Integrated approach essential to address multiple forms of inequality in cities: Report

NEW DELHI: The United Nations General Assembly met on April 28 to examine the progress attained towards implementing a 2016 framework on sustainable urbanization. The New Urban Agenda was adopted by nations just a year after an agreement was made for Sustainable Development Goals.

In his opening remarks, Abdulla Shahid, President, General Assembly, talked about how sustainable urbanization can drive change across a variety of interconnected issues of the world, including poverty eradication, climate action, migration, land degradation, economic prosperity, and creation of peaceful societies. He said that despite its far-ranging implications, the New Urban Agenda has often been under-appreciated.

Shahid noted that while sustainable urbanization is related to the achievement of all the SDGs, only a few countries at present can truly claim that they have in place the governance, and the necessary policies, including on inclusive urban planning, capacity development, technology access, and financing necessary to ensure sustainable urbanization. He added that there is need to change this trend.

The Assembly meet brought together government representatives, city mayors, business leaders, youth and other constituencies. The meet-up included publication of the latest UN Secretary-General’s report on progress made in the implementation of the New Urban Agenda, five regional forums on sustainable development, and a special meeting of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).

Highlights

The report was written in collaboration with more than 40 partners and is divided into seven sections. It was created in light of rapid urbanisation, threats to global planetary ecosystems, and the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the opportunities that cities can provide to ground pandemic recovery in social justice, fulfill the Decade of Action, and ensure effective climate action.

Housing

According to the report, about 70% of households worldwide live in unstable housing, with the housing shortage expected to reach 440 million by 2025. While the number of urban residents living in slums decreased globally between 2000 and 2014, the trend had reversed by 2014, and the pandemic is believed to have exacerbated the situation. Many cities have implemented slum improvement initiatives and housing programmes that target the homeless, women, migrants, and persons with impairments, according to the report. It was noted that, in addition to cities such as Barcelona, Bogotá, Bristol, Guangzhou, and Rio de Janeiro, other Finnish cities have improved service and housing provision. Monrovia has put in place its first urban development policy to deal with informal settlements. Cities such as Barcelona, Bratislava, Los Angeles, Kyiv, Madrid, San Francisco, and São Paulo have also engaged in programmes to help at-risk homeless people.

Migration

According to the paper, global migration to urban areas is increasing, rising from fewer than 180 million in 2000 to more than 270 million by 2020. It noted that in cities around the world, inclusive solutions to the needs of migrants, refugees, and displaced persons, particularly women and girls, remain restricted. However, in Barcelona, Colombia, Guatemala City, So Paulo, Seychelles, and Turkey, plans for migrant integration are being developed in collaboration with UN system agencies.

Employment

It referenced ILO forecasts that claimed that global hours worked in 2021 would be 4.5 percent lower than pre-pandemic levels, resulting in the loss of 131 million full-time employment, with job loss rates for women being significantly greater than for males. While working hours in high- and upper-middle-income nations tended to rebound in 2021, working hours in lower-middle and low-income countries decreased. It discussed how cities in Botswana, Colombia, Cuba, Finland, and Turkey have supported employment by focusing on job training for urban youth, as well as how Egypt’s Upper-Egypt Local Development Programme has reduced urban poverty by creating decent jobs and using a budgeting formula to allocate central government funds to local governments.

Urban ecosystem

Sustainable urban development has shown to be an important nature-based option, according to the research. Countries are making headway in reversing biodiversity loss locally by regulating land conversion, preventing urban expansion, restoring urban ecosystems, and greening food systems. It used the Cheonggyecheon Stream restoration project in Seoul as an example, which turned a freeway overpass into a park.

Governance

Despite progress toward the New Urban Agenda’s principles, many urban areas suffer from insufficient multilevel governance, unclear responsibilities between different spheres of government, weak cooperative mechanisms, and limited participation of local governments in national coordination mechanisms, according to the report. The European Union’s Urban Agenda (Amsterdam Treaty) encourages multilevel governance cooperation on urban issues among Member States, cities, the European Commission, and other stakeholders. It also mentioned how multilevel governance methods have been established by the Council of Australian Governments, the Local Government Commission of New Zealand, the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines, and the Union of Municipalities of Turkey.

Urban financing

More nuanced methods to fiscal decentralisation, as well as the ability of local governments to mobilise endogenous resources, are required for effective urban financing. According to the research, Kampala increased revenue collection from $1 million in 2010 to $25 million in 2019 through digitising, educating taxpayers, training revenue collectors, performing revenue audits, and allowing taxpayers to pay in instalments. It also cited the state of Jharkhand in India, where a public-private partnership has established tax collecting agents and a project management unit in 41 cities, successfully increasing municipal government revenue.

Technology in governance

Many countries in the Asia-Pacific region are at the forefront of developing digital platforms, according to the report. Since 2019, the Group of 20 Global Smart Cities Alliance has been aiding cities in establishing technology governance policies, including model policies on universal access to information and communications technology, in order to help local governments meet higher procurement requirements. While community-led data innovations have been well received, the integration of citizen-generated data into policy and planning has yet to be achieved, according to the report.

City Diplomacy

According to a global assessment of 47 cities, city diplomacy is becoming more widespread, yet it generally lacks official strategy, training, and money. Cities such as Buenos Aires, Madrid, Moscow, New York, and Shanghai, as well as Helsinki, which, along with other Finnish cities, provided content for the development of global guidance on localising the Sustainable Development Goals, have strengthened their international institutional arrangements and processes by providing them with resources and technical expertise.

Recommendations

The report urged governments and all municipal and non-state actors to use the lessons learned from the COVID-19 epidemic to refocus and accelerate the New Urban Agenda’s implementation. Cities have been in the vanguard of the response and will lead the recovery, according to the report. It urged member states to make better use of the New Urban Agenda to bolster efforts to conserve our planet’s ecosystems. Countries can accelerate climate action, safeguard biodiversity, and decrease pollution by pursuing transformative commitments and implementing critical drivers, according to the report. The Secretary-General advised that cities integrate housing and related basic services with health, income, education, and access to basic services as five aspects of the social compact, based on the results of the research. According to the research, addressing multiple types of inequality and reducing poverty will require an integrated approach.