The main objective of ESCAP's capacity development work is to develop the technical, managerial and institutional capacities of member and associate member governments to plan and deliver more effective policies and programmes in support of inclusive and sustainable development with special attention to least developed and landlocked developing countries as well as small island developing states. In this effort the various sub-programmes of ESCAP develop e-learning courses, training programmes, tools and other online platforms to help member governments increase their institutional capacity to address development challenges as well as share technical knowledge in order that Asia and the Pacific fulfill the 2030 development agenda.
Most ESCAP e-learning courses are available on the ESCAP e-learning platform where courses are open to anyone and provided free of charge. Most of the courses include an option of receiving a certificate upon successful completion of all modules.
Below, a selection of resources, by topic/theme:
Environment and Development
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SDG Help Desk
ESCAP established a Sustainable Development Goals Help Desk to assist member States in the Asia-Pacific region to develop effective strategies, methodologies, tools and institutional mechanisms for implementation of the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development and the SDGs.As a one-stop online platform, the SDG Help Desk provides access to tools, knowledge products, expertise, good practices, advice and chances for peer-learning and regional South-South cooperation through thematic areas, covering topics related to sustainable development.
Social Development
- Designing inclusive policies on population ageing using a bottom-up approach
The Asia-Pacific region is experiencing rapid population ageing. Understanding the multi-faceted context of ageing is key to developing responsive, comprehensive and forward-looking policies that promote intergenerational solidarity. Comprising seven modules, this course aims to explain frameworks, tools, processes and good practices relevant to the design of policies on ageing. - Social Protection Toolbox
The Social Protection Online Toolbox (SPOT) is an online platform that provides tools to strengthen social protection systems in Asia and the Pacific. It includes the SPOT Simulator, a microsimulation model that draws on Household Income and Expenditure Surveys to examine the impact of different cash transfer parameters on economic outcomes such as poverty, inequality, consumption as well as the costs of such programmes. SPOT also provides five online training modules on the design of more inclusive and comprehensive lifecycle schemes. In addition, SPOT hosts a range of knowledge products, from primers to videos, to build capacity to harness social protection for more inclusive and sustainable development. - The future of work in the context of population ageing in Asia and the Pacific
The course covers three modules, namely: Module 1: ‘Levels, trends and key concepts’; Module 2: ‘Demographic and Labour Market Trends of Ageing Societies in the Context of the Fourth Industrial Revolution’; and Module 3: ‘Ensuring good health and enabling environments, and promoting inclusion and sustainability.
Trade, Investment and Innovation
- E-Learning Series on Business Process Analysis for Trade Facilitation
The Business Process Analysis (BPA) online training course has been developed by the ESCAP Trade, Investment and Innovation Division based on the UNNExT Business Process Analysis (BPA) Guide to Simplify Trade Procedures. BPA is considered the first necessary step to simplifying trade procedures. The course consists of seven modules and introduces a step-by-step approach to conducting BPA. It is aimed at government officials and other stakeholders responsible for trade facilitation. - E-learning course on Non-Tariff Measures and Sustainable Development
The course has been developed by the ESCAP Trade, Investment and Innovation Division based on Asia-Pacific Trade and Investment Report (APTIR) on Navigating Non-tariff Measures towards Sustainable Development, jointly published by ESCAP and UNCTAD. - Online Course on Negotiating Regional Trade Agreements for Trade in Times of Crisis and Pandemic
Macroeconomic Policy and Financing for Development
- E-Learning Series on Public-Private Partnerships
PPP online training materials have been developed over the years by the ESCAP Secretariat. These materials are for self-study and are tailored to provide a basic minimum knowledge of various issues that policy-makers dealing with PPPs have to be aware of. While the courses are general in nature, most of the examples are from the infrastructure sectors, in particular the transport sector.
Information and Communications Technology for Development
- Academy of ICT Essentials for Government Leaders
The “Academy of ICT Essentials for Government Leaders Programme” (Academy) is APCICT’s flagship initiative to equip government officials and policymakers with the essential knowledge and skills to leverage ICT for national and regional socio-economic development. Launched in 2008, the Academy’s comprehensive curriculum was developed in partnership with ICT experts from countries throughout the world. Currently, 11 Academy modules are available in 12 languages, with new training modules and more translations underway to meet the ICT capacity needs of ESCAP member and associate-member States.
Statistics Division
- E-learning on Data Cleaning and Quality Assessment of Birth Registration Data
- E-learning on Data Cleaning and Quality Assessment of Death Registration Data
These self-paced e-learning courses are designed to help national civil registration and vital statistics stakeholders build practical skills in cleaning and preparing birth and death registration data for the production of vital statistics. Through interactive modules and demonstrations in MS Excel (with equivalent syntax provided in Stata, SAS, and R), learners will gain hands-on experience in identifying data quality issues, standardizing data entries, creating new variables and tabulating data by key characteristics. Developed by ESCAP, Vital Strategies, the Office for National Statistics (ONS), and the Pacific Community (SPC), with support from Bloomberg Philanthropies Data for Health Initiative, these courses support countries in strengthening the quality and usability of their vital statistics in line with international standards.
Statistical Institute for Asia and the Pacific (SIAP)
- SIAP e-learning platform
SIAP recognizes the need for high quality training in official statistics as a means of strengthening staff skills of national statistical systems. E-learning gives individuals that have busy work schedules, and therefore limited opportunities to participate for residential training an opportunity for high quality on-line learning in official statistics. SIAP offers e-learning with a dedicated team of experts. Training programmes focus on all areas of official statistics and target national statistical systems.
