Project UNDP [2000-2003]
All information about activities of the project you can find on special website:
(note: this website is no longer being updated)
In view of its membership in the OECD and preparations for the admission to the European Union, the Czech Republic face new commitments in terms of providing development assistance.
During the period between 1978 and 1999, the Czechoslovak/Czech Government cooperated with UNIDO (United Nations Industrial Development Organisation) through the Joint Programme for the transfer of national expertise in industrial development and transition to market economy (restructuring, privatisation, retraining, etc.). One of the main goals of the Programme was to assist developing countries in building their sectoral capacities. The Joint Programme was funded by the Czech Government.
Czech Republic - UNDP Cooperation
In 1999, the Government of the Czech Republic declared its wish to continue in cooperation with the UN system in providing assistance to developing countries to strengthen their sectoral capacities. Following up with the activities having been previously implemented in the USUNIDO Joint Programme, the Government commenced its development cooperation activities with UNDP (United Nations Development Programme).
With UNDP, the Czech Government has established a Trust Fund envisaging a yearly contribution of US$ 260,000 over a three years period and a contribution of US$ 270,000 in the last year. The objective of the Trust Fund is to serve as a development assistance fund supporting the sharing of the Czech expertise in selected areas of competence with developing and transition countries. Activities carried out under the Trust Fund will also strengthen Czech capacities to provide development assistance and pilot modalities for the country's cooperation with UNDP as a net contributor country in the future.
EDUCON - Project Responsible Body
Two projects are implemented under the Trust Fund, utilising present institutional and human capacities developed during the long cooperation with UN system. One of them, project "Strengthening of Czech Cooperation with Developing/Transition Countries in the Area of Sustainable Industrial Development and Good Governance", is being implemented from the year 2000 by EDUCON Prague, a NGO specialised and having vast experience in organising training courses in selected areas for developing and transition countries. This project is focused on sharing the Czech experience and providing the technical support in the following areas:
- Sustainable development and environmentally friendly technologies
- Small and medium enterprise development, marketing, management, quality control
- The Czech reform experience in the area of good governance and regional development.
The activities are aimed at various sectors (metallurgy, engineering, energy utilisation efficiency, agricultural engineering and food processing technologies, laboratory equipment and technologies) as well as cross-sectoral areas (environmental protection, SME, marketing, management, quality control, EMS, competitiveness and export increase, regional development, good governance and decentralisation). The identification of topics for workshops and study tours each year rely on actual needs, requests and recommendations of developing/transition countries, the Government of the Czech Republic and UNDP.
Some of the activities provide consultation and training services in the field of feasibility studies, inquiry services and consultancy missions.
The project is executed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.