UN Eswatini launches RCO2.0

The United Nations Resident Coordinator, Mr. George Wachira, has launched the second version of the Resident Coordinator’s Office (RCO) to provide added value and support for Eswatini to achieve Agenda 2030 of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

 In 2018, General Assembly Resolution 72/279 repositioned the UN development system and ushered a dedicated, impartial, independent, and empowered Resident Coordination System. The Resident Coordination System, which formally started operating in countries in January 2019, comprises the Resident Coordinator (RC) supported by a Resident Coordination Office (RCO).

The launch of RCO 2.0, which took place at the Hilton Garden Inn in Mbabane, was attended by the RC and all 13 current staff members.

Following a consultative process with UN entities, Government, Civil Society, the Private Sector and other stakeholders, the Resident Coordinator has developed a strategic vision for the UN in Eswatini, which calls for strategic shifts at UNCT and RCO levels to enhance the delivery of the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework for the period 2021-2025. “At the core of implementing the RC’s strategic vision is the re-engineering of the Resident Coordinator’s Office into RCO 2.0. to deliver more professional and value-adding coordination and support,” says the Resident Coordinator.

The RCO plays a central role in coordinating the operational activities of the 17 resident and non-resident United Nations entities with operational activities for the development of Eswatini, in line with the SDGs. Since January 2019, the reinvigorated Resident Coordinator system has ensured timely, coherent and effective UN support to countries, which has been critical at a time of extraordinary challenges facing the globe, the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and increased global volatility. “Four years into the reform, with 2030 only 7 years away and the imperative to rescue SDGs, we took a hard look at ourselves and reflected on RCO 2.0 – our second and more superior version RCO concept, services, and products, tailored to Eswatini context,” says Wachira. The Resident explains that the RCO 2.0. is benchmarked against the original strategic intent of the UN reform as well as new ideas that would enable and demonstrate superior performance. “In light of the urgency to rescue the SDGs, we have recommitted ourselves to ensuring added value to all our stakeholders, including the UNCT, government and development partners, civil society, private sector and ordinary Emaswati,” he says.