Circular
15/2021
Barcelona, 7 June 2021
 
To the members of the World Council
To the Secretaries General
To the Vice-Presidents of United Cities and Local Governments
To the Chairs of UCLG Committees, Working Groups, Communities of Practice and Fora

For information: To the Presidency


Up-dates on the 2021 United Nations High-Level Political Forum

 

Dear members,
 
We are writing to you to provide you up-dates on the 2021 United Nations High-Level Political Forum (HLPF).
 
As you know, the 2021 HLPF will be held from Tuesday, 6 July, to Thursday, 15 July 2021, under the theme "Sustainable and resilient recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic that promotes the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development: building an inclusive and effective path for the achievement of the 2030 Agenda in the context of the decade of action and delivery for sustainable development".
 
Nine Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will be in review this year: 1 on no poverty, 2 on zero hunger, 3 on good health and well-being, 8 on decent work and economic growth, 10 on reduced inequalities, 12 on responsible consumption and production, 13 on climate action, 16 on peace, justice and strong institutions, and 17 on partnerships.
 
As in previous years, UCLG, on behalf of the Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Governments (GTF), is coordinating the participation of our constituency within the HLPF as well as the reporting on the role of local and regional governments in the localization of the SDGs, which will be presented in July 2021.
 
The Global Taskforce’s annual report "Towards the Localization of the SDGs" will particularly focus on highlighting local and regional governments ’contribution to SDG 3 (health) and its interaction with the other reported SDGs. The evidence presented in this report will be grounded in the experiences shared through the 263 surveys received this year from local and regional governments and their associations from 92 different countries, 28 of which are reporting this year. With multiple examples of inspiring practices, it will echo the voices of LRGs and their call for an inclusive, sustainable and resilient recovery.
 
Deepening the sharing of experiences in favor of SDG localization, three workshops brought together local government associations presenting a Voluntary Subnational Review (VSR) in 2021, between March, April and May. Following the success of the six VSR pilot countries in 2020, local governments associations from Cape Verde, Germany, Indonesia, Mexico, Norway, Sweden, Tunisia and Zimbabwe reported on the progress of local governments towards the 2030 Agenda. Furthermore, triggering evolution in the way policy making is carried out, VSRs proved to be a transformative tool towards more effective multilevel governance mechanisms and to strengthen the involvement of local governments in national strategies and coordination mechanisms for SDG implementation.
 
The Local Authorities Major Group (LAMG), gathered within the Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Governments, also participated in the informal consultations with UN Member States on the review of the implementation of the HLPF, and on the 2021 ministerial declaration. The informal consultations on the review and implementation of the HLPF, co-facilitated by the Permanent Representatives of Austria and Senegal, will play a role in shaping ECOSOC and the HLPF for the next two years. In the current zero draft of the HLPF reform resolution, references to “continuing to involve local authorities” are present throughout the document as well as a dedicated paragraph on the importance of “bolstering local action” and “voluntary local reviews”. In the current draft of the 2021 ministerial declaration, co-facilitated by the Permanent Representatives of Finland and Iraq, paragraph 35 speaks directly “to involving and empowering local authorities” to ensure local ownership of the global goals and also to support voluntary local reviews.
 
Additionally, the LAMG submitted a sectoral position paper for the 2021 High-Level Political Forum. The paper is based on the constituency’s previous joint statements and contributions to the HLPF and to the UN General Assembly Special Session on COVID-19 as well as includes recommendations for a more inclusive HLPF.
 
Below is an overview of the events of the delegation of local and regional governments:
 
Wednesday, July 7th:

• TBC - Local Authorities Major Group Side Event gathered within the Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Governments. Organized by the GTF. The session will have a special focus on the SDGs in review in the 2021 HLPF as well as social inclusion and the concept of a caring society, resilience and biodiversity, and governance and local democracy.

 
Thursday, July 8th:

• TBC - Venice City Solutions Event: Organized by UCLG, AICCRE and UN-Habitat. The session will be presenting the final results of the previous Venice City Solutions event, and showcase different solutions presented by partners to implement the 2030 Agenda.
• TBC - Accelerating Local Action: Organized by UN-DESA and UCLG. An official Special Event of the High-Level Political Forum on the UN’s acceleration actions initiative to promote the achievement of the SDGs followed by an LRG specific event presenting Local4Action HUBs as acceleration actions.
• Going Local Thematic Official Session: Organized by UN-DESA. An official session within the HLPF program focusing on how to support local and regional governments in achieving the SDGs and how we can best build on voluntary local reviews.

 
Friday, July 9th:

• Local and Regional Governments Day: Organized by the Global Taskforce. The objective of the LRG Day is to bring together the delegation of local and regional governments to discuss the findings of the report on the state of localization, discuss and agree on the constituency's Statement to the HLPF, and define the priorities of the constituency for the post-COVID-19 era.

 
Monday, July 12th/Tuesday, July 13th:

• Local and Regional Governments Forum:  Organized by the GTF, UN-DESA, UN-Habitat, UNDP and Local 2030. The fourth Local and Regional Governments Forum will bring together local, regional and national governments to discuss how decentralized cooperation among local and regional governments and their associations and networks, national authorities and the international community can contribute to the achievement of the global goals. You can read the concept note for reference.

 
Wednesday, July 14th, Thursday, July 15th and Friday, July 16th:

• Voluntary Local/Subnational Review Days: Organized by UCLG and UN-Habitat. The objective of the VLR-VSR Days is to provide a space for exchange, mutual learning and common reflection for all governments and stakeholders engaged in advancing the localization, monitoring and reporting of the SDGs.

 
Dates TBC

• Chinese Local Action Towards COP: Organized by the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) and UCLG. The session will focus on action spearheaded from the local level in the Chinese context towards COP26.
• Territorial Approaches for Inclusive and Resilient Food Systems Side Event: Organized by UN-Habitat, FAO, UNCDF and UCLG. The side event aims to bring innovative solutions that governments are applying to strengthen food systems and achieve SDGs at the local and regional levels.
• Event on Educational Environments Free from Harassment and School Violence: Organized by UNICEF, the UN Special Envoy on Disability and UCLG. The event will be dedicated to promoting ways to achieve educational environments free from harassment and school violence towards girls, boys and adolescents with disabilities and adopt a manifesto in this regard.   

 
We will follow up with more information including concept notes and agendas once available. We remain at your disposal for any questions you might have. Do not hesitate writing to us at policy@uclg.org.
 
Sincerely,

The UCLG World Secretariat