The day will be celebrated during the Global Meeting of the Sustainable Cities in Alexandria. The meeting which runs from 29 September to 2 October and is coordinated by UN-HABITAT and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). Over 100 partners working in sustainable urbanisation initiatives mainly through the Sustainable Cities
Programme (UNEP/HABITAT), the Localising Agenda 21(UN-HABITAT) Programme and the GEO Cities Programme (UNEP) are expected to participate.

The commemoration organised by the National Council for Physical Planning with cooperation with non-governmental organisations and other institutions will be attended by the Minister of Environment and Physical Planning, the Resident Representative of UNDP in Khartoum and other key dignitaries. A workshop will address subjects related to the World Habitat Day theme, Water and Sanitation in Cities, and to the Arabic Housing Day.

The Environmentalist Society, a local non-governmental organisation will mark the day focusing on the area of Environmental awareness and implementation or relevant projects.

The Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro will host the main World Habitat Day event this year in a glittering ceremony with leading personalities from many countries, governments, community organisations and individuals from around the world. A select group of individuals and organisations will be awarded for their work in improving the growing global urban environment.

The UN-HABITAT Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, will join the mayors of Coulomb and Matame on a special tour of the Brazilian cities of Guarulhos, Santo Andre, Campinhas, Porto Alegre and Caixas do Sul during the week of 29 September – 3 October. Invited guests on the tour arranged with the help of Harvard University, include a local government delegation from Cape Town, South Africa.

UN-HABITAT, UNDP-Colombia, the National Federation of Self-Help Housing organizations (FEDEVIVIENDA), and COMPENSAR a private national family welfare agency are organising celebrations in of Bogotá, Colombia which will be broadcast on national television. The Mayor of Bogotá, Antanus Mockus, will make a presentation on his programme, strategy and ideas in the area of human settlements and urban development. Also, experts and mayoral candidates (standing for election at the end of October) will take part in a panel discussion on municipal, public policy, pro-poor policies, democracy and other matters relating to urban development. About 700 people are expected to attend with thousands more participating via television.en-Espagnol

The Ministry of Housing of Cuba, together with UNDP-Cuba with participation of the Habitat National Committee will mark the day present the Habitat National Award for outstanding individuals and/or organizations.

La Fondation Haitienne pour l’Habitat et l'integration des sans-abri (FONDHABISA) organisera une matinée culturelle au cours de laquelle le Message de la Directrice Executive sera lue, si possible, par un représentant des Nations Unies en Haiti, les expériences primées pour la journée seront exposées et enfin la Déclaration du jour du Président de la FONDHABISA sera délivrée

During the week of World Habitat Day, a series of events will take place including a regional seminar/workshop where the Successful Experiences in the Social Production of Habitat initiative will be launched. The workshop will discuss legal instruments relating to human settlements include an open day for the general public to share the findings of its discussions. The cases of Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Uruguay will be highlighted. On 10 October a seminar highlighting the most successful Latin American experiences in the development and application of policies and instruments will be held.

UNDP-Peru is planning a series of seminars/workshops with the Ministry of Housing and non-governmental organizations involved in human settlements and urban issues.

National Campaign Committee members (The Right to Adequate Housing for All) have planned activities ranging from a journalist competition on the theme of “The Right to Adequate Housing for All”, a forum entitled “Towards a Decentralised Housing Policy”, with participation of the mayors of Metropolitan Lima, micro-credit institutions and the social organisations, a fair entitled “The Contribution of Civil Society to Housing and Neighbourhood Upgrading Schemes for the Poorest of the Poor and the Most Excluded”. During this Fair key urban issues will be debated, and prizes for the journalist competition given.

In New York, a panel of eminent persons will discuss this years theme Water and Sanitation in Citiesat the United Nations Headquarters. Amongst the panelists will be Mayors from cities in the US, representatives from Sister Cities International, and non-governmental organisations including the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for All (WASH). Ambassadors, representatives of Permanent Missions, NGOs, UN Agencies and other partners as well as members of the Press will be invited to the event.

World Hunger Year will participate in the celebrations for the World Habitat Day in New York city.

Washington
The National Coalition for the Homeless will mark World Habitat Day as part of their annual conference in Capitol Hill. The commemoration will include the launch of 2003 Global Report on Human Settlements highlighting the challenges of slums.

