World Habitat Day 2023

World Habitat Day is held on the first Monday of October and launches Urban October. The day centers around the global observance, which is held in a different country each year with keynote speakers and roundtable discussions focused on a specific theme. World Habitat Day was first celebrated in 1986 in Nairobi, Kenya, with the theme ‘Shelter is my right’.

On 2 October 2023, the Global Observance of World Habitat Day, under the theme "Resilient urban economies. Cities as drivers of growth and recovery", will look at how cities can position their economies to benefit residents.

Register to attend the event

Registration to attend the Global Observance in-person or online is now open and will close on 27 September 2023, 18:00 hours (GMT+4). 

Register for WHD
Event City and Country
Baku, Azerbaijan.
Event Date
Quick Links
Information for Participants

Programme

WHD Programme

World Habitat Day Concept Note

Roundtable Concept Notes

Roundtable 1: Cities as national and regional drivers of socio-economic resilience and growth
English

Second National Urban Forum of Azerbaijan

National Urban Forum is organized by the government of Azerbaijan in collaboration with UN-Habitat. It is preceding World Habitat Day. It will take place in the cities of Zangilan and Baku, from 29 September - 1 October 2023. The event will bring together a diverse range of national and international urban stakeholders.  The forum will address key emerging urban challenges and showcase international experience focusing on the role of urban productivity and economic growth, hereby fully deploying the potential of the SDGs and the New Urban Agenda for economic resilience and transition to a more sustainable urban future. To register for the event, go to www.nufa.az.

Scroll of Honour

UN-Habitat, the United Nations agency focusing on sustainable urbanization, has launched nominations for its prestigious 2023 Scroll of Honour Award. Nominations were open from 20 March to 20 June 2023.

The UN-Habitat Scroll of Honour Award, launched in 1989, recognizes individuals and institutions that have made outstanding contributions to urban development, including improving the quality of urban life for all and providing adequate, affordable, and accessible housing. 

Nominations closed on 20 June 2023 and five winners have been selected. The winners will receive their awards at the global observance of World Habitat Day on 2 October 2023.

Scroll of Honor Winners

EcoVironment, Sierra Leone

For tackling the critical issue of plastic pollution and its detrimental impact on the urban environment.

Assembleia de Moradores from Braga, Portugal

For creating city-wide social, economic, and environmental development solutions for all residents in the City of Braga.

FICA (Fundo Imobiliário Comunitário para Aluguel), from São Paulo, Brazil

For its action devoted to fighting housing speculation and gentrification in central areas of three major cities in Brazil.

Dubai Municipality, United Arab Emirates

For establishing and implementing the Fat, Oil and Grease Waste Recycling Programme (FOG) to deal with waste material from the hospitality industry.

Fundación Pro Empleo Productivo A,C., from Mexico City, Mexico

For developing training programmes that promote job creation and improve economic productivity in cities.

More Information

Information on the previous World Habitat Day celebrations is available here.

Please feel free to contact us on our email address: unhabitat-whd@un.org