Introduction
The quadrennial comprehensive policy review (QCPR) is the mechanism through which the General Assembly assesses the effectiveness, efficiency, coherence and impact of the United operational activities for development, and it establishes system-wide policy orientations for operational activities for development and country-level modalities of the UN.
The 2020 QCPR process presents an important opportunity for Member States to engage in a dialogue on how to adapt UN operational activities for development to the changing global development landscape and the new 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.
To facilitate the QCPR process, the Secretary-General undertakes in-depth analysis informed by the work of UN entities at headquarters and in the field, as well as programme country governments, which is presented in an annual report. The 2020 Secretary-General’s report on QCPR will assess progress in implementation of the 2016 QCPR resolution and point the way for a strategic and focused QCPR to be adopted in 2020. Additional information is available at https://www.un.org/ecosoc/en/oas-qcpr.
UNITAR offers training sessions on QCPR and this page provides links to all relevant materials.
6 Modules, Duration of 1/2 day each
KEY OBJECTIVES
- Understand the longer-term positioning of the UN development system
- Understand the relations between the UN development system and the SDG implementation in targeted countries
- Understand the funding for the UN operational activities for development
Module 1 material, Session: “The Future is Now - Global Sustainable Development report 2019”: Implications for the UN development system
Module 1: The QCPR and the UN development system
This module would provide an introduction to the Quadrennial Comprehensive Policy Review (QCPR), including the repositioning of the UN development system. The 2020 QCPR will guide operational activities for development over the next four years. This module will also provide some food for thought for how Member States relate the QPCR to the Decade of Action launched by Member States to accelerate the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
- “The Future is Now - Global Sustainable Development report 2019”: Implications for the UN development system
- Speaker: Mr. Peter Messerli, Co-chair of the Independent Group of Scientists 2019 and Co-author of the Global Sustainable Development Report
Module 1 material, session: Introduction to the QCPR – Evolution of Member States’ guidance to the UN development system
Introduction to the QCPR – Evolution of Member States’ guidance to the UN development system
Speakers:
Mr. Markus Reisle, Counsellor, Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the UN
Ms. Marion Barthelemy, Director, Office for Intergovernmental Support and Coordination for Sustainable Development, UN DESA
Reading Documents
Reading Documents
Module 2 materials, session: A tailored and targeted United Nations development system’s support to countries’ efforts to advance the 2030 Agenda
This module would target a bird’s eye view and interactive discussion of how the UN development system is responding to the guidance of Member States under the twin resolutions on the 2016 Quadrennial Comprehensive Policy Review and the UNDS repositioning, to support the delivery of the 2030 Agenda in the context of the increasingly diverse needs, capacities and priorities of programme countries.
- Overview of the UN Reforms – where we are and where we are going
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Speaker: Mr. Jens Wandel, UN Under Secretary-General, Special Advisor to the Secretary-General on Reform
Key elements of the UNDS reform, and the relationship between the parts: what has changed and what is still needed?
- Speaker: Mr. Robert Piper, Assistant Secretary-General, and Director, UN Development Cooperation Office
The impact of the UN reform for UN agencies, funds and programmes: business models for country support
- Speaker: Mr. Ramiz Alakbarov, Deputy Executive Director a.i., UNFPA
MODULE 3: MATERIALS, SESSION: Funding UN operational activities for development and Financing the SDGs
This module will present an overview of the funding of the UN’s operational activities for development, including current trends and issues, as well as progress and challenges on the implementation of related mandates. The session will review the Funding Compact’s objectives and key elements, which emphasizes greater transparency and accountability on the part of the system in exchange for higher quality and more predictable resources, and recent progress on the Compact’s indicators, and also delve into the subject of efficiencies that were part of the repositioning commitments. As funding the UN system is one sub-set of the larger discussion on financing for development, an exchange of views will be promoted on the role of the UN development system in terms of supporting countries to finance the SDGs. A discussion will follow between panelists and participants, led by the moderator.
- Latest trends and key issues in system-wide funding
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Speaker: Ms. Zina Mounla, Chief, Operational Activities Policy Branch, UN DESA
- Improving the effectiveness and efficiency of business operation: Issues, commitments and next steps
- Speaker: Mr. Lars Tushuizen, Chief, Country Business Strategy Branch, UN DCO
Module 4: Looking forward to the 2020 QCPR Thursday 17 September 2020
The final module of the UNITAR QCPR Training Series for Delegates will include a “refresher” with remarks from the DESA USG on the QCPR and highlights of the 2020 ECOSOC operational activities segment by its Chair. It will also feature a recap of key discussions held during previous modules, together with a dialogue on the overall direction and potential key elements of the 2020 QCPR. This will be followed by reflections on how to bolster the system’s support with policy options and technical advice, including on climate change, and how to reinforce a whole-of-system response. Finally, following information shared by the drafter and facilitator of the 2020 QCPR, an open discussion will be held on possible topics for the next QCPR.
- Reinforcing a whole-of-system response
- Speaker: Mr. Charles Katende, Chief, Policy, Strategic Information and Planning Branch, United Nations Population Fund
- Speaker: Ms. Jessica Faieta, Resident Coordinator a.i., Colombia
- System-wide approaches to maximize impact in the Decade of Action
- Speaker: Mr. Haoliang Xu, Assistant Secretary-General and Director of the Bureau of Policy and Programme Support, UNDP