About the Event

Achieving the core promise of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – a society where no one is left behind – means making progress on their implementation at the national and local levels. While there are often robust aggregate measurements at the national level, strengthening local level indicators and monitoring their progress can greatly support efforts to ensure sustainable development reaches those furthest behind.

Upon the publication of the English version of the book SDGs and Local Communities (2024), which visualized SDG challenges through the lens of human security at the municipal level, this Symposium aims to deepen the understanding of how the human security approach can drive forward inclusive and participatory strategies to advance sustainable development. By guiding data collection that is disaggregated and grounded in the realities at the local level, human security ensures an evidence-based approach for designing policies and initiatives to achieve the SDGs through securing the lives, livelihoods and dignity of people. The Symposium will examine ways and means for more broadly applying this methodology as we work toward accelerating SDG achievement by 2030.

Event Information

Agenda [English]

Presentations:

• Human Security Approach to Accelerate SDG Implementation at the Sub-National Level: Mr. Yukio Takasu, Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Human Security [Presentation]
• Localizing the SDGs in Sierra Leone, Building on the Gambia Exchange Forum: Ms. Seraphine Wakana, United Nations Resident Coordinator in Sierra Leone [Video]
• Perceptions of Human (In)security in the Anthropocene: Mr. Heriberto Tapia, Human Development Report Office [Presentation]
• Lessons on Localization from the UN Trust Fund for Human Security: Ms. Mehrnaz Mostafavi, Chief, United Nations Human Security Unit [Presentation]
• Reflections: Yoichi Mine, Executive Director, JICA Ogata Sadako Research Institute for Peace and Development [Presentation]

SDG and Local Communities

Click here to learn more about the project on “SDGs and Local Communities” (2024) and related publications

Click here to access the full book “SDGs and Local Communities” (2024)

In February 2024, the JICA Ogata Sadako Research Institute for Peace and Development published the English-language version of the book SDGs and Local Communities: How to Create Human Security Indicators in Your Town!

The book analysed data from nearly 100 indicators in the areas of life, livelihood, and dignity, disaggregated by local communities in Miyagi Prefecture, which was heavily hit by the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. By examining the challenges faced by those in the Miyagi Prefecture, the book provides recommendations on how to create a society where no one is left behind. The book also presents ways to develop and use human security indicators by providing specific examples of resilience-building by victims of natural disasters and reconstruction initiatives involving resident participation.

This book is a follow-up to the book SDGs and Japan: Human Security Indicators for Leaving No One Behind published in November 2020.