Tuesday 22 March 2016

MALAYSIA : 3rd UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE ON HOUSING AND SUSTAINABLE URBAN DEVELOPMENT (HABITAT III)

INTRODUCTION

“Habitat III” is shorthand for a major global summit, formally known as the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development, to be held in Quito, Ecuador, on 17-20 October 2016. Habitat III will be one of the first world summit of the United Nations after the adoption of the Agenda 2030 and the agreement on climate change COP21 in Paris. The United Nations has called the conference, the third in a series that began in 1976, to “reinvigorate” the global political commitment to the sustainable development of towns, cities and other human settlements, both rural and urban. The product of that re-invigoration, along with pledges and new obligations, is being referred to as the New Urban Agenda. That agenda will set a new global strategy around urbanization for the next two decades.The conference will be the first time in 20 years that the international community, led by national governments, has collectively taken stock of fast-changing urban trends and the ways in which these patterns are impacting on human development, environmental well-being, and civic and governance systems worldwide.

In 17-20 October 2016 Habitat III will bring together global actors in Quito, Ecuador after 20 years to build on the work of Habitat II in Istanbul in 1996 and Habitat I in Vancouver in 1976. The stated aim of Habitat III is to adopt a “New Urban Agenda”, meant to guide the actions of national governments in pursuit of more sustainable urbanisation. The new agenda is meant to draw from reports prepared at national and regional levels that outline the major urban challenges for those countries and regions, along with visions to be incorporated into said agenda. A key challenge that emerges is how Habitat III may build upon Habitat II commitments. In the Habitat II Agenda adopted in 1996, Heads of State and Government committed themselves to two main goals;
a.    Adequate Shelter for All; and
b.    Sustainable Human Settlements in an Urbanizing World

The United Nations General Assembly, in Resolution 67/216, decided to establish a preparatory committee to carry out the preparations for the conference open to all Member States of the United Nations and members of specialized agencies and of the International Atomic Energy Agency.  The Preparatory Committee (PrepCom), following the same resolution, will have three meetings before the opening of the conference. Indonesia will host the 3rd PrepCom, in 25-27 July 2016, a responsibility that puts the country at the forefront of engaged member states. In that respect, the General Assembly reiterated its appreciation to the Government of Ecuador for the offer to host the Conference and its gratitude to the Government of Indonesia for its offer to convene the Habitat III PrepCom3. It also expresses appreciation to the Government of Malaysia and the city of Kuala Lumpur for their proposal to host the ninth session of the World Urban Forum.

HABITAT III

The World Urban Forum is considered to be the foremost arena for interaction between different groups of stakeholders. The World Urban Forum in 2018 will be the first one to focus on the implementation for the New Urban Agenda. In the words of the Secretary-General of the Habitat III Conference, Dr Joan Clos, the text is a historic agreement of Member States towards more inclusive and participatory decisions within the United Nations system, as well as a true sign of the sense of responsibility in advancing decisions on outstanding issues for a successful, meaningful and action-oriented Habitat III Conference.  Dialogue among local authorities, stakeholders and national governments is the guarantee of an implementable New Urban Agenda.The Permanent Mission of Malaysia to the United Nations in New York had made the inquiries pertaining to this matter and was informed that the submission of the report is not compulsory for all member states.

However, Habitat III Secretariat will continue to receive the National Reports until the Habitat III Conference in October 2016. Member states are also encourage to finalize and submit the report before the holding of the Third Preparatory Committee meeting that will take place in Surabaya, Indonesia on 25-27 July 2016. On this note, given that we have 7-8 months until October, it is more than enough time to prepare such report.  The Ministry would highly encourage Malaysia to submit the report as this would show the seriousness of our commitment to the WUF9 that would be held in KL in 2018.  The preparation of the national report would also provide a good opportunity for KPKT to enhance coordination with agencies/ministries on urban issues. Habitat III will also offer a potent opportunity for the international community at all levels to harmonize its understanding of the problems and opportunities posed by current trends in urbanization. This includes poverty, quality of life, environmental degradation, climate change and other concerns on the one hand, as well as the economic, social and creative boons provided by cities on the other.

