Journal of Human Development and Capabilities

A Multi-Disciplinary Journal for People-Centered Development

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Local Governments and SDG Localisation:

Reshaping Multilevel Governance from the Bottom
up

Edgardo Bilsky, Anna Calvete Moreno & Ainara Fernández Tortosa

To cite this article: Edgardo Bilsky, Anna Calvete Moreno & Ainara Fernández Tortosa (2021):
Local Governments and SDG Localisation: Reshaping Multilevel Governance from the Bottom up,
Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, DOI: 10.1080/19452829.2021.1986690

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/19452829.2021.1986690

Published online: 13 Oct 2021.

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JOURNAL OF HUMAN DEVELOPMENT AND CAPABILITIES
https://doi.org/10.1080/19452829.2021.1986690

POLICY FORUM

Local Governments and SDG Localisation: Reshaping

Multilevel Governance from the Bottom up
Edgardo Bilsky, Anna Calvete Moreno and Ainara Fernández Tortosa
Research Unit, World Secretariat, United Cities and Local Governments, Barcelona, Spain

ABSTRACT KEYWORDS
As acknowledged in the literature on Sustainable Human Sustainable Human
Development, the involvement of local levels of Development; SDG
government in delivering the SDGs is an important issue localisation; local
and one that needs to be examined also through the governments; institutional
capabilities; citizen
capability approach. Through an analysis of the current participation; multilevel
state and evolution of the SDG localisation movement, and governance
even in the response to the COVID-19 crisis, the paper
identifies entry points that can be leveraged to enhance
institutional capabilities to deliver sustainable
development. Indeed, the SDG localisation movement is
expanding in almost all regions, showing an increasing
polysemy of meanings and modalities for local
governments and stakeholders. The movement has
witnessed valuable progress with the expansion of
Voluntary Local and Subnational Reviews (VLRs and VSRs
respectively), the transformation of limited consultative
approaches into an enhanced involvement of a plurality of
actors, including citizen participation, and the evolution
from restricted spaces for dialogue to ambitious multilevel
governance arrangements and multistakeholder co-creation
efforts that, following the capability approach, recognise
the diversity of abilities. These improvements have fostered
local ownership and catalysed opportunities for joint
achievements. After all, local governments, as the level of
government closest to the population, are best placed to
respond to their needs and priorities, and to leverage their
collective capabilities and agency to develop common
pathways using the SDGs as enablers of change. All these
efforts promote the production of collective knowledge
which can progressively transform local institutions and
support the evolution of multilevel governance processes.

Introduction
As acknowledged in the literature on Sustainable Human Development, the
involvement of local levels of government in delivering the SDGs is an impor-
tant issue and one that needs to be examined also through the capability

CONTACT Edgardo Bilsky e.bilsky@uclg.org Research Unit, World Secretariat, United Cities and Local
Governments, Barcelona, 08002 Spain
© 2021 Human Development and Capability Association
2 E. BILSKY ET AL.

approach (Biggeri and Ferrannini 2014; Biggeri, Ferrannini, and Arciprete

2018). This paper examines the notion and potential of “institutional capabili-
ties” as a means to “investigate the capabilities that institutions should have to
promote a normative, value-based agenda […] and the processes of transform-
ing those capabilities” to achieve human development (Frediani and Cociña
2020). In particular, it explores how institutional capabilities, in terms of aspira-
tions, practices, abilities and opportunities, can be instrumental in the localis-
ation of the global agendas and the potential of using bottom-up, subnational
reporting to accelerate institutional changes. When implementing global sus-
tainable agendas, unsustainable socio-economic and spatial dynamics can
only be transformed if local institutions have the ability to: inform and mobilise
their communities; progressively transform institutions and modify their citi-
zens’ behaviour; build on the production and circulation of collective knowl-
edge; and help governance processes to evolve. Achieving this implies
challenging existing approaches and practises in multilevel governance,
which can be defined as a decision-making system based on coordination
mechanisms that allow the allocation of competences and responsibilities
between levels of government, both horizontally and vertically, in accordance
with the principles of subsidiarity and respect for local autonomy (UCLG,
GOLD V Report 2019).1
The SDG localisation movement is expanding in almost all regions, showing
an increasing polysemy of meanings and modalities for local governments and
stakeholders. There has been noticeable progress in SDG localisation, which has
progressed from limited consultation of local actors by national governments to
the involvement of numerous local actors; and from only restricted spaces for
dialogue to ambitious co-creation efforts that, following the application of the
capability approach to Local Development Systems (Biggeri and Ferrannini
2014), recognises the diversity of different people’s capabilities. These improve-
ments have fostered local ownership and catalysed opportunities for joint
achievement. Indeed, local governments, as the level of government closest to
citizens, are best placed to respond to their needs and priorities, and to leverage
their collective capabilities and agency (Deneulin 2008; Clark, Biggeri, and Fre-
diani 2019) to develop common pathways, using the SDGs as enablers of
change. Over 100 Voluntary Local Reviews (VLRs) developed by cities and
regional governments, as well as 15 Voluntary Subnational Reviews (VSRs) fos-
tered by local government associations are currently available. These represent
a total of 42 countries and have been produced over the past four years with
different purposes, approaches and impacts. They show how the number of
local alliances to generate opportunities is undoubtedly on the increase.
The SDG localisation movement is also reshaping national processes towards
the 2030 Agenda. It promotes bottom-up contributions, encouraging the use of
more localised data and increased local ownership, and generates new inter-
phases for dialogue and collaboration between different spheres of governance
 JOURNAL OF HUMAN DEVELOPMENT AND CAPABILITIES 3

