World Cities Day at Expo 2020 Dubai 31 October 2021

World Cities Day was celebrated at Expo 2020 Dubai with a series of events aligned to this year’s theme Adapting Cities for Climate Resilience at the Nexus for People and Planet, Opportunity District.
The first event, called Strengthening collaborations for a green and resilient urban recovery in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), was opened by the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer.
UN-Habitat’s Chief of Urban Global Practices, Shipra Narang Suri, stated that the Arab region is one of the most water-scarce areas globally. During the session, UN-Habitat and the World Green Building Council launched the Executive Summary - Guidelines for Sustainable Reconstruction and Urban Regeneration in the MENA Region. To close the morning session, UN-Habitat’s Wa’el Al Ashhab, Head of Iraq and Yemen country programmes, spoke on unlocking opportunities in the MENA region through advancing green recovery and reconstruction. Later that evening, an open discussion focused on youth perspectives for urban climate action brought together some 30 young activists and experts. Participants shared inspiring initiatives and focused on how the Eleventh Session of the World Urban Forum (WUF) due to take place in Katowice, Poland, next year can advance the transformation of cities to become greener and more resilient