Monthly Archive: July 2016

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UNCTAD 14: Nairobi “Maafikiano” barely saves minimal finance and development mandates

Due to UNCTAD’s decidedly pro-South and uncompromising development-focused mission, its quadrennial conferences have traditionally been North –South showdowns. Coming a few months after the adoption of the ambitious and universal 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 associated goals, the theme of the XIV Quadrennial Conference of UNCTAD (the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development) was “From Decisions to Actions.” There was, therefore, reason to expect that this time members would bridge their differences for the sake of reinforcing mandates of the organization critical to the Agenda’s implementation. But that was not the case. Read more…

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The Next United Nations Secretary General Town Hall Debate

In 2016, the UN is searching for a successor to Ban Ki-Moon as the next Secretary General. Over the years, several initiatives have urged reforms regarding the UN Secretary General election process. In this spirit, the President of the General Assembly together with Al-Jazeera organized a town hall debate with the candidates on 12 July. Read more…

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The United Nations and system organizations should engage with donors in a dialogue at the strategic level for the adoption of donor reporting templates and accommodating the common information needs, demands and requirements of donors and the regulatory frameworks and capacities of the organizations.

This is one of the main recommendations highlighted in a new report by the Joint Inspection Unit (JIU), an independent external oversight body of the United Nations system, reviewing donor reporting requirements across the UN system.

The JIU review focused on the United Nations system organizations that have the highest number of donor reports and on the 16 major donors to the United Nations system, including the European Commission. Read More.

In new report:  “United Nations System – Private Sector Partnerships Arrangements in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development“, the Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) recommends the General Assembly consider a review of the “Guidelines on a Principle-based Approach to the Cooperation between the United Nations and the Business Sector”, with a view to reflecting the changes needed to bring about the increased contribution expected from the private sector based on S-G’s proposals in report A/72/684; and update the common interpretation of General Assembly resolution 92 (I), entitled “Official Seal and Emblem of the United Nations”, shared by the network of legal advisers from all United Nations organizations that are members of the United Nations System Chief Executives Board for Coordination.

“The Inspector believes that, in the light of the new approach for a revitalized partnership with the private sector requested in the 2030 Agenda, the Guidelines appear to offer more of a “defensive” line (safeguarding the integrity, impartiality and independence of the United Nations and managing risk) than a “proactive” operational line (facilitating the formulation and implementation of partnerships).”

 

The UN News website (https://news.un.org/en/) has been retooled to include the option to subscribe to news based on selected topics of interest. In addition, subscribers have the ability to sign-up to receive UN News in Kiswahili and Portuguese languages, as well as in six official UN languages (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish). Subscriptions by topic will also include direct links to the webcasts of events pertaining to each topic.

The UN News also updated their mobile phone application.

Ahora también en español:

Spotlight Enfoques sobre Desarrollo Sostenible 2017

En defensa del interés público

Privatización, partnerships, apropiación empresarial y su impacto sobre la sustentabilidad y la desigualdad: evaluaciones y alternativas. Informe del Grupo de Reflexión de la Sociedad Civil sobre la Agenda 2030 para el Desarrollo Sostenible.