The ‘MDG Support’ initiative, established in 2006, is UNDP’s corporate, scaled-up response to help countries meet the commitments they made at the 2005 World Summit to turn their national development strategies into MDG-based strategies. MDG Support is designed to quickly mobilize technical support from across UNDP and the UN System to help developing country governments achieve the MDGs.

MDG Support offers countries a menu of services that can be adapted to the development context and demands of each country, both nationally and locally, in three focal areas: (1) MDG-based diagnostics, needs assessments and planning; (2) widening access to policy options; and (3) strengthening national capacity to deliver. Key activities include:

MDG-based National Development Strategies - Assisting developing countries to prepare and implement national strategies to achieve the Goals;

MDG Tools and Research – Developing tools and methodologies to adapt the MDGs to a country-specific context, to support country-led MDG needs assessments, to strengthen policies in support of the Goals, and to strengthen implementation capacity;

UN Coordination – Mobilizing technical expertise across the UN System to provide broad support for the design of countries’ MDG-based national development strategies;

MDG Data and Resources – Consolidating and sharing key resources on the MDGs and spotlighting successful MDG initiatives.

MDG Support thus provides an invaluable opportunity for “opening doors” to country-level support on poverty-environment mainstreaming. The MDG Support focal areas and activities are closely aligned with the country poverty-environment mainstreaming programmes supported by PEI.  The Poverty-Environment Facility is working with the MDG Support Team in UNDP to ensure close collaboration between PEI and MDG Support at the country level.