The initiative “Making My School More Beautiful,” led by five women elected for the municipal council of Yarmouk al-Jadida municipality in Jordan, showcases a successful model for promoting democracy and empowering girls through school parliaments. By collaborating closely with local communities, schools, and mothers, the project not only enhanced school environments but also fostered civic awareness and active participation among young women. Its structured approach offers a replicable framework for similar initiatives in other communities.
Category: Good Urban Governance
Celebrating Decentralized Cooperation and Heritage-Driven Tourism
On 20 March 2025, in honor of the International Day of Happiness, Connective Cities hosted an insightful session highlighting the transformative power of decentralized cooperation in advancing sustainable development. This session aligned with the global theme of happiness by fostering collaboration, cultural exchange, and community engagement—key pillars of thriving and cohesive societies.
The session explored how decentralized cooperation empowers municipalities to tackle shared challenges, drive innovation, and promote inclusive growth. Participants gained valuable insights from successful heritage-driven tourism strategies implemented in various municipalities, inspiring them to leverage partnerships for meaningful local and global impact.
The session opened with a heartfelt address by Ms. Barbara Baumbach (BMZ), who emphasized Connective Cities’ success in facilitating global exchanges of municipal expertise and supporting the development of locally-adapted solutions to urban challenges. This was followed by three engaging panel discussions featuring representatives from Battir and Brühl, Bethlehem and Madaba, and Nablus. These discussions showcased how municipalities and civil society effectively utilize local and international collaborations to create opportunities for societal, economic, and environmental progress.
The panels addressed key topics such as:
- Bridging communities through cooperation – success factors and challenges in decentralized cooperation
- Revitalizing decentralized cooperation
- Harnessing local stakeholder collaboration for sustainable tourism development
By drawing on international, regional, and local examples, the session demonstrated how municipalities can harness decentralized cooperation to foster sustainable tourism while balancing cultural preservation and economic growth. The discussions underscored the importance of engaging local communities and stakeholders, integrating academic contributions, and strengthening international partnerships to address global challenges effectively.
Master Presentation of the Insight Session on Connective Cities platform including the recording of the session for registered users (Arabic and German).
Author: Muna Shalan | Connective Cities
Impressions
Together for a cleaner city: improvements in waste management
Dabola is a dynamic city in Guinea, with a population of 47,200. Located approximately 430 km from the capital Conakry, it is a vibrant hub for traditional agricultural activities, trade, and craftsmanship. However, the city faces significant challenges due to rapid population growth and inadequate waste management, which negatively impact public health and the environment. Insufficient infrastructure and the accumulation of waste in public spaces threaten the well-being of residents and the local ecosystem.
In response to these challenges, a partnership between Dabola and Dortmund was established in 2019, focusing on solid waste collection and treatment as well as environmental education.
Since August 2022, a local expert has been assisting the municipality of Dabola in developing a sustainable waste management system and strengthening the capacities of local actors.
The implementation of a waste management plan, developed in consultation with all relevant stakeholders, marked a significant turning point in Dabola. This initiative not only strengthened cooperation between the municipal administration and external actors but also established fruitful partnerships with private companies specializing in the field. As a result of these collaborative efforts, Dabola has seen a notable decrease in street waste.
Version française: Ensemble pour une ville plus propre: améliorations dans la gestion des déchets
Developing a municipal Geoinformation System
Beit Jala, situated on the western outskirts of Bethlehem in the Palestinian Occupied Territories, is a municipality of about 17,500 inhabitants. The town faces several challenges, including a lack of reliable spatial data and contemporary maps that eschews urban planning and development. For this reason, the municipality decided to develop a municipal Geographic Information System (EGIS), which helps to digitalize, update and use spatial data. This system serves as a tool for urban planning and development and a trigger for digital transformation. To implement this project, Beit Jala collaborates with the German city of Jena, with the aim to develop and strengthen and foster mutual technical cooperation between the two municipalities as well as working together to improve the GIS capabilities, as Jena can contribute knowledge and experience in municipal GIS development. From 2020 to 2024, a local expert supported the development of the municipal Enterprise GIS as well as the partnership between Beit Jala and Jena.
