UN-Government Retreat to accelerate a transformative development agenda

Over the past 6 months, the United Nations Country Team (UNCT) for Seychelles and the Government of the Republic of Seychelles have been collaborating to design a new strategic partnership document. The United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF 2024-2028) will be co-owned and co-signed by the UN and government and aligned to the National Development Plans and priorities. This strategic document will provide the overall strategy and plan to contribute towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

One of the principal events associated with UNSDCF formulation is a two-day Strategic Prioritization Retreat (SPR).  The SPR co-hosted by the UNCT and the Government of Seychelles was held on 7-8 March 2023 at the Savoy Hotel, Beau Vallon, Seychelles. The purpose of the SPR was to agree and further refine with the government and other key stakeholders the priority areas shaping the future cooperation framework. An important milestone event the SPR engagement was built on themes and focus areas for UN collaboration arising from the independent evaluation of the existing Strategic Partnership Framework (SPR) (2018-2023), UN Common Country Analysis (CCA), and consultations with government, civil society, academia, and private sector.

The SPR brought a cross-section of around 50 development partners, including ministers, other government officials, and the United Nations Development System to think strategically about risks and how to address risks and vulnerabilities within the unique context of the country. With less than ten years left to achieve the SDGs, the UNCT for Seychelles aims to design a Cooperation Framework in partnership with the government that is strategic, succinct, adaptable, and results-oriented and which integrates Leave No One Behind (LNOB) as the core unifying principle.

In her opening remarks, the UN Resident Coordinator Ms. Lisa Simrique Singh commended the government for the significant progress that Seychelles has made in its development trajectory. She reminded participants that with only 7 years to go before the 2030 Agenda all partners need to come together to accelerate progress towards the SDGs. As such the Resident Coordinator stressed the importance of focussed, systemic efforts on the part of the UN.  She also spoke of multiple overlapping challenges and risks posing challenges for international development and economic systems, and the need to advance resilient solutions. 

In his keynote address, the Minister for Finance, Planning and Trade Mr. Naadir Hassan outlined the current status of the National Plan which had been framed based on a ‘rethink and reform agenda for results’ emerging out of the experience of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. The Minister called on the UN joint programmes to adopt horizontal cross-sectoral solutions alongside SDG financing to respond to resourcing gaps. The Minister also requested the UN to leverage its access to expertise and partnerships, including the private sector for integrated development solutions.         

To kickstart the exploration of challenges and opportunities a high-level panel discussion was moderated by Ms. Amanda Serumaga, UNDP Resident Representative, on behalf of the UNCT. Panellists comprised:

• Hon. Mr Naadir Hassan, Minister for Finance, National Planning & Trade
• Ms Aissatou Diallo, Resident Representative of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)
• Ms Joelle Perreau, Vice Chancellor, University of Seychelles
• Mr Ashraf El Nour, Regional Director, the International Organization for Migration (IOM)
• Mr Charles Boliko, Regional Director, Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)

Dialogue centred on food systems and food sovereignty, anticipating the future human capital (educational and skills) needs of a transformed economy, and the full integration of climate adaptation and the significant associated costs across all sectors. The importance of readily accessible investment climate and SDG finance and digitization featured prominently, alongside the imperative role of the private sector, as well as capacity building for ensuring the means of implementation.

During the afternoon of day one, and the morning of day two, a series of group foresight exercises were held to encourage the UN and government participants to think strategically to jointly identify the key challenges and priorities to address in support of the SDGs and national development priorities. Based on the participants’ inputs from the SPR outcomes and inter-agency outputs will be reviewed to ensure a high-quality, risk-informed strategic document for Seychelles. The draft cooperation framework will be shared for validation in April.

In closing the SPR, the UN Resident Coordinator expressed gratitude to the government and UN colleagues for thinking and collaborating strategically. She commented on the requirement for robust partnerships to address the emergent priority areas. Ms. Singh emphasised the consensus on foresight and the portfolio approach, and the important discussions which had taken place around sustainable capacity building throughout all pillars. The Resident Coordinator also highlighted there are good opportunities for regional and South-South cooperation.

Minister Hassan in his closing remarks echoed Seychelle’s complex, unique challenges, and to move beyond labels e.g. high-income countries. He highlighted that the country’s reliance on imports leaves it highly vulnerable, weakened by the pandemic and war in Ukraine. As such he recognized that this necessitates innovation and new ways of thinking, including around digitalisation and financing. The Minister repeated his request for strong partnerships and greater synergies and coordination between UN agencies and thanked the participants for their presence and contributions.