Remarks by Grete Faremo, Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UNOPS, at the Third International Conference on Financing for Development (Round Table 6), Addis Ababa, 16 July 2015

Resilience has been placed firmly at the heart of the development agenda, following the adoption of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 at this week’s World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), held in Sendai, Japan.

Promoting sustainable procurement in the UN

The Annual Statistical Report on UN Procurement provides data and analysis on the goods and services procured by the United Nations system in support of its operations around the world.

UNOPS helps contribute to a UN "fit for purpose" by ensuring a high level of excellence and risk management in our implementation operations, while promoting resilience and national ownership throughout all of our work. This year's brochure provides an overview of who we are, where we work, our priorities and our main partners. It also showcases key results achieved in 2014 and examples from our work around the world, from Afghanistan and Haiti to Liberia and Myanmar. In 2014, we supported more than 1,200 projects in over 80 countries on behalf of our partners.

Sustainability, focus, excellence and an emphasis on national capacity – these are the key messages of UNOPS strategic plan, 2014-2017. The strategic plan provides direction and focus for UNOPS and states how we will contribute to the peacebuilding, humanitarian and development results of our partners.

The 2013 Annual Statistical Report on UN Procurement also features a thematic supplement on a key issue in procurement. For 2013, the focus of the supplement is on procurement and innovation. In the context of the global drive to find innovative solutions to achieve the Millennium Development Goals and shape a post-2015 development agenda, the supplement provides an overview of the benefits and challenges of implementing innovative procurement. It contains a range of articles and case studies from academia, the public and private sectors and the United Nations.

The Annual Statistical Report on UN Procurement provides data and analysis on the goods and services procured by the United Nations system in support of its operations around the world.

With vital decisions that will define the future of global development at our doorstep, it is becoming increasingly clear that the international community must explore new avenues of cooperation to ensure a sustainable future for all.

The Annual Statistical Report on UN Procurement provides data and analysis on the goods and services procured by the United Nations system in support of its operations around the world.

The 2012 Annual Statistical Report on UN Procurement also features a thematic supplement on a key issue in procurement. For 2012, the focus of the supplement is on balancing social, environmental and economic considerations in procurement, a practice that is often described as sustainable procurement. In the context of the global drive to promote sustainable consumption and production patterns and achieve the Millennium Development Goals, the supplement provides an overview of the benefits and challenges of implementing sustainable procurement. It contains a range of articles and case studies from academia, the public and private sectors and the United Nations.

Sustainability, Focus & Excellence, provides details about how UNOPS services have supported a range of peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects. Alongside our operational results the report highlights our emphasis on national capacity, our drive for excellence in everything we do and our support to projects that have the most positive, long-term impact possible.