BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 21. Multilateral international cooperation and the systemic exchange of operational expertise constitute non-negotiable prerequisites for advancing sustainable urban development and executing the core tenets of the New Urban Agenda, Mai Abdel Hamid (Mai Ahmed), Chief Executive Officer of the Social Housing and Mortgage Finance Fund of Egypt, said, Trend reports.
She made the remark during a high-level session titled "A New Deal for Housing Finance" held within the framework of the 13th session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13) in Baku.
According to her, the World Urban Forum functions as an indispensable global platform for high-level dialogue on sustainable urbanization challenges. She noted that participation in the summit carries unique strategic significance for Egypt, drawing parallels to when Cairo successfully hosted the global forum, showcasing a metropolitan matrix that seamlessly merges ancient historic heritage with progressive, modern urban planning frameworks.
Abdel Hamid emphasized that sustainable metropolitan development stretches far beyond basic infrastructure construction, acting primarily as a structural vehicle to elevate baseline quality of life, reinforce local social cohesion, and expand equitable macroeconomic opportunities for all citizens. She reported that Egypt’s national urban development policies remain tightly aligned with the guidelines of the New Urban Agenda and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
According to the CEO, Egypt is actively executing large-scale pipelines targeting the optimization of residential living conditions, the expansion of mass transit public transportation networks, the broadening of municipal green spaces, and the enforcement of strict energy-efficiency standards across residential and commercial buildings. She directed specific attention toward ongoing urban renewal initiatives across Cairo, alongside state-backed strategic efforts to develop secondary cities to ensure balanced macro-regional economic growth.
Moreover, Abdel Hamid concurrently underscored the profound historical and structural significance of the post-conflict rehabilitation and comprehensive reconstruction workflows underway across the liberated territories of Azerbaijan, characterizing this massive undertaking as a prime developmental window to pioneer cutting-edge "smart city" and "smart village" models.
She pointed out that these rehabilitated regions are successfully absorbing massive, coordinated capital investments directed toward smart infrastructure layout, utility grids, utility-scale renewable energy integration, and modern social services.
Concluding her address, the Egyptian official highlighted the critical urgency of synchronized global interaction to mitigate the compounding challenges of rapid planetary urbanization, calling for reinforced multilateral action to construct deeply resilient, sustainable, and inclusive urban ecosystems.
Today marks the fifth day of WUF13 in Baku.
The first day included a ministerial meeting dedicated to the New Urban Agenda, a ministerial roundtable, assemblies for women and civil society, business sessions, and discussions on urban prosperity. An official ceremony marking the raising of the UN and Azerbaijani flags also took place.
The second day stood out for the inaugural Leaders' Summit, featuring high-level discussions on the global housing crisis, urbanization policy, and urban resilience. Concurrently, the opening of the Mexico City pavilion took place, serving as a significant platform for expanding cooperation with the Latin American region and preparing for WUF14.
The third day of WUF13 featured a comprehensive program of events covering the global housing crisis, the formation of safe and inclusive cities, climate resilience, artificial intelligence and urban governance, green urbanization, social equity, and sustainable transport.
One of the highlights of the third day was the signing of a sister-city memorandum between the Azerbaijani city of Shusha and the Turkish city of Trabzon.
The fourth day of WUF13 featured a broad program of events dedicated to urbanization, climate change, inclusive urban development, housing policy, and sustainable governance.
One of the important events of the UN Special Program for the Economies of Central Asia (SPECA) Cities Forum, held on the fourth day, was the announcement of Almaty’s official accession to the “Declaration of Intent on the Establishment of the SPECA Smart Climate-Resilient Cities Forum.”
Also, for the first time in WUF history and at Azerbaijan’s initiative, the “WUF13 NGO Forum: Global Partnership and Decision-Making” was held.
WUF13, which has attracted more than 40,000 registered participants from 182 countries, will continue until May 22. Held under the theme “Housing the world: Safe and resilient cities and communities,” the forum brings together governments, international organizations, experts, and representatives of civil society to strengthen global cooperation in the field of sustainable urban development.
