Our stories. Find out more about our work towards the Sustainable Development Goals.

In 2025, Fiji’s cities stepped onto the global stage as pioneers of sustainable urban governance. Suva became the first city in a Pacific Small Island Developing State to launch a Voluntary Local Review (VLR) of the Sustainable Development Goals, soon joined by Lautoka and Labasa. What began as a technical exercise quickly transformed into a movement—anchoring the SDGs in the everyday decisions of municipal councils.Strategic Leadership and PartnershipsThis milestone was driven by the strategic leadership of UN Resident Coordinator Dirk Wagener, who mobilized UN agencies, government counterparts, and development partners to embed SDG priorities into city planning. With ESCAP as the lead technical agency and UN-Habitat as a key partner, Fiji’s councils were guided to align urban governance with climate resilience, inclusive service delivery, and national priorities.Suva’s Bold StepsSuva City Council took bold steps, weaving VLR recommendations into its 2026–2030 Strategic Plan and endorsing a 10-year Development Framework (2026–2036). This framework reimagined urban planning—placing climate adaptation, equitable access, and resilient infrastructure at its core.Lautoka and Labasa PipelinesLautoka and Labasa followed suit, developing SDG-aligned project pipelines that mapped out strategies for economic growth, open spaces, transport, and flood protection. These pipelines became structured pathways for future investment, ensuring that development was not only planned but also sustainable.Building Capacity and InclusionCapacity-building was central to this transformation. The National SDG Localization Masterclass filled Fiji’s eight-year gap in qualified urban planners, strengthening municipal leadership and technical expertise. More than 400 citizens joined consultations—70 per cent of them women, alongside youth, older persons, and persons with disabilities. Their voices shaped council strategies, ensuring inclusivity was not an afterthought but a guiding principle.Regional ImpactThe Resident Coordinator’s Office convened partners to secure expanded co-financing and foster regional collaboration on shared infrastructure. This collective effort positioned Fiji’s councils as trailblazers of SDG localization, offering a replicable model for other Pacific nations.“The Voluntary Local Review gives us a clear framework to measure our progress and share our story, ensuring that Lautoka’s local actions are recognized as part of the global effort toward the SDGs.”
— Mohammed Anees Khan, CEO of Lautoka City CouncilCoordinated UN Impact in 2025First Pacific SIDS cities (Suva, Lautoka, Labasa) to produce VLRsThree municipal strategic plans and pipelines fully SDG-alignedNational SDG Localization Training Programme institutionalizedFiji’s journey demonstrates that when cities embrace the SDGs, they become engines of resilience, inclusion, and innovation.