Local and Regional Governments Forum

Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for joining us at this Local and Regional Governments Forum on the 2030 Agenda. This year is a very special year for local and regional governments around the world that have been following the localization agenda and that have been playing a very active role in making sure that Agenda 2030 can be realized, because it is actually the 10th year that we have been reporting on the efforts around localization throughout the world. It is also a year of acknowledgement, acknowledgement of the great step that it has meant for us to have a local and regional governments forum acknowledged within the high-level political forum. The forum is actually a consolidation over the years of the self-organized political space of our constituency together with the United Nations, and so we are very pleased to be here with you today at this very critical moment. I cannot imagine a better way to start this forum than by inviting His Excellency Mr. Lok Badahur Thapa, President of the United Nations Economic and Social Council, to address you all. President, we know you are extremely busy and we are delighted you were able to make it.

Thank you. Thank you, Madam DSG, Excellencies, distinguished delegates, mayors, governors, ladies and gentlemen. It is a pleasure to welcome you to the 2026 Local and Regional Governments Forum, convened under— as one of the key special events of the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development. Allow me to begin by expressing my sincere appreciation to the organizing partners, UNDESA, Global Task Force for Local and Regional Governments, UN-Habitat, UNDP, and Local 2030 Coalitions, for their continued leadership and commitment. Through your sustained collaborations, this annual forum has established itself is an important space to showcase the special contributions of local and regional governments in advancing the implementations of the 2030 Agenda. I would also like to extend a warm welcome to the distinguished ministers, governors, and mayors, senior government officials, representatives of United Nations systems, stakeholders, and Esteemed experts joining us today, your leadership and commitments are essential to accelerating progress and delivering meaningful impact for people and communities on the ground. Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, over the past few days of the SLPR, we have reflected on the latest data on SDG implementations. Only 36% of the targets with available trend data are on track or show moderate progress. Nearly half are advancing too slowly, while 15% have regressed below the 2015 baseline. These figures remind us that the challenge before us is not only to accelerate implementations, but to accelerate implementations where it matters the most. The Sustainable Development Goals are negotiated globally, adopted nationally, and ultimately delivered locally. Local and regional actions is where global ambitions are translated into tangible results. fostering stronger communities, inspiring innovations, and strengthening accountabilities. Excellencies, distinguished colleagues, the scale of the challenge is visible in our cities, from climate change impacts on infrastructure and services to economic inequality, inadequate housing, transportations, and growing slum populations. For example, around 1.16 billion people, approximately 1 in 4 urban residents, still live in slums or informal settlements, highlighting the urgent need to accelerate access to adequate housing and basic services. At the same time, Cities continue to demonstrate innovations and deliver sustainable development solutions, and we see encouraging signs of progress. Across more than 400 cities in 127 countries, convenient access to public transport increased from 53.2% to 61.5%. Demonstrating that when local governments have the tools, partnerships, and capacity to act, progress follows and it is possible. On Thursday, the HLPF will convene its session on Transformation from Ground Up: Acting at Local Level, showcasing successful local and regional approaches to accelerate sustainable, inclusive, science- and evidence-based solutions for the SDGs. I am confident that the insights from today's Forum will enrich these discussions and help scale up effective local actions across all regions. Distinguished delegates, the growing integrations of local and regional governments into voluntary national reviews reflect an important shift. Sustainable development is increasingly recognized is a shared responsibility across all levels of governments. I am particularly encouraged by the growing number of voluntary local reviews submitted by cities and regions, with almost 400 reports registered on DESHA's platform, as well as strong engagement of local and regional authorities throughout the HLPA process. This momentum is also reflected in the ongoing General Assembly review of Icosoc and HLPF, which further recognizes the importance of strengthening local actions and encourages the greater attention to progress in local implementations, including through voluntary local reviews. Together, these development is strengthen multilevel governance and reinforce the value of the local leadership in accelerating the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. Excellencies, colleagues, the next phase of the SDG implementations must be defined by delivery, moving from commitments to measurable actions, strengthening partnerships across all the level of government and ensuring solutions reach communities where they are needed the most. The success of the 2030 Agenda will ultimately be measured not by the ambitions we express, but by the realities people experience in their daily lives. This is why local leadership is indispensable. I count on your continued leadership to further localize the SDGs and champion the visions of sustainable, inclusive, and resilient communities and a thriving planet. I wish you a fruitful discussion. Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you very much, President, for these insightful thoughts, as well for acknowledging the importance of multilevel governance, which I think the constituency gathered today will be very much in agreement with. Indeed, we have seen over these past years a great evolution in the level of acknowledgement of the role that local and regional governments can play in the achievement of the 2030 Agenda. We have also seen a growing interest from local and regional governments to connect their day-to-day work with the global agenda, knowledgeable of the fact that it is impossible to deliver good services at home if you don't take into account those global challenges and the interconnection. Mindful of these and thinking that the global agendas needed localization, We started to call together a localization forum even before this very one existed. And in fact, I have here the mother of that thing, which is really important for us. It was a precedent that has led us to the acknowledgement and to the recognition of this very forum in a formal manner. But it also brought in motion what we call now this localization movement that has led us to hundreds of voluntary local reviews, to increasing participation of local and regional governments in the voluntary national reviews. Those are the good news that we bring here today. I am very pleased that we count with the presence of Her Excellency, Ms. Amina Mohammed, the UN Deputy Secretary-General. I think we should celebrate this, Amina. It's a celebration. Because in this very polarized moment, so many challenges, it's also good to acknowledge what we did right, right? The vision that we had. So please, the floor is yours.

Thank you so much, Emilia. Your Excellency, the President of ECOSOC, the Executive Secretary of UN-Habitat, Ana Claudia, my sister, Emilia, thank you for your leadership as Secretary-General of our United Cities and Local Governments, the President of our South African Local Government Association, distinguished mayors, governors, local and regional leaders, Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, cities in the room?

Yes!

Okay, mayors in the room?

Yes!

It really is a pleasure to be with you, and, you know, success comes when you have women at the helm of affairs, so I hope you'll take note and we'll put more women mayors in place. But, yeah, thank you. Thank you to the Global Task Force and UCLG, DESA, UN-Habitat, UNDP, our Local 2030 Coalition, which is really amazing, and they've built the Forum into a space where I believe partnerships really do turn into action. I'm especially pleased to welcome the many local and regional leaders that are with us today. You've helped us to establish a simple fact that at the centre of the 2030 Agenda, the SDGs will only be achieved if they are people-centred, they're locally delivered by municipalities and states, working with communities and local actors. From education to health systems, housing, poverty and hunger, essential public services are local before they are ever national. But the conditions of this work are growing harder. Cities and territories are contending with rapid urbanization, climate change, infrastructure gaps, housing pressures, and mounting stress on water and energy, while demand for public services rises. There is no single level of government that can respond alone. National plans need local knowledge. Local delivery needs national support. Each depends on one another. And that is why local and regional governments have become indispensable partners in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals and bringing national communities— national commitments closer to the realities on the ground. The Secretary-General's report takes this further. It sets out options to strengthen how the UN works with local and regional authorities, answering the Pact for the Future's call for deeper and stronger and meaningful partnerships. The task now is to go beyond that well-established recognition to how we have impact and acceleration on the SDGs in our cities. And there are several routes to do that. First, we need stronger multilevel governance. National planning must connect with local priorities, and realities right from the beginning. We must begin to build from the foundations up and not the roof down. Voluntary local reviews and voluntary subnational reviews are already helping us to do this. They do bring local data into national processes. They show where the progress is uneven and strengthen voluntary national reviews with evidence from the ground. That connection should become routine. Second, finance must follow. The annual SDG financing gap in developing countries stands at $4 trillion. The Sevilla Commitment gives us a stronger basis for action, but implementation will depend on whether financing reaches the local level, strengthens local capacity, and supports investment in resilient infrastructure, housing, and essential public services. Local authorities will not be able to deliver at scale without the means of implementation, to plan, invest, and sustain the work. Third, the United Nations must also strengthen its own engagement. The Secretary-General's report on engagement with local and regional authorities offers practical recommendations for a more consistent relationship with local and regional governments, all in support of Member States and national implementation. Those recommendations should lead to clearer channels for engagement, stronger coordination, and better support for delivery at country level. And finally, people must remain at the centre of this work. Localization depends on inclusion, participation, care, and equality. It means making decisions with communities and reaching all those who are still being left behind, from our young people to those that are aged. UN system-wide coordination through the Local 2030 Coalition is building common tools, partnerships, and financing frameworks to support its delivery at scale. Excellencies, friends, the 10th anniversary of the New Urban Agenda gives us a moment to take stock, but also to raise our level of ambition, the scale and urgency at which we need to meet the 2030 Agenda. By the 2027 SDG Summit next year in September, local and regional governments should no longer be asking to be heard. Their role should be embedded in how we plan, how we finance, report and deliver. The transformation is already happening on the ground with communities and different sectors of our society. Now, as a multilateral system, we have to catch up. Let this 9th session of the LRG Forum be a catalyst for actions, implementation, but solutions that will accelerate our shared goals to 2030 and beyond. Let's try to work together, show that transformation is not only possible but inevitable when we work together across all levels of governance. Thank you, and I wish you all a really successful Forum.

Thank you very much. You have said almost all the magic words that we are going to be going through this afternoon. You have talked about scaling up, you have talked about essential public services, and about enhancing engagement. Those are the key focuses that we're going to have today. It's also important to acknowledge that our study, this 10th report that we will be presenting fully tomorrow, signals also that Agenda 2030 has shifted priorities of local and regional governments. It has allowed them to connect dots between sectoral approaches. It has changed our perspective on some of the critical areas, certainly around public services, but also around addressing climate change or addressing gender equality. I think those are issues that are very significant for the constituency and for the multilateral system that we are trying now to bring up to date and fit for purpose. I am certain that our co-president, Beke Stofile, President of the South African Local Government Association in South Africa, feels these transformations of priorities firsthand. We are very pleased to have you, uh, with us. Um, Co-President, the floor is yours.

