On 17 and 18 May, an Expert Group Meeting (EGM) was held in the city of Belém, Brazil, for debating the implementation of the New Urban Agenda in the Amazon Region. Organized by UN-Habitat with the support of the State Government of Pará and Dialog Institute, the event put emphasis on two themes: “Funding System for Sustainable Urban/Territorial Development in the State of Pará” and “Towards Sustainability of Cities and Human Settlements in the Amazon Region”.

Bunia 26 April 2017—UN-Habitat has successfully spearheaded a project that saw hundreds of the Wambuti pygmy families get settled in Mambasa Territory of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Ituri Province

17 May 2017; Quezon City, Philippines - Responding to the compelling challenges of rapid urbanization and climate change, the project “Building Climate Resiliency through Urban Plans and Designs” was launched on 17 May 2017 led by the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB) Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer Lloyd Christopher Lao together with key government agencies involved in planning for urban development and climate change.

Cairo, 21 May 2017 - As Egypt continues to exert all efforts for enhancing living conditions of its inhabitants, and in line with the Egyptian development vision 2030 and its urban development targets, the Ministry of Housing - represented in the Informal Settlement Development Fund- together with the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) in Egypt are initiating a new cooperation entitled

Beijing– 23 May 2017. The Executive Director of UN-Habitat, Dr. Joan Clos, wrapped up a 2-day official visit to China to attend One Belt One Road Forum (BRF) in Beijing, where Chinese President Xi Jinping invited the foreign heads of the states and governments, and heads of the international organizations to gather into China for exchange ideas and insights of the One Belt One Road cooperation. During the visit, Dr.

Belize City, 18 May 2017 – Officials meeting in Belize’s largest city have unveiled an updated masterplan for Belmopan, the country’s capital, based on good urban practice and design that will shape development of the city over the coming years.

--Faced with the challenges of youth living on edge of poverty, the government of Rwanda has stepped up and hosted the Transform Africa Summits. This series of summits seeks to advance technological innovation across Africa, through focusing on unlocking the innovation of youth in jobs and technology with the goal of improving their and their communities lives.

Gondar 16 May 2017 The 7th Ethiopian Urban Forum brought together 850 participants, including officials from the federal and regional level, city mayors, urban practitioners and the academia, who held insightful debates over the theme: “Sustainable Urban Development and Good Governance for Renaissance”.

Nairobi, 12 May 2017 - The 2016-17 World Habitat Awards winning projects received their trophy at the twenty-sixth session of the Governing Council of UN-Habitat at the United Nations office in Nairobi, Kenya on May 08, 2017. A Roof, A Skill, A Market in West Africa and More than Housing in Switzerland were selected as winners of this prestigious award.

Nairobi, 10 May 2017-- UN-Habitat and National Training Service-SENA (a public institution assigned to the Colombian Ministry of Labor in charge to provide social and technical training), today signed a historic agreement to offer training former youth combatants.