GB’s Clay Ford to attend world council in China

Gulf Breeze’s Mayor ProTem and City Councilman Clay Ford, Jr., and President of the Florida League of Cities and the Honorable Jay J. Beyrouti, Mayor of the Town of Redington Shores, and Chair of the Florida League of Cities (FLC) International Committee, will represent the FLC in Beijing, China, June 8-10 at the World Council & World Mayor’s Forum of the United Cities and Local Governments Cities (UCLG).

Clay FordThe Honorable Clarence E.

Anthony, Mayor of the City of South Bay, Florida, and former Florida League of Cities and National League of Cities President, will be attending the Beijing Meeting and Presiding as the Treasurer of United Cities and Local Governments.

Over 300 mayors and councilors will have the opportunity to meet with representatives from the World Bank and the United Nations to discuss the key role of local governments in meeting the Millennium Development Goals and managing the aftermath of disasters like the tsunamis in South East Asia.

This World Mayors Forum is being held in preparation for the Millennium Summit review in New York in September 2005. UCLG will be advocating in favor of the creation of an officially recognized advisory role for local government with the UN. The World Mayors Forum will take the form of two open sessions of the World Council, and is attracting significant participation from Chinese local authorities.

The World Council and World Mayor’s Forum are being hosted by UCLG’s Chinese member, the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), at the invitation of Mr. Chen Haosu, UCLG Vice President and President of the UCLG AsiaPacific Regional Section.

“This is an important opportunity to review the development of our new organization one year after its Founding Congress, and to further develop our future strategy”, said Bertrand Delanoë and Smangaliso Mkhatshwa in a joint statement of the UCLG presidency.

The mission of United Cities and Local Governments is ‘To be the united voice and world advocate of democratic local self-government, promoting its values, objectives and interests, through cooperation between local governments, and within the wider international community.

United Cities and Local Governments will ensure the effective political representation of local government to the international community, will promote international cooperation between local governments and their associations, and will be the worldwide source of key information regarding local government.’ Some key decisions have already been taken about United Cities and Local Governments:

• United Cities and Local Governments will have an elected President and two Senior Vice-Presidents; • Its governing bodies will be the General Assembly, World Council, and Executive Bureau; • United Cities and Local Governments will have a decentralized structure based on seven world regions; Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe, Russia and the Newly Independent States (NIS), Middle East and West Asia, Latin America and North America; • Membership will be open to, among others, individual cities; national associations of local government and organizations involved in local government matters; • The Founding Congress of United Cities and Local Governments will be held in Beijing, in June 2005, with the theme ‘Local Government and the Millennium Development Goals.