Thank you very much, and greetings to you, Secretary-General and facilitator of these discussions. Special greetings to the President of ECOSOC, and greetings to the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, national government representative that might be in this room, Mayors, governors, colleagues, and friends, once again, on behalf of the local and regional government, thank you for gathering once again as a united constituency before the United Nations. Deputy General Secretary-General, your leadership continues to remind us that the Sustainable Development Goals are not distant promises. They are about the daily lives of our people. They are about whether families have water, sanitation, shelter, energy, transport, safety, opportunity, and dignity. This is where local and regional government makes their contribution. We translate global ambitions into a visible change into communities. This forum meets at the important moment we are concluding the 100 days of local multilateralism, making 10 years of the New Urban Agenda, and entering the final stretch towards 2030. We must therefore renew multilateralism so that it delivers better for people territories. The Pact for the Future gives us an important opportunity. It recognizes that sustainable development requires empowered local and regional governments, effective multi-level governance, and stronger participation in local decision-making. It also builds on the work of the Advisory Group of Local and Regional Government on of the UN Secretary-General, which called for a more structured and permanent place for our constituency in the multilateral system. And therefore, local and regional government, at least it needs to be created a space permanently in the top table. Today, it is important for us to look at that. Over the past decades, cities and regions have shown that localization works through planning, climate action, housing, mobility, citizen participation, and local economic development. We have demonstrated that sustainable development happens where people live, but localization cannot be separated from the politics and economics of our times. It requires peace, stability, and serious global commitment to silence the guns. Development cannot flourish where communities live under war, displacement, insecurity, and fear. Peace is not only a moral duty, it is an economic condition for investment, production, infrastructure, and local prosperities. Our interest is clear as local government practitioners. Local and regional governments stand For global peace and shared prosperity, scaling up localization will only succeed when peace is defended and resources are directed to services, jobs, housing, infrastructure, and human development. The evidence from voluntary local reviews and voluntary subnational reviews is clear. The task now is to move from good local example to systemic change. This requires stronger institutions, predictable financing, fiscal decentralization, greater capacity, and genuine multi-level governance. Housing, resilient infrastructure, basic services, and a just energy transition are not separate priorities. They are the foundations of dignity, equality, and public trust. As we mark the tenure of the New Urban Agenda, SDG 11 must remain a driver of the entire 2030 Agenda. The world needs more multilateralism, but it must be built from the ground up. Local and regional government must be central to the decision on how the United Nations functions. When wars destroy infrastructure, when communities are displaced, and when climate disasters strike harder, municipalities are the first to respond. They restore services, provide shelter, manage public health, risk and rebuild communities, often without funding without authority of support required. We are not only implementers of global agendas, we are a sphere of government that helps shape solutions. As we look beyond 2030, our role within ECOSOC and the HLPF architecture must be strengthened through permanent mechanism for dialogue, co-design, and shared accountability. Excellencies, dear friends, the final year towards 2030 requires urgency and transformation. Let us make this final stretch one of shared responsibilities, shared leadership, and shared peace and shared success. And we wish to thank and appreciate presentation made today by both leaders from the United Nations. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much, Co-President. I think these thanks are shared by everybody in the room, as we have heard. Well, we are closing here the opening ceremony, and I would like to take the opportunity to acknowledge also with us in this opening ceremony the presence of the Executive Director of UN-Habitat. We will hear from her later today, and obviously as well from UNDESA representatives. They will also address us later, as well as representatives of Local 2030, in this case of UNISI. I would also like to thank all the networks of local and regional governments that are gathered in the Global Task Force, ECLAY, Regions 4, C40, CLGF, Oru Fogar, and of course all the sections of UCLG, including CMR, UCLG Africa, UCLG MEWA, and UCLG ASPAC, for joining us today and for the mobilization that obviously you have done. This opening ceremony is now closed, and we go on to the next panel. Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Thank you very much. Then it takes us to the second session, and I'm advised of course, by the Secretary-General, as he always advises, that today we are going to get some engagement and presentation from different leaders that have been invited to come and share some perspective on this important session. The first person that I would love to invite for her to share some perspective with us as local and regional government leadership is the minister in the Republic of Spain, or Carrillo. I don't know, it's a minister. I don't know, I'm sorry about the pronunciation of your name, but I must give you a platform to share some perspective.

He's the Secretary of State of Spain, indeed.

Excellencies, local and regional authorities, representatives of the UN, it is a pleasure to be in this Local and Regional Government Forum at such a time that is such so decided for the 2030 Agenda. Today, there's something no one can deny: SDGs will only be reached if we make them local. In Spain, our experience as a country shows that cooperation between national and regional governments allows us to bring public policies to the needs of each territory. Our vision also guides our cooperation— international cooperation policy. Through the Spanish cooperation and the Spanish Agency of International Cooperation, we promote initiatives that strengthen the capacity of local governments of our partner countries. We have some specific examples I'd like to share with you today. We have the Nature in Med initiative, which works with Morocco, Tunisia, and Lebanon municipalities to promote more inclusive public spaces that are more resilient. In Cape Verde, we're contributing to localizing SDGs through a pilot program at the rural community of Porto Mosquito. We have a new Spanish Fund for Sustainable Development and Financial Cooperation, which has the capacity to promote sustainable investments with state and local entities. Globally, we work with the support of multilateral partners such as the UNDP. Spain supports the implementation of integrated financing frameworks to connect national strategies to territorial priorities. Since 2022, Bilbao has The Secretariat of the Local Coalition 2030. We've contributed to the design of the localizing indicator that allowed us to include local perspective in those programs that have been financed by the Joint Fund for the SDGs, where we are the main contributor. During the 4th Conference for Financing for Development in the Civil Platform of Actions, along with the 2030 Coalition, ONU-Habitat, and OCDE, we Localized financing for development for the impact of SDG, seeking to increase local financing and harmonizing financial planning with the local SDGs.

These experiences show us that this localization requires 3 fundamental elements, and I will conclude. First of all, we need solid institutions and governance frameworks that can foster cooperation among all levels of government. Secondly, financing that is fit for purpose. Local governments take on increasing responsibility without having always access to the necessary resources. This is why it's indispensable to advance on the application of the Seville commitments on financing for development and strengthen subnational finances. 3, we need reviews such as the voluntary reviews and the subnational reviews. These are very useful to improve planning and transparency and connect local priorities with national strategies. The conclusion is simple. SDG localization implies recognizing that the most efficient solutions are usually built from the local level, from the entities that know the territories, and through dialogue with communities. So Spain will remain committed to this focus, to work jointly with regional, local, and national levels to accelerate the attainment of the 2030 Agenda and to advance towards a development that is more inclusive, transparent, and resilient. Thank you so much.

Thank you, thank you very much, ma'am, and I think you are raising very important issues. Collaboration is a success to any nation, and of course, putting some energy in building nation, it needs some commitment to all those that involve. Thank you very much for your input. Can I then invite Minister of Finance from Mozambique? Mayor Carla Lavaeira.

Excellencies, distinguished—

now, Mr.

Chair, Excellencies, distinguished participants, Mozambique believes that these DGs will not be delivered from the capital cities alone. Every target in the 2030 Agenda has a local dimension, and those dimensions are administered by regional and local governments. In 2018, Mozambique amended its constitution to deepen the decentralization process, which began 2 decades earlier. This process allows us to establishing elected provincial decentralized governance bodies with their own executive and deliberative functions alongside the municipal government already in place since 1998. These institutions carry clear defined responsibilities from public service delivery and are now mandated to advance SDG implementation through national planning, monitoring, and evaluation frameworks. To support accountability at the subnational level, Mozambique has established the provincial SDG reference groups, which are multi-sectoral platforms bringing together government institutions, civil society, the private sector, and academia, which serve as the institutional connective tissue between global commitments and local delivery. This architecture is producing results. Besides the national review, Mozambique prepared its first local SDG report in 2020, covering 16 municipalities. In 2025, we produce our first voluntary local review encompassing 6 districts and municipalities. Which was subsequently integrated into the 2nd Voluntary National Review of Mozambique that was presented to this forum on July 10th under the principle of one territory, one process, one product. This good practice will be replicated across additional territories to ensure no community is left behind. Governance structures are only as strong as the resource behind them. Recognizing this very important principle, the government of Mozambique has approved a dedicated local initiative development fund to finance economic initiatives in districts and municipalities. The lessons Mozambique draws from this experience is that SDG localization works when 3 conditions are met: clear legal mandate for subnational authorities, adequate and predictable financing, and robust data systems that make local progress visible and accountable. We call for finance instruments calibrated to local and regional authorities, not only central government, but also for voluntary local review to be recognized as a global norm of accountability. Mozambique is committed to extending this work to more districts and municipalities. We invite partners who share that ambition to work with us.

Minister, you've got a partner, and then you can have a conversation with Amelia as Secretary-General. Local and regional government are best partners to develop our communities. Can I then take this opportunity to invite Mr., I think, Dario? who is the Director, Energy, Housing and Land Management Division of the United Nations at the Economic Commission for Europe. Can I then ask—

Yes, thank you, thank you, moderator. I'm speaking here on behalf of the Local 2030 Coalition, of which I'm a co-chair. And so, Excellencies, mayors, colleagues, localization must be understood not as the final stage of implementation, but as the delivery mechanism that connects global commitments Yes. With measurable results in people's lives. This requires local and regional governments to be involved from the outset in setting priorities, designing policies, mobilizing investment, implementing solutions, and monitoring progress. The Global Task Force of Local and Regional Governments plays a critical role in making this possible. Through its wide-ranging activities, including the participation in the steering committee of the Local 2030 Coalition, it brings the organized and collective voice of local and regional governments into the coalition's governance and strategic direction. The coalition is strong of 15 UN organizations and works obviously with all the partners outside, bringing the specificities of all the UN organizations down to the local administrations. This helps to ensure that local and regional governments are not simply consulted after decisions have been taken, but actually shape those decisions. One way that the coalition supports that is through the Road to the Local Ways processes, which are important expressions of this partnership. They are co-organized with the Global Task Force, connecting locally-led solutions, practical experience with international commitments. Across the Road to processes for financing for development, the World Summit for Social Development, COPD, 2030, the more recent World Urban Forum in Baku, and through preparations for the 2026 UN Water Conference, the Coalition consulted more than 2,000 local stakeholders to bring these— the voices from the administrations, from the territories, to the global level, to where decisions are taken. These processes, however, are not only important for engagement. They are important as monitoring tools, monitoring exercises. This helps us understand— we in the UN, but more broadly all the partners in the coalition— what is working, where commitments are producing results, which obstacles remain, and which locally-led solutions are successful and should be replicated. This process is complemented by the voluntary local reviews and the voluntary subnational reviews, which feed into the voluntary national reviews. But reporting must lead also to investment, as the Deputy Secretary-General said. Development happens locally and finance must reach where implementation takes place. So the coalition works as well on developing local financing mechanisms so as to support these initiatives at the local level. We at UNEP, besides being co-chairs, We contribute through direct technical assistance and through the UN Forum of Mayors, which is the unique body in the United Nations where mayors meet and bring their voice into the intergovernmental discussions. As we prepare for the 2027 SDG Summit and the period beyond 2030, our objectives must be clear: not simply that local and regional governments participate in global discussions, but that they hold a sustained role in shaping decisions, mobilizing finance, and measuring results. So it's not only about consulting, it's really about taking ownership of these processes. The challenge, therefore, is not only to identify solutions— I think we're all clear about that— but it's actually to finance, replicate, and scale those that have demonstrated impact. I thank you very much for the floor.

Thank you very much. Then you take us from economy into disaster. Then can I then invite Mr. Kamau, who is a Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Your floor is yours.

Thank you, thank you, Chair. UNVRR has been working with local and regional governments for years, and together with partners such as UCRG, we lead the Making Cities Resilient 2030 initiative, or MCR 2030. It brings together more than 2,000 cities representing over 700 million people. Allow me to offer 3 brief reflections. First, on strengthening coherent and integrated action. The greatest obstacle to transformative impact is not a lack of ambition, but fragmentation. Communities experience disasters, climate change, infrastructure gaps, and social inequalities simultaneously, yet institutions often address them separately. This requires embedding disaster risk reduction and resilience-building efforts into local development planning as an integral part. Through MCR 2030, we've seen the strongest results where local resilience agendas are integrated into broader development strategies and aligned with national priorities. To scale impact, local governments must be systematically involved in policy design, implementation, monitoring, and reporting. Second, on financing and governance innovation, we must scale up what works. Local communities are often pioneering innovative solutions to the risks they face, but they need support to expand them. Cities and local governments need greater access to resilience financing, climate adaptation funds, blended finance, and incentives that reward prevention rather than response and recovery. We must also strengthen city-to-city learning. MCR 2030 shows that practical solutions, including innovative financing, often spread most effectively through local government networks. Finally, a few words on voluntary local reviews and voluntary subnational reviews. Their value goes well beyond reporting. They help local governments generate evidence, identify gaps, engage stakeholders, and assess whether development pathways are becoming more resilient or not. Stronger links between voluntary local reviews and voluntary subnational reviews and national review processes can ensure that local experience informs national priorities and global policymaking. This is where alignment between SDG localization and the Sendai Framework becomes especially important. In closing, if we want localization at scale, national governments must engage local authorities early, equip them with money, data, and strengthen exchanges among cities. As we prepare for the 2027 SDG Summit, and discussions on the post-2030 agenda, local voices must be more systematically reflected in global review mechanisms, and local communities must be empowered to build resilience with the support of national governments and international partners. And I thank you.

Take us from disaster planning strategy policy, can I then invite Mr.— and I'm sorry about the pronunciation of the name— who is the Deputy Commissioner of Municipal Strategy Policy Innovation in New York City in the USA.

Thank you.

