WHO WE ARE
OUR APPROACH
OUR IMPACT
Overview
UNDP's commitment to addressing HIV and other major health and development challenges is based on the principles that health is a driver for and an indicator and outcome of development.
Strategy
As outlined in the UNDP Strategic Plan 2022-2025, UNDP’s support to countries aims to eradicate poverty in all its forms and dimensions, accelerating structural transformation for sustainable development and supporting governments to build resilience to shocks and crises.
Capacity Development role
UNDP defines capacity development as the process through which individuals, organizations and societies obtain, strengthen and maintain the capabilities to set and achieve their own development objectives over time.
Partners
Strong partnerships are the cornerstone of UNDP's work to strengthen systems for health. In its support to countries UNDP works closely with other United Nations entities, development organizations, civil society organizations, the private sector, academia and key populations to develop resilient and sustainable systems for health.
UNDP-Global Fund partnership
The effectiveness of UNDP's model of health programme support, with its emphasis on end-to-end capacity development, is evident in the results of its long-standing partnership with the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (the Global Fund).
Overview
UNDP works with governments and partners to support the implementation and management of health programmes in challenging operating contexts.
Capacity Development of key partners
Implementing partners of health programmes require support and oversight to execute, manage and monitor their assigned roles effectively.
The Capacity Development plan
Whether in its role as an implementing partner managing large-scale HIV, TB, and malaria programmes funded by the Global Fund or as a technical assistance
Transitioning programmes to government
External donors have historically contributed a significant amount of financing for health programmes in low- and middle-income countries.
Health system components
Investments in resilient and sustainable systems for health lay the foundation for the effective and equitable delivery of HIV, tuberculosis (TB) and malaria.
Human rights
Human rights barriers include stigma and discrimination, punitive laws, policies and practices, violence, harassment, gender, and social and economic inequalities.
Key populations
People most affected by HIV, tuberculosis (TB) and malaria are often the same people who are marginalised and have limited or no access to health care.
Gender
Gender equality is essential to achieving health and well-being for all, accelerate progress towards the health-related Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets and ensuring that no one is left behind.
Expenditure
Expenditure
Purpose
Financial management systems should ensure expenditures are incurred in a transparent manner and promptly recorded.
Expenditure systems and processes are an important part of budget execution. It is important to have policies, procedures and internal control systems for incurring expenditures that comply with approved work plans and budgets and optimize value for money. These systems should likewise enable the timely recording and safeguarding of records and supporting documents.
There should also be an internal control system that covers segregation of duties, so that the requisitioner is separate from the purchaser and the person who makes the payments.
UNDP’s approach
UNDP has assisted health programmes to improve expenditure systems by working with ministries of health to improve national systems and procedures to initiate, approve and report expenditure for health programmes. It uses a capacity assessment tool to help identify needs and measures to strengthen policies and procedures for expenditure management in health systems.
In particular, UNDP provides technical support to civil society organizations and governments to:
- design and implement robust expenditure systems, including transparent recording of shared costs.
- develop manuals, guidelines and standard operating procedures to authorize and approve expenditures.
- develop codes of conduct to avoid occurrence or perceptions of conflicts of interest; methods for procurement and document thresholds; standard operating procedures for requests for tenders and procedures for bid evaluation; procedures that are transparent and competitive, and; mechanisms for accountability and tracking of contracts and commitments and ensuring specified goods and services are received.
- ensure adherence to established policies for project specific costs
- develop milestones and indicators, including training needs to measure improvements in the timely and accurate recording of expenditure.
Suggested capacity development indicators
Suggested indicators to monitor improvements in expenditure systems include:
- A financial management system that accurately records and tracks expenditures is in place
- Policies and procedures manuals are approved and available
- Finance staff have been trained in standard operating procedures and use of the financial management system
- Annual signed conflict of interest statements are available
- There is a certain level of compliance with relevant accounting standards
- Standardized bidding documents and templates are available and are used
- Standardized contracting templates are available and are used
- Expenditures are recorded on a timely basis and properly supported
- Goods received are inspected in a timely manner (within specified timelines e.g. within three working days of arrival)
- A list of goods and services ordered and not yet received is available