Since the 1980s, WHO pioneered the assessment of urban health using indicators that cities have applied, aiming to achieve ‘Healthy City’ recognition and identify ways to improve. Cities around the world have taken part in this movement, leading to better governance capacities to manage health and to improvements in the lives of urban communities. One of the great strengths of the Healthy Cities movement is the diversity of political, social and organizational contexts within which it is being implemented within and across different regions.
In an increasingly urbanized world, public health has gone beyond the health sector to a vast range of other policy sectors, from housing, social development, water and sanitation, and solid waste management, to transport, public space and more.
At the global level, WHO and UN-Habitat have been working together to develop resources that integrate health in city planning, tools that quantify the health and socioeconomic impact of planning and designing urban areas from a health perspective, capturing successful initiatives, and developing training material on urban planning and health.
WHOs Eastern Mediterranean region (EMRO) and UN-Habitat’s Arab States region have gone further by incorporating urban and green indicators in WHO’s Healthy Cities programme at the regional level to have an updated list of healthy cities domains and indicators. This will guide city authorities to measure, plan for, and invest in change for a more healthy, sustainable urban future.
With this ICUH conveniently situated in the intersection of Africa and the Arab States, the workshop will discuss how climate resilience, urban planning and public health are intertwined. The convergence of these disciplines offers a unique opportunity to leverage their respective strengths, leading to holistic approaches that prioritize resilience, health and well-being at the core of urban development strategies.
The workshop will introduce this regional dimension of the programme and discuss how prioritizing health in urban policies and initiatives can support climate resilience, mitigate health and promote thriving communities.
