Tuberculosis (TB) is the world’s second deadliest infectious disease. Yet TB services remain out of reach for many people. Limited health education, inadequate health services and healthcare costs leave many patients undiagnosed and without treatment. Treatment can take several months, increasing the risk of death, spreading TB or drug resistance if not completed.

Angola ranks among countries with the most TB cases per year. TB remains the third leading cause of death among people aged 15–49. Health service coverage is low, especially among lower income people in rural areas, with 60% of TB services located in Luanda, the capital. In 2020, GeneXpert machines used to detect TB were diverted for COVID-19 testing, which met urgent needs during the pandemic but may have contributed to limiting TB case reporting.

But Angola is seeing progress. In 2022, the Government of Angola, UNDP and Global Fund partnership to fight TB reached 95% of its target for case reporting, a significant indication that patients are being found. Among those cases, 80% were cured of TB.

Progress meant supporting patients like Cristina João Pedro, who had limited awareness of TB and felt stigmatized for her diagnosis. Through Development Aid from People to People (ADPP), a local non-governmental organization, UNDP supports community-based TB services in Kwanza Sul, where Cristina lives, and Benguela, a neighbouring province.

Get the full story.

By Gerd Trogemann, Manager, UNDP Istanbul Regional Hub

In my previous blog post, “The primacy of relevance and trust — ‘circling’ into UNDP’s business model dilemma,” I used Mark Moore’s strategic triangle to illustrate the growing credibility and relevance gap UNDP may be facing if the ambitious leap in its value proposition — to achieve systemic, transformative change (UNDP Strategic Plan 2022–2025) — is not supported by a commensurate leap in its authorizing environment (legitimacy) and its capacity to deliver, i.e., in its overall business model. Diminishing core resources and the competitive, projectized funding environment that sustains much of the organization instead run counter to the alignment of the three variables or “circles,” which Moore places at the heart of public sector strategy: an organization’s value, legitimacy, and capacity.

This post seeks to address some of the “so what?” questions that followed through a lens of “radical collaboration.” It argues that the scale of uncertainty and complexity of today’s development challenges needs a different level of ambition and courage in tackling shared complex challenges and a different quality of collaboration, way beyond projects and conventional organizational and vertical boundaries. No organization, government or any other single entity for that matter can navigate the complexity and uncertainty we are facing today on its own. Radical uncertainty requires radical collaboration (Seppälä/Dunlop, 2021).

Read the full post: Radical collaboration

“This plant has a lot of medicinal significance. Traditional healers have been using it for centuries to treat ailments such as diabetes and blood pressure,” says 50 year old Rigzin, from the remote valley of Miyar in the state of Himachal Pradesh, carefully plucking some berries. The shrub in question is seabuckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides), a high-altitude species found in the Himalayan and Trans-Himalayan regions.

Locally known as ‘Charma’, seabuckthorn is abundant in the wild and is a medicinal plant with high nutritional value. The bushes can withstand cold weather and develop extensive root systems that can hold the soil together, preventing soil erosion. They are also capable of fixing nitrogen, which makes them an excellent conservation tool for areas with depleted soils, helping improve the soil quality to support the growth of other vegetation.

Seabuckthorn is also an important food. The berries are used to make jams, juices and pickles. The dried leaves of the plant can be brewed for tea.

Farming and livestock rearing are the main sources of livelihood in high-altitude Himalayan regions. Due to climate change and global warming, both are declining, making it necessary to develop alternate livelihoods. Seabuckthorn-based food processing offers a sustainable source of income, while also contributing to ecosystem restoration.

Rigzin hails from Tingret village in Miyar valley, and is fondly known as ‘Charma Auntie’ among the villagers. Along with other women in her community, she has been engaged in the traditional practice of collecting and processing Seabuckthorn for many decades.

Until recently, they used to do it on a small scale for domestic use. In 2019, the SECURE Himalaya initiative by UNDP, in partnership with the Government of India and the Global Environment Facility, reached out to the Rigzin and community members to support them in developing a business model around seabuckthorn-based products.

The initiative is working in high-altitude Himalayan regions to conserve its rich biodiversity with active participation from the local community. An intervention was piloted where 15 women from the region created a Self-Help Group named ‘Khandoma’. They were provided technological support for the processing of the raw materials and training in sustainable harvesting techniques, primary and secondary processing, packaging, and market linkage.

“Processing the berries after plucking them is a very laborious process. But, with this new equipment we are now able to make better products that fetch us more money,” says Rigzin as she puts the berries in a solar drier.

This activity also contributes towards climate action. The National Initiative on Seabuckthorn, under the Green India Mission, a part of India’s National Action Plan on Climate Change, seeks to promote seabuckthorn as a priority species for afforestation of degraded lands as well as ensuring good health and poverty alleviation in the Indian Himalayan region. Seabuckthorn nurseries are being developed to restore fragile and degraded areas of Miyar Valley in collaboration with government line departments, local communities, and academic and research institutions.

