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: By 2025, all people, including adolescents, young men and women, men and women aged 65 and older, and other vulnerable groups, benefit from green and inclusive economic development, realized through comprehensive regulatory frameworks, promotion of business activities, private sector partnerships, and increased participatory decision-making.
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Outcome 1.2: A significant contribution to climate action is made by 2025 through the introduction of key measures of climate change adaptation and mitigation.
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Outcome 2.1: By 2025, adolescents, youth, families with children and vulnerable groups practice safer and healthier behaviours, enjoy better access to gender-responsive, inclusive and quality healthcare services, inclusive education, labour-market-oriented education, improved social protection system, more restorative approaches to justice, and opportunities to strengthen their families’ resilience.
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Outcome 3.1: By 2025, foundations of an efficient digital ecosystem are formed, including as part of smart sustainable cities, enabling interaction of the state, society, and business, with equal participation of women and men, adolescents, youth, and representatives of vulnerable groups.
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Outcome 4.1: By 2025, improvements in data collection, gender equality policies, and child and gender budgeting have created conditions for men and women of all ages, including those aged 65 years and older, as well as girls and boys, to better realize their rights and increase the quality of their lives, including through increased opportunities for employment and better protection from gender-based and domestic violence.
UNECE works in close cooperation with the Resident Coordinator and the United Nations Country Team.
Key highlights
Energy
Belarus is one of the beneficiary countries of UNECE’s extrabudgetary project “Sustainable hydrogen production in the UNECE region and its role in the development of a hydrogen ecosystem and export potential, as well as one of the beneficiaries of the technical cooperation project “Improving capacities of UNECE member States to decarbonize the transport sector by increasing the use of natural gas as a motor fuel” (SDG7 and SDG9).
It is one of the countries that requested a study “Energy transition and post-Covid-19 socio-economic recovery: role of women and impact on them” (SDG5, SDG7 and SDG11)
UNECE is focused on supporting Belarus to pursue wider implementation of the UNECE Framework Guidelines on Energy Efficiency in Buildings (SDG7, SDG9 and SDG11).
Environment
Belarus is a Party to 4 UNECE environmental conventions and several of their protocols.
UNECE is focused on supporting Belarus to continue implementing its national targets on water, sanitation, hygiene and health under the Protocol on Water and Health of the Water Convention, as well as on supporting the adoption of a new national Water Code. UNECE continues supporting the National Policy Dialogue on integrated water resource management (SDG6).
The country is invited to ratify the three amended protocols (Protocol on Heavy Metals, Protocol on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) and the Protocol to Abate Acidification, Eutrophication and Ground-level Ozone (Gothenburg Protocol) to the Air Convention (SDG9, SDG11 and SDG13).
Forests
UNECE support is focused on strengthening national monitoring, assessment and reporting on forests and sustainable forest management and forest information system, as well as on strengthening sustainable urban and peri urban forestry (SDG12, SDG13 and SDG15).
The country’s forest cover stands at 43.2% and the main restoration effort is afforestation and reforestation. Belarus has successfully invested in the wood transformation sector, reaching high export value of semifinished and finished wood products.
Belarus has contributed to the recently released study on Forest Landscape Restoration in Eastern and South-East Europe.
Gender equality
The standards body of Belarus is invited to sign the Declaration on Gender-Responsive Standards and Standards Development (SDG5, SDG9 and SDG12).
Trade
UNECE has carried out a readiness assessment with Belarus to implement the Trade Facilitation Agreement (FTA) of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and has recently worked with national experts on the digitalization of multimodal and cross-sectoral data sharing (SDG8 and SDG9).
UNECE has been conducting an economic study on the state of play of Belarus’ integration in regional and global value chains during the period 1995-2021, as well as a legal/regulatory study at the Eurasian region level, on horizontal issues related to fostering global and regional value chains, including for Belarus (SDG8, SDG9, SDG12).
When it comes to innovation, Belarus and UNECE have a long lasting and successful collaboration on innovation, with two innovation for sustainable development reviews carried out (SDG8 and SDG9).
In terms of public-private partnerships, the focus is on identification of 8 infrastructure projects to be developed with the UNECE People-first PPP Evaluation Methodology for the SDGs.
Urban development
UNECE support is focused on the promotion of access to decent, adequate, affordable and heathy housing for all, namely the implementation of The Geneva UN Charter on Sustainable Housing principles, as well as on promoting smart sustainable and resilient urban development through implementation of The Place and Life in the ECE - A Regional Action Plan 2030: Tackling challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic, climate and housing emergencies in region, city, neighbourhood and homes, The Geneva Declaration of Mayors and the San Marino Declaration (SDG3 and SDG11).
The Country Profiles on Housing and Land Management: Belarus provides specific recommendations to the government to improve housing affordability and energy efficiency and to promote sustainable urban development (SDG7, SDG9 and SDG11).