From Policy to Practice Advancing and Financing Housing, Inclusion and Urban Resilience through Global Exchange in Kenya and beyond

This side event, jointly led by the Ministry of Lands, Public Works, Housing and Urban Development and the Council of Governors (CoG), the BCRUP Secretariat together with key stakeholders, will showcase Kenya’s integrated and devolved approach to sustainable urban development, with housing and vulnerable urban communities at its core. The discussion will be guided by the Kenya Affordable Housing Program Framework, Building Climate Resilience with the Urban Poor (BCRUP) Programme Implementation Plan (2024-2034) and the Kenya Habitat Country Programme Document (HCPD) 2023–2027, ensuring strong alignment with national priorities, the New Urban Agenda and the SDGs. The session will highlight four complementary and interconnected areas of action: 1. Adequate housing delivery in Kenya, anchored in the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA), with the Affordable Housing Programme (AHP) as a flagship reform to expand access to decent and affordable housing while stimulating job creation, social inclusion, and sustainable urban development. 2. Displacement and integrated urban and territorial development reflecting Kenya’s response to protracted displacement and cross-border mobility, particularly in refugee-hosting counties such as Garissa and Turkana. 3. The Blue Economy and climate-resilient neighborhood planning highlighting how water-based and ecosystem-centered approaches can drive inclusive and resilient urban development. 4. Building Climate Resilience with the Urban Poor (BCRUP)- based on Kenya’s leadership as the co-lead to the BCRUP agenda with Brazil and the need to build resilience and enhance the adaptive capacity of the urban vulnerable communities against adverse climate change and socio-economic dimensions Through national policy perspectives and county-level experiences, the event will demonstrate how integrated planning, multilevel governance, partnerships, and community-centered approaches can translate the right to adequate housing and building resilience of the urban poor into practical and scalable solutions. Key objectives of the event include illustrating how integrated planning and multilevel governance can accelerate the implementation of housing and urban resilience policies at national and local levels, sharing practical tools, policy instruments, and lessons from Kenya’s experience, promoting peer learning and dialogue between Kenyan counties.