UN-Habitat confirms partnership with Bamenda City Council

In a statement published on the Bamenda City portal, the BBC official calls the city dwellers to acclaim the City Coucil development efforts.

 “Once more the Bamenda City Council has taken a bold step in its duty of urban development within the Bamenda Municipality. These are the efforts that should be acclaimed by us all,citizens of this wonderful city. The government delegate and his young, talented & dynamic collaborators have just confirmed a partnership with UN Habitat for the development of Public Open Spaces & Market Spaces. Though this partnership is still in its debut, its worth mentioning that this is rare to come by as its the first of its kind in the nation. We therefore call on all to be on alert and be ready to participate and support your city council each step of the way. We have to keep working & supporting our council in every little way we can. In development, it is always better to support than criticize especially when these criticisms are baseless and unjustified. With that said i think we need to congratulate our government delegate for the bold step taken.” The statement reads. 

It should be noted that “UN-Habitat is the United Nations programme working towards a better urban future. Its mission is to promote socially and environmentally sustainable human settlements development and the achievement of adequate shelter for all.”

Considering that Bamenda is one of the cities facing unprecedented demographic, environmental, economic, social and spatial challenges, the partnership for now is seen as a welcomed initiative particulally at the time when there has been been a phenomenal shift towards urbanization, with 6 out of every 10 people in the world expected to reside in urban areas by 2030. 

Bamenda like many other places around the world, the effects can already be felt: lack of proper housing and growth of slums, inadequate and out-dated infrastructure – be it roads, public transport, water, sanitation, or electricity – escalating poverty and unemployment, safety and crime problems, pollution and health issues.

From recent media outings by the City Delegate, Mindsets, policies, and approaches towards urbanization need to change in order for the growth of cities and urban areas to be turned into opportunities that will leave nobody behind. 

UN-Habitat authorities state that “UN Habitat, the United Nations programme for human settlements, is at the helm of that change, assuming a natural leadership and catalytic role in urban matters. Mandated by the UN General Assembly in 1978 to address the issues of urban growth, it is a knowledgeable institution on urban development processes, and understands the aspirations of cities and their residents. For close to forty years, UN-Habitat has been working in human settlements throughout the world, focusing on building a brighter future for villages, towns, and cities of all sizes. 

Because of these four decades of extensive experience, from the highest levels of policy to a range of specific technical issues, UN-Habitat has gained a unique and a universally acknowledged expertise in all things urban. This has placed UN-Habitat in the best position to provide answers and achievable solutions to the current challenges faced by our cities. UN-Habitat is capitalizing on its experience and position to work with partners in order to formulate the urban vision of tomorrow. It works to ensure that cities become inclusive and affordable drivers of economic growth and social development.”