The project aims to help six least developed countries (LDCs), two in Africa, two in Asia and two in the Pacific, that are either: i) assessed as eligible for graduation the first time and those close to meeting the graduation threshold; or ii) graduating and graduated from LDC status - to adjust their preparation for graduation in the wake of Covid-19 and to build greater resilience for a smooth transition in a post-Covid environment. The project offers dedicated capacity development support in the form of policy and technical advice and on-the-job coaching directly linked to the six service offering lines (SOLs) of the LDC Sustainable Graduation Support Facility (SGSF) delivered through the project’s seven outputs. Each country may co-design the specific support provided under each output to reflect each country’s priorities, context and in sync with their national and sectoral planning, budgeting, monitoring and reporting timelines and processes. The project is expected to contribute to strengthened national capacity of recipient countries: to access and apply information on new product requirements in export markets with a view to increasing exports and the use of ISMs; and to integrate resilience-building and smooth transition strategies into national and sectoral plans and policies. 

 

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. 

Data and related issues and developments in the public sector have become increasingly important in terms of government analysis and operations, academic research, and real-world applicability and acceptance. Data are now integral to every sector and function of government—as essential as physical assets and human resources. Much of the operational activity in government is now data-driven, and many Governments would find it difficult, if not impossible, to function effectively without data

This project seeks to address existing challenges and gaps in digital data management and cooperation, focusing on enhancing the institutional capacities of countries to utilize, manage and govern data in a comprehensive, objective and evidence-based manner, through regional and global cooperation. The project will build on the momentum of recent initiatives, including the Initiative on Partnership for Africa's Development. 

To this end, the project will support African countries, LDCs and SIDS to assess key data management and governance challenges and strengthen government officials’ and stakeholders’ knowledge of sound and secure data management, working closely with UN RCOs and UNCTs; support national and regional initiatives in fostering an open, fair and non-discriminatory business environment for digital data cooperation through mutual benefit, win-win outcomes and common development; support countries in developing institutional capacities for developing national digital data policies and strategies for ensuring data quality, access, security, privacy and usage, and for promoting data security through consultation, collaboration and shared benefits; make available relevant legislative information and toolkits for advancing digital data cooperation agreements through case studies.

The objective of the Project is enhancing the institutional capacities of government officials and stakeholders in Asian and African countries, in particular the LDCs and SIDS, for digital data management, data governance and data cooperation to achieve mutual benefit, win-win outcomes and common development.



 

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).