Thank you so much. My name is Gianpaolo Baiocchi. I am Deputy Commissioner for International Affairs for the City of New York, in charge of the municipalist agenda and policy innovation. We're honored to be here, and I'm honored to represent the City of New York. Let me say a couple of obvious things. Cities are where people live, and city governments, as every single mayor and government city employee knows, Who's here? Are where people come for solutions to their problems, whether or not the city government has the competence or the capacity or it's within their role to solve it. Cities are where people experience housing shortages, transportation difficulties, failings in public service, challenges with public space, with opportunity. Increasingly, it is in cities where we experience the impacts of climate change. As has been stated, We now want to know, when you look at the SDGs, if they're succeeding, we should be looking at cities. As we approach 2030, one lesson is very clear. Localization is obviously a question of implementation, but within implementation there are other series of questions— questions of power, of resources, and of course effective governance. The City of New York today has an ambitious climate justice agenda. One that centers impacted communities at every level. Whether we're talking about introducing heat pumps to our underfunded public housing system, centering communities in our integrated environmental planning, or one of the best things we're doing now, introducing clean electric power in the form of rechargeable batteries for the food carts that are synonymous with our cities. The City of New York is developing an agenda of sustainability, climate adaptation, and decarbonization within a broad affordability framework. People do not experience housing policy, climate policy, transportation policy, and economic policy separately. I'm a professor of public policy. I understand these are separate issues. But for people, the question is often a simple one: Can I afford to live in the city? Can I be safe? Can I build a good life and future here? This is why we're gathered here today. This is why integrated action across levels of government is so important. We should be very honest about the challenges, though. Cities are increasingly expected to solve the world's most urgent problems, and they're asked to do so without the fiscal tools or the resources that are often necessary to succeed. If we are serious about SDG localization, we must be serious about the localization of resources. Local governments everywhere need predictable funding, direct access to finance, and a stronger voice in shaping the investments that affect their communities. Even the city of New York, one of the wealthiest cities on the planet, needs external support to meet these goals. One lesson from the United States is that ambitious national investment can unlock local innovation. Programs supported through the now-defunct Inflation Reduction Act, or IRA, created new opportunities for cities to advance climate action, building decarbonization, resilience, and infrastructure. Around the world, local governments are experimenting every day with new approaches to housing, climate resilience, civic engagement, and inclusion. A stronger multilateral system is one that learns from those innovations, supports them, enables them to travel. Local and regional governments are already acting as political actors, leading implementation, building solutions from the ground up, and reaffirming their commitment to multilateral cooperation. Their contribution is not just delivery. They're helping shape priorities, developing partnerships and governance arrangements needed to achieve global agendas. The Urban 20, which this year is co-chaired with New York, with Los Angeles, with UCLG serving as co-convener alongside C40, is a clear example of this political leadership and commitment to a city-to-city multilateralism. The U20 brings cities together to advance shared positions on global challenges and a call for stronger multilevel governance so that local and regional governments can act as full partners in shaping and delivering collective solutions. Localization is at its best bringing cities to the center of global decision-making. We in the City of New York are deeply honored to be here today, and we're looking forward to collaborating, learning, sharing, and advancing collective projects. Thank you.

Thank you, Thank you, thank you very much. And then let me quickly rush to invite the mayor of Heidelberg in Germany, and I'm sorry about the name, it's Eckart Wischner. Yeah, Wischner, okay.

Many thanks, yeah.

To say many thanks for the invitation. It's always good to have this experience exchange, but we wanted to go much further. So I really have to say, when we started all our activities more than 20 years ago, we were starting with a clear message: Rio is talking, Heidelberg is acting. And the engagement of the citizens changed the whole political system. That's what we achieved over the time— make a clear agenda for all the topics which we are discussing in the SDGs, implementing the SDGs, have a revolving biannual report, how we achieve the results and what are the next steps, and by doing so, We had floods 20 years ago. We have bigger rainfalls today, but what we didn't have 20 years ago was not a city which is based now 100% on green energy. What we didn't have was that we are in Germany the city with the highest number of kids going to high schools. Which we didn't have at that time was that we have the lowest rate of unemployment rate of kids. What we didn't have was, as a car-driven city, that today 20% of the citizens are using cars and the rest is using bus, pedestrians, and the mass transport system. By saying this, you can achieve a tremendous development in your city if you're going with a clear strategy, if you are involving the citizens, and then it's also the citizens who are taking care that its SDGs and UN goals were implemented in your city, otherwise you will not succeed as a mayor. And that's all over the world, the same situation. And therefore, I like all the meetings, the experience exchange we had over the last years over the UCLG, over ECLAY, Energy Cité, and all the other networks. But today, we wanted to get a step further and therefore it's important, very much important that we see why and how we achieve these goals. And if I look at my town and many other cities, it's about empowerment of the cities. If you're not empowered, you can't achieve the goals also if you're willing to achieve these goals. And this means that the federal governments, and this was the situation for example in my country, They empowered us to get the ownership about the energy, to get the ownership about traffic companies, to get the ownership about a local bank. And by saying this, we can finance not by city budget but by the utility budget the implementation of long-distance heating networks in a city like Heidelberg with 160,000 inhabitants and we need about 980 million without a subsidy from the city, with a subsidy from the state, yes, of course, but with a lot of money which we earn by our own energy utility. So if we are talking about solutions, we have to strengthen our agenda to how can we empower cities which are not empowered till today and therefore, especially our task force was very important together with Guterres to drop this into the agenda of the Summit of the Future and also of the Pact of the Future where we now have a clear agenda that this should be the next step in the cooperation between the UN level and the local level or regional level. I think this is of tremendous— support for us, and it also pointed out that especially the local developing banks are very, very important in this field, besides the normal instruments of the subsidies of the federal governments. So going along in this way and going along at the UN Forum of Mayors and many other networks which are working politically, in this direction is the best way into the future. So many thanks for this great success story which we already achieved. Let's drive in this direction with a much stronger voice into the future. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Can I also then invite the Mayor of Geneva, Switzerland, Christina. Please take the floor and immediately my friend and my enemy on my far left is going to take over. I'm a little bit testy.

We were only soccer enemies.

Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, mayors, honorable members, thanks to all. I'd like to thank the task for the United Nations for the organization of this forum. It is clearly a very essential space to further progress the implementation of Sustainable Development Goals and to strengthen the contributions of cities at the regional level for the international framework. Right now, cities are in the first front following the increase of social inequalities and climate change. We can see we have had heat waves as well as disparities continue to show, be it in the urban level, be it the wars, artificial intelligence, the attack against the knowledge, multilateralism fragilization, and media. Have a direct impact on the habitats of inhabitants of cities. The cities have several— the closeness of the policy. When we are close at hand, we have the direct responsibility to the citizens. We understand the challenges as well as the resources that are available. At the local level. This enables us to come up with adaptable and innovative responses. In Geneva, this commitment is via a charter, a food charter for local products, that vegetable, vegetarian dishes as well as organic food to allow associations in maternal and crèches to feed the children and indeed the vegetation within the urban spaces, as well as urgent housing regardless of their origin, status, or an action plan of zero sexism or violence against women and children and minorities of gender. Accessibility, universal accessibility, for the rights of the children, on the inclusion, the protection, and the involvement and participation. Now, these actions are translated in the local charter that was the first of its kind published in Switzerland. We are hoping to go further. Cities cannot only be considered as those that have to implement decisions that are taken elsewhere. They need to be recognized as partners of a multilateral system, which is why multilateralism, as it moves forward, we need to further strengthen the space held by cities and regions. This can be done in the Forum of Mayors that takes place in Geneva so that we can continue to contribute to an open and inclusive multilateralism that promises a society of dignity, equality, and social justice.

Merci beaucoup pour votre discours.

Thank you very much.

Or to the councillor for citizen attention and participation and the 2030 agenda and international relations in Euskara from the Bilbao City Council, Ms. Aider.

Inunzigiaga.

Thank you.

Everyone, first of all, let me thank UCLG and all the organizers of this session for convening this very necessary space for all of us to share our thoughts. Localization in the city of Bilbao is not just a slogan. something more than that. It's a method, right? We thought about what kind of city do we want to be, and we decided that we would have a strategy that would lead us on this whole process of embedding the SDGs on our day-to-day. So we are not just adding the SDGs on top of the city activity. We have rebuilt the city action around them, and we have done that using a methodology that has allowed us to move all the stakeholders around the city, and it is very much focused on 4 transversal or cross-cutting ideas. On the one hand, we are working on a transformative agenda, meaning that the SDGs are cross-cutting all our municipal actions, so we can answer using one coherent voice from the neighborhoods in Bilbao to the global arena. We are also very much focused on making this strategy that has been translated afterwards in action plans, just making it an absolutely equitable space where real protagonists are our citizens, and there is no neighborhood and no community left outside this specific strategy and this line of work. Also taking into consideration that we are developing skills and capacities both in the private and the public sector. We are doing this through innovative actions and bringing innovation, especially social innovation, into this whole process of making our different stakeholders in the city able to later on co-create the path that will bring us to attract investment to the city of Bilbao. We have done this all together with different levels of government, so in a multi-level governance model, and also in a multi-stakeholder governance system, very much focused on this collaboration between difference, just trying to have everyone on board. This has allowed us to just be able— we are still on our way— but be able to deliver and have a very positive impact on most of the SDGs through this multi-level governance framework. This brings us to 4 conditions where cities are absolutely needed. First of them is something that has been mentioned already, is the recognition of cities as co-creators of this global agenda, followed by the financing that has to reach the territory. We need evidence and accountability, such as the VLRs and the VSRs, and networks as a basis for all our work. We are the proud host city of the Local 2030 Coalition Secretariat, and I think that that is the best example that we, local and regional governments, have got to show the world that multi-level, multi-stakeholder governance is the way to go. So thank you very much for your attention.

Thank you very much. Obrigada. We can now move on then to the Mayor of Barcelona, Spain, Señor Xavier García Albiol. And kudos to you for being here during your soccer game.

Well, Barcelona is a Mediterranean city at the northeast of Spain and I am part of this forum representing the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces. This federation is an association gathering over 7,200 local governments representing all the municipalities and provinces and islands in Spain. We are at a crucial moment. This is the last stretch towards the 2030 Agenda, and we begin to think about the future and beyond. Our experience shows that SDG localization works, and the challenge is how to use these experiences to accelerate sustainable development and make them the basis of the agenda after 2030. The municipal movement in Spain believes in 3 important aspects. Multi-level governance, the network of local entities of the 2030 Agenda FEM already has 793 local entities representing over 68% of population in Spain. Because we work together with the Ministry of social rights and consumers. We've developed methodologies, indicators, technical assistance, and training so we can form this global agenda into specific public policies in the municipal movement. 2, localization needs resources and partnerships. Institutional cooperation must be accompanied by adequate financing. The 4th International Conference on Financing for Development in Seville confirmed that territorial financing is sine qua non in order to accelerate the agenda. If we want to take the solutions to scale, we have more accessible financing, strengthen the capacity of local governments, and strengthen the partnerships between organizations and society, private, and Leadership. The last lesson is we need to look to the future. The agenda after 2030 must be built on the experience that we've accumulated. We must have awareness campaigns so that people understand the 2030 agenda. This is not just abstract goals, but rather public policies that improve people's lives. The 2030 Agenda has taught us that global solutions will only be efficient if they are born and are implemented and acknowledged at the local level. Thank you.

Muchas gracias, alcalde.

Thank you very much, Mr. Mayor.

The mayor of Hoboken, USA. The floor is yours.

