President of UCLG-Eurasia: “Challenging times will pass, but our resilience and experience will remain with us”

Photo: Marat Muginov

President of UCLG-Eurasia, Mayor of Kazan Ilsur Metshin held the annual meeting of the Council of UCLG-Eurasia attended by mayors and representatives of over 30 Eurasian cities.

“This year has been very difficult for us. The world has faced the unmatched situation that has affected UCLG-Eurasia as well. Cities of our section stands firm in the struggle for lives and health of their citizens. However, the pandemic has claimed the lives of many people, including long-standing and active members of our organization. These are Mayor of Ufa Mr.Ulfat Mustafin, Mayor of Stavropol Mr.Andrey Dzhatdoev, Deputy Mayor of Aktau Ms.Gulzhazira Aldasheva,” Ilsur Metshin said opening the meeting and expressed condolences to close relatives of the deceased.

President of UCLG-Eurasia highlighted that the COVID-19 pandemic had made us adjust plans and adapt to the conditions of significant restrictions. However, the time of serious challenges offers new opportunities as well. “Being a team, helping each other, we can become stronger and overcome the crisis at a qualitatively new level of development. Challenging times will pass, but our resilience and experience will remain with us. We stand in solidarity with efforts that local governments are making around the world to maintain stability. We keep in touch with our colleagues from all over the world, hold online conferences, share experience and support each other,” he highlighted.

UCLG-Eurasia remains an active and influential actor in the implementation of the global agenda. During the preparation of the UCLG’s report “Vision of the Future in 2045”, members of the organization among the most important growth points highlighted the preservation of the historical memory, support and development of suburban areas and towns, as well as the improvement of ecological situation. He also stressed the active work of UCLG-Eurasia in the organization of major federal and international events. Among them are the Northern Sustainable Development Forum in Yakutia, the International Forum “Dialogue on the Volga: Peace and Mutual Understanding in the 21^st century” that gathered participants from 20 countries of the world in Volgograd. Besides, this autumn Kazan hosted the BRICS Friendship Cities.

UCLG Secretary General Emilia Saiz also welcomed the participants of the meeting. She emphasized the magnitude of the joint work in this difficult time for all cities, and noted the active participation of Eurasian cities in UCLG’s activities.

Edgardo Bilsky, Director for Research of UCLG, presented the report on the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, as well as the preparation of Voluntary Local Reviews by cities. Besides, Riina Jussila, Sustainable Development Officer of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, joined the meeting from New York.

Within UCLG-Eurasia cities share experience and best practices in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Most of them cannot be achieved without the involvement of local governments. At the same time, in the current context, Sustainable Development Goal No. 3 " Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages. " becomes especially relevant. Thus, Deputy Mayor of Nur-Sultan Nurlan Nurkenov presented the experience of the city in ensuring continuous access to municipal services during the pandemic. Vice Mayor of Bishkek Aizhan Chynybaeva spoke about the measures taken by local governments to combat the spread of the coronavirus infection.

It is important to note that this year the city of Neftekamsk has joined UCLG-Eurasia. Mayor Neftekamsk Ratmir Mavliev made a presentation about the city at the meeting and told about its socio-economic potential.

During the meeting, the participants also discussed the report on section’s activities for 2019-2020 and agreed on a calendar of events for the next year. One of such events will be the Eurasia Local Governments Congress 2021. At the personal invitation of Hhead of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) Aisen Nikolaev, it was decided to hold the Congress in Yakutsk in June 2021.

Source: The Kazan Municipality

12.11.2020

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