Dialogue on the theme for the twenty-fifth session of the Governing Council

In its final report, the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals recommended that sustainable cities and human settlements be addressed as a standalone goal, and the General Assembly decided that the proposal of the Open Working Group contained in the report would serve as the main basis for integrating sustainable development goals into the post-2015 development agenda. Goal 11, the proposed standalone goal, is to “make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.” In its resolution 24/10, the Governing Council requested the Executive Director, in consultation with the Committee of Permanent Representatives, to ensure that UN-Habitat contributed to the development and implementation of the post-2015 development agenda in order to promote sustainable urbanization. Accordingly, UN-Habitat provides information to Governments and the United Nations system on the role of urbanization to ensure that it is adequately reflected in the post-2015 development agenda, including the sustainable development goals.

Urbanization is a potential source of development because a planned city is an engine of economic growth that generates wealth, improves living standards and as well acts as a locus for technological innovations. Properly managed, urbanization like the forces of industrialization that transformed the modern world could arguably be one of the most important phenomena of the 21st century. Urbanization can foster rapid rates of productivity growth but we do know that as a human construct, the process must be guided by well-constructed institutions in ways that make our cities and towns work to enhance higher quality of life through employment generation and inclusive growth.  For example, economies of agglomeration or clustering bring the factors of production into spatial proximity, optimize specialization through the formation of knowledge networks and in the end increase the relative size of urban markets.

Structural change analysis show that urbanization – fostered by an interdependent and dynamic rural-urban movement – leads to qualitative change in the structural composition of a country, from relatively high levels of agricultural labor force to high level urban manufacturing labor that ultimately raise productivity and rise in GDP. Second, structural change through rural-urban changes opens industrialization pathways by the shift of resources from agriculture to industrial manufacturing; a process that involves both labor and processing activities connecting urban and rural areas, leading again to increase in the share of manufacturing contribution overall GDP. Third, in contrast to agriculture, urban industrial production pathways for example through cluster formation are a faster road to capital accumulation. This link between urbanization (read rural-urban transformation), poverty reduction, rising living standards, and employment generation has not been given due attention among urban scholars; we hope to bridge this gap in knowledge.

While urbanization leads to poverty reduction, increased economic growth and improved interdependence between rural and urban areas, some 80 per cent of global gross domestic product is generated in cities, but so are two thirds of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. The population of the world’s cities will nearly double in the next 35 years as the space they occupy more than triples, with detrimental consequences for peri-urban and rural areas. Focusing on planning for urbanization in advance, with adequate rules and regulations and a viable financial plan, is key to managing this growth. Cities and human settlements will need proactive support from all levels of government. A dedicated global goal on sustainable cities and human settlements is relevant for our increasingly urban world, unique in its focus on space and place, transformational in the achievement of higher-level outcomes, empowering for local governments and timely given the narrow window of opportunity that exists to influence the growth of future cities. This goal will also need to promote a positive, mutually-reinforcing relationship between cities and their hinterlands.

From the above, our post-2015 discourse must depart from the traditional (and false) dichotomy of urban and rural, because for both to be sustainable they must develop in tandem. Recognizing the urban-rural continuum also highlights how partnerships, collaboration and unity in action can yield dividends for all people, regardless of age, gender and whether they live in urban or rural areas. Positive outcomes include food security, increased employment, improved equity and better governance. The Open Working Group explicitly addressed urban-rural linkages under proposed targets to increase investment in rural infrastructure and support positive economic, social and environmental links between urban, peri-urban and rural areas by strengthening national and regional development planning.

The dialogue will explore the role of UN-Habitat in the post 2015 agenda and the role of urban – rural linkages in harnessing the transformative power of urbanization for sustainable development.

The objectives of the dialogue are as follows:

• Discuss the role of UN-Habitat in the finalization of the Post-2015 Development Agenda;
• Discuss the role of UN-Habitat in the monitoring and implementation of the Post-2015 Development Agenda;
• Discuss various strategies, challenges, approaches and experiences in urban rural linkages; and
• Develop actionable approaches/ entry points to operationalize and streamline urban-rural linkages.

The following questions are intended to stimulate further discussion on the role of UN-Habitat in the Post 2015 development agenda:

1. What other possibilities exist for strengthening the role of sustainable urbanization in the final intergovernmental negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda?
2. Can we avoid some of the shortcomings of the Millennium Development Goals by targeting the drivers of unsustainable urbanization and quantifying ambitions proportionally?
3. Whereas the proposed sustainable development goals focus explicitly on the importance of land for poverty reduction, gender and food security, land is not explicitly addressed within the context of sustainable cities and human settlements. How might this be remedied?
4. How can sustainable urbanization enhance endogenous resource mobilization for the implementation of the post-2015 development agenda?
5. Which mechanisms might be optimal for the implementation and monitoring of the sustainable development goals and what might be the corresponding coordination and implementation role for UN-Habitat?
6. What might be the role of UN-Habitat in localizing the implementation of the sustainable development goals?
7. How can member States, in collaboration with UN-Habitat, its partners and other urban stakeholders, ensure that the sustainable development goals lead to meaningful transformation?The questions intended to guide the discussions on enhancing urban-rural linkages across the continuum of human settlements to harness the transformative power of urbanization for sustainable development:
8. How can Governments manage a system of urban and rural areas such that economic connectivity, environmental sustainability and social wellbeing are maximized?
9. What is the role of various stakeholders in relation to urban-rural linkages, including different levels of government, private sector and workers’ unions?
10. Which types of metropolitan governance mechanisms would improve the function of metropolitan regions, including the role of small, intermediate and secondary towns?
11. Which practices have successfully used participatory methods for urban planning where the needs for future generations are fully incorporated and given priority?
12. Building transport infrastructure, development of secondary cities, training and capacity-building, public-private partnerships, and appropriate institutional frameworks are all key to achieve better urban-rural linkages. What can be done to promote these?
13. How can urban sprawl be managed, particularly in high-potential agricultural areas?
14. Which practices have successfully integrated urban and rural financial and capital markets and services?
15. How can transportation corridors be managed such that economic connectivity is maximized?
16. How can UN-Habitat and its partners ensure tenure security and protection of land and other related rights of women, poor and vulnerable groups in the context of the urban-rural continuum?
17. How can UN-Habitat support national and local governments in developing effective legal and institutional frameworks that are locally relevant and advance the principles of the rule of law and human rights?
18. How can UN-Habitat and its partners ensure balanced territorial planning that addresses urban-rural migration now occurring in certain regions?