Do global goals shape how international organizations interact? An analysis of the impact of the SGDs on the collaboration between the UN Development Programme and the UN Environment Programme

Abstract

This thesis explores how the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015 has influenced collaborative dynamics between two key United Nations agencies: the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Specifically, it investigates whether the SDGs served as a catalyst for enhanced inter-agency collaboration, focusing on resource exchange, funding trends, monitoring and adaptation, and collaboration mechanisms.

To answer this question, a mixed-methods approach was employed, combining content analysis of annual reports of both agencies from 2007–2023, quantitative data from Global Environment Facility (GEF) project records from 2005–2025, and qualitative insights from semi-structured interviews with UN personnel. Collaboration was examined across four key dimensions: collaboration mechanisms, resource exchange, funding trends, and monitoring and adaptation.

Findings reveal that, contrary to expectations, the SDGs did not significantly strengthen collaborative efforts between UNEP and UNDP. Mentions of resource exchange in annual reports remained low and sparse both before and after 2015. GEF data indicated inconsistent patterns in financial and in-kind contributions, with no clear post-SDG increase in joint funding. Interview data further supported these findings, emphasizing the project-specific and operationally fragmented nature of collaboration, where staff are typically hired locally for the duration of specific projects rather than exchanged between agencies.

Moreover, while joint projects were seen as appealing to donors, the SDGs were also perceived to have fragmented the funding landscape, forcing donors to spread resources more thinly across multiple goals. Comparative analysis with other UN agency pairings reinforced the conclusion that the SDGs did not broadly enhance inter-agency collaboration.

Overall, this thesis concludes that the SDG framework, while ambitious in scope, has not translated into a meaningful shift in collaborative practices between UNEP and UNDP, highlighting structural and financial limitations in current UN collaborative models.