The development and growth of our towns and cities depend largely on meticulous and proper planning, coordination, and management of our human settlements both historically and in the present context. In recent times, countries have shown growing dynamism in formulating policies and designing programmes as well as projects to ensure orderly and well-planned development of our human settlements culminating in resilient and sustainable towns and cities. These policies, programmes and projects mostly require inclusive policy debates/dialogues, sustained advocacy, and capacity development efforts, alongside cooperation and effective coordination among various stakeholders to attain the desired developmental changes in our towns and cities.

The Ministry has over the years provided Inclusive National-Level Dialogue Platforms/Fora particularly the Ghana Urban Forum (GUF), to bring together multi-stakeholders to deliberate on important urban development and management issues, share a common vision for sustainable urban development and proffer solutions to urban development challenges that align with the Goal 11 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the New Urban Agenda (NUA).

The stakeholders range from citizens, relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), local government officials, Parliamentarians, non- governmental organisation (NGOs) civil society organisations (CSOs), local communities, the private sector, professional bodies, urban development practitioners, the scientific and academic communities, Development Partners (DPs), traditional authorities (TAs), the media, among others.

Thus, GUF creates a Platform to support urban development policy dialogues and processes in the country as well as contribute to international urban policy dialogues and strategies. The platform also aims to collate national contributions to be reflected in development strategies.

This year’s Ghana Urban Forum, which is also a prelude to the African Urban Forum (AUF) World Urban Forum (WUF) to be held in Addis Ababa and Cairo respectively is organised under the Theme, “Nurturing Roots, Growing Futures: Combining Policies and Partnerships for Urban Resilience and Transformation”.

We have gathered here experts, individuals, groups, and organisations poised to share their perspectives in the topics below:

1. Social housing and financing options; urban utility and services networks; spatial planning; and collaborative planning.

2. Urban economies; financing options for investment in urban infrastructure and services; Public Private Partnerships; innovative financing options; local economic development; balanced, sustainable, and equitable growth.

3. Resilient urban infrastructure and services; transportation systems; sustainable energy solutions.

4. Innovative strategies for disaster prevention and management; urban planning; public spaces; urban greenery; urban food systems; and community resilience and revitalization.

5. Participatory urban governance models; role of digital tools; inclusivity in urban governance (focus on gender and child-friendly urban areas); and urban safety.