Chapter 7.
CONCLUSIONS, RECOMMENDATIONS AND MANAGEMENT RESPONSE The pandemic has triggered an unprecedented reversal in human development, stalling or reversing progress towards the SDGs, exacerbating inequalities, threatening sustainability and devastating lives. Addressing this reversal will require more than a return to the pre-pandemic era. The world was off track for the SDGs before the pandemic and the decade of action provided a timely reminder of the scale of the challenge ahead. Returning to the status quo ante on development finance is not an option. National policies and international cooperation efforts which were falling short are now a barrier to recovery. Bold new approaches that deliver results by mid-decade are needed if the world is to prevent the 2020s becoming a ‘lost decade’ for development.
7.1 Conclusions Conclusion 1. UNDP was quick to respond to the COVID-19 crisis. Drawing on its entire infrastructure, the organization demonstrated a sense of urgency and acted flexibly to support Governments and partner with other agencies. The development and delivery of socioeconomic impact assessments under difficult conditions helped inform government policy choices in responding to the pandemic. In its goals for recovery, UNDP is emphasizing the bold ‘moon shot’ of promoting the investment of $1 trillion in public and private financing in the Sustainable Development Goals. That objective is commensurate with the scale of the crisis to be addressed, although a clearly articulated strategic road map is not yet in place.191 UNDP leadership in the development of the socioeconomic impacts assessments was invaluable. It helped shape the wider United Nations response, informed the policies of Governments and supported dialogue with key actors, including the IMF and World Bank. The bridge between the humanitarian response and the development response was clearly articulated in UNDP COVID-19 strategy documents (Beyond Recovery). However, the humanitarian response has dominated, especially financially. The UNDP financing goal spans the need for both public and private financial alignment of financing with the SDGs. At present, the $1 trillion ‘moon shot’ lacks a clear strategic road map. The gap between the ‘moon shot’ target and identified pathways for delivery is reflected through broad-brush references to the leveraging of resources through networks, partnerships and wider influencing. While successful leveraging is critical, this does not diminish the importance of UNDP articulating its own distinctive contribution and approaches. Nor does it pre-empt the need for UNDP to prioritize and specify where, when and how it will deliver. The Strategic Plan also requires detailed and well-defined metrics for tracking and reporting on movement towards the $1 trillion ‘moon shot’ target, both for public and private finance.
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Connected to findings 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 16.
CHAPTER 7. CONCLUSIONS, RECOMMENDATIONS AND MANAGEMENT RESPONSE
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