Goal 17

When we conceived the idea to document and share with a broad audience UNFPA's partnership experience to achieve the SDGs, and particularly in harnessing the Demographic Dividend in West and Central Africa, we were far from imagining that the endeavor would be so exciting.

The preparation of this book has proven to be a real intellectual journey, punctuated with questions, concepts, meanings, and alterations they have undergone in the face of ground realities. The approach we initiated to make our partnership practices understandable and readable was fraught with pitfalls but, in the end, essential.

This book aims to present the concept, dimensions and nature of partnership. It documents the experience and originality of UNFPA's approach to partnership mobilization. While introducing partnership dimensions as a mode of engagement. it describes some successful experiences in partnership mobilization. Finally, it summarizes some of the key success factors for mobilizing partnerships.

Far from being a finished product, this book is an essential input to facilitate future initiatives to mobilize partnerships at the regional level and serves as strategicorientations for scaling up and deploying UNFPA's partnership approach in the region.