The World Organization of United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) is the largest network of local and regional governments in the world, which, through dialogue, cooperation and knowledge exchange, seeks to represent and amplify the voices of its members to contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) promoted by the United Nations.
Once a year, the UCLG organizes a retreat to develop actions according to the work plans established by the governments and promote connections between the participants to define priorities for the rest of the year. The seventh edition of this retreat takes place virtually from February 15 to 22 under the philosophy:A global community that seeks to exchange the experiences of the members of the organization in their work for people, the planet, the government and the future, in the amid the pandemic.
As a member of this global network, Bogotá actively participates in this retreat through the Division of International Relations in order to learn and share successful experiences that will allow the capital to successfully face the great challenges that as a city must face in order to satisfy the needs of all its inhabitants.
During her participation in this event, Luz Amparo Medina, Director of the Division of International Relations of Bogota, thanked this network for the opportunity to learn about experiences from other cities and referred to the Care System implemented our city, “In Bogotá, the concept of care is closely related to the burden imposed on women in caring for children and the elderly, which has resulted in greater inequality. Relieving women of that burden to improve their insertion in the labor market and in access to education has been a right approach to respond to the Pandemic”.
The High District Councilor for ICT, Felipe Guzmán Ramírez, also participated in this activity, who shared with leaders of other local governments, the work that Bogotá has been carrying out regarding the digital rights of its citizens. "For Bogotá, a smart territory is not just about technology, it is about changing the lives of citizens with technologies, data and innovation to create new capabilities, opportunities and empowerment."
He also referred to the issue of open data “In Bogotá we believe that all information must be open, that of our Development Plan, that of Covid-19 management and that of economic reactivation, as well as that of the budget, for example, last year for the first time in the city, citizens were allowed to choose how 50% of local budgets would be executed. Thanks to the availability of this information, they proposed the projects and prioritized them."
By participating in global cooperation spaces such as this one, Bogotá strengthens its cooperation and knowledge exchange ties, exposes its successful experiences and knows first-hand innovations from other cities that can be implemented locally.
