President CheeHai Teo met Dr. Joan Clos, United Nations
Under Secretary-General/Executive Director of United Nations Human
Settlement Programme (UN-HABITAT) at the United Nations Office
Nairobi, Kenya, 11-15 April 2011
President CheeHai Teo attended the 23rd Governing Council of
UN-HABITAT in Nairobi 11-15 April 2011 and met with the Executive Director
Dr. Joan Clos during his visit.
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Joan Clos, UN-HABITAT and President CheeHai Teo. |
Dr Joan Clos was appointed the Executive Director of UN-HABITAT
in October 2010. Prior to this appointment, Dr. Clos was Mayor of
Barcelona, Spanish Minister of Industry, Tourism and Trade and the
Spanish Ambassador to Turkey and Azerbaijan. He has appealed for
cities to be considered an asset and not a liability and called for
renewed optimism at the recently concluded twenty-third biennial
meeting of Governments in the Governing Council of UN-HABITAT in
Nairobi, Kenya (11–15 April 2011). President CheeHai made a
courtesy call on Dr. Clos during the 23rd Governing Council; the
meeting was also attended by Mr. Mohamed El-Sioufi (Head,
Shelter Branch, Global Division), Ms. Clarissa Augustinus
(Chief, Land, Tenure and Property Administration Section, Shelter
Branch) and Mr. Danilo Antonio (Global Land Tools Network
Secretariat, Land, Tenure and Property Administration Section). It
was a most cordial meeting, the first between the newly appointed
Executive Director of UN-Habitat and FIG. |
In the meeting, FIG affirmed her continuing support and commitment to
UN-Habitat’s new vision for sustainable urbanization as well as the ongoing
initiatives and projects, particularly that which relates to adequate
shelter, access to land and water, continuum of land rights, social tenure
domain model and in particular, the programs within the Global Land Tools
Network. President Teo commended and welcomes Dr. Clos’s calls for renewed
optimism for our urban spaces, for a return to basics in city layouts and
planning and for sustainable urbanization through equitable access to land,
housing, basic services and infrastructure.
Dr. Joan Clos recorded FIG’s invitation to attend and give a keynote
address at the XXV FIG Congress in Kuala Lumpur in 2014.
CheeHai Teo
May 2011
Footnote
UN-HABITAT’s 23rd Governing Council
The resolution on “Sustainable urbanization through equitable access
to land, housing, basic services and infrastructure” was adopted at the
23rd Governing Council of UN-HABITAT, Nairobi, Kenya, 15th April 2011.
Global Land Tools Network, the Land, Tenure and Property Management
Section and the Shelter Branch within UN-HABITAT must be congratulated for
this landmark resolution. Years of consistent and persistent support,
efforts and leadership particularly from Dr Clarissa Augustinus and
Mr. Mohamed El-Sioufi culminated in the passing of this resolution.
The contribution of UN-HABITAT’s management in facilitating GLTN, the
development and advocacy of this resolution is to be lauded and applauded.
FIG is indeed proud and privilege to be a partner within GLTN, to have
supported and contributed towards the realization and the acceptance of this
continuum of land rights and alternative form of secure tenure.
Her Excellency Ambassador Agnes Kalibbala of Uganda, Chair of the
Global Land Tools Network International Advisory Board was quoted as saying
“this is the first time we have seen the Governing Council adopt a
resolution that deals specifically with the work that GLTN is doing”. Dr
Clarissa Augustinus added that this resolution “represents a paradigm
shift in the global debate on land, forging an international consensus on
the continuum of land rights and alternative forms of secure tenure. The
resolution gives GLTN a strong mandate to continue developing pro-poor and
engendered land tools” including ongoing and future work on intermediate
tenure, strengthening tenure rights of the poor and women and alternative
pro-poor land records and land administration systems.
GLTN introduced and championed this continuum of land rights and
alternative forms of secure tenure.
This resolution followed the Governing Council’s High-level Dialogue
segment on Sustainable urbanization through equitable access to land,
housing, basic services and infrastructure where the President of FIG had
the privilege to address the Dialogue (copy of the address is
attached).
Excerpts from this particular resolution –
“Recognizing the notable contributions that the UN-Habitat
facilitated Global Land Tool Network has made in building partnerships
for developing and implementing land tools at scale, in championing the
cause of the poor and vulnerable groups such as women and slum dwellers,
in promoting inclusive land policies and in developing affordable and
equitable land administration systems that emphasize the important
transitional role that intermediate tenure and incremental approaches
play”
(page 2 of the Resolution)
“Encourages Governments and Habitat Agenda partners:
(c) To mobilize the commitment of Governments and Habitat Agenda
partners at the international, national and local levels to promote
decentralization and improve urban governance to ensure expanded
equitable access to land, housing, basic services and infrastructure and
to secure tenure rights for all segments of society within an integrated
urban governance and sustainable urban development framework;”
(page 3 of the Resolution)
“Encourages Governments and Habitat Agenda partners, with regard
to land issues:
(a) To implement land policy development and regulatory and procedural
reform programmes, if necessary, so as to achieve sustainable
urban development and to better manage climate change, ensuring that
land interventions are anchored within effective land governance
frameworks;
(b) To promote security of tenure for all segments of society by
recognizing and respecting a plurality of tenure systems, identifying
and adopting, as appropriate to particular situations, intermediate
forms of tenure arrangements, adopting alternative forms of land
administration and land records alongside conventional land
administration systems, and intensifying efforts to achieve secure
tenure in post-conflict and post-disaster situations;
(c) To review and improve urban land governance mechanisms, including
land/spatial planning administration and management, land information
systems and land-based tax systems, so as to strengthen tenure rights
and expand secure and sustainable access to land, housing, basic
services and infrastructure, particularly for the poor and women;
(d) To create mechanisms for broadening land-based revenue streams,
including by improving the competencies and capacities of local and
regional authorities in the field of land and property valuation and
taxation, so as to generate additional local revenue for pro-poor
policies and to finance infrastructure development”
(page 4 of the Resolution)
More to read:
CheeHai Teo
May 2011
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Joan Clos receives a token of appreciation from President
Teo. |
UN Headquarters in Gigiri, Nairobi.
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Exhibition at the 23rd Governing Council. |
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9 May 2011
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