The Challenge

UNDP India had been performing a pivotal role as the integrator of SDGs at the national and sub-national level, working with NITI Aayog, the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), state governments, civil society, and the private sector. Through SDG Coordination Centres (SDGCCs) established in multiple states including Assam, Haryana, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Karnataka, and other northeastern states, UNDP was generating a wealth of knowledge and resource materials.

However, several critical knowledge management gaps persisted:

• Fragmented Knowledge Assets: Resources, best practices, tools, and SDG-related materials were scattered across multiple state governments, SDGCCs, and partner organizations with no central repository.
• No Virtual Collaboration Infrastructure: The COVID-19 pandemic had amplified the need for virtual networks for knowledge exchange, but no platform existed to facilitate national and international dialogues, webinars, or policy exchanges.
• Absence of SDG Capacity Building Tools: There was no e-learning platform for SDG certification courses targeting government functionaries, CSO/NGO staff, academic institutions, and other stakeholders.
• Limited Youth Engagement: No digital infrastructure existed for organizing IDEATHON challenges to harness youth innovation for SDG-aligned solutions.
• South-South Cooperation Gap: Despite partnerships with UNDP Seoul Policy Centre and UN Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC), there was no virtual platform to facilitate cross-border knowledge exchanges.
• No Citizen Engagement Mechanism: Open dialogues with citizens on global goals and development partnerships lacked a digital home.

UNDP India and UNDP Seoul Policy Centre partnered to create a comprehensive SDG Virtual Platform under the “SDG Partnership on Development Cooperation” initiative to institutionalize the knowledge ecosystem across national and sub-national levels.

Velocity’s Solution

Scope of Work

Velocity designed, developed, and deployed a comprehensive SDG Virtual Platform serving as a national knowledge hub for sustainable development. The platform combined resource repository functions, e-learning capabilities, virtual event management, citizen engagement tools, and partnership facilitation into a single, integrated digital ecosystem aligned with UNDP India’s website design.

Key Features & Deliverables

1. SDG Resource Repository
– Goal-wise SDG best practices documentation
– Policy briefs and research papers
– Success stories from international, national, and sub-national COVID recovery efforts
– Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI) roadmaps
– Digital innovations for COVID response and recovery
– Resource categorization by SDG goal, state, sector, and stakeholder type

2. E-Learning & SDG Certification Platform
– Open Learning Management System (LMS) plugin integration
– SDG certification course management with enrollment, progress tracking, and completion certificates
– Bulk upload of users, locations, and courses via CSV/Excel templates
– Course-specific analytics and completion status reporting
– Integration with certificate generation and verification systems

3. Virtual Event Management
– Webinar Platform: National and international level webinar hosting and management

• IDEATHON Module: Digital brainstorming event platform where participants register and connect virtually for focused innovation sessions
• Open Dialogues: Citizen-centric forums organized by country and under South-South Cooperation frameworks
• Conference Management: Event scheduling, registration, and post-event resource publication
• Calendar of upcoming events with registration capabilities

4. SDG Coordination Centre Network
– SDGCC directory and activity tracking across all participating states
– Knowledge exchange facilitation between SDGCCs
– Best practice sharing on scheme and programme implementation linked to NIF targets
– State-wise COVID response and recovery programme documentation (21 states)

5. Partnership & Collaboration Hub
– UNDP Seoul Policy Centre integration for policy exchanges
– South-South Cooperation engagement platform
– NITI Aayog partnership portal
– Multi-stakeholder engagement with academia, civil society, and private sector
– Discussion Board (modeled on UN Solution Exchange platform)

6. Interactive Dashboard & Home Page
– History of Sustainable Development Goals
– India’s progress on SDGs with visualizations
– SDG factsheets with indicator-level data
– Interactive geospatial maps and data charts
– Featured articles and upcoming events
– Photo and video galleries

7. Content Management System (CMS)
– Dynamic content management for all platform modules
– Super admin, admin, and role-based access management
– Entity management (government and private stakeholders)
– Event master templates
– Sector, location, and role management
– User registration and login management

8. Community Engagement
– Blog platform for stakeholder contributions
– Live chat/chatbot for user assistance
– Notification system for events, courses, and updates
– News section with media coverage
– Privacy, copyright, and hyperlinking policies

9. Analytics & Reporting
– Google Analytics integration for platform usage monitoring
– Programmatic indicator reports (course completion, SDGCC activity tracking)
– System monitoring reports (user login analytics)
– Third-party security audit with penetration testing

