On May 15, local government leaders and networks from around the world will gather in New York for the first session of the Second World Assembly of Local and Regional Governments, convened by the Global Taskforce just before the Habitat III Hearings for Local Authorities on May 16-17.
The Second World Assembly of Local and Regional Governments
The Second World Assembly is the mechanism through which the local and regional government constituency will make its official inputs to the New Urban Agenda that will be adopted at the Habitat III Conference in October 2016. The New Urban Agenda will make recommendations to guide urban development policy across the world for the coming decades.
The Second World Assembly builds on the legacy of the First World Assembly of Cities and Local Authorities (WACLA), which was held just before the Habitat II Conference in Istanbul in 1996. More than 500 mayors participated in WACLA. They highlighted the vital role of local government in urban development and called for a permanent structure to coordinate their partnership with the UN, leading to the creation of both UCLG and the UN Advisory Committee on Local Authorities.
The Second World Assembly is a three-part process to be held over the course of 2016. It will consist of a session in New York on May 15, another in Bogota on October 14, and a final gathering in Quito on October 16, held back-to-back with the Habitat III Conference.
The session in New York will allow the World Assembly to prepare for the Local Authority Hearings to be held the following two days.
Habitat III Hearings for Local Authorities
The Local Authority Hearings in New York are the first UN consultative process to recognize and treat sub-national governments as a specific constituency. This represents an important step forward for the visibility and influence of local and regional governments at international level.
The Hearings will allow local government representatives to give feedback on the Zero Draft of the New Urban Agenda in advance of PrepCom3 in July. The Global Taskforce will call for the Agenda to recover the spirit of the last Habitat Conference in Istanbul by reinforcing decentralization. It will also place an emphasis on the need to link the Agenda to the 2030 Agenda, and will reiterate its call for a seat at the global table for local governments.
All Global Taskforce networks are currently finalizing their representation at the Hearings.
Briefing for networks and delegates:
First Session of the 2nd World Assembly of Local and Regional Governments
Première session de la Seconde Assemblée mondiale des gouvernements locaux et régionaux
Primera sesión de la Segunda Asamblea Mundial de Gobiernos Locales y Regionales
More information:
UN confirms Habitat III participation process for local and regional governments
Local and Regional Government Contributions to the Habitat III Preparatory Process
