City2City
COVID-19 and Human Development: Assessing the Crisis, Envisioning the Recovery
02 July 2024 - This note takes a capabilities approach to document the severity of the unfolding human development crisis. Such an approach implies an evaluative framework to assess the crisis and shape the policy response that emphasizes the potential for people to be and do what they aspire in life as opposed to material resources or economic activity.
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02 July 2024 - The COVID-19 pandemic is unleashing a human development crisis. On some dimensions of human development, conditions today are equivalent to levels of deprivation last seen in the mid-1980s.

But the crisis is hitting hard on all of human development’s constitutive elements: income (with the largest contraction in economic activity since the Great Depression), health (directly causing a death toll over 300,000 and indirectly leading potentially to an additional 6,000 child deaths every day from preventable causes over the next 6 months) and education (with effective out-of-school rates – meaning, accounting for the inability to access the internet – in primary education expected to drop to the levels of actual rates of the mid-1980s levels). This, not counting less visible indirect effects, including increased domestic violence, yet to be fully documented.

The pandemic was superimposed on unresolved tensions between people and technology, between people and the planet, between the haves and the have-nots. These tensions were already shaping a new generation of inequalities—pertaining to enhanced capabilities, the new necessities of the 21st century, as defined in the 2019 Human Development Report. But the response to the crisis can shape how those tensions are addressed and whether inequalities in human development are reduced.

This note takes a capabilities approach to document the severity of the unfolding human development crisis. Such an approach implies an evaluative framework to assess the crisis and shape the policy response that emphasizes the potential for people to be and do what they aspire in life as opposed to material resources or economic activity. To assess the crisis, the note draws from original simulations that are based on an adjusted Human Development Index—with the education dimension modified to reflect the effects of school closures and mitigation measures—and that incorporate current projections of gross national income (GNI) per capita for 2024.

The simulations suggest conditions today would correspond to a steep and unprecedented decline in human development. With almost 9 in 10 students out of school and deep recessions in most economies (including a 4 percent drop in GNI per capita worldwide), the decline in the index –reflecting a narrowing in capabilities-- would be equivalent to erasing all the progress in human development of the past six years. Importantly, if conditions in school access are restored, capabilities related to education would immediately bounce back – while the income dimension would follow the path of the economic recovery post-crisis. The simulations also show the importance of promoting equity in capabilities. In a scenario with more equitable internet access—where each country closes the gap with the leaders in its human development category—the decline in human development would be more than halved. This would be eminently affordable. In 2018 it was estimated that $100 billion would be needed to close the gap in internet access in low- and middle-income countries—or about 1 percent of the extraordinary fiscal programmes announced around the world so far.

The note suggests three principles to shape the response to the crisis:

  • Look at the response through an equity lens.i Countries, communities and groups already lagging in enhanced capabilities will be particularly affected, and leaving them further behind will have long-term impacts on human development.
  • Focus on people’s enhanced capabilities. This could reconcile apparent tradeoffs between public health and economic activity (a means to the end of expanding capabilities) but would also help build resilience for future shocks.
  • Follow a coherent multidimensional approach. Since the crisis has multiple interconnected dimensions (health, economic, and several social aspects, decisions on the allocation of fiscal resources that can either further lock-in or break free from carbon-intensive production and consumption), a systemic approach—rather than a sector-by-sector sequential approach—is essential. A recent survey conducted in 14 countries found that 71 percent of adults globally consider that climate change is as serious a crisis as COVID-19, with two-thirds supporting government actions to prioritise climate change during the recovery. ii

The United Nations has proposed a framework for the immediate socioeconomic response,iii with which this note is fully consistent and meant to inform and further flesh out both the analysis of the crisis and possible responses.

Finally, the note also highlights the importance of collective action—at the community, country, and global levels. And the response to this crisis is showing how people around the world are responding collectively. The adoption of social distancing behaviour—which in some cases started before formal policies were put in place—could not possibly be fully enforced. It depended on the voluntary cooperation of billions of people. And it was done in response to a shared global risk that brought to the fore as a priority something other than having economies grow more rapidly. If we needed proof of concept that humanity can respond collectively to a shared global challenge, we are now living through it.

