Turkmenistan and SDGs
Turkmenistan is the first country in Europe and the Community of Independent States and among a handful of countries that have so far nationalized global SDGs, targets and indicators, based on a three-stage strategy developed together with the United Nations, that includes extensive national consultations, the development and adoption of SDG targets and indicators into national development programs (accomplished in September 2016) and the elaboration of a national statistical measuring system for the SDGs.
As an upper-middle-income country, Turkmenistan has been relying on domestic resources in financing its development goals. Yet, the financial needs of the nationalized SDG agenda adopted by Turkmenistan are significant and require new approaches and partnerships for resource mobilization.
In conjunction with the SDG nationalization process in Turkmenistan, the UNDP Country Office in Turkmenistan signed a project with the State Bank for Economic Affairs (TFEB), that aims to improve the access of governmental agencies in Turkmenistan to international financing in support of the SDGs and to improve its capacity to deliver and manage such financing streams effectively. The project will run from November 2017 until December 2018, and includes, among other activities, the current Financing for Development Conference.
About the Conference
The event will bring together governmental partners from interested ministries and state agencies, international financial institutions that have an interest in the country, private entities (including private banks) that (could) invest in the country, development experts from UNDP and other international organization. One of the purposes of the event is to create a joint understanding of the country’s sustainable development priorities, the attached financing needs and the various options that exist for mobilizing such resources, especially from international financial institutions and private capital.
The overall objective of the Financing for Development Conference is to facilitate an inclusive discussion on the main/most promising new funding streams that can become available to Turkmenistan to support the country’s plans and sustainable development priorities, in alignment with the SDGs. More concretely, the event will:
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Strengthen capacities of national stakeholders to better position/understand the role of IFIs, and the private sector in the larger financing for development framework and SGD financing;
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Familiarize interested IFIs and private sector partners with the national sustainable development plans in line with the SDGs; familiarize partners with the top investment opportunities/priorities the Government can act upon to accelerate the implementation of the SDGs;
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Familiarize national stakeholders with new/alternative financing mechanisms for development;
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Provide opportunities to build new partnerships and bring different funding streams that add value to existing financial resources – IFIs, private sector, new financing mechanisms and strategic government cost-sharing.
Session 1: Partnerships for Domestic Financing
United Nations Development Program and The State Bank for Foreign Economic Affairs of Turkmenistan hold international conference
20-21 June 2018, Yildiz Hotel, Ashgabat, Turkmenistan
Session 2: Mobilizing International Finance and Private Investments
Session 3: Financing Beyond Borders: Turkmenistan-Afganistan-Pakistan-India Project
Contact
UNDP Turkmenistan
21 Archabil Ave
Ashgabat 744000
Turkmenistan