On December 18th 2012, Mr. Marc Bichler, Executive Secretary of UNCDF and Cecile Meijs, General Manager of The Hague Academy signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to cooperate in areas of mutual concern to enhance the effectiveness of their development efforts.

The United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), represented by its Executive Secretary is interested in enhancing its development activities in strengthening countries' capacities for effective decentralization, local government and good governance; improve access to basic social services; promote public dialogue and accountability.

The Hague Academy is an organization duly organized under the laws of The Netherlands and committed to strengthening local governance and public service delivery worldwide; helping promote local democracy in developing countries through offering high quality training courses and tailor-made capacity building solutions; and undertaking research and knowledge development in an international context concerning local democracy and local self-government.

The purpose of this MOU is to provide a framework of cooperation and facilitate collaboration between the parties, on a non-exclusive basis, in areas of common interest. The Hague Academy commits to offering standard courses to UNCDF staff and officials from Least Developed Countries which will be tailored to fit the needs of a specific region / context. Additionally The Hague Academy will offer train-the-trainer courses, seeking to maximize the training impact and empowerment of people from LDCs to further disseminate the knowledge in their home countries.

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