Read the full report here or download the attached PDF of the report.

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COVID-19 and Human Development: Assessing the Crisis, Envisioning the Recovery
02 July 2024 - This note takes a capabilities approach to document the severity of the unfolding human development crisis. Such an approach implies an evaluative framework to assess the crisis and shape the policy response that emphasizes the potential for people to be and do what they aspire in life as opposed to material resources or economic activity. 
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02 July 2024 - The COVID-19 pandemic is unleashing a human development crisis. On some dimensions of human development, conditions today are equivalent to levels of deprivation last seen in the mid-1980s.

But the crisis is hitting hard on all of human development’s constitutive elements: income (with the largest contraction in economic activity since the Great Depression), health (directly causing a death toll over 300,000 and indirectly leading potentially to an additional 6,000 child deaths every day from preventable causes over the next 6 months) and education (with effective out-of-school rates – meaning, accounting for the inability to access the internet – in primary education expected to drop to the levels of actual rates of the mid-1980s levels). This, not counting less visible indirect effects, including increased domestic violence, yet to be fully documented.

The pandemic was superimposed on unresolved tensions between people and technology, between people and the planet, between the haves and the have-nots. These tensions were already shaping a new generation of inequalities—pertaining to enhanced capabilities, the new necessities of the 21st century, as defined in the 2019 Human Development Report. But the response to the crisis can shape how those tensions are addressed and whether inequalities in human development are reduced.

This note takes a capabilities approach to document the severity of the unfolding human development crisis. Such an approach implies an evaluative framework to assess the crisis and shape the policy response that emphasizes the potential for people to be and do what they aspire in life as opposed to material resources or economic activity. To assess the crisis, the note draws from original simulations that are based on an adjusted Human Development Index—with the education dimension modified to reflect the effects of school closures and mitigation measures—and that incorporate current projections of gross national income (GNI) per capita for 2024.

The simulations suggest conditions today would correspond to a steep and unprecedented decline in human development. With almost 9 in 10 students out of school and deep recessions in most economies (including a 4 percent drop in GNI per capita worldwide), the decline in the index –reflecting a narrowing in capabilities-- would be equivalent to erasing all the progress in human development of the past six years. Importantly, if conditions in school access are restored, capabilities related to education would immediately bounce back – while the income dimension would follow the path of the economic recovery post-crisis. The simulations also show the importance of promoting equity in capabilities. In a scenario with more equitable internet access—where each country closes the gap with the leaders in its human development category—the decline in human development would be more than halved. This would be eminently affordable. In 2018 it was estimated that $100 billion would be needed to close the gap in internet access in low- and middle-income countries—or about 1 percent of the extraordinary fiscal programmes announced around the world so far.

The note suggests three principles to shape the response to the crisis:

  • Look at the response through an equity lens.i Countries, communities and groups already lagging in enhanced capabilities will be particularly affected, and leaving them further behind will have long-term impacts on human development.
  • Focus on people’s enhanced capabilities. This could reconcile apparent tradeoffs between public health and economic activity (a means to the end of expanding capabilities) but would also help build resilience for future shocks.
  • Follow a coherent multidimensional approach. Since the crisis has multiple interconnected dimensions (health, economic, and several social aspects, decisions on the allocation of fiscal resources that can either further lock-in or break free from carbon-intensive production and consumption), a systemic approach—rather than a sector-by-sector sequential approach—is essential. A recent survey conducted in 14 countries found that 71 percent of adults globally consider that climate change is as serious a crisis as COVID-19, with two-thirds supporting government actions to prioritise climate change during the recovery. ii

The United Nations has proposed a framework for the immediate socioeconomic response,iii with which this note is fully consistent and meant to inform and further flesh out both the analysis of the crisis and possible responses.