and local stakeholders (for more information about the role of stakeholder par-
ticipation in development processes, see Sen 1999 and Clark, Biggeri, and Fre-
diani 2019). It also tends to propel the renewal of coordination mechanisms
and greater integration between national and local development strategies.
The current analysis is based on the review of SDG localisation which global net-
works of local and regional governments present to the United Nations High-
Level Political Forum every year (GTF/UCLG, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021).
The following section explains the extension and expansion of this move-
ment, even during the pandemic, in alliance with local actors. The third
section focuses on the multiplication of meanings and modalities related to
local government and stakeholder involvement in this process. The fourth
section underlines the positive impact that these experiences have had on pro-
cesses associated with multilevel governance. The final remarks highlight some
of the lessons learned and make some recommendations for the future.

The Evolution of the SDG Localisation in Times of the Covid-19

Pandemic
As shown by the annual local government reports to the United Nations (GTF/
UCLG, 2019), since the adoption of the SDGs in 2015, the localisation move-
ment has made important progress, albeit at different paces, in different
countries and continents. European and North American countries continue
to lead the way. Despite having a group of frontrunning local and regional gov-
ernments (particularly in Benin, Brazil, Colombia, Kenya, Rwanda and South
Africa), progress has slowed down this year in Africa and Latin America.
The Asia-Pacific region continues to show a huge contrast between countries
in which cities are driving SDG action and combining it with responses to
COVID-19 (as in China, Indonesia, Japan and South Korea) and those in
which localisation efforts have been more limited. Elsewhere, it is relevant to
highlight the progressive involvement of Turkish and Russian cities over the
past two years.
During the pandemic, local governments have been, and still are, on the
front line when it comes to preventing the spread of the virus and protecting
their communities. At the same time, many have continued their adherence
to the SDGs and promoted initiatives to accelerate their localisation both in
their own territories and as part of the wider, global movement. Even when
not explicitly associated with the SDG framework, local government responses
to the crisis have been critical in preventing even greater setbacks in the quest
for the SDGs. Globally, local governments have redoubled their efforts to adapt
public services and urban policies so as to place care and solidarity at the centre
of the crisis response, often building on collaboration with communities and
civil society organisations, as capable agents with whom to build and own
shared responses.
4 E. BILSKY ET AL.

