2017 Healthy Cities Pécs Declaration

1 WHO European Healthy Cities Network Annual Business and Technical Conference Building healthy cities: inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable Pécs, Hungary, 1–3 March 2017 Original: English 2017 Healthy Cities Pécs Declaration We, the mayors and political leaders of cities gathered at the Annual Business and Technical Conference in Pécs, Hungary, on 1–3 March 2017, reconfirm our commitment to the values and principles of the Healthy Cities movement, and to creating places that empower and enable all people to enjoy improved health and well-being and fully exercise their human rights. We are aware that making improved health and well-being for all a priority for cities is crucial to laying the foundations for a future of healthy sustainable development. We recognize our political responsibility to work towards the creation of societies that are inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable, and that allow all people to lead more empowered, healthy, happy, safe and fulfilling lives. We understand that the good health and well-being of all people living in a city is one of the most effective markers of any city’s sustainable development, and we therefore strongly confirm our unanimous support for the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which have health and well-being for all at their core. We fully support the renewed political impetus that the 2030 Agenda has given to working towards a future defined by sustainable development, reduced inequalities and leaving no one behind. None of this can be achieved without the involvement and leadership of cities. 2 We emphasize that cities are both key partners in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and agents for achieving a future that is sustainable, inclusive, safe and resilient, and that we will make bold political choices to improve the health and well-being of all people in our cities, with a focus on a bottom-up approach of empowerment. We welcome and fully endorse the outcome of Habitat III, the 2016 United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development: the “New Urban Agenda”, adopted at the 68th Plenary Meeting of the 71st session of the United Nations General Assembly. We welcome and fully endorse the 2016 Shanghai Declaration on promoting health in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development1 and commit to its main principles: we recognize that health and well-being are essential to achieving sustainable development; we will work to promote health through action on all the SDGs and beyond; we commit to the challenge to take transformative action and make bold political choices for health and well-being; we will ensure that good governance is at the centre of all work for health and well-being; and we will ensure that cities and communities fulfil their potential as enablers of health and well- being for all. We recognize that cities are places where planning and policy-making is closest to people and communities, and that we must incorporate their views, voices and needs at all times. We commit to removing barriers to empowerment for all groups at risk of vulnerability, and to using participatory and empowering methods of governance to support the full realization of human potential and capabilities for all ages, in the city environment. We understand the critical importance of creating a sustainable and equitable future for our young and future generations, and commit to implementing the outcomes of the high-level conference “Promoting intersectoral and interagency action for health and well-being in the WHO European Region” held in Paris in December 2016. In this spirit, we strongly support strengthening collaboration between the WHO European Healthy Cities Network, the WHO Regions for Health Network and the Schools for Health in Europe Network. We recognize 1 Shanghai Declaration on promoting health in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2016 (http://www.who.int/healthpromotion/conferences/9gchp/shanghai-declaration/en/, accessed 23 February 2017). 3 the importance of ensuring that all schools in a healthy city are places that promote health and well-being for all, challenge stereotypes and contribute to the reduction of inequalities. We acknowledge the importance of achieving gender equality as a fundamental element of the Healthy Cities movement; in this spirit, we fully endorse and commit to act as partners in the implementation of the Strategy on women’s health and well-being in the WHO European Region, adopted at the 66th session of the WHO Regional Committee for Europe. We acknowledge the important role of cities throughout the European Region in addressing issues arising from shifting trends in migration, and therefore fully endorse and commit to act as partners in the implementation of the Strategy and action plan for refugee and migrant health in the WHO European Region, adopted at the 66th session of the WHO Regional Committee for Europe. In recognition of the importance of establishing partnerships with academia, we commit to exploring the possibility of a Region-wide subnetwork of universities within the WHO European Healthy Cities Network, in order to promote collaboration and support the future work of the Network throughout the Region. We commit to sharing experiences and best practices with each other as we journey towards making our cities the healthiest, happiest and most sustainable places they can be. We urge the World Health Organization and Member States to support us fully in this effort and to strengthen healthy city networks in all regions, globally. We commit to come together at regular intervals as political leaders of the Healthy Cities movement to demonstrate and ensure our political commitment to address the challenge of creating a future that is healthier and happier for all. © World Health Organization 2017 All rights reserved.