Geneva – The World Economic Forum has released a report that identifies public-private cooperation as the key to implementing the New Urban Agenda. It encourages the private sector to commit its resources, skills and experience towards developing economically and socially sustainable cities.

Sustainable urban development is the current global priority, but most cities lack the capacity and resources to develop in a sustainable manner, warns Alice Charles from the World Economic Forum (WEF) in a statement. In her opinion, multi-stakeholder cooperation is needed to fill this gap – and it should come in the form of private-public cooperation.

While the report recognises that city authorities are closest to the citizens and ground-level realities, the private sector has a key role to play in developing efficient, liveable, resilient and prosperous cities. For instance, it has the skills needed to evaluate project attractiveness, opportunity and feasibility or to develop new ideas and business models for local decision-makers. 

“Urbanisation dynamics have evolved over time and call for a transition from a business-as-usual approach to one that is highly collaborative,” Hazem Galal, Global Leader of Cities and Local Government at PwC, said in the statement. “Government and the private sector must play their part by prioritising their actions to reflect cities’ unique context, immediate and long-term priorities, and the created impact to achieve sustainable development.”