How Monaco helps the most disadvantaged countries

In September 2015, the Principality of Monaco adopted the United Nations Sustainable Development Agenda to eradicate poverty, protect the planet, and ensure prosperity for all by 2030, through 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Since then, through its successive strategic plans, the Monegasque International Cooperation Department has focused on the human-centered SDGs.

Last Friday, the Monegasque Cooperation (Coopération Monégasque) took stock of its 2022-2024 strategic plan, highlighting a key figure: 3.5 million direct beneficiaries, almost 100 times more people than the Principality's entire population. To achieve this result in two years, the Prince's government mobilized €74.1 million in Official Development Assistance (ODA), i.e., public funding provided by the most advantaged countries to improve living conditions in less advantaged countries in the fight against poverty.

Health as a priority

By targeting its intervention on 12 countries spread across three regions (*), the Monegasque Cooperation focuses its aid in order to increase the impact of the actions undertaken. More than 75% of ODA was directed to eight least developed countries (LDCs), meeting the United Nations objective in this regard.

With a third of the resources committed and 2.4 million beneficiaries, health remains the area of ​​intervention that dominates the work of the Monegasque Cooperation. This support has helped strengthen the capacities of health professionals, as well as the fight against mortality among women, children, and adolescents. Initiatives aimed at strengthening food and nutritional security have reached half a million direct beneficiaries, relying in particular on sustainable agriculture and the "School Feeding" program, which promotes the establishment of school canteens.

Projects in education and child protection have also benefited 500,000 people, with priority given to girls' education. Finally, support for access to decent work has enabled nearly 100,000 people to receive support.

In all actions, the most vulnerable were the core target—children, women and girls, people with disabilities, displaced persons, and refugees. The preservation of the planet and its resources is also taken into account through an approach that prioritizes sustainable projects.

* Southern and Eastern Africa (South Africa, Burundi, Lesotho and Madagascar); the Sahel (Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Senegal); North Africa/Mediterranean (Lebanon, Morocco, Mauritania and Tunisia).