Seychelles hosts programming principles workshop |29 September 2016
Seychelles is hosting a programming principles workshop being led the Regional United Nations Development Group for Eastern and Southern Africa (R-UNDG ESA) in collaboration with the United Nations Resident Coordinator's Office in Mauritius.
The four-day training workshop being held at the Savoy Hotel, Beau Vallon was officially opened on Tuesday by secretary of state Ambassador Barry Faure in the presence of UN representative of Resident Coordinator’s Office, Doorgawatee RamGopal, R-UNDG ESA Regional Coordination Advisor Dr Jacquelin Olweya, other key experts and stakeholders.
The purpose of the workshop is to support the completion and monitoring and evaluation of the UN Development Assistance Framework, the Seychelles Strategic Plan, for the period 2017- 2020.
As a result of inter-agency discussions to revise the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) Guidelines of the UN in 2007, five programming principles – human rights-based approach, gender equality, environmental sustainability, capacity development, and results-based management – were identified.
The training will provide a conceptual framework to visualise how the programming principles complement one another, and a tool to support their application during the four main steps of the UNDAF process which are roadmap; country analysis; strategic planning and monitoring and evaluation.
They are also highlighting three underlying principles and how they strengthen the quality of the UNDAF accountability, particularly for the state; public participation, inclusion and access to, and demands for, information; and equality and non-discrimination.
In view that the Seychelles UNDAF has already been prepared, delegates will be provided with the necessary guidance to formulate the results matrix in the key results group areas of Blue economy,
health, HIV/Aids and substance abuse and the rule of law.
In his opening remarks Ambassador Faure said the goal is to work collectively with the United Nations Country Team to refine the development of the results framework of the Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA).
“The SPA bases itself on the National Development Strategy 2015-2019, referred to as the NDS. And, rightly so, I would say, as the NDS has the overall objective of providing an overarching framework for development of Seychelles,” he said.
He stated the four key results areas which is considered base for NDS and that the NDS is not cast in stone.
“As a living document it can be improved upon as it is being implemented. As we work at implementing the SDGs and, of course, Africa’s Agenda 2063, the plan is to have one national coordinating strategic framework to guide our country’s development strategies,” he said.
Ambassador Faure added, “It is our hope that this workshop will go a long way to complement the NDS and to provide it with the legs that it requires.”
The workshop is under the leadership of Dr Olweya and her team of experts consist of Seth Broekman, Jean Jacob Sahou and Themba Kalua.