The Fourth Steering Committee Meeting of the Joint UN Programme Held

The fourth Steering Committee meeting of the Programme “PRO – Local Governance for People and Nature” was held on 5 February in Belgrade. The meeting brought together representatives of key government institutions, UN agencies, donor representatives, and partner organizations to review the progress made in 2024 and discuss plans for 2025.

The meeting was opened by Matilde Mordt, UN Resident Coordinator in Serbia, who highlighted the importance of multilateral collaboration in strengthening national and local capacities for sustainable and inclusive development. She underscored how the PRO Programme exemplifies UN reform in action, bringing together multiple UN agencies to achieve greater impact through coordinated efforts.

Melina Papageorgiou Trippolini, Regional Governance Advisor at the Swiss Cooperation Office in Serbia, highlighted the Programme’s alignment with Swiss development objectives and UN reform priorities. She noted the positive impact of the Programme on local governance, including improved accountability, transparency, and participation. This was illustrated through accomplishments like the training of 22 local officials on applying good governance in practice, or 34 local governments adopting new regulations to enhance services for vulnerable groups, or advancements in environmental governance with 21 municipalities adopting policies aligned with the Green Agenda.

Mirjana Todorović from the Ministry of Environmental Protection moderated the proceedings. Following the opening remarks, representatives of each UN agency participating in the Programme - UNOPS, UNICEF, UNFPA, and UNEP - presented the key achievements of the Programme in 2024. They provided an overview of their agencies’ respective contributions to the Programme, demonstrating the results achieved across the three main pillars of good governance, social inclusion, and environmental governance.

A highlight of the meeting was the presentation of the Hydro Heroes initiative, implemented through the PRO Programme as part of the global UPSHIFT initiative. This project empowered young people in Pirot to address environmental challenges through social entrepreneurship, innovation, and teamwork.

The meeting also focused on planning activities for 2025. Representatives of the participating UN agencies presented the Programme’s planned activities and budget for the upcoming year, including initiatives to enhance inter-municipal cooperation. The discussion underscored the importance of national ownership and local actors’ commitment to sustaining the Programme’s achievements beyond its implementation period.

Participants in the meeting included members of the Steering Committee from the Ministry of Public Administration and Local Self-government, Ministry of Environmental Protection, partner UN agencies, as well as representatives of MEI, EBRD, AFD, SCTM and UN Women as observing members.

The Programme "PRO - Local Governance for People and Nature" is jointly implemented by the United Nations agencies in Serbia - UNOPS, UNICEF, UNFPA and UNEP, in cooperation with the Government of Serbia, and with the financial support of the Government of Switzerland.