Our Approach

The Global Urban Monitoring Framework (UMF) was endorsed by the UN Statistical Commission in March 2022 for implementation as part of the Harmonized Global UN Systemwide Strategy for monitoring the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), New Urban Agenda (NUA) and other regional, national, and subnational urban programs. It harmonizes existing urban indexes and tools, and applies over 70 indicators to generate baseline data and the track performance of cities and region against performance indicators, domains, and city objectives. 

With the guidance of UN-Habitat, several cities are already implementing the UMF, collecting baseline data on the SDGs and therefore playing a key role in the elaboration of Voluntary Local Reviews. 

The UMF is a city diagnosis tool that enables the evaluation of urban challenges, trends and public policies in cities, ensuring thematic integration and disaggregation of data and strengthening the alignment of national and local reporting processes for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.

Learn more about the UMF

Download the UMF Guide

A Practical example of UMF in use:       
La Paz is the first city in Latin America and one of the first in the world to adopt the Global Urban Monitoring Framework into their VLR, promoting a new generation for city-to-city comparison around SDGs and other global frameworks. 

Read the VLR of La Paz to see the adoption of the UMF in practice.

Voluntary Local Reviews (VLRs) are a process to monitor SDG achievement at the local level and powerful accelerators of the SDG localization process. As their use is gradually adopted by more and more local and regional governments from around the globe, VLRs have become an instrument to orient strategic planning, financing, and initiatives through the SDG lens. That is why UN-Habitat supports the development of action oriented VLRs, connecting monitoring to planning, and fostering horizontal and vertical policy coherence

The VLR global movement is growing day by day: more than 215 local and regional governments have developed VLRs from all over the world.

VLRs have contributed to accelerate SDG localization by: 

1. raising awareness and ownership of the SDGs
2. fostering data innovation at the local level
3. strengthening the connection between monitoring and planning
4. advancing inclusion and participation of local communities
5. contributing to shade light on the importance of local action and local innovations in international processes and events
6. fostering multilevel governance though the connection with Voluntary National Reviews. 

UN-Habitat supports the global movement by offering

1. technical expertise
2. cutting-edge knowledge and guidelines
3. opportunities for peer learning and capacity building
4. connecting VLRs with VNRs
5. providing opportunities for engagement in international events and processes on the SDGs (High Level Political Forum, World Urban Forum, etc.)[GNA(4]

Visit the UN-Habitat Voluntary Local Reviews Repository

Resources and tools

Previously supported:

• Italy: Metropolitan City of Florence (2021)
• Jordan: Greater Amman Municipality (2022)
• Peru: Trujillo (2020), Chimbote (2020)
• Bolivia: La Paz, El Alto, Cochabamba, Santa Cruz de la Sierra (2022)
• Brazil: Niteroi (2020), Rio de Janeiro (2020) 
• Costa Rica: Atenas, Belén, Escazú, Goicoechea, Sarchí, Puriscal (2022) 
• Kosovo: Vushtrri (2022) 
• India: Bhopal 
• Vitoria Gasteiz 

Ongoing support:

• Turkey: Istanbul
• Spain: Madrid
• Finland
• Georgia: Tibilisi
• Serbia: Nis 
• Nepal: Itahari 
• Philippines: Malaybalay 
• Thailand: Udon Thani 
• Tajikistan: Dushanbe

The SDG Cities Global Initiative supports accelerated localization of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through a guided process for data collection, strategic planning, capacity building, project development, and financing.

“Collaborative action to unleash the potential of cities, accelerate sustainable development and improve quality of life for all.”

Each of the SDG Cities tracks is supported by online tools and resources and technical backstopping. SDG Cities Flagship Initiative aims to reach 1000 cities and 1 billion lives by 2030, providing them tools for data collection and analysis, project preparation, strategic partnerships with stakeholders and investors, and the recognition of cities’ achievements through the SDG Cities Certification.

The core pillars of SDG Cities are: 

• Data Collection and Analysis
• Strategic Planning
• Institutional Capacity Strengthening
• Investment in Impact

Cities are awarded Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Diamond certificates upon completion of the certification criteria for each track and will be recognized globally for their innovative solutions driving SDG impact locally.

