Baku Call to Action praises Azerbaijan for hosting innovative WUF13

The Baku Call to Action, adopted following the 13th session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13), has expressed special appreciation to the Government of Azerbaijan for hosting what it described as one of the largest and most innovative forums in WUF history.

The document stresses that the Baku Call to Action is the result of months of work and broad stakeholder consultations conducted ahead of WUF13, Caliber.Az reports, citing local media.

The authors highlighted the progress achieved and called for such practices to become standard across the entire WUF cycle, including consultations before and after the forum, supported by a structured engagement mechanism involving all stakeholders to ensure continuity and accountability.

The document states that the Government of Azerbaijan is sincerely thanked for hosting a groundbreaking WUF13, which brought together more than 58,000 participants from 176 countries, making it the largest edition of the forum to date.

It also notes that, for the first time in history, 27 heads of state and government participated in the Leaders’ Statement Summit at the initiative of the host country.

In addition, more than 100 ministers, the UN Deputy Secretary-General, and other high-level representatives attended the event.

Among the key innovations of WUF13, the document highlights the Baku City Award, the Business and Innovation Centre, the WUF Academy campus, and the Hub of Practices.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov