A project document may be revised at any time by agreement among the signatories to the document, the donor, UN pooled fund steering committee and/or vertical fund, as relevant, and following consultation with the project board. The purpose of the revision is to make substantive or financial adjustments and improvements to the project. Restrictions apply for GEF- and GCF-financed projects.
According to Rule 121.01 paragraph (a) of the UNDP Financial regulations and Rules (as amended on January 1, 2012), the Chief Procurement Officer of UNDP is accountable to the Administrator for all procurement functions of UNDP for all its locations, except for those procurement actions governed by paragraph (c). The Chief Procurement Officer may further delegate authority to staff at headquarters and other locations, as may be appropriate in fulfilling the purposes of these rules.
Projects should be closed in a timely manner to manage fiduciary risk, meet donor expectations, avoid costly extensions and enable the timely transfer of assets for the sustainability of results. Closing a project requires assessing overall performance, quality and lessons learned, and necessary handover to ensure sustainability.
A legal obligation arising from a contract, agreement or other form of undertaking by UNDP or based on a liability recognized by UNDP, either against the resources of the current year in respect to UNDP programme activities or against the current budget period in respect to the institutional budget
Under a project, a contract is an agreement between the implementing partner and another institution, private firm, individual or NGO to carry out specific activities, or to provide specific goods or services. Contracting is used where the parties agree that it would be the most cost-effective way of achieving the desired results.
Cash or in-kind resources (the latter being in the form of goods, services, or real property) provided to UNDP. Contributions are used to cover UNDP programme activities as well as programme support, management and administration, and support to operational activities of the United Nations, including costs associated with the administration of contributions received for special purposes; costsharing - a co-financing modality under which contributions from Other resources can be received as a supplement to Regular resources for specific UNDP programme activities, under the relevant cooperation framework.
PCAT is a mandatory tool that includes a partner pre-requisite checklist and capacity assessment scoping to assist project developers to determine which capacity assessments (if any) need to be completed before the project is finalized and approved.
Performance-based payments (PBPs) are a type of agreement between UNDP and a responsible party to provide funding upon the verified achievement of an agreed measurable development result. No advances are provided, rather payments are made only upon the verified achievement of agreed results. This approach gives greater incentive to responsible parties to achieve results.
UNDP staff and other persons engaged by UNDP under other contractual arrangements to perform services for UNDP programme activities or for programme support.
A portfolio is a programming delivery instrument, which contributes to one or more country programme outcomes and engages one or more implementing partners to address system level challenges for strategic development results.
UNDP may issue contracts equivalent to those for individual consultants to professionals who are financially supported by a third-party for up to two years. If the financial support is provided by a private sector company, UNDP’s rules for due diligence apply.
Implementing a programme or a project requires ensuring all outputs in planning documents are delivered and contribute to achieving outcomes in the UNDP Strategic Plan and relevant country or regional programme document.
The document approved by the Executive Board that describes the framework for UNDP programme activities, and indicates the proposed UNDP resources to achieve results during a specified period. Programme documents are prepared at the country level in cooperation with the Government of that country, as well as at regional and global levels.
The purpose of appraisal is to review the quality and feasibility of the programme or project and advise on its readiness for approval. Appraisal applies to UNDP programmes (country and regional) as well as all development projects. It does not apply to institutional effectiveness projects, development effectiveness projects, the engagement facility or development services.
If the problems have not been resolved in a reasonable time, the project must be cancelled. Unspent funds defined as a target resource assignment from the core that result from a cancelled project may be reprogrammed, considering the outstanding obligations of the cancelled project. Third-party contributions may be reprogrammed subject to approval by the donor (unspent funds must be returned to vertical funds such as the GEF or GCF). The implementing partner proceeds with the steps required for financial completion as described in project closure. If cancellation means significant changes in the approved country programme document, an amendment may be needed.
Suspension. A project is cancelled after a period of suspension. During this period, the parties consult and try to resolve the problems by corrective measures. If the problems are resolved, the project activities may be resumed. The programme manager/Resident Representative confirms to the parties the date for resuming the activities. In an emergency situation, it is often clear that corrective measures cannot be taken. If so, UNDP proceeds directly with cancellation.
UNDP Financial Regulations and Rules document defines 'property, plant and equipment' as tangible assets held for use in the activities of UNDP or for administrative purposes and expected to be used during more than one financial period. The Property, Plant and Equipment (PP&E) policy document provides further details of the term 'property, plant and equipment' as a tangible or physically verifiable item that meets ALL the following five criteria: a) Provides future economic or service benefits to UNDP – i.e. the PP&E item is held for use in the implementation of UNDP Programmes or for administrative purposes; b) Is expected to be used during more than one reporting period, which, is 12 months; c) Has a value of US$5,000 (US$5,000 for UNCDF too) or more (New Capitalization Threshold effective as of 01.01.2020); d) Is used and controlled by UNDP; and e) Has a cost that can be reliably determined.
Based on the approved workplan, UNDP provides the required financial resources to the implementing partner to carry out project activities. Under the Harmonized Approach to Cash Transfers, four cash transfer modalities are available, based on operational agreements described in the project document: a. Direct cash transfers to implementing partners and responsible parties; b. Direct payments to vendors and other third parties for obligations incurred by implementing partners and responsible parties; c. Reimbursement to implementing partners and responsible parties; d. Direct agency implementation through which a UN agency makes obligations and incurs expenditure in support of activities.