Finally, the note also highlights the importance of collective action—at the community, country, and global levels. And the response to this crisis is showing how people around the world are responding collectively. The adoption of social distancing behaviour—which in some cases started before formal policies were put in place—could not possibly be fully enforced. It depended on the voluntary cooperation of billions of people. And it was done in response to a shared global risk that brought to the fore as a priority something other than having economies grow more rapidly. If we needed proof of concept that humanity can respond collectively to a shared global challenge, we are now living through it.

Read the full report here or download the attached PDF of the report.

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Hamamatsu Voluntary Local Review Report 2019
01 July 2024 - 
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Hamamatsu City is a government ordinance designated city, located between Tokyo and Osaka along the Pacific coast, with an area of 1,558km2 and a population of about 800,000. The population of the city is on a downward trend from its peak in 2008. It is projected that the population trend will continue and the aging ratio (27% as of 2018) will increase. One of the features with regard to the population in Hamamatsu is the number of foreign nationals, which accounts for 3% of the total population, 1% higher than the national average.

As a result of the merger of 12 local municipalities in July 2005, Hamamatsu became the second largest municipal area nationwide with diverse natural and social environment that includes urban, rural, mountainous and hilly areas. For this reason, it is referred to as a government ordinance-designated city that is a model of Japan in miniature. With rich forest and fishery resources, the primary industry is thriving in Hamamatsu. In addition, the city is famous for manufacturing and is the location of large corporations that are active on the global stage, such as Suzuki, Yamaha, Kawai, Hamamatsu Photonics, Roland, and FCC. Not only large companies but also small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and venture companies are also active. The higher ratio of primary and secondary industries compared to other government-ordinance designated cities in Japan is one of the characteristics of Hamamatsu.

Challenges

Hamamatsu City faces various challenges including the administrative costs to maintain and upgrade municipal services covering large administrative area, independence of underpopulated areas, administrative services that can meet to socio-economic environment and social needs that changes according to the population decline, low birthrate and progressive aging society, and co-existence with foreign residents. Against the background of the nuclear disaster as a result of the Great East Japan Earthquake and the subsequent deregulation of the electric power industry, Hamamatsu is also facing the need to put measures in place to continue to secure a stable supply of energy and to protect people’s lives and livelihoods against natural disasters (disaster prevention and mitigation).

Localisation and mainstreaming of the SDGs in Hamamatsu City

To tackle with a lot of local challenges, Hamamatsu City is managing city administration in partnership with various local stakeholders and by leveraging municipal budgets and local resources effectively. The Hamamatsu City Comprehensive Plan, the 30-year plan from 2015 is integrated with the principles of the SDGs, and therefore the city is promoting the SDGs implementation through the implementation of the comprehensive plan. The comprehensive plan of the city was drawn up using backcasting techniques. The comprehensive plan includes 12 vision-points for the desirable future of city called the “One Dozen Futures” and sets out comprehensive policies to achieve the vision. In the process of making the comprehensive plan, "the Hamamatsu Future Design Council" composed of experts and citizens having different backgrounds was established to review and discuss the plan. In addition to the discussion at the Council, the city interviewed citizens to hear and reflect more voices from citizens.

Read the full report here or download the attached PDF of the report.

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Voluntary Subnational Review: Oaxaca, Mexico
01 July 2024 - This preliminary version of the Voluntary Subnational Review is a first report on the activities that Oaxaca has carried out in relation to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, as well as a space for reflection and self-evaluation that identifies the challenges and lessons learned.
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This exercise will be complemented by a methodology that enables the inclusion of citizens, academia, and the productive sector to evaluate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda in the state and municipalities. Additionally, management and performance indicators will have to be built to allow monitoring and faithful monitoring of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and its impact, in order to generate periodic evaluations of the work carried out in the state and municipalities.

