By Nandita Murukutla, Vital Strategies Director (Global), Research and Evaluation and Country Director, India for Policy, Advocacy and Communication
As I was packing this morning to leave for the third session of the Preparatory Committee of the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development in Surabaya, Indonesia, I caught myself in a moment, gazing out the window on the hazy city I now call home.
Gurgaon, India looks like countless other cities across Asia. Shiny high rises with interiors like five-star hotels mingle with shanties that lack basic plumbing. Golf clubs with immaculate and well-irrigated greens sit in a water-parched topography. As if to drive home the point, I recalled the family of pigs – yes, pigs – I saw the other day casually ambling past a glitzy mall, cautiously sharing a path with pedestrians.
Gurgaon started off as a group of farming villages that burst hastily into the semblance of a city. Born from commercial interests, even today Gurgaon receives nearly all its basic services through private industry. It is a case study for commercialized urban development that challenges the core of our expectations for future cities. It brought my mind back to Surabaya and the “Habitat III” process that I will bear witness to next week.
“Habitat III” is the informal name for a United Nations conference that will take place in Quito, Ecuador from October 17 to 20 of this year. Habitat conferences occur every 20 years to set the global strategy around urban development and the guiding document that will be adopted this year is called the New Urban Agenda. Leading up to Quito have been a series of formal negotiations over the draft text of the agreement. In Surabaya, from July 25 to 27, the last such formal negotiation process before the conference in Quito will take place.
The New Urban Agenda that will be adopted this year comes at a crucial historical moment of opportunity. While we face global threats – health burden from infectious diseases continue even while there is a surge of non-communicable diseases (e.g., heart disease, cancer, lung diseases and stroke); climate change is a palpable reality; inequity has grown; migration and refugees reflect mostly poorly on our human rights safekeeping – the world has also come together to commit to addressing these challenges.
In 2015 alone, the world committed to protect the future through two major acts. The Paris Agreement was signed, and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was adopted at the United Nations—a set of aspirational goals to address issues of development in our lifetime. In a rapidly urbanizing world where most people will live in a few urban centers – it is estimated that by 2050 nearly 70 percent of the world will live in urban areas – the New Urban Agenda can be a powerful lever. This is why we have been actively engaged with the Habitat III process.
As health advocates, we know that well-planned and inclusive cities can promote health and health equity, and protect sustainable development. The New Urban Agenda is itself far-reaching and broad, but the following are at least some of the priorities that we hope to see addressed:
- Health equity, with all citizens empowered to access good health, must be at the core of decision-making to avoid the creation of alternate realities within the same space.
- Economic growth and urban infrastructure must safeguard health by
- averting harmful pollution of air, water, and soil
- reducing fatalities and injuries
- creating active transportation systems that promote exercise and well-being
- Increased comfort must not be at the cost of health
- Equitable access to nutritious foods, “green” and “blue (water)” public places and recreational facilities must be built into the city’s planning
- Equitable housing must be inclusive of all, and well-spaced to avoid the spread of infectious diseases, as well as energy efficient with access to basic services, including primary health care.
As partners in development, we recognize the challenge that lies ahead for cities, particularly in resource-constrained settings. We recognize that cities must have the authority and the means to implement these critical goals, as well as the information and continuous feedback, through reliable data mechanisms, to guide progress. We are working to ensure that the New Urban Agenda sufficiently empower cities to act.
The New Urban Agenda will necessarily reflect the many different political, geographical and economic realities of our world. But, at its heart, it will be a reflection of what we expect of our homes, our neighbors, our communities and our governments. Personally, I hope that this vision will place emphasis on the wellbeing of the living, providing the right to all in our cities.