I'm in New Jersey. This is where the Sustainable Development Goals become tangible. Residents do not experience the SDGs as abstract global commitments. They experience them as dry streets after a storm, reliable transportation, affordable housing, safe parks, and economic opportunity. Hoboken is one of the most densely populated cities in the United States, only 1 square mile in size, yet our experience demonstrates that local governments can serve as innovation laboratories for sustainable development. Localization is not simply about implementing global goals. It is a governance model. Cities are where policies become public services, where trust in government is built, and where global commitments become measurable outcomes for our residents. Local governments should not simply implement policy, but rather help shape it. We need structured participation in decision-making, from policy design through implementation and evaluation. The strongest solutions emerge when every level of government is aligned around shared goals while allowing communities the flexibility to innovate. In Hoboken, our sustainability work is integrated because our residents experience these challenges together. Climate resilience, transportation, housing, and economic opportunity cannot be addressed in silos. Following Superstorm Sandy, which flooded our city for over a week, Hoboken transformed its approach to resilience through our resist, delay, store, and discharge strategy. We have invested in green infrastructure, resiliency parks, upgraded stormwater systems, installed flood pumps, created stronger development standards, and prioritized flood protection infrastructure. These are environmental investments, and they protect homes, businesses, schools, and essential services while improving our quality of life. We have also expanded protected bike lanes, pedestrian safety improvements, electric vehicle infrastructure, and transit connections because reducing emissions and improving daily life go hand in hand. None of this happens alone. Progress depends on partnerships with federal agencies, the state of New Jersey, neighboring municipalities, universities, nonprofits, and private sector partners. Federal and state investments are critical, but local governments also need flexible, predictable financing that recognizes cities as implementation partners. Looking ahead, ambitious local action cannot depend solely on competitive grants. Cities need sustainable financing models, greater fiscal flexibility, and direct access to resources that allow communities to address local challenges. Finally, voluntary local reviews are an important tool. They create accountability, provide transparency for residents, and generate evidence that should inform voluntary national reviews so that national strategies that reflect local reality. As we look beyond 2030, localization should be recognized not only as an implementation strategy, but as a way to strengthen governance, accountability, and multilateral cooperation. Thank you so much for having me today.

Thank you.

Mr. Nadaw Aboubacar Khalifa, the President of the Departmental Council of Dagana, Senegal. Sir, the floor is yours. Monsieur.

Thank you. I would like to thank for inviting us and inviting our city. The localization. We have thought about a number of cases and we first strengthened the multi-level governance and we also integrated the goals, the SDGs, in our planning, in our planning policy. We've also strengthened the institutional capacities of territorial government, local government, but also mobilize the stakeholders. We've improved in a very significant way. I can't go into the details, but, you know, there is financing of sustainable development. We'll also strengthen the system of data and the follow-up of assessment. We've improved, you know, You know, reciprocal practices. Localization only can succeed if you adapt to the local realities, the global goals to local reality while adapting its own policy. And we have to acknowledge that the local government and self-organized collectives, you know, are partners, you know, but then the localization cannot be depending It requires a structural discussion with the state and the United Nations system, but based on the role of the government and their collective capacities, based on the common positions. That is actually— and I don't want to elaborate and I don't want to keep the floor for too long— this is what I wanted to say about this issue. Thank you for your kind attention.

Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Mayor.

Our last presenter in Panel 1, I'd like to give the floor to the Mayor of Canelones, Uruguay, uh, Señor Francisco Legnani.

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak to you. In Latin America, there's over 600 million people, 30 of which Are under the poverty line and 10%— and it's only responsible for 10% of the greenhouse effects. Africa has 4%. The greatest responsibility is not at the Global South, but the consequences are suffered mostly in the South, in the Global South. Uruguay and Canelones specifically is the government I represent. We have 3 million people, 200,000 people— there are 609,000 people in Canelones, second to Montevideo in terms of population. And 45% of emissions, greenhouse emissions, come from transportation, 23% from the management of waste, and 68% of agriculture. We're working on reform on the metropolitan transportation along with Montevideo, the capital, reform that I think is revolutionary. We want to use electrical transportations, but having fiscal incentives for transportation companies that use electrical vehicles. We have 143,000 families that have containers that classify waste at home, which means that in the last year we've decreased by 12% The amount of waste for final disposal, and we expect to decrease waste by another 20%. There are 3 centers for recycling, 7,000 tons of classified materials, 17,000 in Uruguay. Canelones has 200 points of underwater per month, and it provides citizenships Information on the good practices and the conservation of our water in the department. Chile has changed legislation in the last 10 years, and the fine for, for, for violations or the misuse of fertilizers or medication was very high. But the new law says that we are sanctioning by $1 million as a fine. It's a lot of money in the world, but $1 million in Uruguay is even more money. We've actually sanctioned people and fined people for that. We must work together. Local governments cannot do it alone. Canelones is part of the MERCOSUR cities. There are 450 cities in the American continent. Canelones will take the chairmanship in December of this year using the SDGs as our tools, the 2030 Agenda, and the work of each local government adds a drop of water to the river. And if we join together, our river will be bigger, better, and we will be successful. Thank you.

Well, thank you. Thank you very much. Muchas gracias.

Thank you very much, Mr. Mayor, and I'd like to thank all the speakers of the first panel.

To give the floor for Panel 2 as we transition to my good friend and fellow UCLG co-president, Madame Fatimethou Abdou Malick, the President of Nouakchott Region in Mauritania. May I ask Malek?

Ladies and gentlemen, ministers, dear partners, dear colleagues, Mr.

Mr.

Chair, Mr. Governors and Mayors, firstly, I would like to say I'm sorry if I do not pronounce correctly the last names of the cities, of people, and I would like also to recommend that maybe you— we can stick to the time that we have allocated for our panel because there's another one after ours. That being said, our panel is going to discuss— cover specific SDGs, you know, because Even though what I say that all SDGs are local, but we're going to promote some SDGs so that to make them accelerators of the 2030 Agenda, especially SDG 6, 7, 9, 11, and 17. So which will allow us to both cover, you know, both and all the speakers because of a large diversity of speakers in our panel. They are going to, of course, present their various experiences, but also and very much their perspectives in terms of your concrete actions in their cities, in terms of access to financing, which remains a hurdle, and their perspective. And we will know how this panel is going to answer the fundamental and key question: how can we assert and reaffirm public services as a based on rights, equality, and sustainable development. We also know how this contribution and this partnership can contribute to the next phase of cooperation on the global scale. So all that— I'm planting the decor, the stage, and now I'm going to give the floor to the— based on the preliminary question, I'm going to ask firstly Madame Ariane Carabello-Pofilac. She's Minister of Germany for Cooperation. Madam, you have the floor. Microphone, please.

Germany is expanding its development instruments by further enhancing the enabling framework for decentralized development cooperation. Municipal partnerships between cities, municipalities, and counties are strongly associated with cooperation on concrete projects rooted in the SDGs, making these partnerships a dynamic vehicle for localized solutions framed by the 2030 Agenda. I would like to give an example. On this municipal capacity building approach, under the project of Connective Cities. Under this initiative, international and German municipalities collaborate on, for example, sponge city concepts and blue-green infrastructure. We had a very interesting meeting at the German side event, official side event yesterday, especially dealing with the concept of sponge cities, and it is important that cities cooperating in that way are doing a deep-dive process. Each city co-develops a pilot project that tackles shared challenges like droughts or flooding, and as part of a broader series of exchange formats on multiple topics, this example demonstrates how practical, practical, locally adapted solutions emerge from peer learning and international exchange. The approach exemplifies the combination of SDGs 6, 9, and 11, and serves the partnership idea of SDG 17. Municipal partnerships not only receive funding support from my ministry, the Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development in Germany, but they are also built upon a foundation of strategic guidance through strategies, declarations, and localized reporting frameworks, including the voluntary local review. Based on this model of sustaining municipal partnerships, Germany is partnering at the UN level with the Local 2030 Coalition. We are pleased to see that the UN is dedicated to enhance a local way of sustainable development that benefits municipalities across UN member states, including my country, Germany. If I had to name one decisive change, I would— it would be this localization, localization of the SDGs absolutely needs to enhance the role of municipalities in their mandate, in their capacity, and in their resources. We have to underline that the financial component is important, so they can continue to be SDG-oriented partners for sustainability. For SDG localization to be possible, strong municipalities are needed that are able to plan, implement, and monitor their development as part of a nationally framed and international Agreed goals and targets. Thank you very much.

Merci beaucoup, Madame la Ministre.

Thank you very much, Madame Minister, for this partnership which looks to dynamize the Agenda 2030 and for the decisions that have been made to ensure the role of municipality. I'd like to give the floor. to Madam Sarah Dista, the World Director for Governance and Peacekeeping. You have the floor.

Excellencies, delegates, distinguished mayors and governors, colleagues and friends, it is a real privilege to speak at this 2nd panel of the Local and Regional Governments Forum, focused this year on the SDGs under review at the HLPF. 6, 7, 9, 11, and 17. These goals are not abstract. They are about whether people have safe drinking water, reliable electricity, decent housing, accessible transport, resilient infrastructure, and the partnerships needed to sustain them. Drawing on UNDP's work with national and local governments in more than 170 countries and territories, I would like to share briefly 3 observations. First, local action delivers the greatest impact when it is integrated. People do not experience development in sectors; they experience whether their homes are safe, whether they have electricity, clean water, transport, and opportunities. The most effective local solutions therefore connect sectors, investments, and partners. In several countries, UNDP supported renewable energy solutions. have improved not only access to electricity, but also water services, health facilities, schools, and livelihoods. Yet financing institutions and planning processes often remain fragmented. Integrated approaches help governments overcome these silos and deliver progress across multiple SDGs through the same investments. Second, Finance remains one of the biggest barriers and one of the biggest opportunities. Local governments know what needs to be done. The challenge is turning priorities into investable plans and accessing the resources to deliver them. UNDP works with governments and partners to strengthen local planning, project preparation, and financing solutions, including blended finance and risk-sharing mechanisms. Our experience shows that 3 elements are critical: reliable data, strong investment pipelines, and predictable policy and fiscal frameworks. Third, the final 5 years of the 2030 Agenda must focus on delivery, and delivery happens locally. Too often, development priorities are set globally, translated nationally, but reach local and regional governments too slowly. This is not about bypassing national governments. It is about strengthening collaboration across all levels of government and ensuring local actors have the tools, resources, and partnerships they need to deliver, and UNDP is committed to supporting this. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much. I now would like to give the floor to Mr. Koldo Kassler, a Special Rapporteur on affordable housing. You have the floor, Mr. Koldo.

The Special Rapporteur on the right to housing appointed by the UN Human Rights Council to support states in the satisfaction and the delivery of the right to housing, rights recognized in international treaties that the countries that you— most of you come from have voluntarily signed up to. So it is my role to help you deliver in relation to these particular rights. It was in 1958 when Eleanor Roosevelt asked herself, where do human rights come from? Where do they begin? And she said, in the small places close to home, in factories, in schools, in farms. And this is significant because this comes from the mother of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. And yet she didn't say that human rights begin in magnificent conference rooms in Geneva or in Paris or in Strasbourg or in New York. She said that the power of human rights really is assessed by what happens close to home, in schools, in factories, in the farms. That's why I am devoting my first report as Special Rapporteur on the right to housing to the localization of the right to housing, because I think that all of you, ladies and gentlemen, you have a huge responsibility to make the right to housing real and effective close to home, close to people's lives. You have a central role to play in these regards, and you have my full support in doing that. Local and regional governments are not some sort of other stakeholder for international fora. They are duty bearers when it comes to human rights. Just like central governments, local and regional governments are duty bearers when it comes to human rights. And when it comes to the right to housing in particular, most of the most relevant policies concerning housing are implemented at the local level. So local authorities must be trusted. They must be given resources, and they must have direct and justiciable duties as well to deliver on the right to housing. So ladies and gentlemen, as the Special Rapporteur on the right to housing, you have my full support to identify promising practices when it comes to the right to housing in issues such as homelessness prevention, social and public housing provision, interventions in the private sector, and yes, that means rent control as well. After all, we are in New York. Prioritizing attention to most vulnerable groups, including migrants. Also addressing the structural reasons why inequalities are going up. And implementing measures to prevent speculation with land value by investors who do not intend to live in the local community. So ladies and gentlemen, in relation to these and other policies, you have my full support, and I look forward to working with you over the coming months in identifying these good practices and hurdles. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much. I would like to give the floor to Nardo Ornado, Prefect Navi of Ecuador. You have the floor.