Subnational Level

1. As part of the efforts at the subnational level, a diagnosis was made of the situation in Oaxaca to determine the level of linkage between the planning structure and the state priorities with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):

  • An analysis of the compatibility of the goals of the 17 SDGs with the objectives set out in the 2016-2022 State Development Plan
  • An exercise to link the 97 indicators of the 2018 budget programs with the 240 indicators of the 2030 Agenda
  • A classification of the 240 indicators of the 2030 Agenda according to the competencies, attributions, and scope of the 32 dependencies that make up the State Public Administration

2. The Legal Group made a proposal to reform the State Planning Law with the modification of 27 of its 121 articles, with the objective that the SDGs are considered in the planning process and that sustainable development is understood in its three dimensions: social, economic, and environmental.

3. The 2016-2022 State Development Plan is the governing document of public policy in Oaxaca. Currently, work is being done to update this plan with a focus on sustainability framed in the 2030 Agenda.

4. In 2018, the 12 sector plans, which establish the priorities, objectives, goals; as well as the current expenditure and investment estimates of each sector for the fulfillment of its objectives, were aligned in its strategic framework to the 2030 Agenda.

5. Three trainings were carried out during 2019 related to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for state public officials, municipal authorities, the staff of the Technical Liaison Modules, and for students of the Economics Department at the Benito Juarez Autonomous University.

Multi-Actor Alliances

1. The methodology for the inclusion of civil society, academia, and the productive sector was set up through which three Working Committees have formed: 1) Social Inclusion, 2) Economic Growth and 3) Environmental Sustainability, considering the three dimensions of sustainable development. These committees are integrated by representatives of state agencies, civil society, academia, and the productive sector. They aim to be a space for public policy innovation.

2. The Government of the State of Oaxaca has a technical cooperation agreement with the GIZ, which has the purpose of contributing to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda at the state and municipal level so that the vision of sustainable development is adopted for the fulfillment of the SDGs.

Municipal Level

1. As part of the technical cooperation with the GIZ, the Municipal Sustainable Development Plans Guide was prepared, which has as its main objective to guide the municipal governments in the preparation of the Municipal Development Plans with a participatory approach and sustainable development.

2. Likewise, in this same cooperation, a pilot sample of 10 municipalities was chosen to work in a coordinated manner with the GIZ and the Technical Work Committee in municipal planning, the prioritization of works, and citizen participation.

3. In order to strengthen the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, 547 Municipal Social Development Councils have been installed, which are spaces for a plural and inclusive participation and dialogue for the implementation of this agenda and are constituted as instances of linkage of the three levels of government, the social, and private sectors.

Read the full report here or download the attached PDF of the report.

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Volunteers as Essential Community Heroes: the Role of Volunteering in driving action on Covid-19 and the SDGs
27 June 2024 - Volunteer Groups Alliance: We will focus on the critical role that volunteers have played across the world delivering the SDGs and helping build stronger, more resilient, and inclusive communities for the final decade of action.
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Given the current context of Covid-19, we will include case studies demonstrating how volunteers have played a key role in responding to the pandemic. Governments and institutional partners will share evidence of how volunteers have supported the Covid-19 response, through mobilisation of community health workers, promoting responsible public health messaging, combating fake news, and supporting marginalised children’s access to education, as well as accountability of delivering the SDG agenda.

When: Jul 7, 2024 12:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Topic: Volunteer Groups Alliance Side Event to the UN High-Level Political Forum 2024

Register for the Event Here: https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/index.php?page=view&type=20000&nr=6942&menu=2993

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COVID-19 in African Cities: Impacts, Responses and Policies
27 June 2024 - The report proposes several interventions to promptly and effectively address the challenges of COVID-19 pandemic in Africa at the urban level led by national and local governments supported by international and regional development institutions.
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27 June 2024 - COVID-19, a global pandemic declared by the World Health Organization (WHO), is crippling the global economy and upending people’s lives thereby threatening sustainable development across all its dimensions. Africa is also facing the dire consequences of the crisis, necessitating timely response, recovery and rebuilding policies and strategies. Globally, urban areas are the epicenters of the epidemic accounting for most of the confirmed COVID-19 cases.

UN-Habitat in collaboration with UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), United Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCLG), African Development Bank (AfDB), and Shelter Afrique have joined hands to produce this new report: COVID-19 in African Cities: Impacts, Responses and Policies.

