Catalonia seeks to be the first territory to implement the New Urban Agenda

Barcelona (CNA).- The Catalan Minister for Planning and Sustainability, Josep Rull, has offered to the United Nations that Catalonia be the first territory to implement the conclusions of the New Urban Agenda, a draft of pledges and new obligations to be adopted this week, which set in place a new global strategy on urbanisation for the next two decades. Since last Sunday, Rull has been taking part in the World Assembly of Local and Regional Leaders, a United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III) in Quito, Ecuador. The Catalan minister inaugurated the stand of the Catalan Government at the summit and said that the Catalan model "is inclusive, cohesive and committed to sustainable development". Rull recalled that one of the first laws that the Government is negotiating is that on climate change and argued that the administrations need to be well-coordinated so that "progress" can be achieved. 

The opening of the stand of the Catalan Government at the summit was also attended by the President of Barcelona Province, ​​Mercè Conesa, the Mayor of Barcelona, ​​Ada Colau, and the Catalan Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Jordi Solé.

During his speech, Josep Rull stressed that when governments work together they are "unstoppable" and invited all those involved to keep this spirit "to deal with the challenges we face as a country and the challenges humanity faces".

New Urban Agenda to be agreed before Thursday

Last May the draft text of the United Nations Habitat III Quito Declaration was published. This landmark document, also known as the New Urban Agenda, is due to be formally adopted during the Habitat III conference this week, and details the path to sustainable urban development across the globe.

The objective of Habitat III – the third conference in line with the bi-decennial cycle (1976, 1996 and 2016) - is to secure renewed political commitment for sustainable urban development, assess accomplishments to date, address poverty and identify and address new and emerging urban challenges.

The approved text will guide the efforts on urbanisation of a wide range of actors such as states, city and regional leaders, international development funders, United Nations programmes and civil society for the next 20 years.