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Voluntary Local Review – Diputació de Barcelona

Year of relationship: 2025

Team:

• Marc Martí-Costa (dir.)
• Cecilia Conde

Institution: Diputació de Barcelona

Since the approval of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in 2015, the Barcelona Provincial Council (DIBA), as well as many local entities in the province of Barcelona, have committed to advancing towards sustainable development and fulfilling the commitments established under this agreement.

In this context, the Institut Metròpoli has provided support and guidance to the Barcelona Provincial Council in the preparation of its Voluntary Local Review (VLR), a mechanism for monitoring and evaluating the 2030 Agenda.

The report outlines the path taken by DIBA from the approval of the 2030 Agenda to the present day, although the most in-depth analysis focuses on the 2020–2024 period. This commitment is approached from different angles, analyzing both the budgetary and resource efforts, as well as the contribution to the various SDGs through different policies.

The report is based on a rigorous and cross-cutting assessment of the policies contributing to the achievement of the SDGs, prepared with the participation of all the areas of the Provincial Council. Within this framework, between 2023 and 2024, DIBA allocated nearly half of the corporation’s budget (a total of €961.7 million) to SDG 16, which aims to build effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions. This result is due to the fact that DIBA links its main support instruments for local entities, such as the Investment Plan or the Services Catalogue, to SDG 16. The next SDG with the highest budget allocation (10.3% of the total) is SDG 11, which aims to make cities and communities sustainable.

As for the Services Catalogue, four SDGs (16, 11, 8, and 3) concentrate a significant part of the available resources. When analyzing the evolution of the Catalogue’s resources between 2020 and 2024, SDGs 16 and 11 show an upward trend. SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) and SDG 15 (Life on Land) also show growth. Conversely, other SDGs, such as SDG 13 (Climate Action), SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), or SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation), have experienced a less favorable evolution during this period.

The report also includes an analysis of how local entities in the province are working within the framework of the 2030 Agenda, with a focus on aligning strategic instruments with the SDGs, the development of urban agendas and local 2030 agendas, and awareness-raising and communication activities aimed at citizens. Finally, it includes a chapter on lessons learned and next steps, with the horizon set on 2030.

This document is the result of a shared reflection process, which not only aims to assess DIBA’s contribution to the SDGs but also to promote organizational improvement and innovation in local public policies aligned with the 2030 Agenda.

Download:

• Report of Voluntary Local Review – Diputació de Barcelona