Eurasia Regional Section of the World organization "United Cities and Local Governments"
Eurasia Regional Section of the World organization "United Cities and Local Governments"
On June 24-26, 2021, the city of Yakutsk hosted the VIIIEurasia Local and Regional Governments Congress, organized by the Government of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) together with the Eurasia section of the World Organization "United Cities and Local Governments". The event brought together mayors and representatives of local governments of Eurasian cities, as well as experts from organizations such as WHO (World Health Organization), ILCEI, Greenpeace, the Asian Forum of Mayors and the Union of Municipalities of Azerbaijan. For the first time, the congress was held in a hybrid format, representatives of local and regional authorities took part in person and online.
The key moment of the Congress was the General Assembly of the Eurasia regional section of UCLG. This is a meeting of the supreme governing body of the Eurasia section of UCLG, which meets once every three years and discusses internal statutory issues, such as a work plan, development strategy, and financial issues.
The results of activities were discussed on the agenda, plans for key programs and events were determined, and the leadership of the department for 2021-2024 was elected.
During the General Assembly, discussions were held on the topics of involving local authorities in the process of preparing Voluntary National Reviews on the SDGs and expanding international cooperation between Eurasian cities. In connection with the importance of reflecting the activities of local and regional authorities in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals in voluntary national reviews of the countries of the Eurasian region, the head of the Samara city district Elena Lapushkina made a report on the involvement of local authorities in the process of preparing voluntary national reviews: “Successful experience of participation of the Eurasia section of UCLG in preparation of the Voluntary National Review can serve as an example for local and regional authorities and their associations. The Review process should be inclusive and involve all levels of government.”
The General Assembly also supported the recommendations of the World Organization UCLG on expanding the participation of local authorities in the activities of the UN.
“At the initiative of UCLG, a Task Force on the Future of Cities was created, which prepared recommendations for expanding the participation of local and regional authorities in the UN. In particular, the provision of observer status to associations of local authorities in the UN General Assembly. The adoption of these recommendations would help strengthen the positions of local and regional authorities and their involvement in the global decision-making process,” said Gavril Kirillin, Minister for External Relations and Peoples’ Affairs of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) in his speech.
The Eurasia section continues to expand and new municipalities have joined the ranks of UCLG - the Municipal District "Gorny Ulus" of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia); Municipal National District of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia); Municipal district "Suntarsky ulus (district)" of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia); Municipal district "Ust-Aldansky ulus (district)" of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) and Municipal district "Khangalassky ulus (district)" of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia).
The most important issue of the General Assembly was the election of the leadership of the Eurasia section. Ilsur Metshin was re-elected President, Elena Lapushkina Head of the Samara City District and Aisen Nikolaev Head of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) were elected Vice Presidents.
“During his tenure as the President of our section, Ilsur Raisovich showed good results in the development of the activities of the Eurasia section of UCLG, this is active participation in the activities of the World Organization, and following the issues of the international agenda, such as the implementation of sustainable development goals in our region, strengthening the role and the voices of local authorities, as well as the strengthening and expansion of the influence of the Eurasia section of the UCLG,” emphasized Aleksey Shaposhnikov, Chairman of the Moscow City Duma.
In accordance with the provisions of the Charter of the Eurasia regional section of the World Organization, the composition of the Council was approved by the General Assembly. The Council includes the heads of such municipalities as Kazan, Nur-Sultan, Samara, the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), Comrat, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Perm, Tiraspol and Dnestrovsk, Ulan Bator, Krasnoyarsk, Bugulma, Bishkek, Novosibirsk, Neftekamsk, Rostov- on-Don, Ulyanovsk, Yekaterinburg, Krasnodar, Stavropol, Grozny, Nizhny Novgorod, Moscow and Dushanbe.
The next meeting of the Council was decided to be held in Daejeon, South Korea, in November 2022. This will allow to mobilize members of the organization both for participation in the World event and for participation in the regional statutory event.
28.06.2021
