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The unanimous consensus at the close of the world’s
largest gathering of mayors and other city
stakeholders was that climate change and the impact
of global warming is one of the main issues facing
world cities today. Participants vowed to make
concerted efforts to reduce the greenhouse gas
emissions that contribute to global warming, and to
use renewable and clean energy sources to combat
climate change: "For if we do not act now to
mitigate the consequences of global warming, the
results could be devastating,” warns the Jeju
Declaration issued at the end of the Second United
Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) Congress held
recently on the island resort of Jeju, South Korea.
Signed by the 2000 mayors and representatives of
cities and local and regional governments from
around the world on behalf of our rural and urban
communities living in small, medium and large
cities, metropolises and regions the Declaration
asserts, “Twenty-two of the world's largest cities
are seriously threatened by rising sea levels, while
others are likely to suffer from serious shortages
in clean water." The role of the UCLG is “to bring
together key partners to address this critical
issue."
The Congress also focused on shaping local and
regional government policies and defining the
positions of world's local leaders for the upcoming
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change Conference of Parties, coming up in Bali,
Indonesia in December.
“The representatives of local authorities around the
world and their main networks – the C40 Cities
Climate Leadership Group, the World Mayors Council
on Climate Change, ICLEI and UCLG – coming together
for UCLG’s World Congress in Jeju, are united in
making their voices heard at the Bali Conference."
They should become active stakeholders in the
process of negotiating the new United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change which needs
to be ratified in 2012 and furthermore, that they be
directly involved in the mechanisms of
implementation and monitoring of those accords.”
Organisers believe that UCLG's high-profile campaign
against climate change could be very effective.
Cities are responsible for 75 percent of the world's
energy consumption and 80 percent of greenhouse gas
emissions. But while cities are a part of the
problem, they also represent an essential part of
the solution. "The fight against climate change
begins in our cities. So it is vital that UCLG
positions itself as a key player and possesses a
clear and committed message on the issue," said
Bertrand Delanoë, the Mayor of Paris who was also
acclaimed as UCLG President.
Zhang Guangning, Mayor of China's industrial city of
Guangzhou, pledged to join forces to curb climate
change. He added that Chinese cities are seeking to
build energy-saving, environment-friendly harmonious
societies while sustaining economic growth. Kim Tae-hwan,
Governor of Jeju Province, host of the UCLG
Congress, said that the island, whose beautiful
coastline could be swamped by rising sea levels, was
the ideal venue for South Koreans to launch a
nation-wide campaign for environmental protection. "Jeju
would lead South Korea's campaign to address climate
change," Kim said. He also expressed hope that the
international event would promote Jeju's image as a
peace island.
Under the theme of "city diplomacy," the UCLG
Congress agenda also focused on the role of local
governments' efforts in promoting peace. According
to the Jeju Declaration, "Local governments also act
on the international stage to promote all human
rights and respect diversity in our cities and
territories as a foundation for peace and
development. Local governments share the goals of
the Alliance of Civilisations, an initiative
launched by the Secretary General of the United
Nations with the support of the Spanish and Turkish
governments to develop policies to promote
understanding and mutual respect, and thereby
maintain peace in the world. The Declaration also
praised Jeju's peace-building efforts, describing it
as "the island of world peace."
Other highlights of the Congress include the
announcement of a new Presidency for UCLG, the
world’s largest organisation of mayors and local and
regional government organisations. Bertrand Delanoë,
Mayor of Paris, France was elected President. To
serve with him as co-Presidents will be Paco Moncayo,
Mayor of Quito, Ecuador; Zhang Guangning, Mayor of
Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China; Kadir Topbas,
Mayor of Istanbul, Turkey, and Amos Masondo, Mayor
of Johannesburg, South Africa. Clarence Anthony,
Mayor of South Bay, Florida, USA was elected UCLG
Treasurer. Eight Vice Presidents representing all
the world regions were also elected.
The final day of the Congress also saw the launch of
UCLG}s Global Report on Decentralization and
Local Democracy (GOLD), the world’s first study
dedicated to decentralisation. Structured around
chapters featuring comparative studies of
decentralisation in different continents, the report
observes that a “quiet democratic revolution” is
spreading across the world as the local democracy
movement gathers momentum.
Announcing the close of the ceremonies, Mr. Delanoë
declared, “Our organisation has made remarkable
progress since the Founding Congress in Paris in May
2004…. Our growing membership means the unified
voice of UCLG is being heard louder than ever in the
global arena. Following a most successful World
Congress here in Jeju, the Presidency will advance
together on the key issues facing our world:
protecting the environment, expanding local
democracy and making the Millennium Development
Goals a reality. Above all, UCLG will fulfill its
role as an instrument of peace.”
Cities Alliance delegation to the Jeju Congress was
led by William Cobbett, Programme Manager, who also
chaired a session on “Strategic Responses in Fast
Growing Cities,” organised in collaboration with
UCLG. Showcasing experiences of cities such as
Rosario, Argentina and Calbayog city, the
Philippines, the session emphasised the importance
of City Development Strategy (CDS) processes to the
creation of well governed, sustainable and socially
inclusive cities. Mayor Mel Sarmiento of the city of
Calbayog said the CDS works both as a planning
process and a product which promotes partnerships
among various city stakeholders. It also facilitated
Calbayog’s transition from a financially handicapped
city with huge debts and a poor investment climate,
to an award winning city with increased investment
and higher economic growth.
Home to one million people and the third largest
city in Argentina, Rosario’s strategic planning
process has led to its current standing at the core
of the most important industrial area of the
country. Rosario’s successes have been replicated by
other South American cities. Mayor Roberto Miguel
Lifschitz said he would now like to expand the cope
of the knowledge sharing by his city’s hosting of an
Urban Strategic Planning Commission of the United
Cities and Local Governments: “This Commission will
foster economic and social development through the
introduction and continuous updating of urban
strategic planning in the public policies
implemented by local governments, always in the
context provided by the UCLG. It will create spaces
for “discussion, exchange and dissemination of
lessons learned and good practices that may improve
the quality of local policies on urban strategic
planning,” he added.
Cities Alliance also worked with UCLG to host a
session on "Financing Urban Explosion: The Local
Authorities Vision". Co-chaired by the Alliance’s
Krishnaswamy Rajivan, Mr. Eneas Comiche, Mayor of
Maputo and Ms. Jeanine Haddad, Vice President of Ile
de France which holds the Presidency of Metropolis,
the session discussed approaches to enabling access
to domestic finance for cities to finance
infrastructure. Cities’ experiences shared included
those by Omar El Bahraoui, Mayor of Rabat, President
of the Association Nationale des Collectivités
Locales Marocaines, Morocco, Omar Fayad, and
Violeta Seva, Advisor to the Mayor of Makati and
Vice-President for UCLG ASPAC, Philippines.
Ron Carlsson, Team Leader of the Urban Programme at
United States Agency for International Development (USAID)
and Lawrence Hannah, Lead Economist with the World
Bank Urban Anchor summarized the role of
international development partners, while private
sectors initiatives were highlighted by Marie-Alice
Lallemand Flucher, Head of International Public
Relations, Dexia SA.
Mr. Cobbett once again highlighted the importance of
mayors being in the driver’s seat of these processes
and of all city interventions in his remarks at the
Congress’s closing ceremonies, adding that Cities
Alliance will strategically target direct grant
funding to mayors, rather than to donor partners or
national governments.
For more information on the United Cities and Local
Governments, and the UCLG Congress, please visit:
http://www.cities-localgovernments.org/uclg/index.asp?L=EN
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