The World Council of United Cities and Local Governments has opened in the Turkish city of Konya. The Mayor of Kazan Ilsur Metshin and Deputy Head of the capital of the republic of Tatarstan Evgenia Lodvigova took part in it. During of the forum, two new cities – Veliky Novgorod and Yalta - were admitted to the Eurasia section of the UCLG.
At the meeting, the Mayor of Konya, Ibrahim Uygur Altai, became the new president of the UCLG. He replaced the Mayor of Montevideo, Carolina Cosse. In 2021 the organization was headed by Ilsur Metshin. He currently holds the position of President of the UN Advisory Committee of Local Authorities.
Evgeniya Lodvigova spoke at the political debate “The Right to the City: a return of public goods”. She noted the need to create a single platform where the best practices of cities, including projects on the provision of public goods, would be collected.
Ilsur Metshin also held a meeting of the Council of the Eurasia section of the UCLG during the forum, where two new cities Veliky Novgorod and Yalta were included to the Eurasia section. The head of the Yalta administration, Yanina Pavlenko expressed confidence that working as part of the UCLG will open up prospects for the development of the city. It became the second city of the Crimean Peninsula to join the Eurasia section – Sevastopol was previously accepted.
The meeting also discussed the practices of various municipalities in the field of urban economy, approved a work plan for 2024, and heard reports on activities over the past year.