Global actors will be able to use the run-up to Habitat III to work toward agreement on a broad and collective approach to start to both address and capitalize on these issues. A significant part of the potential opportunity comes exactly from this breadth of discussion.  At the table in making this decision will be the nearly 200 national governments that make up the U. N. General Assembly. Yet they will be buttressed by a broad variety of crucial actors, including cities, the private sector and civil society. Still, the exact roles of these latter entities remain tenuous. While they will be able to offer formal recommendations, officially they are considered mere observers to the process. Ministry of Urban Wellbeing, Housing and Local Government (KPKT), in coordination with Federal Department of Town and Country Planning Peninsular Malaysia (JPBD), and other federal agencies, are leading Malaysia efforts to support Habitat III.

MALAYSIA AND HABITAT III

This year KPKT will be held the first convening of the Malaysia Habitat III National Committee. The committee, chaired by Secretary General of KPKT, includes a diverse representing other federal government agencies, regional and local officials, academia, philanthropy, and civil society. KPKT’s goal is to facilitate a dynamic and inclusive Habitat III preparatory process that engages the National Committee and other partners in an open dialogue and partner-led activities designed to:
a.    Promote open and productive dialogue on key challenges facing Malaysia cities and regions, and discuss opportunities to improve quality of life, sustainability, inclusivity, access to opportunity, and resilience efforts;
b.    Raise public awareness and engage local communities on housing, planning, and community development issues in Malaysia; and
c.    Uplift best practices and innovations emerging from rural, suburban, and urban communities across Malaysia.

UN-Habitat’s work and relationships with its partners are periodically examined in detail by the Governing Council, which is subsidiary to the UN General Assembly and serves as the intergovernmental decision-making body of UN-Habitat. It reports to the General Assembly through the Economic and Social Council, and its main functions are as follows:
a.    Setting UN-Habitat’s policies by developing and promoting policy objectives, priorities, and guidelines regarding existing and planned programs of work in the field of human settlements;
b.    Overseeing working relations with partners by closely following the activities of United Nations agencies and other international organizations in the field of human settlements, and proposing ways through which the overall human settlements policy objectives within the UN system might best be achieved;
c.    Approving UN- Habitat’s biennial work program and budget;

Member states The Governing Council meets every 2 years and is composed of 58 member states, which represent 5 regional groups. Member states are elected by the UN’s Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) for a period of four years. Membership of the Governing Council of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme as from 1 January 2015. Total number of members: 58. Malaysia representative by Minister of KPKT  who  as appointed as a member of UN-Habitat Governing Council in 2 Feb 2016.Under resolution 24/14 of the UN-Habitat Governing Council titled “Inputs for and support to the preparatory process of the Habitat III, adopted at its 24th session, by which the Council invited Member States to prepare:
“before the first meeting of the Preparatory Committee for Habitat III, to be held in New York during the sixty-ninth session of the General Assembly, national reports which consider the implementation of the Habitat II agenda and of other relevant internationally agreed goals and targets, as well as new challenges, emerging trends and a prospective vision for sustainable human settlements and urban development, as a basis for the formulation of a “New Urban Agenda”, in line with paragraph 6 of General Assembly resolution 67/216” (paragraph 40)”

The National report structure outline describe what and how our  government, Local Authorities (including the capital or major city) and other sub-national governmental authorities, in partnership with stakeholders, have achieved, through the Habitat Agenda. This report also  describe the challenges experienced and lessons learnt in these areas, as well as future challenges and issues that could be addressed through a New Urban Agenda. Chapters will be included  in the report are :
a.    Chapter 1: Urban Demographic Issues
b.    Chapter 2: Land and Urban Planning
c.    Chapter 3: Environment and Urbanization
d.    Chapter 4: Urban Governance and Legislation
e.    Chapter 5: Urban Economy
f.     Chapter 6: Housing and Basic Services
g.    Chapter 7: Indicators
h.    Chapter 8: Case Studies and Policy Documents

CONCLUSION


Malaysia places a high priority on the development of more sustainable and inclusive communities due to our contribution to strengthen the economy, creating good jobs, using energy more efficiently, protecting the natural environment and human health. Through these efforts, Malaysia affirms that the components necessary to ensure the urban future include public-private partnerships, cross-agency and international collaboration, and improved networks across sectors that can help cities mobilize financial and other support for sustainable urban development. Malaysia is committed to participate in HABITAT III in order to demonstrate the benefits of a sustainable economic pathway for rapidly urbanizing communities.

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