PRESS RELEASE
Fourth ambitious Annual Summit of the Global Parliament of Mayors in Durban, South Africa, 9-11 November
The Hague/Durban, 30 September 2019 – Mayors from African, Asian, European and US cities are signing up for the ambitious Annual Summit of the Global Parliament of Mayors (GPM) which will be held in Durban, South-Africa, from 9 to 11 November 2019.
The most critical challenges that humankind faces in this decade, from migration and pandemic diseases to social inequality and urban security, must be solved in cities. More than 50% of the world’s population lives in cities, so it is inconceivable that national and international bodies decide on policy actions without the cities and their mayors present as equal partners in shaping global policy.
To drive a fundamentally important shift in this structure, this years’ GPM Summit will focus on ‘Empowering Cities for the 2020s, a decade of change: shaping multi-level governance on a global scale.’ Through its work bringing Mayors’ voices to the fore, the GPM offers a complementary governance approach to the current nation states system and invites all mayors to join forces on tackling critical issues, formulate progressive, yet achievable resolutions, and vote as a parliament for the Durban Declaration which will be published at the closure of the GPM Summit 2019.
The newly appointed eThekwini Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda has expressed his excitement on hosting the summit. He said that the summit is an important meeting because it will provide a platform for political leaders to deliberate on how cities can be better equipped to deal with issues of rapid urbanisation, climate change and other related issues.
“I am confident that the resolutions taken at the summit will enable us to better formulate our policies so that our citizens will enjoy better quality services and we are able to respond more effectively and efficiently to challenges faced by municipalities,” said Kaunda. He added that he looked forward to meeting and working with other global mayors in an effort to promote efficiency in the delivery of services to citizens.
Keynote speakers will include Patricia de Lille, South-African Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, former Mayor of Cape Town and former GPM Chair and Emilia Saiz, Secretary General United Cities and Local Governance (UCLG). Representatives of global city networks and international organisations such as UN Habitat, Welcoming International, African Urban Security (AFUS), ICLEI, Metropolis and US Conference of Mayors will participate in the Summit to ensure a clear, united message to amplify city voices in support of the 2030 Agenda for the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Mayors from all around the world, representing big, middle size and smaller cities are invited to register for the GPM Summit. More than 65 mayors have already confirmed that they will take part in the Summit such as the Mayors from Beira (Mozambique), Braga (Portugal), Bristol (UK), Bulawayo (Zimbabwe), Cape Town (South Africa), Dayton (USA), Freetown (Sierra Leone), Hebron (Palestine), Kampala (Uganda), Kingston (Jamaica), Lubumbashi (Congo), Mannheim (Germany), Monrovia (Liberia), Montpellier (France), The Hague (the Netherlands) and Vyas (Nepal).
The registrations take place through https://globalparliamentofmayors.org/registration-2019/.
More information, not for publication:
To find out more about the Global Parliament of Mayors 2019 Summit and view the full programme, go to https://globalparliamentofmayors.org/annual-summit-2019/ or contact Caroline Schep, Executive Director GPM Secretariat, caroline.schep@denhaag.nl / +31 (0)6 22 01 63 23.
You can follow the event on social media at @gpmayors #GPMSummit and. facebook.com/globalparliamentofmayors/
For media enquiries contact Caroline Schep (The Hague/the Netherlands) on caroline.schep@denhaag.nl / +31 (0)6 22 01 63 23 or Mluleki Mntungwa (Durban/South Africa) on mntungwacm@gmail.com / 060 974 1140.