In the context of the implementation of the Agenda 2030 regionally, Sweden has taken steps
in order to mainstream the SDGs in national and sub-national development policies. For
instance, Sweden has made high level statements and participated in the voluntary national
reviews (VNRs) of the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development.14 Further,
Sweden has created a specific delegation to analyse Sweden’s implementation progress,15 and
also adopted a National Action Plan recognising local and municipal governments role in
implementing Agenda 2030.16 Furthermore, regional governments have also created
frameworks for the realisation of the SDGs.
In short, even though half of Sweden’s regions and municipalities have declared they adopt the
SDGs as a tool in their sustainability work, SDG implementation in Sweden is a recent
phenomenon and key state-actors are still in the process of developing the necessary tools,
frameworks and policies. Among the promising initiatives undertaken by local and regional
governments, this paper will analyse below the contribution made by the creation of
collaborative frameworks and platforms between LAs and CSOs in the localisation process
of the SDGs’ implementation.