Marrakesh, Morocco: 19 October 2001: His Majesty Mohammed VI, the King of Morocco, called for greater transparency in the management of public affairs at the opening of the Fourth International Forum on Urban Poverty which was held in Marrakesh, Morocco, from 16-19 October 2001. In His Majesty's address, which was read on his behalf by Mr. Abbes El Fassi, the country's Minister of Employment, Professional Training, Social Development and Solidarity, King Mohamed stated that his country was committed to fulfilling the global development agenda, and to ensuring the fulfilment of individual and collective aspirations. His Majesty emphasised that human rights will only be truly achieved when poverty has been eradicated.

In her opening speech, the Executive Director of UNCHS (Habitat), Mrs. Anna Tibaijuka, stated that the major problem of this century was how to better manage cities, towns and human settlements. Mrs. Tibaijuka pointed out that urban areas have been the foundation of civilization and the engines of economic growth. However, they were also places of exclusion and violence. Mrs. Tibaijuka stated that because of the complex nature of urban poverty, overcoming the problems would require developing coalitions and alliances between stakeholders in order to guarantee economic development and social inclusion in cities and towns.

Also speaking at the occasion, the Chairman of the World Associations of Cities and Local Authorities Co-ordination (WACLAC), Mr. Joan Clos, who is also the Mayor of Barcelona, Spain, emphasised the important role played by local authorities in developing urban policies and in the successfully managing their constituencies. He stressed the need for development agencies to work with international associations of cities and towns to strengthen city to city cooperation.

The 4th International Forum on Urban Poverty (IFUP) was organised by the Government of Morocco through the Ministry of Employment, Professional Training, Social Development and Solidarity, with support from the City of Marrakesh, the Government of France, and the Telefonica Foundation of Morocco and Habitat. The Forum was attended by 500 delegates from 51 countries. Representatives came from City Authorities and their associations, NGOs including disadvantaged groups, Universities, Research Institutions and United Nations Agencies.

During the Forum, Mr. Mohamed El Yazghi, the Minister of Regional and Urban Planning, Housing and Environment, presented a report on Morocco which highlighted how the government was collaborating with local partners from different sectors on public policies to eradicate poverty. The Coordinator of the United Nations System in Morocco and UNDP Resident Representative for the country, Mr. Bouna Semou Diouf, stated that the United Nations is working closely with the Government of the Kingdom of Morocco on how best to develop the different social sectors.

The workshop was divided into four thematic groups. These were on Information and Communication Technologies; Employment Policies and Financing; Housing and Social Integration Policies; and Urban Governance. There were also ten parallel events organized by the Forum's partners. Round Tables and Meetings provided the opportunity to discuss the problems of implementation and to exchange recent innovations developed at community and city level. They also provided the opportunity to discuss the possibility of international partnerships. Field visits helped contextualise human settlements problems and solutions within Morocco.

At the conclusion of the workshop two committees compiled the recommendations on the major thematic topics: One on productive cities the other on inclusive cities. These were presented to a panel representing the different partners at IFUP that was chaired by the President of the United Towns Organisation, Ms. Mercedes Bresso, who is also the President of Turin Province, Italy.

Amongst the many recommendations made by the participants, there was a call for the systematic integration of the social dimension in strategies aimed at developing productive cities. It was felt that this was one of the best ways to eliminate sources of conflict and social and political instability. To encourage inclusive cities, it was recommended that stakeholders and women's organization in particular should participate in decision-making and local governance. The participants also called for greater support from central governments and international agencies to reinforce cooperation between cities and between civil society networks,. Many of these recommendations were debated by the Panel. In the following weeks, the two reports will be edited and published as a guideline on mediation and dialogue for inclusive cities.

On 19th October, at the closing meeting, Mr. Abdelhamid Aouad, Morocco's Minister of Planning and Provisions, expressed his Government's satisfaction at the outputs of the conference. In his closing remarks, Mr. Daniel Biau, the Deputy Executive Director of UNCHS (Habitat), also expressed the Centre's pleasure at the significant outcomes of the conference. He thanked the Government and people of Morocco and other partners for the excellent arrangements made for the meeting and for the hospitality offered to participants.

The IFUP Conference in Marrakesh was the last in the series of international meetings of the Forum, which began with the Conference in Recife, Brazil, in 1996. It will be replaced by a new 'Urban Forum' of partners, which will meet for the first time in Nairobi, Kenya, in May 2002. One of the tasks of this meeting will be to review the implementation of the recommendations from the conference in Marrakech.