Considering the renewed leadership in view of the implementation of the Pact for the Future at the Daejeon Congress of United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG), the Executive Bureau agreed to launch a process of renewal of the UCLG Policy Councils, under the leadership of the Presidency and in coordination with the UCLG Consultation Mechanisms.
UCLG Policy Councils are groups of up to 15 officials with a political mandate that represent the members of the Organisation and provide inputs that are used as a basis for making decisions. They also offer political representatives the opportunity to participate in the development of the Organisation's policies and to present their perspectives to UCLG's Governing Bodies.
The objectives of the Policy Councils are: to enhance political participation in UCLG's discussions, to improve the ownership of policy recommendations, to foster members’ engagement in activities resulting therefrom, to develop policy recommendations on strategic issues and to improve the links among the Committees and Communities of Practice, as well as between these groups and the governing bodies of the organisation. The Policy Councils are also relevant spaces for sharing the work of the CSIPDHR and its members with the rest of the UCLG network.
The Policy Councils usually meet twice a year in the framework of the UCLG statutory meetings: the Executive Bureau in the first half of the year and the World Council in the second half.
The Executive Bureau that met in Brussels in June this year agreed to take inspiration from the enablers of the Pact for the Future to refocus the renewed Policy Councils, as follows:
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Right to the City and Inclusive Territories would become: Right to the City: Reclaiming the Commons
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Opportunities for All, Culture and City Diplomacy: Keys to Sustainable Development and Peace would become: Opportunities for All: Redefining Finance and Economies of Equality
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Territorial Multilevel Governance and Sustainable Financing would become Multilevel Governance: Regaining Trust
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Safer, Resilient and Sustainable Cities, Capable of Facing Crises would become Resilient and Regenerative Territories: Renaturing
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Implementation of the New Urban Agenda would become Local Multilateralism and City Diplomacy: Linking the Local to the Global
Building on the experience with the Town Hall process, it was agreed that the renewed Policy Councils would include representatives of international civil society organizations that UCLG has partnerships with.
[For more information on how the Policy Councils function, you can read the Terms of Reference adopted by the Executive Bureau in Madrid in 2017].
How to express your interest in actively participating in the Policy Councils
Should you be interested in becoming a member of a Policy Council, we invite you to send an email to [email protected] by 8 September at the latest, indicating in the subject of the email “Policy Councils renewal” and the name of the Policy Council you would be interested in.
If you are already involved in a Policy Council and wish to continue your work, please also write to [email protected], following the same indications. Should you have any questions about the process, you can consult the UCLG statutory affairs team at the same email address.
Next steps
All the expressions of interest will be put to the consideration of the Presidency. The Committee on Statutory Affairs will conduct a final revision and will present the proposals to the World Council in Konya, to be held on 26-28 October.
Renewed priorities for the work of the Policy Councils are expected to be developed until the Executive Bureau of 2024, following initial discussions at the World Council.