On February 4th, our Committee and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) facilitated an online consultation on the Guidance Framework for building a human rights city. This document, developed jointly with United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) and the OHCHR, aims to serve as an international reference for local and regional governments to implement and strengthen human rights policies.
The session brought together members of the global campaign “10, 100, 1,000 Human Rights Cities and Territories by 2030”, who shared key proposals to enrich the framework:
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Define clear steps to become a Human Rights City and Territory.
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Align local action with existing SDGs and regional frameworks.
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Focus on opportunities rather than barriers to implementation.
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Institutionalize local bodies such as ombudsman offices.
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Encourage exchanges between cities to share experiences and lessons learned.
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Prioritize historically marginalized groups such as women, migrants and ethnic communities.
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Create an accreditation system to inspire more cities to join.
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Link this framework to the UCLG Charter-Agenda to reinforce its impact.
Our members reaffirmed the key role of local and regional governments as drivers of human rights, peace and democracy in a challenging global context.
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The Committee will present the final version of the Framework for Guidance during the UCLG World Congress 2026.