1、Sustainable Urbanization in Commonwealth CountriesForewordMaimunah Mohd SharifUnder-Secretary-General&Executive Director,UN-HabitatSince 2020,when the COVID-19 pandemic started to hit cities and towns,UN-Habitat has been working with local government partners and professional groups to highlight the

2、 importance of sustainable urbanization.COVID-19 was impacting cities and urban areas disproportionately and it was not density but unequal access to basic services from shelter to water that was the biggest contributor to COVID-19-related mortality.It is our mission at UN-Habitat to ensure that the

3、 repositioning of sustainable urbanization as a key contributor to policymaking will result in better and more integrated urban development strategies.It is important to close the gap between spatial planning and economic planning.Working with our partners in the built environment professionals grou

4、p,as well as through the Stakeholder Advisory Group Enterprise(SAGE),we took active steps to gain political support for the implementation of the New Urban Agenda.Our work in the Commonwealth of Nations including 56 Member States with shared history,language,and planning frameworks was boosted by ou

5、r partnership with civil society groups unique to the Commonwealth.Sustainable Urbanization in Commonwealth Countries3In June 2021,together with King Charles III,then known as The Prince of Wales,UN-Habitat supported the Call to Action on Sustainable Urbanization across the Commonwealth of Nations.T

6、he call galvanized support for local action to ensure that sustainable urbanization policies would inform national development policies,which can then be quantified,budgeted,and monitored.I have also been actively engaged with the G20 bringing together the top 20 economies in the world to introduce