BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 21. Cities already face
serious problems, including numerous informal settlements,
Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlements Program
(UN-Habitat) Anacláudia Rossbach said at a roundtable event titled
"Children and Youth" within the framework of the 13th session of
the World Urban Forum (WUF13) in Baku, Trend reports.


She reminded that in 2050 this figure will reach 70%.


"However, the main thing is that 2 billion more people will come
to cities. However, cities are already facing serious problems,
including numerous informal settlements. If we focus on Africa,
hundreds of millions of young people are expected to move to cities
in the next 20 years - about 600 million to 900 million.


Thus, urbanization and the global housing crisis
disproportionately affect large parts of the population, especially
children and young people, in regions such as Africa and Southeast
Asia, as these regions face the enormous 'tsunami' of
urbanization," she emphasized.


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 Programme 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.