Such action has been facilitated by the mobilisation of the different

implementation mechanisms available to local governments according to
their local contexts, which have included specific strategies and actions and
the reassignment of certain budget resources. Providing a detailed account
of all these initiatives is beyond the scope of this paper, but more information
can be found in the annual report presented to the UN by the local and
regional governments’ constituency. The report showcases hundreds of
actions implemented by local governments to: ensure the continuity of
basic service provision (health, education, transport, waste management);
guarantee local food supply systems and food security; address the widening
digital divide; support local economies; and, more generally, protect liveli-
hoods while also advancing social and environmental sustainability alterna-
tives (GTF/UCLG 2021). In many territories, local governments have
advanced with initiatives to protect the right to housing, particularly for
homeless people, to prevent evictions, and to extend access to water and
washing facilities. Such actions have often involved alliances with local
actors, including the private sector.
Even in times of COVID-19, cities and territories remain places of inno-
vation and experimentation, particularly in the case of climate policies. The
number of local governments that have committed to reducing their green-
house gas emissions through mitigation and adaptation policies continues to
grow and currently stands at over 10,700, throughout the world.2 Many
LRGs have reprioritised local expenditure to protect jobs, support SMEs,
promote local economic circuits, and foster alternative forms of production
and consumption based on the social and sharing economy..
Many local governments have constantly reaffirmed their commitment to
sustainability by mainstreaming the SDGs within their development plans
and strategies. This restatement of such a crucial institutional aspiration has
also had an impact on national planning systems. For example, in Benin,
almost all the country’s 77 municipalities have aligned their local development
plans with the SDGs; in Indonesia, all 34 provinces have done the same with
their action plans; in Mexico, 14 of the country’s 32 federal states have followed
the same steps; in Norway, half of the country’s regional authorities and a
quarter of its municipalities have assessed their progress towards achieving
the SDGs. Many other examples can be found in the aforementioned reports
(GTF/UCLG 2021; UCLG 2019).
Throughout the world, local government reports show hundreds of policies
and local initiatives related to the different dimensions of the 2030 Agenda:
people, planet, prosperity, peace and partnership (GTF/UCLG 2020; UCLG
2019). While the full effects of the COVID-19 pandemic are still unknown, it
is important that local governments find ways to ensure that many of the emer-
gency measures so far undertaken, particularly relating to housing, healthcare
and improved access to public services, are transformed into permanent
 JOURNAL OF HUMAN DEVELOPMENT AND CAPABILITIES 5

policies. Doing this will entail: engaging with local communities; evaluating and
building upon the collective knowledge gained from these experiences; and
allowing cities, and territories, to secure the advances made in terms of the pro-
tection of human rights and delivering the SDGs.
Even so, the pandemic has drastically affected the very means of implemen-
tation available to many local governments and the allocation of powers and
responsibilities between different levels of government. Recovery packages
must therefore include financial support to allow local governments to
strengthen public services and upscale innovative local policies and actions to
enable them to meet the needs of their communities during the remainder of
the crisis and beyond.
The progress made by the localisation movement has also been reflected in
efforts to develop bottom-up monitoring and reporting initiatives, with the
increasing involvement of local stakeholders.

Voluntary Local and Subnational Reviews: Promoting Greater

Participation and Networked Collaboration
The expansion of the localisation movement has been significantly bolstered by
the huge expansion of local, bottom-up reporting efforts as institutional prac-
tices that have altogether contributed to creating the necessary conditions to
trigger change in capabilities and achieve the institutional aspirations of local
governments. Over the past two years, the total number of Voluntary Local
Reviews (VLRs) available worldwide has doubled (from approximately 40 in
May 2020 to more than 100 in June 2021), while during the same period, 15
Voluntary Subnational Reviews (VSRs) have been presented by local govern-
ment associations in 14 countries worldwide. In total these reviews represent
the work of more than 16,000 local governments. VLRs have been submitted
from almost every continent and by different types of subnational governments:
federal states and regional governments (e.g. Hawaii in the USA, Yucatan in
Mexico, and Scotland in the UK), major cities (such as Barcelona, Buenos
Aires, Guangzhou, New York City and Moscow) and small and middle-sized
cities (such as Chimbote, in Peru; Kelowna, in Canada; Turku, in Finland;
and Victoria Falls, in Zimbabwe).
VLRs provide first-hand information on how local governments are leading
the way in innovation and in the implementation of the localisation of the
SDGs. Local governments are advancing institutional reforms, aligning their
policy making with the 2030 Agenda, learning from other members of the
VLR community, and tapping the potential of collaborations with local,
national and international stakeholders. At the local level, in particular, VLRs
have helped to improve the localisation process and consolidated a number
of institutional abilities such as increasing civic participation, raising awareness,
and promoting greater accountability and transparency. They are transforming
6 E. BILSKY ET AL.

