The city of Seville, Spain hosted the First Global Forum of Local Governments from November 22 to 24. During the event, representatives of local governments of Spain and the world gathered to share the actions that are taking place around the world for the benefit of citizens, visitors and companies. In this sense, the Forum offered a space for the exchange of experiences and the consolidation of cooperation and agreements between local governments, companies and local actors from all over the world.

Within the framework of the Forum, the SDGs, and the role that local governments are willing to play for its implementation, were the subject of analysis and discussions. During the meeting "Find the Sustainable Development Goals: from Agenda 21 to the 2030 Agenda" led by the Spanish Network for Sustainable Development (REDS) and the Andalusian Fund of Municipalities for International Solidarity (FAMSI), in collaboration with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the process development experience of the Local Agenda 21 in Spain was analyzed as a support to implement the 2030 Agenda at the local level. At the same time, the challenges of the 2030 agenda and the role of all levels of governments and other actors in their compliance were reviewed taking into account the three pillars of the 2030 agenda for sustainable development: environmental, economic and social sustainability.

The contributions presented in the session were also included in the Final Declaration of the First Global Forum of Local Governments, which highlights the ten objectives agreed upon in the framework of the event:

1. put solutions to climate change, end extreme poverty and fight against inequality and injustice, with an eye on the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs;
2. reinforce the idea of ​​cities as the main actors to promote sustainable development;
3. implement the circular economy and the public purchase of green products ;
4. strengthen the commitment acquired in Bogotá within the framework of the World Summit of Regional and Local Leaders;
5. affirm that cities are critical places for migration and development;
6. advance in the reform of the open government and carry out initiatives that imply the citizenship in a real way;
7. open the doors to an exchange and transfer of knowledge among local governments;
8. develop public-private collaboration processes with technological tools to generate smart cities;
9. generate the necessary public services to offer equal opportunities to its citizens;
10. and, ultimately, promote work for the development of a new way of thinking that offers global solutions from the local.

Finally, Juan Espadas, the mayor of Seville has expressed that, beyond the celebration of the Forum, "the real project is to start a global network of municipalities" that work in the search for common solutions in terms of sustainability, social inclusion, cities smart and digital tourism, and with the philosophy of "analyzing what other fellow travelers are doing". In that sense, Espadas wishes to present to the United Nations this "opportunity to establish a follow-up on the progress in each territory, as an observatory".

The conclusions of the thematic working groups and the Final Declaration of the Forum will be published and available for consultation on the event website: www.mayorsforumsvq.com