By Alice Menya
Photo credit: Alice Menya, 2024
The Twelfth Session of the World Urban Forum (WUF12), held from 4th to 8th November 2024, took place in Cairo (Egypt), a city of striking contrasts; vibrant, alive, and steeped in history. Against the iconic backdrop of the Nile and the magnificent pyramids, Cairo blends its rich history with modern aspirations. The city exemplifies both the beauty and challenges of urban life, where diverse cultures and dynamic economies coexist alongside pressing realities of inequality, housing and infrastructural deficits, and environmental challenges.
Photo credit: Alice Menya, 2024
In this dynamic setting, where the past intersects with the future, WUF 12 provided a vibrant stage for global discussions on the future of cities. Centred around the theme It All Starts at Home: Local Actions for Sustainable Cities and Communities, the forum convened participants for a wide range of activities, including themed dialogues, networking sessions, training programmes, and the Urban Expo among others. At the Expo, LEARN, in collaboration with Erasmus University Rotterdam-Institute of Housing and Urban Development Studies and the International Institute of Social Studies, showcased its initiatives. These events, coupled with the Cairo Call to Action, inspired reflections on how LEARN can strengthen its mission of co-producing actionable and impactful research to address Africa’s urban challenges.
IHS/ISS/LEARN Urban Expo booth Photo credit: Alice Menya, 2024
Strengthening urban resilience through local insights
The Cairo Call to Action highlights the vital role of local, grassroots data and community-driven insights in building resilient cities. It serves as a reminder that urban resilience is deeply rooted in the stories and strategies of urban communities. By prioritising local data and community insights, LEARN can contribute towards shaping more responsive urban policies by enhancing cross-city policy dialogues with authentic, community-based perspectives. To reflect this commitment, LEARN must continue integrating community voices into its research and policy engagements and endeavour to promote locally tailored solutions that address the unique vulnerabilities and needs of each city it engages with in their resilience-building efforts.
Transformative approaches to urban informality
Informality remains a critical focus area for LEARN, and the Cairo Call to Action highlights the urgent need to transform informal settlements, which are highly vulnerable to crises such as climate change, economic instability, and inadequate infrastructure. This aligns with LEARN’s commitment to ensuring that the voices and needs of people living and working in informal spaces are included in the development agenda. Through its research, policy dialogues, and educational initiatives, LEARN can advocate for evidence-based policies that address the complexities of informal systems in East African cities. By adopting a fresh, interdisciplinary, and action-oriented approach, LEARN can challenge prevailing assumptions, uncover new insights into the socio-economic, cultural, and political dimensions of informality, and develop practical solutions for urban governance and development.
Climate Justice and Systemisation of climate solutions
Climate change poses increasing challenges in urban settings, disproportionately affecting vulnerable and low-income communities. The Cairo Call to Action underscores the urgency of prioritising these marginalised groups in climate resilience strategies. Through cross-city policy dialogues, research, and science communication, LEARN can advocate for equitable climate policies that address the intersection of poverty and climate risks. In addition, LEARN can explore systemised approaches that enable cities in East Africa to adopt shared methodologies for addressing climate change challenges, while tailoring solutions to their unique contexts, to enhance efficiency, scalability, and overall impact.
Harnessing digitalisation for inclusive urban transformation
Digitalisation is transforming urban environments worldwide, offering innovative solutions to address urban challenges. The Cairo Call to Action stresses the potential of digital technologies to improve urban service delivery and enhance inclusivity. LEARN, through its research, policy, and educational initiatives, has a unique opportunity to harness this transformative potential by delving into emerging technologies and frameworks such as urban data ecosystems, blockchain technology, and smart city concepts to address the unique socio-economic, cultural, and infrastructural contexts of East African cities.
The rich discussions and exchanges in Cairo reaffirmed the urgency of local and collaborative action to address pressing urban challenges. WUF 12 served as a catalyst for innovative ideas and partnerships that can shape the future of cities. As I left Cairo, the resonances of WUF12 stayed with me, a reminder of what is possible when cities embrace inclusivity, innovation and collaboration. For LEARN, the Call to Action serves as both a guiding framework and a source of inspiration, empowering the network to contribute towards building sustainable and equitable urban futures for Africa.
It all starts at Home! It all starts Together!
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