Channel NewsAsia 29 Jun 10;
SINGAPORE : National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan has suggested the idea of a Learning Network for Cities to promote a community of best practices for liveability and sustainability.
Speaking at the opening plenary session of the World Cities Summit on Tuesday, Mr Mah says the network will bring together decision makers, practitioners and experts to share their knowledge and practices on key aspects of sustainable development such as infrastructure-financing and the use of green technology.
The network will be discussed at the World Cities Summit Mayors' Forum on Wednesday and further details will be shared during the closing plenary.
Mr Mah said the need for sustainable development has never been stronger.
Today, the global population stands at 6.8 billion and is projected to reach 9 billion in the next 40 years.
With the global population growing rapidly, the limitation of natural resources in meeting the needs of the world's population is increasingly evident.
He said cities hold the key to the future.
The statistics are compelling and familiar.
Cities are growing at an unprecedented rate. Every day, about 200,000 more people move into cities and towns.
Every three days, a new city the size of Seattle or Amsterdam springs up.
By the year 2050, 70 per cent of the global population will be residing in cities, as compared to the 50 per cent today.
Mr Mah said this means city planners and developers need to rapidly scale up their urban infrastructure to provide for some 6.4 billion city dwellers, who will need good access to energy, water, mobility and affordable housing.
Cities, by virtue of their high human density and economic growth, are the hotspots of climate-changing practices such as high energy consumption, pollution and deforestation.
Yet, precisely because of their high human density and economic capabilities, Mr Mah said cities own the very resources, the economic and human capital, as well as technology, to counter the problems that they have caused.
He said a great city must be economically vibrant, foster a strong sense of place, and more importantly, sustain its existence over time. - CNA /ls
Mah calls for city 'learning' forum
Robin Chan Straits Times 30 Jun 10;
IT MAY be only the second World Cities Summit, but there is already a call for more forums on liveability and sustainability to be held in Singapore.
National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan yesterday mooted the idea of a Learning Network for Cities in the years when there is no summit, which is held every two years.
'We need a global platform for constant dialogue among cities and partners on sustainable development as well as water solutions, just like the way our international community meets at Davos for the annual World Economic Forum,' Mr Mah said. 'In this context, I would like to suggest the idea of a Learning Network for Cities, to promote a community of best practices for liveability and sustainability.'
He was speaking at the joint opening of the plenary session of the World Cities Summit and Singapore International Water Week at the Suntec City Convention Centre. The proposed Learning Network would gather decision-makers and experts to share their knowledge and experience in areas of sustainability such as infrastructure financing and the use of green technology. The idea will be put up for discussion at the inaugural World Cities Summit Mayors' Forum today.
Dr Noeleen Heyzer, undersecretary-general of the United Nations and executive secretary of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, said Asian cities face four challenges: The fast pace of urbanisation, unsustainable development, climate change and the growth of slums.
'Our cities are already home to 1.6 billion people. By 2025, the urban population in Asia will be 2.3 billion people,' she said. 'We need to provide jobs, housing, water, transport, education...for an additional 120,000 people every day for the next 15 years. This is a daunting challenge, considering many governments are finding it difficult to meet the needs of their existing urban populations.'
Cities growing unabated will be unsustainable to the environment, she warned. 'We don't have the luxury of growing first and cleaning up later,' she said. 'We need to rethink our development paradigms and our lifestyles.'
Cities 'need joint effort to tackle challenges'
Sharing expertise, testing ideas can produce blueprint for progress: DPM Teo
Robin Chan Straits Times 29 Jun 10;
CITIES might seem a jumble of congestion and chaos, but there are ways to tackle their huge challenges.
Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean told an international convention last night that sharing expertise, meeting at global forums and test-bedding ideas can give cities a blueprint for progress.
The global challenges facing cities today are more complex and so require a more coordinated response across borders, he noted.
Developing a long-term integrated approach to sustainability, together with good governance, will help cities 'reap high dividends', added Mr Teo, who was speaking at the launch of the third annual Singapore International Water Week (SIWW) and the second biennial World Cities Summit.
The growth of cities has reached an unprecedented rate. There were just two megacities in 1950 - in New York and Tokyo - but 21 last year,and by 2025, there are estimated to be 29. A megacity has a population of more than 10 million.
