MADINAH: The Madinah Region Development Authority has highlighted its experience in localizing the Sustainable Development Goals as part of the 2026 High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development at UN headquarters in New York City.
During a session titled “Transformation from the Ground Up: Acting at the Local Level,” the authority also emphasized its best practices in harnessing data to support urban development and enhance quality of life in Madinah,
Engineer Abdulrahman Ibrahim, executive director of data and innovation, highlighted its pioneering global approach in moving beyond broad macro indicators toward detailed spatial data at the neighborhood level.
This shift helps uncover hidden development gaps, supports evidence-based decision-making, and reinforces the principle of “leaving no one behind,” according to SPA.
During the event, the Authority highlighted the city’s experience in developing an integrated system for analyzing urban data and aligning it with the SDGs.
The Madinah Region Development Authority presented a recommendation to establish an “Alliance of Actors” — a global initiative built on the three pillars of regulatory, governance, and technical — in partnership with several national and international entities.
The initiative aims to strengthen the alignment of regulations and policies, develop governance frameworks, and provide technical tools and methodologies that enable cities to bridge the gap between official reports and development realities at the neighborhood level. In doing so, it will help accelerate achievement of the SDGs, promote an exchange of expertise and strengthen capacity-building among cities around the world.
