World Assembly of Local and Regional Governments

The place of local governments in international policymaking is evolving, and the New Urban Agenda reflects this evolution. Local government networks, organized in the Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Governments were active part of the preparatory process for Habitat III, which led to the New Urban Agenda. The Second World Assembly of Local and Regional Governments was the mechanism through which the local and regional government constituency brought its political voice to the Habitat III processes, providing inputs from local and regional leaders to the New Urban Agenda.

In a landmark achievement, the World Assembly of Local and Regional Governments is acknowledged in the New Urban Agenda. This recognition sets the ground for a more structured consultation in other global agendas, but more importantly, solidifies the perception of Mayors and Governors as trusted contributors to the generation of international policy, when this policy has impacts at the local level and needs the contribution of all actors if wants to be achieved locally.

The establishment of a long-term dialogue mechanisms such as the World Assembly, representing more than 300.000 institutions, certainly contributes to consolidate and strengthen the voice of local governments, giving them a seat at the global table.

Additionally, local governments have a major role to play in the follow-up and review of the New Urban Agenda, particularly in engaging with national governments and developing “implementable follow-up and review mechanisms at the local level, including through relevant associations and appropriate platforms”. These mechanisms are yet to be discussed extensively and agreed upon and the World Assembly session can address this and make some proposals.

This opportunity can also harness local experience and commitment and provide proof to national governments, donors, partners, and citizens of the capacity of local and regional governments to deliver, as well as to raise attention about the concrete challenges they face when managing urban challenges.

Q1: What are the World Assembly key messages to the international community and national governments?

Q2: How to better link the monitoring and reporting processes of the New Urban Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals?

Q3: How to formalize and operationalize the contribution of the World Assembly to the follow up and review mechanisms of the New Urban Agenda? Which tools and platforms to enable the reporting?

Q4: How the localization of the Sustainable Development Goals can contribute to the New Urban Agenda implementation and monitoring? And what are the local and regional governments’ experiences in this regard?