Thank you very much, dear friends. Greetings from Manabí, Ecuador. I am Leonardo Orlando. I am the prefect of Manabí. It's a province of the Pacific coast in Ecuador. We have 1,700,000 people living in Manabí. Services, essential services, and the promotion of human rights was at the heart of its development, sustainable development strategy. Between 2019 and 2025, we invested over $574 million in infrastructure projects, specifically bridges and irrigation systems and the waterways. They have been financed by the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean, CAF. We also have financing from the Inter-American Development Development Banks for 7 projects of roads, along with the Development Bank of Ecuador. Roadworks was the most important strategy in our province because we, for the first time, got direct credit from a multilateral agency such as CAF. In terms of bridges, the last 12 bridges of over 150 bridges that we've built, we've added solar, independent solar energy. We've also identified 5 areas for conservation and sustainable usage of land in over 240,000 hectares by caring for our water basins and promoting sustainable activities. Economically and socially, we've had support during the first period and the second period by UN-Habitat through strategic territorial plans throughout the 22 cantons of our province.

For these services to so that these services are provided together jointly and not in a fragmented fashion. We've presented with our voluntary subnational review of 2025. We've— this is our 4th edition. We are no longer wondering if we're going to present another review next year. We're actually going to do it the best way we can and with the highest number of stakeholders. We've had the support of international international bodies and 5 of our universities. Banks and multilateral bodies finance serious and responsible projects, but also history and our results are measurable because poverty in our province in the last few years went from 32% to 24%, and extreme poverty was reduced by half, and our economy had a growth of over 30% in terms of nominal growth, and the participation of the MENA economy was also increased by 12% in the last 5 years. The change we need is the following: trust territories, UN agencies, and developing countries, direct access to finance for local governments. Multi-level coordination such as the roundtable and the planning commission that we've created, the first ever in Ecuador. We have all levels of government and that translates into public policy. And with these voluntary reviews that have to be embedded in the national reviews in my last year as a prefect, that's the experience I want to share. We were able to build this report by report, kilometer by kilometer, territory by territory, together with our people, so that no one is left behind. Thank you.

Merci beaucoup.

Thank you very much. I'd like to say that we have to be very brief as possible. I now would like to give the floor to Clara Ad. Vice President of Montpellier Méditerranée in France. Claire, you have the floor. Thank you very much.

In the next 10 minutes or so, maybe 8 now, we have to score 2 goals.

2.

I'll see if I can weave some magic, okay? I am speaking on behalf of Cités Unies France, the French network of local and regional governments engaged in decentralized cooperation around the world. Now, when we talk about SDGs 6, 7, 11, 17, we're in fact speaking about one single issue: essential public services. Water, sanitation, housing, energy, mobility are not ordinary services. They are the foundation of human dignity, social cohesion, and sustainable development, and you're absolutely right, human rights as well, completely. Every day, local and regional governments make these rights a reality. In France, our city and intercity authorities manage water and sanitation services, invest in the ecological transition, improve public transport, and develop more resilient cities. Through decentralized cooperation, we also share this expertise with partner territories all around the world through long-term partnerships based on reciprocity, mutual learning, and deep solidarity. Our experience has taught us one key lesson: infrastructure alone is never, never enough. Sustainable public services require strong local governance, skilled public institutions, and trust— trust and maybe even caring between our partners. This is why investing in territorial cooperation is also investing in the achievement of the SDGs. Water is a perfect example of this. As climate change accelerates everywhere, water is becoming an increasingly rare resource. In many regions of the world, it is already a source of tension, displacement, and conflict. This is exactly why we must reaffirm that access to water is a fundamental human right and that water itself must be protected as a global public good. Water infrastructure should never, ever become weaponized in times of conflict. It must remain a common resource. Looking forwards to the final years of the 2030 Agenda, one change would make the greatest difference of all: trust local and regional governments as strategic partners. This means giving them direct and predictable access to international financing, involving them in national and international decision-making, and recognizing networks such as UCLG and all of the networks that are represented here, like Cités Unies France, as key partners in shaping global solutions. Sustainable development can only be achieved through strong public local services, empowered local governments, and international partnerships built on solidarity, peace, and shared responsibility. The future of multilateralism will be built on trust and built in our cities. And if you just allow me, sorry, because the context is such, I'm going to leave you with a deeply philosophical quote. When we compete with honor, dear friends, we all emerge as winners. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Claude. I'd like to give the floor to Mr. Bekzhan Zanalia, the President of the Municipal Council of Buzhak of Kyrgyzstan. I'm sorry if I pronounce— if I didn't pronounce properly your name, I apologize.

Thanks to real infrastructure projects that are already improving people's daily lives. Under SDG 6 and SDG 11, Bishkek is upgrading its water supply and wastewater systems with support from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the European Union, and other partners. The latest phase of the project is now complete. Including improved wastewater treatment plants with a capacity of up to 50,000 cubic meters per day. This helps reduce pressure on the environment and improves public services. In waste and energy, Bishkek has opened the first waste-to-energy plant in Central Asia. The first stage processes up to 1,000 tons of waste per day and produce around 30 megawatts of electricity. This project is a good example of public-private partnership. The city is also improving its energy system. Schools and kindergartens are slowly moving from coal heating to cleaner energy sources. This helps reduce air pollution and makes public buildings more energy efficient. These results were achieved through strong cooperation between the city of Bishkek, the government of the Kyrgyz Republic, international financial institutions, and the UN system. This is a clear example of SDG 17 in action— partnership for development. However, access to finance is still a key challenge for cities. We believe cities should have better direct access to international climate and infrastructure finance and more support for shared financing models. Bishkek confirms its commitment to the 2030 Agenda and is ready to share its experience in sustainable urban development. Thank you for your attention.

Merci.

Merci beaucoup.

La parole est à Madame.

Thank you very much.

The floor is for Mr. Bill-Marie Kalkersen, President of the Norwegian Association of Local and Regional Government. Sorry for mispronouncing your name.

You have the floor.

At a time when the global SDG progress remains off track, we must show that cities and regions lead the needed transformative action through public services, infrastructure, innovation, and democratic governance. Norway performs quite well on the SDG work, and much of these results are based on the solid work of local and regional authorities. For instance, the regional authorities in Norway are major market developers when it comes to emission-free transportation, and through their strategic procurements, they push the private sector to deliver more sustainable and green technologies that give significant results in the Norwegian emission cuts, and it makes the cities and local communities better to live in. Over 95% of new city buses in Norway are now emission-free, and that shows the power of planning and strategic procurement at the local and regional level. And when it comes to energy, local and regional authorities are working strategically strategically to develop more green and renewable energy locally, especially wind and solar power, in collaboration with business actors and the national government. But to further strengthen this shift, there is a need for more state-funded investments in charging infrastructure and net capacity, and more coordinated and regional planning and collaboration. And the regional authorities in Norway are ambitious working actively together to develop regional industrial synergies and more sustainable and transferable business development. But to succeed, there is still need for adequate funding for local innovation development projects, research, and investments. In Norway, we have lobbied for a national deregulation program to lift the burden of time-consuming and laboring overregulation on the local and regional sector. We hope this will free up time and resources for local and regional development, providing results on their SDG work, and give lasting impact on a sustainable governance model. A vast majority of local and regional authorities in Norway are working actively to implement, measure, and deliver on the SDGs, as documented in our Nordic Subnational Review in 2024. And in the voluntary national review that Norway is presenting at this HLBPF. High levels of trust and cooperation between local, regional, and national authorities are important success factors, as well as a collaborative governance culture that facilitates the involvement of diverse stakeholder groups. We know that political leadership determines success or stagnation in the work with SDGs. and stable political support across all governance levels is essential for accelerating implementation and ensuring that the 2030 Agenda translates into real and lasting impact. I think we know the answers. We need political will. Thank you so much. Merci.

Merci beaucoup.

Thank you. Thank you very much. The floor is now to Mr. Fabien Coquille, Noriega Gorinde, who is representing a city in Peru. Is he in the room?

Fabian.

Merci.

Thank you very much to all the local and regional authorities present, all the delegations, and Your Excellencies. Thank you. Greetings from the National Assembly of Regional Governments and Cash that I chair. And I came here to tell you 2 stories that show that decentralization works. As you know, Peru went through a lot of political instability in 5 years. We had 4 presidents. That created a lot of instability.

Yes.

However, regional governments, we led political and economic stability in the country. $14 billion invested, generating economic growth of 3.5% of the GDP, maintaining the monetary stability in Latin America. Our currency, sol, is one of the most stable currencies I think that's an example of the consolidated effort. That's the first example. The second example is that my region, Ancash, which is a department that is wonderful with 260 kilometers of mountain ranges, lagoons where life is born for the rest of Latin America, we had no commercial flights to connect us with the rest of the country until all the public authorities and private entities showed commitment. And we, in July of 2024, inaugurated flights to our regions. In one single year, Ancash won an international award as the best adventure destination in the world. That puts us on the map. And as someone said, if we want to see the SDG and meet them by 2030, we need to do that at the territories, from the local governments, with the regions, and with the active participation of all the authorities. Greetings from Ancash, Peru, and we welcome you with open arms.

Merci beaucoup.

Thank you very much for your— these stories. I'm giving the floor to Mr. Angama Caballero, Secretary General of External Relations of the Basque Government in Spain. Mr. Caballero.

I'm going to focus primarily on the first question that was presented to the panelists, essentially because there is a sense of urgency in the final lap for the implementation of the Agenda. And I think the Deputy Secretary-General pointed us in the direction for this answer when she said that it's time for enhancing engagement and scaling up. In our view in the Basque Country, the one change that would most directly accelerate progress on the ground is governance. And more specifically collaborative governance. One example of such change is the UN Local 2030 Coalition Secretariat in the Basque city of Bilbao, which has been co-financed by the Government of the Basque Country, by the Spanish Government, by the City Government of Bilbao, and also by the BBK Foundation. So as you see, all 3 levels of government working collaboratively for sustainable development.

And why?

Because it's not just a question about what needs to be done. We have a roadmap, we have a clear roadmap that hasn't been implemented yet, which is the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs, and the real question then is how we govern to make this happen. And the problem is that too often we're working in institutional silos. Governments work separately from one another, Public institutions work separately from finance, business, academia, and other stakeholders, and national and local governments frequently operate through reporting relationships rather than genuine partnerships. But the challenges of our time, we all know— climate change, inequality, digitalization, social cohesion— are systemic challenges, and for those to be solved, we must act collaboratively. We cannot act with fragmented governance. The Basque experience has taught us that the how is as important as the what. Collaborative governance is not simply another management tool. It is the enabling condition for implementation. In the Basque Country, we built this approach, and we have built it through decades, through centuries, drawing from our own tradition called Auzolan in the Basque language, which means working together for the common good and translating our culture into modern democratic governance. We bring together governments across all different levels, universities, businesses, civil society to co-design, co-implement, and evaluate public policies. And this is precisely the philosophy behind the UN Local 2030 Coalition and the Euskadi Local 2030 Hub, with very tangible results that I'll be resuming in a second. 9th Voluntary Progress Report, being the first non-state government to start voluntary reporting. 3rd multi-level, multi-stakeholder reports, including contributions from all 3 levels of governance. And other important results worth highlighting, like the Bilbao Blueprint, creating innovative financial mechanisms, and the creation of the SDG 18 on linguistic and cultural diversity. So once again, we believe that the one most effective change here is moving from consultation to real co-governance, and that's why we believe that better governance is the answer. Thank you very much.

Merci.

Merci beaucoup.

Thank you, thank you very much. And because we are in Spain, I would like to tell you that Spain has won So that is to allow you, you know, to organize yourself for the rest of the process, you know. Now let's cross fingers so that Spain wins the World Cup next Sunday, you know. So that's the topic also of the day, you know. So now Mr. Rachid Khalidi from Morocco has the floor. Rachid, you have the floor. Thank you, Mr. President. He's the President of the Rabat-Salé-Kénitra region in Morocco.

