2 It has been a quite a while since we were able to convene in-person at the Mayor’s Forum of the World Cities Summit - since 2019 to be precise. We are therefore delighted that so many mayors and city leaders from around the world have been able to travel and join us once again for this event. We look forward to reconnecting with old friends and meeting new ones.

3 As countries and our cities emerge from the pandemic, one imperative has become clear – the need to build more liveable and sustainable cities. The last two and a half years have put a spotlight on humanity’s connectedness and commonalities, and hence, collaboration and the sharing of knowledge, experience and lessons learned must be part of our approach to reshaping the cities of tomorrow, especially in the extraordinary times that we live in today. Opportunities like this where we can gather in the same place, exchange thoughts and ideas, and forge partnerships are intrinsically valuable, and we hope we make full use of the time we have together to continue to strengthen the ties between our cities and with each other.

4 Thank you all once again, for being a part of WCS and the Mayor’s Forum. I would like to also extend special thanks to Vice Governor Nuon Phrat of Phnom Penh, Mayor Sade Shireen Fawanas of Windhoek, Councillor Oihane Agirregoitia of Bilbao and Mayor Fahad Al Buliheshi of Madinah who will be participating in the sharing session later during today’s lunch.

5 I look forward to meeting you throughout the course of this event. I will let our co-moderators Professor Greg Clark, and Deputy Secretary Aaron Maniam, take over from here. Wishing everyone an enjoyable lunch and a productive time at the Summit.

6. Thank you.

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