Key issues on urban governance

Special session on Urban Governance and the Global Agenda Briefing for the discussion Council Chamber Liverpool Town Hall UCLG Executive Bureau, June 17 at 17:00h

The Special session on Urban Governance and the Global Agenda at the Executive Bureau of Liverpool, coordinated by the UCLG Committee on Decentralisation and Local SelfGovernment, will be developed in two blocks: the presentation of a study on mapping urban governance; and a debate about urban governance and the global agenda. These are the main issues to be discussed during the session:

1. Mapping Urban Governance Chair: Philipp Rode, Executive Director LSE Cities, London School of Economics, United Kingdom The LSE Cities-UN Habitat joint initiative, with the collaboration of the UCLG Decentralisation Committee, aims at analysing urban and territorial governance in order to fins out how cities are preparing for their future. To do that, a brief survey for local authorities has been elaborated.

This survey tackles the following aspects: - City governance and the design of the urban future - Institutional capabilities of local governments facing new challenges (management, planning and provision of basic services) - A comparative analysis of urban governance systems - Identification of best practices

The completion of this study requires the participation of local governments in different countries to incorporate diverse realities and learn from their experiences. It also seeks to identify risk factors and analytical tools in city management.

This effort is linked to the international agenda and aims at contributing to the debate on the new Post 2015 Development Agenda and the new urban agenda (Habitat III Conference). The results would supply data for the 4th UCLG Global Report on Decentralization and Local Democracy (GOLD IV).

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2. Issues at stake: Urban Governance in the Global Agenda Chair: Diana L贸pez, UN Habitat Local Government and Decentralisation Unit The Report GOLD IV will help to strengthen the position of local and regional governments in the current debate about the Global Development Agenda Post 2015 and support the advance of the new Urban Agenda for Habitat III, where the issue of governance and inter-institutional dialogue will play a key role.

Unlike previous GOLD reports, the fourth edition will have a theme structure (not geographical). Among the topics to be addressed we find: a) Urban and territorial governance; b) Funding of urbanization; c) Urban planning; d) Inclusive cities and territories; e) Environmental sustainability; f) Culture; and g) Local government in development.

During this part of the session, discusi贸n Hill be focusses on Urban an Territorial Governance. More precisely: 1) Principle of Urban Governance - Improving coordination between local and national policies: How to promote better coordination between different levels of government (multilevel governance) without undermining local autonomy?

- Transparency and Local Administration: What principles of information and accountability should guide the actions of local governments?

- Local governments and crisis: How to preserve and strengthen subsidiarity and transparency in situations of crisis and institutional fragility?

- The participation of local governments in the Global Agenda: What message would you send to international organizations to support the role of local governments in global governance?

2) Levers of change - New technologies and urban governance: What instruments can be used by local governments? In what areas?

- Citizen participation: Is participation a trigger for change or an obstacle to planning?

- Improving local partnerships: How to build public-private partnerships from a local perspective?

3) Good Practices - Feasibility of good practices: How can good practices be used in urban governance?

- Instruments for disseminating good practices: How should good practices be disseminated?

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