UNCTAD TO PIONEER UNITED NATIONS STAFF TRAINING PROJECT

15 April 1997

Press Release
TAD/1842

UNCTAD TO PIONEER UNITED NATIONS STAFF TRAINING PROJECT

19970415 GENEVA, 12 April (UNCTAD) -- The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) will act as the pioneer of a new United Nations programme for staff management training backed by Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who was present at the signing today of a memorandum of understanding on the programme, which will be financed by the Government of Italy. The memorandum was signed in Turin by the Secretary-General of UNCTAD, Rubens Ricupero, and Jean-François Trémeaud, Director of the Turin Centre of the International Labour Organization (ILO).

The pilot management training programme to be launched at UNCTAD soon will cover internal policy development, training in technical cooperation, and the design of a human resources development policy for the secretariat. Over 200 officials -- approximately three-quarters of the organization's professional staff -- are expected to participate in a series of seminars and workshops to be held at the United Nations Staff College in Turin.

The training programme of UNCTAD represents the next step in its far-reaching reform programme, which began with the reorganization of its secretariat and revamping of the intergovernmental structure in mid-1996. "The changes in our work programme priorities agreed at Midrand -- sharpening our focus -- must be accompanied by matching changes in our own working methods and management culture, to improve our delivery capacity", Mr. Ricupero said, referring to the ninth session of the Conference (UNCTAD IX) held in Midrand, South Africa, last May.

The United Nations Staff College, a five-year project initiated in 1996, is based at the International Training Centre of the ILO in Turin. According to its Director, Hans Geiser, the Staff College can generate more coherence and coordination in the United Nations system's activities, promote a more cohesive management culture, and facilitate the process of change taking place throughout the system.

For more information, contact Niloufer Mukhi, Head of Public Information, International Training Centre of the ILO, Turin, tel.: 39 11 693 66 55/16, fax: 39 11 693 65 09 or e-mail: N.Mukhi@itcilo.it; or Carine Richard-Van Maele, UNCTAD Press Officer, tel.: 41 22 907 5816/28, fax: 41 22 907 00 43, or e-mail: press@unctad.org.

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