The objective of the project is to strengthen the capacity of Governments, civil society organizations and sport associations/federations, including Paralympic committees and national special Olympic organizations in the target countries to jointly elaborate plans for the full and effective inclusion of persons with disabilities, with a specific focus on autism, in society through sport. At the same time, the project aims at developing the skills of sport instructors in the field of running to train young people with autism and their family members and monitor their progress in sporting activities over time. 

The need to support countries formulating policies and strategies for MSME resilience has been recognized by the General Assembly resolution A/RES/74/270 . In the Secretary-General’s report ‘Shared responsibility, global solidarity: Responding to the socio-economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic’ , supporting MSMEs is outlined as a focus area to tackle socio-economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Supporting MSMEs and informal workers is also included as one of the five pillars in the UN Framework for the Immediate Socioeconomic Response to the COVID-19 crisis . In this context, this project aims to formulate enabling policy environments and strengthen capacities of policymakers and MSME entrepreneurs to enhance MSME resilience to external shocks and risks, including the COVID-19 pandemic, in Cambodia, Ethiopia, the Philippines and Zimbabwe. The project will improve the capacity of policymakers to plan and implement coherent policy mechanisms promoting MSME resilience. It will also strengthen MSME entrepreneurial capacities for resilience and competitiveness for the inclusive and sustainable recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. To upscale impact and sustainability, the project will forge extensive partnerships within and across target countries. It will pursue synergies with regional MSME supporting strategies such as the African Union SMEs Strategy and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation’s Small and Medium Enterprises Working Group Strategic Plan for 2021-2024, in addition to pursuing coherent interventions with MSME supporting programmes of government departments, UN Country Teams and development partners in target countries. 

The aim of this project is to strengthen national capacity in the three project countries to formulate, implement, monitor and evaluate effective and evidence-based national policies and programmes aimed at social and economic integration and inclusion of young people with disabilities. As set out in the Programme of Action of the Copenhagen World Summit for Social Development, the aim of social integration is to create “’a society for all’, in which every individual, each with rights and responsibilities, has an active role to play.” In the case of the present project, inclusion of youth with disabilities means that they are to be actively engaged, as both agents and beneficiaries, in the two focus areas of the project: 1) the design and implementation of national policies for social inclusion of youth with disabilities, and; 2) the design of national programmes and strategies for creating employment opportunities and including youth with disabilities in national labour markets.
Project activities will consist of a combination of analytical and operational capacity building work engaging national and international experts in conjunction with UNDESA and ECLAC/UNDP staff. The main beneficiaries/participants in the project will be policymakers, members of parliaments, and Government officials with mandates related to youth, employment and persons with disabilities. Representatives of youth organizations and disabled persons organizations will participate as both beneficiaries and resource persons for the project.
Activities will further include delivery, in project countries, of comprehensive training on formulating and monitoring participatory evidence-based youth policies and programmes aimed at achieving social inclusion and employment opportunities for youth with disabilities. This will support policymakers to work with and create the space for the participation of young people and relevant civil society organizations. It will also contribute to effective policy-making, and a greater awareness of the needs of young people with disabilities in national planning initiatives.
Upon the completion of the project, national programs for training and employment of young people with disabilities will be incorporated into the existing national development plans and programmes in the project countries.

The Technology Facilitation Mechanism (TFM) was launched as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development with the objective to support the SDGs. It includes three major components – an Inter-Agency Task Team (IATT) of over 30 UN-system agencies; an annual multi-stakeholder Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) Forum; and an on-line platform that is expected to serve as a gateway for information on existing science, technology and innovation (STI) initiatives, mechanisms and programs, within and beyond the United Nations. These are advised by a 10 –Member Group of academics, policy makers, entrepreneurs and others, appointed by the Secretary-General. This project aims to strengthen the capacity of key constituents in developing countries to access, operationalize and benefit from STI for the SDGs. It will strengthen the learning and adoption of relevant innovations by developing countries across both the South and the North; improve the capacity of governments and entrepreneurs to access relevant STI solutions through on-line mechanisms (including through improving their design); and strengthen the off-line partnerships, policy supports and institutional structures needed to make these self-sustaining. Throughout, the natural synergies across the different components of the TFM will be fully utilised. The direct beneficiaries of the project are STI and SDG communities in the target countries, including government officials, academics, scientists, technologists, practitioners, business persons and community leaders. The project will enhance their capacity to develop, disseminate and adapt STI solution in key strategic SDG areas, including a better understanding of relevant policy instruments and the sustainable development implications of new technology trends. The ultimate key beneficiaries of the project are all stakeholders around the world that will use the Online Platform to increase their capacity to use STI for SDGs. 

All governments from developing countries confront the challenge of designing coherent policies that can simultaneously accelerate growth, reduce poverty and inequality, preserve and improve the environment, and help adapt/mitigate to climate change. To successfully achieve these objectives, countries need both i) sound institutional arrangements for policy integration; and ii) quantitative analytical capacities to assess policy options. The ultimate aim is to foster a cohesive policy formulation process that incorporates development objectives across the economic, social, and environmental dimensions of sustainable development.
In response to the Government requests from Cameroon, Ethiopia and Senegal, this project aims to support policy coherence through stronger inter-agency collaboration and coordination, while building integrated assessment methodologies and capacities to address the interlinkages and tradeoffs among policies, goals and the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development. A climate, land-use, energy and water systems integrated assessment (CLEWS), including socio-economic aspects, will be developed in each country within the framework of improved cooperation among institutions and public administration and integrated whole-of-government approaches. Capacity building activities will be provided to government officials, in order to address the challenges and particular policy scenarios discussed with official government counterparts, to inform evidence-based policy discussions.
The Project will result in enhanced institutional capacity and inter-agency cooperation within target countries for developing integrated approaches and tools to support evidence-based policy-making to address the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).