Government inks MoU with UNDP to fast-track development in North East

NEW DELHI — A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed on Tuesday between Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in a bid to fast-track development in the country’s northeastern region, an official said.

The MoU was signed by Union Minister of State (MoS) for DoNER BL Verma and Ulrika Modeer, Assistant Secretary-General and Director of the UNDP Bureau of External Relations and Advocacy, at the Ministry’s office here.

“This MoU intends to provide a platform for expanded collaboration between DoNER Ministry (supported through appropriate financing) and UNDP on all aspects related to SDG localisation, and supporting states for establishing SDGCCs (Sustainable Development Corporation Centres) or any other emerging requirements,” read the MoU, a copy of which was accessed by IANS.

As per the MoU, UNDP will set up SDGCCs across all the states of the northeast, in addition to Nagaland.

“DoNER Ministry has proactively taken concrete actions to localise the SDGs and is committed to accelerating the progress on the SDGs by integrating them into its policy planning process for long-term sustainability.

“Assistance from the UNDP in taking forward this agenda for localisation at the state and district levels would be of utmost importance, including sustainable financing, computation of SDG indices, establishing SDGCC across all northeastern states and designing opportunities for cross-learning and capacity development,” read the MoU.

A technical support unit at DoNER Ministry on SDGs will also be established to enable to play an agenda-setting role on SDGs, it said.

“The Ministry has created new policies for the region’s development, for instance, PM-DevINE. Through the partnership, UNDP will support the Ministry in the Identification of gaps, preparation of strategic plans to address the gaps, designing assessments to track progress, creation, and implementation of monitoring mechanisms at state, district, and village levels, and conduct training programs for enhancing the capacity of officials,” read the MoU.

Among others, the UNDP will provide technical and implementation support for fast-tracking of development programmes in identified backward areas and scheduled areas in the region besides designing innovative models for faster delivery of public services.

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