News in 2024

FIG participation at the World Urban Forum (WUF12) in Cairo, Egypt (4-8 November 2024)

4-8, November, 2024, Cairo, Egypt

Adil Sait, an FIG young professional and doctoral researcher at the London School of Economics (LSE) represented FIG at the 12th session of the World Urban Forum (WUF12)

FIG President, Diane Dumashie, met Adil at the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) in London on 28th October 2024, to brief him on the FIG vision and mission for WUF12 in Cairo between 4-8 November 2024.

Overall impressions

The main theme of the WUF12 in Cairo, Egypt was “It All Starts at Home: Local Actions for Sustainable Cities and Communities” with a major focus being on addressing the ‘global housing crisis’ and localising the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The forum was attended by 25,000 participants from 182 countries, with the recently appointed UN-Habitat Executive Director, Dr. Anacláudia Rossbach, highlighting her strategic focus on ‘access to adequate housing, land, and basic services for all, and the transformation of informal settlements and slums’. The role of urban professionals was notable through the forum. For example, through the work of the Habitat Professionals Forum (HPF) and partners in the publication and launch of ‘The International Participatory Charter’. A major cross-cutting theme in the forum was building coalitions and partnerships between different stakeholders for addressing urban challenges with reference to the New Urban Agenda and Pact for the Future.

Habitat Professionals Forum

FIG was represented at the WUF12 HPF meeting on Monday 4th November 2024, which had attendance from 16 of the 28 member organisations of HPF. This was a short formal meeting where the main agenda item were the results of the election of the new chair and deputy chair. Eleanor Mohammed (Commonwealth Association of Planners) was elected the new HPF chair, while Lance Jay Brown (Consortium for Sustainable Urbanisation) was elected the deputy chair. The meeting also consisted of short presentations by Mona Rady (International Union of Architects) and others on the previous activities of HPF including in expanding membership, and participation in other events such as the UN-Habitat Assembly (5-9 June 2023). There was also a short presentation on other HPF activities at WUF12, including a press conference to launch the ‘The International Participatory Charter’ and organisation of the Professionals Roundtable.

FIG representative, Adil Sait, with Dyan Currie, UN-Habitat Stakeholder Advisory Group Enterprise (SAGE); Lindsey Richards, President Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI); and Jua Cilliers, President Commonwealth Association of Planners, 4th November 2024. FIG representative, Adil Sait, with other members of the Habitat Professionals Forum, 4th Nov. 2024

Other FIG Activities at WUF12

FIG also attended various other sessions on Tuesday 5th and Wednesday 6th November 2024 including the Women’s Roundtable, a Huairou Commission event organised and chaired by Mino Ramaroson on ‘Women advocating for Gender-Inclusive, People-Centred Urban Development’, and contributed to a session at the ‘Habitat Village’ co-organised and chaired by Dr. Lucy Natarajan and Dr. Michael Short from University College London.

FIG was also a named partner in an SDGs in Action event on ‘Youth Decision-making for Healthy and Sustainable Cities and Communities’ (Thursday 7th November 2024) organised by University of East London (Prof. Siraj Sait) and Namibia University of Science and Technology (Prof. Eugene Chigbu), which was attended by 249 international delegates with contributions including from Mostafa Magdy, Associate Minister of Youth And Sports Government of Egypt; Fatima Annan-Diab, Executive Dean, Royal Docks School of Business and Law, University of East London; Himanshu Jain, the District Governor, Rotary in London; Zeina El-Zein, UN-Habitat Youth Advisory Board; Daniel Uwadia Osayimwense, Special Advisor on Youth from the Government of Nigeria, and Hellen Ndungu from the Global Land Tool Network (GLTN). The role of FIG young professionals and its youth empowerment initiatives were also mentioned.

FIG also assisted the moderator of the special session on ‘Capturing Voices and Recommendations of Stakeholders in the Design and Implementation of the UN-Habitat Strategic Plan 2026-2029’ (Thursday 7th November 2024) organised by the UN-Habitat Stakeholder Advisory Group Enterprise (SAGE) and University of East London, which saw presentations by representatives from member states – Ghana, Kenya, and Mexico – and senior UN-Habitat staff including Carmen Sanchez-Miranda Gallego (UN-Habitat Strategic Planning Unit) and Robert Lewis-Lettington (UN-Habitat Land, Housing and Shelter Section/GLTN), and contributions from various civil society organisations and networks including the UN-Habitat Advisory Group on Gender Issues (AGGI), Habitat UNI Network, World Urban Campaign (WUC), Slum Dwellers International (SDI) and others. HPF was represented by Peter Oborn from the Commonwealth Association of Architects (ACC), who made a presentation on Commonwealth best practices and how to implement UN-Habitat Assembly resolutions. FIG will continue to play a key role in the development and implementation of the UN-Habitat Strategic Plan for 2026-2029.

FIG representative, Adil Sait, with Lance Jay Brown (Consortium for Sustainable Urbanisation) and Mona Rady (International Union of Architects) at the Habitat Professionals Forum, 4th Nov. 2024 FIG representative, Adil Sait, speaking at the Habitat Village, session moderated by Dr. Lucy Natarajan (UCL), 6th Nov. 2024 (Photo kindly taken by Dr. Michael Short, UCL).

 

FIG also assisted the chair of the Civil Society Roundtable (Friday 8th November 2024), which saw presentations from the UN-Habitat Executive Director Dr. Anacláudia Rossbach, Government of Egypt, US Department of Housing and Urban Development, and various civil society organisations and coalitions including the Asian Coalition for Housing Rights (ACHR), Habitat International Coalition (HIC), and Habitat for Humanity International (HfHI) which were represented among the 263 participants. Eric Huybrechts, representing HPF, was recognised by the chair and made a short presentation on ‘The International Participatory Charter’ and the work of urban professionals. Dyan Currie from HPF made the closing remarks. The civil society roundtable recommendations on the need for stronger alliances between stakeholders, including professionals, made its way into the final outcomes for the forum.

World Urban Forum Advisory Group

FIG also had the opportunity to attend daily meetings and assist a member of the WUF12 Advisory Group, consisting of representatives of various UN-Habitat stakeholders including member states, which was responsible for making stakeholder recommendations and shaping the outcome document for the forum – ‘Cairo Call to Action’.. Dyan Currie, co-chair of the UN-Habitat Stakeholder Advisory Group Enterprise, represented professionals.

UN-Habitat Executive Director congratulating the WUF12 Advisory Group on their efforts on the Cairo Call to Action, 8th Nov. 2024 View of the Room from the Civil Society Roundtable, chaired by Prof. Siraj Sait (UEL) (Image from IISD reporting for 8th November 2024)

 

At various informal meetings and caucuses, the leadership of FIG under Diane Dumashie was regularly mentioned with increasing interest in its role.

FIG representative, Adil Sait, with urban professionals Antonio Rovira, BuroHappold; and Roland Chanin-Morris, Ramboll, 8th November 2024. FIG representative, Adil Sait, with Andrés Chama Avilés, International Urban Coordinator, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Mexico; and Zeina El-Zein, UN-Habitat Youth Advisory Board, at the WUF12 Advisory Group, 8th November 2024.

 

Adil Sait 
December 2024