Publication: Housing Finance in Afghanistan : Challenges and Opportunities
Loading...
Published
2008-07
ISSN
Date
2012-06-14
Author(s)
Editor(s)
Abstract
This study examines the constraints on the housing sector in Afghanistan. It evaluates government policy on housing, looks at the state of housing finance, and examines legal and regulatory barriers with a bearing on the housing market. The report provides policy recommendations aimed at helping to develop a private-sector led housing market. To assist in formulating policies and implementing actions, the study recommends forming a housing finance task force under the sponsorship of the government. Such a task force can help foster wider discussion among the government, financial institutions, microfinance institutions, nongovernmental organizations, civil society, and other stakeholders.
Link to Data Set
Citation
“World Bank. 2008. Housing Finance in Afghanistan : Challenges and Opportunities. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/8070 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
Digital Object Identifier
Associated URLs
Associated content
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue
Collections
Related items
Showing items related by metadata.
Publication Housing Finance in Sri Lanka : Opportunities and Challenges(Washington, DC, 2007-11)Sri Lanka has embarked on a gradual transition from a system of directed credit in a highly segmented market toward an integrated market-driven housing finance system. This transition has included an increased role of private universal banks in the immediate term and a functioning secondary mortgage market in the long term. An active system of housing finance provides real economic benefits and positively affects savings, investment, and household wealth. It provides an investment option for long-term funds in the economy as an alternative to investment in treasury bonds. In turn, each dollar invested in the housing sector catalyzes economic activity in other sectors, exerting an indirect positive impact on employment levels, the retirement system, fiscal returns, and consumption. Housing finance enables households to accumulate assets that can provide the collateral for their investment needs, thus stimulating small business. Housing finance development boosts equitable economic growth and reduces poverty by improving living conditions, empowering the middle and lower-income population, and strengthening communities. Housing policy focuses on improving government land use and maximizing the use of the existing housing stock by providing basic public services and upgrades.Publication Mali Financial Sector Assessment Program(Washington, DC, 2015-12)The housing finance market in Mali remains small and under developed. Few banks currently offer a full mortgage product with Banque Malienne de Solidarite, Mali Housing Bank (BHM), Bank of Africa, and EcoBank being the main lenders although at minimal levels. The total annual housing need in Mali based on the household formation rate amounts to 82,500, split between 51,100 urban units and 31,400 rural units. Overall some social housing is constructed and support is provided by the state for low income housing through the Office Malienne de l’Habitat (OMH), but the numbers remain small. The Malien authorities have been working to strengthen financial sector stability which includes measures to stabilize the BHM and put it in a position where it begins to fulfill its mandate of providing credit for the housing sector. A strategy was approved by the council of Minister for a strategic disengagement by the state from the share capital of BHM. Initially the agreed plan was for BHM to be privatized. Overall progress in delivery of affordable housing will require a concerted effort among all stakeholders both in public and private sector. This should be supported through establishment of stakeholder coordination group to oversee change across the housing value chain.Publication Housing Finance(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2016-04-20)Access to adequate housing is critically important to the health and wellbeing of the world’s population. Yet, despite the fact that this statement is part of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights and has been on the global policy agenda for many years, hundreds of millions of people continue to live in inadequate conditions with little or no access to decent housing. The demand for housing solutions will increase as urbanization and population growth persists. The United Nations Human Settlements Program (UN-Habitat) has estimated that the number of people living in slums around the world will rise to 900 million by 2020 if nothing is done. Asia and Africa will face special challenges, because urbanization in those regions is proceeding rapidly. Housing is frequently unaffordable to all but the top earners. A recent report estimates a housing affordability gap affecting 330 million households, with 200 million households in the developing world living in slums (McKinsey Global Institute 2014). Research has shown that more and better housing increases the welfare of occupants. Homeownership may increase stability and civic engagement, and provide financial security in old age. Improvements in housing also have important benefits to the economy. Housing construction and home improvement generate demand for professional, skilled, semi-skilled, and unskilled labor; and allow many micro and small businesses to flourish. The housing market is an important component of national economies and housing booms and busts can have significant effects on the macro economy and financial sector. The core purpose of this learning product is to generate knowledge and provide lessons learned from World Bank Group support to housing finance. Lessons were derived primarily from evaluated interventions in the form of World Bank loans or International Finance Corporation (IFC) investments and advisory services. World Bank technical assistance and knowledge products and interventions on housing finance matters were considered when provided in the context of lending operations. One limitation faced in preparation of this learning product was the lack of coverage of stand-alone World Bank advisory services.Publication Policy Note on the Business Environment for Inclusive Business Models(Washington, DC, 2012)This policy note has two goals. First, to assess whether inclusive business models face specific regulatory hurdles. Second, to recommend policies that creates a business environment conducive to inclusive business. Little research