Toward strengthening regional engagement on South-South and triangular cooperation, the
United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), in collaboration with the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC), convened a virtual regional workshop aimed at enhancing the capacity of UNECA staff to better integrate these development cooperation modalities into their programming.
Bringing together more than 35 participants from UNECA headquarters and its five subregional offices, the workshop offered practical knowledge and tools to help technical staff effectively leverage South-South and triangular cooperation in support of national and regional development efforts.
Held on 1 July 2025, the session is part of a broader effort to operationalize the
UNOSSC Regional Engagement Plan and implement the
UN System-wide Strategy on South-South and Triangular Cooperation. It responds directly to recent mandates, including UN General Assembly resolution A/RES/79/236, which calls on UN system entities and regional commissions to further mainstream South-South and triangular cooperation through collaborative frameworks and strategic planning.
Aligning Regional Work with Global Frameworks
Opening the session, Yuko Naab, Chief of Partnerships and Resource Mobilization at UNECA, and Denis Nkala, Chief of Intergovernmental and UN System Affairs at UNOSSC, underscored the pivotal role that regional commissions like UNECA play in advancing South-South cooperation in Africa. UNECA is uniquely positioned to catalyze peer learning, policy innovation, and cooperation among its member States and regional institutions, including the African Union Commission and Regional Economic Communities.
Deepening Understanding of South-South and Triangular Cooperation Tools and Resources
Session topics included foundational principles and differences between South-South and triangular cooperation; the
UN trust funds supporting South-South and triangular cooperation; knowledge-sharing platforms such as
South-South Galaxy; and the recently launched
e-learning modules developed by UNOSSC and the UN System Staff College. These tools aim to help UN staff integrate South-South and triangular cooperation across all levels of programming, from design to implementation.
The discussions yielded actionable suggestions on aligning UNECA’s policy advisory and capacity-building work with broader regional and interregional South-South initiatives.
As a way forward, UNECA is undertaking internal reflections to articulate UNECA’s South-South and triangular cooperation priorities and pinpoint entry points to integrate South-South and triangular cooperation across its thematic areas and subregional offices.
Supporting the Sustainable Development Goals through South-South Cooperation
“South-South and triangular cooperation are critical to supporting Africa’s transformation agendas, particularly the implementation of Agenda 2063 and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,” said Denis Nkala. “By fostering mutual learning and innovation among countries of the Global South, UNECA can play a catalytic role in mobilizing regional solutions to shared challenges.”
Participants expressed strong interest in continued capacity-building support, including technical guidance, matchmaking for South-South and triangular cooperation partnerships, and access to knowledge-sharing mechanisms. The session concluded with a call for regular engagement between UNOSSC and UNECA to sustain momentum and deepen institutional integration of South-South and triangular cooperation.
As the UN system moves toward a new cycle of planning and cooperation, initiatives like this workshop are critical to ensuring that South-South cooperation remains a central pillar of inclusive and sustainable development across Africa and the wider Global South.
