The Meeting of Ministers in charge of Housing and Sustainable Urbanisation of the OTS held in Baku

The Meeting of Ministers in charge of Urban Planning of the Organization of Turkic States was convened on 30 September 2023 in Baku, on the sidelines of the second session of the Azerbaijan National Urban Forum and the World Habitat Day 2023.

The meeting was hosted and chaired by H.E. Mr. Anar Guliyev, Chairman of the State Committee on Urban Planning and Architecture (SCUPA) and attended by H.E. Ms. Maimunah Mohd Sharif, Executive Director of UN-Habitat, H.E. Mr. Mirzabek Jiparkulov, Director of the State Agency on Architecture, Construction and Housing Utilities under the Cabinet of Ministers of the Kyrgyz Republic, H.E. Ms. Fatma Varank, Deputy Minister of Environment, Urban Development and Climate Change of the Republic of Türkiye, H.E. Mr. Davronjon Adilov, First Deputy Minister of Construction, Housing and Communal Services of the Republic of Uzbekistan, H.E. Mr. Bauyrzhan Kabdol, Deputy Minister of Industry and Infrastructure Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan

At the meeting the Secretary General Kubanychbek Omuraliev emphasized the importance of collaboration in urban planning for addressing complex challenges that cities face, from rapid population growth and urban sprawl to environmental degradation and social inequalities.

Secretary General pointed out that sustainable urbanization as an important area of cooperation is on the agenda of Organization. As the 8th Istanbul Summit of the OTS, held on 12 November 2021, was dedicated to the “Green Technologies and Smart Cities in the Digital Age”, where our Heads of State expressed the need to fully utilze the green technologies and digitalization to strengthen our economies, transform cities into “smart cities” by using new technologies and innovative approaches. 

He stated that by bringing together a wide range of stakeholders, sharing knowledge and resources, and fostering innovation, collaborative urban planning can lead to more resilient, sustainable, and inclusive cities.

Secretary General added that OTS has already engaged to sustainable development of urban areas by establishing cooperation with UN-Habitat through signing Memorandum of Understanding between two organizations and creating permanent platform of experts and IT specialists on "smart cities” under the OTS.

UN-Habitat Executive Director briefed about activities of organization and mechanisms that Un-Habitat provides for the countries and cities to solve their challenges, shared some global and regional initiatives.

Executive Director underlined the resolutions adopted by UN-Habitat in 2023,  such as international guidelines on people-centered smart cities, enhancing the interlinkage between urbanization and climate change resilience, adequate housing for all and equitable financing and effective monitoring of the implementation of UNHA2 resolutions.

Then the Heads of Delegation underlined the essential role of housing and sustainable urbanization and exchanged their ideas on future regional collaborations and partnerships by adapting the cities to climate change and risk reduction, opportunities for funding and financing mechanisms for joint urban renewal projects and etc.