'People congregate in cities because of the promise of a better life that cities offer,' said Mr Teo, who is also Defence Minister.
'It is thus imperative to look at how best we can manage the growth of cities in a way that can meet the aspirations of the people, fulfil that promise, and yet is sustainable to the environment that we share.'
Economically and environmentally, cities are becoming more interdependent as they share problems like congestion, pollution and even public health hazards like haze that may cross boundaries.
But cities, because they attract talent and investment, are also a source of innovation and ideas for solutions to these challenges.
Cities should share their expertise through collaborative projects, said Mr Teo, citing the example of the Tianjin Eco-City in China that is being jointly developed by Singapore and China.
Cities can also use global forums such as these 'to promote and facilitate the exchange of global best practices, new ideas and innovative technologies'.
And while many cities are already investing in infrastructure and test-bedding technologies like smart grids, renewable energy and water solutions, he urged governments and organisations to put more emphasis on them.
'We need to go beyond our own city and national boundaries to share insights, and address issues that have regional or global impact,' he said.
At an earlier press conference with the organisers of the summit and Water Week, summit director Edwin Seah said the event at Suntec 'is not just a collection of speakers to discuss issues relating to urbanisation, but to also share from Singapore's perspective'.
Mr Seah said the summit tries to differentiate itself from similar urban forums by focusing on five key elements of a liveable city: good governance, urban planning, quality of life, the economy and environmental protection.
Water Week managing director Michael Toh said expectations are for this year to surpass last year's bumper deal flow of $2.2 billion.
'Without guessing what (the companies) are going to announce, all the components of SIWW are seeing stronger responses...so we are expecting that the number will be larger if not better compared to last year,' he said.
With more than 50 ministers, mayors and governors in attendance, in addition to delegates from more than 30 countries, the World Cities Summit clearly plays a significant role in addressing the pressing issues` of cities around the world, Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, Minister for the Environment and Water Resources, said in his welcome remarks at the launch of the events last night.
Political will and good policies 'key to a city without slums'
Jessica Cheam Straits Times 29 Jun 10;
STRONG political will and good policies which provide affordable housing and access to finance are key to developing a city without slums, a top United Nations official said on Sunday.
This is why Singapore 'is one of the cities that is inspiring, especially for its best practices', said United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) undersecretary-general and executive director Anna Tibaijuka.
Speaking to The Straits Times ahead of the World Cities Summit in Singapore this week, Mrs Tibaijuka said the Republic has met the challenges of urban development by 'sheer determination and appropriate investment'.
'In cities such as Singapore, where leaders have approached the problems head-on, it has empowered the poor,' said the 60-year-old from Tanzania, who is the highest-ranking African woman in the UN.
Singapore's success - it has housed 80 per cent of its population in public housing over the past four decades - in supplying affordable housing and implementing a mortgage finance system suited for the low-income is crucial in eliminating slums, she pointed out.
'We cannot depend on the private sector or the free market to provide for the poor,' she said. The 2008 global financial crisis triggered by the sub-prime loans in the United States 'was an affordable housing financial crisis', she added. Banks had issued easy credit to home buyers who did not necessarily have the ability to pay it back, resulting in mass defaults of such housing loans.
'People thought affordable housing can be provided by the market, but that obviously didn't happen, and the rest, you know, (is history),' she said.
Mrs Tibaijuka will be marking the Asia launch of the latest UN-Habitat 2010 report - State Of The World's Cities: Bridging The Urban Divide - tomorrow at the World Cities Summit at Suntec City.
The report states that the world has exceeded its Millennium Development Goal to improve significantly the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers around the world by 2020, and has done it ahead of deadline.
It estimates that between 2000 and this year, 227 million people in the developing world would have moved out of slum conditions, with Asia at the forefront of such efforts.
The governments in the region improved the lives of an estimated 172 million slum dwellers in that period.
But the good news ends there.
In absolute terms, the number of slum dwellers swelled considerably by more than 50 million from 776.7 million in 2000 to 827.6 million this year, the report estimates.
This 'urban divide' between those who benefit from cities and those who are unable to, opens up a gap - an 'open wound' - which can produce social instability and generate high costs for society at large, notes the report.
