By Mario de Queiroz. MOURA, Portugal, Nov 3 (IPS News) - This small municipality in the south of Portugal is becoming increasingly well-known for its alternative energy initiatives. The latest is the Sunflower project, which also involves communities in seven other European Union countries. The aim of the project is to transform communities in Bulgaria, Britain, the Czech Republic, France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, and Spain into what the EU’s Intelligent Energy - Europe programme (IEE) calls a more...

UN-HABITAT and the government of Afghanistan this week signed an agremeent aimed at making education more accessible to the country’s citizens. The agreement was signed by the Afghan Minister for Education Hanif Atmar and the UN-HABITAT Chief Technical Adviser Binod Shrestha while Peter Argo, Acting Mission Director, United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Afghanistan witnessed the ceremony.

Speaking during the occasion, Mr. Atmar said that under the programme, known as more...

The first phase of a EUR 15 million programme to provide housing for refugees in Serbia was recently concluded at a colourful ceremony held in Belgrade. Known as the Settlement and Integration of Refugees Programme (SIRP) the initiative that ran from 2004-2008 and financed by the governmemt of Italy and implemented by UN-HABITAT has provided some 670 new homes for 3,000 refugees and vulnerable people.

It has also built institutional capacities for social housing development, assisted the soci more...

London, October 2008. Mrs. Anna Tibaijuka, Executive Director of UN-HABITAT said that the crisis should be viewed as a “housing finance crisis” in which the poorest of poor were left to fend for themselves. 'Clearly you cannot have a harmonious society if people are not secure in their homes,' she told reporters at news conference to launch of the State of the World's Cities 2008/2009 , a flagship report published every two years by the UN agency.

'The financial crisis we are facing today more...

UN-HABITAT’s new quarterly flagship magazine,
Urban World, replaces Habitat Debate and was launched at the World Urban Form 4, at Nanjing. The cocus in the inaugural issue is on Harmonious Cities and Chjina and India. These tow countries are the two demographic giants of the planet. They count together 2.5 billion inhabitants, representing 37 percent of the world population (estimated at 6.7 billion people in 2008). About to become economic giants, they are seriously shaking traditional power more...

November 11, 2008. Nairobi. Although worldwide urban growth is expected to slow, a new report by UN-HABITAT is projecting the reverse in Africa with the continent’s urban population being projected to more than double by 2030. According to the State of African Cities Report of 2008, by last year, Africa’s urban population stood at 373.4 million. However, the figure is expected to rise, the report says. “Projections show that by 2030 there will be 759.4 million African urban dwellers, more more...

November 05, 2008. UN-HABITAT unveiled a groundbreaking US$2 million fund to finance inspiring youth-led development projects around the world. The Opportunities Fund for Urban Youth-Led Development, announced at the Fourth Session of the World Urban Forum in Nanjing, China, was created to engage the partnership and leadership of young women and men in achieving sustainable urbanization. The Fund is initially being financed through a US$2,000,000 grant over two years, provided by the Government more...

1. Since China’s ancient wall is perhaps the best symbol of “city”, meanwhile, Nanjing is famous for her longest ancient city wall in the world, therefore, the symbol of wall not only reflects the theme of the forum-city, but also highlights Nanjing’s profound cultural. 2. The four battlements on the wall represent WUF4. 3. The Half-Dry Stroke Effect in Chinese Ink-Wash Drawing of the edge of the emblem represents China’s long history and culture. 4. In the middle, there is a shape of more...

Nanjing, China, November 6, 2008 – Mumbai, the financial capital of India, joins metropolises such as Johannesburg, Sao Paolo, Seoul and Los Angeles, as well as smaller communities, as the 1000th Member of ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability, a global association of local governments committed to sustainability. ICLEI Secretary General, Mr. Konrad Otto-Zimmermann and the South Asia Director Mr. Emani Kumar made the announcement in Nanjing (China) at the World Urban Forum organized b more...

November 12, 2008. Editorial by Michelle Wyman, ICLEI USA Executive Director. It’s no secret that President-elect Obama has instilled a new sense of optimism in people who are passionate about climate protection, both in the United States and across the globe. In President-elect Obama, local governments have a new partner who has promised to listen to their needs and address their priorities. Throughout his campaign, Obama pledged to address the needs of urban communities. In June 2008, at a s more...