Welcome to the United Nations
Local and regional governments share the concern of the international community and the United Nations Secretary General with regard to the need to embolden ambitions and accelerate the pace of transformation to achieve the universal development agendas in light of the start of the implementation decade. This is especially the case in these trying times, with the unprecedented crisis the entire world is facing. As the COVID-19 pandemic is making clear beyond any doubt, development agendas need to be addressed with stronger support to local and regional governments and their associations, and must be prioritized in light of the curve of the current unsustainable trajectory.
The current state of affairs for the implementation of the SDGs lacks the transformative approach that is necessary to respond to the humanitarian crises that stem from COVID-19. It is clear that we cannot overcome this crisis alone, and that a stronger multilateral system driven by transformative diplomacy is the way forward, prioritizing a whole of government and whole of society approach. Greater recognition is needed to the role that all levels of government play in achieving the 2030 Agenda as it is clear that multilevel governance and international cooperation and solidarity will be the only way to truly safeguard the rights and health of communities.
The multilateral governance system must recognize the essential role that local and regional governments and their national associations are playing in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and in protecting citizens at the frontline via local public service delivery. Public service delivery is indispensable as a means to support sanitary measures and to prevent the economic crisis from transforming into a deeper social crisis and is the basis upon which the achievement of the global goals will happen. Moreover, it will be key in addressing the structural inequalities that characterize our world today as local and regional governments work on the ground to contribute to the sustainability and resilience of society. In this sense, awareness raising to citizens on the importance of local solidarity is an essential step to ensure an inclusive recovery – a step that also falls most naturally on local and regional governments.
The efforts shared among local and regional governments, supported by their associations, networks, civil society organizations and other stakeholders through decentralized cooperation will prove to be key to solve the interconnected challenges that our world is facing including the most pressing global trends such as climate change, biodiversity loss, changing demographics, the impact of new technologies, and inequality which remain persistent as does the inadequacy of the world’s response. In these trying times, there is a window of opportunity to bend the curve of the current unsustainable trajectory and, as the pandemic is demonstrating, all development agendas need to be underpinned by adequate access to public service provision driven by strong local and regional governments close to the communities they serve.
