Mexico City, 28 August 2014 — On the last leg of his official mission to Mexico, UN-Habitat Executive Director Dr. Joan Clos addressed the country’s Senate on urbanization issues.

The Executive Director’s speech was titled: “The role of policymakers on Urban Habitat Agenda: heading into Habitat III in 2016”.

Dr. Clos pointed out the importance of urban legislation has on urbanization to reach productive, efficient, just and worthy cities.

“The lack of urban legislation has brought a chaotic, dysfunctional urbanization, as it is modeled by the market. And the market doesn´t produce good cities: a successful city comes with a great urban design and a solid urban legislation. UN-Habitat is studying and analyzing cities and realized that where regulation is lower, urban chaos is greater,” he said.

Dr. Clos also encouraged a fair urban legislation, as for example, a bad legislation about human rights leads to bad cities, and bad legislation about redistribution of wealth, has consequences in cities. Still and taking advantage of the assistance to the event that gathered policymakers of all the governmental orders, he established the conceptual bases about urban legislation.

“The first obligation on urban legislation is to defend public space. On second place, it should guarantee public ownership of building rights. Also, the establishment of an urban design in the land; and at lasts, the regulation of construction. This accompanied by an accurate legislation of sanitation, education, security, wealth redistribution, etc., produces just, integrated, affordable and cultural cities,” he added.