MEA says India launched series of projects under UN Global Capacity Building Initiative
By Anjali Sharma
Washington – Ministry of External Affairs Secretary (West) Tanmaya Lal on Saturday launched first 4 projects under the aegis of the “India-UN Global Capacity Building Initiative”according to a press released issued by the ministry
Heads of Missions of the participating countries, UN Resident Coordinator Shombi Sharp, heads of various UN agencies in India, and senior MEA officials were present during the launch held on August 1.
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar announced the initiative in September 2023, on the margins of the 78th Session of the UNGA.
Ministry of External Affairs and the UN Country Team in India have jointly worked to identify and implement these projects to foster South-South cooperation and accelerate progress to achieve the SDGs, the MEA said in a statement on Saturday.
India has been a pioneer in capacity-building efforts for the Global South. Its flagship programme, the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation scheme, provides over 12,000 training slots annually to 160 countries, covering over 400 specialized courses.
The programme has trained more than 225,000 professionals, MEA stated.
The India-UN Global South Capacity Building Initiative is a natural extension of India’s expertise in technical and economic cooperation.
The initiative seeks to design demand-driven programmes that support human resource development through specialized training, contribute to the achievement of the SDGs by partnering with UN agencies.
Under the initiative, the UN agency will assist the host government in identifying SDG-oriented projects and other components, while the training component will be delivered through the ITEC programme.
The 4 projects have been selected for implementation – Rice Fortification and Supply Chain Management in Nepal, supported by the World Food Programme; Digital Health Platform for Zambia and Lao PDR, supported by UNDP; Census Preparedness in Belize, Barbados, St. Kitts & Nevis, Suriname, and Trinidad & Tobago, supported by the UN Population Fund; and Vocational Training Programme for South Sudan, supported by UNESCO in the first phase..
Training institutes under the ITEC framework have been identified for these projects, and the courses are expected to commence in September 2025, it added.
