This is the fifth Annual Performance Report on progress made in the implementation of the six-year strategic plan (2014-2019) and delivery of the biennial work programme for 2018-2019. The strategic plan is being implemented through three consecutive biennial work programmes and budgets and this is the final phase.

The United Nations Advisory Committee of Local Authorities (UNACLA) was established in 1999 by the Governing Council Resolution 17/18 as “an advisory body that would serve the purpose of strengthening the dialogue with local authorities from all over the world involved in the implementation of the Habitat Agenda”. UNACLA was created in the aftermath of Habitat II (1996) to materialize the special relation of local authorities as “our closest partners” as stated in the Istanbul Declaration.

Ensuring that planning laws fulfill their functions as effectively as possible means that they are frequently under scrutiny as contexts and needs change. The Planning Law Assessment Framework, developed by the Urban Legislation Unit of UN-Habitat, is a quick self-assessment tool that aims to identify the strengths and weaknesses of an urban planning legal system. It looks at the laws, regulations and decrees that are applicable in a city, and enacted at different levels.

This report covers the Latin America and the Caribbean region as defined by the United Nations. The member countries, as well as the territories of the Regional Economic Commission of Latin America and the Caribbean considered in the study are listed in the Report.
This report serves a dual purpose: on one hand, it was conceived as a technical input to the Habitat III process, while addressing the main emerging trends in urban development, as well as analyzing urban policies implemented…

The National Urban Policy (NUP) is a tool that allows national governments to guide the urbanization process as well as a guiding tool that provides a clear and coordinated view of the directions to be taken by public policies on the territorial development of cities, enabling greater and better vertical and horizontal coordination.

Environmental reviews, often in the form of environmental impact or strategic environmental assessments, play a fundamental role in the process of urban development. They are institutionalized decision-making arrangements in domestic legislation to address the environmental impacts and risks associated with a project. Strengthened environmental and social reviews in urban development processes and their integration into broader decision making frameworks will support the implementation of the…

The Colombian legal-urban framework is a robust and complex structure of tools that seek to meet land’s “social and ecological function”, defined by Colombia’s 1991 Constitution. It has become a renowned example in Latin America, as it introduces many different principles and tools that other countries in the region had not implemented or utilized.
The strengthening of urban development and territorial planning as key elements in the overall development of Colombia has led to the…

In 2012, UN-Habitat developed a training methodology called Rapid Planning Studio to help cities and local governments develop practical, feasible approaches to implementing urban planning interventions. The 2-day training for Kenya Municipal Programme (KMP) counties was conducted based on this RPS methodology, to provide decision makers and planners in the counties with enhanced capacity to formulate an Integrated Strategic Urban Development Plan (ISUDP).