-minute dialogue reframes housing as engine for economic growth and social stability. 10-minute high-impact introduction on unlocking household income for productive growth, a 45 min dissects global models for scaling low-income housing through investor incentives and anti-speculation safeguards to secure long-term Social Multipliers. 25-minute interactive laboratory, utilizing real-time polling to crowdsource solutions for local value-chain integration. The dialogue concludes (10 min) by synthesizing these insights into an actionable Policy Roadmap for sustainable urban resilience Speakers include experts in affordable housing policy, housing finance, housing economics, social urban development, and real estate developers experienced in affordable housing incentives. The audience includes city officials, policymakers, NGOs, and private-sector actors. Outcomes include understanding effective mechanisms to attract investment into low-cost housing, policies to prevent speculation, economic benefits of reduced housing costs, social stability from secure housing, and practical lessons for scaling affordable housing while linking it to local value chains and job creation