The UN office in Sri Lanka said this week it had provided US$125 million in development aid to Sri Lanka in 2008.
Speaking after the first joint Annual Review of the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF), Neil Buhne, UN Resident/Humanitarian Coordinator said – according to a statement issued by the UN office - that the funds represented the collective efforts of the UN to support the Sri Lankan government over five years in its efforts to meet the Millennium Development Goals and the National Development Plan.
“This process integrates the UN’s development activities so that we can best help as a team of partners to bring the fruits of development to all Sri Lankans,” said Buhne.
“This includes providing advice on developing sound economic and social policies, building capacity of local institutions to effectively implement policies and working with communities promoting sustainable livelihoods.
Sumith Abeysinghe, Secretary, Ministry of Finance, speaking at the same event, underscored the importance of the UN system support, stating that the combined work through the UNDAF has increased the efficiency of programme implementation.
“I believe that progress has been seen in the areas of cooperation in 2008 as a result of the fruitful collaboration between government partners at local level with various UN agencies,” Mr Abeysinghe was quoted as saying.
While representing the over-arching framework for the work of the UN, the UNDAF, which has been operational since 2008, is also a “living document” with continued reviews and monitoring of programmes to ensure that UN’s support is fully aligned to the country’s development priorities.
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