On 20 December 2018, the General Assembly of the United Nations in its resolution A/RES/73/239 decided to dissolve the Governing Council of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme and to replace it with a United Nations Habitat Assembly of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat Assembly). UN-Habitat Assembly is a universal body composed of the 193 member states of the United Nations and convenes every four years (A/RES/73/239).

 

The responsibilities of the UN-Habitat Assembly are:

i) Identify key issues and areas of focus for the normative and policy work of UN-Habitat;

ii) Review major trends related to human settlements and urbanisation;

iii) Examine global norms and standards in human settlements and sustainable urbanisation;

iv) Adopt resolutions, declarations, recommendations, formal decisions, reports and other documents pertaining to strategic vision and political guidance in accordance with its mandate;

v) Recommend strategies for coherent implementation of urban and human settlements dimensions of the 2030 Agenda, the New Urban Agenda and other global agendas, including of the work of the United Nations System;

vi) Examine and approve UN-Habitat’s strategic plan, to be prepared by the Executive Board;

vii) Review the Secretary-General’s quadrennial report on the implementation of the New Urban Agenda.

 

In addition, the Assembly should also ensure the active engagement of local authorities and other stakeholders in the Assembly, in its subsidiary bodies and in intersessional meetings.

2025-2029 Bureau of the United Nations Habitat Assembly

President (2025 to 2027)
Asia-Pacific
Malaysia
President (2027 to 2029)
Asia-Pacific
United Arab Emirates
Vice Chair
Africa
Ethiopia
Rapporteur
Latin America and the Caribbean
Mexico

President – Asia Pacific - Malaysia (2025 to 2027) and UAE (2027 to 2029)

  • Western Europe and Others – Vacant

  • Eastern Europe – Vacant

 

Download composition of the Bureaux document

Meetings of the Bureau

Joint meeting of the Bureaux of the UN-Habitat Governing Bodies - Friday 27 June 2025

Provisional Agenda

Background document for Agenda item 3 - Guidance Note on Governing Bodies of UN-Habitat

Brief summary and assessment of the resumed second session of the UN-Habitat Assembly

Statement by the Executive Director

Presentation by the Secretariat

Summary of Discussions

Joint meeting of the Bureaux of the UN-Habitat Governing Bodies - Wednesday 21 May 2025

Proposed Provisional Agenda

Presentation by the Executive Director

Statement by the Chair of the Executive Board

Summary of Discussions

Third meeting of the Bureau of the UN-Habitat Assembly, 7 May 2025

Provisional agenda

Statement by the Secretariat

Presentation by the Secretariat

Statement by the Chair of CPR (Pakistan)

Statement by the Vice-Chair of CPR (Colombia)

Overview of seats for election and nominations for the UN-Habitat governing bodies in 2025 and 2023

Summary of Discussions

Second meeting of the Bureau of the UN-Habitat Assembly, 9 April 2025

Provisional Agenda

Programme

Letter from the secretariat on call for nominations

Draft outcomes of the 2025 first session of the Executive Board (un-edited version)

Presentation by the Secretariat

Statement by the Secretariat

First meeting of the Bureau of the UN-Habitat Assembly, 3 March 2025

Provisional Agenda

Provisional Agenda for the resumed second session of the UN-Habitat Assembly

Proposed Organization of work during the session

Briefing note on election pertaining to UN-Habitat elections 2025

Overview of nominations to UN-Habitat governing bodies 2025

Statement by the Executive Director

Presentation by the Executive Director

Summary of Discussions

Joint meeting of the Bureaux of the UN-Habitat Governing Bodies and field visit in Mexico - 21 to 23 March 2024

Progamme

Information and logistic note for participants

Background document for Agenda item 8,9, and 10

Background documents for the joint meeting of the Bureaux- Draft version 13 March 2024

Summary of Discussions

Agenda item 1
Opening and adoption of agenda

Agenda item 2
Preparations for the Global Celebration of World Habitat Day 2024 to be held in Queretaro, Mexico

Agenda item 3
Briefing on implementation of resolutions adopted by the United Nations Habitat Assembly

Agenda item 4
Status of preparation of the next Strategic Plan 2026-2029

Agenda item 5
Discussions on upcoming elections of the UN-Habitat Governing Bodies and Membership of the Executive Board

Agenda item 6
Briefing on the upcoming resumed second session of the United Nations Habitat Assembly to be held in May 2025

Agenda item 7
Status of the preparations for the twelfth session of the World Urban Forum

Agenda item 11
Contributions to upcoming priorities of the United Nations in 2024 and 2025

Agenda item 12
Multilevel Governance and Cooperation with Local and Regional Governments

Bureau meeting-10 May 2023

Statement by the Executive Director

Statement by the President of the UN-Habitat Assembly

Presentation by the Executive Director

Provisional Agenda

Bureau meeting-24 April 2023

Statement by the Executive Director

Presentation by the Executive Director

Statement by the Chair of the CPR under agenda items 3 and 4

Option for the alignment of UN-Habitat planning cycles and cycle of election of the offices of the governing bodies with the Quadrennial Comprehensive Policy Review as recommended by the Bureau of the Committee of Permanent Representatives to UN-Habitat

Legal Note of the alignment of the UN-Habitat planning cycles and cycle of election of the offices of the governing bodies with the quadrennial comprehensive policy review（QCPR）

Talking points for the President of the UN-Habitat Assembly

Provisional Agenda

Proposed Substantive Resolutions

Procedural resolutions and resolutions to be proposed by the Chair

Summary of discussions

Bureau meeting-15 February 2023

Statement by the Executive Director

Presentation by the Secretariat

Annotated Agenda

Provisional Agenda

Update note on submission of resolutions ( Rev.1)

Organisation of work for the session as recommended by the bureau

Summary of discussions

Joint Bureaux meeting – 18 October 2022

Provisional Agenda for the second session of the United Nations Habitat Assembly (Agenda item 2)

Resolution 20/21 on the organization and themes for future sessions of the Governing Council (Agenda items 3 &4)

Themes of past sessions of the Governing Council and of the first session of the UN-Habitat Assembly (Agenda items 3&4)

Concept note on the special theme of the second session of the UN-Habitat Assembly

Presentation by the Secretariat

Statement by the Executive Director

Summary of discussions

The first session of the UN-Habitat Assembly

The first session of the UN-Habitat Assembly took place from 27 – 31 May 2019, at the headquarters of UN-Habitat in Nairobi. During the first session, the Assembly adopted itsrules of procedure and endorsed the rules of procedure of the Executive Board. Five resolutions were adopted, covering a range of topics, including on:safer cities;capacity building for implementing the New Urban Agenda;achieving gender equality through UN-Habitat’s work to support inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable cities and human settlements;enhancing urban rural linkages for sustainable urbanization, and onUN-Habitat’s Strategic Plan 2020-2023. In addition, the Assembly also adopted adecision on transitional arrangements towards the new governance structure of UN-Habitat. The Assembly concluded its five days of discussions with aMinisterial Declaration recognizing that the unprecedented rate of urbanization constitutes both a challenge and an opportunity. The report of the first session of the UN-Habitat Assembly can be foundhere. 

UN-Habitat Assembly logo

Key Documents

Resolutions, Ministerial Declaration and Proceedings

 

Report and Decision

Previous Sessions of the Governing Council