Roundtable Strong Cities Network – East & Southern Africa Regional Hub, October 31st 2024

Good morning everyone,

Many thanks, Gertrude, for organizing this roundtable session here in Arusha from the regional hub here in Arusha. And thank you colleagues for taking the time to be present.

These days I have been participating and will participate in various meetings and visits here in Arusha, but also in Addis Ababa and in Cairo. I do this in my role as Mayor of The Hague, the International City of Peace and Justice, in the framework of The Hague Justice Week. But also in my role as president of UCLG (United Cities and Local Governments). I took on this role at the beginning of October during the UCLG World Council in The Hague. During the World Council The Hague Charter on Municipal Peace was presented. This charter includes a call to action on how we, as cities and local governments, must work together to combat polarization and urban violence. The work of Strong Cities fits in very well with this. And I am very pleased that UCLG and Strong Cities work closely together. In addition to being president of UCLG, I am also the co-chair of the International Steering Committee of Strong Cities. So it all comes together nicely here this morning.

Strong Cities has developed over the past years into a network where cities – large and small, northern or southern – could find each other. To share experiences and gain knowledge about problems that concern us worldwide: hate, extremism and polarization in our society. As Mayors, we are directly confronted with this. And we are expected to act on it.

We have an interesting program waiting for us this morning. In which we will talk about youth engagement and the situation in the bordertowns in this region. I hope to learn a lot from you this morning. And I also hope that we will meet again in December in Cape Town during the Global Summit of Strong Cities.

Thank you.