The Urban20 (U20) Chair, His Excellency Fahd Al-Rasheed, President of the Royal Commission for Riyadh City has today wished his Italian counterparts good luck or “Buona Fortuna” as Italy prepares to take up the reins of the 2021 G20 Presidency and the engagement group of cities, the U20.

“The city of Riyadh is immensely proud and honored to have Chaired the 2020 U20. We are proud of the progress we made together as the U20 of 42 cities and 30 think tanks, universities, and multi-lateral entities. We collaborated, innovated and found common ground. We discussed challenges and solutions experienced by cities across every continent. We focused on the common goal of rebuilding better. As we worked to bring urban issues to the fore, a record 39 mayors and representatives of leading cities endorsed the 27-point U20 Communiqué. Rome and Milan were involved each step of the way and are excellently positioned to build further on this momentum and body of work.”

U20 Chair, His Excellency Fahd al Rasheed further explained that the Saudi G20 mantra of “realizing opportunities of the 21st century for all” was enthusiastically adopted and deepened by the U20 delegations working throughout the year on three themes: “Inclusive Prosperous Communities” Circular, Carbon-Neutral Economies” and “Nature-Based Urban Solutions”.

He added: “When cities were challenged by the pandemic, the U20 established a Special Working Group on COVID-19 to develop an action-oriented response. The primary recommendation was the development of a Global Urban Resilience Fund, the first fund by cities, for cities. The cities of Riyadh, Buenos Aires and Rome are developing the Fund to combat the pandemic and mitigate urban shocks by accelerating the transmission of learning and ideas among cities for a more secure and resilient future for all urban residents.”

“We will continue to support the U20 in every possible way, and we extend our best wishes for success and good fortune to Italy’s U20 Presidency,” His Excellency Fahd Al-Rasheed concluded.

For more information please visit www.urban20Riyadh.org or contact the U20 Media Team on U20@rcrc.gov.sa.