The Commonwealth Sustainable Cities Coalition (CSCC) closing meeting, held on 31 March 2026, brought together partners, practitioners, Commonwealth representatives and stakeholders to reflect on the achievements of the coalition’s proof-of-concept phase and consider future directions. Opened by Commonwealth Secretary-General Hon. Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, the meeting marked an important milestone in translating the Commonwealth Declaration on Sustainable Urbanisation into practical, collaborative action.
In her opening remarks, Secretary-General Botchwey described the CSCC as “a coalition in motion, moving from declaration to delivery, from intent to implementation”. She emphasised that “no single institution, no single level of government, no single sector can solve challenges of this scale alone”, highlighting the importance of partnership in responding to rapid urbanisation, climate risks and inequality across the Commonwealth.
The meeting featured presentations from the three Action Groups on Housing, Integrated Planning and Urban Finance, alongside the Sustainable Urbanisation Expert Group. These highlighted key outputs, including evidence on structural barriers to housing delivery, lessons from the Belize Rapid Planning Toolkit pilot, analysis of urban finance constraints across the Commonwealth, and insights into the role of higher education in strengthening skills for sustainable urban development.
Reflections from the Madhya Pradesh dialogue further demonstrated how Commonwealth commitments can be translated into action at state and city level. The meeting concluded with closing remarks from His Excellency Johnston Busingye, Rwanda’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, who noted that the Declaration “has made a very long journey” and emphasised the need to “keep this momentum going” to deliver tangible results.
The session reinforced the value of the coalition model in generating policy-relevant evidence, promoting collaboration and supporting more integrated approaches to urban development across the Commonwealth.
A recording of the CSCC closing meeting is available here:
