United Nations Development Programme facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
United Nations Development Programme

Abbreviation	UNDP
Formation	22 November 1965
Type	Programme
Legal status	Active
Headquarters	New York City (international territory)
Administrator	Achim Steiner
Executive Board President	Muhammad Abdul Muhith
Parent organization	ECOSOC
Staff (2022)	7,394

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is a special agency of the United Nations. Its main job is to help countries around the world. UNDP works to end poverty and help nations grow in a way that lasts a long time. This means helping people develop and improve their lives.

UNDP focuses on helping countries build their own skills and resources. This way, they can become self-sufficient and successful in the long run. The UNDP is based in New York City at the headquarters of the United Nations. It is the biggest UN agency that gives development aid. It has offices in 177 countries. The money for UNDP comes from countries that are UN members. They give money voluntarily.

How UNDP Started

The UNDP was created on November 22, 1965. It was formed by joining two older programs: the Expanded Programme of Technical Assistance (EPTA) and the Special Fund. They were combined to avoid doing the same work twice.

The EPTA started in 1949 to help developing countries with their economies and governments. The Special Fund was created to offer more technical help from the UN. Some countries, like those in Scandinavia, really wanted this UN-controlled fund. However, other developed countries, especially the United States, were against it. They preferred the funding to be managed by the World Bank.

Eventually, the EPTA and the Special Fund were merged. This happened because their work seemed very similar. In 1966, they officially became the UNDP.

UNDP's Budget

In 2022, the UNDP's budget was about US$6.74 billion.

The UNDP is known for being very open about its money. It was ranked as the most transparent aid organization in 2015 and 2016 by "Publish What You Fund." This means they share a lot of information about how they use their money.

UNDP connects global and national efforts to reach important goals. These goals are set by the countries they help. UNDP mainly focuses on five big challenges in development:

Helping Countries Govern Themselves

UNDP helps countries become more democratic. They offer advice and technical support. They also help improve skills within countries and teach people about democratic changes. UNDP encourages talks and sharing good ideas from other places.

Reducing Poverty Worldwide

UNDP helps countries create plans to fight poverty. They work to give people more chances to earn money and access resources. They also make sure that poverty programs fit with a country's bigger goals. UNDP helps give a stronger voice to people who are poor.

They also work on bigger issues like trade and debt relief. They want to make sure that the poorest people benefit from global changes. The UNDP has a special center in Brazil called the International Policy Centre for Inclusive Growth (IPC-IG). This center helps developing countries create and check projects that help everyone. It's a place where over 7,000 officials from more than 50 countries have learned and shared ideas.

A review in 2013 found that UNDP has been good at helping countries reduce poverty. They helped governments make changes that improved life for the poor. However, the review also said that UNDP needed to measure its impact better. UNDP's plans for 2014-2017 included these suggestions.

Preventing and Recovering from Crises

UNDP works to lower the risk of wars or natural disasters. They also help countries recover quickly after a crisis. UNDP offices in different countries help local governments. They assist with checking needs, building skills, planning, and setting rules.

For example, UNDP helps control the spread of small weapons. They also create plans to reduce the impact of natural disasters. After a crisis, they help former fighters return to normal life. They also help clear landmines and bring displaced people home. They work to bring back basic services and fair justice systems.

After the Taliban took over Afghanistan in 2021, most foreign aid stopped. UNDP then took on the job of funding many essential health services there. This included paying the salaries of over 25,000 health workers. This was a special situation, different from their usual work.

Protecting the Environment and Energy

Poor people are often affected most by damage to the environment. They also often lack clean water, good sanitation, and affordable energy. UNDP works on environmental issues to help developing countries grow in a lasting way. This improves human development and reduces poverty.

UNDP's environmental work focuses on managing water well, including access to water supply and sanitation. They also work on access to sustainable energy. They promote Sustainable land management to fight desertification and land degradation. They help protect biodiversity and create policies to control harmful pollution. The Equator Prize is given every two years by UNDP. It honors local communities that reduce poverty by protecting nature. This helps achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Between 1996 and 1998, UNDP helped set up 45 "Multifunction Platforms" (MFP) in rural Mali. These machines, powered by a diesel engine, can run pumps, grain mills, and other tools. By 2004, there were 500 MFPs in Mali.

In 2012, the Biodiversity Finance Initiative (BIOFIN) started. BIOFIN brings 30 countries together. They create plans to fund efforts to protect biodiversity.

Fighting HIV/AIDS

UNDP helps countries stop the spread of HIV/AIDS and lessen its effects. They brought together The Global Commission on HIV and the Law, which released a report in 2012.

Hub for Innovative Partnerships

Here are some major programs UNDP is working on:

World Map of Gender Inequality Index by country sourced from 2017 Human Development Report

• ART Global Initiative
• World Alliance of Cities Against Poverty
• Territorial Approach to Climate Change
• Africa–Kazakhstan Partnership for the SDGs

Human Development Report

Since 1991, UNDP has published the Human Development Report every year. This report talks about human development and includes the yearly Human Development Index.

