Baswedan, here on Saturday, attached importance to the U20 forum being held since during the meeting, delegations from G20 member countries could exchange views and ideas on how to face increasingly complex global challenges.
The Urban Forum 20 (U20) is part of the G20, or Group of 20, that groups 19 major world economies and the European Union.
The challenges particularly concern the city government's readiness during the post-COVID-19 pandemic era, according to Baswedan.
The U20 meeting's participants will include the Los Angeles mayor, the Rotterdam mayor, the governor of Tokyo, the mayor of Tshwane in South Africa, the commissioner and administration of the city of Mumbai, and the deputy mayor of Sydney, Australia.
Representatives from the municipalities of Berlin (Germany), Sao Paulo (Brazil), Madrid (Spain), Moscow (Russia), Buenos Aires (Argentine), and Istanbul (Turkey) will also participate in the meeting.
However, the regional heads of Amsterdam, Istanbul and Izmir both in Turkey, Johannesburg, Lisbon in Portugal, Milan, Moscow, New York, Osaka, and Rome will participate in the meeting virtually.
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The Urban 20 Forum in Jakarta is also planned to be personally attended by 15 city government heads as observers, including those from Lima in Peru and Quito in Ecuador.
Meanwhile, observers scheduled to participate virtually in the meeting include those from Glasgow in Scotland and Skopje in North Macedonia.
Indonesian regional heads from Banjarmasin, Medan, Makassar, Padang, Palembang, Palu, Surakarta, Ambon, Yogyakarta, Surabaya, Jambi, and several cities of West Java will be present as observers.
U20 provides a platform for cities of G20 member countries to meet and discuss important issues to be brought to the G20 Presidency.
This year, Indonesia holds the G20 presidency whose summit will take place in November 2022 in Nusa Dua, Bali.
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Translator: Dewa KSW, Fardah
Editor: Suharto
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