UNIDO Global Industrial Policy Advice Facility
In recent years, industrial policy has experienced a revival and is increasingly appearing as a central component of development strategies. In fact, the debate around industrial policies is increasingly shifting from whether or “why” industrial policies should be deployed in the first place to “what”, “when” and especially “how” they can be designed and implemented more effectively. Moreover, the development paradigm has changed, and the scope of such strategies now is focussing on growth and social and environmental objectives. The key question today is how to best design industrial strategies and related policy measures, which can promote inclusive and sustainable industrial development (ISID).
In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic is posing enormous challenges to economic development, particularly in less developed countries, yet it may also unveil new opportunities to ‘build forward differently. Renewed industrial policies can play a significant role in shaping the road to overcome the crisis and set countries back on an inclusive and sustainable path of economic development. UNIDO firmly believes that strengthening the industrial sector is key to rapid recovery and to achieve this important goal, industrial policies must be at the centre of governments’ actions and reactions.
Therefore, UNIDO – with generous support from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) via the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH – is establishing a Global Industrial Policy Advice Facility (thereafter called “the Facility”) that aims at providing developing countries, globally, with sound policy advice and capacity development towards a socio-ecologically sound transformation of industry.
The Global Industrial Policy Advice Facility
The Facility is intended to facilitate policy-related processes in developing countries globally. Activities can be conducted on the national, regional and sub-regional level, involving one or several countries at once. The Facility provides direct short-term demand-driven policy advisory services to support different moments in the policy-making process – from policy design to implementation - and indirectly through sharing of knowledge products and best practices, including policy studies, reviews and briefs. The facility makes use of innovative communication tools such as e-learning platforms and webinars whenever direct intervention is not possible.
The support to countries is both time-bound and results-oriented. Policy services will be provided by a combination of UNIDO Staff Members and international and in-country experts.
The industrial policy advice facility only provides technical assistance and does not provide funds or human resources. Interventions need to be specific and have a well-defined contribution as part of a comprehensive industrial policy-making process in the applicant country. They need to be completed within a maximum of 5 months.
Eligibility criteria
In order to receive assistance from the Facility, applying entities need to fulfil the following criteria:
- Requests should originate from the Minister of Industry or central Government entities clearly stating how to foster Inclusive and Sustainable Industrial Development (ISID).
- Requests must be in line with UNIDO’s mandate of fostering ISID.
- Requests should be part of a wider medium/long term strategy, reform process, or public-private dialogue mechanism.
- Be from an active UNIDO member state.
- The assistance requested should not exceed a maximum duration of 60 expert days over a period of 5 months.
- Since all programme activities need to be concluded by the end of 2022, requests should ideally be submitted in the first half of the year. Later requests may be rejected on the basis of this deadline.
Preference will be given to requests that may lead to the development of a larger industrial policy project with UNIDO.
The application process
Interested parties will need to submit their requests to UNIDO using this application form.
Once submitted, the requestor will receive an email acknowledging receipt of the submitted request.
Each application will be reviewed against the required eligibility. Applicants may be contacted by a member of the Facility team for an initial discussion (which should not be interpreted as an approval or acceptance of the request).
The proposal will be assessed for approval by the Facility team and applicants will be notified about the outcome of the assessment within 30 days of receipt of the application.
If the proposal is approved, an action plan to implement the technical assistance will be jointly developed between the requester and the facility.
Contact
In case of any queries, please contact:
Anders Isaksson
Senior Research and Industrial Policy Officer, UNIDO
Email
Franz Brugger
Project Coordinator, UNIDO
Email
