As part of its operational support, the Tokyo Development Learning Center (TDLC) organized a ”Mayors’ Forum on Planning and Investment Programming for the Somalia Urban Resilience Project Phase II (SURP-II)” in Nairobi, Kenya from May 15-18, 2023, inviting Mayors and government officials in the project unit from six Somali cities supported by SURP-II. The Forum facilitated focused discussions on urban planning, investment planning, municipal governance, infrastructure and services, climate change adaptation, urban flood risk management, and the influx of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the context of fragility, conflict, and violence. These were conducted through knowledge exchange sessions by the international experts, including Japan, and peer-to-peer discussions among the mayors and officials of the six cities.
In addition to technical sessions, the program also included a field trip where participants learned about Nairobi's planning and budget framework, as well as made a visit to a slum improvement project site, creating an opportunity for a south-south knowledge cooperation with the Nairobi City County.
About 40 participants joined the Forum, composed of Somali Mayors’ and Project Implementation Units from sub-project cities, the Project Coordination Unit of the Federal Ministry of Public Works and Housing, the World Bank project Task Team, and over 10 international experts. From Japan, former Mayor of Hamamatsu city, Mr. Yasutomo Suzuki and Professor Hiroaki Furumai from Chuo University participated as speakers. Former Mayor Suzuki spoke on social inclusion and urban resilience in Hamamatsu and how to prioritize urban investments, and Professor Furumai spoke on urban flood risk management. TDLC will continue to work with World Bank regional urban project teams to promote effective knowledge sharing and technical assistance for urban development.
