Transition

Responding to the changing environment in which UNFPA works, the new Executive Director initiated a transition exercise within the Fund in 2001. Its aim is to strengthen UNFPA’s lead role in the achievement of the ICPD and Millennium Development Goals.

Transition activities included a field needs assessment study and the creation of six working groups focused on key areas: developing clear strategic direction on how to achieve greater impact in implementing the ICPD Programme of Action, providing more effective support to the field, investing in UNFPA staff through strengthened human resources management and training, improving knowledge-sharing and communications within UNFPA and with partners, and increasing the visibility of UNFPA and its achievements.

Strategic and operational results of this transition exercise are guiding changes that will take place throughout the next year.

For example, the Fund will finalize a new human development resource strategy focusing on training and learning, upgrade field connectivity to enhance knowledge sharing, and continue to streamline administrative and financial systems for simpler monitoring.

In addition, a new organizational identity for UNFPA will be launched.

Underpinning these changes will be clearer strategic directions in UNFPA’s mandated areas of work, and stronger institutional capacity and mechanisms to anticipate and adjust to new issues and challenges, and to more effectively plan and manage our resources.

Human resources

UNFPA has assembled nine teams of expert advisers at the regional level. Offices for the Country Technical Services Teams are in Addis Ababa, Amman, Bangkok, Bratislava, Dakar, Harare, Kathmandu, Mexico and Suva. They provide specialized support in reproductive and sexual health, HIV/AIDS, logistics and management of reproductive health commodities, gender, advocacy and other technical disciplines.

Worldwide, UNFPA has 1,020 staff in authorized budget posts, and 50 per cent of the professional staff members are women.

In 2001, staff members participated in a number of training and learning activities. Key events included a workshop on reproductive health and health sector reform that was jointly organized with the World Bank Institute; a workshop in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, that addressed fund-raising, advanced advocacy and communications; and programme management workshops in Amman and Mexico City that addressed results-based management, the multi-year funding framework and other management issues.

UNFPA also launched a distance-learning programme for staff training in population issues.

UNFPA actively participates in processes designed to increase cooperation and efficiency among UN agencies. In 2001, we took steps to harmonize country programme planning with UNDP, a process that is driven by countries according to national priorities and needs. We also participated in inter-agency initiatives such as sectorwide approaches (SWAps), Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs), Common Country Assessments (CCAs), and the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF).

To make the most of limited resources to produce the best results, UNFPA has initiated an overall shift towards results-based management, including the use of the multi-year funding framework (MYFF).

The first-ever report on the MYFF was prepared in 2001, based on information collected from 123 countries.

This overview of UNFPA activity will help guide field offices and improve the use of indicators that measure progress from year to year. An emphasis on development change rather than on activities is expected to improve monitoring, increase accountability, demonstrate more concrete results and help attract more funding.