Mrs Tibaijuka said the solutions require awareness, long-term political commitment and policy reforms.
Not mincing her words, she said: 'The presence of slums in cities is actually a shame on its political leaders. There is no dignity for these people who do not have even the basic access to safe drinking water or toilets... It is a reflection on the will of its leaders.'
The official, who has been credited with raising awareness about the global challenge of chaotic urbanisation through her campaigning for the past decade, said she is glad Singapore is taking the lead by hosting the World Cities Summit.
Asked to describe the Republic in one word, she looked out at Singapore's city skyline of Marina Bay from the top-floor of the Ritz-Carlton hotel and said: 'Spectacular.'
'It is my hope successful cities such as Singapore and Bahrain, where the next World Urban Forum is held, will inspire others with their best practices.
'We advocate everyone's basic 'right to the city', and I hope through our campaigning, we will be able to address this urban divide,' she said.
New technology at cities summit
Alicia Wong Today Online 29 Jun 10;
SINGAPORE - Meet Mika, a "home robot" that can understand human gestures and speech. It can also do household chores, fetch coffee and assist the elderly living alone, all without complaint.
Besides Mika, the Agency for Science, Technology and Research is also showcasing 16 other innovations at the World Cities Summit.
One of them is a novel technology that, by printing electronic circuits on various surfaces such as paper and plastics, does away with the need for external light sources for items such as maps. These then become "self lit".
Now in its second run, the biennial summit has attracted more than 1,000 delegates from various countries including China, Australia and the Netherlands.
They will discuss issues of leadership and governance as well as the building of sustainable and eco-friendly cities and communities.
Spain's Bilbao, which will be conferred the inaugural Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize at the summit, will share how, over 25 years, it has transformed itself from an industrial city to a cultural and knowledge-based economy.
Other showcases include a game where players can "manage" a city for more than 40 years. For the first time, students will also present architectural and planning designs as well as digital games.
There are three pavilions featuring sustainable practices in leading cities such as Suzhou and Lagos, sustainable development initiatives by local agencies, and innovative projects by major integrated city solution providers.
Some 3,000 trade visitors are also expected.
Jointly organised by the Centre for Liveable Cities and the Civil Service College, the summit is on at Suntec Singapore until Thursday.
Alicia Wong
Mah Bow Tan moots urban planning network
Emilyn Yap Business Times 30 Jun 10;
A NEW platform for policymakers and urban planners to exchange ideas on sustainable development is in the works.
National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan mooted the idea of a Learning Network for Cities at the World Cities Summit (WCS) yesterday.
As the WCS happens once every two years, the network will allow government officials and industry professionals to share best practices on green technology, infrastructure financing and other sustainable development issues in between, he said.
The learning network will be discussed at the WCS Mayors' Forum today and more details will be shared later.
Mr Mah gave this update in his speech at the WCS opening plenary session. The event gathered high-ranking individuals from the private and public sectors to share what they thought were challenges and solutions in sustainable urbanisation.
Good urban planning was not something policymakers can ignore. According to Mr Mah, about 200,000 more people move into cities and towns every day. By 2050, 70 per cent of the global population will be living in cities, exceeding the 50 per cent today.
Strong governance, citizen engagement, a balance between development and the environment, and international collaborations are some of the key ingredients for sustainable development, he said.
Asia-Pacific will have major challenges to overcome in the urbanisation process, warned United Nations under-secretary-general and executive secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, Noeleen Heyzer.
The large movement of people to cities, environmentally unfriendly development, poverty and climate change are threatening the urban landscape, she said. Various cities are aware of the problems and are working to resolve them. One of these is the fast growing region of Chongqing in China. Chongqing mayor Huang Qifan said that the city is planning to plant 14 square kilometres of trees, and build 40 million sq m of public rental housing to cope with rapid urbanisation.
In the Netherlands, the government launched a Delta Programme and set up a Delta fund to protect the country against flooding. Some 59 per cent of the country is flood-prone, said the programme's government commissioner Wim Kuijken.
Commenting on the WCS after the opening plenary session, Mr Mah said that there is much for Singapore to learn. 'There are many challenges we may face in the future', he said.
Climate change is one of these, he continued. When it comes to managing water levels for instance, Singapore can learn from the Netherlands.
