Partnership framework between GRN and UN for 2019-2023 launched

The Director General of the National Planning Commission and Minister of Economic Planning, Hon. Obeth Kandjoze and the United Nations (UN) Resident Coordinator (RC) in Namibia, Kiki Gbeho jointly launched the UN Partnership Framework (UNPAF) 2019-2023 on Friday, 27 April at the UN House in Windhoek.

Under the theme, “A Partnership for Eradication of Poverty and Increased Equality”, the framework provides an overview of the UN System’s engagement and functions in Namibia for the period 2019-2023. Through this framework, the UN system will support the Government of the Republic of Namibia (GRN) to achieve national and international development agendas.

Highlighting the linkage between the new framework and Namibia’s development agenda, Hon. Kandjoze said, “Our new partnership is fully aligned to Namibia’s needs and aspirations as expressed in our national development plans and policies such as Vision 2030, the Fifth National Development Plan (NDP5), the Harambee Prosperity Plan (HPP), the Blue Print for Wealth Redistribution and Poverty Eradication and also to the Global Agenda 2030 and the continents’ Agenda 2063, which, as a country we have fully taken-up as our very own.”

Aligned with NDP 5, the UNPAF 2019-2023 contributes to four main results areas: economic progression, social transformation, environmental sustainability and good governance.

The UNPAF 2019-2023 was developed through an intricate and long process to ensure that it is aligned to the shifting development dynamics in Namibia. This included a Mid-Term Review of the previous UNPAF 2014-2018, in 2016, a Common Country Assessment in 2017, and a Joint Partnership and Resource Mobilization Strategy in 2017. The framework’s outcomes and the UN’s interventions towards achieving Namibia’s long-term vision, Vision 2030, were determined through a strategic prioritization process. The GRN and the UN consulted with the private sector, academia, civil society, young people as well as bilateral and multilateral partners throughout the process.

Expressing delight with the extensive consultations that were done for the development of the UNPAF, Hon. Kandjoze said, “This ties in well with the old adage that finds its meaning in NDP 5 that ‘if you want to go fast, go alone, but if you want to go far, go with the people’. This is a signal of the emphasis and importance we put on our people within the spirit of the Harambee and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) ‘leave no one behind’.”

With the recent classification of Namibia as an Upper Middle-Income Country, the UN’s engagement with Namibia has shifted from one based on development assistance to one of development partnership, meaning that in addition to programming, the UN has shifted to providing technical expertise and building GRN’s capacity to deliver services, rather than taking the lead on implementing programmes.

Specifically, through the framework, the UN will focus on developing capacities of national institutions, fostering multi-disciplinary approaches to development, strengthening knowledge generation and management, as well as providing technical expertise, policy analysis and advisory support. UN Agencies, who are not based in Namibia, but are supporting programmes and projects, can also be found in the framework and are fully aligned to Namibia’s agenda.

“Winning the ‘War on Poverty’ and reaching our ‘last mile challenge’ will require a tremendous amount of hard work by all of us. Harambee will have to be a verb and not a noun. On my last day as the Resident Coordinator in Namibia, I am excited about the framework we are launching today. It recognizes the challenges and builds on Namibia’s solid development foundation towards ensuring that no one feels left out,” Gbeho stated.

Implementation of UNPAF 2019-2023 will commence in 2019, following the completion of UNPAF 2014-2018.