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UNDP convenes high-level event in Paris on scaling blockchain for good
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) will convene Scaling Blockchain for Public Good, a two-day high-level event bringing together blockchain ecosystem leaders, governments, development organizations, and academic institutions to explore the practical pathways through which blockchain technologies can strengthen public systems and support sustainable development. The programme is organized by UNDP’s Alternative Finance Lab (AltFinLab), a flagship initiative focused on exploring and scaling innovative financing and technology solutions for […]

UN Blockchain Talks #8 | Money’s New Rails: Stablecoins and the Last Mile of Financial Inclusion
The eighth session of the UN Blockchain Talks used the story of Mariama, a fictional trader in The Gambia, to bring the discussion on stablecoins […]

SDG Blockchain Accelerator: Driving SDG Impact in 2025
In 2025, the SDG Blockchain Accelerator delivered 46 pilot- and implementation-ready solutions, with 12 already entering real-world testing. Developed across two global cohorts, 70% of […]

Digital payments that work under real constraints: Three UNDP SDG Blockchain Accelerator pilots show what last-mile readiness actually looks like
There’s a question that doesn’t get asked enough in digital finance: what does “working” actually mean when you’re operating at the last mile? Digital payments […]

UNDP launches new publication on blockchain and public-purpose digital systems
UNDP has released a new publication, “New Tech, New Partners: Transforming development in the digital era – A snapshot of UNDP’s blockchain practice,” offering a […]

Working with Islamic Finance to achieve the SDGs: A win-win?
UNDP has been exploring ways to increase Islamic finance’s impact by linking Indonesia and Turkey together, through UNDP Alternative Finance Lab and UNDP Innovative Financing […]

UNDP launches new initiative with mayors to boost solar energy
Mayors from eight countries have joined forces with UNDP on a new initiative to boost financing for solar energy.

Introducing crowdfunding as an impact investment tool to finance startups in Egypt
AltFinLab, UNDP Egypt, and Technology Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center partnered together to foster crowdfunding in Egypt to unlock investment for achieving SDGs.

Adopting a cedar tree brings diaspora money home
Since its launch in 2009, Live Lebanon has implemented 67 projects and raised US$4.2 million from Lebanese communities abroad. From education to environment, it has […]

A fair deal for Ecuadorian cocoa farmers
Best known as the technology behind cryptocurrencies, blockchain is still too new and cutting edge for many industries. Blockchain data cannot be manipulated, it is fully […]

New technologies and finance to promote sustainable development in a changing world
The Alternative Finance Lab, together with UNDP Panama, organized sessions to learn about advances in innovation with practical cases and thus be able to exchange […]

How to turn development organizations in development platforms?
We’ve led 35 crowdfunding campaigns at UNDP since 2015 and mobilized US$1.2 million. Here’s our take-away.

There are risks in doing something new, but there might be even more risks in doing the old!
UNDP Istanbul Hub and Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra put their heads together and thought about the challenges around impact bonds-what comes to preventing and solving […]
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