Regions hold the key for a better future

With just five years left to achieve the 2030 Agenda, accelerating the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is critical. Regional governments are essential drivers of sustainable development, given their direct connection to communities and their ability to translate global goals into local action. At the 2025 High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), regions have a vital role in shaping and mobilizing innovative, inclusive, and financing solutions to close the SDG funding gap and ensure no one is left behind. 

The HLPF is the central United Nations platform for the follow-up and review of the  2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development  and its 17  Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

The HLPF was established at the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) in 2012 in its outcome “The Future We Want“. The HLPF is an integral part of the global architecture for follow-up and review of the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs. 

The Forum is convened annually under the auspices of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) for eight days, including a three-day ministerial segment, The Forum conducts  regular in-depth reviews of progress on the Sustainable Development Goalsand includes  Voluntary National Reviewswhere countries present the findings from national reviews of progress with a view to accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. 

 

 

HIGHLIGHTS

  • Presentation and co-creation of the Regions4SDGs Framework 

  • Regions4 joins the Partnership Platform on Localizing the SDGs, an initiative by UN-Habitat and the Government of Italy

Our activities:

1.  Scaling Territorial Action for the 2030 Agenda: Co-creating the Regions4SDGs Framework


📅  15 July (14:4516:30 EST ) | Venue: Flanders House New York  |  Organizer: Regions4 in collaboration with UN-Habitat & Founding Partners  |  Register here

With only five years remaining until 2030, accelerating progress on the SDGs is more urgent than ever. Subnational governments play a pivotal role in achieving sustainable development due to their proximity to citizens, jurisdiction over key sectors, and growing capacity for innovation and multilevel governance. Moreover, while multilateralism is critically challenged, SDG localization remains an area of broad agreement in the international community. 

In this context, the Regions4SDGs initiative, launched in 2024 by Regions4 and UN-Habitat, provides regions with a consistent framework of action, technical assistance, and support in accessing financing opportunities to foster SDG implementation and set the ground for post-2030 commitments. 

The 2025 High-Level Political Forum offers an opportunity to convene subnational authorities, technical partners, the private sector, and the financial community to present the first draft of the Regions4SDGs Framework and collect input for its finalization. In an independent side event organized by the Government of Flanders, Regions4, and UN-Habitat, a high-level panel and the presentation of the Framework will be followed by a world café segment to explore the draft and collect input. These segments will be part of a broader event involving the private sector with its crucial efforts to support the SDG transition. Register here

 2. Local and Regional Governments’ Networking Hub and Reception 
📅  15 July (time to be confirmed) | Venue: UN Millennium ONE Hotel 
Regions4 and its partners is pleased to present the Regions4SDGs Framework, a strategic tool designed to support regional governments in localizing and implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Developed in collaboration with UNDP and key partners, this framework offers concrete guidance, best practices, and policy recommendations to strengthen the role of regions in advancing the 2030 Agenda.

 3. Local and Regional Governments Forum (LRGF) 
📅  16 July (10:00 – 13:00 EST)  | Venue: UNHQ, CR 3
The 2025 Local and Regional Governments Forum (LRG) at the HLPF will spotlight LRGs as key partners in delivering the 2030 Agenda. It will explore how multilevel governance, inclusive services, and localized investment drive SDG action. The Forum will highlight SDGs 3, 5, 8, 14, and 17, with emphasis on gender equality, decent work, and sustainable oceans, and advance dialogue on local reporting and future-ready policy. Read more

4. Local2030 Official Session 
📅  16 July (15:00 – 17:00 EST)  | Venue: UNHQ, CR 11 
The Local2030 Coalition will host a special event at the 2025 HLPF to showcase the importance of SDG localization and its role in driving inclusive development and systemic transformation. This event will highlight how local action, particularly through the High Impact Initiative (HII) on Localization, accelerates progress on the six SDG transitions. The session will also foster dialogue on enabling environments for localization and innovative financing to scale up local action. Read more

 5. Transformation from the ground up: Acting at local level
📅  17 July (16:30 – 18:00 EST) | Venue: UNHQ, CR
This session will showcase successful local and regional approaches to accelerating sustainable, inclusive, science- and evidence-based solutions for the SDGs. It will discuss the enablers of these successes and consider how local action can be expanded in all regions to accelerate progress towards all 17 goals.

 6. 2025 Annual meeting of the Partnership Platform on localizing SDGs
📅 18 July (09:00 – 13:00 EST)

UN-Habitat and the Italian Ministry of Environment and Energy Security are organizing the 2025 Annual Meeting of the Partnership Platform on Localizing the SDGs, to be held on 18 July 2025 from 09:00 to 13:00 EDT at the Millennium Hilton Hotel, One UN Plaza, New York. (in presence only).

Organized within the framework of the High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) 2025, this event will convene national and local governments, UN agencies, international organizations, civil society, academia, and private sector actors. The aim is to foster dialogue and share progress on the design and implementation of National SDG Localization Frameworks and accelerate action through effective multilevel governance.

Regions4 will participate as a candidate partner of the platform, by virtue of its relevance as network of regions and of the added value that the Reginos4SDGs initiative can bring. Read more

High-Level Political Forum 2025

Join us!

All regions are welcome to join us
Contact us to know more

    Eugenio Amato, responsible
    of this project:

    Eugenio Amato

    Sustainable Development Goals Programme Officer

    eamato@regions4.org