has been conducted on the first goal. This note analyzes survey answers from companies that applied to the G20 Challenge. These companies were asked to rank regulatory obstacles and explain whether these obstacles created significant hurdles to their ability to serve the base of the pyramid. On the second goal, this note highlights policy recommendations for governments, development finance institutions and donors. It also includes policy measures specific to countries and contexts. Some policy measures address regulatory hurdles for inclusive business models. Others support inclusive business models by providing incentives when needed. The first section analyzes survey answers from the 167 applicants for the G20 Challenge. The starting point was to listen to businesses a logical place to begin when seeking to improve the business environment. The second section describes policy measures for business models that include the base of the pyramid as producers or suppliers, focusing on agriculture. Businesses that source from small farmers have inclusive business models because they integrate farmers in their value chains. Small farmers are often considered base of the pyramid if their income is low or they lack basic goods or services. The third section describes policy measures for business models that include the base of the pyramid as customers particularly models that provide affordable housing, health, education and basic financial services. In many countries basic services are still mainly provided by the public sector or recently privatized companies and more stringent regulations often apply. This section describes regulations and policies that affect inclusive business models in these sectors. The fourth section describes roles for governments, development finance institutions and donors in supporting inclusive business models. The business environment is important because companies that do business with the base of the pyramid need to understand new markets, understand the market behavior of base of the pyramid customers, appraise new risks and develop new systems, business processes and training. Companies with inclusive business models also face perceptions from investors and lending institutions that the base of the pyramid is riskier than other markets.Publication Financial Sector Assessment : Burundi(Washington, DC, 2009-12)The financial sector, dominated by the banks, is vulnerable to external shocks. The country is exposed to terms of trade shocks mainly from coffee and oil prices, which could impact banks through real sector effects. The banking system is also vulnerable to a decline in external assistance which funds nearly half of the government on which a large share of the economy depends. Burundi has not been directly affected by the international crisis, but second round effects are likely to impact growth and foreign aid prospects The Bank of the Republic of Burundi (BRB) is making major efforts to improve the regulation and supervision of the financial institutions under its responsibility, but it continues to face significant obstacles The microfinance sector is facing major challenges, and its supervision reflects the constraints affecting the BRB. All the on-site inspections organized by the BRB revealed serious problems and violations of prudential rules, in particular in the areas of accounting, governance, or the absence of reliable internal controls. In order to put the industry on a sound footing, it is essential to: (i) update the regulatory framework to facilitate the growth of a sound industry and introduce a specific chart of accounts; (ii) develop supervision that is capable of preserving the health of the sector, and of deposits in particular; and (iii) promote the professionalization of the industry itself, with improved human capacities, appropriate management tools, modern methodologies, and good governance.
Users also downloaded
Showing related downloaded files
Publication Poverty, Prosperity, and Planet Report 2024(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-10-15)The Poverty, Prosperity, and Planet Report 2024 is the latest edition of the series formerly known as Poverty and Shared Prosperity. The report emphasizes that reducing poverty and increasing shared prosperity must be achieved in ways that do not come at unacceptably high costs to the environment. The current “polycrisis”—where the multiple crises of slow economic growth, increased fragility, climate risks, and heightened uncertainty have come together at the same time—makes national development strategies and international cooperation difficult. Offering the first post-Coronavirus (COVID)-19 pandemic assessment of global progress on this interlinked agenda, the report finds that global poverty reduction has resumed but at a pace slower than before the COVID-19 crisis. Nearly 700 million people worldwide live in extreme poverty with less than US$2.15 per person per day. Progress has essentially plateaued amid lower economic growth and the impacts of COVID-19 and other crises. Today, extreme poverty is concentrated mostly in Sub-Saharan Africa and fragile settings. At a higher standard more typical of upper-middle-income countries—US$6.85 per person per day—almost one-half of the world is living in poverty. The report also provides evidence that the number of countries that have high levels of income inequality has declined considerably during the past two decades, but the pace of improvements in shared prosperity has slowed, and that inequality remains high in Latin America and the Caribbean and Sub-Saharan Africa. Worldwide, people’s incomes today would need to increase fivefold on average to reach a minimum prosperity threshold of US$25 per person per day. Where there has been progress in poverty reduction and shared prosperity, there is evidence of an increasing ability of countries to manage natural hazards, but climate risks are significantly higher in the poorest settings. Nearly one in five people globally is at risk of experiencing welfare losses due to an extreme weather event from which they will struggle to recover. The interconnected issues of climate change and poverty call for a united and inclusive effort from the global community. Development cooperation stakeholders—from governments, nongovernmental organizations, and the private sector to communities and citizens acting locally in every corner of the globe—hold pivotal roles in promoting fair and sustainable transitions. By emphasizing strategies that yield multiple benefits and diligently monitoring and addressing trade-offs, we can strive toward a future that