The development of an enterprise municipal Geoinformation system in Beit Jala has yielded specific and crucial lessons for future initiatives. One key insight is the imperative of an iterative approach, wherein projects are systematically broken down into manageable phases and where different synergies were created at both the local and international level.
Strengthening Risk-Informed Urban Development in Sub-Saharan Africa
SADC Peer-to-Peer Learning Platform for Integrating Disaster Risk Management into Urban Planning and Development
The race against time to determine resilience-driven solutions to highly complex and existential urban disaster risk challenges is increasingly necessary more so in Africa. Projections point to the fact that by 2050, 90% of the global urbanization will be experienced in Africa and Asia. Despite Africa’s low contributions to Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions, the continent remains the most vulnerable to hazards and risk drivers like such as, but not limited to, climate change and (climate) variability. Evidently, Africa’s cities face exponential growth, unplanned urbanization trends and unfolding vulnerabilities threatening thus, to undo urban development gains. By 2050, most of the countries in the region will have made an urban transition, meaning that more than 50% of their population will live in urban areas, which are in turn, the cornerstone of Africa’s socio-economic development (IFRI 2022). As hubs of infrastructure, services, trade and people, cities are faced with one of the major urban threats in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), namely floods, subsequently challenging the continent’s socio-economic development ambitions. Urbanization is arguably an inevitable, unstoppable yet positive trend which nevertheless has the potential to greatly increase risk.
To incorporate integrated Disaster Risk Management (DRM) and climate change adaptation measures into multilateral and bilateral development cooperation programs – within and across all sectors -, Connective Cities (CC) and the Resilience Initiative Africa (RIA) have called the joint initiative on risk-informed urban development (RIUD) to enable peer to peer exchanges through a hybrid modular learning processes (LP). The LP focuses on strengthening risk-informed urban development by creating innovative solutions for flood risk management in urban systems situated in Sub-Sahara Africa with a focus in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Region.
The LP enables the use of an agile, barrier-reduced learning and exchange platform for RIUD, which is used by regional, national, and local governmental and non-governmental actors. The modular and systemic approach of the LP for RIUD includes areas related to “Sustainable Urban Development” and “Good governance” facilitating the formation of new partnerships across vertical and horizontal scales for urban/regional resilience. Through the differentiated yet complementary political counterparts, between CC and RIA, the GIZ is able to ensure scalability and wide-spread transfer and communication of the results (i.e. RIUD SADC Publication).
To enhance resilience in southern African cities, CC and RIA developed a series of hybrid modular LPs (Live Events and virtual Insight Sessions) which focus on peer to peer exchange on integrated flood risk management in SADC as part of Sub-Sahara Africa.
The kick-off event in Windhoek, Namibia took place in April 2023 and marked the first round of the LEP by creating feedback loops to inform the development of context-specific, gender-equitable and climate-change-sensitive solution options directed at tackling urban flood risk challenges in both structural and non-structural terms. During the kick-off event, the peer-to-peer exchange was guided by initial thematic areas i.e: 1) Understanding and managing flood risk drivers, 2) Green infrastructure and nature-based approaches for risk-informed solutions, and 3) Risk communication flows and good governance.
Dar es Salaam Metropolitan Development Project (DMDP) – Phase 1
The Dar es Salaam Metropolitan Development Project (DMDP) aims to improve connectivity and mobility within the city while reducing flooding through structural and non-structural measures. As part of the project, 67 kilometres of rainwater channels were built. The focus was on training local government experts, solid waste management and urban greening initiatives.
However, the DMDP also became aware of various issues and challenges that the city faces in drainage management. These include the effects of climate change, such as flooding, storms, heat, drought and sea level rise, as well as an inadequate stormwater drainage system due to a lack of suitable corridors and space for retention basins. Unrestricted access to stormwater drains has led to misuse for sewage and waste disposal.
The effects of rapid urbanisation also had to be taken into account: Around 70 per cent of Dar es Salaam’s population lives in unplanned settlements, mostly in very exposed locations. Community involvement is crucial here: it can help build trust, ensure sustainability and promote ownership of flooding control projects. Cooperation and coordination between different stakeholders, including authorities, municipalities and other organisations involved in the project, as well as effective communication and coordination are essential.
