Urban population growth, poverty and social segregation, massive mobility and environmental problems, climate change and effective provision of municipal services are among the urgent challenges posed by worldwide urbanisation. They call for efficient and innovative solutions to ensure sustainable urban development. In the context of global developments, inclusive, productive, efficient and resilient cities have to tackle transformations, which can be effectively supported by means of joint learning processes.
Many strategies geared to sustainable urban development, for instance in the field of mobility, economic promotion, energy efficiency and good urban governance, are already in place at the local level. Although they are innovative and have proven successful, they are often not sufficiently widely known. There is also a lack of systematic access to these practice-oriented solutions and contacts.
Objective
Urban actors from politics and administration, industry, science and civil society representing various regions worldwide are networked with one another at expert level. They exchange practice-oriented experience on sustainable urban development, learn together and develop ideas for urban projects.
Approach
The project takes the form of cooperation between GIZ, Engagement Global / Service Agency Communities in One World, and the German Association of Cities. The proposed implementing partners include selected regional and national associations of cities in Africa, Asia, America and Europe and their member cities.
By means of dialogue and learning formats the cities platform mobilises German and international know-how on sustainable urban development. It
provides a portal for disseminating experience of practical relevance,
identifies and interlinks relevant actors in developing, emerging and industrialised countries,
promotes and moderates the work of thematic and regional working groups,
facilitates exchange of information by means of international conferences, training courses, study trips and other activities,
supports the secondment of municipal experts to partner countries,
provides assistance with the drafting of concepts and funding applications for innovative projects,
assists in the search for funding for project ideas, and
evaluates new project approaches to help make use of lessons learned.
The cities platform is initially being financed by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). At the same time, options are being examined for possible supplementary funding from interested institutions. In the medium term the goal is to make the cities platform self-supporting. Hence, the project is taking account of institutional sustainability from the outset.
The cities platform was presented to experts at an international launch event in Leipzig on 24 June 2014. By late 2014 dialogue events had taken place in Berlin, Cologne and Leipzig, as well as in South Africa, Thailand and Ecuador.
The cities platform web portal provides virtual services to network municipal practitioners.
An initial group of practitioners were assigned to partner countries from German cities to promote development cooperation and an exchange of experience at municipal level.