is prosperous, equitable, and resilient.Publication Global Economic Prospects, January 2025(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-01-16)Global growth is expected to hold steady at 2.7 percent in 2025-26. However, the global economy appears to be settling at a low growth rate that will be insufficient to foster sustained economic development—with the possibility of further headwinds from heightened policy uncertainty and adverse trade policy shifts, geopolitical tensions, persistent inflation, and climate-related natural disasters. Against this backdrop, emerging market and developing economies are set to enter the second quarter of the twenty-first century with per capita incomes on a trajectory that implies substantially slower catch-up toward advanced-economy living standards than they previously experienced. Without course corrections, most low-income countries are unlikely to graduate to middle-income status by the middle of the century. Policy action at both global and national levels is needed to foster a more favorable external environment, enhance macroeconomic stability, reduce structural constraints, address the effects of climate change, and thus accelerate long-term growth and development.Publication Quantitative Analysis of Road Transport Agreements (QuARTA)(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2013-04-13)Road freight transport is indispensable to international economic cooperation and foreign trade. Across all continents, it is commonly used for short and medium distances and in long distance haulage when minimizing time is important. In all instances governments play a critical role in ensuring the competitive advantage of private sector operators. Countries often have many opportunities to minimize the physical or administrative barriers that increase costs, take measures to enhance the attractiveness and competitiveness of road transport, or generally nurture the integral role of international road freight transport in the global trade logistics industry. Road freight transport is critical to domestic and international trade. It is the dominant mode of transport for overland movement of trade traffic, carrying more than 80 percent of traffic in most regions. Generally, nearly all trade traffic is carried by road at some point. Therefore, the cost and quality of road transport services is of critical importance to trade competitiveness of countries and regions within countries. In fact, road transport is fundamental to modern international division of labor and supply-chain management.Publication Digital Progress and Trends Report 2023(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-03-05)Digitalization is the transformational opportunity of our time. The digital sector has become a powerhouse of innovation, economic growth, and job creation. Value added in the IT services sector grew at 8 percent annually during 2000–22, nearly twice as fast as the global economy. Employment growth in IT services reached 7 percent annually, six times higher than total employment growth. The diffusion and adoption of digital technologies are just as critical as their invention. Digital uptake has accelerated since the COVID-19 pandemic, with 1.5 billion new internet users added from 2018 to 2022. The share of firms investing in digital solutions around the world has more than doubled from 2020 to 2022. Low-income countries, vulnerable populations, and small firms, however, have been falling behind, while transformative digital innovations such as artificial intelligence (AI) have been accelerating in higher-income countries. Although more than 90 percent of the population in high-income countries was online in 2022, only one in four people in low-income countries used the internet, and the speed of their connection was typically only a small fraction of that in wealthier countries. As businesses in technologically advanced countries integrate generative AI into their products and services, less than half of the businesses in many low- and middle-income countries have an internet connection. The growing digital divide is exacerbating the poverty and productivity gaps between richer and poorer economies. The Digital Progress and Trends Report series will track global digitalization progress and highlight policy trends, debates, and implications for low- and middle-income countries. The series adds to the global efforts to study the progress and trends of digitalization in two main ways: · By compiling, curating, and analyzing data from diverse sources to present a comprehensive picture of digitalization in low- and middle-income countries, including in-depth analyses on understudied topics. · By developing insights on policy opportunities, challenges, and debates and reflecting the perspectives of various stakeholders and the World Bank’s operational experiences. This report, the first in the series, aims to inform evidence-based policy making and motivate action among internal and external audiences and stakeholders. The report will bring global attention to high-performing countries that have valuable experience to share as well as to areas where efforts will need to be redoubled.Publication South Africa - Financial Sector Assessment(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2022-01-01)The South African financial system has weathered the shock of COVID-19 but faces growing risks emanating from a weak macroeconomic outlook. The pandemic crisis hit South Africa hard, with nonresident capital outflows accelerating and the domestic and global slowdown precipitating a6.4 percent GDP contraction in 2020. A brief period of liquidity stress was managed with new central bank facilities and a lowering of liquidity requirements; and banks proved resilient thanks to sound capital and liquidity buffers. Asset management and pension assets saw falling valuations, but redemption pressures quickly dissipated as markets stabilized. The intensification of the sovereign financial system nexus emerging from the crisis poses risks going forward, and a resurgence of the pandemic could deteriorate asset quality. Banks are resilient in the FSAP’s baseline; however, amedium-term adverse stress scenario would cause a significant decline in capital although most banks would remain sufficiently capitalized. Under stress, banks could face some liquidity gaps, particularly at very short maturities, highlighting the importance of continued close monitoring. The impact of COVID-19 on insurers has thus far been contained, but prudential rules should be strengthened to ensure the measure of capital is sufficiently robust.