“There are so many stakeholders working in silos. Through this intervention, we connected technical institutions such as the CSK Agriculture University, Palampur, with these women who were traditionally engaged in the practice of seabuckthorn processing. The Khandoma SHG, which is now also registered under the National Rural Livelihood Mission, was provided harvesting tools for the berries and technical support for product development through this intervention,” says Abhishek Kumar, Project Consultant, SECURE Himalaya, who has been working closely with the community to develop a seabuckthorn value chain.

Market linkages have been established by the Khandoma SHG through a brand called ‘Kang La Basket’, under which various products such as jams, teas, juice and pulp concentrate are packaged and sold.

Demonstrating an effective partnership between the government and community, Kang La Basket initiative has been nominated by the district administration for recognition through the PM Award for Excellence in Public Administration under the One District One Product Category.

Currently, the women of Khandoma SHG are looking to expand the range of products under Kang La Basket. UNDP is working with government partners to building capacities to create revolving funds and credit linkages for the SHG through the National Rural Livelihood Mission.

‘Kang La’ (‘La’ meaning pass) is a 5,500-metre high-altitude mountain pass connecting Miyar valley in Himachal Pradesh with Zanskar valley in Ladakh. “We worship the pass as a source of life since it gives us water and food. This is just another way how the mountains keep blessing us,” says Rigzin, looking at the vast green meadows stretched out in front of her.

Percy Santos, a visually impaired college student in Honduras has acquired a technical degree in computer programming and having a new national ID has been like adding another feather in his hat. As one of the beneficiaries of the national ID project, he now has easy access to social benefits because it is a digital authentic ID validated by the government and not a paper ID anymore. “The new ID is designed perfectly for people like me. This is a personal fulfillment. I feel better identified.”

The UN Legal Identity project in Honduras has a special focus on Indigenous peoples, LGBTQI+, minorities and persons with disabilities.

Around 5.4 million people are now enrolled in the new population database in Honduras. This new system has also helped the Honduran authorities to create a more robust electoral database improving the voting system significantly in the 2021 elections. The initiative also helped to reduce distrust in the elections.

People who do not have legal identity, who cannot prove who they are, are likely to end up without opportunities, and very vulnerable in society. The chances of getting a job in the formal economy will be incredibly low. The likelihood of being mainstreamed into the country’s social protection system and benefitting from basic health care systems during pandemics like COVID-19 or during times of conflict or climate emergencies will be negligible. Absence of legal identity is likely to impact insurance, pension or even basic utility services like water, telephone, and gas connection.

The Sustainable Development Goal 16 is to “Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.” Under that goal, Target 16.9 specifies that one of the ways to do that is to “By 2030, provide legal identity for all, including birth registration.”

Many countries are making attempts to either establish national population registers, national ID schemes, or digital ID programs.

The innovation and technology of the new ID systems is the cornerstone of digital transformation. It helps to improve efficiency in the government public service.

Sierra Leone now has a digital record of six million people who were previously undocumented. Years of armed conflict and the widespread human rights abuses associated with it have been the main causes for internal displacement. UNDP and partners are helping the National Civil Registration Authority to revise policies to integrate the Internally Displaced People (IDPs) and statelessness population, so the people who do not have legal documents acquire a National Identification Number (NIN).

Acquiring the NIN means having a driver’s license, being able to get employment and most importantly, having an identity. For the government, it means keeping track of revenues generated from taxes, reduced corruption, proper checks and balances and increased security.

According to Mohamed Mubashir Massaquoi, the Director General of the National Civil Registration Authority (NCRA) in Sierra Leone, NIN will help in minimizing fraud. It is no secret that there are people who move around with at least five names with different documents to support those names. “We have signed partnership agreement with other institutions for them to contact us for an individual’s personal details,” Massaquoi says.

Zambia has been updating its policies and making registration more accessible. The country has also built an integrated and digital national registration system that covers Zambians from birth to death. The same identity works to vaccinate as well as enroll children in school. UNDP has been a key partner along with other UN agencies — helping the Zambian government to install the integration system in different areas of the country. As a result, Zambia has seen an increased registration of birth from 14.3 percent to 84 percent as of 2022.

“In addition to provision of legal identity from birth to death and its contribution to maintenance of internal security, the integrated national registration system shall provide reliable and timely vital statistics for planning purposes and targeted provision of social services to eligible population groups,” said Jacob Jack Mwiimbu, Minister of Home Affairs and Internal Security of Zambia.

Mozambique has low civil registration indicators, especially death registration (12.1 percent), birth registration (49 percent). The country is selected as one of the United Nations Legal Identity Agenda pilot countries to improve the registration and national identity database.

Following the situational analysis and recommendation from UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), Mozambique UN Country Team developed its Cross-Sectoral UN Legal Identity Implementation Plan for holistic, inter-operable, and sustainable civil registration, vital statistics, and identity management systems.

