The Capacity Development Office (CDO) of UNU-MERIT provides career-enhancing training for policymakers and practitioners. Our programmes are designed to help participants influence and implement policy related to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
Our purpose as a university and UN think tank is to offer unique learning and training opportunities not only to students but also to everyone looking to address contemporary and future sustainable development challenges, expand their knowledge and networks, and achieve personal and professional growth.
Open for Enrolment
Capacity Development
Evidence-Based Policy Research Methods (EPRM) programme
Capacity Development
Short courses
Training
United Nations University Program on Digital Technology and Sustainable Development
Capacity Development
Migration Management Embassy Professionals Training (MMEP)
Capacity Development
Migration Law and Policymaking - A Course for Migration Policy Officials in Africa (MiLAP)
Ongoing projects
Higher Education, Digitalisation
DigiGrad Africa Project
Overview of previous CDO activities
Course name | Collaborating partner | Duration | Modality | Theme | Target group | Contact |
| IATT WS6 | UNESCO UNCTAD | 2017-present | online | Capacity-Building, Technology&Innovation | Policymakers, Public service experts | mindel.vandelaar@maastrichtuniversity.nl |
Open access course "Structured Literature Reviews" - VIS Program | Ministry of Education, Culture and Science of the Netherlands | 3 February - 28 February 2025 | online | Research Methods | Masters and Bachelors students | |
Open access course "Improving Team Work through Intercultural Communication"- VIS Program | Ministry of Education, Culture and Science of the Netherlands | 30 April - 16 June 2025 | online | Skills | Masters and Bachelors students | |
Ministry of Education, Culture and Science of the Netherlands | 25 March - 15 May 2025 | online | Skills | Masters and Bachelors students | ||
Open access course "Network Science and Economic Complexity for Policy" - VIS Program | Ministry of Education, Culture and Science of the Netherlands | 17 February - 14 March 2025 | online | Research Methods | Masters and Bachelors students | |
ITU Summer School on evidence-based digital policies for universal and meaningful connectivity | ITU Academy (Global Gateway) | 2 June - 6 June 2025 | in-person | Policy Analysis; Data Science; Digital Transformation | Officials from digital ministries and telecom regulators; policy analysts; data analysts, researchers, and policymakers | |
ITU Academy (Global Gateway) | 23 June - 27 June 2025 | in-person | Digital and Green Transitions; Digitalisation; E-Waste; Green Innovaton; Artificial Intelligence | Government officials and policy makers working in digital transformation and sustainability globally | ||
ITU Academy (Global Gateway) | 10 March - 28 March 2025 October 2024 | online | Digital Inclusion; Data Divides; Development; Digital Divides; Inequality | Policy-makers, officials, entrepreneurs, professionals, and representatives from government, international organizations, civil society, academia, and research | ||
| Kenya Institute of Migration Management (KIMS) | GIZ | December 2023 - June 2025 | online | Migration | National and regional authorities from IGAD region | cdo@merit.unu.edu |
ICMPD | 10 February - 21 February 2025 | in-person | Migration | Gambian senior-level civil servants who work in the field of migration and/or asylum in the Gambia | ||
Moving the Migration Policy Agenda Forward (MMPAF) programme | ICMPD | July 2024 - May 2025 | online | Migration | Government officials working in migration and/or asylum | |
United Nations University Program on Digital Technology and Sustainable Development (UNU-DTSD) | UNU-MACAU UNU-EHS | 2 February - 15 February 2025 | in-person | Global Digital and Green Transition, | Masters and PhD students | |
ITU Academy (Global Gateway) | 19 March 2024 - 6 May 2024 | online | Artificial Intelligence | Civil servants, international officials, entrepreneurs, professionals, civil society, academia, research, think tanks, and the public | ||
ITU Summer School on Catalyzing the Digital Future: Digital Transformation for Sustainability | ITU Academy (Global Gateway) | 1 July - 5 July 2024 | online | Sustainable Digital Transformation | Professionals who are actively engaged in digital transformation and sustainability worldwide | |
Support the Kenya Institute of Migration Studies Building Capacity in Migration Studies (KIMS) | GIZ | December 2023 - June 2025 | online | Migration | Government officials and policy makers working in migration and asylum | |
ICMPD | March - May (periodic event, since 2013) | on-site | Migration | Government officials and policy makers working in migration and asylum | ||
ICMPD Serbia Training 2023 | ICMPD | February - March 2023 | on-site | Migration | Public officials from the Commissariat for the Refugees | |
Introduction to Micro-stimulations for Social Protection and Taxation - |
| 4 days | on-site | Social Protection | Government officials from Saudi Arabia | |
Introduction to Qualitative and Quantitative Methods – EIPA Tailored Training |
| October - November 2023 | on-site | Research Methods | Staff members of the European Institute of | |
ITU course Economics of Innovation | ITU Academy (Global Gateway) | September - October 2023 | online | Innovation | Students with a limited background in the innovation studies tradition | |
Twinning for Excellence in Management and Economics of Research and Innovation (Horizon TWIN4MERIT) | European Commission | January - December 2023 | hybrid | Innovation | Academics and research actors from the Republic of Cyprus |
More information
For more details on our programmes or to discuss options for designing and delivering Capacity Development programmes with UNU-MERIT, please write to: cdo@merit.unu.edu
Learn about recent news and developments of our Capacity Development Office here.