Four projects launch under India UN Global Capacity Building Initiative

(Forelines) – Tanmaya Lal, India’s Ministry of External Affairs Secretary (West)Tanmaya Lal on August 1, 2025, formally declared the first of four projects under the “India UN Global Capacity Building Initiative,” Indian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Heads of missions from the countries where these projects are being started, Shombi Sharp, Senior MEA officials, the UN Resident Coordinator, and directors from various UN organizations in New Delhi attended the event.

During the 78th Session of the UN General Assembly in September 2023, the strategy was presented in the presence of Dr. S. Jaishankar, India’s External Affairs Minister.

The UN country team in India and the Ministry of External Affairs followed by working collaboratively to identify efforts and execute them out with the goal advance the SDG goals and foster south-south cooperation.

The global south’s attempts to boost capacity are guided by New Delhi. Its flagship program, ITEC (Indian Technical & Economic Cooperation), offers over 12,000 training slots annually to almost 160 nations in over 400 specialized courses; since its start, more than 225,000 training slots have been completed.

The India UN Global South Capacity Building initiative is a logical progression of India’s technical and economic expertise in capacity building, onboarding UN agencies, and designing demand-driven programs in their respective nations to support their human resources through specialized training in areas that will positively impact the SDGs.

The UN Agency is going to assist the host government identify SDG-oriented efforts and other areas, while the training component will be conducted through the Government of India’s ITEC program.

For the very first stage of installation, four programs have been selected, including

(a) Supply chain management and rice fortification in Nepal with assistance from the World Food Programme;

(b) A UNDP-supported digital health platform for Zambia and Lao PDR;

(c) With assistance from the UN Population Fund, census preparation in Belize, Barbados, St. Kitts & Navies, Suriname, and Trinidad & Tobago; and

(d) UNESCO-sponsored Vocational Training Program for South Sudan. ITEC education centers have been chosen for these projects, and sessions are scheduled to begin in September 2025.