The Government of Sudan (GoS) and the United Nations (UN) signed today the UN Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) for 2018-2021, which is the planning framework for UN development collaboration in Sudan over the next four years. The UNDAF was signed by His Excellency Mr Osman Ahmed Fadul Wash, Minister of International Cooperation, and Her Excellency Ms Marta Ruedas, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan, at an official ceremony that included representatives from the Government of Sudan and the UN.

During the ceremony, the GoS and the UN pledged to foster cooperation, coordination and partnership to implement the UNDAF as the UN’s contribution towards national development plans and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

During His Excellency’s speech, the Minister of International Cooperation commended the collaboration between the government of Sudan and the United Nations in producing this framework and added: “This framework helps in addressing challenges facing sustainable development and social work in Sudan such as displacement, migration, refuge, and the social and economic effects of these issues as well”.

The formulation of the UNDAF, which was based on extensive consultations with different national stakeholders, including government partners and civil society, was overseen by a government-UN task force, coordinated by the Ministry of International Cooperation, established in June 2015.

On her part, Her Excellency Ms Marta Ruedas, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, highlighted that “the new UNDAF is an exceptional opportunity for the UN system to enable an early take-off of the SDGs in Sudan and closely align its support behind the essential ambitions of Sudan’s national development plans”. Her Excellency further added that the “SDGs are extraordinarily ambitious and complex, and require everyone, including the UN, to approach development innovatively. We will need to work across sectors in an all-of-society effort for these ambitions”.

Twenty UN agencies, funds and programs will contribute to the execution of this third UNDAF for Sudan, which amounts to $1.4 billion worth of programming over the four-year period in four focus areas: (i) economic development and poverty reduction; (ii) environment, climate resilience and disaster risk management; (iii) social services; (iv) governance, rule of law and institutional capacity development; and (v) community stabilization.