Headline Indicators: Framework, indicators and definitions

As a first step in our Housing Finance Data Agenda for Africa, we set out to identify a core set of indicators which would provide the most vital information for understanding the status of the housing and housing finance sectors in a given country. After a long deliberative process, we emerged with a set of 79 Headline Indicators, which serve as signposts for understanding the most important elements shaping the sector in each country. The Headline Indicators were developed by drawing from three conceptual frameworks for understanding housing markets: the housing construction value chain, a ‘star framework’ to understand housing as a private and national asset, and the macro/meso/micro/demand framework applied to rental markets.

This document sets out the underlying conceptual frameworks for the selection of the Headline Indicators, as well as the indicator definitions and potential data sources. Through our 2019 Housing Finance in Africa Yearbook process, we attempted to collect data on all these Headline Indicators for every African country. The results are displayed in a dashboard which allows you to explore the availability of the data on the Headline Indicators by country, and for each component of the value chain.