Habitat III photo mural of colorful houses

The UN Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) will hold the first ever session of the UN-Habitat Assembly at its headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya, from 27-31 May 2019. As decided by the UN General Assembly Resolution 73/239 in December 2018, the UN-Habitat Assembly replaces the Governing Council and will be the highest-level decision-making body on sustainable urbanization and human settlements.

The first session of the Assembly will convene under the theme of “Innovation for Better Quality of Life in Cities and Communities,” and is expected to make important decisions regarding the global sustainable urbanization agenda and bring together all relevant actors, including national and local governments, business, and civil society. The sub-theme of the meeting “Accelerated Implementation of the New Urban Agenda towards Achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals,” places an additional focus on strategic priorities regarding the implementation of the New Urban Agenda, adopted at the UN Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III), in Quito, Ecuador, in 2016.

The main items on the Assembly’s agenda are:

• Establishment of the Executive Board and election of its members;
• Review of progress in implementation of the New Urban Agenda;
• Approval of the UN-Habitat Strategic Plan 2020-2025; and
• Adoption of relevant resolutions, including a Nairobi Ministerial Declaration on the theme of the Assembly with concrete commitments to action.

A variety of events will be held prior and during the meeting, including: the first Global Stakeholders Forum; the Global Strategic Business Leaders Dialogue Series; the One UN Meeting; a Partnership and Pledging Conference; the Local and Regional Governments’ Forum; and the Urban Solutions Expo Exhibition.