Government of Guyana and United Nations System in the Caribbean host Annual Coordination Meeting to review achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals in the region

The Government of Guyana (GOG) and the United Nations (UN) System in Guyana recently convened the Joint Steering Committee of the UN Multi Country Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (MSDCF), which met for its Annual Coordination Meeting on May 22, 2023. The Joint Steering Committee assessed the UN’s response to regional development priorities during the first year of implementation of the UN Multi-Country Sustainable Development Framework (MSDCF).

In his welcome remarks, Mr. Roberto Valent, Regional Director for the UN Development Coordination Office for Latin America and the Caribbean thanked participating governments for their continued partnership with the UN. He noted that “the results of the first year of implementation of the UN Multi Country Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework show that UN Agencies, Funds, and Programmes have worked together in a coordinated and coherent manner in response to the Secretary-General’s call for a course correction to rescue the Sustainable Development Goals, while focusing on human rights of all.”

Senior Minister in the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance Dr. Ashni Singh who Co-Chaired the meeting with the UN Resident Coordinator in Guyana Yeşim Oruç said, “We, in the Caribbean, are proud members of the United Nations and active participants in its various institutions and organs. We welcome the opportunity to meet through this annual consultation to take stock of where we are and to articulate our vision in relation to how we move forward”.

The Senior Minister also pointed out the peculiarities and vulnerabilities of the region due to the climate change phenomena and other externalities as he lamented the non-implementation of the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index (MVI) and the delivery of the 0.7% GNI of ODA rich countries to assist poor countries.

Yeşim Oruç, UN Resident Coordinator in Guyana, highlighted that “a regional cooperation framework delivered at national levels that is fit for purpose resulted in the UN responding to the calls of Small Island Developing States, especially the Caribbean, to deliver more tailored support to countries and territories.”

The Joint Steering Committee is part of the governance mechanism of the implementation of the Caribbean MSDCF and comprises ministerial representatives of the 19 country signatories to the Cooperation Framework, as well as representatives from 23 UN Agencies, Funds and Programmes that implement development projects in the region.

The hybrid meeting saw discussions on food systems, data and digitalisation, and how the UN can support countries across the region to accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals and agreed on strategies for strengthening this mechanism.

At the conclusion of the meeting the leadership of the Joint MSDCF Steering Committee was handed over to Barbados, which will be co-chaired by Hon. Ryan Straughn, Minister in the Ministry of Finance and Didier Trebuc, UN Resident Coordinator, Barbados and Eastern Caribbean.

RC Trebucq expressed gratitude to the Government of Guyana and the UN leadership for their chairing of the Joint MSDCF Steering Committee. He acknowledged the priority issues and demands of the region including food security and climate adaptation. He highlighted Barbados' Bridgetown Initiative, which has been instrumental in shedding light on the paradox of vulnerable, poorer countries paying more for finance, even when recovering from climate related disasters. He noted that the UN stands fully behind this initiative and committed as in-coming co-chair to advance these discussions. 

Minister Straughn highlighted that in addition to building global consensus on vulnerability issues, the region would need to work together to address local climate resilience issues, particularly as it continued the long recovery from the effects of COVID. He reaffirmed Barbdos' commitment to working with the UN System in this regard.

About the MSDCF

The Multi-Country Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (MSDCF)  is the most important instrument for planning and implementation of the UN development activities towards the fulfilment of the 2030 Agenda in the Caribbean. The UN and the governments in the region are committing to contribute to significant structural changes in the economies and governance systems of participating countries towards: Economic resilience and shared prosperity; Equality and well-being; Resilience to climate change and shocks, and sustainable natural resource management; and peace, safety, justice, and the rule of law.