Uruguay - UNESCO Country Programming Document, 2008-2009

Uruguay is one of the eight “Delivering as One” pilot countries in the UN reform process25. It is the only upper middle income economy country among the pilots, as well as being relatively small in size and especially in population. Furthermore the “Delivering as One” process has several specificities. Firstly, it is strongly owned and led by the Government. Secondly, the contribution of the UN system in budgetary terms is low when compared to the level of public spending. Hence, the system’s added value lies mainly in its convening power, in its normative role and above all in its capacity building activities. Lastly, the presence of donors is relatively small when compared to other pilot countries, which results in an enhanced need for the intervention of the UN system to be strategic and to focus on a limited number of priorities where the UN has a clear comparative advantage.

The UN system, in consultation with the Government and through the CCA/UNDAF process, collectively identified four key interdependent challenges for the country to address in order to strengthen a democratic society with high levels of human development and respectful of human rights. These four challenges are all relevant to UNESCO’s mandate and activities:

• Achieving a sustainable and sustained growth of Uruguayan economy, with emphasis on productive diversification, insertion in international markets (in and out of the region), an increase of the incorporation of scientific and technological innovation in productive processes, and an increase in the level of investment.
  
• Reducing the significant levels of poverty reached by the Uruguayan society in the recent years, particularly among the younger generations, with emphasis on the eradication of extreme poverty.
  
• Reducing inequalities (economic, social, territorial, inter-generational, relative to gender, ethnic or others) in the starting conditions and in access to quality social services.
  
• Promoting the exercise of all human rights and deepening the quality of democracy
  through increasing civic, political and social citizenship.