A/RES/58/226 Expressing its appreciation to the Government of Spain and the city of Barcelona for their willingness to host the second session of the World Urban Forum in 2004 and to the Government of Canada and the city of Vancouver for their willingness to host the third session of the World Urban Forum in 2006, Takes note of the report of the Governing Council of the United Nations 1. Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) on the work of its nineteenth session 9 and the report of the Secretary-General on the special session of the General Assembly for an overall review and appraisal of the implementation of the outcome of the United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II) and the strengthening of UN-Habitat; 10 2. Recognizes that Governments have the primary responsibility for the sound and effective implementation of the Habitat Agenda1 and the Declaration on Cities and Other Human Settlements in the New Millennium,2 and stresses that the international community should fully implement its commitments to support the Governments of developing countries and countries with economies in transition in their efforts, through the provision of the requisite resources, capacity-building, the transfer of technology and the creation of an international enabling environment; Encourages Governments to include issues pertaining to shelter and 3. sustainable human settlements and urban poverty in their national development strategies, including poverty reduction strategy papers, where they exist; Urges Governments to promote pro-poor investments in services and 4. infrastructure, in particular water and sanitation, in order to improve living environments, in particular in slums and informal settlements; Encourages Governments to establish local, national and regional urban 5. observatories and to provide financial and substantive support to UN-Habitat for the further development of methodologies for data collection, analysis and dissemination; Also encourages Governments to support and enable the participation of 6. youth in the implementation of the Habitat Agenda through social, cultural and economic activities at the city level and other national- and local-level activities; Encourages Governments and UN-Habitat to continue to promote 7. partnerships with local authorities, non-governmental organizations, the private sector and other Habitat Agenda partners, including women’s groups and academic and professional groups, in order to empower them, within the legal framework and conditions of each country, to play a more effective role in the provision of adequate shelter for all and sustainable human settlements development in an urbanizing world; Encourages UN-Habitat to continue to work closely with other relevant 8. agencies within the United Nations system, in particular members and observers of the United Nations Development Group and the members of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee; 11 9. Requests UN-Habitat to strengthen further its efforts to make the Cities Alliance initiative an effective means for the implementation of the twin goals of the _______________ 9 Official Records of the General Assembly, Fifty-eighth Session, Supplement No. 8 (A/58/8). A/58/178. 11 Established pursuant to resolution 46/182 of 19 December 1991. 10 3