CHICAGO, April 27 (UPI) -- Cities are key to helping the global economy recover from recession and move to prosperity, Vice President Joe Biden told municipal leaders in Chicago.
"Everything we have done has been with one goal in mind -- to move this economy, and the world's economy from recession to recovery, and ultimately, to prosperity," Biden said during his keynote address Monday before mayors from around the world, business leaders, policymakers, scholars and the public for the Fifth Annual Richard J. Daley Urban Forum at the University of Illinois at Chicago. "In that strategy, we believe ... that cities are a central element."
The 2009 forum, "Global Economic Recovery: Cities Lead the Way," focused on the impact of national stimulus plans, and regional and local initiatives on urban areas, forum organizers said.
Biden recounted the Obama administration's investments through the $787 billion in stimulus funds through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in three key areas -- education and health, strong communities with high standard of living, and energy and infrastructure.
He also noted that the United States' top 100 metropolitan areas occupy a mere 12 percent of the country's land mass, but generate two-thirds of America's jobs and three-quarters of its gross domestic product, among other things.
"For all of these reasons and many more, successful cities are a key element to any plan to create a successful economy," Biden said.
