Chengdu, 13 April 2017 – UN-Habitat and UN-Environment, in collaboration with the Chengdu Municipal People’s Government, have started working on an assessment of the development plans for the city’s Greenbelt and Shaocheng District.

Quito, Ecuador, 9 November 2016 ­— UN-Habitat Executive Director Dr. Joan Clos and the International Civil Aviation Organization Secretary General Dr. Fang Liu have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to promote synergy between airports and cities to achieve sustainable development.

Kuala Lumpur 17 August 2016-- UN-Habitat conducted its’ first international workshop on public spaces titled “Creating safe, inclusive and accessible public spaces for all” in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia early thismonth.

Jointly organized by Citynet and Kuala Lumpur Regional Training Center (KLRTC), the workshop attracted a wide range or participants including policy makers, technical experts and city managers from 8 different countries in Asia – Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mongolia, Pakistan, Philippines, and Sri Lanka.

Accra, 27 July 2016 – The concept plan for the Accra urban extension in Ningo-Prampram, developed by UN-Habitat’s Urban Planning and Design LAB, was approved by the Statutory Planning Authority of the Ningo-Prampram District Assembly (NiPDA).

The Urban Planning and Design Lab (UPD-LAB) is an initiative from UN-Habitat to promptly respond to the requests of national and local governments to support sustainable urban development.

The LAB acts as the integrative facility of  the Agency in which spatial planning is used as the tool coordinating economic, legal, social and environmental aspects of urban development, translating them into concrete and implementable projects that materialize the normative work of UN-Habitat. These urban strategies generate value, economic development and jobs.

Currently 51.9% of Ghana’s population lives in urban areas, and it is estimated that it will reach 72.3% by 2050, calling for fast and sustainable strategies for facilitating the main problems deriving from rapid urbanization. The challenges in the Greater Accra Region deserve special attention taking into account the rapid expansion of the urban area since the 1990 with a serious backlog of services and infrastructure. To prevent further uncontrolled urban growth and to harness the agglomeration advantages of urbanization a clear strategy is needed.