MOPAN’s findings across the multilateral system

Growing global challenges and local development needs have led to greater scrutiny of multilateral organisations which are expected to perform better to satisfy heightened expectations of their performance.

The MOPAN Steering Committee nominates and endorses the selection of the MOPAN assessments carried out by the MOPAN Secretariat to provide evidence of performance and propose directions for improvement. Assessments of multilateral organisations are designed to be helpful to members by providing detailed information and evidence about a broad spectrum of factors that influence an organisation’s performance.

The rigor and the substance of assessment evidence is ensured by the MOPAN methodology and its seven-stage process, or life cycle, i) preparation, ii) inception, iii) evidence survey and data collection, iv) analysis and preliminary findings, v) reporting, vi) launch and dissemination, and) vii management response.

Organisational performance

Assessment Life Cycle

MOPAN institutional assessments

Organisation Institutional Lead(s)

AfDB

EBRD

GAVI

Global Fund

GPE

IDA/IBRD

IDB

IDB Invest

IFC

IFAD

ILO

IOM

OCHA

UNAIDS

UNDP

UNEP

UNHCR UNICEF

UNOPS

UNRWA

WHO

Assessment progress*

Performance insights

MOPAN generates performance information to respond to the needs of members not only through its assessments, but also in studies on crucial areas of multilateral co-operation. The areas of investigation and performance insights in 2022 are presented below.

Rethinking effective humanitarian organisations

The headline findings from the MOPAN analysis of effective humanitarian organisations, Rethinking Effective Humanitarian Organisations, have major implications for how MOPAN assesses the performance of organisations working in high-risk, fast-evolving crisis contexts.

¨ Humanitarian reform commitments are not enough, unless organisations hardwire them into their organisational structures and business models.

¨ MOPAN’s standard organisational assessment framework needs to be adapted to better reflect the nature of humanitarian operations and the practical requirements of working in crises situations.

Launched at the Humanitarian Affairs Segment of the United Nations Economic and Social Council, this study provided MOPAN with a mandate, with the help of a multistakeholder humanitarian advisory group, of adapting its framework to the conditions of organisations working in crises. The adapted framework was successfully piloted on the assessment of the International Organisation for Migration in 2022.

The multilateral response to COVID-19

As COVID-19 progressed from an outbreak to a pandemic, its severe, complex and intertwined impacts became far-reaching and most severe for vulnerable groups. Years of progress towards sustainable and inclusive development have been reversed. Recognising the unprecedented nature of the COVID-19 crisis, the multilateral system made early and widespread calls for cohesive global action.

The MOPAN study, More than the sum of its parts? The multilateral response to COVID-19, concluded with five lessons for “Building Back Better” and the multilateral response to future crises:

1. The ability to scale-up an existing co-ordination mechanism holds advantages for policy and operational coherence in responding to complex challenges.

2. Whereas co-ordination among UN Entities, multilateral development banks, and the International Monetary Fund was scaled-up to respond to the pandemic, important barriers limit the extent of joint planning and programming.

3. Fragmentation in resource mobilisation contributes to competition among multilateral organisations, works against joint programming and undermines the achievement of collective outcomes.

4. Beyond policy coherence at the global level, effective multilateral co-ordination involves building national ownership striking a balance between global goals and national needs and priorities in decision making.

5. Delivering an equitable response to global emergencies requires not only leadership and engagement among organisations, but a “whole of society” approach.

The study was launched during a side event at the 77th United Nations General Assembly, co-hosted by H.E. Ms. Miia Raine of Finland and H.E. Ms. Riccarda Chanda of Switzerland. Speakers included senior leaders of six different multilateral organisations – Gavi, International Monetary Fund, World Health Organisation, World Bank, and UNICEF, in addition to the United Nations Development Coordination Office. This study was also presented to the Geneva Group, a group of leading donors to the UN system, hosted by the Permanent Mission of Japan to the International Organisations in Geneva.

Progress on preventing sexual misconduct

Since 2020, MOPAN has been assessing how well organisations establish and enforce policies to protect against sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment (SEAH). In December, MOPAN published a policy brief that outlines how far six UN agencies, which had been recently assessed by MOPAN, have come in addressing SEAH, and identifies good practices to address the remaining shortfalls in their prevention practices:

¨ Policies and codes of conduct are now largely in place in many of the assessed agencies, with organisations rolling them out through training and awareness-raising

¨ The quantity of allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse are now reported transparently and publicly to the UN Secretary-General

¨ However, many organisations still choose to keep reporting on cases of sexual harassment and how they were resolved internally

¨ Organisations face a lack of resources for preventing SEAH, including insufficient structures dedicated to preventing sexual misconduct, and have yet to find effective ways to hold implementing partners accountable

¨ Organisations do not co-ordinate well-enough with other agencies – particularly in field offices

¨ Organisations do very little to track the implementation of policies to prevent sexual misconduct, and do little to centre their responses around survivors.

In December, the policy brief was launched to the Geneva Group of Friends to Eliminate Sexual Harassment (GoFESH) that includes over 40 UN member states and over half of MOPAN’s members. The event was hosted by the Permanent Mission of Canada to the United Nations in Geneva, the Permanent Mission of Estonia to the United Nations in Geneva and the Costa Rica Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Over the 2023-24 period, MOPAN will continue to engage with GoFESH, and the UN Special Coordinator for SEAH and MOPAN will ensure that progress on SEAH is fully integrated into all MOPAN assessments.

MOPAN Assessment of the Global Fund

The Global Fund continues to evolve in a dynamic global health landscape. Founded 20 years ago, the Global Fund has constantly sought to improve its performance and to evolve while at the same time remaining focused on its core mandate to fight HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria, the world’s three major devastating infectious diseases : AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.

The MOPAN Assessment of The Global Fund finds that:

¨ The Global Fund’s flexible and evolving operational approach is continually reviewed and allows for a nimble response. This has been particularly important during the COVID-19 pandemic

¨ With its inclusive partnerships, the Global Fund demonstrates a strong commitment to all involved stakeholders and promotes buy-in

¨ A resolute focus on the three diseases has allowed the Global Fund to achieve robust results and make continued progress despite short-, medium- and longterm challenges

¨ At the same time, the Global Fund can make more progress in addressing crosscutting issues such as building resilient and sustainable systems for health (RSSH), gender and human rights, and environment and climate change

¨ A cohesive and fully independent evaluative function will be important for moving from simple monitoring to more in-depth learning and understanding from its supported programmes

¨ Finally, country ownership and competing stakeholder priorities will be an important part of discussions in the years ahead.

– Global Fund Management response to the 2022 MOPAN Assessment of The Global Fund