Maimunah Mohd Sharif
Executive Director, UN-Habitat
Speaker of the Opening Ceremony
Ms. Maimunah Mohd Sharif (Malaysia) is the Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), appointed at the level of Under-Secretary-General by the Secretary-General, following an election by the General Assembly on 22 December 2017. On 22 January 2018, Ms. Sharif assumed her post at UN-Habitat’s Headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya. She succeeds Dr. Joan Clos of Spain.
Prior to this appointment, Ms. Sharif was the Mayor of the City Council of Penang Island, Malaysia. In 2011, she became the first woman to be appointed President of the Municipal Council of Seberang Perai. As mayor, she led the Municipal Council of Seberang Perai to achieve its vision of a “cleaner, greener, safer and healthier place to work, live, invest and play.” She is a champion of Gender-Responsive Participatory Budgeting and Planning, integrating gender perspectives into the governance process. During her tenure, the Municipal Council of Seberang Perai was the first Local Authority to implement and achieve six quality-based management ISO certifications.
Ms. Sharif began her career as a town planner at the Municipal Council of Penang Island in 1985. In 2003, she was promoted to Director of Planning and Development, a position she held until November 2009. As Director, she was responsible for the preparation of structure and local plans and was directly involved in the development management of Penang City’s projects and landscape. She also led a team which planned and implemented urban renewal projects in George Town. In November 2009, as its General Manager, Ms. Sharif established George Town World Heritage Incorporated and managed the George Town World Heritage Site, which was inscribed by UNESCO in July 2008.
Born in Kuala Pilah, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia, on 26 August 1961, Ms. Sharif holds a Bachelor of Science with Honours in Town Planning Studies from the University of Wales Institute of Science and Technology, UK and a Master of Science in Planning Studies from the Malaysia Science University. She has received several awards, including, “Planner of The Year 2014” by the Malaysian Institute of Planners, the 2016 Global Human Settlements Outstanding Contribution Award during Habitat III in Quito, for her contribution in sustainable planning in Seberang Perai and from the Penang State Government. On 11 January 2018, she received an award from the Malaysia Book of Records recognizing her for being the first Asian woman to be appointed as Executive Director of UN-Habitat. She is married to Mr. Adli Lai and has two daughters.
Hon. Yuen Pau Woo
Senator, Canada
Speaker of the Opening Ceremony
Appointed to the Senate of Canada in November 2016, the Honourable Yuen Pau Woo sits as an independent representing British Columbia. He has been the Facilitator of the Independent Senators Group since 2017, and was re-elected for a second two–year term in December 2019.
Senator Woo has worked on public policy issues related to Canada’s relations with Asian countries for more than 30 years. From 2005-2014, he was President and CEO of the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, where he continues to serve as Distinguished East Asia Fellow. He is also Senior Fellow at Simon Fraser University’s Graduate School of Business, and at the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs at the University of British Columbia. He is a member of the Trilateral Commission and on the board of the Vancouver Academy of Music. He also serves on the Advisory Boards of the Mosaic Institute, the Canadian Ditchley Foundation, and the York Centre for Asian Research.
Senator Woo has been a member of the following Senate Standing Committees: Foreign Affairs and International Trade; National Finance; Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources; Selection; and Rules, Procedures and the Rights of Parliament.
Jean Pierre ELONG MBASSI
Secrétaire Général de Cités et Gouvernement Locaux Unis d’Afrique (CGLU Afrique)
Orateur de la cérémonie d'ouverture
Jean Pierre Elong Mbassi est depuis 2007 le Secrétaire Général de Cités et Gouvernement Locaux Unis d’Afrique (CGLU Afrique). Il était le Président du Conseil intérimaire de Gestion de Cities Alliance jusqu’au mois d’Avril 2016. Il est également Co-Président de l’Alliance mondiale des Villes pour le Développement Scientifique (World Cities Scientific Development Alliance –WCSDA), et Secrétaire Général Adjoint du forum sino-africain des collectivités locales. M. Elong Mbassi est l'homme derrière les Sommets Africités, la plus importante manifestation des villes, régions et collectivités locales d'Afrique, dont il supervise l'organisation depuis la première édition en 1998.
M. Elong Mbassi est riche d’une expérience de près de 40 années dans le domaine du développement urbain et de l’aménagement du territoire, des services urbains, du développement économique local, de la gouvernance des collectivités locales, de l'habitat et de la restructuration des bidonvilles. De 1996 à 1999, il a été le tout premier Secrétaire Général de la Coordination Mondiale des Associations des Villes et des Autorités Locales (World Association of Cities and Local Authorities Coordination -WACLAC), en même temps qu'il occupait le poste de Secrétaire Général du Partenariat sur le Développement Municipal (Municipal Development Partnership, MDP), de 1992 à 2006. Auparavant, de 1981 a 1991, M. Elong Mbassi a été le directeur du premier projet urbain cofinancé par la Banque Mondiale au Cameroun et qui portait sur la restructuration et l'aménagement d'une zone d'habitat insalubre de 300.000 habitants dans la ville de Douala. M. Elong Mbassi a commencé sa carrière professionnelle à Paris en France ou il a été chargé d'études puis chargé de mission à l'Agence Coopération et Aménagement de 1973 à 1980.
