UNDP is the knowledge frontier organization for sustainable development in the UN Development System and serves as the integrator for collective action to realize the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). UNDP’s policy work carried out at HQ, Regional and Country Office levels forms a contiguous spectrum of deep local knowledge linked to cutting-edge global perspectives and advocacy. In this context, UNDP invests in the Global Policy Network (GPN), a network of field-based and global technical expertise across a wide range of knowledge domains and in support of the signature solutions and organizational capabilities envisioned in the Strategic Plan.

Within the GPN, the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS) has the responsibility for developing all relevant policy and guidance to support the results of UNDP’s Strategic Plan. BPPS’s staff provides technical advice to Country Offices, advocates for UNDP corporate messages, represents UNDP at multi-stakeholder fora, including public-private dialogues, government and civil society dialogues, and engages in UN inter-agency coordination in specific thematic areas.  BPPS works closely with UNDP’s Crisis Bureau (CB) to support emergency and crisis response.  BPPS ensures that issues of risk are fully integrated into UNDP’s development programmes. BPPS assists UNDP and partners to achieve higher quality development results through an integrated approach that links results-based management and performance monitoring with more effective and new ways of working.  BPPS supports UNDP and partners to be more innovative, knowledge and data driven including in its programme support efforts.

UNDP is committed to Small Island Developing States, working to connect the UN global processes to regionally and locally owned development priorities for SIDS and supporting and advocating for SIDS-specific development solutions. One of the outcomes in the UNDP Strategic Plan 2018-2021 is tailored to give special attention to “capacities developed across the whole of government to integrate the 2030 Agenda, the Paris Agreement and other international agreements (including the SAMOA Pathway) in development plans and budgets, and to analyze progress towards the SDGs, using innovative and data-driven solutions”. UNDP provides support to SIDS through policy and programme development and implementation that builds on international, national and local priorities. In line with these objectives, key priorities for UNDP’s offer for SIDS include Blue Economy, Climate Action and Digital Transformation to build capacity and implement holistic, integrated development solutions in line with SIDS’ priorities, the Paris Agreement and the SDGs.

Further to these goals and in line with the objectives of UNDP’s Strategic Plan, the Government of Sweden, through Sida, has agreed to fund a four-year, USD$40m global Strategic Collaboration Programme designed to strengthen UNDP capacities to achieve its overall SD vision for poverty eradication through a more integrated, coherent approach to UNDP’s environmental and climate portfolio. Sida funds will be used to augment the delivery of programming and policy support to countries in ways that leverage synergies across UNDP’s technical service delivery options. Addressing environmental and climate change priorities in an integrated manner is one of the key global challenges and objectives for UNDP.

With a broad country presence, UNDP has a major organizational investment and a multi-sectoral programme portfolio in SIDS, and is uniquely placed to work with all sectors of society to help mobilize the institutions and resources required to achieve integrated development solutions in SIDS. SIDS are small islands, but increasingly refer to themselves as ‘Large Ocean States’.  Their combined ocean area is 20.7 times that of their land territory and SIDS represent some 19.1 % of all the world’s Exclusive Economic Zones. These huge differences between the size of SIDS sovereign territory in the ocean and on land underscore the potential for SIDS to realize greater socioeconomic benefits from their sustainable ‘blue economies’.  Sustainable blue economy opportunities in SIDS range across a broad spectrum of areas including existing sectors such as fisheries and coastal tourism as well as actual or potential new contributors: aquaculture, ocean-based energy, sustainable maritime transport, desalination, marine genetic resources, etc. The blue economy can also include non-market economic benefits such as carbon storage, coastal protection and resilience, cultural values and biodiversity. Unlocking the potential of their blue economies can assist SIDS in accelerating sustainable development, contributing towards achieving not only SDG 14 but having ripple effects on other goals including SDG 1 (Poverty), SDG 5 (Gender), SDG (8 Growth/Work), and others.

In response to SIDS growing ambitions to advance the blue economy, UNDP’s vision is to provide support to transform SIDS’ blue economies towards prosperity through an integrated approach rooted in sustainable finance.  To support SIDS in realizing their blue economy opportunities and aspirations, UNDP is committed to providing SIDS with significant technical, financial and capacity building assistance.

Building upon UNDP’s sizeable baseline of blue economy programmes and projects, and based on gaps and needs identified in this portfolio, the ambition of the SIDS Blue Economy pillar consists of three strategic outputs:

• 20 – 30 national SIDS Blue Economy Strategies, fully integrated into national development plans and budgets, across all three SIDS regions by 2025, with strong elements for safeguarding natural resources and ecosystem functions.
• 20 – 30 SIDS Blue Economy on-the-ground pilots by 2025, with strong social and sustainability elements.
• $30 million or more in new and additional Blue Economy grant finance mobilized by 2025.
• he acceleration of the Blue Economy pillar towards delivery of these Outputs will be achieved through the following activities under each of the main three outputs:

National SIDS Blue Economy Strategies
National Blue Economy Assessments (status, trends, marine resource valuation, etc.)
National Blue Economy strategic plans
Introduction of innovative blue economy financial instruments in SIDS
Fostering SIDS governance frameworks more conducive to private sector investment
Capacity building (training – blue economy planning, innovative finance, private sector engagement, governance reform, stakeholder engagement, etc.)
Partnerships between UNDP, SIDS and external academia, NGOs, IGOs, UN, private and other stakeholders;
SIDS Blue Economy advocacy, awareness raising and knowledge products.
On-the-ground demonstrations of Blue Economy investments, including both ecosystem restoration and protection that restores lost economic activity, and new and additional public and/or private investments in sectors deemed to be sustainable.
$30 million or more in new and additional Blue Economy grant finance mobilized by 2021.