The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) was established in 1964 to help developing countries access the benefits of a globalized economy more fairly and effectively, providing them the tools needed to turn trade, investment, finance and technology into vehicles for inclusive and sustainable development.

Fostering cooperation and solidarity among nations of the Global South has been at the heart of its work since 1964. UNCTAD supports and facilitates cooperation among developing countries through its policy analysis, consensus-building and technical assistance. The work is carried out in line with the international agreements and commitments relevant to South-South and triangular cooperation, including:

• The Buenos Aires Plan of Action for Promoting and Implementing Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries (UN General Assembly Resolution 33/134 of 19 December 1978)
• The Nairobi outcome document of the High-level United Nations Conference on South-South Cooperation (UN General Assembly Resolution A/RES/64/222 adopted on 21 December 2009)
• The Buenos Aires outcome document of the second High-level United Nations Conference on South-South Cooperation (BAPA+40) (UN General Assembly resolution A/RES/73/291 adopted on 15 April 2019)

With a view to supporting the development of inclusive and sustainable economic growth, the UNCTAD TrainForTrade Programme proposes tailored technical assistance to best meet countries’ needs in key areas pertinent to trade.

TrainForTrade was launched in 1989 to address trade-related human and institutional capacity needs of developing and transition countries. The ultimate goal is to increase countries’ participation in international trade in an equitable and sustainable manner. UNCTAD’s mandate is to work for development-led globalization, where the development paths are sustainable and inclusive. The TrainForTrade programme contributes to this goal by disseminating international trade-related knowledge and developing skills and capacities. TrainForTrade has proven to be very useful and instrumental in connecting UNCTAD research and analysis with sustainable capacity-building activities in developing and transition countries. TFT’s activities help to facilitate South-South and North-South collaboration and foster communication between trade and training experts.

South-South cooperation is a key component of the programme’s success and sustainability. The programme takes into account the relevance of proximity of experience and the shared development challenges faced by developing countries. In this regard, senior port managers share their experiences and deliver training and capacity building through the different port course modules”.

It is supported by four language networks, allowing for worldwide coverage. The European Union classified the Train for Trade methodology of project management and blended learning delivery as a best practice, following an evaluation of a TrainForTrade project in Angola. The Government of Ireland, the main donor of the Port Management Programme, has stated that the partnership between Irish Aid, ports in Ireland, UNCTAD and beneficiary ports are an example of a best practice in development cooperation.

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