News
UNDP launches global AI Foundations for Municipalities course
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has launched AI Foundations for Municipalities, a self-paced online course open to municipal staff and public servants worldwide, regardless of their role, technical background or prior knowledge of artificial intelligence (AI). Artificial intelligence is…
The (In)Visible Effects of the M4EG Mission Journey: A Balcony View of the Region
The Narrative of Transformation How we speak about change fundamentally shapes the change itself. In development, it is easy to default to reporting in templates with indicators, inputs, outputs, efficiencies, and deliverables. But working with human systems and our capacity…
UNDP and Exponential Science Foundation launch the Government Blockchain Academy in El Salvador, the Dominican Republic and Argentina
Istanbul, Lugano, 26 October 2026 — The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), through its Alternative Finance Lab (AltFinLab), and the Exponential Science Foundation (ESF) have launched the Government Blockchain Academy in El Salvador, the Dominican…
On foot or by bike: Four new tourist routes to explore in Sireți
Just 17 km from Chișinău, Sireți invites visitors to slow down and discover the village from a different perspective. Four new tourist routes, two for walking and two for cycling, connect the locality’s better-known landmarks…
BOOSTCamp in Warsaw: Innovation ecosystem builders come together
Twelve organisations from Moldova and Ukraine, selected for the BOOST: Innovation Ecosystem Accelerator, will meet at a BOOSTCamp in Warsaw from 13–15 October. Held at the CIC Warsaw Innovation Campus and hosted with Venture Café Warsaw, UNDP BOOST’s…
GrantsFund4Aid concludes successful on-chain grant management pilot
GrantsFund4Aid, an on-chain grant management platform developed by Innofund, has concluded a pilot testing how blockchain technology can support more transparent, traceable and efficient grant management. It successfully disbursed test grants to ten teams participating…
UNDP launches global AI Foundations for Municipalities course
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has launched AI Foundations for Municipalities, a self-paced online course open to municipal staff and public servants worldwide, regardless of their role, technical background or prior knowledge of artificial…
The (In)Visible Effects of the M4EG Mission Journey: A Balcony View of the Region
The Narrative of Transformation How we speak about change fundamentally shapes the change itself. In development, it is easy to default to reporting in templates with indicators, inputs, outputs, efficiencies, and deliverables. But working with…
On foot or by bike: Four new tourist routes to explore in Sireți
Just 17 km from Chișinău, Sireți invites visitors to slow down and discover the village from a different perspective. Four new tourist routes, two for walking and two for cycling, connect the locality’s better-known landmarks…
EU and UNDP launch an Innovative Finance Challenge to help cities unlock new financing opportunities
ISTANBUL, 16 October 2026 – The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), through the Mayors for Economic Growth (M4EG) Facility, funded by the European Union, and the City Experiment Fund (CEF), funded by the Ministry of Finance…
M4EG: Leading cities when the compass fails
Originally posted at M4EG’s website, read the full article here. When familiar maps no longer work and the compass starts to spin, leadership is about learning to navigate the unknown. Tools alone are not the…
M4EG: What if the project is not the point?
Originally posted at M4EG’s website, read the full article here. Cities rarely move in straight lines. A tourism problem is also a skills problem, a public-service problem, a business-confidence problem and often a community-belief problem.…
How four Ukrainian cities are seeking their future during the war
On the eve of the fifth year of full-scale war, four Ukrainian cities have taken on what seems like an impossible task: to determine their economic future in conditions where no one knows when or…
What is the portfolio approach and how does it work? Ukraine’s experience
In 2025, four Ukrainian cities – Khmelnytskyi, Bucha, Zhytomyr, and Slavutych – joined the Mission-Oriented Economy local transformation programme, part of the EU-funded Mayors for Economic Growth (M4EG), implemented by UNDP Europe and Central Asia.…
UNDP Europe and Central Asia Launches City Imaginarium to Reimagine Urban Futures
On World Cities Day 2025, UNDP in Europe and Central Asia launches the City Imaginarium — a regional creative campaign that invites artists and communities from around the region to reimagine greener, more inclusive and…
Reimagining municipal futures: The evolution and aspirations of the M4EG
Written by the UNDP Innovation Team Istanbul Regional Hub in partnership with the European Commission. As the EU Commission and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) concluded the Future-Fit Cities Forum 2025: Missions Possible in Chișinău,…
Innovating urban development: Lessons from M4EG & moving beyond growth
Two key lessons from our work in the Mayors for Economic Growth project, in collaboration with UNDP: 1) Innovation needs to occur at multiple levels and 2) If we’re to be effective, we must remain…
Future-Fit Cities Forum convenes in Moldova marking the next phase of the EU-UNDP M4EG initiative
The second international “Future-Fit Cities Forum” has officially concluded in Moldova, bringing together around 100 development actors, including mayors from the Eastern Partnership (EaP) countries, development institutions, academia, civil society organizations, and international financial institutions. Organized under…