The report proposes several interventions to promptly and effectively address the challenges of COVID-19 pandemic in Africa at the urban level led by national and local governments supported by international and regional development institutions.

Download the Full Report Here: https://unhabitat.org/covid-19-in-africa-cities-impacts-responses-and-policies

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5 Ways India Can Use Innovation to Meet Its Urbanization Challenges
India is projected to overtake China as the most populous country in the world this year. The shifting demographics are bound to create heightened demand for education, health care, jobs and civic amenities, putting existing systems under stress. Current urban services delivery models, in transport, water and waste management, are plagued by outdated, legacy systems, lack of data, and restrictive policies and regulations. Focusing on technology-led innovation has the potential to address the rising demand for public services in India.
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5 Ways India Can Use Innovation to Meet Its Urbanization Challenges

By Madhav Pai and Jaya Dhindaw | Originally published by World Resources Institute on May 2, 2024   

By harnessing technology and nurturing innovation, Indian cities can address systemic challenges in service management and delivery. Photo: Megha Bhatt/Unsplash

But there are ways for innovation to improve services. Globally, one out of every 10 “unicorns” is born in India. As of September 2022, India is home to 107 so-called unicorn startups with a total valuation of $341 billion. Most startups that reach a $1 billion valuation are from the e-commerce, fintech and logistic sectors. While the sustainability and civic-tech space has seen an increase in the number of startups, more needs to be done to harness technology and address systemic challenges in urban service delivery and management.

Here are five ways cities can pave the way for innovation to improve services:

1. Create Space for Experimentation

Entrepreneurs need incubation facilities, labs and platforms to develop their proof of concepts. Low-risk pilots allow local governments to test and learn about a product or service while helping entrepreneurs understand ground realities better.

The Affordable Sustainable Housing Accelerators – India (ASHA-India), part of the Global Housing Technology Challenge – India (GHTC-India), is one such example that supports climate-resilient, resource-efficient solutions to accelerate the government’s Housing for All program. Another example is TheCityFix Labs, a multi-stakeholder platform that seeks to accelerate the delivery of improved urban services by bridging gaps in the innovation ecosystem in terms of access to funding, finance, markets and the government.

Representatives from Hasirudala, WeGoT Utility Solutions and Solar Labs, the three finalists from the TheCityFix Labs 2019: Accelerating Innovation in Water, Waste & Energy. Photo: WRI India

2. Extend Support Beyong Incubation

Government initiatives and schemes typically support startups in the crucial inception stages — by providing facilities, infrastructure and incubation. However, there is little support for commercialization and sustenance of ideas. Robust linkages between institutions, academia, and industry, and addressing issues of liquidity and employment to help entrepreneurs play the long game, is much needed.

Creating a model that encourages collaborative thinking and brings together different stakeholders onto one platform early in the problem-solving stage is another avenue worth exploring. For instance, the recently launched India Forum for Nature-Based Solutions is India’s first urban nature-based solutions consortium that brings together multiple stakeholders to leverage their collective strength towards accelerating action for building climate-resilient cities.

Dignitaries at the launch of the India Forum for Nature-Based Solutions by the National Institute of Urban Affairs and WRI India, at the World Urban Forum (2022) in Katowice, Poland. Photo: WRI India

3. Enable Robust Business Models

Sustainability project financing in India, offered only by a few banks and non-banking financial institutions, is still in its infancy. Non-traditional sources of finance such as crowdfunding often impose prohibitively rigid and excessive terms and conditions to offset perceived risks. There is a need for hybrid financial instruments and patient capital that can de-risk investments and help attract funding from mainstream commercial investors.

Budget 2022 had proposed three ways in which this can be tackled. First, by introducing sovereign green bonds and access to blended finance. Second, by creating a live database to help with credit facilitation, skilling and livelihoods. And third, using surety bonds instead of bank guarantees for public procurement contracts which could help reduce the burden on micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and startups.

