May 31, Istanbul — United Nation Secretary, Dr. Boutros-Ghali, announced today that local authorities had, for the first time in history, the opportunity to participate in United Nations deliberations. In a speech read on his behalf, Dr. Wally N’Dow, Secretary-General of the second United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II), said that United Nations member states, in a historic General Assembly decision, had not only acknowledged the changing role of local authorities in governance, but had, for the first time, accorded them the opportunity to participate in deliberations of Habitat II. Dubbed the Partnerships Conference, Habitat II is the first United Nations conference to actively encourage local authorities, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the private sector and community groups, to participate in the Conference. In addition to the official Conference, several partners’ events have also been organized.
“This indeed is a seminal development and clearly indicates the importance that the United Nations attaches to the role of local governments in today’s ever changing world,” Dr. N’Dow said. This rule change, he emphasized, was not intended to be a brief alteration in United Nations procedures, but was meant to institutionalize a relationship of cooperation between local authorities and the United Nations for the future.
Dr. N’Dow was addressing the World Assembly of Cities and Local Authorities, which ends today in Istanbul. This historic event brought together over 500 mayors and key municipal leaders in Istanbul to discuss and prepare a Declaration for submission to the Habitat II Conference, which begins June 3. The Declaration will call upon the United Nations and its Member States to recognize and foster the vital role of local authorities in achieving Habitat II’s key goals and to frame policies and support measures which enhance this role.
Press contact persons: Astrid van der Veer; fax:250 4553; tel: 254 9900
or Rasna Warah, tel: 290 3024