The United Nations has a long and fruitful relationship with Libya. In 1950 it began setting up the mechanisms for an independent government in the country, and when Libya declared its independence on December 1951, it was the first country to achieve it through the United Nations. That same year saw the establishment of the first UN Mission, based in Tripoli, in the same location as the present day UN House.
1963—1999, 2000—2007, Current Activities
UNDP in Libya
1963 - 1999
Beginning in 1963 the UN began implementing a series of five year plans to work toward development in Libya. The first such plan (1963-1968) concentrated primarily on National Economic Planning and Human Development, addressing issues such as improving the efficiency of public services, promoting local production, and working with the health, education and housing sectors.
Following the establishment of the United Nations Development Programme in 1965, Libya’s relationship with UNDP has gone from strength to strength. Beginning in 1972, UNDP began working through Country Programmes, the first of which (1972-1976) covered projects in agriculture, industry, transport, manpower training and planning. This was followed by a series of Country Programmes that tackled housing, health, natural resource development human resources, and economic diversification.
The 1980’s and 90’s saw the hard years of sanctions against Libya. Nevertheless UNDP worked tirelessly throughout that period, supporting the government in its Great Man Made River project, and its extremely successful programme to eradicate screw-worm from the country’s animal resources. Furthermore, projects were carried out in vocational training, improving the country’s post and telecommunications system, and strengthening its statistics and data collection, among other things.
2000 - 2007
Over the last seven years, with an office of less then twenty people, UNDP has worked with national counterparts in a variety of fields. The reduced presence of UN agencies in Libya has often required that UNDP provide technical support to government in non-UNDP areas such as meteorology, civil aviation, industrial research etc. The largest projects that UNDP Libya have been involved in have included assisting local authorities in restoring the city of Ghadames, a UNESCO World Heritage site, to much international acclaim; it has worked to upgrade the Orthopaedic Workshop and the Rehabilitation Centre for the Disabled in Benghazi, a facility that is now compatible with international standards; it has, in cooperation with the WMO and national counterparts, helped upgrade Libya’s Meteorological Centre to deliver one of highest levels of service in the region; and it has worked with the local National Education Authority and UNESCO to establish secondary schools and Higher Institutes of Vocational Training specialised in subjects as diverse as economics, engineering, marine technology, and clothes design.
Current Activities
At present UNDP is working on a variety of projects that address the core practice areas highlighted in the Multi Year Funding Framework.
Support to Governance
A new project has just been signed with the General People’s Committee for Justice (Ministry of Justice) whose principal objective is the automation of court procedures. The project also envisions other activities that will lead to greater public confidence in the role of the judiciary and enhance the provision of judicial services in a timely fashion. A parallel initiative on building the capacity of the High Judicial Institute has been started to complement the above project.
Support to achievement of MDGs
UNDP has completed a project with the General Information Authority (GIA) for the formulation of Libya’s first Millennium Development Goals’ Report (MDGR) as well as a brief on the country’s relevant indicators. The main aim of this project is to provide sufficient and updated data on the level of progress in relation to the eight set development goals drawn up at the UN Millennium Summit’s Declaration.
HIV/Aids
With regards to HIV/Aids, UNDP, in conjunction with one of the leading local civil society groups, has launched a campaign to raise awareness of the epidemic across the country. It has also helped establish a committee of male and female religious leaders who took part in various UNDP national and regional initiatives, as well as the landmark Regional Religious Leaders’ Forum organized by HARPAS in Egypt in 2006.
Women’s Empowerment
UNDP is also working diligently in the field of Women’s Empowerment, having just received funding from the Gender Thematic Trust Fund to launch a project to promote opportunities for women’s economic empowerment.
Environment
Over the last two years, UNDP has begun to concentrate more and more on Environmental Sustainability, with two dedicated staff members working on seven different projects ranging from the strengthening of the capacities of the Environmental Ministry to raising environmental awareness in schools.
