India to contribute USD 100 mn to UN partnership fund

India has pledged an additional USD 100 million towards the UN partnership fund, significantly scaling up it support to sustainable development projects across the developing world.
The India-UN Development Partnership Fund was set up earlier this year as a partnership between India and the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC).
Anjani Kumar, Counsellor at the Permanent Mission of India to the UN, announced the multi-year contribution at the 2017 UN Pledging Conference for Development Activities yesterday.
This contribution would be in addition to USD 10.582 million India is contributing to various other UN programmes, Kumar said.
"I am happy to announce that India has now decided to significantly scale up the contribution to the fund through a multiyear contribution of USD 100 million," Kumar said on behalf of India.

"India believes that the UN should have the necessary resources to finance its activities, in an appropriate and balanced manner," he said.

The first project from the fund is being executed in partnership with seven Pacific Island countries. The fund has since then identified 15 more projects, he noted.
Of the USD 5 million India contributed to the fund this year, USD 2 million would be utilised for reconstruction in Dominica and Antigua and Barbuda, which took a big hit from hurricanes, he said.
Among major contributions include UNDP (USD 4.5 million), World Food Programme (USD 1.92 million Biennium 2017-18), United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Near East(USD 1.25 million), UN Women (USD 1 million), United Nations Children's Fund (USD 862, 000).

United Nations Population Fund (USD 500,000), United Nations Commission on Human Settlements Programme (USD 150,000), United Nations Environment Programme (USD 100,000), United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (USD 100,000) and Voluntary Fund for Technical Co-operation (USD 200,000).
A total of USD 398.98 million was pledged by about 20 countries during yesterday's conference session.