UNCDF Launches its Strategic Framework 2022 - 2025: Under this Strategic Framework, UNCDF will realize its full potential as a hybrid development organization and development finance institution by fulfilling its overall financing mandate with capital deployment, financial advisory services and capital catalysation. This will be matched with expertise across thematic areas of development—promoting inclusive digital economies and partnering for local transformative finance—alongside deepened engagement in three interlocking development areas: women’s economic empowerment, sustainable food systems finance, and climate, clean energy, and biodiversity finance. https://www.uncdf.org/article/7489/uncdf-strategic-framework-2022-2025-illustrated-version

ILO - UPSHIFT to elevate youth in Uganda with skills and social entrepreneurship: In Nakivale refugee settlement in south-west Uganda, the air of excitement among local youth blew like a fresh breeze. After two long and difficult years of COVID-19, they were attending the launch of “UPSHIFT”, a social innovation and entrepreneurship programme of the ILO and UNICEF being implemented by local partner “Unleashed”.

Ecuador has been at the centre of multiple and overlapping population displacements for over the past decades. To date, nearly 600.000 people who have fled their homes found a place to rebuild a life in safety while thousands more transit elsewhere, every year. Both a place of transit and destination, Ecuador starts 2022 leading the list of countries hosting the largest recognized refugee population in Latin America and the Caribbean, with over 72.000 currently registered by the Government. Ecuador is also one of the top three countries in the region hosting Venezuelan refugees and migrants. Since many of Venezuelans and other nationalities are in an irregular situation, the new regularization process announced by the Government mid-2021 is a reason for hopes. A regular status will improve their precarious protection situation while providing them with the opportunity of contributing positively to Ecuador – specially to recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. 2022 started with significant increase in COVID-19 infections attributed to the Omicron variant. 13.3 million people had received two doses of the vaccine by the end of the month (75 per cent). By end of 2021, at least 300.000 refugees and migrants had been vaccinated, and UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, continues to support the efforts of the Ministry of Health to curb the spread of the virus. In January 2022, between 700 and 800 Venezuelans entered and departed across northern and southern borders every day, while around 70 Haitians transited north daily from Ecuador into Colombia2. Moreover, some 130 Colombians have been registered with the government as in need of protection, however Colombians seeking access to asylum could be higher with many people reporting barriers in accessing on-line asylum procedures. UNHCR maintains presence across the country and in border areas to monitor needs, provide assistance and facilitate access to the asylum procedure, while helping strengthen government efforts to provide international protection.

Thousands of women and children like Rosette who have been forcibly displaced by the ongoing conflict in north-eastern DRC are often exposed to severe sexual violence and abuse. To support survivors, including women, children and men, UNHCR has teamed up with local initiatives in the region to provide legal aid and psychosocial care. This year, nearly 200 women and men received legal assistance in North Kivu and over 500 women received psychosocial support through programmes designed and implemented by local partners. Survivors of GBV are also referred to appropriate medical structures.

Call for Expressions of Interest: Innovative Digital Finance for MSEs. CGAP today launched a call for expressions of interest for partners to pilot technology-enabled business models for advancing excluded or underserved micro and small enterprises' (MSEs') access to responsible credit. MSEs are one of the strongest drivers of economic development and employment creation. Access to finance remains a significant constraint for MSEs globally to survive shocks or grow their business. Despite decades of investments and a vibrant financial inclusion industry, the MSE credit gap, now estimated at almost US$5 trillion globally, has proven to be a structural feature, even in countries that boost supportive financial inclusion policies and regulations. Read more here: https://www.cgap.org/news/call-expressions-interest-innovative-digital-finance-mses

Over a period of three weeks, from 21 December 2021, a total of 300 Congolese were repatriated from Zambia’s Mantapala settlement IN Luapula Province to Pweto, Haute Kantanga, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The 300 were repatriated in weekly convoys of 100 individuals.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) published a blogpost highlighting that fragile and conflict-affected economies are falling further behind. Even before the pandemic, Fragile and Conflict-affected States (FCS) already confronted some of the greatest challenges among the world’s economies. While not all FCS face active conflict, most are at risk: global levels of violence are at a 30-year high and more than 80 million people had been forcefully displaced prior to the discovery of the pandemic. The pandemic poses a significant risk that the divergence between these countries and the rest of the world will widen and persist. Per capita incomes in fragile states won’t recover to near their 2019 levels until 2024. By then, the gap with pre-crisis per capita income trends is set to remain larger for FCS than for other countries. FCS per capita GDP contracted 7.5% last year. These prospects may be difficult to reverse as fragility and conflict interact with – and are often exacerbated by – global trends such as climate change, soaring food prices and gender inequality. These challenges underscore the need to make support to FCS an international priority.

ILO - Strengthening resilience of small businesses through access to knowledge and finance in Turkana County. Under the PROSPECTS programme, the ILO and its partners are imparting business management skills to upskill enterprises owned by refugee and host communities in Turkana County, Kenya. https://www.ilo.org/global/programmes-and-projects/prospects/countries/kenya/WCMS_834133/lang--en/index.htm

On 11 January 2022, the United Nations and non-governmental organizations launched joint response plans aiming to deliver vital humanitarian relief to 22 million people in Afghanistan and support 5.7 million displaced Afghans and local communities in five neighbouring countries. The humanitarian and refugee response plans combined require over US$5 billion in international funding in 2022.

The WB published a blogpost highlighting the role of the public sector as an employer in fragile and conflict-affected (FCV) states. Within the labor market, the public sector often accounts for nearly 30% of all paid jobs with the relationship being stronger in FCV countries. This share is even higher for formal sector jobs where over half of all formal jobs exist in the public sector in countries affected by FCV. Given that 61% of public sector employees in FCV contexts have secondary education or lower, findings point to the public sector serving a social welfare function. Recognizing the important role of public sector in creating jobs, delivering services, fostering social cohesion and promoting inclusive economic growth is necessary in designing the reforms for countries affected by fragility. The blogpost also notes that potential existing skills shortages in the public sector in FCV countries can adversely impact service delivery outcomes. Read full blogpost here: https://blogs.worldbank.org/governance/fragile-and-conflict-affected-states-role-public-sector-employer?deliveryName=DM129007