The latest edition of the Open Working Group, session 10, took place during the first week of April (31 March-4 April) in the UN headquarters in New York. The debates focused on the second version of the Focus Areas document released on 19 March.

Joint Statements on the Focus Areas

In the days preceding the formal session, the 9 Major Groups worked collaboratively to provide feedback on each of the 19 focus area. The Local Authorities Major Group worked in particular on the joint statement on focus area 13 – Sustainable Cities and Human Settlements and on focus area 5 - Gender Equality and Women Empowerment. The process lead to a succesful collaboration between Major Groups, illustrated by the Women Major Group endorsing the Local Governments statement and vice-versa.

Local Authorities Major Group Statement

A statement was delivered on behalf of the Local Government Major Group and endorsed by the Global Taskforce, and provided feedback on the Focus Areas document. It welcomed the language included in the Focus Areas document regarding cities, culture, provision of public services for all and governance; and called for a stronger recognition of local governments as partner in the implementation of many of the focus areas. A revised version of the focus areas document will be released by 18 April, ahead of the OWG 11, to take place from 5th to 9th May.

Full calendar here