- This day seeks to raise awareness about the importance of the exchange of resources, technology and knowledge between countries in the global South.
- The Finnova Foundation aligns itself as an entity committed to South-South Cooperation.
12/09/2023, Brussels. Today, Tuesday, September 12, 2023, marks the United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation. This day, which has been celebrated since 2012, seeks to raise awareness of the importance of sharing resources, technology and knowledge among developing countries, also known as countries of the global South.
In such actions, developing countries share knowledge, skills, experiences and resources that can accelerate progress towards the implementation and achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It is precisely within this framework, which aims to achieve the SDGs, that the day is being celebrated this year under the theme “Solidarity, equality and partnership: unlocking South-South cooperation to achieve the SDGs”. Another modality of South-South cooperation is triangular cooperation, a partnership in which traditional donor countries and multilateral organizations facilitate South-South initiatives by providing funding, training, management and technology systems, and other forms of support.
South-South cooperation has several objectives that are aligned with the SDGs and the 2030 Agenda. First, it seeks to foster and strengthen the self-reliance of developing countries by increasing their creative and technological capacity to address them. Second, in line with the collective self-reliance of these countries, it promotes the exchange of experiences leading to greater awareness of common problems and greater access to available knowledge. Finally, the most vulnerable countries (landlocked countries, small island states, those affected by natural disasters and other crises, etc.) are targeted to respond to their needs and provide them with greater participation in international economic activities.
Finnova, committed to South-South cooperation
The Finnova Foundation commemorates the United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation transmitting its firm commitment to this cause. An example of this commitment has been the participation of the foundation in initiatives such as “Sustainability in the fashion sector for its internationalization”, a triangular cooperation project thanks to the work of Finnova, the Chamber of Commerce of Bogota and the Sustainable Fashion Cluster of Peru. The Alliance entities combined their knowledge to generate tools to support business growth through internationalization to the European market, while contributing to environmental sustainability and respect for human rights.
The project was financed by the European Commission, within the ADELANTE 2 Triangular Cooperation program. In order to approach the program from different perspectives, ADELANTE 2 contributed to the program with different components: operational support to articulate the European Union-Latin America and the Caribbean Triangular Cooperation ADELANTE Window; analytical support to develop the analysis and studies of Triangular Cooperation together with the Ibero-American General Secretariat; and institutional support that allowed the development of bilateral Triangular Cooperation funds between the EU and selected Latin American and Caribbean countries. In this way, the program was able to meet the Sustainable Development Goals to leave no one behind thanks to Triangular Cooperation.
About Finnova Foundation
Finnova is the Spanish-Belgian non-profit foundation based in Brussels and Spain, working for the promotion and development of innovation and entrepreneurship in the EU. Finnova’s experience in leading communication and dissemination activities of European projects is combined with a solid proven track record in business creation and entrepreneurship support programs, such as accelerators, incubators and events, as well as its commitment to training and employability of young people.