Minister Nomaindiya Mfeketo: Regional meeting on harmonised framework for implementation of new urban agenda in Africa Entebbe

Statement by Minister Nomaindiya Mfeketo, MP, Minister of Human Settlements at the regional meeting on a harmonized framework for the implementation of the new urban agenda in Africa Entebbe

Honourable Minister Habofanoe Lehana, Minister for Local Government and Chieftainship of the Kingdom of Lesotho and chair of the AU STC 8 sub- committee on Human Settlements and Urban Development;
Our host, Honourable Dr Chris Baryomunsi, Minister of State for Housing in the
Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development of Uganda
Honourable Ministers;
Representatives of the African Union Commission;
Representatives of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa;

Experts and representatives from African Ministries responsible for human settlements and urban development in Africa;

On behalf of South Africa I wish to sincerely thank the government and people of Uganda for hosting us so warmly and truly creating a conducive environment for our deliberations.

I also wish to appreciate the excellent work by the AU Commission, UN ECA and  UN  Habitat  as  well  as  the  country  experts  in  preparing  the  draft Harmonised Framework for the Implementation of the New Urban Agenda in Africa in preparation for our discussions today.

It was a mammoth undertaking to consolidate all the commitments we have made in Africa and globally related to human settlements and urban development into a coherent framework. This framework is the necessary next step in ensuring that the work we do contributes to the implementation of Agenda 2063, and clearly demonstrates the importance of human settlements and urban development for the achievement of Africa’s development vision.

In South Africa we have agreed that we will be implementing the New Urban Agenda through our national urban policy, which we call the Integrated Urban Development Framework. South Africa believes in an  “all of government, all of society” approach to the implementation of the New Urban Agenda and our national urban policy which must include all relevant stakeholders, from local government actors, community-based organisations, community members, planners,  academics,  and  the  private  sector. 

We will need to address urbanisation collaboratively, so a continuous process of stakeholder engagement and sharing of information will ensure that we are all empowered to participate meaningfully in the creation of our future.

Our framework for localising the New Urban Agenda requires all the organisations, institutions, and actors who play a role in human settlements and urban development to engage with the policy and identify what their contribution should and can be. We seek to do this through collaboration, co- production and partnership.

We are engaging with stakeholders using a methodology of the 5 A’s.  Allow me to share the five A’s with you:

  • The first A is for Awareness - Taking Ownership requires understanding and knowing, and so actors must actively commit to ensuring societal awareness and that they themselves understand the urban agenda, policies, priorities and processes;
  • The Second A is for Alignment - ensuring policy coherence and intergovernmental collaboration to promote clarity on the roles of government spheres, sectors and stakeholders
  • The third A is for Association – Collaboration and partnerships across the various sectors to encourage, empower and enable actors to recognise and own their roles in the urban agenda.
  • The  fourth  A  is  for  Actors  –  Implementation  takes  place  in  an  “all  of government, all of society approach” that considers all stakeholders in line with South Africa’s constitutional democracy and the shared political commitment to putting people first.
  • And the fifth A is for Activities – Clear descriptions of actions that are realistic in our context and that are monitored in such a way that they ensure energy and creativity is unleashed to achieve the envisaged outcomes.

South Africa’s urban areas are spatially fragmented, dispersed, and sprawled with an inversed density relationship. The inner core holds high land values with low densities, are largely white with good proximity to work, social and commercial facilities, and the outer core has high densities, low land values, are largely black and are dislocated from the real benefits of the city.

The inefficiencies in this spatial form result in higher costs to municipalities (e.g. in providing services) and inequalities (i.e. poor people’s access to jobs, services and amenities). These inefficiencies and weak matching of people to jobs inhibit economic growth and require increasing and unsustainable funding across spheres, sectors and ultimately on – mostly - poor households.

Historically the apartheid and colonial project used land and housing as instruments   of   social   segregation   and   engineered   spatial   and   market distortions along colour lines. New spatial forms are needed that will contribute to nation-building, and social and economic inclusion. Therefore, human settlements  must  be  upgraded  and  located  in  proximity  of  areas  that encourage the integration of different communities, provide citizens with the opportunity to improve their livelihoods and quality of life, and strengthen relations of coexistence, collaboration and cohesion in sharing resources and the collective assets of the city and society.

Here, I see the same strong political will to improve spatial outcomes through more coordinated and targeted infrastructure investments. A national urban policy framework that guides spatial investment can contribute to spatially transforming spaces by changing how decisions are made about where and how to locate and improve human settlement functionality.

Our approach to reverse the apartheid spatial segregation through a strategic spatial targeting approach to land identification, assembly and development, like that which is framed in the Harmonised Implementation Framework for the New Urban Agenda in Africa, will result in inclusive, integrated and sustainable human settlements and catapult inclusive urban economic outcomes as articulated in Agenda 2063.

As the continental institution of Ministers responsible for ensuring that the New Urban Agenda is implemented, I believe the Harmonised Framework takes us forward and supports our ongoing collaboration. It not only provides concrete approaches for addressing the specific features of urbanisation we face in Africa, but also can provide the basis for taking stock and reporting progress.

Thank you

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