Housing must become a priority
The World is experiencing a global housing crisis. By 2020, it is estimated the world slum population will reach almost 1 billion. Lack of clean water and sanitation claim the lives of more than 1.8 million young children every year. In the United States alone, 45.5 million people are living in poverty. Minimum wage is not keeping up with the rising cost of living and many workers struggle to afford decent housing. Decent, stable housing provides more than just a roof over someone’s head.
- Stability for families and children
- Sense of dignity and pride
- Health, physical safety and security
- Increase of educational and job prospects
Clean, warm housing is essential for prevention and care of diseases of poverty like HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, diarrhea, and malaria. Children under 5 in Malawi living in Habitat for Humanity houses have 44 percent less chance to contract malaria, respiratory or gastrointestinal diseases compared to children living in traditional houses. The percentage of people without access to decent, stable housing is rising and increasing the housing supply across the globe is essential. Adequate housing is vitally important to the health of the world’s economies, communities and populations. If we are to succeed in the fight against poverty, we must support the expansion of housing both as policy and as practice