“The Legal Identity Agenda is a groundbreaking initiative to benefit from migration and guarantee the rights for those who are in the country,” says Myrta Kaulard, UN Resident Coordinator in Mozambique.

Having a legal identity is fundamental to human rights and UNDP is supporting civil registration and national ID systems in more than 25 countries, including Vanuatu, Bangladesh, Palestine, Cameroon and Kenya.

By 2025, the United Nations Legal Identity Agenda Task Force, co-chaired by UNDESA, UNDP and UNICEF, aims to assist UN Member States to enable more than 300 million people to acquire a legal identity.

The registration of births and deaths is very low in many low-income countries — UNICEF estimates that one in four children under age 5 (166 million), on average, are not registered. And even when they are, they may not have proof of registration. Updated 2019 figures estimate that 237 million children under age 5 worldwide are currently without a birth certificate. The World Bank Group (WBG) estimates that around one billion individuals do not possess proof of legal identity, either paper-based or digital.

By Sangita Khadka, Guilherme Larsen, and Risa Arai in UNDP Global Policy Network.

We are facing the sixth mass extinction. In the past 50 years, nature has declined more extensively than at any other time in human history, destabilizing the whole planet. Up to 1 million species on Earth are threatened, and every day, we lose another 200 species.

Today, we need 1.6 Earths to maintain humanity’s current way of life.

But our planet is not a victim — it is fragile only because it is finite. The delicate balance of planetary boundaries gift us a survivable environment that is utterly unique in the vast, inhospitable space beyond our atmosphere.

Humanity will pay the ultimate price for the destruction of our environment. We depend heavily on nature not just for our survival but also to maintain our global economic systems. An estimated US$44 trillion — around half of global gross domestic product (GDP) in 2019 — is dependent on nature to supply everything from food to pharmaceutical products.

Biodiversity provides primary medicines for 4 billion people worldwide; agrobiodiversity improves the lives of 1 billion people who are under-nourished; and ocean biodiversity supplies 4.3 billion people with 15 percent of their annual protein.

In the face of combined and integrated threats facing humanity of nature loss, climate change, poverty, inequality and insecurity, solutions found in nature account for one third of our most cost-effective climate solutions.

We know the facts. Why don’t we act?

We know that degrading ecosystems could trigger a downward spiral of $2.7 trillion in global gross domestic product by 2030.

Some fear that environmental protection comes at the cost of economic progress and gain. But on the contrary, investing in nature can bring powerful dividends.

Mangroves reduce annual flooding for more than 18 million people worldwide, protecting 39 percent more people from annual floods and preventing damages of an estimated $82 billion annually.

Restoring 350 million hectares of forests and landscape will generate about $170 billion per year in net benefits from watershed protection, improved crop yields and forest products, while sequestering 1.7 gigatons of carbon dioxide equivalent annually.

Large-scale changes in the food, infrastructure and energy sectors to actively protect nature could create $10 trillion in annual business value and 395 million jobs by 2030. Forests alone produce more than 5,000 types of wood-based products, generating an annual gross value of just over $600 billion — just under 1 percent of global GDP.

Putting money to work for and not against nature

Meanwhile, subsidies that damage nature — including fossil fuel and agricultural fertilizer subsidies — cost the world between $4 trillion and $6 trillion a year. The worldwide loss of all pollinators including bees and butterflies alone can lead to a drop in annual agricultural output of about $217 billion.

Removing fossil fuel subsidies also discourages fossil energy consumption and reduces carbon emissions. Funds could be spent on pro-poor policies such as health safety nets which address inequality rather than perpetuate it by supporting the wealthier in society.

In 2021, $700 billion was spent on explicit fossil fuel subsidies — this same amount could be used to plug the financial gap to achieve the global biodiversity framework, including the critical 30x30 target to protect a third of the Earth’s land and ocean by 2030.

Inclusion and leadership from communities on the frontline

“Conservation can work when people are involved, and not when they are pushed out.” — Nelson Ole Reiyia, co-founder of the Nashulai Maasai Conservancy and Equator Prize winner.

Indigenous people and local communities are critical to ensure any biodiversity targets can be implemented. Collectively, they manage almost 50 percent of the world’s lands. More biodiversity is sustained and greater conservation results achieved as a result of their stewardship than in government-protected areas.

Yet indigenous people and local communities hold legal rights to only 10 percent of the world’s territory. Only 17 percent of global climate and conservation funding intended for Indigenous and local communities goes to projects led by Indigenous peoples. Indigenous women receive even less: roughly 5 percent of total global funding.

Partnerships for progress on protection of nature

UNDP has launched the UNDP Nature Pledge to support communities at every level, including Indigenous people, with new funding totaling $189 million to support more than 140 countries around the world to meet and implement their ambitious nature and biodiversity targets under the new global biodiversity framework.

