First regular session 2026 of UNDP Executive Board reaffirms commitment to South-South and Triangular Cooperation

First regular session 2026 of UNDP Executive Board reaffirms commitment to South-South and Triangular Cooperation 

From 2 to 5 February 2026, the Executive Board of UNDP, UNFPA and UNOPS met for its First Regular Session 2026, during which Member States discussed a range of strategic and operational priorities, including issues related to South-South and Triangular Cooperation (SSTC). The Executive Board took note of the UNOSSC Strategic Framework 2026–2029. It also featured exchanges the role of SSTC within the UN development system, and the implications of budgetary adjustments for the Office’s mandate and delivery capacity. 

Alexander De Croo, Administrator of UNDP, highlighted that the UNOSSC and the trust funds it manages have been working collaboratively with 21 UN agencies, engaging approximately 150 countries, and developing new models for financing South-South and triangular cooperation. 

Haoliang Xu, Associate Administrator of UNDP noted that the Executive Board meets at a moment of profound transition in international development cooperation, where South-South and triangular cooperation are no longer optional but essential. He emphasized that countries of the Global South are driving growth, innovation, and practical solutions, sharing knowledge through peer learning and national ownership. Under its new Strategic Framework for 2026-2029, UNOSSC will pursue a balanced and integrated approach across its core functions, including intergovernmental and policy support, system-wide coordination and quality assurance, knowledge management and the sharing of Southern solutions, and the management of South-South trust funds. 

Dima Al-Khatib, Director of the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation, presented the UNOSSC Strategic Framework 2026–2029, underscoring that South-South and triangular cooperation is increasingly central to how development solutions are generated, adapted, financed, and scaled. The Framework clarifies the Office's unique value proposition within the UN development system: as the UN's mandated global focal point, UNOSSC will strengthen system-wide coherence and support UN entities in mainstreaming South-South and triangular cooperation into UN planning and programming, anchored in intergovernmental guidance. It will facilitate a multi-stakeholder alliance translating country demand into concrete partnerships and scalable solutions, strengthen its role as a knowledge broker by curating Southern-generated solutions and leveraging digital tools, including AI, and continue to steward South-South Cooperation trust funds while promoting innovative financing approaches. Fully aligned with UN development system reform efforts, the Framework reinforces synergies with UNDP and positions South-South and triangular cooperation as a delivery accelerator for progress on the Sustainable Development Goals. 

The representatives of Jamaica, Tajikistan, Rwanda (speaking on behalf of the Africa Group), Uruguay (on behalf of the Group of 77 and China), Brazil, India, Moldova, Paraguay, Nepal, China and Morocco expressed support for a strategic repositioning of UNOSSC as a more results-oriented and partnership-driven entity, aligned with UN80 reforms and broader system-wide efforts to enhance coherence, efficiency and accountability. At the same time, they reaffirmed their strong and longstanding commitment to South-South and Triangular Cooperation as an indispensable complementary modality of development cooperation, while voicing concerns over the significant reduction in financial resources allocated to UNOSSC under the proposed 2026–2029 Strategic Framework. They cautioned that such reductions risk undermining the Office’s capacity to effectively deliver on its mandate, including programme implementation and trust fund management, particularly at a time of heightened development challenges for developing countries. Emphasizing that ambition and impact must be matched by resources, they urged UNDP to ensure that UNOSSC is adequately resourced to fulfil its mandate and to support South-South Cooperation in a manner commensurate with its importance, especially in the final stretch towards the 2030 Agenda.