the way in which the community, associations and local stakeholders are
involved in the SDG process.
By way of example, Bristol chose to further localise the review process by
opening a consultation process at the local level with different layers of stake-
holders from various sectors. In Cape Verde, creating “municipal platforms”
has provided an innovative way to boost participation in local strategic plan-
ning. The structure of Los Angeles’s VLR was designed to encourage groups
of residents to not only participate in the process of analysis, but also in that
of adapting the set of indicators chosen. This made it possible to use indicators
that were more representative of the realities of the different neighbourhoods
involved. Mannheim began its VLR process in 2017 by collecting ideas and
inputs from the local population that it then used to shape the city’s approach
to the 2030 Agenda. In 2018, city officers organised “Dialogue workshops” and
regular events with civil society organisations. An online platform kept these
conversations open to the public until the city council finally approved
Mission Statement Mannheim 2030. Sao Paulo created an Inter-Departmental
Working Group on the SDGs and organised a broad consultative process in
2020, identifying at least 500 localised and locally measurable indicators.
At the same time, new modalities of national local government associations’
involvement in monitoring and reporting processes have also emerged. Based
on the initial experiences of six countries in 2020, eight more subsequently pre-
sented VSRs in 2021: Cape Verde, Germany, Indonesia, Mexico, Norway,
Sweden, Tunisia and Zimbabwe.3 VSR approaches, which are led by local
and regional government associations, differ from VLRs in that the former
offer a broader country-wide analysis of subnational efforts and the challenges
to be overcome through the localisation of the SDGs. These reports assess the
extent to which the national institutional environment facilitates local action,
including an analysis of the means of implementation available to local govern-
ments and the extent to which they support these localisation processes. All
VSRs present policy recommendations for improving local SDG implemen-
tation, stakeholder participation and collaboration between all levels of
government.
Local government mobilisation for the development of VLRs and VSRs has
acted as a catalyst for the localisation process and as a lever for promoting a
more comprehensive, multi-stakeholder approach to governance. Although
still somewhat limited in their influence, the upscaling of VLR and VSR experi-
ences has paved the way for a reinforced bottom-up dialogue about how best to
achieve the SDGs. Bottom-up reporting efforts have witnessed valuable pro-
gress, promoted a number of new procedures and rules, reconstructed the exist-
ing political culture and helped local governments to move from quite limited
consultative approaches towards enhanced initiatives with the involvement of
numerous actors, demonstrating the expansion of institutional policy abilities
to achieve the localisation of the SDGs. They have also helped move the
 JOURNAL OF HUMAN DEVELOPMENT AND CAPABILITIES 7

state-of-the-art from relatively restricted spaces for dialogue to more ambitious

co-creation efforts. Such actions are strengthening the institutional capabilities
of local governments and their associations at the local, national and inter-
national levels and helping to drive a bottom-up development approach.
Although promising, these processes are, as yet, embryonic and need to be
further developed and closely monitored.

Reshaping Multilevel Governance

In some countries, SDGs are offering ample institutional opportunities to local
governments and strengthening their influence by reshaping the local-national
dialogue between different levels of government. The 2021 local government
report to the UN highlighted a number of relevant points (GTF/UCLG
2021). In a group of countries with enabling environments for local govern-
ments, which included an established tradition of local self-government, strat-
egies and policies were developed that facilitate greater local ownership and
provide more room for innovation and support for SDG localisation. These
have allowed local governments to take the lead in SDG localisation and initiat-
ives now flourish throughout their national territories (e.g. in many European
countries, Japan and South Korea). In a second group of countries, the process
has been mixed. On one side, the national government has steered SDG
implementation based on a more top-down approach and through national
strategies and guidelines that are often supported by incentives (e.g. in Benin,
China, Colombia, Kenya and Indonesia). On the other, many local govern-
ments within the same countries have developed their own initiatives. Else-
where, progress has been slower, particularly when there has been no clear
SDG localisation strategy, or when the presence of only a weak institutional
enabling environment for local government initiatives has hampered SDG
localisation and limited local ownership.
In general, bottom-up reporting efforts have progressively opened up chan-
nels for the recognition of local governments in the achievement of the SDGs
and enhanced multilevel governance approaches. This has, for example, been
clearly evident in several VNRs that have dedicated specific space to presenting
inspiring local practices. Indeed, in all of the countries that have produced VSRs,
local governments have been asked to summarise their contributions to be inte-
grated within their country’s VNR. Other countries (including Denmark,
Finland, Japan and Malaysia) have included references to VLRs developed by
municipalities and regions in their territories (GTF/UCLG 2021).4 This has
helped expand the recognition of local actors, the localisation of data and local
ownership of the SDGs. It has also created new interphases for collaboration
between different spheres of governance and local stakeholders.
Nevertheless, these processes are still rather limited in scope. Indeed, local
government engagement in national reporting processes and coordination
8 E. BILSKY ET AL.

mechanisms for SDG implementation remains limited in most countries. Only

40% of the countries that have reported to the UN since 2016 have associated or
consulted local governments during their reporting processes. The evolution
has also been geographically uneven: there has been important progress in
Europe (with 75% participation by local governments in national processes,
in 2021) and to a lesser extent in the Asia-Pacific region (44%). In contrast,
local government involvement has been rather stagnant in Africa (at around
39%) and has suffered setbacks in Latin America and the Caribbean (declining
from 41% for the period 2016–2020 to 33% in 2021). Involvement still remains
very limited in the Eurasia and MEWA regions (GTF/UCLG 2021). Despite the
increasing efforts made by local governments to localise the SDGs and report
on the progress achieved, their inclusion in national coordination and reporting
processes still needs to be greatly increased.
At the same time, this process is promoting exchanges and mutual learning
within local government networks at both national and international levels and
also fostering interactions between them and international institutions. Com-
munities of practice are booming, opening spaces for innovation, and driving
forward institutional changes that promote greater multilevel policy coherence.
VLRs are also helping to strengthen collaboration between local governments
and international institutions, such as UNDESA, various UN agencies and
regional commissions, the European Commission, and the OECD (UN
Habitat and UCLG 2021). These are remarkably important elements for accel-
erating progress towards achieving the SDGs in the Decade of Action.
Reports by local governments and international institutions show that VLRs
and VSRs are key levers for improving local government and stakeholder invol-
vement in the SDG process. At the same time, more inclusive national coordi-
nation mechanisms can prevent overlaps and institutional fragmentation and,
instead, promote synergies and great policy coherence. In this way, local gov-
ernments’ reports are building pathways towards a whole-of-government and
whole-of-society approach, just as called for by the SDGs.

Final Remarks
The present paper highlights how the SDG localisation movement, led by local
governments and their associations worldwide, can improve institutional capa-
bilities for more sustainable development, which in turn are critical to the
achieve the SDGs. Through an analysis of the current state and evolution of
the SDG localisation movement, the paper identifies entry points that can be
leveraged to enhance institutional capabilities to deliver sustainable development.
The paper argues that such entry points can be observed in the expansion of the
SDG localisation movement, and even in the response to the COVID-19 crisis.
They include the expansion of bottom-up subnational reporting efforts and
their impact on multilevel governance. Regarding the latter, the outcomes of
 JOURNAL OF HUMAN DEVELOPMENT AND CAPABILITIES 9

the localisation movement, enhanced by bottom-up reporting processes, are facil-

itating greater participation and more networked collaboration. This promotes
the production of collective knowledge which can progressively transform local
institutions and support the evolution of multilevel governance processes.
In this regard, local reporting efforts act as a “conversion factor”, fostering
changes in institutional environments and the social engagement of local com-
munities, thus promoting changes in institutional behaviour and the inter-
action with local communities. These processes are at the core of the concept
of transforming institutional capabilities, which in turn is critical for accelerat-
ing towards the achievement of the SDGs. There is therefore a pressing need to
increase the involvement of local governments and local stakeholders through-
out the whole process of SDG implementation: in multilevel government
coordination, in the joint implementation of different actions, and in monitor-
ing progress.
In light of the above, several recommendations are provided in order to
accelerate SDG implementation in this Decade of Action through a sustainable
recovery from COVID-19 and the localisation of the 2030 Agenda based on
multi-stakeholder coordination, multilevel governance and shared leadership.
The first recommendation requires harnessing current momentum and lever-
aging the transformational potential of the localisation movement to accelerate
progress in SDG implementation and build up local capabilities to drive
towards sustainable local development. Related to this, it will also be critical
to acknowledge local governments’ fore fronting responses to the COVID-19
crisis and the innovative action taken at the local level to achieve a more sus-
tainable recovery that places caring for people at the centre. Such actions
include seeking to provide equitable access to health and public services for
everyone; promoting sustainable prosperity at the local level; and ensuring
the protection of human rights. These actions contribute to encourage collec-
tive action and solidarity and help to progressively transform the behaviour
of both citizens and the institutions.
To support these actions, the third recommendation points at the urgent
need to coordinate a safe, equitable and sustainable recovery that works for
everyone and involves local governments in its definition and implementation.
National governments must ensure that recovery packages allow local govern-
ments to sustain the provision of public services and link health systems to
global sustainability agendas. The extent to which national environments
enable local action constitutes a critical factor for improving institutional capa-
bilities for sustainable development.
Finally, efforts should be made to promote bottom-up, subnational reporting
exercises by local governments, their associations and their communities. These
are political processes that improve institutional capabilities, by strengthening
dialogue between local institutions and citizens, and increase accountability and
the production and dissemination of collective knowledge. These efforts should
10 E. BILSKY ET AL.

be accompanied by strengthened multilevel governance that integrates local

governments and civil society into national coordination mechanisms and
reporting processes to make governance evolve. Achieving the 2030 Agenda
requires effective whole-of-government and whole-of-society approaches,
ensuring policy coherence and developing synergies at all levels.
As exposed throughout this paper, interrogating and transforming the insti-
tutional capabilities of local and regional governments, as well as their relation-
ships, exchanges and coproduction with other spheres of government and local
stakeholders through processes such as local SDG reporting efforts, will be a
critical precondition for a just and green recovery from the COVID-19 pan-
demic that allows for the achievement of the 2030 Agenda from the bottom up.

Notes on Contributors
Edgardo Bilsky Born in Buenos Aires (Argentina), makes his studies in Paris (France), Master in
Contemporary History at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales in Paris (1984). He
began his career as a professor of History and Social Sciences at the University of Buenos
Aires and the University of Paris III and Paris V. He published various books and articles. In
early 1990, he integrates the cooperation agency of the World Federation of United Cities
-CUD-, in charge of programmes with Central America and later with Latin America. In
May 2004, he participates in the creation of UCLG. In 2006, he assumed the coordination of
the Global Report on Decentralisation and Local Democracy (GOLD) and since 2017, he facili-
tates the preparation of the local and regional governments yearly report to the UN HLPF.
Anna Calvete Moreno Born in Barcelona (Spain), she is a lawyer specialised in European and
international law and governance. She also holds a MSc in Gender, Law and Society. She has a
9-year experience in public management. She has worked in several public administrations in
different countries, and as a private consultant for several local and national governments,
international organisations, civil society organisations and the private sector, with a particular
focus on the improvement of local governance from an international perspective. Since 2020
she has worked at UCLG’s Global Observatory of Local Democracy and Decentralisation,
where she has promoted initiatives for the localisation of the 2030 Agenda, the GOLD VI
report on pathways to urban and territorial equality and the Emergency Governance Initiative
in Cities and Regions developed by UCLG with Metropolis and LSE Cities.
Ainara Fernández Tortosa Born in Almería (Spain), she completed her studies in Inter-
national Business Economics at the University Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona. She holds a
Master in Governing the Large Metropolis from Sciences Po Paris, where she specialised
in housing policies and quantitative methods for policy analysis. Since 2019, she works at
the Global Observatory of Local Democracy and Decentralisation and has partaken in the
annual elaboration of the local and regional governments’ report to the UN HLPF, the
fifth and sixth editions of the Global Report on Decentralisation and Local Democracy
(GOLD) and the Rethinking Housing Policies report in the framework of the Cities for Ade-
quate Housing movement. She is also part of the Emergency Governance Initiative in Cities
and Regions developed by UCLG with Metropolis and LSE Cities.

Disclosure Statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
 JOURNAL OF HUMAN DEVELOPMENT AND CAPABILITIES 11

Notes
1. UCLG, GOLD V Report, p. 19. See also the Committee of Regions’ Charter for Multi-
level Governance in Europe, https://portal.cor.europa.eu/mlgcharter/Pages/default.
aspx; Stephenson, P, “Twenty Years of Multi-Level Governance, “Where Does It
Come From? What Is It? Where Is It Going?”, Journal of European Public Policy
20, no. 6 (1 June 2013): 817-37; Charbit C., ‘Governance of Public Policies in Decen-
tralised Contexts’. OECD Regional Development Working Papers. Paris, OECD, 19
July 2011
2. https://www.globalcovenantofmayors.org/.
3. To access all the VSRs published to date, use the following link: https://gold.uclg.org/
report/localizing-sdgs-boost-monitoring-reporting#field-sub-report-tab-1.
4. To access the Voluntary National Reviews: https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/
vnrs/.

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