UNIDO is strengthening collaboration with the European Commission
The European Commission is the executive branch of the European Union, responsible for proposing legislation, enforcing EU laws and directing the union's administrative operations. Over the years, UNIDO has intensified its collaboration with the European commission, in particular with Directorate-General for International Partnerships (DG INTPA) and Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR), on policies related to industry for development, inclusive and green growth and investments in developing countries and countries in transition. UNIDO has held high level and technical visits to the EU as well as joint events on the occasion of the European development days, the EU Green Week and various European business fora. EU representatives have also regularly come to UNIDO Headquarters in Vienna and have participated in UNIDO conferences and meetings all over the world.
UNIDO at European Development Days
The European Development Days (EDD), organized by the European Commission (EC), is Europe’s leading global forum on international development since the year 2006. Bringing the development community together, the EDD serves as a participatory platform to share ideas and experiences inspiring new partnerships and innovative solutions to the world’s most challenging issues.
UNIDO at EU Industry Days
The EU Industry Day is Europe’s flagship annual event on industry. It serves as the main platform to discuss industrial challenges and co-develop opportunities and policy responses in an inclusive dialogue with a wide range of partners.
UNIDO has organized three events during the EU Industry Week 2021, run by the European Commission’s Directorate General of Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (DG GROW)
UNIDO BRUSSELS office has published a report on the UNIDO side events to the EU Industry Week (March 2021): Strategic partnerships for Investment & Technology Promotion.
2019 February: UNIDO stresses importance of innovation for inclusive and sustainable industrialization during the EU Industry Days
BRUSSELS, 5 February 2019 – UNIDO actively contributed to the European Industry Days 2019, which recognizes the importance of industry in sustainable development and which focuses on industrial challenges, such as sustainability, digitalization, investment and globalization.
President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker opened the event by highlighting the European Union’s role as a leader for industrialization in an increasingly globalized world, stressing that: “Europe is still an industrial society and we should think about what our economy can do to our people not what our people can do for the economy”.
BRUSSELS, 17 February 2020 – A delegation from UNIDO has taken part in the international donors’ conference “Together for Albania”. The event, hosted by the European Commission, was convened to support reconstruction efforts in Albania after one of the strongest earthquakes in the country’s history struck on 26 November 2019. A Post-Disaster Needs Assessment, launched jointly by the European Union, the United Nations and the World Bank, concluded that the total recovery needs of the country exceed EUR 1 billion across all sectors in the 11 affected municipalities of Tirana and Durrës – a financial challenge that cannot be addressed by the country single-handedly.
In January 2020, the United Nations (UN) launched the global consultation to mark its 75th anniversary. One million people have already raised their voice, with over 87% believing that global cooperation is vital to deal with today’s challenges, and that the pandemic has made international cooperation more urgent.
Moreover, 75 years after its founding, 6 in 10 respondents believe the UN has made the world a better place. Looking to the future, 74% see the UN as “essential” in tackling the current problems.
Against this backdrop, UNIDO stands ready to enhance its cooperation with the European Union (EU) and partner countries to respond to the crises and build a better future together, while contributing to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
2019 May: EU -UN 40 Years TOGETHER in Vienna | Multilateralism at Work
In the framework of the “EU-UN 40 Years TOGETHER in Vienna | Multilateralism at Work” campaign, the EU Delegation in Vienna organised an evening with UNIDO, showcasing the impact of our partnership. The EU Head of Delegation, Ambassador Stephan Klement, delivered remarks about the EU’s role as a defender of multilateralism and UNIDO Deputy Director General, Hiroshi Kuniyoshi, elaborated on the EU-UNIDO partnership specifically. With the aim to make this work more tangible, the ambassadors of Ethiopia, Jordan and Sri Lanka presented EU-funded UNIDO projects that are being implemented in their countries. These concrete examples of successful multilateralism gave incentives for a lively debate with the audience of more than 150 people, including students, diplomats and UN representatives.
EU -UN 40 Years TOGETHER in Vienna | Multilateralism at Work
2019 February: UNIDO Director General at the EU Industry Days, in Brussels, Belgium
Brussels, 5 February 2019 – Director General LI Yong took part in the high level panel podium discussion on Industry and the Future of Globalization jointly with Jyrki Katainen, EU Commissioner for Industry and Internal Market, Carl-Henric Svanberg, Chairman of the European Round Table of Industrialists Chairman of Volvo, and Arancha Gonzalez, Executive Director of the International Trade Center.
Brussels, 5 February 2019 – Director General LI Yong met with Neven Mimica, EU Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development. The Director General highlighted the hard work that has been done by UNIDO in cooperation with DG DEVCO in the last years, which has contributed to developing a solid private sector, safeguarding the environment and creating multi-stakeholder partnerships.
Brussels, 5 February 2019 – Director General LI Yong met with Patrick I. Gomes, Secretary General of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States. The Director General expressed his intentions to further expand the UNIDO-ACP cooperation, and highlighted that the joint partnership has benefitted the ACP countries in many ways and areas. The ACP Secretary General and UNIDO Director General are looking forward to the ACP-UNIDO High Level Symposium to be held in May 2019.
Brussels, 5 February 2019 - Director General LI Yong met with Lotte Knudsen, Managing Director of Human Rights, Global and Multilateral Issues at the European External Action Service, and Ellis Matthews, Head of Division - Multilateral Relations. The Director General reaffirmed UNIDO’s commitment to continue and increase its partnership with the EU. The two organizations will continue to further explore new avenues of cooperation, such as the internationalization process of EU enterprises.
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