The Pledge leverages a $3.2 billion nature portfolio across the continents, complemented with on-the-ground support, to put nature at the heart of economic opportunities, aligning development priorities with a thriving planet. It will catalyze shifts: at policy level, economically and socially through the perception we hold and stories we tell about nature.

Through UNDP’s Biodiversity Finance Initiative (BIOFIN), support in more than 40 countries is already shifting the perception that nature is an asset — with proof. In Mexico for example, a national climate fund not previously operational nor focusing on biodiversity saw turnover exceed $3 million, with $2 million directed back into building ecosystem resilience.

The narrative that economic gain is worth the cost of our natural assets belongs to the last century. Nature’s loss comes at too great a cost to humanity. Instead we must invest in, protect and sustainably manage humanity’s most valuable asset. We are all counting on nature for a thriving future on a healthy planet.

The holiday season is usually an inviting opportunity to overconsume. But it needn’t be.

We are using Earth’s resources at 1.7 times the rate than they can be replaced, with dire consequences for biodiversity and our ability to fight climate change.

In 2022 the world population reached eight billion — another important reminder that we must learn to re-think not just the way we produce and consume almost everything, from the clothes we wear, to the food we eat, but also how we can make those decisions for the benefit of every other living being and the planet.

Don’t buy anything new

Buy thoughtful second-hand gifts such as books, art, antique clothing and furniture.

Join swap and ‘buy nothing new’ groups on social media.

Give experiences rather than stuff. A ‘gift coupon’ for babysitting or a home cooked meal can build memories and mean more than trying to second guess a person’s taste. Likewise, a monthly coffee or museum subscription or restaurant gift voucher can provide a way to extend the goodwill of the season throughout the year.

Support local businesses

If you’re going to buy something new, pass up large chain stores for local brick and mortar businesses, where your purchases will keep wealth in your own community and support your neighbours. Support local craftspeople. Buy books from local authors. Look for local and Fairtrade labels and products that have not been tested on animals, or made with abusive labour practices.

The gift that keeps on living

In the United States and Europe alone, between 83–96 million Christmas trees are grown and harvested every year. Live green trees are much more sustainable than plastic trees because they sequester carbon as they grow, and as many as three are planted for every one harvested. Live trees can either be replanted in the spring, if they have their root ball, or composted.

Live plants also make great gifts! Give living fruit or nut trees or flowering perennial plants.

Don’t waste wrapping paper

One of the biggest sources of holiday waste is not gifts, but the wrapping paper. Studies in some countries have shown that landfills receive up to 25 percent more waste during the holiday season.

A more sustainable alternative to shiny paper, which cannot be composted or recycled, is to wrap gifts in old newspapers, maps, scarves, bandanas or bags that can be used more than once.

For greetings cards, either use recyclable materials (and buy from a non-profit that does good work in your community) or drop cardboard altogether in favour of an e-greeting.

Don’t use glitter, tinsel or plastic decorations

The world — and our oceans — are drowning in plastic and it is literally strangling sea life. Holiday decorations that can be used year after year, without adding to the 380 million metrics tonnes of plastics waste that’s generated every year.

If you celebrate Christmas, a natural tree is a better choice than an artificial one, particularly as they can be either composted or replanted.

Pump the brakes on fast fashion

Fast and hyper fast fashion — clothes that are designed to be briefly worn and then tossed into the landfill are a huge waste, as well as an environmental and human rights challenge.

If you need new party clothes, consider the ‘cost per wear’ and choose durable outfits that can be cherished for years, rather than fast fashion that’s designed to be thrown away, often after a single use.

Buy from local and second-hand stores. If you can sew, consider making a new outfit, or altering an existing one.

No waste entertaining

If you’re entertaining at home, ask guests to bring their own dishes for leftovers. Don’t use plastic cutlery and plates. And if you have surplus food, consider donating to a food bank. Buy food from local suppliers and farmers markets and be careful not to overshop. Donate any extra to a food bank. If you plan to use fairy lights, LED lights require much less electricity.

Corruption is one of the scourges of modern life. Its costs are staggering.

Tax abuse by multinational corporations and rich people costs about US$483 billion — enough to fully vaccinate the world against COVID-19 more than three times over.

Of the approximately US$13 trillion that governments spend on public spending, up to 25 percent is lost to corruption.

International bribery is thriving — more than half of all cases are related to public spending.

In Europe 28 percent of all health industry corruption cases are related to medical equipment. And in the EU one in 5 people pay bribes for healthcare.

From 2000 to 2015, the illegal money leaving Africa amounted to $836 billion, about 3.7 percent of its GDP.

Paying in human potential

But the costs aren’t just financial — corruption is also paid for in human potential

Corruption stands in the way of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the 2030 Agenda. It has taken money that could have been invested in governance, social protection, transitioning to the green economy — the SDG Push designed to prevent 169 million people from being driven into extreme poverty by 2030.