10. Technical Deliverables
– Source code (commented copy) with release notes for all versions
– Prototype/wireframes/mockups
– Test scripts for all user roles
– Security audit clearance certificate
– Domain name and SSL certificate
– Login credentials for all admin accounts (application, database, hosting server)
– Complete third-party service documentation
– Capacity building with ToT for master trainers
– Animated training tools and presentations
– Comprehensive documentation (SRS, design document, database schema, technical manual, user manuals, installation guide, infrastructure details, API documentation)

Technology Stack

• Platform: Open-source CMS-based architecture (no proprietary tools)
• UI/UX: Aligned with UNDP India website design principles, following Material Design guidelines
• Frontend: Interactive, responsive design with geospatial map integration
• Database: Open-source RDBMS with bulk upload capabilities
• LMS: Open Learning Management System plugin for e-learning modules
• Analytics: Google Analytics integration for usage monitoring
• Security: Third-party security audit with penetration testing
• Hosting: Cloud-agnostic architecture, co-hosted on UNDP servers as part of UNDP India website

Implementation Approach

The project was delivered in two major development phases plus a maintenance phase, totaling 17 months:

Phase I (15 weeks): SDG Virtual Platform operational with all static modules and dynamic modules required for SDG Certification process.
1. System Requirement Specification (1 week, 10%)
2. Mockup/wireframe creation (3 weeks, 15%)
3. Development and UAT handover (6 weeks, 15%)
4. Final platform deployment based on UAT feedback (3 weeks, 5%)
5. Security audit, handover, and launch (2 weeks, 5%)

Phase II: Enhancements in static modules and inclusion of all remaining dynamic modules (IDEATHON, Open Dialogues, Webinars, Discussion Board, advanced analytics, etc.).

Phase III (12 months): Post-implementation support including bug fixing, minor enhancements, data updates, performance optimization, critical system updates, and tech support via email/phone.

The team included full-stack web developers with e-learning module experience, data scientists/visualizers, and developers experienced in open-source Content Management Systems.

Key Outcomes & Impact

• National SDG Knowledge Infrastructure: Established India’s first comprehensive virtual platform for SDG knowledge sharing, serving as a one-stop solution for all stakeholders to align activities with the SDGs.
• Institutionalized Knowledge Ecosystem: Connected SDG Coordination Centres across multiple states into a networked knowledge exchange system, enabling systematic sharing of best practices linked to NIF targets.
• SDG Capacity Building at Scale: Enabled rollout of SDG certification courses to government functionaries, CSO/NGO staff, and academic institutions across India through the integrated e-learning platform.
• Youth Innovation Pipeline: Provided a digital platform for IDEATHON challenges, channeling youth creativity toward technology-based solutions for pandemic recovery and sustainable development.
• International Knowledge Exchange: Facilitated policy exchanges with UNDP Seoul Policy Centre, South-South Cooperation partners, and global knowledge sharing institutions through integrated virtual event tools.
• Citizen Engagement in SDGs: Created open dialogue mechanisms enabling citizens to participate in discussions on global goals, bringing public voice into India’s SDG implementation strategy.
• Evidence-Based Policymaking: Centralized best practices, STI roadmaps, and COVID recovery learnings in a searchable repository, improving evidence-informed policymaking across government levels.

Why Velocity

Velocity was selected through UNDP’s competitive evaluation process (70% technical, 30% financial) based on:

• E-Learning Platform Expertise: Proven experience in developing e-learning platforms using open-source technology with live platforms exceeding 5,000 hits, meeting UNDP’s stringent eligibility requirements.
• SDG Domain Knowledge: Direct experience with SDG-related projects demonstrated through live platforms with significant user engagement, meeting the mandatory qualification of having executed at least one SDG-related project.
• Open-Source CMS Proficiency: Extensive expertise in building and maintaining websites and dashboards using open-source Content Management Systems, critical for the content-heavy, frequently-updated platform.
• Complex Dashboard Experience: Track record in designing dashboards for complex monitoring indices using cross-sectional, longitudinal, and geospatial data from multiple government data sources.
• Full-Stack Development Team: A team with specialized experience in e-learning modules, data visualization, and open-source CMS development, precisely matching the project’s multi-faceted technical requirements.
• UNDP-NITI Aayog Collaboration Experience: Demonstrated ability to work within the collaborative framework of UNDP and NITI Aayog, meeting dual stakeholder reporting requirements.