BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 21. Young people must be
involved in urban planning from the very beginning, Chief Adviser
at UN-Habitat Maleyka Taghizada said, Trend reports.


She made the announcement during an event on “Youth and Civil
Society Leadership in Advancing Sustainable and Inclusive Cities”
as part of WUF13.


According to her, cities are often designed without the
participation of residents themselves, so communities, especially
youth and civil society—must be involved in this process from the
very beginning as co-authors of urban solutions, not merely as
recipients of ready-made initiatives.


"One of the most effective ways to strengthen this cooperation
is to make participation real, not just symbolic. What often
happens now is this: people are invited and motivated with phrases
like ‘you are leaders, you are the future of our cities,’ but in
the end, they simply come, listen, leave the auditorium, and that’s
where it ends. We need a well-established system in which young
people truly feel that they are actively involved in
decision-making. We need to create long-term mechanisms where youth
organizations, NGOs, civil society, and academic circles can
jointly identify problems, seek solutions, and determine who should
participate in these processes,” she said.


Taghizada noted that in Azerbaijan, as part of the Azerbaijan
Urban Campaign, this approach has been implemented since last
October.


"And I can say that it is truly working well. From the very
beginning, we invited not only government agencies working with
youth — not just the Ministry of Youth and Sports or the Youth Fund
— but also youth clubs, NGOs, civil society organizations, and
international organizations that work closely with youth. Thanks to
this, the views of all parties are heard in the discussions," she
said.


Today marks the fifth day of WUF13 in Baku.


The first day included a ministerial meeting dedicated to the
New Urban Agenda, a ministerial roundtable, assemblies for women
and civil society, business sessions, and discussions on urban
prosperity. An official ceremony marking the raising of the UN and
Azerbaijani flags also took place.







The second day stood out for the inaugural Leaders' Summit,
featuring high-level discussions on the global housing crisis,
urbanization policy, and urban resilience. Concurrently, the
opening of the Mexico City pavilion took place, serving as a
significant platform for expanding cooperation with the Latin
American region and preparing for WUF14.


The third day of WUF13 featured a comprehensive program of
events covering the global housing crisis, the formation of safe
and inclusive cities, climate resilience, artificial intelligence
and urban governance, green urbanization, social equity, and
sustainable transport.


One of the highlights of the third day was the signing of a
sister-city memorandum between the Azerbaijani city of Shusha and
the Turkish city of Trabzon.


The fourth day of WUF13 featured a broad program of events
dedicated to urbanization, climate change, inclusive urban
development, housing policy, and sustainable governance.


One of the important events of the UN Special Program for the
Economies of Central Asia (SPECA) Cities Forum, held on the fourth
day, was the announcement of Almaty’s official accession to the
“Declaration of Intent on the Establishment of the SPECA Smart
Climate-Resilient Cities Forum.”


Also, for the first time in WUF history and at Azerbaijan’s
initiative, the “WUF13 NGO Forum: Global Partnership and
Decision-Making” was held.


WUF13, which has attracted more than 40,000 registered
participants from 182 countries, will continue until May 22. Held
under the theme “Housing the world: Safe and resilient cities and
communities,” the forum brings together governments, international
organizations, experts, and representatives of civil society to
strengthen global cooperation in the field of sustainable urban
development.