Corruption in health systems accounts for an estimated 1.6 percent of the deaths of children under 5 — more than 140,000 a year.

And of the US$7.5 trillion that is spent every year on health, US$500 billion is lost to corruption.

In African countries with high levels of corruption, governments spend 25 percent less on health and 58 percent less on education.

Paying in trust and solidarity

Breakdowns in societal trust are deeply damaging and difficult to heal. Corruption undermines the stability of societies. It chips away at democracy, and jeopardizes social, economic and political development, especially when its perpetrators are seen to be acting with impunity.

In crises, corruption diverts funds from essential services, such as healthcare. It cripples the effectiveness of emergency responses.

Paying with our future

Corruption is robbing us of our future as well as our present, as we wrestle at the same time with the existential challenge of climate change.

Anywhere between 1.4 and 35 percent of climate action funds have been lost to corruption.

“At a time when countries and communities require billions of dollars to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, UNDP is committed to assisting countries to root out corruption from every aspect of society. United against corruption, we can accelerate the global momentum needed to address the complex development challenges that our world now faces.” — UNDP Administrator, Achim Steiner

What UNDP is doing

UNDP is working with countries to leverage the power of technology to wipe out corruption.

In Sri Lanka and Uganda, UNDP is using data and digital monitoring tools to tackle illegal environmental practices and promote integrity and transparency in environmental resource management.

UNDP has launched regulatory reform project in Viet Nam to reduce corruption and improve the confidence of citizens, businesses and foreign investors in public governance and the health industry.

In Nepal, Liberia and Bangladesh, the issue of public service delivery and related grievance reporting remain acute. So, these countries with UNDP’s support are deploying complaint-handling platforms and systems for citizens to lodge complaints and hold the government accountable.

In Nigeria and Tanzania, UNDP is reforming public health procurement with tech-based, open contracting, and monitoring.

In Ukraine a new e-platform supported by UNDP is increasing transparency in procurement. UNDP in partnership with EU and the National Agency on Corruption Prevention, has developed an online course to train anti-corruption officers.

Our study ‘New Technologies for Sustainable Development: Perspectives on integrity, trust and anti-corruption’ explores the use of Artificial Intelligence, blockchain and big data analytics in the area of anti-corruption, reflecting the support that the ethical and responsible use of technology provides to preventing and tackling corruption.

Our report explores the linkages between ‘Corruption and Contemporary Forms of Slavery’, and offers recommendations for the international community, governments, civil society, and the private sector.

Working together

Corruption is fueling the loss of our natural world. Ending it means we have a better opportunity to meet the needs of all people, and reclaim the legitimacy of public authorities and trust in governance.

The 20th International Anti-corruption Conference is bringing together up to 2,000 heads of state, civil society, business leaders, and investigative journalists from more than 140 countries in Washington, D.C. to advance the anti-corruption agenda.

It’s up to everybody to work together. The price we are paying, both now and in the future, is too much. We cannot meet the SDGs — and finance our climate goals — without effective, transparent and inclusive governance mechanisms and institutions.

Our world is currently facing shocks from a cascade of interconnected crises. From climate change to COVID-19, the war in Ukraine and the cost-of-living crisis, billions of people around the world are experiencing a drop in human development, significant hardship and an uncertain future.

We know in times of crises it is the most vulnerable who are disproportionately affected, and this includes persons with disabilities. They are more likely to experience poorer health outcomes, lower levels of employment and education and higher poverty rates. This means that when crisis hits, they are also among the most excluded and left behind.

Yet, persons with disabilities are also coming up with innovative solutions that are indicating an unmet need within their communities. By mapping these grassroots initiatives, the UNDP Accelerator Labs Network draws on a wider network of innovators to help surface the unmet needs of the people we serve.

This method used by the Accelerator Labs is part of a wider approach called collective intelligence which can increase people’s ability to participate in tackling social problems and can help stakeholders, experts and affected communities make more inclusive decisions.

Agents of change

To mark International Day of Persons with Disabilities, we are shining a light on three inspiring women with disabilities who are bringing about real change in their communities to help ensure no one is left behind.

From improving access to transportation for wheelchair users to fighting gender-based violence, Jamila Mammadli in Azerbaijan and Andrea Mosquera in Ecuador have developed home-grown solutions to the barriers they face. And in Rwanda, Sumaya Rebecca has shared her first-hand experiences of living with a disability to ensure innovations fit the needs of those who will use them.

Fighting for accessibility in Azerbaijan

Jamila Mammadli is a writer and disability activist in Baku, Azerbaijan. She was featured as one of five innovators in “for Tomorrow: the Documentary”, a feature film on the work of the UNDP Accelerator Labs and the power of grassroots innovation.

“My innovation, if I have to call myself an innovator, starts from trying to do something more accessible for all people,” Jamila explains. “I want to show the world that I can live my life if you give me some options to live my life more smoothly. I know it might lead to a brighter future for wheelchair users.”

