Guyana, UN sign new development framework

Guyana and the United Nations on Wednesday signed a Development Assistance Framework for 2012- 2016, which seeks to promote social and economic growth in the country.

Chairing the ceremony was Presidential Advisor on Governance Gail Teixeira, who explained that the agreement was reached after much consultation with stakeholders including civil society and the respective of UN offices here.

She noted that the UN Development Assistance Framework is the product of “hard work, research and planning” as it outlines clearly what are some of the broad areas under which Guyana hopes to attract funding internationally and through the UN. According to her, the thematic areas of the new agreement are inclusive governance, inclusive growth, poverty reduction, human and social development, environmental sustainability and disaster preparation and reduction.

“These areas are not new; these are areas that are continuations of the present cycle that is coming to an end,” she said. “The framework continues government’s approach in Guyana to development in terms of a pro-poor and a pro-growth approach.”

Braimoh in brief remarks stated that the themes selected by the Guyana’s government are similar to those outlined in the policy and this is reflective of coordination between the two.

However, he is adamant that the compilation of the document and its signing are just the beginning and challenged the stakeholders to work diligently towards its implementation. “So we need to rededicate ourselves today to the best ways possible to go ahead with the implementation of the UNDAF, that is the challenge before us,” the diplomat added.

He explained that this is important since its success can only be measured based on the extent of its impact on the lives of Guyanese. Present at Wednesday’s signing ceremony were the heads of the UN missions in Guyana and offices which work closely with government to implement goals and projects related to sustainable development.

Dr Ashni Singh said government has placed at the centre of its development agenda good governance, economic growth and environmental sustainability, the very themes in the UNDAF. As such, he believes that it should come as no surprise that these are embedded in the document. The finance minister added that within these specific themes are broad areas of emphasis on strong national ownership.

“I believe that notwithstanding the process may have been painstaking at times… the fact that we have at the end of the process a document that enjoys strong national ownership and that will be translated into projects and programmes that; given the level of strong national ownership will be closely embraced and successfully implemented makes the process worth the while in my mind,” Dr Singh noted. He extended appreciation for the work of UN country teams, the Cabinet secretariat and all other stakeholders for their contribution to the process. The cycle of the previous United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) for Guyana ends this year.

It is the common strategic framework that will guide the agencies, funds and programmes of the United Nations development system in formulating their operational activities in support of the people and government of Guyana.

The UNDAF provides a collective, coherent and integrated response to Guyana’s national development priorities and challenges; it is the result of a consultative process between the government and the UN agencies and organizations, to analyse the national development situation, identify key development issues, their root causes and their social dimensions from the perspective of Guyana’s National Development Strategy (NDS) and Poverty Reduction Strategy, as well as internationally agreed development goals and commitments such as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the Millennium Declaration.