Localizing Agenda 21 in small cities in Kenya, Morocco and Vietnam describes a programme now operating in three small cities which seeks to enhance the local capacity for urban planning and management to benefit both the citizens and the quality of their urban environment. The paper explains the two methodological cornerstones - the strategic structure planning approach and the capacity-building strategy - and analyzes their realization in the cities of Nakuru, Essaouira and Vinh City. The paper finishes with a discussion of the impacts and identifies the lessons which were learnt.