Guided by the principle “nothing about us without us”, UNDP Azerbaijan and its Accelerator Lab is joining its efforts with national counterparts to engage persons with disabilities and their organizations in developing and deploying new solutions in self-employment, innovation and human rights

Jamila saw the lack of accessibility in her nation’s capital as a major obstacle for people with disabilities to participate in society. By using her social media platforms to inspire change, she helped improve access to the subway system for people with disabilities using an app.

She currently advises the city of Baku in its efforts to create a more inclusive subway system.

“As a person who did all these things by herself, why should people listen to me? Because when I talk about something, I talk with experience,” she says. “I consider myself a soldier, I just fight for something I believe in. I use my knowledge, I use my words, I use my confidence to fight.”

Protecting women from gender-based violence in Ecuador

“My story is not easy to tell, but it has a nice ending. 10 years ago, I had a bitter experience in my life,” explains Andrea Mosquera. Andrea is a woman living with cerebral palsy, and one day she was assaulted in a park by a man who had been following her.

“I tried to scream and push him away, but he was stronger than me,” she says. “That is when an angel showed up.”

When she was knocked down to the ground, a dog suddenly approached them and barked insistently to the point that the attacker had to let her go.

“The man got scared, and the dog kept growling at him. He was defending me. That is how I was able to run away from that man who was hurting me,” she says.

She is now an activist for women with disabilities and works with a foundation that trains street dogs to protect abused women and other vulnerable people.

“We train and teach them to protect women who may be victims of gender violence. That is my calling in this life,” Andrea says.

Earlier this year she finally shared her experience as part of the “Human Library” event, organized by the UNDP Ecuador Accelerator Lab. Through the “Human Library”, UNDP Ecuador is working to build dialogues, humanize information and reconnect with empathy in the search for innovations and solutions.

Andrea’s solution was also the recipient of the 2020 Global Honey Bee Network Creativity & Inclusive Innovation awards, which recognizes inclusive innovation from and for the grassroots level.

Leveraging technology to support the visually impaired in Rwanda

Sumaya Rebecca, a resident of Masaka, Kicukiro District mostly relies on her child’s guidance for movement. Even with her walking cane, getting around hasn’t been easy, and she often depends on the support of well-wishers who sometimes pay rent, buy food and other necessities for her.

“I cannot move from home when my daughter is at school, I have nobody to help me access a nearby shop. I always rely on my daughter, even when I want to go to the toilet,” the 29-year-old says.

UNDP Rwanda, powered by its Accelerator Lab, organized design thinking sessions with members of the Rwanda Union of the Blind and a solution provider to help understand some of these challenges and learn how visually impaired persons are trying to address mobility issues.

Based on discussions with members, they began to experiment on what features could help persons with visual impairment to move freely and safely.

The result was the launch of the Smart White Cane, a high-tech white cane which is the first of its kind to be made in Rwanda. It uses ultrasonic ranging technology to detect obstacles 1.2 metres away and alerts the user through vibrations and sound. It has sensors to help differentiate day and night.

GPS identifies the geographic location of the user and can also track the cane in case it is lost. Reflectors inform other road users that the cane user needs special assistance. For the launch, 40 locally developed smart white canes were handed over to persons with visual impairment.

“I will use this smart white cane to go wherever I want to,” said Rebecca. “I will be able to join my friends wherever they are. It will end my isolation.”

What can the future look like for persons with a disability?

The SDGs’ promise to ‘leave no one behind’ brings with it the need to involve marginalized individuals and communities in development initiatives. Recognizing their lived experiences and the diversity of perspectives in addressing the SDGs can play an important role in empowering citizens and distributing power.

By learning to see the ingenuity and listening to the experiences of changemakers, we can see what the future can look like. Their stories show us that it is the people faced with problems who hold the most relevant knowledge for developing solutions and engaging people whose voices are often not counted is key towards building a more inclusive approach to development.

Lauro José dos Santos works as a general services assistant in the capital of Mato Grosso. The 40-year-old native of Cuiabá is rebuilding his life after 12 years of imprisonment by trying to start a family and get his own house.

Three years ago, after leaving the penitentiary, he did not have a place to live or contact with his family. He did not have identification documents and was emotionally unstable due to drug and alcohol abuse.

In retrospect, nowadays he attributes his recuperation to the Social Office, a service that helps former detainees of the prison system by providing access to a support network in areas such as professional qualification, housing, documentation and health.

“I left the system in 2019 and asked for help. Since then, the Social Office has supported me in both psychological and social care. I arrived here and noticed that the doors were open. They treated me very well and showed me there’s a second chance,” he says.

Once a week, Lauro goes to the Social Office in Cuiabá, located in Boa Esperança, to take part in vocational courses and talk to psychologists. It was there that he got information about how to open a bank account, a prerequisite to take one of the job opportunities provided by the service.

