Cities: Crossroads of Cultures
2nd World Urban Forum in Barcelona, September 13-17, 2004
FIG attended the 2nd World Urban Forum under the theme “Cities:
Crossroads of Cultures – inclusiveness and integration?” organised by
UN-Habitat in Barcelona, Spain, September 13-17, 2004. The conference
attracted almost 5,000 registered participants. This 2nd WUF included
dialogues and networking events that were organized by UN-Habitat with
several partners representing governments, local authorities, CBOs, NGOs,
international donors and professionals like the Habitat Professionals Forum
and FIG.
At the opening ceremony keynote presentations were given in addition to
Dr. Anna K. Tibaijuka, Executive Director of UN-Habitat with eminent
speakers including Mr. Michail Gorbachev, former President of the
Russian Federation, Mr. Martti Ahtisaari, former President of Finland
and Mr. Rafic Hariri, Lebanese Prime Minister, who also was presented
the Special Citation of the Habitat-Scroll of Honour.
The conference programme included nine dialogues with all Habitat
partners and almost 100 networking events were divided under six themes:
city management, finance, housing and infrastructure, sustainability,
inclusiveness, and risks. FIG was co-organiser at two sessions: The
Challenges of City Financing: Habitat’s Professionals Forum and Land
and Urban Poverty. They both attracted a full meeting room of interested
delegates to discuss the issues of city financing and security of tenure.
The presentations will be available on the Habitat Professionals Forum’s web
site ( www.habitatforum.org ) and
at the home page of the Tenure Unit of UN-Habitat. At the city financing
session FIG was represented by Timo Härmälä from Finland and at the
security of tenure session by President Holger Magel. Further FIG
representatives at the WUF Forum were Vice President Ralf Schroth and
Diane Dumashie, Chair of FIG Commission 8 and Markku Villikka,
Director, FIG office.
At the Habitat Professionals Forum Steering Committee meeting Prof.
Holger Magel was appointed as the new chair of the Steering Committee.
The papers of the networking
event - The Challenges of City Financing: Habitat’s Professionals Forum
and Land and Urban Poverty:
Other links:
Speakers at the city financing session: Prof.
Om Prakash Mathur
(India), Timo Härmälä (Finland) and Prof. Aloysius C. Mosha
(Botswana). |
Speakers at the city financing session:
Don Okpala (UN-Habitat),
Timo Härmälä (Finland), Prof. Aloysius C. Mosha
(Botswana), Dr. Irene Wiese - von Ofen, Prof. Horst
Zimmermann and Prof. Om Prakash Mathur (India). |
Audience at the networking event on city financing. |
FIG President Holger Magel with representatives from Kenya and CASLE:
Cyprien Riungu (next to Prof. Magel), Don Okpala, UN-Habitat and
Clifford Dann (on the right). |
Networking event on land and urban poverty. |
Networking event on land and urban poverty - in the front
Clarissa
Augustinus, Head of Land Tenure Unit of UN-Habitat. |
Networking event on land and urban poverty. |
Networking event on land and urban poverty. |
Prof. Holger Magel, new Chair of the Habitat Professionals Forum awarded
Dr. Irene Wiese - von Ofen, the first chair of the Forum with FIG
President's gift. |
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