ASEAN-UNDP

1. During the period under review, there has been a marked achievement in terms of physical project delivery and financial performance, as well as the ASEAN-UNDP relations in general. A total of 18 projects have been completed by the end of April 1990 and accummulative total of US$ 11,463,967 was disbursed, representing 91,69 percent of the total allocation to ASEAN during the Fourth Cycle of the Inter-Country Programme (ICP). ASEAN as a sub-region, received a total allocation of US$ 12.7 million from the UNDP under the technical cooperation programme during the Fourth Cycle of the ICP, 1987-1991, to support the implementation of 42 projects in various fields, inclusive of the preparatory technical assistance.

2. Regular consultations between ASEAN and the UNDP through Programme Review Meetings have created better understanding on the administrative and operational constraints of both sides which hinder the smooth implementation of projects. The Review Meeting, convened two weeks prior to the meeting of the ASEAN Standing Committee, has been very useful in resolving administrative and operational issues as well as in serving as the channel for up-dating the status of project on regular basis. In view of its importance, this consultation process will continue to remain the near future.

3. Several developments have emerged in the ASEAN-UNDP relations during the period under review, which signalled a policy change on the part of UNDP and the increasing importance it attached to ASEAN as one of the most dynamic regional groupings for socioeconomic cooperation. Among these developments are the offer by the UNDP to transfer to ASEAN some responsibilities over the implementation of programmes and projects; the review of UNDP technical cooperation programme as part of the preparations for the Fifth Cycle of the ICP, 1992-1996; and a study to strengthen the ASEAN Secretariat to prepare the Secretariat to assume a more effective role in facilitating ASEAN cooperation. All the above assistance and activities are testimony to the closer cooperative relationship between ASEAN and the UNDP for the purpose of achieving a more meaningful and substantive socio- economic cooperation among ASEAN member countries.