The Gender Inequality Index is one topic discussed in the Human Development Report.

Checking Their Work

UNDP spends a small part of its budget (about 0.2%) on checking how well its programs work. The UNDP's Evaluation Office is part of the UN Evaluation Group (UNEG). This group brings together all the teams that check work in the UN system. UNEG currently has 43 members.

Global Policy Centres

UNDP has six Global Policy Centres around the world. These centers focus on different areas:

• The Seoul Policy Centre (USPC) works on partnerships.
• The Nairobi Global Policy Centre on Resilient Ecosystems and Desertification (GPC-Nairobi) focuses on nature and dry lands.
• The Singapore-based Global Centre for Technology, Innovation and Sustainable Development (GC-TISD) deals with technology and lasting development.
• The Istanbul International Centre for Private Sector in Development (IICPSD) works with private businesses.
• The Oslo Governance Centre focuses on how countries are governed.
• The Singapore-based Global Centre for Public Service Excellence (GCPSE) looks at how public services can be improved.

UNDP's Role in UN Coordination

UNDP helps coordinate what the UN does in development. It does this mainly by being the vice-chair of the UN Development Group. It also helps bring different UN efforts together through the Resident Coordinator System.

United Nations Development Group

The United Nations Development Group (UNDG) was created in 1997. Its goal was to make UN development work more effective in different countries. The UNDG brings together all the UN agencies that work on development. The Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations leads the group. The Administrator of UNDP is the vice-chair.

The UNDG creates rules and ways for member agencies to work together. They analyze country issues, plan support, carry out programs, check results, and push for change.

Resident Coordinator System

The Resident Coordinator (RC) system helps organize all UN organizations that work on development in a country. The RC system aims to bring different UN agencies together. This makes their work more efficient and effective in each country. Resident Coordinators lead UN teams in over 130 countries. They are the main representatives of the Secretary-General for development work. They work closely with national governments. Resident Coordinators and country teams speak up for the UN's goals, using support from the whole UN family.

Innovation Facility

UNDP started the Innovation Facility in 2014, with help from the Government of Denmark. This is a special fund to support new and promising development ideas.

The Innovation Facility offers technical help and early funding. It works with partners in 170 countries and areas. They explore new ways to solve tough development problems. Since it started, the Innovation Facility has helped create innovation labs in all five regions. These labs help deliver and track the SDGs better. In 2015, the facility invested in 62 projects in 45 countries to help achieve 16 SDGs.

The Administrator

The UNDP Administrator is a very important person, like an Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations. While often called the third highest-ranking official in the UN, this has never been officially written down.

Besides leading UNDP, the Administrator is also the vice-chair of the UN Sustainable Development Group.

The UN Secretary-General chooses the Administrator. The General Assembly then confirms the choice for a four-year term.

Achim Steiner was the Administrator from 2017 until June 2025, when his second term ended. Haoliang Xu is currently serving as acting Administrator until a new permanent one is chosen. The five countries on the UNDP board have some say in who is selected.

The first Administrator of UNDP was Paul G. Hoffman. He used to lead the group that managed the Marshall Plan.

Other people who have held the position include: Bradford Morse, William Draper, Mark Malloch Brown, and Kemal Derviş.

Nr	Administrator	Nationality	Term
9	Achim Steiner	Brazil /  Germany	2017–2025
8	Helen Clark	New Zealand	2009–2017
7	Kemal Derviş	Turkey	2005–2009
6	Mark Malloch Brown	United Kingdom	1999–2005
5	James Gustave Speth	United States	1993–1999
4	William Henry Draper		1986–1993
3	F. Bradford Morse		1976–1986
2	Rudolph A. Peterson		1972–1976
1	Paul G. Hoffman		1966–1972

Associate Administrator

When the United Nations Sustainable Development Group meets, the Administrator leads the meeting. UNDP is represented by the Associate Administrator. Haoliang Xu from China has held this position since June 2023.

Assistant Administrators

These are the Assistant Administrators of the UNDP. They are also Assistant Secretaries-General and lead different regional offices:

• Abdallah Al Dardari (Syria), leads the Regional Bureau for Arab States.
• Ahunna Eziakonwa (Nigeria), leads the Regional Bureau for Africa.
• Kanni Wignaraja (Sri Lanka), leads the Regional Bureau for Asia and Pacific.
• Ivana Živković (Croatia), leads the Regional Bureau for Europe and the CIS.
• Michelle Muschett (Panama), leads the Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean.
• Angelique M. Crumbly, leads the Bureau for Management Services.
• Susan Brown (Switzerland), leads the Bureau for External Relations and Advocacy.
• Shoko Noda (Japan), Director of the Crisis Bureau.

See also

In Spanish: Programa de las Naciones Unidas para el Desarrollo para niños