SPARCS Fellow city Lviv has become the first city in Ukraine to prepare a Voluntary Local Review of the Sustainable Development Goals and joined the list of 33 cities in the World that declare their contribution to implementing these goals.

The Review contains the results of the analysis of the development trends in the Lviv community before and after the full-scale Russian invasion, based on 17 goals covering all spheres of life – health, education, environment, economic development, etc. The Review not only summarizes the achievements on the way to achieving the goals at the local level but also provides a vision of the directions of further development of Lviv even during the war and after the victory. For example, due to the sustained support of the healthcare sector, the city has better performance than the national average in terms of reducing infant mortality, reducing the incidence of HIV and tuberculosis, and reducing mortality from cerebrovascular diseases. It demonstrates positive trends towards achieving Goal 3: Good health and well-being.

“Despite the uncertainty, Lviv is developing, remaining committed to the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. This Review demonstrates our contribution to sustainable development. I believe that we will be able to inspire other Ukrainian cities to follow the path of sustainable development despite the threats of war, as well as global and local challenges of our time. Our team has made the first attempt to localize the global and national Sustainable Development Goals to our context. Taking into account our strategic priorities and plans, we have compiled a list of localized goals that we plan to achieve by 2030. The projects and indicators described in the Review demonstrate Lviv’s path to achieving them,” says Lviv Mayor Andriy Sadovyi.

Lviv is committed to sustainable development aimed at improving the quality of life of every community member. The prepared Review is the result of the joint work of the City Institute team together with departments and offices of the Lviv City Council and other interested institutions. Thanks to the Voluntary Review, Lviv has the opportunity to continue comprehensively assessing the city’s sustainable development trends and systematically monitoring its progress in achieving Sustainable Development Goals. VLR will allow local authorities, businesses, and the public sector to better understand the strengths and weaknesses of the city’s development and identify priority areas for further work.

“For about 6 months, the City Institute team and I localized the Sustainable Development Goals to the context of the Lviv community, analyzed the implemented projects, and identified priorities for the city’s activities to achieve the SDGs by 2030. The result of the work was the first Review in Ukraine, which will allow Lviv to establish high-quality communication with other cities around the world to join forces to achieve Agenda 2030. We aim to set the tone for other Ukrainian cities and are happy to share our experience to integrate Ukrainian communities into the international dialogue,” said Maksym Terletskyi, Acting Director of the City Institute.

 UNDP Resident Representative in Ukraine Jaco Cilliers said that despite the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Lviv demonstrated remarkable dedication to following the path of sustainable development. “The sustainable development agenda remains a vital driver of community mobilization that will help to build back better and more resilient municipalities,” he said. “Lviv’s leadership in the complex and uncertain environment across development axes helps it achieve inclusively and sustained economic growth that favours the creation of worthy jobs.

The publication of the Review was prepared in cooperation with the Mayors for Economic Growth project, funded by the European Union and implemented by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Ukraine.

The Ukrainian and English versions of the Review are available here. 

In 2015, the United Nations member states identified 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to ensure a decent human life in a safe and sustainable world. The Sustainable Development Goals are universal for all countries of the world, and every country in the world is committed to implementing them. Achievement of the goals is possible if all components of society are consolidated: government, private sector, and civil society. The involvement of everyone – active citizens, businesses, NGOs, and CITIES – is the key to sustainable community development.