A united UN Country Team in Cuba supporting the Government on shared priorities

*This Resident Coordinator performed functions in Cuba from 2017 to 2022

In Cuba, the UN Resident Coordinator Consuelo Vidal-Bruce has played a critical role in building a stronger UN country team which is able to provide joint and comprehensive support to the Government’s socio-economic policies and efforts to leverage financing for sustainable development. 

With the designation of the Resident Coordinator as the highest-ranking representative of the UN development system in country following the reform in 2018, and the strengthening of capacities in the Resident Coordinator system to support this mandate, Ms. Vidal was able to better bring together relevant expertise and major initiatives of the UN for more effective support of national priorities, with the full ownership of the Government. 

  • Building on this more unified UN approach, the Resident Coordinator has been able to position the UN country team as a trusted partner for the Government and discuss critical socio-economic priorities as part of the common priorities captured in the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (2020-2024), a shared agreement with the Government on the UN work in the country in support of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).  

  • The formulation of this joint programme of cooperation with the Government  attracted other UN entities not physically present in the country, with expertise relevant to national priorities and needs, to join these efforts. Today, through a systematic and proactive strategy of engagement, UN agencies such as the International Labour Organization (ILO),  the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN-WOMEN) and the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS) have signed the Cooperation Framework and are full members of the UN country team in Cuba. 

  • The regional UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), a strong partner of the government of Cuba, is also part of the UN country team now. This has benefited the work of the full UN country team, as ECLAC leads the team’s joint efforts for productive transformation, comprising the work of 11 UN agencies, funds and programmes. ECLAC also coordinates its work in the country in other areas such as statistical technical cooperation, liaising, for example, with the efforts of the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) on the national census, or the collective UN Country Team statistical work to track the SDG indicators.  

  • Supported by the economist in the Resident Coordinator’s office, economic analysis and inputs are now being provided to anchor the work of the UN country Team. Through the Integrated National Financing Framework, funded by the UN’s Joint SDG Fund and with the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and ECLAC at the forefront, the UN was able to support the Government with options for policy recommendations on financing for sustainable development, an issue that is critical to Cuba`s development and to support the country`s commitment to the SDGs. 

Cuba
Latin America and the Caribbean

Consuelo Vidal-Bruce

Resident Coordinator a.i. Uzbekistan