Boosting transparency and accountability, 12 Resident Coordinators awarded for UN teams’ best results reports

The UN’s development reform brought about a much-needed boost in accountability and transparency for UN teams’ work to support authorities to rescue the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

With revamped, independent and impartial leadership, a new generation of UN teams on the ground is also producing more and better joint results reports. In 2021, 99% of Resident Coordinators and their offices produced annual UN Results Reports – this is a stark increase from 63% the previous year. 

The quality of the reports has also increased considerably. The latest UN team reports are now more comprehensive, yet shorter. They are also data-driven, visually compelling and easier to read. Member States have appreciated it.

In a first-ever ceremony at UN headquarters, the Development Coordination Office awarded Resident Coordinators whose teams produced the best reports in each region. 

Award winning reports have been chosen according to the following criteria, aligned to the UNSDG guidelines for annual reports: 

• Comprehensively report on system-wide results in the implementation of the jointly agreed “roadmap” to advance the SDGs, the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (and/or other relevant programme document).
   
• Make full use of UN INFO, producing quality and evidence-based reports, distilling results from your Joint Workplans on UN INFO, which tracks UN team’s support for countries to advance the SDGs. Reports must be visually compelling, infographic-centred and easy to read. 
   
• Are submitted on time within the first quarter of the year – the official deadline is 31 March.

The report’s production process matters too. In most of these champion cases, the whole process was very well integrated and starts as early as October, with the Resident Coordinator’s office team leader, data and communications colleagues working very closely.  

“This of course requires Resident Coordinators’ leadership, with great engagement from the UN team and the UN Communications Group,” said Rosemary Kalapurakal, Deputy DCO Director, who presented the Awards.

Additional awards were presented to the best reports produced under challenging circumstances. 

Check out this year’s winners:

For Asia Pacific 

• Best UN Country Results Report: Pakistan 
• Best UN Country Results Report in a Challenging Setting: Afghanistan

For Europe and Central Asia

• Best UN Country Results Report: Moldova
• Best UN Country Results Report in a Challenging Setting: Belarus

For Africa

• Best UN Country Results Report: Sierra Leone and Cabo Verde
• Best UN Country Results Report in a Challenging Setting: Mali, DRC, Somalia

For Arab States

• Best UN Country Results Report: Saudi Arabia
• Best UN Country Results Report in a Challenging Setting: Yemen

For Latin America and the Caribbean

• Best UN Country Results Report: Costa Rica  
• This includes its E-report, backed by the Development Coordination Office’s global team, saving UN teams on the ground over half a million dollars.

Check out other E-reports in local languages

• Honduras 
• Sri Lanka 
• Peru 
• Bahrain 
• Paraguay 
• Botswana 
• Venezuela 
• Albania