New York – The Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) signed a Letter of Intent in New York yesterday, setting out a framework to strengthen and structure cooperation in support of governance, sustainable development, and resilience across South East Europe. The document was signed by Amer Kapetanovic, RCC Secretary General, and Ivana Zivkovic, UN Assistant Secretary-General, UNDP Assistant Administrator and Director of the Regional Bureau for Europe and the CIS.

The intended partnership anchors future joint work in existing regional frameworks, including the RCC Strategy and Work Programme 2026-2028, SEE2030 Strategy, the Common Regional Market Action Plan, the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans and UNDP Strategic Plan, aiming to maximise impact, ensure coherence, and avoid duplication.

“This agreement helps us move faster on what matters to people, better services, greener growth, stronger institutions, and a more resilient region, by aligning RCC’s regional platforms with UNDP’s expertise and reach,” said Kapetanovic.

The Letter of Intent foresees regular coordination between the two organisations, annual reviews of progress, and operational focal points to steer implementation.

As part of the RCC Secretary General’s visit to the United States on the margins of the UN General Assembly, the signing follows yesterday’s ministerial meeting of the Adriatic–Ionian Initiative, and precedes a meeting of Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the South East European Cooperation Process (SEECP), which the RCC will host later today in New York, an annual gathering of SEECP participants.