UNDP at the 12th World Urban Forum

“It All Starts at Home: Local Actions for Sustainable Cities and Communities”

October 1, 2024

Event Details

Date

04 - 08 November 2024

Time

EET

Location

Cairo, Egypt

New York - The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Decade of Action (2020-2030) is the decade of rapid urbanization. By 2050, close to 70 percent of humanity will be living in cities. Cities produce more than 70 percent of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions and consume 80 percent of the world’s energy. Urbanization has a direct impact on climate change, widening inequalities, population growth, ageing and environmental degradation.

The 12^th World Urban Forum (WUF), the largest global urban conference happening in Cairo, Egypt from 4-8 November 2024 takes into account some key actions towards addressing the challenges for sustainable urban development, the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the New Urban Agenda and will focus on six dialogues:

Dialogue 1: Housing our future 

Dialogue 2: Cities and the climate crisis 

Dialogue 3: Stronger together 

Dialogue 4: Financing localization and localizing finance 

Dialogue 5: Putting people first in a digital age 

Dialogue 6: The loss of home 

UNDP’s presence in the World Urban Forum

UNDP brings tailored and integrated solutions for promoting sustainable development in cities by improving ‘systems’ that shape inclusive governance, environment, social and financial systems. Over the last 60 years, UNDP has demonstrated its capacity, expertise and value added in assisting countries, municipalities and local stakeholders to develop policies, leadership skills, institutional capabilities and build resilience to sustain development results.

During the WUF12, UNDP’s footprint and programmatic work will focus on the following key messages:

Tackling stubborn poverty and territorial inequalities. The Decade of Action (2020-2030) is also the decade of rapid urbanization. There is an urgent need to focus on local economic development, local actions, and community-based interventions to enable urban transformations that leave no one behind and leave no place behind.
Boosting local development financing. Achieving inclusive, adequate, and affordable housing for all urban residents, linked with equitable access to credit and financing, is critical to localizing the SDGs and achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Strengthening Urban Resilience amidst polycrises. Amidst interlinked and cascading global crises, strengthening urban resilience is paramount to ensuring inclusive communities that integrate internally and internationally displaced people and vulnerable population groups.
Harnessing the positive potential of nature-based solutions. Nature-based and nature-positive solutions are critical in enabling cities to offer integrated solutions that address urban resilience, climate impacts, biodiversity conservation, and multiple crises and challenges, creating opportunities for jobs and sustainable growth.
Propelling an inclusive digital transformation at local level. Cities need to leverage technology and digital transformation to bridge the “digital divide” and ensure inclusive and integrated solutions, with an emphasis on marginalized and vulnerable population groups.

WUF12 is expected to bring together around 15,000 stakeholders, including national, regional and local governments, NGOs, community groups, research institutions and academia, the private sector, IFIs, foundations, the media, UN organizations and other international agencies.

Find the details of UNDP engagements below:

Date and Time (in Egypt Standard Time - UTC+2)	Event	Blurb	Venue
Monday, 4 November 4:00 PM - 7:00 PM	Opening Plenary of the Twelfth Session of the World Urban Forum - WUF12	The Twelfth Session of the World Urban Forum WUF12, convened by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), will take place in Cairo, Egypt, from 4 to 8 November 2024, returning to the African continent after more than 20 years after its inception in Nairobi, Kenya, in 2002.	Egypt International Exhibition Center, Cairo, Egypt
Tuesday, 5 November 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM	Boosting Local Economic Development through Innovative Financing – Led by UNDP (Category- SDGs in Action)	Co-organized by UNDP and the Government of Egypt’s Ministry of Local Development, this event will explore innovative financing mechanisms from national and local governments, UN agencies, international financial institutions (IFIs), the private sector, and civil society to leverage catalytic funding to localize integrated solutions, across SDG targets, for SDG localization and achievement.	Room C, Hall 2, Egypt International Exhibition Center (EIEC)
Wednesday, 6 November 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM	Building Better Lives through Sustainable and Inclusive Social Infrastructure (Category- Voices from Cities)	Co-organized by UNDP, this event will bring together diverse and global perspectives from cities and local governments, national governments, NGOs, civil society, the private sector, UN agencies, academia, and international development partners to highlight inclusive, sustainable, and resilient approaches to foster adequate housing for all urban residents. It will showcase challenges, experiences, best practices, and solutions from cities, local governments, and communities around the world.	Room C, Egypt International Exhibition Center (EIEC)
Wednesday, 6 November 5:00 PM – 6:30 PM	Accelerating Local Climate Action and Urban Green Transition for Inclusive, Sustainable, and Resilient Cities (Category - Networking Event)	From nature-based solutions and sustainable urban mobility to green jobs and renewable energy, this event will bring together diverse perspectives from cities and local governments, national governments, civil society, international organizations, NGOs, academia, and the private sector to spotlight challenges, initiatives, innovative practices, participatory decision-making, climate financing and resource mobilization, partnerships, strategies, and local actions that are facilitating a just, inclusive, and resilient transformation towards urban green economies in cities and communities around the world.	Multipurpose Room 01, Hall 2, Egypt International Exhibition Center (EIEC)
Thursday, 7 November 9:00 AM – 10:30 AM	Building Inclusive Migration Pathways to Drive Sustainable Urbanization (Category- SDGs in Action - With International Organization for Migration [IOM], United Cities and Local Governments [UCLG], and Mayors Migration Council [MMC])	The objective of the side event is to take stock of emerging practices and innovative policies driven by urban changemakers that facilitate effective regular migration pathways, accelerating replicable and scalable solutions for migrants' long-term inclusion and integration in cities leveraging the positive impact of migration for sustainable urbanization. To do so, the side event co-led by UNDP, will bring together a broad range of stakeholders, including UN agencies, United Cities and Local Government (UCLG), the Mayors Migration Council (MMC), representatives of Member States, local authorities and cities, urban practitioners, the private sector, and changemakers from civil society (including migrants’ associations and youth).	Room A, Hall 2, Egypt International Exhibition Center (EIEC)
Thursday, 7 November 9:00 AM – 12 PM	CityScape 2050 GenAI-Powered Urban Futures Workshop (Category- Training in-person event)	For this training event, UNDP will host the “CityScape 2050: GenAI-Powered Urban Futures Workshop” session, showcasing advanced GenAI tools to help participants explore possible urban scenarios and develop strategies for sustainable, inclusive city development. The session will demonstrate how UNDP's Urban Learning Center (ULC) is pioneering new approaches to capacity building and knowledge exchange for urban practitioners. This hands-on session brings together diverse perspectives to tackle key urban issues generate insights that can inform real-world urban policies and practices. Participants will use AI-generated media and methodologies to spark discussions and create practical ideas for future-ready cities. The workshop aims to showcase innovative collective intelligence approaches and highlight how collective thinking can address urban challenges effectively.	Multipurpose Room 11, Hall 2, Egypt International Exhibition Center (EIEC)