The World Urban Forum (WUF) was founded in 2001 by the United Nations and has long been a catalyst for shaping sustainable urbanization policies and fostering global dialogue on pressing urban challenges. The inaugural WUF took place in Nairobi, Kenya in 2002 and has since been hosted in various locations worldwide. Furthermore, Kenya’s Vision 2030 identified urbanization as one of the four major challenges facing the country, a concern that is clearly outlined in the National Urban Development Policy (NUDP) (Sessional Paper No. 06/2016) and its implementation framework, KenUP II 2022.

The Kenya Urban Forum whose tagline is “The Future is Urban”organized by the State Department for Housing and Urban Development (SDHUD) in the Ministry of Lands, Public Works, Housing and Urban Development, brings together urban stakeholders to share a common urban development vision that addresses the challenges facing cities, municipalities, towns and market centers in Kenya.