BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 22. The final day of the
13th session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13), jointly organized by
the United Nations Human Settlements Program (UN-Habitat) and the
Government of Azerbaijan, has begun in Baku, Trend reports.


The program of the final day of the forum will begin with round
tables dedicated to the role of indigenous peoples and women in
urban development.


In the second half of the day, events dedicated to the official
closing of WUF13 will be held. An official press conference on the
results of the forum will be held. Then, the closing ceremony of
the forum will be held, and a symbolic baton will be presented to
the city that will host WUF14. At the end of the day, a ceremony
will be held to lower the WUF13 flag.


During the last day of the forum, participants will summarize
the results of the discussions held over the past five days and
determine future directions for cooperation in the field of urban
planning, housing policy, and sustainable development.


In the previous days of WUF13, the global housing crisis,
building safe and inclusive cities, climate change resilience, the
application of artificial intelligence in urban governance, green
urbanization, and social equality were widely discussed.


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.