PIDE Seminar Calls for Urgent Action as Pakistan’s Housing Crisis Deepens
Islamabad – Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE) organized a policy seminar titled “National Housing Policy: A Framework for Affordable, Inclusive, and Sustainable Shelter for All” at the institute in Islamabad, to deliberate on Pakistan’s worsening housing crisis and the policy responses required to address it.
Dr. Malik Asghar Naeem, Coordinator of the National Housing Policy Working Group and Chief Planner at the Federal Government Employees Housing Authority (FGEHA), described housing as a fundamental human right and a shared national responsibility. He highlighted the gravity of Pakistan’s housing crisis, noting that rapid population growth and accelerating urbanization have resulted in a housing shortage of nearly 9–10 million units, while approximately 50 percent of the urban population now lives in slums and informal settlements, including katchi abadis. Vulnerable groups, particularly low- and middle-income households, remain disproportionately affected due to limited access to affordable housing, weak housing finance, regulatory gaps, and growing climate-related risks.
The session was moderated by Usama Abdul Rauf, Assistant Chief (Policy) at PIDE, and brought together policymakers, academics, researchers, and practitioners to examine the structural causes of housing shortages and explore pathways for inclusive and sustainable housing development.
The seminar emphasized that housing is recognized as a basic human right under Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to which Pakistan is a signatory. Despite this commitment, Pakistan continues to lag in providing adequate and affordable housing for large segments of its population. Dr. Naeem explained that the initiative to update the National Housing Policy was undertaken on the directive of the Prime Minister to revise the outdated National Housing Policy of 2001, reflecting the urgency of addressing contemporary housing challenges.
Providing an overview of the policy process, Dr. Naeem noted that the National Housing Policy 2025, currently in its final draft stage and expected to be submitted to the federal cabinet shortly, is based on a multi-stakeholder and evidence-based approach. The drafting process involved extensive consultations with experts from academia, urban development authorities, civil society, and international development partners, including UN-Habitat, the World Bank, and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), to ensure practical relevance and alignment with international best practices.
Addressing concerns arising from the post-18th Amendment governance structure, Dr. Naeem clarified that while housing is a provincial subject, the national policy serves as an overarching framework to guide coordination among federal, provincial, and local governments, while allowing provinces full autonomy to tailor policies according to local needs.
The seminar identified critical gaps in the 2001 policy, including the absence of compact, mixed-use, and high-rise development strategies; limited recognition of land scarcity; lack of climate-resilient and energy-efficient housing provisions; exclusion of corporate sector participation; weak land banking mechanisms; and inadequate implementation and monitoring frameworks. The proposed 2025 policy addresses these gaps through efficient land utilization, sustainable construction practices, inclusive housing finance, and institutional strengthening.
Dr. Naeem outlined nine thematic pillars of the policy, covering land for housing, development of intermediate and secondary cities, housing finance, construction services, slum rehabilitation, low-cost housing, green housing, institutional and legal frameworks, and capacity building. He emphasized land banking, land pooling, and compact and transit-oriented development as key tools to curb urban sprawl and protect agricultural land.
Housing finance was highlighted as a major constraint, with Pakistan’s mortgage-to-GDP ratio standing at just 0.3 percent, compared to over 30–40 percent in countries such as Germany and Malaysia. The discussion underscored the need to expand affordable housing finance, improve rental housing, and ensure quality accommodation for students and government employees.
Concluding the seminar, participants emphasized that sustainable urban planning, inclusive finance, corporate engagement, and stronger institutional coordination are essential to addressing Pakistan’s housing shortage and ensuring equitable access to decent shelter for all.
Sohail Majeed is a Special Correspondent at The Diplomatic Insight. He has twelve plus years of experience in journalism & reporting. He covers International Affairs, Diplomacy, UN, Sports, Climate Change, Economy, Technology, and Health.