It was a World Habitat Day with a difference in Perth, Australia this year. As Western Australia struggles with its rising homeless rate and a lack of affordable housing, one organisation is taking a simple approach to providing people in the region with a roof over their heads and the skills to get back on their feet and off the welfare system.
Using the occasion of World Habitat Day to launch its Habitat 21 programme, the president of Beyond Shelter - Australia, Mr. George Fisher said that overcoming homelessness and ending its related counterpart poverty is what he hopes BSA will achieve. “The key to breaking participants’ dependence on the welfare system,” said Mr Fisher “is through service enriched housing.” This method ensures that participants in BSA are given homes which they can afford to pay for in rent and should they decide to purchase the home. BSA’s unique Land Trust provides homebuyers with a 99-year renewable lease at a very low cost. “The land costs them practically nothing and houses are built to high architectural standards by mostly volunteer labour which means the cost of the homes become s very affordable,” Mr Fisher said.
Where many organisations provide either one form of shelter or welfare, Beyond Shelter - Australia is taking a distinctive approach and going one step further. “We do not provide shelter. We are beyond shelter. When people are ready to take the next step away from shelters, away from welfare dependency, Beyond Shelter -Australia will provide them with a dignified approach to the future.”
The new Habitat 21 project launched on World Habitat Day 2003 is designed to assist first home-buyer families with one or more dependant children and a combined family income of not more than $40,000 Australian dollars (US$ 29,000) Mr Fisher of BHS can be contacted in Perth on

The Ministry of Construction is coordinating World Habitat Day celebrations in in every city and will present National Human Settlements Award to selected cities.

The government of Indonesia will commemorate the day with the collaboration of UN-HABITAT.

The Ministry of Housing & Local Government in collaboration with UNDP and UN-HABITAT will commemorate World Habitat Day 2003 and showcase initiatives in the areas of sanitation and water crisis or this year's theme "Water and Sanitation for Cities", materials that will provide awareness on the provision and use of water.artwork, photographs and essays.

World Habitat Day was high on the calendar of UN events nationally celebrated in Sri Lanka. The Ministry of Housing and Plantation Infrastructure, the National Focal Point of UN Habitat in Sri Lanka, takes the lead in organizing these activities. This year, the focus was on school children and poor communities. An annual school art and essay competition on the WHD theme of water and sanitation started in June this year, while the essay competition was held in both Sinhala and Tamil languages.
A national photographic competition and a drama competition were added to the programme of events. A two day exhibition in which all human settlement related agencies are invited to participate, including those of the private sector took place on 6 –7 October with the selected entries of the art and photographic competitions being displayed at the exhibition. UN-HABITAT Projects of Sustainable Sri Lanka Programme and Lunawa Community Development Project participated in the exhibition establishing stalls. UN-HABITAT information materials will be distributed to the public.

In the capital, Colombo, a day-long programme attended by ministerial level guests, among other participants, was planned with a community forum at which low income urban communities participating in Sri Lanka human settlements projects, including programmes of UN-HABITAT presented their success stories and good practices in accessing basic services including water and sanitation. In the evening, the finals of the drama competition were staged. The main national event at which the Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe was invited to be the Chief Guest was held at 1700 house on Monday when the WHD prizes were given. Also on the day, the first ever launch of a special World Habitat Day Commemoration Stamp and first day cover, officially presented by the Post Master General during the main ceremony. The day was well covered by the press which also carried a special newspaper supplement on the day.

In addition to the National Habitat Day celebrations planned in Colombo, the ministry and human settlement groups arranged tree planting programmes and competitions at regional levels during the first week of October 2003 with the participation of Divisional Secretariats, schools and Local Authorities.

. Link to programme

The European Union's Commissioner for Research, Mr. Philippe Busquin, will join a number of his senior colleagues to celebrate World Habitat Day at the United Nations centre in Brussels, near the EU headquarters.

The day will be celebrated at the United Nations house in Brussels with participation with key partners including those from the European Commission and other international institutions. UN-HABITAT's new Global Report on Human Settlements will be launched.

Budapest
Several organizations and authorities organized meetings on the World Habitat Day theme of Water and Sanitation for Cities. In addition, the UN-HABITAT information office published a series of articles in the monthly Falu Város Régió (Village, City, Region) on the theme of the World Habitat Day ”Water and Sanitation for Cities”. As the theme of Water and Sanitiation for Cities is linked to the requirements for membership to the European Union, EC guidelines aimed at improving the environment and the urban living conditions were also sent out to partners including secondary and higher educational institutions for insertion into their curriculum.

The Republic of Moldova is planning to mark World Habitat Day with a series of public awareness events. These include a Mesmerising Moldova round-table conference with government, civil society and UN representatives, and a television special on human settlements problems in Moldova.

The Ministry of Public Works will hold a seminar to discuss good practices, including the practices that qualified among the 100 best practices of 2002. The 4th Spanish catalogue of good practices will be presented.

A round table will take place in Geneval with panelists from international organizations, non-governmental organisations, local government, and the private sector. In addition to discussing Water and Sanitation for Cities, security, governance and risk management are some of the other topics to be debated. Public discussions will follow the round table.
For further information please see

The Department for International Development will mark World Habitat Day in the United Kingdom by holding an event in its London headquarters on 6 October. Minister of State for International Development, Hilary Benn MP, will deliver a speech to an invited audience which will reaffirm the UK Government's commitment to the UN-Habitat agenda, and to the related Millennium Development Goals in particular.

CARE International UK will mark World Habitat Day.