President’s Summary

 A joint meeting of the Executive Boards of UNICEF and UNDP/UNFPA was held on 31 January 2000. The Executive Board of WFP was represented by its President for 1999 and one of its Vice-Presidents, who will be elected president in 2000. This was the third such annual joint meeting: the first was a presentation by the Viet Nam country team on the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) process in that country. The second meeting examined major areas of action of the United Nations Development Group.

The subject of this year’s meeting was a presentation by the UNDAF team in India. A panel, comprising the United Nations Resident Coordinator, representatives of the agencies involved and the Secretary of the Planning Commission of the Government of India, described critical partnerships and collective actions in India that have strengthened United Nations collaboration over the past few years.

The meeting was chaired, in succession, by the Presidents of the three Executive Boards: Ambassador Anwarul Chowdhury of Bangladesh (UNICEF); Ms. Laurie Tracy of the United States (WFP); and Ambassador Vladimir Galuska of the Czech Republic (UNDP/UNFPA). The three presidents welcomed the opportunity to chair the country-specific meeting and hear directly from the country team their views of the UNDAF in India.

The panel noted that following the establishment of an inter-agency task force in December 1997 and nine inter-agency working groups, a common country assessment for India was formulated. Ensuing consultations with the Government and other partners helped to identify two priority goals for the UNDAF: promoting gender equality and strengthening decentralization. Regular inter-agency interaction under the UNDAF process has led to a further streamlining and strengthening of ongoing collaboration.

The Presidents of the three Boards expressed their gratitude to members of the panel. They acknowledged the dynamic leadership of the Government of India in the direction and ownership of the UNDAF process. They were heartened by the comprehensive and lively debate that ensued among delegations, during which many important suggestions and comments were made. The Presidents noted, in particular, the following:

• The strategic focus of UNDAF-India in promoting gender equality and strengthening decentralization, backed by a well-articulated common country assessment, in line with General Assembly resolution 53/192 of 15 December 1998;

• The strengthening of existing United Nations inter-agency working group mechanisms, with the direct involvement of several government and bilateral development organizations;

• The inclusive nature of the UNDAF process in India; and

• The new spirit of collaboration in the United Nations system, working closely with the Government of India.

They acknowledged the request from many delegations that the United Nations work more closely with the Bretton Woods institutions.

In conclusion, it was noted that the meeting had been very constructive and that such joint meetings would be considered in future, when agenda items were such that joint deliberations would bring added value to the organizations concerned.

Speaking points of Presentation on UNDAF India on 31 January 2000