9-Jun-2017: India, UNOSSC launch partnership fund to promote sustainable development
India and the UN Office for South- South Cooperation have launched a partnership fund that will support sustainable development projects across the developing world.
Managed by UNOSSC, the India-UN Development Partnership Fund will support Southern-owned and led, demand-driven, and transformational sustainable development projects across the developing world. Focusing on Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS), United Nations agencies will implement the Fund’s projects in close collaboration with partnering governments.
The India-UN Development Partnership Fund will implement country-level projects that are catalytic towards achieving the 17 sustainable development goals of the 2030 Agenda. The collaborative initiative is aimed at reducing poverty and hunger, improving health, education and equality, and expanding access to clean water, energy and livelihoods.
The United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC) was established to promote, coordinate and support South-South and triangular cooperation globally and within the United Nations system. UNOSSC, hosted by UNDP since 1974, was established by the UN General Assembly with a mandate to advocate for and coordinate South-South and triangular cooperation on a global and UN system-wide basis. UNOSSC receives policy directives and guidance from the General Assembly and through its subsidiary body, the High-level Committee on South-South Cooperation. UNOSSC submits its strategic planning frameworks to the UNDP, UNFPA and UNOPS Executive Board for approval and funding. The Director reports to the UNDP Administrator and has also been appointed Envoy of the Secretary-General on South-South Cooperation.
16-May-2017: India working with World Gold Council to create a spot exchange
The World Gold Council is working with the Indian government on plans to create a local physical spot-gold exchange that may start up as soon as next year. This is expected to bring more order and structure to the market.
The plans still face many hurdles including that the state-level rather than central government has responsibility for gold-related matters in India. Increased infrastructure such as gold vaults and reliable receipts for metal are also needed.
The World Gold Council is the market development organisation for the gold industry. It works across all parts of the industry, from gold mining to investment, and their aim is to stimulate and sustain demand for gold. The World Gold Council is an association whose members comprise the world’s leading gold mining companies. It helps to support its members to mine in a responsible way and developed the Conflict Free Gold Standard. Headquartered in the UK, they have offices in India, China, Singapore, Japan and the United States.
31-Mar-2017: Cabinet approves signing of Agreement for establishment CIRDAP Centre in Hyderabad.
The Union Cabinet has given its approval for signing of an Agreement between Ministry of Rural Development and Centre on Integrated Rural Development for Asia and the Pacific (CIRDAP) for establishment of CIRDAP Centre at National Institute of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj (NIRD&PR), Hyderabad.
CIRDAP Centre in NIRD&PR premises would give NIRD&PR an advantage of having first-hand knowledge of networking with organizations specialized in rural development programmes which in turn would help in building a repository of institutional knowledge for NIRD&PR. This Centre will also help NIRD&PR to enhance its status in the region through linkages with other Ministries/Institutes in the CIRDAP Member Countries (CMCs). The faculty of the NIRD&PR and the Ministry officials would benefit from exchange visits to the best practices in the CMCs. The scope of work of the Centre is to focus on the implementation of integrated rural development, particularly poverty alleviation programmes within CMC member countries.
The CIRDAP is a regional Inter - Governmental and autonomous institution which came into existence in 1979 at the initiative of the countries of Asia Pacific region and the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations (UN) with support from several other UN bodies and donors. India is one of the key founder members of this Organisation. Its Headquarters is located at Dhaka. Bangladesh, The objective of CIRDAP is to promote regional cooperation and act as a serving institution for its member countries for promotion of integrated rural development through research action, training, information dissemination etc.
CIRDAP has one sub - regional office in Jakarta, Indonesia. This sub - regional office of CIRDAP in south-east Asia (SOCSEA) was established in Jakarta, Indonesia in 1997. The objective was to assist and expand CIRDAP membership and its resources, to conduct training research and pilot projects relevant to South East Asian region. There are 46 countries in Asia Pacific Region, therefore CIRDAP has great potential for expansion for which they would be assisted by CIRDAP Centres.