Thank you, Madam Chair, and dear friend, ladies and gentlemen. You know, I'm going to talk, you know, with 2 hats, if you don't mind. I'm the Chair of the Municipal Region of Karabika-Salé-Kénitra and also the Organization of the United Regions, which is an international network which is concerned with the Regionalization. Indeed, today when we talk about the goals, you know, for 2030, everybody works on them— central government, regions. You know, you can't set a policy without using, you know, a territorial authority that is close to the population, that we understand. We must understand well the concerns of the population. We must know well what are the critical and urgent issues. And it is These are the institutions that allow to really to set policies and to obtain the best diagnostics when we talk about the goals that have been established. And I think that today regions are going, you know, are facing difficulties and we need to give them, you know, a chance and better give them, you know, give them a better framework. We give them faster access both for us international financial structure, multilateral, nationals, you know, we need to give them this ability to do some advocacy in the best possible way. We need to give them a framework and a platform where they can interact in an easier way. And also, we need to have a contractual framework both with the regions and with the states which is strong and give guarantees, you know, with international bodies. So these are many challenges that you know that regions are facing. You know, their concerns vary. You know, the regions in the south don't have the same priorities as the regions in the north, and the basic you know priorities you know these you know have special needs. You know, you don't international bodies cannot face in the same way when with the the same level of intensity and rigor, you know, the issues that affect the South and the North. If the North are, you know, living in a more comfortable situation, have different priorities than the regions in the South, we need to understand that, and the advantages should— the benefits should not be monopolized by one group to the detriment of another. The weight of climate change has created serious issues for many territories and regions. The issues of water, for example, you know, are we in a situation of drought or are we facing flooding? You know, let me go back to the issue of my region. You know, we suffered from drought for 10 years and, you know, last year we had flooding. In fact, we had to migrate the populations from one region to another for this reason. So that is to say that, you know, water security is a priority. And Morocco, with the enlightened vision of the King and with the institution, you know, seems, you know, that we have a conversion in this area, developed and shaped a policy. So whether it's— we have beautiful weather or not, you know, we're going— or bad weather, we're going to have transfer of water for regions, you know, to the Benue Valley region where there are, you know, issues of water. We work on different levels— primary level, secondary level. We're also going to work on the covering of all the urban areas for rehabilitation so that we don't have polluted, you know, underground waters. You know, we need to have more dams. We need to give the population safety in terms of food security and water security. In addition to all that, we also have the issue of mobility, and we work a lot in this area. We work with United Nations, and in this area, in parallel, we try to multiply efforts that have been successful in other regions, and we will be aligned on the goals set by the United Nations. Thank you for your kind attention.

Thank you very much, dear Dear brother. So now I'm giving the floor to Mr. Francisco Peña, who's the mayor of Santo Domingo of the Dominican Republic. Excellency, you have the floor. Is he in the room? Francisco?

Yes, I'm here.

Francisco is not here? Oh yes, he's here. Microphone, please. He's not here? Okay, I understand. So we're moving it on to Mrs. Rosanna Melillo Laconi, the Regional Minister of the Independent Region of Sardinia in Italy. Madam, you have the floor.

Thank you.

As a regional minister from the region of Sardinia in Italy, I'm honored to address this high-level assembly today to share our experience. Sardinia has been working on the localization of the 2030 Agenda for 7 years, balancing ecological protection with territorial resilience.

Thank you.

While our voluntary local review demonstrated steady progress, substantial efforts remain necessary. To boost tangible results on the ground, we focus on 2 pivotal dimensions: align funding and multi-level governance. First, we must align funding by connecting sustainability goals directly with financial and administrative instruments. Ensuring all resources converge toward the same vision. This requires robust evaluation and scaling up replicable models. In line with European Union frameworks, Sardinia has integrated its regional targets within dedicated financial mechanisms to drive policy coherence for sustainable development. Second, multilevel governance demands intense vertical cooperation among all levels of government, alongside strong horizontal partnerships that link institutions, academia, the private sector, and civil society. International and national frameworks are crucial to empower local territories. A clear example is our regional landscape plan, which establishes one of the most extensive and rigorous coastal protection zones in the world, spanning up to 5 kilometers inland in the most complex ecosystem. While this plan stands as a proven, a proven best practice, its true effectiveness depends on a stronger governance framework focused on localization. To strengthen this localization, Sardegna 2030 Regional Sustainable Development Forum works as an open platform for all stakeholders, while a regional climate change adaptation strategy integrates concrete measures directly into regional policies. To conclude, I firmly believe that The one change to accelerate progress on the ground is the adoption of an inclusive model of governance and financing. This requires shared responsibility, localized skills, and collective actions. Forza Baris, which in our Sardinian language means forward together.

Thank you.

Thank you very much. Thank you very much. It seems that Francisco is back. Francisco, you have the floor.

Microphone, please.

Microphone, please.

In the municipality of Western Santo Domingo of the Dominican Republic, we, together with the government and through the Municipal League of the Dominican Republic, we plan health policies. Almost 90% of the population has health insurance. We build housing in a partnership between the government and the private sector. Over 3,000 homes have been built, and we've provided homes for some people that have been displaced because of climate change. We've planned to, to build transportation, the metro that was opened last year. We are Also building trams to transport over 800 people per day. With the central government, we are fixing all roads and we're building infrastructure. We're working at the courts to have equality between men and women, so we will provide the We feel proud of being part of this gathering of the regional and local governments.

We—

the central government and Congress in the DR sometimes does want to control our own initiatives in terms of the municipal budgets. Because we're not independent in terms of the budgets. We are limited in resources because the national government decides how much we can spend. Sometimes we don't need resources in some of the things they'd like us to use. We would like some advice from the mayor of Canelones.

Yes.

So he can advise us on solid ways, because this is one of the challenges in my municipality. Thank you very much, and may this forum be longer. We need more time. We need 2 days so that all of us can have the chance to intervene. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Thank you very much. There's a dictum that the last one is always the best loved, so I'd like to give to President or Vice President of the Metropolitan in Spain. It's the day of Spain today.

Colleagues, as we enter the final years of the 2030 Agenda, one lesson is clear: sustainable development will only succeed if it reaches people through quality public services, which are the basis of social and territorial equality. Water sanitation, mobility and public transportation, housing, energy transition, digital connectivity, AI, or waste management, among others, are not only abstract global goals but are at the core of the daily life of people. This is precisely where metropolitan governments have a unique responsibility. In fact, the Global Goals converted as public services I just mentioned are some of the ones we manage directly from the metropolitan area of Barcelona. In Barcelona, we have learned that challenges related to the subjects mentioned before do not stop at municipal boundaries. Although we are formed by 36 municipalities, all of them know that these challenges require metropolitan governance, long-term planning, and strong cooperation between all levels of government. And this is also closely linked to a broader concern. At a time when authoritarianism is raising its voice both globally and locally, we need to strengthen our institutions with a clear objective: improving public services and ultimately defending democracy. This is not also an abstract idea. It requires political vision and will, strong action, and strong but shared decisions. Metropolitan areas, in fact, are where global agendas meet people's daily life. Because of that, they are the territories where many global commitments will either succeed or fail. And despite this importance, the metropolitan scale still needs greater recognition in global debates. And this is why I would like to sincerely thank UCLG to accept all the contributions that we have done to include the metropolitan perspective in the final statement of the Global Task Force. But local and metropolitan governments cannot deliver the SDGs alone. One of the greatest barriers remains access to finance. Local and regional governments are responsible for implementing many of the investments needed to achieve the SDGs, yet international financing mechanisms continue to reach territories only indirectly and often insufficiently. For this reason, we believe that the road to the 27th SDG Summit must include stronger recognition of metropolitan and local governments as strategic partners. At the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona, we have done our voluntary metropolitan review, and this review shows that our territory, as the other metropolitan areas, are not merely implementing global agendas, they are actively shaping them. And to conclude, if we want to accelerate SDGs, we must empower the level of governance closest to people, The future of SDGs will be decided in our neighborhoods, cities, and metropolitan areas. Let us ensure that local and metropolitan governments have the resources, the recognition, and the partnerships needed to deliver it. Thank you very much.

Merci beaucoup.

Thank you very much. Thank you very much. I'd like to thank all the different speakers and their Very rich. I'd like to thank that presentation, and that is in France, in the football as well. I'd like to give the floor to my dear colleague and friend, Barry, the mayor of Kitchener in Canada. You have the floor.

Thank you very much. For chairing of this last session. We're now into the final period of our afternoon together. I'm sorry, I'm just trying to get my agenda back up here. Thank you, Mr. President. We will move into panel number 3, which is focused on the UN's engagement with local and regional governments towards the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This panel will discuss the recommendations in the Secretary-General's report, who I just happened to see out in the hallway and thanked him for his support of local governments during his Uh, tenure as, uh, as Secretary-General.

Testing, 1, 2, 3, do you hear me?

The 10th anniversary, and the discussion, uh, will focus on the New Urban Agenda as the framework, uh, to support the 2030 Agenda implementation. Some guiding questions for the panelists included specific steps that are most urgent to ensure the local regional government engagement moves from advocacy to action, action-oriented decision-making, a focus on housing with nearly 3 billion people living in inadequate housing, and as we move into that final stretch to 2030 and prepare for the 2027 SDG Summit, how can we ensure that localization and local and regional governments will indeed be central in shaping the future global agendas? The panel will examine strengthening these partnerships within the UN system and at this critical moment and looking at the period forward. And so I'd like to begin by giving the floor to Mr. Claudio Barbato, the Under-Secretary of State for the Ministry of Environment and Energy Security from Italy, to make the opening comments.

Thank you, Mr. President. Italy considers SDG localization not simply as an implementation tool, but as an essential dimension of the entire 2030 Agenda. Our experience demonstrates that sustainable development becomes truly effective when global ambitions are translated into territorial policies, local governance capacities, and concrete action. This vision is fully embedded in Italy's National Sustainable Development Strategy. Which from the outset established the requirement to translate national objectives into territorial strategies. Over time, this requirement has evolved into a mature system of multi-level governance built on policy coherence for sustainable development, shared coordination mechanisms, and an integrated monitoring framework. We're convinced that this approach also represents a concrete contribution to the implementation of the Pact for the Future, which calls for a more effective, inclusive, and result-oriented multilateralism capable of strengthening cooperation across all fields of government. In this regard, I am particularly pleased to recall that Italy's Voluntary National Review presented this year incorporates the contribution of 14 voluntary local reviews prepared by regional and metropolitan cities. This is tangible evidence of our multilevel government model. This same approach inspired Italy, together with UN-Habitat, to launch the Partnership Platform on Localizing the SDGs. And as a natural consequence, to support the vision of the Local 23 Coalition. Within this framework, together with the countries presenting their voluntary national reviews this year, we have developed a joint message on SDG localization aimed at strengthening the transition from ambition to implementation and from commitments to measurable results. This issue is particularly timely in this year's review of SDG 11 and of the New Urban Agenda. The challenge we face today, from the housing crisis to social inequalities, the sustainable management manifest themselves first and foremost at the local level. For this reason, it is essential to recognize regions, cities, and local authorities as strategic partners in the design and implementation of sustainable development policies. These are also priorities Italy has consistently promoted in the ongoing negotiations. In particular, as we reflect on the future of the New Urban Agenda, our message is clear: strengthen multi-level governance, advance SDG localization, and reinforce policy coherence for sustainable development. These are the tools that enable us to translate global commitments into tangible results for citizens and territories. Italy stands ready to play its part together with all of you. Thank you.

No longer than 3 minutes, and I will next go to the Mayor of Al-Madinah, Saudi Arabia, Mr. Fahad Al-Bulihashi.

Mr. Chairman, Your Excellencies, peace be upon you. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia underscores its commitment to the UN Pact for the Future and the systematic integration of local and regional authorities into global frameworks, ensuring that they have a seat at the decision-making table. Guided by our wise leadership, Saudi Vision 2030 empowers regional authorities to localize the SDGs. Its 3 pillars— a vibrant society, a thriving economy, and an ambitious nation— balance economic, social, and environmental development. Last year I shared here Medina's Neighborhood Atlas, the first global attempt to analyze sustainable development at the neighborhood level. Today I return to share what happens when SDG localization moves from a single event to an institutionalized system built on globally unified foundations, including ESG city standards, to unlock sustainable Investment. Medina has completed its second voluntary local review as a continuous cycle of trend data and evidence-informed policy adjustment. We strive for it to serve as a critical subnational foundation feeding into the kingdom's voluntary national reviews, the most recent of which is represented at this year's HLPF, a bridge reducing silos between local and national decision makers and a replicable path for peer cities. Through these local reviews, we underscore the urgent need to accelerate progress on Goals 6, 7, 9, and 11 under review this year. As for Goal 17, Medina's journey has taught us that data and policy are only as powerful as the cooperative frameworks that drive them. This people-centered approach earned Medina the 2025 Shanghai Award for Sustainable Development in Cities by UN-Habitat. We are prepared to convene, we are prepared to partner, and we are prepared to serve. In these final years before 2030 as one of the first contributors to this global countdown. And I thank you for your attention.

