Locations
Local Action: Empowering people, transforming lives
Local Action puts people and communities at the heart of change. It empowers local actors – including municipalities and other local governments, civil society, and the private sector – to set priorities, make decisions, and deliver solutions that strengthen local economies, improve services, and build resilience, in both development and crisis settings. UNDP brings expertise, tools, and partnerships to ensure these efforts are inclusive, sustainable, and leave no one behind. By linking local action with national priorities and policies, UNDP strengthens decentralization, multi-level governance, and the social contract between people and the state.
UNDP's Local Action Reach (2022-2024)
UNDP supports local action through integrated, adaptive portfolios that turn local priorities into lasting impact. We work with local actors to:
- Strengthen local governance and service delivery – build accountable, responsive systems at the subnational level that deliver for people.
- Advance economic opportunities – foster inclusive local economies, strengthen value chains, create jobs, and expand financial inclusion.
- Build resilient communities – support climate adaptation, sustainable resource management, and preparedness, response, and recovery from shocks and crises.
- Foster social cohesion and peace – strengthen collaboration, prevent conflict, and sustain community-led peacebuilding.
- Promote inclusion and equity – ensure women, youth, children, persons with disabilities, Indigenous Peoples, forcibly displaced people, and other marginalized groups shape and benefit from development.
- Mobilise sustainable financing – strengthen local revenue generation, de-risk investment, and expand access to public, private, and innovative SDG financing for local development.
- Connect local and global impact – link communities to global knowledge, innovation, digital solutions, and partnerships, to scale investment, drive transformative change, and strengthen peace and resilience.
