Advocacy
Habitat III – The New Urban Agenda
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THE Third United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III) will be held in Quito, Ecuador, on 17-20 October 2016. The aim of the conference is to reinvigorate the global commitment to sustainable urban development with a “New Urban Agenda”. Habitat III will be the first major global conference since the 2030 Agenda entered into force in January 2016, and will offer an opportunity to discuss the opportunities that urbanization brings to the implementation and achievement of the SDGs.
United Cities and Local Governments is the direct descendent of the First World Assembly of Cities and Local Authorities, a groundbreaking global gathering of local leaders held in the framework of Habitat II. The Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Governments (GTF) is an umbrella network set up in 2013 at the initiative of UCLG President and Mayor of Istanbul, Kadir Topbaş. It brings together the major international networks of local governments to undertake joint advocacy relating to international policy processes. The GTF is underlining that the New Urban Agenda must keep in mind other relevant international agendas adopted in recent months, particularly the 2030 Agenda and the Paris Climate Agreement.
Role of UCLG ASPAC
UCLG ASPAC held the Asia-Pacific Conference on “Local Government Voices toward Habitat III on the New Urban Agenda” in September 2015 in Wakatobi, Southeast Sulawesi, Indonesia. The Conference gained attention from more than 170 delegates from cities, local governments, their associations and international partners in the Asia-Pacific region. At the end of the conference, the Wakatobi Declaration on the New Urban Agenda was issued.
Held in conjunction with the UCLG ASPAC Executive Bureau and Council Meetings, the Conference recognized the central role of cities, local and regional governments in shaping the New Urban Agenda. Taking into account the dialogue and discussions among local leaders, the Conference emphasized the importance of good governance, sustainable urbanization, the need to shift to low carbon societies, to tackle climate change and spreading the benefits of economic prosperity that cities produce.
With the Habitat III PrepCom3 to be held in Surabaya, Indonesia, on 25-27 July 2016, UCLG ASPAC is set to work with the Surabaya City Government to organize side-events, including on public spaces.
