December 2018 | AT the end of 2018, LOCALISE SDGs team had actively participated in various SDGs related conference and meetings in Indonesia and Thailand in addition to its sucessful conclusion of local training in North Maluku Province (5 December 2018) and Bali Province (14 December 2018). Both local trainings got full support from International Development Cooperaton Unit of Bappenas (Ministry of National Development Planning) and GIZ Indonesia in enlightening local governments in Indonesia on Multi Stakeholder Partnership Guideline relating to SDGs 17 (Partnership). The conclusion of local training in North Maluku and Bali marked the completion of SDGs local training series in 2018.
LOCALISE SDGs team also contributed in the Regional Project Inception and Co-Learning event organized by UN-ESCAP in Bangkok, Thailand, from 3 – 6 December 2018. The regional workshop was organised to enlighten selected pilot cities in Asia on the concept of sustainable urban management, circular economy and multistakeholder partnership. Pilot cities selected for the sustainable urban management were Ulaanbatar (Mongolia), Nagaa (Philippines), Nasinu (Fiji), Nadee (Thailand) and Battambang (Cambodia). Attending the event was LOCALISE SDGs Training Coordinator, Sheila Teta Carina, presenting the management of horizontal and vertical coordination of SDGs in Indonesia has been institutionalized under Indonesia’s Presidential Regulation 59/2017; although, ensuring smooth coordination is still needed. In the panel, she also mentioned the progress of LOCALISE SDGs project in Indonesia which so far had finished its national and local trainings in 2018. She also mentioned that the project had helped to improve coordination between ministries and other sectoral bodies for SDGs through regular coordination with relevant stakeholders. Further, she mentioned the whole process of data management was one, among many other, challenge in localising SDGs in Indonesia.
LOCALISE SDGs team also participated in SDGs Annual Conference on 17 December 2018 in Jakarta, organized by Ministry of National Development Planning. This first annual conference gathered policy makers, local governments, and non-governmental organization in the purpose of enhancing collaboration on SDGs implementation and its policy implication in Indonesia. Inspiring the attendees was Executive Director of UN-ESCAP, Dr. Armida underlining the need to develop nexus and interlink approach on SDGs in Indonesia. In relation to that, a representative from FAO mentioned the milestone of SDGs localisation in Indonesia, highlighting participation in Conference of the Parties (COP). Moreover, there was also Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Abdurrahman Mohammad Fachir suggesting, in terms of South-South and Triangular Cooperation, Indonesia has to establish a single agency such as Indonesian Aid. In terms of women labour, Prof. Lisa Cameron from Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, University of Melbourne, mentioned some challenges such as the barrier of entry and low women labour participation. Besides, discussion in the conference also engaged local governments in localising SDGs parallel event who are Governor of Lampung, Governor of Central Java, and Mayor of Trenggalek. In the discussion, there was also an acknowledgement on Asia and Pacific attainment in SDGs, particularly Goal 4 on Education.
City Diplomacy Training was the last event of LOCALISE SDGs programme in 2018. Held on 18-19 December 2018 in Jakarta, the training was attended by 40 participants from local governments, local government associations, civil society and international organisations as well as university. Taking theme “The Strategic Role of Local Government as Global Players”, the sessions enhanced the capacity of local governments in establishing international cooperation. One of its applications is on the recent regulations and procedures for local governments in Indonesia to establish cooperation with international local governments / agencies as presented by representatives of Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Foreign Affairs during the training. Apart from regulations and concepts, participants were also trained to promote image of their provinces/cities to become more competitive and marketable. Another exciting session was networking session in which participants marketed the concepts of their cities to a number of international agencies/project representatives and gained votes to see which region has best concept.
