UCLG and the CIB Working Group are working hard to get the local perspective heard at the upcoming High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (10-19 July, New York), by collecting stories from the ground, through active involvement of Local Government Associations (LGAs). At the same time, UCLG has been developing a training module for LGAs on effective implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which will be tested at various events this year, including the CIB annual meeting. Please find more information below - and don't forget to sign up for the UCLG/UNDP/UN Habitat webinar sessions on localizing the SDGs! (see below)
Gathering input for the HLPF
In the past months, UCLG and its CIB Working Group have been gathering local experiences with the implementation of the SDGs, in order to present these at the next HLPF. At this high-level meeting 44 countries will present voluntary national reports, which document their progress with regard to the implementation of the SDGs. In some countries, local governments and their associations are already involved in this reporting process. For others, UCLG has created guidelines for so-called ‘shadow-reporting’ – results from these reports will be showcased by UCLG at the event.
Testing the SDG training module
Aside from reporting guidelines, UCLG has also developed an SDG training module, together with the Diputacion de Barcelona and as part of the Localizing initiative of the Global Task Force, UN Habitat and UNDP Art. It was tested with members of the Union of Ibero-American Capital Cities (UCCI), PLATFORMA, UCLG UNDP-ART and UN-Habitat during the UCLG Executive Bureau in April in Madrid. The testing of the training gave participating local government associations the opportunity to review their understanding of the SDGs and to develop strategies to use the framework of the SDGs to better structure their associations’ core tasks (advocacy, knowledge management etc.). Participating cities welcomed the exercise for alignment of development plans. Moreover, the gathering catalysed a broader dialogue about the role of local governments in Agenda 2030.
The training will be repeated at various other events and organizations this year, including at PLATFORMA’s SDF meeting (29 May), the Cities in the smart cities congress Puebla (27-30 June), the LED forum in Bolivia (27-30 June) and directly to the Association South East Asia in Jakarta (July) and the Associations FLACMA Congress Mexico (August).
Further, in the eve of the Executive Bureau Madrid, FEMP, the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces, PLATFORMA and UCLG hosted a mayor's dialogue on SDG localization that can be found at the website for this event.
Webinar sessions on the localization of the SDGs: 29 May and 1 June
Finally, UCLG, UNDP and UN-Habitat are co-organizing two webinars on the Localization of the SDGs, as part of the 4th Foundational Course on Agenda 2030 of the UN System Staff College’s Knowledge Centre for Sustainable Development. The webinars take place on May 29 and June 1, 2017, and will revolve around the localization process from an institutional and a practical point of view. The second webinar will specifically cover the more practical side of the localization process. CNM and VNG, the local government associations of Brazil and The Netherlands, will share their concrete experiences when it comes to implementing the SDGs.
To enroll in the Foundational Course, please follow the instructions available here