Peter Guo-hua Fu
President of KFS Architects Inc. Canada/China
Speaker of the Opening Ceremony
Peter Guo-hua Fu was born in Shanghai, China, he studied architecture and urban planning, starting from 1980 at College of Architecture and Urban Planning Tongji University and McGill University School of Architecture, Canada, received Ph.D of architecture, master of urban planning.For the first decade of his career, he started as architect at Pertroff Partnership Architects(Canada, Toronto) and then moved to Zeidler Roberts Partnership Architects (Canada, Toronto); after that, Peter joined B+H Architects, Toronto as senior architect, vice president. Today, he is president and chief architect at KFS Architects Inc. Canada; director of KFS Dance & Musical; professor of practice at Peter Guo-hua Fu School of Architecture, McGill University; professor at School of Design, Shanghai Jiao Tong University.
For 20 years, Mr. Peter Guo-hua Fu has led many urban design projects, including one of the seven design proposals of 2010 Shanghai Expo, Shanghai “North American Style Town” Planning, Shanghai Qingpu Central Area Planning and Implementation, Russia St. Petersburg Baltic Pearl, Hainan Sanya 1# Yalong Bay Planning. Design projects led by him including public buildings, residential buildings, interior design located in many major cities in China like Shanghai. He has many extraordinary design works, acquired many noble awards: one of “Top 20 Most Influential Architects in China” by CIHAF, 2004; top one of “Most Welcomed Architects in Shanghai” by newspaper publisher in 2004.
Since 2017, the famous McGill University, Canada, which has a history of over 200 years, named its school of architecture with 120 years history, as Peter Guo-hua Fu School of Architecture, permanently, and invited him as professor of practice. In 2014, Mr. Peter Guo-hua Fu participated in performing field, committed himself in combining architecture and drama, “drama” and “stage”. Three years after he designed the Music Box by KFS using recycled containers and acquired national patent, he wrote and directed three musicals themed with architects, performed at the Music Box by KFS in Shanghai Culture Square, “Memories of the Valley”, “My Albert”, “Exchange Students”. The performances obtained Shanghai Cultural Innovation Fund, as well as consequent top 3 to 5 box office China Small Theatre.
In 2020, he cooperated with Shanghai Ballet as one of the chief directors, created one-act ballet “Cyan, Blue, Purple”, with inspiration from “Memories of the Valley”, “My Albert” and “Exchange Students”.
Matti Siemiatycki
Associate Professor - Geography and Planning, Department of Geography & Planning, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
Speaker of the Opening Ceremony
Professor Matti Siemiatycki is Associate Professor in the Department of Geography & Planning, and Canada Research Chair in Infrastructure Planning and Finance. His research focuses on delivering large-scale infrastructure projects, public-private partnerships, and the effective integration of infrastructure into the fabric of cities. Professor Siemiatycki was a faculty leader of StudentMoveTO, a joint initiative between the University of Toronto, York, Ryerson and OCADU that successfully developed a model for inter-university research collaboration and mobilization on city-building issues. Professor Siemiatycki is a highly engaged public scholar with a deep commitment to informing public discourse about city building. He regularly provides advice to governments, civic institutions and industry, and is a frequent commentator in the media and public realm on urban issues, with a honed ability to communicate with various audiences.
Huhua Cao
Co-president of ICCCASU
Full Professor, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada
Speaker of the Opening Ceremony
Dr. Huhua Cao is a cross-appointed Full Professor within the Department of Geography Environment and Geomatics and the School of International Development and Global Studies at the University of Ottawa in Canada. He specializes in urban studies and International development with the use of geostatistical and spatial methods. In recent years, Dr. Cao’s research has focused on engaging urban indigenous and ethnic minority peoples in urban contexts. He has directed various international research projects that have received significant funding from Canada, China, Cameroon, and the European Union. Professor Cao has also written numerous articles and books related to urban and regional development while collaborating with academics throughout the world. Professor Cao has also published almost 100 books, chapters, articles and reports related to urban and regional development while collaborating with academics throughout the world. Since 2014, Dr. Cao has worked closely with the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) to organize a series of International Conference on Canadian, Chinese and African Sustainable Urbanization (ICCCASU). ICCCASU is an international Think-Tank for exchange and cooperation on issues relating to sustainable urban development (www.ICCCASU2019.ORG or www.ICCCASU.ORG).