Head of Baltic 2030 Unit at the Regional Forum on Sustainable Development in Geneva

The Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (RFSD) was held on 1- 2 March 2018 in Geneva, Switzerland.  The Forum for the UNECE Region followed up on and reviewed the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the UNECE region which includes the countries of Europe, countries in North America (Canada and United States), Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan) and Western Asia (Israel). Focusing on practical value-added and peer learning, it creates a regional space to share policy solutions, best practices and challenges in SDG implementation and helps identify major regional and subregional trends.

Head of the CBSS Baltic 2030 Unit, Krista Kampus, moderated one of the peer-learning roundtables at the Regional Forum on Sustainable Development “Financing the transition to sustainable cities and communities: challenges and opportunities”  which highlighted the major trends and mechanisms for financing the integrated Urban SDG agenda for housing and urban development in the UNECE region.  Furthermore, the round-table discussed the role of the state and private sectors and their interplay in housing financing and how various sources of finance can meet different needs.

Krista Kampus concluded the session which focused on SDG 11 – Sustainable Cities and Communities – as follows: “The role of regional and local authorities in financing urban renewals and affordable housing is growing; their role is important in providing strategic visions for urban renewal projects, promoting intersectoral cooperation and establishing a multi-stakeholder platform. With regards to the role of local authorities, it was concluded that creating local revenues and strengthening municipal budgets should be a strategic approach to promoting smart sustainable cities”