The UNCTAD short courses on Key Issues on the International Economic Agenda for Geneva-based Diplomats provide an opportunity for delegates to learn about current and emerging issues, and to dialogue with UNCTAD researchers in an academic setting.

The success of the first two short courses in 2004 and 2005 led member states to request their continuation and expansion. The result was the launching in 2007 of two semesters of half-day courses delivered monthly.

The programme of the courses is demand-driven: the diplomats themselves propose areas on which they require updated information. Their suggestions are the basis for the development of courses on emerging topics on which UNCTAD and its individual divisions conduct research work.