The Government of Spain, the Regional Government of the Basque Country, the City Council of Bilbao and BBK presented their candidature to host the Secretariat of the Local2030 Coalition in Bilbao at the United Nations High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, held last July. The proposal was endorsed by the Local2030 Coalition Steering Committee.
The Local2030 Coalition is the platform and network of the United Nations system to support and accelerate the localisation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). It gathers the United Nations system, national, regional and local governments with their networks, the private sector and civil society organisations to foster collaboration and innovation, share solutions and implement strategies to assist local stakeholders in their work towards the goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The Local2030 Coalition is co-chaired by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), a lead agency for its Secretariat, and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), rotating co-chair for the period 2022-2023.
The Secretariat of the Local2030 Coalition, which will be located in Bilbao, will boost the work of the Local2030 Coalition and drive the localisation of the SDG both in the United Nations system and at a territorial and local level. Its alliance with the Government of Spain, the Regional Government of the Basque Country, the City Council of Bilbao and BBK will maximise the transforming impact of the Coalition and reinforce its strategic and catalysing capacity. The aim is to support local stakeholders in maximising the impact of their efforts and to forge alliances that generate innovative solutions for local action and impact.
“We see Spain as a firm advocate and champion of local action, and recognise that Spanish municipalities and regions, like Bilbao and the Basque Country, have been on the front line of efforts to accelerate the achievement of global goals”, said Maimunah Mohd Sharif, Executive Director of UN-Habitat. “The crises we face today are universal and multi-faceted, and require urgent, decisive and coordinated action down from a global to a local level. Harnessing the power of local action and learning from communities is the only sustainable way to exit the crisis”, said Achim Steiner, UNDP Administrator. “The commitment and support of partners like Spain are crucial for ensuring a green, resilient and inclusive future for everyone, particularly the most vulnerable”.
The event to inaugurate the Secretariat of the Local2030 Coalition will be held in Bilbao on the occasion of World Cities Day (WCD). WCD promotes global interest in sustainable urban development, boosts cooperation between countries and cities to seek out opportunities, and addresses the challenges posed by urbanisation. WCD was launched in 2014 to highlight the urban challenges in the world and involve the international community in the implementation of the New Urban Agenda – a roadmap for sustainable urbanisation - adopted at the Habitat III Conference held in Quito in 2016. This year’s WCD theme of “Act Local to Go Global” focuses on speeding up the implementation of the SDG in cities, villages and urban environments. In this regard, the debates around WCD will address the best ways to speed up the implementation of the SDG in cities and contribute to make the transforming pledge of the 2030 Agenda to not leave anyone or anywhere behind a reality.
The event will also be a milestone of the World’s To-Do List global campaign that calls for greater support so that cities can work to achieve the SDG.
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