Thus, urbanization will help reduce population growth. The latest global census shows slower rates of population growth in many cities in Africa, Asia and Latin America, where overpopulation is most rampant. Only cooperation between the public and private sectors, with government support, will help to overcome existing barriers and mobilize necessary investment flows in the housing sector. So far, lack of financial resources and technical expertise, and ineffective housing regulations, have stunted housing growth. The reason housing is an important investment is that income generated from housing projects stimulates private growth.
Preventative measures save lives, and their costs are significantly less than the cost of passivity.
The report cautions, however, that informal-sector construction is prone to health, safety and labour abuses. Much of the problem in providing housing in the developing world stems from excessive building regulations and codes. Also, increased inflation has led to a fall in construction activities, making the building and construction industry suffer as a result of increased raw-material prices. Another short-run pressure on housing construction in the developing world is government economic reform geared towards privatizing economies. These reforms, which affect taxation, financial markets, product markets, labour markets and social services, are seen by Habitat as helpful in the long run, but they have reduced public investment in building in the short term.