Localising Sustainable Development Goals: Tackling the Issues of Relevance and Understandability

Authors

  • J. B. Rajan Kerala Institute for Environment & Development (KIED), Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India
  • Saira Mammen Philip Freelancer on Development & Policy Research
  • Biju S. K Government College for Women, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.25175/jrd/2026/v45/i1/174234

Keywords:

SDGs, sustainable development, local indicator framework, local target framework, local governments

Abstract

The 2030 Agenda of United Nations (UN) envisages 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with 169 targets and 231 indicators; the goals’ quantitative counterparts complement these aspirational goals. For attaining SDGs, India has developed a National Indicator Framework (NIF) on the ground that global indicators to be reframed in the national context. In acknowledgement of the crucial role played by local governments in attaining SDGs, the Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR) has formulated the Local Indicator Framework (LIF). This was to localise SDGs through gram panchayats. The authors identified that localising SDGs by using only LIF has limitations relating to relevance and understandability of targets. Studying these in selected gram panchayats of Kerala in India, by using qualitative method, this manuscript advocates for Local Target Framework (LTF). The steps for LTF are also suggested by the authors for localising SDGs.

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References

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Published

2026-03-31

How to Cite

Rajan, J. B., Philip, S. M., & S. K, B. (2026). Localising Sustainable Development Goals: Tackling the Issues of Relevance and Understandability. Journal of Rural Development, 45(1), 74–85. https://doi.org/10.25175/jrd/2026/v45/i1/174234

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