Good afternoon.

My name is María del Mar. I'm the mayor of Almería, part of the Autonomous Community of Andalucía in southern Spain. It's a pleasure to be here today as vice president of the Andalusian Fund of Municipalities for International Solidarity, FEMSI, and to hear the voices of the countries, of the cities that work to achieve a fairer world. More supportive, and more aware of its collective responsibilities. If you don't mind, from now on I'll speak in my native language.

This is a key moment, less than 5 years from the 2030 Agenda, when our success or failure of SDGs will be decided in the cities and the territories. Local and regional governments are Those know best the real needs of our communities. This is why the challenge is not just to recognize our role, but rather— because we already do— the real challenge is to turn that into effective participation in international governance and in stable mechanisms of financing, cooperation, and decision-making. FAMSI supports this focus: decentralized cooperation between local and regional governments, which generates practical solutions, strengthens institutional capacities, and creates lasting partnerships between territories. Almería is a city that has over 140 nationalities that live together in harmony among 205,000 inhabitants.

Urban—

we face challenges such as urban growth, pressure on water resources, adapting to climate change. We have the only desert in Europe, social integration, the increase of migrations, and access to a decent home. We've had a local action plan for the urban agenda in Almería, our roadmap to local localize the 2030 Agenda. It has been already accomplished up to 70%. We integrate sustainability, social cohesion, environmental transition, and citizens' participation, aligning the policies with the SDGs and the new urban agenda at the UN. May I give you a practical example to face global challenges such as the lack of housing. Cities in Spain are not competent in terms of housing, but we do build public homes and renovate private homes so that we can offer it to access— an accessible housing, helping young people to rent their first home. The Autonomous Community of Andalusia, the University of Almería, the private sector, and the European Union and Spain show that this cooperation, multilateralism, is efficient to turn international commitment into tangible results for its people. And this goes back to what we do in FANCY. The New Urban Agenda gives us this framework. We need 3 fundamental elements. Real multilevel governance, financing adapted to local realities, and to strengthen the cooperation networks between the local and regional governments.

The multilateral system has an extraordinary opportunity to fully integrate local and regional governments as strategic partners, not just as policy implementers, but as and actors—

sorry—

who help design, implement, and evaluate those policies. And I finish with Peter Drucker: the best way to predict the future is to create it. So let's create it together.

Thank you so much.

Gracias por sus proposiciones.

Next, we will go to Mayor Wim Dries, the mayor of Genk, Belgium. Mayor Genk, the floor is yours.

Thank you, and also from me, Excellencies, colleagues, leaders, local leaders of many cities, I'm Wim Dries, I'm the mayor of the city of Genk, and I'm also the president of the umbrella association of Belgian cities and communities. Local governments are still too often invited to share good practices only after key decisions have been made. In the final stretch to 2030, we should move from visibility to real influence. I would propose 3 shifts. First, from recognition to structured influence. We are not starting from zero. The Local and Regional Governments Forum, the Local 2030 Coalition, the Secretary-General's Advisory Group, and the growing use of VLRs and VSRs already provide valuable entry points. The next step is to connect and strengthen them, anchor this forum more firmly within the ECOSOC HLPF architecture, create a formal follow-up track for its recommendations, and ensure that local input feeds systematically into UN decisions and country-level programming. We could also introduce a territorial delivery test. Before major UN commitments are adapted, a representative group of cities and regions should assess whether they can be implemented with the mandates, data capacity, and finance available on the ground. The UN should then report how that feedback shaped the final decision. Second, From housing targets to territorial housing compacts, in which different partners jointly agree on how to turn the right to housing into concrete actions. A home is never alone a building. It is also land, energy, water, mobility, care, public space, and belonging. In Flanders, more than 250,000 active applications for social housing remained open at the end of 2025. This shows why housing requires more than isolated construction projects. It requires agreements that connect national funding and mandates with local planning, neighbourhood knowledge, and long-term delivery. Ghent offers a practical lesson. The city calculated what it would take to make its own building stock climate neutral by 2050. Including future energy savings. We then used a sustainable finance framework to seek green loans— we were the first in Belgium to do so— and embedded climate ambitions in binding spatial planning instruments. Global ambitions become durable when responsibilities, rules, data, and budgets come together in one territory. Third, from local evidence to global accountability. Flemish municipalities increasingly use indicators, multiannual plans, and public reporting to connect the SDGs to budgets and decisions. 60% already use the SDGs in their policy cycle, and 9 out of 10 have progressed on SDG 11 since 2014. This local evidence should shape the future global agenda. So ahead of 2027, No urban agenda without local governments as co-authors. No housing promises without a territorial delivery plan. And no UN strategy without a permanent local government table. Only when local and regional governments are recognized as equal partners can global ambition truly be translated into tangible results for citizens on the ground. Ladies and gentlemen, local governments are not the last mile of multilateralism. We are in the heart of where it happens, and as we said before, the SDGs will be local or they won't be. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mayor Dries. I like that line, we're the heart of where it happens. I think it's one that we can all continue to use. Our next Our next speaker is Monsieur Antoine Le Saluze, the Deputy Mayor of Nancy, France. Mayor Le Saluze?

Wonderful.

Mr. Mayor, Madam Chair, Madam the Secretary-General, Well, thank you very much to all. Ladies and gentlemen, in your own capacity, dear friends, because I'm a little bit sad as a Frenchman to take the floor this afternoon, you know, but I'm very happy also to take the floor as a Deputy Mayor of the town of Nancy, the town of Michel Platini. It's also the city that welcomed the Urban 7 meeting, the G7 of the mayors, and the Nancy Statement that came out of Urban 7 You know, talks about the UN has been underscored by the Secretary-General of the United Nations in the context of Action 55, in the context of the Pact for the Future. We are at a key moment, you know, strengthen the role of the United Nations with local governments. It's not just an institutional evolution, it's a requirement for the success of the 2030 Agenda. Now, we have less than 4 years before the end of the agenda, and we all know one thing: We won't reach and achieve the 2030 goal if local governments continue to be considered as simple operators that are in charge of implementing policies that have been decided elsewhere without having the means to implement such policy. Everybody knows— we see that throughout the world, local government, we provide local services, answer the crisis, meet the crisis. Thank you. Work on the ecological transition and then provide results for billions of people. So the issue is not if local governments should be associated with the work. The real issue is that our multilateral system, you know, is ready to fully recognize the role played by local governments. The answer to the question is all the more necessary because they work within decentralized cooperation, which is based on reciprocity and sharing of competency to meet the goals and achieve the goals. We need to go from a consultation rationale to a governance rationale, you know, at multi-levels. That requires 3 concrete commitments. Firstly, territorial governments will be more associated to the national delegation during the main national international conferences. And secondly, They need to be able to access in a more direct way, in a more predictable way, and a more equitable way to international financing in order to transform their global commitment to local actions. And thirdly, the United Nations should recognize fully the local government networks, and I should mention here, I would mention the UCRG as an international partner of the multilateral system associated not just implementation, but the design of international policy. I would like to add a 4th priority: climate crisis and geopolitical or health crisis or other, you know, reminders that local governments are the very first one to act, you know, in such crisis. And yet we still don't have an international mechanism to allow local governments to coordinate quickly their, you know, response. So strengthening multilateralism means also strengthening the resilience of territories and local government and the ability to cooperate in a crisis. The New Urban Agenda has showed us that sustainable development is firstly built in the territories, and the report of Secretary-General offers us to go through the next step and to recognize local governments as actors of governance at the global level. Now, coming up with the summit in 27 Summit, and we need to adopt a very key principle: nothing about the localization of SDGs without local governments. Thank you. Thank you very much, Mr. Mayor.

And now it will be Yuri Colorado, the Mayor of Muisne, Ecuador. Señora Colorado.

Good afternoon. Hi, and good afternoon. It's such a pleasure to be here today. I bring you greetings from Ecuador. My name is Yuri Colorado. I am the mayor of Whistley, a canton with 42,000 people. When we took on the mayorship, it had 99% percent of basic needs that were not met. We didn't have drinking water, no sewage system, so you can imagine we had no parks or no trees. I'd like to thank the national government, the Development Bank, the French cooperation, the Spanish cooperation, JIZ, because of these international contributions, Contributors, MUSENE was able to get $23 million that are not reimbursable, 7 with credit operations. I am 42 years old. My father is 80. My grandfather died when he was 100. I also have 2 children, so I must say that after one century of waiting, in August of this year, my canton will finally have drinking water. We continue to work to shorten the gap, which unfortunately sentences our children to chronic malnutrition, which would allow and prevent them to improve their lives because it affects them, their growth. It's clear for us that local governments, if we join together, if we join international cooperation, national governments understanding that unity is strength, and that will be the way. And then we will be able to have the development of each canton. I am today the chair of the national institution that represents 222 cantons. I must tell you that our commitment and our firm will from all the mayors to contribute to the achievement of the SDGs for the people who need them most, people who today have no voice. Once again, also let me tell all my women and the female mayors, congratulations, and to the men that support us, thank you as well. For local and regional governments to move forward so that development can reach the people who need it We need more women in decision-making spaces so we can govern with excellence. Thank you very much.

Muchas gracias, señora Colorado. Our second— our third last speaker in this section will be Mr. Giorgio Maione, the Minister of the Environment and Climate for the Lombardy region of Italy.

Best to all.

Today's event, my dear colleagues, shows that regional governments and local municipalities are establishing robust governance mechanisms and demonstrating their ability to strengthen the financial credibility and stability of their— and financial stability of our territories. And this enhances their capacity to attract investment and resources for development. One example, in Lombardy, we have in the recent months enacted reforms, a law on climate, a law on localization of facilities for producing renewable energies, a new law on assessing the environment, and a law on data centers And respect for these projects will attract more than €22 billion to our territory. Lombardy manages a multitude of initiatives that translate the 2030 Agenda into concrete actions on the territory. We do this through the strategy, a regional strategy, in Lombardy for sustainable development, which has 100 goals and 70 targets, in addition to the participation in 2 international networks. We're investing to assure the availability of water and to protect ourselves from The heat bubbles, given the dramatic predictions for climate change, with— through an integrated strategy for climate adaptation, through the regional prelim for the air and the climate, we are planning and making massive investments in energy sector to assure energy independence in our territory. Our territory produces 100 kilowatts of energy and consumes 62. We support the cities at the technical and financial level to make their territory inclusive and resilient using public competitions and supporting Local initiatives and the message into protection of the territory from ecological disaster. All of this because we have a system of governments which allows internal government between different levels of government at a constant level with the actors in the territory together with measuring the impact of the NSDs allows us to truly project sustainable development long-term for— measured to our territory. I believe that if the world, if our planet wishes to achieve the objectives of 2030, it's indispensable that we recognize sufficiently the role of subnational governments because they Supporting the new goals must fully recognize their role in ensuring the effective management of development resources. Thank you.

Grazie mille, Ministro Maloney. I'd now like to give the floor to Mr. Umar Silla, the Director of the Regional Office of Africa, UN-Habitat.

