Support for the people and communities affected by COVID-19
To the worldwide Metropolis community,
The Director General of the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic on 11 March 2020. This whole new thread requires, more than ever, an effective and coordinated response to avoid the spread of the coronavirus.
As a global pandemic, it cannot be faced individually: it is not the time to work alone. It is time to be resilient and to learn from each other and this is the reason that moves us to commit and keep working hard to continue offering our services to improve the performance of metropolises around the world. This situation entails new challenges for local and regional governments that often transcend municipal boundaries and which must be examined, explored and managed at the metropolitan level and through regional collaborations. Our actions are firmly guided by a clear mission: to connect political leaders, policy-makers, and practitioners worldwide in order to advocate metropolitan interests and improve the performance of metropolises in addressing local and global challenges.
At Metropolis, we put the well-being of people at the centre of our attention. In this regard, and in order to join the international efforts to contain the virus the Metropolis Secretariat general has cancelled the presence in all the international meetings and its team will work remotely. This exceptional situation is constantly reviewed and aligned with the measures proposed by the World Health Organization and the United Nations.
We want to transmit our most sincere affection, support, and solidarity, to all the people affected, in one way or another, by the consequences of this virus.
Octavi de la Varga
Secretary General of Metropolis