Localizing the SDGs in Italy | Launch of the 2022 Voluntary Subnational Review (VSR)

SDSN Italy’s team participated in the preparation of the Italian VSR, presented for the first time alongside the UN’s High-Level Political Forum

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This publication, a joint work of Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM), host of SDSN Italy and Associazione italiana per il Consiglio dei Comuni e delle Regioni d’Europa ( AICCRE ), aims to chart the path that Italian local authorities have taken in recent years and which results they have achieved by applying the principles of the UN 2030 Agenda in their missions, which includes the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the National Sustainable Development Strategy (in Italian, Strategia Nazionale per lo Sviluppo Sostenibile ).

AICCRE and FEEM have worked together for years to analyze and study tools suitable for local governments for achieving sustainable development. This publication provides the current legislative framework of local governments and their degree of involvement in localizing the SDGs. The commitment of local authorities to sustainable development and the importance of multi-stakeholder partnerships are highlighted. One chapter is dedicated to studying the SDG indicators at the city level and how the data has been collected. In particular, the publication quantifies local authorities' progress towards achieving the SDGs. The data is also accompanied by a qualitative narrative that provides examples of local policies that seek to represent the diversity of municipalities/communities by size and geographical representation. At the end of the publication, the strengths and weaknesses of local governments are collected with respect to the localization process, and a series of final recommendations are included to ensure the improvement of results in the future.

The publication will be presented in New York at the United Nations High-Level Political Forum (HLFP) during the session SDG Solutions to Rethink the City on July 6, 2022 and during the session Fostering the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals from the local level towards the 2023 SDG Summit of the HLPF Special Event Fifth Local and Regional Governments Forum on the 2030 Agenda on July 7, 2022.

Voluntary Subnational/Local Reviews (VSRs or VLRs) are tools with which Local and Regional Governments can report on their overall progress, setbacks, opportunities and challenges associated with achieving the subnational government level SDGs in a given country. More information about VLRs/VSRs can be found online.