United Nations Development Programme Romania                     United Nations Development Programme  Romania          Home About  UN System in Romania UNDP in the World UNDP in Romania Legal Framework and Management   Focus Areas  Social Inclusion Promotion and Protection of Global Public Goods International Development Cooperation   Our Work  Projects Database Partners and Donors   Operations  IPSAS Employment Opportunities Internship Opportunities Tender Announcements Human Resources Finance Procurement   MDGs  MDGs in Romania Basic Facts about MDGs   Rio+20 Media Room  News Newsletters Press releases Publications Press Clips Movie Clips   Contact                           Millennium Development Goals for Romania  Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger   Achieve universal primary education   Promote gender equality and empower women   Reduce child mortality   Improve maternal health   Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases   Ensure environmental sustainability   Develop a global partnership for development  Related UN Links   UN Romania UN Information Center Bucharest UN Global UNDP Global UNDP Europe and CIS MDG Monitor UN Global Compact UN Correspondents Association       Latest news13 June 2014Final Conference on Financial Sustainability of Carpathian Protected Areas ProjectThe United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Romania and the National Forest Administration ROMSILVA have organized, on 12 June 2014, the final conference of the project “Improving the Financial Sustainability of the Carpathian System of Protected Areas”, financed by GEF and implemented by UNDP Romania and NFA ROMSILVA, in partnership with WWF Romania.

 The UNDP-GEF project closure event was organized back to back with the final event of the BioREGIO project “Integrated Biodiversity Management and Ecological Connectivity in the Carpathians”.

 The final project results were presented and the participants were introduced to key aspects related to the added value for UNDP-GEF Projects in the area: ground breaking studies, creating paths for sustainable development, new opportunities opened by the project, etc. Furthermore, a workshop on sustainable financing for protected areas was held, with a focus on the link between financial analysis, business plans, eLearning course, strategic implementation of management plans and partnerships at the level of Carpathian Convention towards joint cooperation and common vision for the future.

 The main project results were also presented through an infographic and were shared with the press representatives who attended the press conference.

 “For the last four years, UNDP Romania has been providing assistance to the Romanian Ministry of Environment and Climate Change in the implementation of this GEF Project, which is part of the UNDP 2010-2012 Country Programme, which aims, inter alia, at increasing the capacity of Romania to contribute to the promotion and protection of global and regional public goods. I wish to express my trust that with this project results and the commitment of the governmental partners towards the sustainability of all the implemented projects’ results, the Romanian Carpathian protected areas and the CNPAs will be on the path to an increased financial sustainability”, Mrs. Monica Moldovan, Head of Programme Unit UNDP Romania, said.

 “During the past 15 years, National Forest Administration Romsilva has built a strong partnership with the United Nations Development Programme Romania and together we have implemented environment related projects that promoted important changes for our country and the entire region. With an innovative approach, this project managed to strengthen the institutional capacities of protected areas administrations and to generate the economic and social arguments around the economics behind the biodiversity management. Following these arguments, our project drafted several legal amendments, which aim at developing a long term financing strategy and at strengthening local management, in order to access funding sources for the protected areas”, Mr. Dragos Mihai, Project Manager and Head of Protected Areas – NFA Romsilva, said.

 The press release presented during the press conference can be found here.

 09 June 2014Improving Energy Efficiency Project, Shortlisted in CE Sustainable Energy Europe AwardsImproving Energy Efficiency in Low-Income Households and Communities in Romania Project has been shortlisted in the Living category of the European Commission’s prestigious competition, Sustainable Energy Europe Awards 2014.

 First launched in 2006, the SEE Awards recognise and promote outstanding projects in energy efficiency, renewable energy and clean transport. The SEE Awards gather projects that contribute to the Europe 2020 strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth and have a proven impact.

 For this year, a total of 342 entries were submitted, from sustainable energy projects across Europe. From those, a total of 30 nominees have been selected by a set of nine technical experts under the supervision of the European Commission’s Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME).

 The SEE Awards integrate five different categories according to different policy strands: awareness-raising (Communicating), educational programmes (Learning), buildings (Living), energy savings (Consuming) and clean mobility (Travelling).

 The Living award is presented annually to a best-practice project which aims at making buildings more efficient or which incorporates the on-site generation of renewable energy systems.

 Improving Energy Efficiency in Low-Income Households and Communities in Romania Project, nominated for the Living category, aims to dismantle the barriers to implementing energy efficiency measures among poorer households and communities in Romania and thereby help alleviate fuel poverty.

 ‘The project is proving to be highly relevant at the national and regional levels as fuel poverty represents an issue of increasing concern for many countries across the European Union, particularly at a time of rising fuel prices and diminishing household spending power coupled with increased vulnerability to climate change. The project meets several pressing development objectives, including climate change mitigation and poverty alleviation through increasing energy efficiency measures and strengthened policy focus on poor households and areas in Romania’, Mihai Moia, project coordinator at UNDP, explains.

 The 30 nominees are now evaluated by a high level jury (with representatives from European institutions, local governments, energy agencies, specialised media, and industry associations), in order to decide the overall winners. The winners for each category will be presented at the Awards Ceremony hosted by EU Energy Commissioner Günther H. Oettinger, to be held on 24 June, within EU Sustainable Energy Week.

 EU Sustainable Energy Week (EUSEW), an initiative of the European Commission, showcases activities dedicated to energy efficiency and renewable energy solutions. It is designed to spread best practices, inspire new ideas and build alliances to help meet the EU’s energy and climate goals.

 Additional information on this year’s SEE Awards can be found here.

 23 May 2014Call for Communication and Awareness Raising Projects in the field of Development CooperationThe United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Romanian Minsitry of Foreign Affaris (MFA) are launching a call for communication, awareness raising and development education projects and activities in the field of development cooperation, addressed to civil society organizations, education institutions (schools, high-schools, universities), and the mass media.

 The initiative aims to:

  Increasing public awareness on the importance of the international development cooperation to help reduce poverty and support global growth;  Informing the large public on Romania’s development cooperation policy; Promoting citizens’ and stakeholders’ involvement and interest in development cooperation, including in policy formulation and implementation; Facilitating dialogue with ODA partner countries on the priorities of the post-2015 development agenda; Initiating discussions around the themes and events of the European Year for Development, in preparation of the national plan for the organization of the EYD in 2015.  Within a maximum ceiling of 6.000 USD/grant, eligible initiatives can include information, communication and awareness-raising campaigns, events that promote active participation and debate in the development cooperation field, project proposals that are centered around the themes of the Millennium Development Goals and post-2015 agenda, and public events around various international days. 

 Interested organizations are invited to submit their proposal/s, using the following application form, to Teodora Zafiu, at teodora.zafiu@undp.org and Anca Stoica at anca.stoica@undp.org by Monday, 23 June 2014, 11.00 AM. 

 For more information, please see the Application guidelines, available here.