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.”
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 Argentina Country Climate and Development Report(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-11)The Argentina Country Climate and Development Report (CCDR) explores opportunities and identifies trade-offs for aligning Argentina’s growth and poverty reduction policies with its commitments on, and its ability to withstand, climate change. It assesses how the country can: reduce its vulnerability to climate shocks through targeted public and private investments and adequation of social protection. The report also shows how Argentina can seize the benefits of a global decarbonization path to sustain a more robust economic growth through further development of Argentina’s potential for renewable energy, energy efficiency actions, the lithium value chain, as well as climate-smart agriculture (and land use) options. Given Argentina’s context, this CCDR focuses on win-win policies and investments, which have large co-benefits or can contribute to raising the country’s growth while helping to adapt the economy, also considering how human capital actions can accompany a just transition.Publication Lebanon Economic Monitor, Fall 2022(Washington, DC, 2022-11)The economy continues to contract, albeit at a somewhat slower pace. Public finances improved in 2021, but only because spending collapsed faster than revenue generation. Testament to the continued atrophy of Lebanon’s economy, the Lebanese Pound continues to depreciate sharply. The sharp deterioration in the currency continues to drive surging inflation, in triple digits since July 2020, impacting the poor and vulnerable the most. An unprecedented institutional vacuum will likely further delay any agreement on crisis resolution and much needed reforms; this includes prior actions as part of the April 2022 International Monetary Fund (IMF) staff-level agreement (SLA). Divergent views among key stakeholders on how to distribute the financial losses remains the main bottleneck for reaching an agreement on a comprehensive reform agenda. Lebanon needs to urgently adopt a domestic, equitable, and comprehensive solution that is predicated on: (i) addressing upfront the balance sheet impairments, (ii) restoring liquidity, and (iii) adhering to sound global practices of bail-in solutions based on a hierarchy of creditors (starting with banks’ shareholders) that protects small depositors.Publication World Development Report 2006(Washington, DC, 2005)This year’s Word Development Report (WDR), the twenty-eighth, looks at the role of equity in the development process. It defines equity in terms of two basic principles. The first is equal opportunities: that a person’s chances in life should be determined by his or her talents and efforts, rather than by pre-determined circumstances such as race, gender, social or family background. The second principle is the avoidance of extreme deprivation in outcomes, particularly in health, education and consumption levels. This principle thus includes the objective of poverty reduction. The report’s main message is that, in the long run, the pursuit of equity and the pursuit of economic prosperity are complementary. In addition to detailed chapters exploring these and related issues, the Report contains selected data from the World Development Indicators 2005‹an appendix of economic and social data for over 200 countries. This Report offers practical insights for policymakers, executives, scholars, and all those with an interest in economic development.Publication Classroom Assessment to Support Foundational Literacy(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-03-21)This document focuses primarily on how classroom assessment activities can measure students’ literacy skills as they progress along a learning trajectory towards reading fluently and with comprehension by the end of primary school grades. The document addresses considerations regarding the design and implementation of early grade reading classroom assessment, provides examples of assessment activities from a variety of countries and contexts, and discusses the importance of incorporating classroom assessment practices into teacher training and professional development opportunities for teachers. The structure of the document is as follows. The first section presents definitions and addresses basic questions on classroom assessment. Section 2 covers the intersection between assessment and early grade reading by discussing how learning assessment can measure early grade reading skills following the reading learning trajectory. Section 3 compares some of the most common early grade literacy assessment tools with respect to the early grade reading skills and developmental phases. Section 4 of the document addresses teacher training considerations in developing, scoring, and using early grade reading assessment. Additional issues in assessing reading skills in the classroom and using assessment results to improve teaching and learning are reviewed in section 5. Throughout the document, country cases are presented to demonstrate how assessment activities can be implemented in the classroom in different contexts.Publication The Journey Ahead(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-10-31)The Journey Ahead: Supporting Successful Migration in Europe and Central Asia provides an in-depth analysis of international migration in Europe and Central Asia (ECA) and the implications for policy making. By identifying challenges and opportunities associated with migration in the region, it aims to inform a more nuanced, evidencebased debate on the costs and benefits of cross-border mobility. Using data-driven insights and new analysis, the report shows that migration has been an engine of prosperity and has helped address some of ECA’s demographic and socioeconomic disparities. Yet, migration’s full economic potential remains untapped. The report identifies multiple barriers keeping migration from achieving its full potential. Crucially, it argues that policies in both origin and destination countries can help maximize the development impacts of migration and effectively manage the economic, social, and political costs. Drawing from a wide range of literature, country experiences, and novel analysis, The Journey Ahead presents actionable policy options to enhance the benefits of migration for destination and origin countries and migrants themselves. Some measures can be taken unilaterally by countries, whereas others require close bilateral or regional coordination. The recommendations are tailored to different types of migration— forced displacement as well as high-skilled and low-skilled economic migration—and from the perspectives of both sending and receiving countries. This report serves as a comprehensive resource for governments, development partners, and other stakeholders throughout Europe and Central Asia, where the richness and diversity of migration experiences provide valuable insights for policy makers in other regions of the world.