Improving tailored support to the Caribbean Small Island Developing States: A focus on the UN Multi-Country Office in Jamaica

*This Resident Coordinator performed functions in Jamaica from 2020 to 2022.

The reform of the UN development system has reinvigorated the role of the Resident Coordinator and expanded the presence of UN entities in countries serviced by multi-country offices, i.e., UN offices with one Resident Coordinator who covers two or more countries. The multi-country office based in Jamaica also services Bermuda, Bahamas, Turks and Caicos Islands and the Cayman Islands and is part of a number of UN offices across the Caribbean.  

• With the support of strengthened capacities in his office, and facilitated by an increased coordination budget for multi-country offices following the reforms, the Resident Coordinator has mobilized expertise from UN entities physically present in country and available at regional or global level, rethinking the configuration of the UN Country Team and realigning financial resources in line with the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (2022-2026) for the English- and Dutch-speaking Caribbean countries, which outlines a clear set of priorities and commitments for sustainable development in the region – particularly in areas that have the greatest potential for transformational impact and accelerated progress towards the SDGs. In Jamaica and the Bahamas, the Resident Coordinator also established two partnership fora that bring together international development partners to meet regularly with the UN Country Team and explore opportunities for joint collaboration, align cooperation strategies and coordinate interventions.  
• Several UN entities have come together to support the Government of Jamaica in its journey towards sustainable development. The World Food Programme (WFP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) have led the development of a food system strategy. The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) are leading the development of a youth strategy. The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the UN Regional Centre for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America (UNLIREC), whose expertise resides primarily in headquarters away from Jamaica, mobilized funding and programming for improved security and firearm control. The UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the UN Economic and Social Commission for Latin America (ECLAC) reallocated resources in support of blue, green and orange economy interventions.  The leadership of the Resident Coordinator was particularly relevant in providing thought leadership, building consensus and mobilizing catalytic funding, including from the UN’s Joint SDG Fund. 
• In the Bahamas, the Resident Coordinator has strengthened cooperation between the UN and the Government. For the first time ever, the Government of the Bahamas has signed the Cooperation Framework, recognizing how closely its national priorities align with the objectives set out in the multi-country Cooperation Framework. The UN footprint has increased three-fold in the islands. In addition, the Government also benefited from a new coordination specialist based in Nassau, reporting to the Resident Coordinator based in Jamaica.   
• The Resident Coordinator’s office is testing, for the first time, models and approaches of development cooperation with high-income small islands developing states and territories facing unique vulnerabilities that are not often addressed through multilateral and bilateral cooperation, due to their income classification and oversea territory status. In Bermuda, also a first-time signatory of the multi-country Cooperation Framework, the Resident Coordinator has been burgeoning a strong relationship with the Government’s Disaster Risk Reduction and Mitigation Team to provide support increasingly needed due to the impacts of climate change. Bermuda is also receiving cutting edge support from UNDP and the UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) through a new joint programme promoting gender-sensitive investments, new and emerging industries for women’s and youth’s participation, and overall technical assistance in support of women, girls and youth.