By Seedy Jobe
The Mayor of Banjul City Council (BCC), Rohey Malick Lowe, has called for a fundamental rethinking of the role of local governments in global policymaking, declaring that cities must be recognized as equal partners in shaping international agendas.
Delivering the keynote address on behalf of local and regional governments at the World Assembly of Local and Regional Governments, held alongside the World Urban Forum 13 in Baku, Mayor Lowe challenged long-standing assumptions that local authorities merely execute decisions made at higher levels.
Addressing United Nations officials, mayors, and representatives of United Cities and Local Governments, she argued that the current model of governance undervalues the role of cities.
“For too long, we have accepted a broken bargain. The bargain that says local governments just implement global agendas. That we clean up after decisions made in faraway rooms. No more. And I mean no more,” Mayor Lowe stated, according to prepared remarks.
She emphasized that local and regional governments are central to forging a new social contract rooted in the lived realities of citizens.
“Local and regional governments are not just implementers; we are co-creators of policy and custodians of a new social contract,” she said. “This contract is not written in legal language. It is written in the daily dignity of housing. In the clean air of our neighborhoods. In the safety nets we build for the most vulnerable.”
Highlighting practical examples, Mayor Lowe pointed to grassroots governance as evidence of effective co-creation.
“From Banjul to Baku, we are proving that local democracy is the foundation of global trust. When a mother gets an affordable home, that is co-creation. When a young person has a seat at the table, that is co-creation. When a slum dweller’s voice becomes a line in the budget, that is co-creation. Not implementation,” she noted.
On the global housing crisis, Mayor Lowe framed the issue as one of political choice rather than technical limitation, urging stronger collaboration between multilateral institutions and cities.
“The housing crisis is not a technical failure. It is a political choice. And we choose differently. We choose housing as a global common. We choose multi-level governance that answers to people, not just papers,” she said.
She further stressed that achieving key international goals—such as the Pact for the Future and Sustainable Development Goal 11—depends on empowering local governments.
“To the multilateral system: You cannot achieve the Pact for the Future without the laboratories of the local. You cannot rescue SDG 11 without the mayors who refuse to look away,” she added.
In her closing remarks, Mayor Lowe called for a redefinition of multilateralism that places cities at its core. “So let this Assembly declare, the future of multilateralism is not top-down. It is place-based. It is grounded in care. It is powered by trust. And it is led by us, the custodians of local democracy. Let us co-create. Let us deliver. And let Baku be the moment the world finally listened to its cities,” she concluded.
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