What is the SDG Cities Certification? 

Find the latest news and stories from SDG Cities

 An overview of SDG Cities 
  

The 2030 Agenda and the SDGs target different levels of governments and stakeholders. It has become clear that no sphere of government and no institution can drive progress alone. A whole-of-government approach is a primordial ingredient for the successful implementation of the SDGs.

The efforts of LRGs are a demonstration of their commitment to the construction of a multilateral system capable of engaging everyone in shaping global solutions.- Maimunah Mohd Shariff, Executive Director UN Habitat

The New Urban Agenda also identifies multilevel governance as a key means of implementation. It embraces whole-of-government and whole-of-society coordination principles, engaging the mandates, roles, and capacities of a wider set of levels and actors. Thus, in the ever-changing global context, the global policies and agendas are placing multilevel governance at their center.

How is multilevel governance an essential driver for SDG Localization?

• By grounding national development and policies on communities’ needs and priorities, governments will be able to better plan for long-term development.
• By empowering local and regional governments and stakeholders, national governments will be able to enhance their implementation capacities to transform policies and strategies into action at the local level. 
• By connecting policies and strategies, governments can ensure that resources are efficiently spent, and that strategies, plans and initiatives are targeting the needs and priorities of local communities.[GNA(2]

Responding to the importance and centrality of multilevel governance, UN-Habitat and its partners launched a global initiative toward the enhancement of multilevel governance for SDG localization. The initiative aims to provide access to cutting-edge knowledge, capacity building, advocacy and partnership opportunities for national and local governments to strengthen their cooperation, in view of implementing the SDGs, the New Urban Agenda as well as other global commitments.   

Explore resources, learn about upcoming events and learning opportunities and get in touch with your peers and international partners at UN-Habitat’s Multilevel Governance Platform.

Read the MLG for SDG Localization Global Research.

The Local2030 Coalition is the UN System-wide platform and network for supporting and accelerating the localization of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. We bring together the UN-System, local and regional governments and their associations, national governments, businesses, community-based organizations, and other local actors to mobilize, empower and support local stakeholders in advancing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. We also strengthen coordination within and beyond the UN-System by enabling multi-level and multi-stakeholder collaboration, which are essential to coherent and effective actions on complex and interlocking challenges. 

A convening space to support partners in developing ideas and sharing tools and approaches to advance the 2030 Agenda everywhere. 

UN-Habitat is the permanent Local2030 Coalition Co-chair and leader of its Secretariat, together with UNDP, the first rotational Co-chair for 2022-2023

Objectives: 

• Provide spaces for more local participation at regional and global stages related to SDG implementation.
• Develop strategies to facilitate more access to SDG financing by local actors.
• Create opportunities for representatives of local government city networks, and other local actors, to work effectively with UN entities to advance the SDGs. 
• Support the efforts of UN Country Teams and UN Resident Coordinators to work at the local level with local actors, and to promote joint programming and initiative that leverage UN assets.

How: 

• Advocating for concrete engagement and bottom-up and inclusive processes to apply the 2030 Agenda as a roadmap to overcome the present pandemic and its subsequent effects. 
• Building and nurturing a support SDG localization platform to leverage existing and new initiatives, alliances, and solutions for policy alignment and planning, while offering an enabling environment for obtaining SDG funding. 
• Supporting efforts by diverse local actors, including civil society actors on the frontlines, to monitor and report on SDG implementation, including exchange of knowledge and perspectives.

Why join forces with the Local 2030 Coalition? 

• If you are a local or sub-national government, you will access a wealth of innovations, tools, and networks to support your SDG localization efforts and build new partnerships. 
• If you are a national government, you will strengthen multilevel coordination with your local counterparts and accelerate SDG achievement nationwide. 
• If you are a community organization, you will have the right platform to showcase your experience and connect with public and private institutions worldwide. 
• If you are a private sector entity, you will strengthen your positioning on the SDG and find innovative initiatives and opportunities to partner with governmental and non-governmental actors. 
• If you are a UN or international institution, you will benefit from the knowledge and experience of a global network on SDG localization that will make your work more effective and allow you to build new partnerships.

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