Three years ago, the United Nations (UN) Member States unanimously adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and its 169 targets as a road map of action for people, the planet, prosperity, peace and partnership. Local and Regional Governments played a key role in this regard, in particular concerning SDG 11 on, “Making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.”

Collaboration with Local and Regional Governments and other spheres of public governance, diverse components of the Civil (citizens, small and medium enterprises (SMEs), entrepreneurs, community-based organizations and other actors and stakeholders at the local level), will be essential for the achievement of the SDGs based on participatory and inclusive approaches that leave no one, or no place, behind.

Fostering a sense of ownership of the SGDs at the local level and ensuring that communities are equipped with the necessary tools and policies is essential to catalyze new, innovative SDG action on the ground. Many of these actors and stakeholders are already developing inspiring SDG initiatives and solutions at the local level, but these solutions are not yet sufficiently known, shared, scaled, replicated or institutionalized to maximize impact. In addition, appropriate enabling environments by national governments are needed to maximize this local potential for SDG implementation, through strong partnerships and financing mechanisms across all levels of governance.