Second Global Forum of Local Authorities

The Second Global Forum of Local Authorities was held in Seville, Spain, from 24 to 26 January 2019. It was organised by the City of Seville and supported by the United Nations.

The forum is an initiative that brings together representatives of local governments around the world, and the main goal is to consider and analyse major global challenges that will enable us, through inclusive and sustainable development, to advance economically, socially and ecologically. This is the place where the role of cities is presented as solution instead of the problem generator. At the same time, it is a place for focusing on transformational processes, focused on cities and smart destinations, taking into account key elements such as governance, social cohesion, urban planning and mobility, public service management, sustainability, and energy.

The forum is also an inspirational environment for learning and sharing of different experiences, networking of different levels of government in a joint mission in order to find solutions to major global challenges on Earth, such as: ending extreme poverty, combating inequality and injustice, and proposing solutions for climate change.

One of the goals of the Forum is to reach agreements between local authorities on the basis of which they will work on the progress in meeting the 17 goals of sustainable development (SDGs) included in the new urban agenda UN 2030, signed in Ecuador in October 2016, in order to to ensure sustainable social and economic progress worldwide.

At the invitation of the mayor of Seville, Juan Espadas Sehas, with the technical support of the SCTM and the Embassy of the Republic of Serbia in Madrid, representatives of the towns of Sombor and Novi Sad participated in the second Global Forum of Local Authorities. The Town of Sombor was represented by Mayor Dušanka Golubović and Assistant Mayor for Culture and Information Branislav Svorcan, while the Town of Novi Sad was represented by the President of the Town Assembly Zdravko Jelušić and Assistant Head of the Office for Local Economic Development Zoran Ivošević.

The forum was attended by delegations from 170 cities, with over 1,300 participants from 40 countries.

The forum was opened by Mayor of Seville, Juan Espadas Sehas, and the Deputy Prime Minister of Spain, Karmen Kalvo. During the three days of the Forum, the focus was on three themes: smart cities, tourism, and sustainability. Participants talked about education, social integration, innovations that are applied in employment and the responsibility of companies in these areas.

On this occasion, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the City of Seville and the Town of Sombor. Memorandum has established a good will for cooperation between towns in the fields of culture, tourism, education, science and technology. The exchange of experiences has been agreed in building the human resources capacities, environmental protection, as well as in other areas identified by the towns. In addition, towns will establish mutual contacts and try to take advantage of the other party's practices and knowledge in their own development and functioning.

The Memorandum was signed in the City Hall of Seville, and besides Sombor, this document was signed by representatives of thirty cities from Argentina, Mexico, the Russian Federation, Colombia, Brazil, Portugal, the USA, etc., forming a network of 77 cities around the world that signed memorandums.

The King of Spain Felipe VI also addressed the participants at the main ceremony and welcomed the event that he sees as a continuous initiative that builds bridges and dialogue in order to improve life in cities.

More information on the Global Forum at http://forodegobiernoslocalessevilla.com/en/edition-2019/

Photo gallery - http://forodegobiernoslocalessevilla.com/en/press/