During the World Urban Forum 13 (WUF13) in Baku, Jamala Nakhchivani, the Editor-in-Chief of Global Art Magazine, discussed with Mr Charles Hinga, the Housing Minister of Kenya, his impressions of the World Urban Forum 13 (WUF13), the global housing crisis, and the importance of innovation and youth involvement in shaping the cities of tomorrow.
— Mr Hinga, welcome to the Global Art Magazine! Please, share your impressions of the World Urban Forum 13, held in Baku.
— First of all, I would like to sincerely thank the Azerbaijani government and people for their incredibly warm welcome. You have a beautiful country, remarkable people, and an extraordinary city. I have truly fallen in love with Baku. This is my first time in Azerbaijan, and the experience has been wonderful. Kenya and Azerbaijan already share a strong relationship, and our President was here as well, he departed today. We are looking forward to strengthening cooperation between our two countries even further. Regarding the forum, it is fundamentally about housing people. Today, the world is facing a major global housing crisis. Around three billion people need affordable housing, 1.1 billion people live in slums, and approximately 300 million people are homeless. That is why this forum is extremely important.
One of the key discussions here is financing, because housing development is expensive. We have leaders, financial institutions, and countries that have successfully used domestic resources to provide housing for their citizens. It creates a valuable learning environment for all participants. In Kenya, we are already implementing a large-scale housing program, and we are here not only to learn from others, but also to share our own story and experience. We are very happy to be part of this dialogue.
— What's the importance of creativity and innovative thinking in solving global challenges?
— Innovation is absolutely essential. We also need to involve young people because they are naturally creative and often think differently from older generations. Kenya is fortunate to have a very young and dynamic population, and they are actively engaged in these programs. Ultimately, this is about their future. We want to ensure that future generations live in better conditions than the ones we inherited ourselves.
— Thank you, Mr Hinga! We wish you success with all your goals and plans!
— Thank you so much!
