UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (2021-2025)
UNECE is a signatory of the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework and contributes in particular to the following strategic priorities:
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Outcome 1.1: People benefit from a universal, affordable, accessible and quality health system, while adopting healthy lifestyle practices.
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Outcome 1.2: People benefit from a progressively universal, inclusive and shock-responsive social protection system across the lifecycle.
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Outcome 1.3: People exercise their talents and skills, benefitting from age-appropriate, life-long learning, inclusive and quality education in an enabling and safe environment.
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Outcome 2.1: People, communities and regions benefit from equitable economic opportunities, decent work and sustainable livelihoods, enabled through competitiveness and inclusive green growth.
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Outcome 2.2: Ecosystems are managed sustainably, and people benefit from participatory and resilient development and climate smart solutions.
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Outcome 3.1: People benefit from effective and accountable governance systems and institutions that safeguard human rights and uphold the rule of law, and a public administration that ensures effective and human centered service delivery for all.
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Outcome 3.2: People benefit from evidence-based, human-centric and SDG aligned policies supported by diversified sources of financing, innovation, and partnerships for sustainable development for all.
UNECE works in close cooperation with the Resident Coordinator and the United Nations Country Team.
Key highlights
Energy
UNECE is working with the Government to promote the use of renewable energy and integrating it into the regional energy system effectively and sustainably, including utilizing hydrogen as an innovative solution for sustainable energy systems, and assessing the available stock of critical minerals (SDG7 and SDG12).
Armenia is a beneficiary of projects “Improving the energy efficiency of the global building supply chain industry and its products to deliver high performance buildings”, Guidelines and Best Practices for Micro-, Small and Medium Enterprises in Delivering Energy-Efficient Products and in Providing Renewable Energy Equipment, and Strengthening energy policies of Countries with Special Needs to build back better from COVID-19.
Environment
Armenia is a Party to 4 UNECE environmental conventions and several of their protocols.
The country is encouraged to accede to the Water Convention, including the Protocol on Water and Health, and to formalize an agreement with Georgia on monitoring and exchange of information in the Khrami-Debeda Basin (SDG6).
Armenia is also invited to pursue the national action plan for ratification of the Gothenburg Protocol, the Protocol on Heavy Metals and the Protocol on Persistent Organic Pollutants under the UNECE Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution (SDG13).
UNECE acknowledges the adoption of the new air quality law in 2022 and stands ready to work with the Government and other partners to map air pollutant emissions (SDG13).
UNECE is currently working with relevant national authorities on the 2nd Environmental Performance Review of Armenia (SDG13 and SDG15).
Forests
UNECE has published the National profile of Armenia’s forests and forest sector and an Overview of the State of Forests and Forest Management in Armenia.
Armenia participates in the UNECE capacity building project on developing national forest information systems. UNECE is focused on strengthening the forest sector, with a particular focus on the country’s policy framework on forest landscape restoration (SDG13 and SDG15).
Gender equality
The standards body of Armenia is invited to sign the Declaration on Gender-Responsive Standards and Standards Development (SDG5, SDG9 and SDG12).
Population
UNECE has recently published an assessment of the country’s population and migration statistics (SDG3 and SDG11).
Statistics
UNECE has been supporting Armstat to modernize the production of official statistics, especially in the context of increasing digitalization and the growing demand for new types of statistics to measure sustainable development and other socio-economic phenomena (SDG11).
Trade
UNECE has been supporting Armenia’s trade development efforts through its Studies on Regulatory and Procedural Barriers to Trade. UNECE carried out the first study, which identified barriers and provided action-oriented recommendations in the areas of trade facilitation, quality infrastructure and enterprise development.
UNECE has conducted legal and economic studies on Armenia's integration into regional and global value chains. This included developing evidence-based policy options for more resilient, diversified and sustainable value chains in Armenia and the Eurasian region as a whole (SDG8 and SDG9).
The Innovation for Sustainable Development Review (I4SDR) of Armenia provides a series of tailored actionable recommendations for innovation policy reforms grounded in UNECE’s international good policy practice (SDG8 and SDG9).
Armenia could accelerate circular economy transition by active participation in the Circular STEP stakeholder engagement platform to exchange experience, challenges and learn about good practices and tools (SDG8, SDG9 and SDG12).
Transport
Armenia has acceded to 13 UN legal instruments on inland transport. It is invited to accede to the 2008 Additional Protocol to the CMR concerning the Electronic Consignment Note (e-CMR) to receive benefits from the digitalized document under the CMR Convention. To strengthen vehicle safety, the country may accede to the Agreement concerning the Adoption of Uniform Conditions for Periodical Technical Inspections of Wheeled Vehicles and the Reciprocal Recognition of Such Inspections (SDG3, SDG9 and SDG11).
UNECE has assisted Armenia to prepare a gap analysis required for interconnect of national customs system with eTIR international system (SDG8, SDG9 and SDG11).
Through its work on the Euro-Asian Transport Links (EATL), UNECE stands ready to work with Armenia on issue of regional road and rail connectivity.
Urban development
According to the UNECE Country Profile on Housing and Land Management of Armenia, most of the housing stock requires refurbishment. UNECE is therefore supporting the Government to implement policy reforms to promote access to decent, adequate, affordable, and heathy housing for all, in line with The COVID-19 Recovery Action Plan for Informal Settlements, The Geneva Declaration of Mayors and San Marino Declaration.
The Smart Sustainable Cities Profile of Goris provides relevant policy recommendations towards sustainable urban development (SDG3 and SDG11).
Published on 24 October 2023