The Governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Engineer Iqbal Zafar Jhagra inaugurated the FATA Development Authority’s (FATA-DA) Job Placement Centre (JPC) for youth in Hayatabad, Peshawar on 26 October 2016. The FATA-DA and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Pakistan are providing technical and vocational skills trainings to around 2,000 youth from the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) in demand-driven trades. UNDP Pakistan and the FATA-DA collaborated to establish a JPC at the latter’s head office in Peshawar. The Government of the United Kingdom provided financial support.

UNDP Pakistan hosted a Social Good Summit on 22 September 2016 in Islamabad. The one-day panel discussion was part of a larger global event held annually during United Nations General Assembly week. The flagship event took place in New York during the 71st session of the United Nations General Assembly and over 100 country offices followed suit with their own summits. A dynamic panel of young social activists, entrepreneurs, young parliamentarians, innovators, and sports enthusiasts came together to discuss the sustainable development goal (SDG) theme, “What type of world do I want to live in by the year 2030?” The discussion was streamed live on Mashable, a global partner.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Asia-Pacific Development Effectiveness Facility (AP-DEF) opened a two-day meeting on aid ahead of the upcoming Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation. More than 100 government delegates and development experts are exploring how to design integrated national financing frameworks for the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in Asia-Pacific. “Domestic sources of finance are emerging as a key driving force for sustainable development in Asia-Pacific,” said Haoliang Xu, UN Assistant Secretary-General and UNDP Director for Asia and the Pacific. “These new sources of finance allow us to expand the existing development cooperation and partnership.” According to a new report released today at the event, domestic public finance accounts for 44 percent of the total and domestic private finance an estimated 45 percent of resources overall.

The FATA Secretariat, UNDP Pakistan and WFP Pakistan implemented a community-based livelihoods recovery project in Bara, Khyber Agency as part of the implementation of the FATA Sustainable Return and Rehabilitation Strategy. One of its key features was a cash card distribution programme.

Officials from Pakistan’s Ministries of Finance and Climate Change, the Leadership for Environment and Development (LEAD), and members of the Chinese Academy of Fiscal Sciences (CAFS) today concluded four days of discussions in Islamabad and Lahore.

The Youth Employment Project at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Pakistan signed a partnership with the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA) to provide entrepreneurial skills training to youth in the neighbourhoods of Lyari, Korangi and Sultanabad in Karachi. These youth do not usually possess the skills to earn livelihoods given their limited education and means. UNDP is therefore providing garment manufacturing skills to help them find work in garment-related trades, although the majority of young women and men continue to struggle to find employment. SMEDA and UNDP are responding to this challenge by helping young people become self-employed.

As communities around the world begin to experience the impacts of climate change and face recurrent disasters, there has been increasing awareness of the importance of disaster risk reduction (DRR) – taking action to reduce vulnerabilities and exposure and developing more resilient communities. Building resilience is an investment in the future, but is severely challenged by inadequate investment. This is a serious concern in Pakistan, which is amongst the top 10 countries considered to be most at risk of climate change. However, a recent consultative workshop in Peshawar offered a first step towards increasing private investment in DRR.

In the last two years alone, the world has produced more data than in the previous 3,000 years. This vast amount of data needs to be efficiently digested if it is to be useful. At the same time, the incredible explosion of information is an unprecedented opportunity to harness the power of solid evidence in making...

With assistance from UNDP Pakistan, a new secretariat for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Women’s Parliamentary Caucus has been inaugurated, giving female legislators a much-needed space in which to collaborate on passing laws which benefit women in the province. “The Women’s Parliamentary Caucus reaffirms its...

09 March 2016, SWAT DISTRICT — The first phase of a major project to improve community resilience in crisis-affected areas of Malakand division was celebrated today by the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) at the opening of the Dop Jabba Link Road in Swat...

On 11 May 2016, UNDP Pakistan brought together members of the National Assembly, Senate and prominent representatives from civil society in a focus group discussing the essential parliamentary duty of holding government to account. The discussions in Islamabad will add a Pakistani perspective to the Second Global...

Recent years have brought immense suffering to the people of Pakistan through both natural disasters and a prolonged internal conflict. The effects of the conflict are felt throughout Pakistan but the epicentre lies in the semi-autonomous Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP)...

Peshawar, 27 January 2016 – The Government of Fata has a signed a new agreement with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development, at a high-profile event organized at the Governor’s House, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa today. This new partnership...

Pakistan has become one of only two countries piloting a new Climate Change Integration Index (CCII) which enables it to assess its progress towards integrating climate change into public finance, and ensure that its national and provincial budgets are sensitive to climate change issues. The CCII is an innovative tool...