Thank you, Chair. It is an honor to join this panel. At a defining moment for the 2030 Agenda, for the New Urban Agenda on its 10th anniversary, as we are here this week as well for the review of the 4th year implementation, but also for give us opportunity as United Nations to engage with local and regional governments. As been mentioned, the Secretary-General report under Action 55, paragraph E, give us a real Not another platform, but a mandate to align the mechanism that already exists so that local and regional governments are not consulted after the fact, but embedded where decisions on implementations, finance, and accountability are actually made. This is also the lesson of the New Urban Agenda's first decade of implementation. With nearly 3 billion people living in inadequate housing, the New Urban Agenda has taught us that the right to adequate housing is not delivered by declaration. We heard about it from the Special Envoy. It is delivered through land planning, finance, national capacity, and functioning partnership between national and local government, as we talk about multi-level governance system. The scale will be repeating.

Nearly 3 billion people will be living in inadequate housing by 2030, requiring close to 96,000 new affordable units every day. This is why UN-Habitat services the Open-Ended Working Group on Adequate Housing for All under Resolution 2/7, whose 2 Nairobi session with over 350 experts from 79 countries who produced draft recommendations on social housing, tenure security, informal settlement, and financing. From UN-Habitat experience, particularly across Africa, the pattern is consistent: rapid urbanization, informality, climate vulnerability, and housing pressure are territorial challenges that no single level of government can solve alone. This is why our strategic plan 2026-2029 places housing, land-based services, and multi-level governance at the center of our work, and why we act on it through 3 connected platforms. UN-Habitat is proud to co-chair the Local 2030 Coalition, the UN System Platform for SDG Localization. The coalition is now the delivery platform used by its 15 United Nations member entities to localize UN action. As a result, over 2,000 local and regional organizations engaged through the Road to Processes and $8 million mobilized through the Bilbao Bootcamp with the UN SDGs fund, leveraging more than $300 million further investment. Jointly with Italy Ministry of Environment and Security, the Partnership Platform on Localization SDGs is helping countries build national SDG localization framework, durable multi-level governance architecture for territorial transformation, not one-off projects. And SDGs Cities is turning this into investment on the ground, already active in more than 200 cities, helping them move from data to bankable pipeline on the way to our target of 1,000 cities and 1 billion lives by 2030. As we move to the road of 2027 SDGs, that means 4 shifts, my role directly in the Secretariat, general and recommendations that UN-Habitat is strongly adhering. First, systematic inclusion of local regional government in decision-making and not occasional consultations. Finance that reaches the local level, not just resources that pass through it. Mandate and national framework aligned across levels of government so authority and responsibility match. And lastly, accountability built on local data and monitoring, so we can see and prove what implementation actually delivers. As UN-Habitat, we look forward to strengthening our collaboration with local and regional governments moving forward. Thank you so much, Chair.

Thank you very much, Director of UN-Habitat Africa, Silla. For our last intervention in this section before we go into the Closing, Señora Paloma Palacios González, the Head of the Representation Office of the Executive Branch of the State of Querétaro in Mexico City, the representative of Mexico. Señora González.

Thank you very much, distinguished Chair, Excellencies. It is an honor to address this forum on behalf of the Governor of the State of Querétaro, Mauricio Curi González, and the people of Querétaro. As we enter the final stretch toward 2030, our collective experience has shown that achieving the Sustainable Development Goals requires the leadership, commitment, and action of local governments. In Querétaro, we have learned that sustainable development is most effective when people are placed at the center of public policy, because ultimately the SDGs are not only measured by indicators, but by their impact on people's lives. This principle has guided our approach to public policy. Through long-term planning, citizen participation, and collaboration across sectors, we have worked to ensure that development responds to people's needs and aspirations. More than 100,000 citizens contributed to our State Development Plan. While over 400,000 citizens participated in the development of Querétaro 2050, our long-term strategic plan. This people-centered approach has delivered tangible results. Over the past 2 years, 122,796 people have overcome poverty in Querétaro. Food security has improved and we have expanded a public transportation system that is safer, more accessible, and more inclusive, helping connect more people to opportunities, service, and a better quality of life. According and accelerating the implementation of the 2030 Agenda requires cooperation, shared responsibility, and partnership that connect local action with global priorities. By empowering local governments, expanding access to financing and technical cooperation, collaboration across sectors, we can translate international commitments into tangible improvements for our communities. As we look toward 2030, the choices we make over the next 4 years will shape the future we leave for our generations to come. Let us continue working together to build a more inclusive, resilient, and sustainable future for all. Thank you very much.

Muchas gracias, señora González.

Thank you, Ms. González.

Sorry, just realized that's still in Italian. Grazie per la sua interventione.

Thank you for your remark and for welcoming the world in this past 4 weeks together with the United States and Canada. Thank you for hosting the World Cup.

This, this week or this week is all about cities and all about the World Cup. And I have to give the local government leaders in this room kudos because I received a picture from some Canadian colleagues of what was happening up on the 2nd floor delegates lounge. And while all of the local government people stayed in here and did their work this afternoon, it seems like things may be ground to a halt elsewhere in the building. But with that, thank you everyone for your interventions and for your input and for your passion about the role that cities must play in the post-2030 agenda. I think if any of us came with any apprehensions, we left optimistic.

Thank you.

We will leave optimistic and hopeful of what the future looks like. And for the closing now, I'd like to turn it over to my friend and colleague and someone who works endless hours with the UCLG team making things like this happen, fresh off of our World Congress, the UCLG Secretary General, Emilia Saez.

Thank you, Thank you very much, Mayor Brabanović, and thank you to all the local and regional governments that have been chairing the different sessions today, and all of you that have really given the key examples of the solutions that we have found at a local and regional government level. It is a pleasure for me to facilitate this closing session, and I am very pleased and thank her for her patience that we have the Executive Director of UN-Habitat back among us this afternoon. Dear Ana Claudia Rosbach, the floor is yours.

Thank you, Emilia. Thank you, moderator. I promise I was not watching the game.

Congratulations.

Also, congratulations to the teams both, and the winners, of course. But yeah, what do I have to say at this point in time? Perhaps a big thank you. Thank you for the partnership with the Global Task Force of Local and Regional Governments. It has been a longstanding partnership for UN-HAFTAD. We have been through many things together. The partnership within the UN family— UNDESA, thank you so much, UNDP, thank you so much for this collaboration. We have been anchoring our work around localization more and more on the Local 2030 Coalition. Supported by the Platform, our work on SDG Cities and so on, because we believe that this coalition is pretty much aligned with the spirit of UN80, of the reform. We have 15 UN organizations engaged in the coalition, so this is the place to go to liaise, you know, on a practical level, on a day-to-day level, because the solutions that are coming out of the The boot camps, all the exercises that we do through the coalition, they can help cities on a daily basis. I think, Emilia, the combination of having this forum here at the High-Level Political Forum, spaces for the voices of the local and regional governments throughout the UN conferences, is fundamental, it's important, as is stated by the Secretary-General on his report based on paragraph 55 that has been mentioned several, several times. We have a couple of conferences, important conferences ahead of us this year, the 3 COPs. We have the UN Water Conference, so we have to make sure— of course, the UNGA— we have to make sure that these perspectives are there somehow, but I believe the Local 2030 Coalition helps also to localize these efforts and to offer practical guidance and means to local and regional governments and to national governments on how to localize the SDGs. We spoke about SDG 11 and how off-track we are, and our report that was launched last week shows it. We advanced in several areas, We have, yes, more people having access to public transportation. Yes, we have more people having access to waste, solid waste management. Yes, we do have. We have many more countries with national urban policies, which is great, great news, but we are still very, very off track in terms of having public spaces for people, in terms of air quality, and housing, housing in informal settlements that has been repeatedly mentioned here in this conversation. We cannot get there as long as we have 1 billion people living in informal settlements, 2 billion people without access to water. This is the basic of the basics, people without roof over their heads. This happy coincidence that this week, along this week, these 2 weeks, we are looking back at the SDG 11, we are looking at— the member states are looking at the ECOSOC, we are looking after 10 years of the New Urban Agenda, 10 years ahead, so it's really a moment for us to pause and reflect. Maybe really the last mile, which shouldn't be because local governments should have been in the first mile, ahead, but perhaps the last mile is really the gap in delivery at the local level, because we haven't been able to have all the resources lined up, the finances lined up, and all the policies lined up, and really landing at the local level how it should land, so that you all can act with your peers. We're just coming also from a very successful, I would say, World Urban Forum, with 58,000 participants, 176 member states, so this reveals that we have a strong urban community out there, partners that we all have— universities, civil society, the whole of the UN was strongly present at the World Urban Forum, and of course representatives from the local and regional government staff working technical level working there. So it shows that we have a strong and solid community. Just for you to understand these numbers, I mean the same in the same place where we had the World Urban Forum, we had a COP in two years ago, and we we didn't have this amount of.

people participating.

So, it is a strong community, and these are the assets that we have to count on and to acknowledge and to count on. And then finally, I could say a lot about what UN-HCTAD has been doing, but Omar said already in his speech, so I will not repeat. But what I want to say is that, Emilia, I remember we here in this room 10 years ago, or 11 maybe.

11.

This same room, yeah. And I remember you and I sitting in the same room, and I think I said that last year as well, but let's not forget that, how beautiful it was, the process of lining up the 2030 Agenda in 2015, the process of the New Urban Agenda lining up and the climate. So everything happened in these 2 years. So it was a magic moment where we had a lot of hope and we had a lot of expectations and we knew we could do that. So let's keep that.

Let's keep that alive.

Yeah, because we have many challenges ahead, but we have a strong community. We know how and we have the spirit. Thank you very much.

Thank you, Ana Claudia, for giving us this hopeful frame to look towards, but also for acknowledging some of the very important foresight that you have. That has been done and the building of these very meaningful agendas that we still have. We shouldn't let ourselves be driven by temporary context and forget the important agendas that we have been giving ourselves for humanity. I am very pleased that with these very inspiring words from the Executive Director, I am able now to give the floor floor to Navid Hanif. In his many roles here at the United Nations system, and I don't dare to say the years that we go back, Navid, because it's too many already, he has helped me in particular, but above all, local and regional governments navigate this very complex system. I am very pleased that you able to provide the closing as well to this meaningful forum this year. Naveed, welcome, Assistant Secretary-General for Economic Development of UNDESA.

Thank you, Amelia. It's always a pleasure to join you on such panels, and as you said, we won't mention the years that we have worked together. But mayors and governors, delegates, and of course, Executive Director of UN-Habitat, Secretary-General of UCLG, all of you, it's very energizing. I mean, at 6'10, you have so much energy. So local governments will drive the sustainable development beyond 2030, no doubt about it.

I have a written text, but I will just share 3 messages with you because it's too late. I think it looks increasingly evident the future of sustainable development will be decided by the public institutions, what they actually deliver, and that's why localization has moved from margins to the center of 2030 Agenda. You are not only key actors, you are co-authors. Yes.

Of the agenda and what will follow beyond 2030. So we foresee local authorities, governments will be shaping institutions that will work together, and that's my second point: development challenges no longer fit neatly within administrative boundaries. Floods ignore municipal borders, Labour markets span regions, digital services connect entire countries, so public institutions must become as connected as the problems they are trying to solve, and that's where regional networks, local networks will be critical. Lastly, partnership is no longer an option, it's a public infrastructure. And that's how multilateralism is changing. It's no more governments sitting together and taking decisions; it's all of you who are shaping multilateralism, and that's why you are the co-authors of sustainable development. And lastly, UNDESA is committed to supporting this transformation through better data, stronger policy tools, digital innovation, infrastructure management, and practical guidance for local action. DESA is your dependable, unwavering partner. Trust in us, we are here to support you. Thank you, Emilia.

Thank you very much. My colleagues from from the Global Task Force have left, because everybody has so many things to do, but I just want to remind you, if you haven't gotten enough and you want to hear more examples of what we are trying to do, but also the aspirations of local and regional governments, we still have a Local and Regional Governments Day tomorrow across the road, starting at 10 o'clock, so don't miss it. The final words that I think resonate from all the comments that we have received is that there is a multilateral system that is not in crisis, that actually works, that is based on proximity, that is based on solidarity, that is grounded on inclusion and delivering local service provision. That's the multilateral system that we want to continue building with you. Thank you very much. See you tomorrow. Thank you all.