Brussels, 7 October, 2002: On the occasion of World Habitat Day, Mr. Kofi Annan, Secretary-General of the United Nations called for cities to recognise the importance of working together to face common challenges. In his message, which was dedicated to the theme of City-to-City Cooperation, he said that "If cities are the collective future of humankind, it is time for us to take collective responsibility for their future development."

The Secretary-General's message was read out by Mrs. Anna Tibaijuka, the Executive of UN-HABITAT, at this year's global observances which were held in Brussels, Belgium, in the presence of H.R.H. Prince Philippe and other distinguished delegates. The event was co-hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and International Cooperaton of the Government of Belgium and the European Commission.

In her opening address, Mrs. Anna Tibaijuka reinforced the Secretary-General's message stating that "in a globalizing world, where cities are increasingly important actors in the international economy, it makes sense to look to local authorities to provide support for urban development." She went on to say that " City-to-City cooperation is an effective way to mobilize large scale development resources, to actively exchange best practices and to improve the management capacity of cities in the developing world."

Supporting the call for more City-to-City cooperation, Hon. Eddy Boutmans, the Belgian Secretary of State for Development Cooperation, pointed out that Belgian cities had a wealth of experience they could share. In fact, they had been working with UN-HABITAT for the last 20 years on a number of joint projects including Localising Agenda 21 which was working in cities in Morocco, Kenya, Vietnam and Belgium and was about to be extended to the city of Bayamo in Cuba.

The keynote speech at the morning's meeting was by Mr. Amartya Sen, the Nobel Laureate, which was presented on video and introduced by Romi Khosla. In his speech, Mr. Amartya Sen argued that freedom is the primary end as well as the principal means of development. He then called upon local authorities to enshrine the principles of political and economic freedom, the need for social opportunities, guarantees of transparency and protective security in a new charter of urban governance.

Apart from the speeches, the prestigious UN-HABITAT Scroll of Honour was presented to this year's award winners by H.R.H. Prince Philippe. This year the following were awarded the prize:

* The Cities of Nakuru and Leuven were awarded for their multi-faceted City-to-City cooperation on sustainable urban development.

* The Brazilian Institute of Municipal Administration (IBAM) was awarded for its continuous support to local government development through training and municipal and urban issues.

* Baotou Municipal Government in China was awarded for its outstanding improvements in shelter and the urban environment and successful cooperation with other cities.

* Citynet, which is based in Yokohama, Japan was awarded for playing a key role in facilitating City-to-City Cooperation and networking amongst local governments, non-governmental organisations and development agencies in Asia.

* The Dutch Habitat Platform was awarded for coordinating the Habitat Agenda and linking municipalities in the Netherlands with their partners in developing countries.

* Mayor Joan Clos of Barcelona received an award for his outstanding commitment and contribution to the global cooperation between local authorities and the United Nations.

* Enda Tiers Monde, from Dakar Senegal, received an award for promoting alternative development options at the local level, reducing poverty and advocating housing rights.

* Rene Frank from the United States of America, was presented with an award for his dedication to low-cost housing as a leading member of the International Real Estate Federation (FIABCI).

* John Hodges of the Infrastructure Urban Development Department of the British Government's Department of International Development, was specially cited for his contribution to poverty elimination and sustainable urban development in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.

At the same ceremony, His Royal Highness Prince Philippe of Belgium also presented the World Habitat Awards, given annually by the Building and Social Foundation, to the Architects Community Programme in Cuba for affordable technical support to over 250,000 households who are building or renovating their homes on a self-help basis. An award was also given to the Tokyo based, Setagaya-ku Fukasawa Symbiotic Housing for designing a socially and environmentally sustainable housing project for households of all ages.

Other events during the day included an international panel discussion on City-to-City cooperation which was led by the Cities Alliance Policy Advisory Body and chaired by the BBC journalist Steve Bradshaw. In the evening, there was an exhibition of children's drawings on urban themes and a launch of two UN-HABITAT publications. Sustainable Urbanization- Bridging the Green and Brown Agendas was produced jointly with the British Department for International Development (DFID) and the Development Planning Unit (DPU) of the University of London. The report on Housing Rights Legislation was jointly produced by UN-HABITAT and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, (OHCHR).

Apart from the global observances in Brussels, there were parallel celebrations all over the world. In New York, representatives from Sister Cities International, local government, business and citizen's groups met at the Dag Hammarskjold Library Auditorium to discuss how to advance City-to-City cooperation. In Nairobi, there were major festivities at the national stadium to celebrate World Habitat Day.

For further information, please contact:

Mr. Sharad Shankardass, Spokesperson
or Ms. Zahra A. Hassan
Media & Press Relations Unit
UN-HABITAT
Tel: (254 2) 623153
Fax: (254 2) 624060
E-mail: habitat.press@unhabitat.org
Website: www.unhabitat.org