Montenegro UN Country Fund 

ObjectivesFund scope

Stakeholders of in the Montenegro UN Country Fund strove to enhance development results by bringing together comparative advantages of the UN system under a single strategic programme. Responses were aligned with European integration and national development goals, all of which was vital for making a difference in the lives of everyone who called Montenegro 'home'.

Focused and value-added, Fund initiatives were guided by international principles and national development strategies like the Stabilization and Association Agreement and overriding priority of Montenegro joining the European Union. Localized, innovative, integrated, and specialized responses were designed and implemented, strategically contributing to Montenegro’s development priorities as outlined under the Fund’s three pillars.  Strategic priorities of the Montenegro UN Country Fund were streamlined through these results pillar, each building on the experience of the UN in-country and collaborative efforts of partners in the realms of democratic governance, environmental sustainability, social inclusion, and economic governance.

Across all programme initiatives stakeholders mainstreamed localized human rights, gender equality, and national capacity development components.

Projects

Montenegro UN Country Fund

Montenegro UN Country Fund is currently supporting count_projects ongoing projectscount_globalInterregional and count_countries country-specific. This table shows the most recently approved ongoing projects.

All project financial information can be found in the Financials section, including delivery analysis by organization, theme and project; project financial status by country and by theme.

Montenegro UN Country Fund

Results

The Youth Employment Solutions project was financed by a Fund micro-grant and implemented by local partners. The web portal was designed to facilitate discussion amongst young people on employment issues and to solicit their ideas for solutions—funding the best ones. The initiative made it possible for young people to directly participate in defining their grievances along with ways overcoming them.

In terms of enhancing national legal frameworks regarding child protection and harmonizing them with European Union/United Nations standards, a project under the Montenegro UN Country Fund used a survey to collect information on the prevalence of adverse/traumatic childhood experiences to better understand the magnitude and nature of the problem. Survey findings informed the development and implementation of prevention programmes addressing underlying causes and risk factors for child abuse, which is one of the most common forms of family violence.

One of the most vital services established by Montenegro UN Country Fund partners was a national SOS helpline for victims of domestic violence. Established in September 2015, in partnership with national ministries and local NGOs, the SOS hotline was available to women and children who experienced various forms of violence. In calling this unique national phone number, free of charge, users could access social services and support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

The Action Plan for Youth Employment, developed in the shadow of the MDG Acceleration Framework, helped strengthen sector links between educational and labour policies, all of which were informed by data and analysis. As a result, a survey on the socio-emotional and 21st century skills amongst young people was conducted, and resulted in the drafting of a set of policy recommendations on the skills young people could be taught in formal education systems. It led to a jump in the number of schools that integrated socio-emotional skills in their teaching approach/curricula, which continues to expand every academic year.

Disaster risk reduction and implementation of flood preparedness plans were major points of action and included flood risk assessments to reduce the risk of disasters and minimize the extent of disaster-related damages and losses at the local level in 12 of the most hazard-prone and vulnerable municipalities. GIS platforms were used to map findings and relevant government staff were trained on flood risk assessment and mapping. This ensured sustainability in terms of updating products and the continuity of data collection and analysis processes. Focus was placed on community-based disaster preparedness and effective early warning systems, and a community based pilot on disaster preparedness also managed to engage the most marginalized—conducted with Roma and refugee riverside dwellers affected by floods in the hazard-prone municipality of Berane. Pilots like these provided strong examples of resource optimization, contextually-relevant programming, and collective engagement at the grassroots level.

ContactsPoints of contact

Fund Administrative Agent

Mari Matsumoto, Senior Portfolio Manager, Email: mari.matsumoto@undp.org
Annie Ramos, Portfolio Associate, Email: annie.ramos@undp.org