4. Establish an Anchor Institute

City and state governments need to both sharpen their problem statements and break them down into solvable units. At present, different government agencies at the national, state and local levels work in organizational silos. Fragmented efforts by multiple authorities lead to poor implementation. A multi-stakeholder intermediary platform can help break silos and bring together multiple stakeholders, who can pool individual resources and skills toward solving a common problem. Setting up anchor institutions can provide leadership, coordination and a unified approach to de-risking solutions to shape more productive outcomes.

5. Level the Playing Field

Finally, an ecosystem that allows enterprises to scale up to successfully participate in government contracts must be built. Smaller enterprises find it difficult to meet the stringent qualification criteria of municipal requests for proposals, while complex procurement processes and long payment cycles discourage entrepreneurs from participating at all. This process must be reformed by testing alternatives that actively encourage wider participation. This would include standardizing definitions of terms such as “innovative” or “green,” using a quality- or outcomes-based approach for request for proposals, firming up policies on procurement from MSMEs and ensuring timely payments for services.

Hasirudala, a Bengaluru-based social impact organization has had tremendous success integrating waste workers with a formal waste management system, converting waste picking into a well-organized urban service. Photo: Hasirudala

Each dollar invested in urban infrastructure for water, sanitation and hygiene generates between $4 to $34 in benefits by saving time, improving health and raising productivity. Technology-led innovation in urban services delivery for such crucial needs must be incentivized and institutionalized, both to ensure their viability and offer a better quality of life to everyone in cities.

This article originally appeared on WRI-India.org

Madhav Pai is CEO of WRI India.

Jaya Dhindaw is Program Director – Integrated Urban Development, Planning and Resilience at WRI India.

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2024 SDG Summit at the United Nations General Assembly
The 2024 SDG Summit will be convened on 18-19 September 2024, during the United Nations General Assembly high-level week and marks the mid-point of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. Heads of State and Government will gather at the United Nations Headquarters in New York to follow-up and review the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) . They will carry out a comprehensive review of the state of the SDGs, respond to the impact of multiple and interlocking crises facing the world, and provide high-level political guidance on transformative and accelerated actions leading up to the target year of 2030 for achieving the SDGs. Learn more here: un.org/en/conferences/SDGSummit2024
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2024 SDG Summit at the United Nations General Assembly

The 2024 SDG Summit will be convened on 18-19 September 2024, during the United Nations General Assembly high-level week. Heads of State and Government will gather at the United Nations Headquarters in New York to follow-up and review the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) . They will carry out a comprehensive review of the state of the SDGs, respond to the impact of multiple and interlocking crises facing the world, and provide high-level political guidance on transformative and accelerated actions leading up to the target year of 2030 for achieving the SDGs.

The Summit will also bring together political and thought leaders from governments, international organizations, the private sector, civil society, women and youth and other stakeholders in a series of high-level meetings with the Heads of State and Government.

The 2024 SDG Summit marks the mid-point of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. The High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) in July 2022 under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council called for the Summit to “ mark the beginning of a new phase of accelerated progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals .”

The SDG Summit will be chaired by the President of the General Assembly. The outcome of the Summit will be a negotiated political declaration.

This will be the second SDG Summit – the HLPF under the auspices of the General Assembly – since the adoption of the 2030 Agenda in September 2015.

The special edition of the report of the Secretary-General entitled “Progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals: Towards a Rescue Plan for People and Planet”, the Advance Unedited version has been released. Please read the Newsletter for the latest information.

Find more information here on the programme, documentation, registration, media, and more: un.org/en/conferences/SDGSummit2024

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High-Level Political Forum 2024

High-Level Political Forum 2024

The High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) will be held in New York from Monday, 10 July, to Wednesday,

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19 July 2024, under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council. This includes the three-day ministerial segment of the forum from Monday, 17 July, to Wednesday, 19 July 2024 as part of the High-level Segment of the Council. The last day of the High-level Segment of ECOSOC will be on Thursday, 20 July 2024.

The theme will be " Accelerating the recovery from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and the full implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development at all levels ”.