Deep Dive: Heat in the city
As a second milestone of the Deep Dive process, a workshop was held in Nairobi from 4 to 7 March 2024. The workshop marked the transition from the phase of sensemaking of the local contexts towards prioritization of challenges and solution options. Participants representing the cities of Nairobi, Aswan, Mombasa, Lviv, Lüdenscheid and Heidelberg discussed the observations and findings from the initial participatory field research including insights into how stakeholders and relevant actors perceive challenges related to the phenomenon of urban heat. Additionally, participants had the opportunity to learn about projects and initiatives implemented in Nairobi that are relevant to building resilience to urban heat.
Establishing a Primary Healthcare Center
In Northern Lebanon, the municipality of Al Mohammara confronts conflict, economic hardship, and a persistent refugee crisis. In the framework of the partnership with the German town of Opfenbach that started in 2018, Al Mohammara decided to address the urgent need for accessible healthcare.
Amid Lebanon’s economic crisis and an extremely high inflation rate, Al Mohammara’s annual budget is insufficient to cover basic services provided by the municipality. Recognized by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) as among Lebanon’s most vulnerable municipalities. The implementation of the Primary Healthcare Center project faced significant economic difficulties, primarily in the form of financial challenges during the construction phase.
However, the ongoing partnership between Al Mohammara and Opfenbach is yielding remarkable outcomes for the diverse local population. Despite facing economic challenges and regional tensions, the establishment of the Primary Healthcare Center has evolved from a simple idea into a two-floor, 1000-square-meter facility. Once, the center is operational, it will become a crucial provider of basic healthcare in the Akkar region.
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Further information:
Securing medical care in Lebanon
Interview: Building a primary healthcare centre in challenging times
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Transformative Riverine Management Programme
The Transformative Riverine Management Programme from the municipality of eThewkwini (Durban, South Africa) is an innovative project to integrate adaptive water and climate management and establishes a partnership between the municipality, research institutions, community organisations and citizens. The programme aims to transform the management of over 7,400 km of watercourses and river corridors. The aim is to improve water quality through ecosystem-based adaptations and reduce flood risk through community-level projects, such as paying for collected waste that can lead to drain blockages.
Interview with:
- Mr Geoff Tooley, Coastal Stormwater and Catchment Management Division, Department of Engineering, eThekwini Municipality.
- Mr. Emmanuel K. Letebele, Senior Planner, eThekwini Municipality
Watch video at YouTube:
Mr Emmanuel Letebele was part of the Working Group on Risk-Informed Urban Development (RIUD) in Sub-Saharan Africa. This working group is a joint initiative of GIZ’s Connective Cities programmes and the Global Initiative on Disaster Risk Management programme. More information on the RIUD working group.
Municipal Policy Award of the Carl and Anneliese Goerdeler Foundation 2023
Municipalities make an important contribution to climate protection – in Germany and worldwide. They not only work directly on the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, but have often additionally committed themselves to further climate protection. Municipalities also face similar challenges worldwide and can therefore benefit from close cooperation and lively exchange. This is especially true for cross-border cooperation projects, which require particularly high motivation, courage and, last but not least, organisational and assertiveness skills during the ongoing pandemic.
In 2023, the Carl and Anneliese Goerdeler Foundation’s Municipal Policy Award will honour cross-border municipal cooperation projects on participatory municipal climate protection and adaptation measures with prize money of 2,000 euros. Outstanding cooperations of municipalities or municipal alliances with the participation of a German municipality or municipal alliance are sought.
All important information about the award and your application can be found in the competition announcement: pdf-Download [in German]
Deadline extension: The deadline for applications is Monday, 31 October 2022.
The prize is awarded in memory of the communal political work of Carl Goerdeler as Mayor of the City of Leipzig and his resistance activities against Nazi rule. The award is intended to serve the peaceful cooperation of municipalities and municipal alliances that unites people and to promote mutual learning for the benefit of the residents.
Contact:
Ricarda Meissner
ricarda.meissner@giz.de
Phone: +49 (0)228 4460 1138
Klaudia Sonntag
klaudia.Sonntag@giz.de
Phone: +49 (0) 228 4460 1587