U.N. Development Program (UNDP)

UNDP is the UN's global development network, an organization advocating for change and connecting countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life. We are on the ground in 166 countries, working with them on their own solutions to global and national development challenges. As they develop local capacity, they draw on the people of UNDP and our wide range of partners. World leaders have pledged to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, including the overarching goal of cutting poverty in half by 2015. UNDP's network links and coordinates global and national efforts to reach these Goals. Our focus is helping countries build and share solutions to the challenges of: Democratic Governance  Poverty Reduction  Crisis Prevention and Recovery  Environment and Energy  HIV/AIDS UNDP helps developing countries attract and use aid effectively. In all our activities, we encourage the protection of human rights and the empowerment of women. In each country office, the UNDP Resident Representative normally also serves as the Resident Coordinator of development activities for the United Nations system as a whole. Through such coordination, UNDP seeks to ensure the most effective use of UN and international aid resources. UNDP on the ground in Africa: With its extensive representation and network of partners in 45 Sub-Saharan African countries, UNDP, in collaboration with regional institutions and other UN agencies and partners, is building the capacities of African governments and communities to accelerate progress toward the MDGs. Following the 2005 Gleneagles G8 Summit which committed to increasing aid to Africa by US$25 billion dollars in 2004,  by 2010, UNDP has worked with partner governments in Africa and regional institutions to develop “Gleneagles Scenarios” which show that scaling up action toward the MDGs at the country-level is feasible. On the ground, the organization is working with governments, regional institutions, the United Nations and other development partners, including civil society organizations and the private sector, to tackle the multi-dimensional aspect of poverty by working on four focus areas, with gender equality and women's empowerment as cross-cutting areas: Poverty reduction and the MDGs Democratic governance Environment and energy Crisis prevention and recovery   UNDP on the ground in The Arab States: UNDP helps countries across the Arab region to build and share their own solutions to development challenges within UNDP’s four main focus areas: Poverty Reduction and Achievement of the Millennium Development Goals,  Democratic Governance,  Crisis Prevention and Recovery, and  Environment and Sustainable Development. UNDP’s work also emphasizes the priority concerns of HIV/AIDS, gender equality, and the protection of human rights, while addressing as well the human development deficits identified by the first series of the Arab Human Development Report — in knowledge, freedom, and women’s empowerment. Building on the tradition of UNDP’s Global Human Development Reports, the Arab Human Development Report has become a milestone in the discussion and debate on the reform agenda for human development in the Arab region.   UNDP on the ground in Asia & the Pacific: UNDP in the Asia & the Pacific region is responsible for delivering UNDP's country and regional programmes through 24 UNDP Country Offices in the region. We work in a diverse environment: a region that is fastest growing in the world while at the same time it is home to half of the world's poor: a region that houses countries experiencing economic transition (China, Mongolia, Viet Nam), two of the world's largest economies (China, India), middle income countries (Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand), and countries facing or recovering from conflict (Afghanistan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Timor-Leste). Out of the 14 Least Developed Countries in our region, four are landlocked - Afghanistan, Bhutan, Lao PDR and Nepal - while seven are island developing countries-Kiribati, Maldives, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tuvalu and Vanuatu (the other three LDCs are Bangladesh, Cambodia, and Myanmar). UNDP in the region also has a Regional Centre located in Bangkok with an office in Suva, Fiji. They deliver the regional programme and provide policy advisory and knowledge management services. What we do: Poverty reduction and the MDGs Democratic governance Environment and energy Crisis prevention and recovery    UNDP on the ground in Europe and CIS: UNDP in Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States is on the ground in 28 countries and territories in Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia. Working under a mandate issued by the United Nations Secretary-General, UNDP first set up offices and programmes in the region in 1992.  To date, UNDP has provided over $334 million in assistance to support human development in the region. UNDP works closely with national partners – including governments, civil society and the private sector – supporting country needs and priorities that fall into UNDP’s areas of expertise: Strengthening the democratic process and promoting human rights and the rule of law Reducing poverty and promoting inclusive growth Applying the latest approaches to crisis prevention and recovery, mine action and weapons collection Managing the environment in a sustainable manner Preventing, and providing treatment for HIV/AIDS Promoting gender equality and empowerment of women Facilitating cooperation between countries in the European Union and throughout the region   Strengthening partnerships for development cooperation This includes working closely with countries in the region to make sure that the Millennium Development Goals are achieved by 2015. UNDP in the region is known as the Regional Bureau for Europe and CIS (“RBEC”) and consists of: country offices; headquarters in UNDP New York; and a regional centre in Bratislava with an office in Almaty, which administers UNDP’s regional programme and provides substantive support to country offices.    UNDP on the ground in Latin America and the Caribbean: Across Latin America and the Caribbean, UNDP helps countries build and share their own solutions to urgent development challenges, supporting coalitions for change and connecting individuals and institutions so they can share knowledge, experience and resources. As countries develop local capacity, they draw on the people of UNDP and our wide range of regional and global partners. UNDP’s Regional Centre in Panama offers support to Country Offices to strengthen their capacity in project management, and to endorse the creation of strategic alliances and distribution of knowledge in high-priority areas of Latin America and the Caribbean. The Centre is integrated with a growing team of professionals and experts working on initiatives that promotes human development in focus areas such as Democratic Governance, Energy and Environment, Crisis Prevention and Recovery, HIV/AIDS, Capacity Development, and Poverty Reduction and MDG. Additionally, the Regional Centre Office in Port of Spain is also consolidated to fortify the capacity of governments and communities, to promote the sustainable development, and to support the completion of the Millennium Development Goals.    UNDP and Procurement UNDP’s volume of procurement has more than tripled since 2003 – from an annual procurement volume of US$800 million to US$2.6 billion in 2009.