• The summit organised under the United Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCLGA) is scheduled for November 16 to 20, 2021.
• Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o said that multi-agency committees have been formed to steer the preparations.
Image: MAURICE ALAL
Kisumu Governor Anyang' Nyong'o has kicked off massive preparations to host the 2021 Africities Summit.
The summit organised under the auspices of the United Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCLGA) is scheduled for November 16 to 20, 2021.
Nyong’o said multi-agency committees have been formed to steer the preparation for the historic four-day global meeting.
He said his administration was working with the national government to host the event in Kisumu.
Some of the delegates are expected to participate through virtual platforms. More than 8,500 delegates are expected at the forum to be held in Kenya for the second time.
Kisumu will make history as the first intermediary city to host the summit that discusses the development and urban renewal of Africa’s cities.
The event has in the past been hosted by capital cities across Africa, with the last one in 2018 held in Marrakech, Morocco.
Nyong'o, who spoke during a planning meeting at the Africities steering committee secretariat in Kisumu at the weekend, said eight technical working committees have been formed to plan the event.
Among those who attended the Thursday the meeting were deputy governor Mathews Owili, the Africities CEO Joe Ager and senior officials from national ministries of Interior, Tourism and Devolution.
Nyong’o said the Covid-19 pandemic will not dampen their commitment to host the event.
He asked the committees to work with speed as he lobbied the national government for more support.
The summit, Nyong’o said, will be hosted at the Mamboleo grounds in the outskirts of Kisumu city, where the construction of Jomo Kenyatta International Stadium is underway.
“We have settled for Mamboleo after intense consultations because it has what it takes to host the summit,” he said.
The committee’s immediate tasks will include accreditation of hotels to host the delegates, confirm the conference theme, search for speakers and form resource mobilisation teams.
Nyong’o said the technical working committees had three weeks to submit comprehensive work plans to help guide the preparations.
He said the preparations were a tough call that will need the support of the national government and international partners.
Among those involved in the preparations are officials from the ministries of Devolution, Interior, Treasury, Foreign Affairs, Transport, ICT, Housing and Urban Planning and the Council of Governors.
The summit is expected to boost Kisumu’s economy.
Last year, Kisumu county paid the first instalment of Sh50 million as it prepared to host the ninth Africities summit.
He said Kisumu's accommodation and meeting facilities are almost sufficient. There are 4,961 decent beds in the city and about 9,866 others in the region, Nyong'o said.
Nyong’o led a county delegation to the 20th session of the executive committee of ULGA in Cairo, Egypt, in June last year.
He said the meeting facilities in Kisumu have the capacity to hold 5,241 delegates before construction of temporary structures.
In May last year, the national and county governments and UCLGA signed a contract granting Kisumu the hosting rights for the summit.
The summit will address major questions based on the 2063 Vision of Africa with debates proposed by the African Union Commission.
The summit will be held in Kenya for the second time after the first one in 2006 in Nairobi. It is Africa’s flagship pan-African event that is held every three years in one of the five regions of the continent.
Edited by Henry Makori