For the past
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70 years, the Committee has focused on a comprehensive review of housing-related trends and policies.
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After the Second World War, its activities largely concentrated on the reconstruction of Europe. It then broadened its area of work, covering other aspects of housing that contribute to the formulation of housing policies in many of its member States. After 1960, urban planning and land use were incorporated into its work. In 1996, the Committee established the subsidiary body,
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Meeting of Officials on Land Administration, to specifically deal with issues related to land management and real estate markets. In 1999, this body was given the new name,
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Working Party on Land Administration.
In 2000 and 2006 the 56 UNECE member States articulated and affirmed their vision of the role of the Committee and the scope of its activities.
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The 2000 Ministerial meeting on Human Settlements reviewed and appraised the implementation of the Habitat Agenda in the ECE region as a contribution to the special session of the General Assembly, Istanbul +5 held in 2001. (See the Report on the Ministerial Meeting and the annexed Ministerial Declaration). The objective of the meeting was to foster discussion on the vision and direction of future work to improve housing and urban conditions in the ECE region. As an outcome, the Ministers and Heads of States adopted the "ECE Strategy for a Sustainable Quality of Life in Human Settlements in the 21st Century". This document is based on the provisions of the Habitat Agenda and Agenda 21, with particular emphasis on issues of common interest and concern for all countries of the ECE region.
The goal of the Committee, as outlined in the strategy
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is “to promote the sustainable development of human settlements in the ECE region while fostering economic and social prosperity and supporting democratic
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governance”. The strategy’s goals and challenges were validated in 2006 when the Ministerial Declaration on Social and Economic Challenges in Distressed Urban Areas in the UNECE region was adopted. This document considers
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that “significant challenges have also been noticed in Western
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Europe” and that “Informal settlements and distressed urban areas reflect a lack of planning and adequate housing policies.
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” The adopted 2006 Ministerial Declaration, along with the 2000 Strategy, guide the Committee’s work and reflect the experience, needs and approaches shaped by six decades of cooperation amongst the ECE Housing and Land Management community. To support this work: the Real Estate Advisory Group (2007) and the ad hoc Working Group on a Possible Framework Convention on Sustainable Housing (2010) have been established.
Since then, the Committee has further broadened its activities to better
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tackle the emerging
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challenges in the region on
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which the housing sector has a great
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impact such as:
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climate change mitigation and adaptation;
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real estate market stability, informal settlements. In order to better address all these issues and to identify the future actions needed, the Committee decided that the next Ministerial meeting will be held in 2013 (See Report of 72nd session)
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The mission of the Committee is “to promote sustainable development of human settlements in the ECE region while fostering economic and social prosperity and supporting democratic governance”.
The CHLM focuses on addressing major housing issues specific to the UNECE region. These challenges are in three clusters:
- Challenges linked more to the economic transition process including:
o Results of mass privatisation
o Lack of effective housing policies and legislation
o Inadequate property rights
- Challenges experienced more by advanced economies including:
o Innovative uses of technology
o Protection against fraud
o Ecologically sustainable urban development
- Shared challenges including:
o Energy efficiency in temperate-climate housing
o Retrofitting of poorly insulated temperate-climate housing
o Ecological, healthy and safe housing
o Well functioning land administration
o Real estate market stability and transparency
o Improved access to housing
The Committee on Housing and Land Management is the only intergovernmental body which promotes sustainable housing and land administration sectors in the region by:
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.