Enhancing operational efficiency towards advancing SDGs implementation in Ethiopia

The Operations Management Team is making significant contributions to enhance the UN operations in support of Ethiopia’s priorities towards advancing the 2030 Agenda for the sustainable development. 

Under the supervision of the UN Country Team (UNCT), the OMT provides leadership in implementing common business operations in a coordinated, efficient, and effective manner at the country level.

Guided by the Business Operations Strategy (BOS), a results-based framework that focuses on joint business operations with the purpose of eliminating duplication, leveraging the common bargaining power of the UN and maximizing economies of scale, the OMT has enabled the UN system in Ethiopia to save USD 2.1 million in 2023 and a total of USD 5.8 m since 2019. 

The results have been achieved amidst multiple and pressing global and local challenges including COVID-19, soaring cost of living, conflicts and climatic shocks such as floods and droughts and desert locust infestations facing the country since the strategy was adopted in 2020. 

In line with the Secretary-General’s UN reform, the UN in Ethiopia designed and implemented the BOS in support of a more effective programme delivery on the 2030 Agenda which is also at the centre of the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (2020-2025). 

According to the 2023 annual review of the BOS 2.0, in addition to ensuring avoidance of cost amounting USD 2.1 million from delivering 40 common services in 2023, the OMT played an important role in improving the quality of common services.

Key achievements of the OMT in 2023 include the progress made to deliver the leave no one behind (LNOB) promise of the 20230 Agenda by organizing a disability inclusion week from 4 to 8 December 2023 at the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) compound in connection with the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPwD). Disability inclusion as well as gender responsiveness were also incorporated as criteria in a solicitation document of UN Agencies for the implementation of the UN Disability Inclusion Strategy.

As part of building the capacity of staff, OMT organized a training for staff in sustainable procurement with a view to achieving the objective of greening the BLUE.

The OMT also conducted a business seminar for 114 vendors to buttress the relationship between prospective suppliers and business partners as well as inform them about the UN procurement rules and regulations. This helped underpin the UN system’s efforts to ensure accountability and transparency of its system in a manner that is interactive and understandable by different stakeholders.

The team also engaged different partners from Government Ministries in order to collectively articulate common concerns regarding the implementation of various host country agreements and seek long-term solutions to address them. 

Developing a common Business Continuity Plan for the UN system in Ethiopia is also one of the major engagements of the OMT in 2023/24. Its current activities include conducting a solicitation process to establish Long-Term Agreements (LTAs) for e-waste (electronic disposal) at the country level and following up with relevant government officials to reclaim cash that has not been unrefunded from VAT for 11 UN agencies for the period 2019 – October 2022.

On 8-9 May 2024, the OMT held its retreat with a view to sustaining its impact in delivering the UN programs in Ethiopia which are reliant on the effectiveness, efficiency, and cost of the operations that support them.  

The retreat served as a platform for OMT members who represent different UN entities reviewed the progress made and key strategic areas of collaboration in 2024 for further enhancing the contribution of the team towards supporting the UN’s operations which is at the heart of the implementation of the new UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework.

Members of the OMT also expressed their commitment to continue providing leadership in implementing common business operations for the UN system in Ethiopia to deliver with renewed pace and scale towards supporting the country to accelerating the implementation of the SDGs.