Australian Local Government Association

United Cities and Local Governments is a new world organisation dedicated to promoting the values, objectives and interests of cities and local governments across the globe. It is the amalgamation of three organisations: the World Federation of United Cities (FMCU), the International Union of Local Authorities (IULA) and Metropolis, the international association of major metropolises.

Mission: To be the united voice and world advocate of democratic local self government, promoting its values, objectives and interests, through cooperation between local governments, and within the wider international community.

Through its membership of UCLG, ALGA supports the Cardoso Report and champions the role of women in local decision making, through the UCLG Worldwide Declaration on Women in Local Government. A UCLG delegation attended the Beijing +10 meeting in New York in March 2005.

Cardoso Report

On 22 June 2004, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, former President of Brazil, presented the Report of the Panel of Eminent Persons on United Nations-Civil Society Relations (the Cardoso Report PDF 269 kb) to the United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan.

This report was prepared at the request of the UN Secretary General following publication of the report Strengthening the United Nations: An agenda for further change, which proposed measures to reform the UN in order to better respond to new geopolitical realities and the phenomenon of globalisation.

The Cardoso Report includes two landmark proposals for local governments and for their citizens.

Proposal 17
'The General Assembly should debate a resolution affirming and respecting local autonomy as a universal principle.'

Proposal 18
'The United Nations should regard United Cities and Local Governments as an advisory body on governance matters.'

UCLG is closely monitoring the current debate.
See also: UCLG/Cardoso Report

Women in local decision-making

Building on the ground-breaking work of IULA, United Cities and Local Governments plays a leading role in championing the role of women in local government worldwide. It is committed to keeping gender equality high on the agenda of local governments and to ensuring greater participation of women in local decision-making processes. Its activities include the promotion of the Worldwide Declaration on Women in Local Government.

See also: Promoting the role of women

Beijing +10

A UCLG local government delegation of over 50 women mayors and local councillors participated in the ten-year global review of the Beijing Platform for Action, known as Beijing +10, which took place from 28 February to 11 March 2005 in New York. As part of the formal Beijing +10 process a written Local Government Statement (PDF 54 kb), based on inputs from members, was submitted to governments. This statement was firmly based on the Worldwide Declaration on Women in Local Government, which was adopted as a policy document by UCLG's members at its Founding Congress in Paris in May 2004.

See also: Local government at Beijing+10

ALGA contact regarding United Cities and Local Governments: