Local Follow-up and Review of the Sustainable Development Goals: Lessons from the Voluntary Local Review Experiences of European and Japanese Cities

Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) depends on well-designed and implemented follow-up and review (FUR) processes to monitor progress, review policies, and adjust strategies. However, despite the critical role cities play in implementing the SDGs, they lack official recognition in the FUR architecture of the 2030 Agenda. To engage with the 2030 Agenda, cities have initiated FUR exercises through Voluntary Local Reviews (VLRs) to establish benchmarks, report on their progress, and share best practices. This paper examines local-level FUR processes by comparing examples of VLRs in Europe and Japan. Findings indicate that the VLR process contributes to accelerate the implementation of the SDGs in three significant ways: (1) by facilitating the localisation of the SDGs; (2) by fostering the integration of sustainable development principles into municipal higher-level plans and governance structures; and (3) by allowing cities to explore innovative approaches to sustainable development. This analysis calls for strengthened support for cities to conduct VLRs.