Delivering Sustainable Low-Income Housing in Uganda, Challenges and Opportunities

While the developed world is adapting to the consequences of climate changes, global warming will negatively affect the quality of life and economic growth in developing countries. The low-income populations from low and medium Human Development Index (HDI) countries would suffer even more from climate changes because of their vulnerable living conditions and the lack of appropriate and adequate infrastructure. Particular attention should therefore be paid to the low-income housing conditions not only to address the environmental concerns but also to improve the living standards and health and wellbeing of low-income populations. This paper reviews the Ugandan housing conditions in order to identify the opportunities and challenges for delivering sustainable energy efficient low-income housing in Uganda. Urbanisation; slums; housing costs, types and sizes; construction methods and materials and renewable energy sources are some of the areas which have been reviewed and discussed in detail. The findings reveal some critical areas such as informal settlement, overcrowding and access to housing facilities as well as embodied energy of construction methods and materials which require immediate attention.