Credit photo: INA FASSBENDER / AFP
The European Policy Centre has teamed up with the King Baudouin Foundation, Schneider Electric and the European Federation of National Organisations Working with the Homeless (FEANTSA) and Cariplo Foundation for a new task force on European investment in affordable and decent housing solutions.
Because of increased financial speculation in the housing market and a steady increase in housing costs across much of Europe, having access to quality, affordable housing has become a serious issue for many citizens. Lower-income households are hit hardest, further aggravating overall levels of social exclusion.
The objectives of this Task Force are to raise awareness and facilitate a dialogue about the need to explore new investment instruments in the social sector. We also aim to highlight the market failures that are affecting the housing sector, especially with regards to the most vulnerable segments of the European population and find ways to channel investment towards housing solutions for this particular group. Furthermore, the Task Force aims to offer a clear vision as well as a set of concrete ideas on how the InvestEU Programme can fill the investment gap and provide affordable, accessible, energy-efficient and decent housing solutions for low-income households.
In total, three Task Force meetings will be organised to discuss the needs of the housing sector, best-practice examples of innovative investment schemes with a high social impact and concrete recommendations to maximise the impact of the InvestEU Programme. A set of policy recommendations will be given to policymakers at the end of the project in 2021.