Under the theme “Local Governments and Youth Shaping the Future,” the United Cities and Local Governments 2025 Retreat has made local democracy one of the key priorities for this year, highlighting its importance in an increasingly complex international context. Attention was also focused on the articulation of local democracy with the guarantee of human rights for communities and the promotion of care at the center of public policies and the renewed provision of public services.

On the first day dedicated to the Annual Meeting of the Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Governments, the key role of the organized constituency as a bridge to reach out to communities and meaningfully engage youth was highlighted, as local and regional governments are in charge of ensuring public services, providing protection to people and facilitating inclusion. 

At the opening of the Retreat, Emilia Saiz, Secretary General of UCLG, invited to “develop a joint agenda focused on local democracy and participation, involving youth to foster multilateralism.” Local democracy is at the forefront of the Local Social Covenant, UCLG's contribution to the World Social Summit.

A call to local and regional governments to stand up on the front line to defend democracy 

Throughout the following days of discussion, we clearly heard the voices of local and regional governments, as well as international organizations, calling to put the defense of democracy at the center of the debate and action. The inclusion of youth, the defense of local elected officials and the work of co-creation with communities are the pillars of this debate. 

For example, in the session “From Local to Global Action”, Carola Gunnarsson, Councillor of Sala, UCLG Vice President for Europe and UCLG Special Envoy for Freedom, Solidarity and the Fight against Violence towards Political Leaders encouraged local and regional governments to stand up as guardians of democracy when national governments impose restrictions. “Democracy is by the people for the people, built on the foundation of human rights,” she said.

Youth inclusion as a pillar of local governance 

 Youth inclusion is one of the pillars of the debate, as mentioned in the intervention of Fatimetou Abdel Malick, President of the Nouakchott Region, Co-President of UCLG, President of UCLG-Africa and Chair of the UCLG Standing Committee on Gender Equality, who recalled that Africa has more than 300 million young people, an essential population for the future of democracy. Intergenerational dialogue and the creation of spaces for the active participation of young people were defined as key issues. Fatiha El Moudni, Mayor of Rabat, highlighted her “Rabat City of Youth” program, which promotes youth participation in public decision-making, a reference for other local governments around the world.

OIDP Cordoba 2025 Conference: A unique opportunity to strengthen the global agenda for local democracy

In this sense, our 24th OIDP Conference, to be held in Cordoba (Argentina) from 21-23 May 2025 will be an invaluable opportunity to strengthen the global agenda of local democracy. Susana Gómes, Director of the Department of Culture and Citizenship of our Valongo Co-Presidency, leveraged her participation in the Market Place at the Retreat to invite GTF and UCLG members to our international meeting, which will continue the dialogue on the inclusion of youth in local governance. 

With the theme “Connect, Integrate and Humanize: Cities facing the challenge of generating community”, our meeting will focus on citizen participation, decentralization and the challenges of artificial intelligence. The annual meeting will be a privileged space for advocates of citizen participation and youth inclusion to share their experiences and proposals to strengthen local democracy.

Click here to learn how to participate!