Created by the National Council of Justice (CNJ) in 2016 and present in almost all units of the Federation, the Social Office is a public institution managed jointly by the Judiciary and Executive Power. The expansion and optimization of the service are part of the Doing Justice programme, a partnership between CNJ and UNDP with the support of the Ministry of Justice and Public Security, through the National Penitentiary Department.

The service is responsible for supporting people released from the prison system, in part with referrals for services for health and psychosocial care, education, training and professional qualification, family assistance and more.

“The first step of the service is the initial meeting, which helps indentify the former detainees’ needs. Often they say they want to work, but it is visible that they still can’t for psychological reasons or due to substance abuse,” says the executive director of Cuiabá’s Social Office, Beatriz Dziobat.

“This way, we evaluate their real situation. We help them with housing, psychological care, all done through volunteer work. We send them to health units and to the Social Assistance Reference Centre,” she continues.

“We also get in touch with the family, subscribe them in vocational courses, and only after that, we help them find jobs. Frequently, we have to take them personally to the Psychosocial Care Centre (CAPS), in cases of people with mental disorders,” she said.

The prison population of Mato Grosso is of about 12,000 people. Since March 2022, the Social Office of Cuiabá has helped about 500 people. Of this total, at least 70 remain in constant monitoring. The staff actively seek out former detainees, confirming if they are in fact being supported by the health services and going to work.

“Lauro came here with a serious alcoholism issue, crying because he didn’t have anywhere to live. In these cases, it’s no use sending them to work. We are monitoring him closely: he brings us the receipts to show that he’s been at CAPS, that he continues treatment for the abuse of alcohol and drugs, undergoes psychological and medical care,” explains Dziobat.

Most of the former detainees helped by the Social Office of Cuiabá are male, between 30 and 40 years of age, black or brown-skinned with a low education level, and some are illiterate. The lack of schooling is one of the challenges, since a lot of job opportunities depend on elementary or high school graduation. In addition, it’s estimated that 90 percent of former detainees do not have an ID.

The Social Office offers vocational courses such as stockist, confectioner, baker, electrician, mechanic and computer technician. The contractors are public bodies and companies working with the government that have agreed to offer job opportunities to former detainees.

“I’m away until my life gets better and I get my place back.”

Native of Mato Grosso do Sul, 37-year-old Lindomar Ferreira Barbosa left the prison system in March 2022. He turned to the Social Office, and today he works as a general services assistant for Cuiabá’s City Hall, sweeping streets and sidewalks.

Born in the state capital, Campo Grande, Lindomar left home at age 12. Ever since then he has lived in São Paulo and Goiânia. “I’ve wandered all over Brazil. Today I’m here, living in a shack in São Mateus. I’m away from my family until my life gets better so I can get my place back,” he says.

Staying away from family is a common practice amongst the former detainees helped by the Social Office of Mato Grosso. Often the staff actively search for relatives willing to get back in touch. That was the case with 28-year-old Luiz Eduardo de Souza, who works as a gardener nowadays.

“When I left the system, the Social Office called me to show me the project. It’s a very good project; it has helped me a lot because I was also involved in bad things, mixed with the wrong people, with drugs. That ended up pushing me away from my family, from society. We lose dignity as citizens,” he says.

“As I started coming here, the speeches opened my mind, got my head straight, and today I already have a job. I’m going to start an electrician course, and thank God, I was able to restore contact with my family, which was what I wanted most,” he says. He also receives food care packages and transportation allowance to be able to commute.

For the coordinator of the Monitoring and Inspection Group of the Prison and Socio-Educational System of Mato Grosso, Judge Geraldo Fidelis, the Social Office operates on the belief that it is necessary to resocialize people who were deprived of freedom in a dignified way in order to stop the cycles of violence.

“Our idea now is to improve the Social Office of the capital and extend it to other cities that have interest in it,” he says. In the state of Mato Grosso, the Social Office is present in Cuiabá, Jaciara, Lucas do Rio Verde, Mirassol and Cáceres.

***

About Doing Justice

The Social Office is part of the Doing Justice programme, the result of a partnership between the National Council of Justice of Brazil (CNJ) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), which supports the social reintegration of former detainees of the prison system.

The target audience of the programme includes actors of the criminal justice system, about 800,000 people in the prison system and 140,000 teenagers in the juvenile system. The programme aligns to many Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), mainly Goal 16 on Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions.

Five years after the rapid rise of the #MeToo movement, gender-based violence (GBV) is still the most widespread human rights violation, happening in every corner of the world. One in three women have experienced physical or sexual violence, with rates that have stayed alarmingly high over the last decade.

The COVID-19 pandemic’s ongoing impacts and backlash against women’s rights are making things worse, threatening progress on gender equality gains and increasing the risks of GBV. Since the pandemic hit, one in four women describe more frequent household conflicts.

