Somalia is a backward country and faces many challenges every year. Every year people become homeless due to drought. The residents here are poor, but a large population lives below the poverty line. These people are deprived of daily bread and a good house is a dream. 70% of the population lives in slums whose infrastructure is in disrepair.
The people of Somalia need affordable housing. Low-cost housing societies need to be created. According to experts, this is possible if low-cost housing societies are created through public-private partnerships. Then, apartments or houses built in these housing societies should be given to people in easy monthly installments. This will make Somalia their home country, and there will be no financial burden on these people.
This situation in Somalia is only due to political instability, terrorism, and other challenges. There is an urgent need for international aid to save people from becoming homeless and to give houses to the homeless.
Urbanization and Housing Demand in Somalia
Because the villages of Somalia are facing challenges due to tribal principles and are often controlled by terrorist organizations like al-Qaeda and al-Shabaab, people prefer to live in cities. Many people are migrating from villages to cities.
Cities offer a good lifestyle for Somalis and opportunities for education and employment for their children. This is the reason that now about 46% of the population in Somalia lives in cities and Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia, is also increasing by 5% annually. As people move to the cities and live here, the prices of land have also increased.
Barriers to Affordable Housing Development
As it has been mentioned before Somalia is a poor country where about 80% of people are living in extreme poverty, rather it can be said that these 80% of people are living below the poverty line. Therefore, it has become impossible for them to live in good societies and their homes.
The biggest obstacle to affordable housing schemes in Somalia is political instability and lack of government institutions. Apart from this, land conflicts and the rule of occupation mafia are also major obstacles here. It is important to solve this issue at the government level and take measures to provide affordable housing to people and for this, it is very important to have international support.
Policy Solutions and Sustainable Housing Models
Experts say that about 30 to 40% of people in Somalia need government-subsidized housing. And these projects can be made if the government here forces banks and microfinance institutions to launch subsidized schemes. This has been seen in other countries as well and it’s very sustainable and good results are in front.
Recently, a subsidized housing finance scheme was launched in Pakistan under which millions of homeless and low-income people got houses in installments. There is an urgent need for similar schemes and housing projects in Somalia. But for this, the help and assistance received from the World Bank and the IMF is very important. Because Somalia lacks resources, international aid is critical.
