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[3 June 2013] -- On 31 May, a UN High Level Panel issued a report outlining recommendations for the Post 2015 global development agenda to UN Secretary-General Ban ki-Moon.
The Cities Alliance welcomes the report’s explicit references to cities, slums and local authorities. Here are some excerpts from the report:
“They [developing countries] must make smart choices to turn cities into vibrant places full of opportunities, services and different lifestyles, where people want to work and live.” (p.6)
“[The new development agenda] must provide quality health care and education for all. It must establish and enforce clear rules, without discrimination, so that women can inherit and own property and run a business, communities can control local environmental resources, and farmers and urban slum-dwellers have secure property rights.” (p7)
“Billions more people could become middle-class by 2030, most of them in cities, and this would strengthen economic growth the world over.” (p9)
“And we can do more to take advantage of rapid urbanisation: cities are the world’s engines for business and innovation. With good management they can provide jobs, hope and growth, while building sustainability.” (p7)
“Local authorities have a role in helping slum-dwellers access better housing and jobs and are the source of most successful programs to support the informal sector and micro-enterprises” (p10)
“They [CSOs) are also important providers of basic services, often able to reach the neediest and most vulnerable, for example in slums and remote areas.” (p11)
"Cities. The Panel recognised that city governments have great responsibilities for urban management. They have specific problems of poverty, slum up-grading, solid waste management, service delivery, resource use, and planning that will become even more important in the decades ahead. The post-2015 agenda must be relevant for urban dwellers. Cities are where the battle for sustainable development will be won or lost. Yet the Panel also believes that it is critical to pay attention to rural areas, where three billion near-poor will still be living in 2030. The most pressing issue is not urban versus rural, but how to foster a local, geographic approach to the post-2015 agenda." (p.17)
"Urbanisation: The world is now more urban than rural, thanks to internal migration. By 2030 there will be over one billion more urban residents and, for the first time ever, the number of rural residents will be starting to shrink. This matters because inclusive growth emanates from vibrant and sustainable cities, the only locale where it is possible to generate the number of good jobs that young people are seeking. Good local governance, management and planning are the keys to making sure that migration to cities does not replace one form of poverty by another, where even if incomes are slightly above $1.25 a day, the cost of meeting basic needs is higher." (p.18)
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