FIFTH COMMITTEE IS TOLD SECRETARY-GENERAL CONTINUES TO SEEK GUIDANCE ON WHICH MANDATES COULD BE ENDED TO FREE RESOURCES FOR NEW ONES
Press Release
GA/AB/3077
FIFTH COMMITTEE IS TOLD SECRETARY-GENERAL CONTINUES TO SEEK GUIDANCE ON WHICH MANDATES COULD BE ENDED TO FREE RESOURCES FOR NEW ONES
19960516 The Secretary-General continued to seek Member States' guidance on which mandates could be ended to free up funds to accommodate new mandates within the 1996-1997 budget's existing resources, the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) was told this afternoon as it discussed the United Nations budget.That statement was made by Joseph E. Connor, Under-Secretary-General for Administration and Management, as he introduced the Secretary-General's report on the implications of the new mandates that might be granted by the General Assembly. He said the Secretary-General would make further cuts with the support of, and suggestions from, Member States.
Noting that the new mandates could cost $51 million in 1996 and $69 million in 1997, he said they were being considered in the context of the Secretary-General's initial reduction of $98 million from the budget and his attempts to slash another $154 million from it. While much had been achieved, more was now being sought.
Speaking on the cost-saving measures proposed by the Secretariat, the representative of Italy, on behalf of the European Union, said not all of them were the Secretary-General's prerogative. Savings should be achieved as soon as possible.
The representatives of Indonesia, Tunisia and Uganda also spoke.
According to a report of the Secretary-General on the new mandates (document A/C.5/50/67), those include the United Nations Human Rights Verification Mission in Guatemala (MINUGUA), which would cost some $49.2 million; the International Civilian Mission to Haiti (MICIVIH), $9.3 million; and the United Nations political presence in Rwanda ($12.4 million), in El Salvador ($2.3 million), and in Afghanistan ($2.8 million). The Commissions of Inquiry in Rwanda and in Burundi would cost some $13.4 million, while some $5.6 million might be needed to service the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
The Secretary-General reiterates that the new mandates could be implemented within the current budget only if the General Assembly chose the programmes to be terminated or dropped from the budget.
(For background, see Press Release GA/AB/3076 of 15 May.)
The Committee is scheduled to meet again at 10 a.m. tomorrow, 17 May, to conclude its discussion on progress made in $154 million from the 1996-1997 budget.
Statements on Aspects of 1996-1997 Budget
JOSEPH E. CONNOR, Under-Secretary-General for Administration and Management, introduced the Secretary-General's report on the implications of the new mandates that might be granted by the General Assembly. He recalled that the Assembly had already authorized the Secretary-General to commit about $24.7 million for mandates in Haiti, Guatemala, El Salvador and Rwanda, with some of those costs to be absorbed within existing resources. The potential costs of approved and prospective mandates would be $51 million in 1996 and $69 million in 1997. Those were being considered in the light of the Secretary-General's initial efforts to reduce $98 million from the budget and his attempts to cut another $154 million from it. While much had been achieved, more was now being sought.
Mr. Connor said that the Secretary-General would pursue further cuts with the support of Member States and their suggestions. But the additional costs of the new mandates could not be absorbed while implementing the full programme of work as initially envisaged. While the Secretary-General would submit, with his first performance report, expenditures derived from relevant commitment authority estimated at $51 million in 1996, other relevant factors should be considered. The first was the how to quantify how much additional efficiency efforts would improve the ability to absorb new mandates in the 1996-1997 biennium. Ending mandates would free up resources and make feasible the goal of accommodating the new mandates within existing resources. The Secretary-General continued to seek Member States' guidance on the matter. The second factor would arise from the requirement to adjust the budget in December to reflect the effects of currency fluctuation relative to the United States dollar, in which the Organization budgets. If maintained, the significant changes that had occurred in some currencies would help the ability to absorb some of the new costs. The Secretary-General would fully implement mandated programmes within the $2.61 billion budget and would address the matters in the first performance report.
BERNARDO MANCINI (Italy), speaking on behalf of the European Union, said he appreciated the Secretary-General's approach to cost reductions in the 1996-1997 budget. There was cause for concern about the programmatic impact of the reductions on mandated programmes and activities. The principle of
Fifth Committee - 3 - Press Release GA/AB/3077 61st Meeting (PM) 16 May 1996
full implementation of the mandated activities which ensured equitable and non-selective treatment of all budget sections was of great importance to the European Union. In that connection, he asked what criteria had been retained by the Secretary-General for the distribution of saving proposals among the different budget sections.
He said that during the next month, the Committee on Programme and Coordination, and later the fifty-first Assembly, would look at the budget outline and at the medium-term plan. That would present an opportunity to prioritize activities by reviewing the mandates and programmes of the Organization for the future. He requested some indication of how the planned target of 331 Professional post vacancies by the end of 1997 would be achieved.
He said the European Union believed that, in some cases, achieving long- term efficiency gains required timely investments. Examples of those were telecommunications and information systems, where the delays in the implementation of new technologies produced positive results in the short- term, but might be less cost effective and even regressive in the long run.
He expressed appreciation for the additional work that the Secretariat was doing to identify possible savings. However, not all the proposals before the Committee were the Secretary-General's prerogative. Pending consideration of the more detailed report to be presented by the Secretary-General to the fifty-first General Assembly, the Union could, as an interim response, concur with his savings plans. It would like to see savings achieved as soon as possible.
PRAYONO ATIYANTO (Indonesia) said the reports of the Secretary-General and the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ) were valuable to the Committee's work. He had noted that the budgetary reductions mandated by the Assembly could not be achieved without delays and postponement of programmes. Stressing that any changes in the mandated programmes were the Assembly's prerogative, he hoped that the 1996 reductions would not affect regional cooperation programmes and other programmes for development. Member States had to decide the extent to which the resolutions approving the 1996-1997 budget could be implemented. It was regrettable that the Secretary-General had not given a clear picture of how programmes could be affected.
He said it was important to ensure that underrepresented and unrepresented countries were represented in the Secretariat. Competitive examinations should be continued in order to ensure such recruitment. The Secretariat should provide the Committee with information on the number of staff to be separated. He was ready to cooperate in reaching agreement on budgetary reductions which would ensure the Organization's viability.
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AMMAR AMARI (Tunisia), a Committee vice-chairman, said he would focus on three essential points based on the statement made by Japan during yesterday's meeting. Firstly, he fully supported Japan's observation that the Secretary- General's report had not been fully responsive to resolution 50/214 which had called for the full implementation of all mandated programmes and activities. He looked forward to discussing that issue after a more detailed report was presented.
He also agreed with Japan's request for an early submission of the Secretary-General's report at the beginning of the Assembly's fifty-first session. And he agreed with the idea emphasized by Japan that the United Nations was the only universal Organization which played a critical role in a range of areas, from peace-keeping and security to economic and social development. Therefore, reducing the budget should not be an end in itself, but the process should allow the Organization to respond to the needs of the international community.
NESTER ODAGA-JALOMAYO (Uganda) said he wanted to be assured that the questions at the first resumed session in March would be answered tomorrow by the Secretariat. The current financial crisis should be tackled jointly by the Secretariat staff and Member States. The Secretariat, as well as delegations, could make some sacrifice to join the struggle to handle the crisis. In the light of the current financial crisis, he asked if some Secretariat officials were still being paid representational allowances and how much that cost.
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