In the forum, participants will be able to further discuss the effective and inclusive recovery measures to address the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and explore actionable policy guidance for the full implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs at all levels.

The HLPF in 2024, without prejudice to the integrated, indivisible and interlinked nature of the SDGs, will also review in-depth Goals 6 on clean water and sanitation, 7 on affordable and clean energy, 9 on industry, innovation and infrastructure, 11 on sustainable cities and communities, and 17 on partnerships for the Goals.

This includes special sessions on "Transformation from the ground up: Acting at local level" on 11 July and "SDGs in focus: SDG 11 and interlinkages with other SDGs –Sustainable cities and communities" on 13 July.

In addition, 39 countries and territories will present their voluntary national reviews (VNRs) of their implementation of the 2030 Agenda in the forum: Bahrain,Barbados, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina , Brunei Darussalam , Burkina Faso,Cambodia, Canada, Central African Republic , Comoros,Chile, Croatia, Democratic Republic of the Congo , European Union, France,Guyana,Iceland,Ireland,Kuwait,Liechtenstein,Lithuania,Maldives,Mongolia,Poland,Portugal,Romania,Rwanda,Saudi Arabia,Singapore, Slovakia, St Kitts & Nevis , Syrian Arab Republic , Tajikistan,Timor-Leste, Turkmenistan, United Republic of Tanzania , Uzbekistan, Viet Nam, and Zambia. 

The HLPF in July will also support the mid-term review of the implementation of the SDGs and the preparations for the 2024 SDG Summit – the HLPF to be convened under the auspices of the General Assembly in September 2024.

Learn more here: hlpf.un.org/2024

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Second Session of the United Nations Habitat Assembly
The second session of the United Nations Habitat Assembly will be held from 5 to 9 June 2024 in Nairobi. Kenya. The theme of the session is “A sustainable urban future through inclusive and effective multilateralism: achieving the Sustainable Development Goals in times of global crises.” As the governance body of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), the United Nations Habitat Assembly convenes every four years. Thematic discussions will focus on universal access to affordable housing, urban climate action, urban crises recovery, urban crises recovery, localization of the SDGs, and prosperity and local finance.
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Second Session of the United Nations Habitat Assembly 

The second session of the United Nations Habitat Assembly will be held from 5 to 9 June 2024 in Nairobi. Kenya. The theme of the session is “A sustainable urban future through inclusive and effective multilateralism: achieving the Sustainable Development Goals in times of global crises.”

As the governance body of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), the United Nations Habitat Assembly convenes every four years. It is the highest global decision-making body on sustainable urbanization and human settlements.

The 193 UN Member States cast the votes, while participants include non-Member States, other UN bodies and specialized agencies, as well as intergovernmental organizations, civil society, private sector, academia and research institutions, women, youth and children, and grassroots organizations.

Thematic debates and discussions during the Assembly will focus on the following topics:
Universal access to affordable housing: Member States are encouraged to explore mechanisms to achieve the universal right to adequate housing and move towards removing existing barriers to affordable housing.

Urban climate action: to achieve the global commitment to stay within 1.5˚C limit on rising temperatures by 2030, Member States are encouraged to explore realistic urban pathways for climate action.

Urban crises recovery: current crises are increasingly more urban, with cities very often serving as the main places of arrival for displaced people. Member States are encouraged to empower cities to respond to urban crises and support national recovery efforts.

Localization of the SDGs: the Assembly will look at local actions needed to advance the implementation of SDGs to meet the 2030 Development Agenda targets. Member States will also be invited to explore financial mechanisms to ensure resources are directed toward urban development and reach local levels.

Prosperity and local finance: to accelerate the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals, respond to urban crises, advance urban climate action, and ensure adequate and affordable housing for all, cities need policies and fiscal resources. Member States are invited to explore policies and market mechanisms to ensure financial flows directed towards urban development and reach local levels. 

Notification by the Executive Director on the second session of the United Nations Habitat Assembly of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme: English | Русский | Español | Français | 中文 | العربية

More information here

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