When you start thinking of specialized United Nations agencies, the ones that typically come to mind are heavyweights such as UNESCO, the World Health Organization or the Food and Agriculture Organization.
Less prominent, perhaps, is the U.N. Industrial Development Organization, or UNIDO, whose mandate is to promote industrial development for poverty reduction, inclusive globalization and environmental sustainability. UNIDO, however, is known to be very active within global development circles and punch above its weight — and its relatively small annual budget of $200 million and about 700 permanent staff.
The new development agenda set to be adopted at the U.N. Summit in New York gives UNIDO even more relevance, particularly in light of SDG 9 — “Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation.”