This violence not only tramples on the rights of women and girls, it is holding back progress on creating a more sustainable and equal world. Ending gender-based violence links to all aspects of sustainable development, from ensuring inclusive and effective governance, to economies that work for women, to protecting a healthy and peaceful planet. In crisis situations, stopping the brutal trend of gender-based violence is essential for recovery and to build long-term peace and resilience. For the best results, efforts to end gendered violence must be integrated into other areas of development.

UNDP does this collaborative work on GBV in 96 countries, including through the Spotlight Initiative, a European Union-UN partnership. The UNDP-Republic of Korea’s ‘Ending Gender-based Violence and Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals’ project has tested new and innovative approaches in seven countries. The results are promising, showing how this change is more possible when we — governments, civil society, the private sector and other partners — work together.

This 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, here’s a closer look.

Women’s rights groups and feminist movements

All over the world, women’s collective action is the cornerstone of social change. The activism and advocacy of women leaders and women’s rights organizations has been pivotal in building unprecedented awareness and momentum to prevent and respond to gender-based violence, especially since the rise of the #MeToo movement.

In the Villa El Salvador District in Peru, where there’s a long history of community activism and women’s grassroots leadership, about half of women were affected by GBV in 2018. In response, Project JUSTA worked to empower a network of women leaders in the district as well as create a participatory process to develop and budget for plans to prevent GBV.

“Building a network of organizations and female leaders in the district has allowed for our voices to be heard,” says Vilma Arce Oyolo, member of JUSTA.

The role of public institutions

Every public institution, on the national and local level, can help ensure that citizens live a life of dignity free from violence, from providing funding and services to drafting gender-just policies and laws.

In Moldova, multidisciplinary teams spanning several public institutions led participatory processes to design local action plans to address GBV. One of the outcomes of such a process led by UNDP and partners was a specialized centre in the Gagauzia region, which provides social, psychological and legal assistance as well as job seeking support. So far, 531 Moldovans and Ukrainian refugees in Moldova have received support.

“It is impossible to solve the issues of domestic violence with only one specialist; it is important to act in a team,” says a member of a regional multidisciplinary working group in Moldova.

Traditional and community leaders

As trusted advisors, chiefs and spiritual guides, community and traditional leaders play a crucial role in establishing and changing social norms, mediating disputes and facilitating important conversations.

In Iraq, married couples participating in the livelihood components of a UNDP project were invited to attend biweekly couples’ sessions that encouraged healthy and equitable relationships. Community leaders participated in a similar series of workshops, with the aim of creating more equitable community norms. In the end, integrating activities to prevent and respond to GBV into a broader economic recovery programme reduced the dropout rate of women participants by almost half.

“It is the first time in my life that I heard about gender and violence against women. I felt encouraged and empowered by attending the course that confirmed my rights. I used to be quiet, but now I understand I have to speak up,” says a female community leader participant.

The private sector

Not only is the private sector responsible for ensuring that workplaces stay safe and free from gender-based discrimination, harassment and violence, but it can also help to expand the scale and impact of GBV prevention efforts. One important anchor is the new Convention on the Elimination of Violence and Harassment in the World of Work, the first international treaty of its kind.

In Peru, the ‘No Estas Sola’ campaign, which was working to make GBV more visible and better connect services with those who needed them during the COVID-19 pandemic, teamed up with companies like Starbucks, Natura and Cencosud. The result was a campaign that reached an estimated audience of 11 million people, making it the most successful awareness-raising campaign of its kind in Peru.

“It was a cause that felt very close to the Natura network. More than 2,000 women joined in supporting this cause. For me it was an eye opener that it is a relevant issue and has sensitized thousands of women,” says one Natura employee.

Arts and culture

Arts and culture can be life-altering vehicles to express social norms, issues and challenges. While these institutions can propagate harmful attitudes and dynamics, they can also be used to communicate and even harness a will for positive change.

In Bhutan, the Gakey Lamtoen programme, the first such GBV prevention initiative in the country, implemented workshops and social innovation camps for adolescents led primarily by artists. The programme resulted in more gender-equitable attitudes and behaviours of its participants, so much so that it is now being scaled up to three new schools, in a partnership between the Ministry of Education, the National Commission of Women and Children and UNDP Bhutan.

The programme has created change for both the participants and the facilitators. For dance instructor and Gakey Lamtoen facilitator Chado Namgyel, it was an opportunity to teach differently . “Previously I wouldn’t allow or encourage girls in our studio to learn all those dynamic moves. However, now they can come and learn whatever they are interested in.”

Violence against women and girls holds everyone back. We will only realize the coherent and radical vision of the future laid out in the Sustainable Development Goals, one where all forms of this violence are eliminated, if we urgently ramp up global efforts. We must build on these lessons and the momentum created by #MeToo and other movements, working together to tackle every opportunity possible to create a truly equal world.