Brussels, 1 May 2014/ ACP: The Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Mrs Helen Clark visited the ACP House on Monday to discuss a partnership in programme implementation in mutual member states in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific.

The consultation follows a Memorandum of Understanding signed between the ACP Group Secretariat and UNDP in 2012 to join forces in fostering south-south cooperation, promoting inclusive economic growth as a vehicle for sustainable development, and providing support for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Under the MOU, parties agreed to support regional and intra-regional integration, and contribute to the sustainable development of developing countries through initiatives related to private sector development, renewable energy and climate change among others.

Advancing the post-2015 development agenda is also a priority.

The meeting on Monday comes as ACP envoys in Brussels decide how to programme the Intra-ACP cooperation envelope under the European Development Fund (EDF 11), which is worth €3.5 billion annually until 2020.

The ACP Group consists of 79 member States, including 40 Least Developed Countries and 36 Small Island Developing States. Founded by the 1975 Georgetown Agreement, the ACP Group supports unity and solidarity among its members and promotes sustainable development and the gradual integration of the ACP States into the global economy, within the framework of the ACP-European Union Partnership Agreement.

UNDP is on the ground in 177 countries and territories, serving in many respects as the operational arm of the United Nations (UN) at the regional and country levels. UNDP works with partners to promote sustainable development through poverty eradication, prevention of and enabling recovery from crisis, promotion of democratic governance, protection of the environment, and advancement of women.

(Photo: ACP Secretary General Alhaji Muhammad Mumuni and UNDP administrator Helen Clark at the ACP House in Brussels)

– ACP Press