Vision of Training and Capacity Building

UNITAR's vision of training and capacity building is centred on the conviction that training should be linked more closely to international, national and local efforts to initiate change. To ensure that training can indeed make such a contribution, UNITAR's programmes are designed around several core themes and principles:

• Transfer of experiences, technology and skills must be driven by the needs and demands of partner countries;
• Training must be an integral component of capacity building and human resource development;
• Training must be directed to enhance capabilities for task performance; and
• Training must contribute to national strategy development and policy-making.

Research Activities

UNITAR does not conduct pure research. Rather, its research activities are directly linked to its training and capacity building programmes ("research on and for training"). This approach is intended to promote a continued evolution and improvement of UNITAR's training methodologies. UNITAR also supports applied, action-oriented research in countries with the main aim of equipping national teams with the knowledge, skills and tools necessary to undertake their own research as input to national strategy development. A third area of UNITAR research concerns the development of methodologies to evaluate its country projects in order to ensure that lessons learned from past projects are applied to new initiatives.

Partnerships and Networks

Through partnerships with a range of organizations from within and outside the UN system, UNITAR systematically links its training and capacity building activities with the substantive expertise of other institutions. This allows UNITAR to tap into existing networks of excellence. National networks of experts also play a key role in UNITAR's efforts to make its training programmes more relevant to national development and to provide follow-up to training events at the country level. Furthermore, through networks and partnerships, the development and dissemination of training materials is made more efficient, enabling UNITAR to reach a wider audience in a timely manner.

Hands-on Workshops and Skills Building

Correspondence Instruction and Internet Based Learning/e-Learning

The expenses incurred from face-to face workshops are often high. Consequently, only a fraction of applicants can be accommodated in such training events. In an attempt to by-pass this problem, UNITAR has initiated correspondence instruction programmes, initially in two areas: peacekeeping operations and environmental law. The concept allows access to a much broader target audience. Interaction between the trainee and UNITAR is assured through regular written correspondence. In many cases participants in correspondence instruction course are brought together in targeted follow-up workshops, allowing more in-depth deliberation on the subject matter. More recently, UNITAR has started to explore opportunities to place some of its courses on the Internet and to initiate Internet-based learning. A pilot programme has been initiated within the debt management programme. Following identification of lessons learned from this experience, similar initiatives would be launched during the biennium. [http://www.unitar.org/dfm/dfmelearning]

Fellowship Programmes

These programmes enable trainees with similar backgrounds and common interests to study together in order to update and deepen their knowledge of recent developments in a specific subject area, while exchanging and sharing knowledge with other practitioners. Fellowships are more intensive and of a longer duration than UNITAR's regular courses, covering periods from two to six weeks of training. UNITAR conducts fellowship programmes in the areas of preventive diplomacy, international law, international affairs management and legal aspects of debt management.

'A la carte' programmes

'A la carte' programmes feature specific courses or course modules to cater for specific interests of trainees, including selected subjects from more comprehensive UNITAR training programmes. They are of variable duration and are tailored to the specific training needs of requesting governments from developing countries or countries in transition, or of a particular agency. Topics addressed through the programmes include heightening awareness of the United Nations system and skills training in multilateral diplomacy. They may also touch upon topics such as financial management, public administration, and the application of international environmental law, including the Conventions born of the 1992 Rio Summit. 'A la carte' programmes are implemented either in the Member State or at UN Offices in Geneva and New York.

Thematic Workshops and Conferences

Some of UNITAR's meetings and workshops go beyond the purpose of simple training activities due to the level of competence and responsibility of the participants. These workshops and conferences bring together key actors from governments, the United Nations System, academia, and the NGO community to discuss particular topics or themes which merit a systematic exchange of experiences and lessons learned. Participants review and debate topics of global and national importance, some of which are identified in the context of specific UNITAR programmes. The outcomes of these meetings are systematically recorded and widely disseminated as a contribution to future initiatives in the respective subject areas.

Facilitating National Self Needs Assessments and Strategy Formulation

Over the past 10 years, UNITAR has developed and tested a number of methodologies in support of systematic and coordinated country-driven training and capacity building. Methodologies have been developed to support systematic approaches towards identifying and addressing priority needs, and to integrate such activities into long-term national programmes. These approaches are used across the various UNITAR programmes and have also helped shape programme approaches of other international organizations.

National Awareness Raising Workshops

Awareness raising workshops at national levels bring together decision-makers from a variety of agencies, government sectors and non-governmental organizations. They usually draw attention to new international developments which may have an impact on national development policies. Nationally executed, these workshops may be of a stand-alone nature or they may trigger the initiation of systematic follow-up action at the national level, depending on the subject matters.

Self-Assessment of Capacity Needs and National Profile Preparation

Developing a baseline situation and understanding the strengths and weaknesses of the status quo in a particular subject area is a key foundation for taking targeted action for capacity building. UNITAR supports countries in the conduct of national capacity building needs assessments by providing guidance documents and advice through external resources persons. The key to the success of these projects is that they are organized through dialogue at the national level involving affected and interested parties rather than external experts. The results are documented through a so-called National Profile, a country-owned document which can serve as a reference for national action plans and policy development. As more countries complete assessments and prepare National Profiles, UNITAR taps the pool of resource persons having already gone through the process in order to benefit from their experience. This approach significantly facilitates South-South dialogue and collaboration.

Strategy Formulation and Action Plan Development

UNITAR offers a range of guidance materials and programmes in support of national efforts to initiate action on priority topics. The purpose of these programmes is to involve a range of government sectors and interested parties in action oriented projects that offer widely accepted and country-endorsed solutions. While all substantive decisions are made at the country level, UNITAR provides guidance, information and expertise to support countries in undertaking informed decision-making.

National Capacity Self Assessments and National Profile Preparation

UNITAR can be considered as one of the pioneers in the UN system in the areas of national capacity self-assessment and national profile preparation. Over the past 5 years the concept has been introduced into several UNITAR programmes mainly within the environmental domain, but also in other areas such as debt management. In the area of chemicals management, for example, UNITAR developed a national profile guidance document in 1996 which was subsequently endorsed by the Intergovernmental Forum on Chemical Safety (IFCS). With support from seven bi-lateral donors, more than 50 countries were supported to assess their national capacities in the area of chemicals management. Another example is UNITAR's SISEI programme, whereby partner countries assess their national information management infrastructure as an important first step towards defining specific action to strengthen the exchange of environmental information at the national level. More recently, UNITAR was requested by the Global Environment Facility to assist in the preparation of a Guide for Self Assessment of Country Capacity Needs for Global Environmental Management. The document addresses the three Conventions born of the Rio Process (Climate Change, Biodiversity and Desertification) and encourages the development of integrated and synergistic approaches at the national level. In a similar vein, UNECE and UNITAR have agreed to jointly develop a guidance document to assist countries to assess their national policies, programs and capacities related to the Aarhus Convention, an international agreement addressing access to information, public participation, and access to justice in environmental matters.

Training Material Development and Dissemination

UNITAR develops a wide range of training materials and documentation. These take the form of guidance documents, manuals, 'self-standing' or 'material-dependent' training packages, or computer-based learning tools. In whatever form, UNITAR's materials are designed to serve the specific training objectives of a particular programme. UNITAR's training materials are developed either by UNITAR staff or by outside partners. Some of UNITAR's training materials are designed for direct use by national experts for information and awareness-raising workshops. Training materials are distributed to reach the greatest number of relevant persons and institutions, utilizing technologies best suited for that purpose, including the Internet, hardcopies or CD ROMS.