FIFTH COMMITTEE, CONCLUDING FIRST PART OF RESUMED SESSION, APPROVES 12-PART TEXT ON HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT REFORM
Press Release
GA/AB/3291
FIFTH COMMITTEE, CONCLUDING FIRST PART OF RESUMED SESSION, APPROVES 12-PART TEXT ON HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT REFORM
19990331 Also Approves Texts Related to Development Account, Gratis Personnel, Procurement-Related Arbitration and IMISThe Fifth Committee approved a 12-part draft resolution with more than 120 operative paragraphs on human resources management reform this afternoon, as it closed the first part of its resumed fifty-third General Assembly session. The draft resolution, one of five approved without a vote today, covered areas including the role of the Office of Human Resources Management, delegation of authority and the status of women within the Secretariat.
By its terms, the Assembly would decide that, before delegating authority for human resources management, the Secretary-General should ensure that a comprehensive system for accountability and responsibility, including internal monitoring and control procedures, was in place. The Assembly would note that such a system had not been established, and request a report on it for its fifty-fifth session.
Through other provisions, the Assembly would reaffirm its own role in analysing and approving posts and financial resources as well as human resources policies. It would also reaffirm the role of the Fifth Committee in human resource management matters. The role of the Office of Human Resources Management in ensuring full implementation of related mandates set by the Assembly would also be recognized, and the Assembly would decide that this Office should remain the central authority for monitoring and approving recruitment and placement of staff.
A report on racial discrimination in recruitment, promotion and placement of staff would be one of several reports requested by other terms of the draft. The Assembly would also request that the Secretary-General report to it following a study it would request on reasons for the growing number of resignations of Secretariat staff, particularly in the Professional category.
The human resources draft was introduced and orally amended by the Committee's Vice-Chairman, Miles Armitage (Australia). The representatives of
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Syria, Guyana (for the "Group of 77" developing countries and China), Germany (for the European Union), Japan, Russian Federation, United States, Canada (also for Australia and New Zealand) and France spoke in explanation of position. The Assistant Secretary-General for Human Resources Management, Rafiah Salim, addressed the Committee about the possible repercussions of one of the draft's paragraphs.
By another of the four draft resolutions approved today, the Committee recommended that the Assembly decide that Development Account funds could be used to fund four of the eight proposals made by the Secretary-General. The Account currently contains $13.1 million and has not yet been used. The Secretary-General would be asked to reformulate his other proposals and submit them to the Assembly's second resumed session, based on prescribed criteria. The resubmitted proposals should, for example, have multiplier effects, and use human and technical resources from the developing regions.
The draft was introduced by Humayan Kabir (Bangladesh).
Statements in explanation of position were made by the representatives of the Russian Federation, Cuba, Guyana (for the Group of 77 and China), Germany (for the European Union and associated States), Mexico (for the Rio Group), New Zealand (speaking also for Australia and Canada), Guatemala, Japan, United States and Indonesia.
The Fifth Committee's Secretary, Joseph Acakpo-Satchivi, responded to comments.
By a third draft, also introduced by Mr. Armitage, the Assembly would express deep concern about the increase of pending procurement-related arbitration claims instituted against the United Nations, which as of 19 March total $56 million.
By other terms, the Assembly would ask the Secretary-General to submit a comprehensive report on arbitration to its fifty-fourth session and otherwise keep Member States informed about all arbitration and settlement cases and related corrective and disciplinary measures taken.
The representative of Mexico (for the Rio Group) spoke.
The Committee also approved a draft resolution on the Integrated Management Information System (IMIS) by which the Assembly would approve an additional $3.2 million for the System, deciding that resources for concluding IMIS's development by August 2000 should not exceed $77.6 million.
By other terms of the text, the Assembly would reiterate deep concern about the time and cost overruns for the project, and request the Secretary- General to ensure that similar problems did not recur. He would also be requested to ensure the earliest possible completion of the System's institutionalization by the main user departments.
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The Committee's Chairman, Movses Abelian (Armenia), introduced the draft on behalf of Ayman Elgammal (Egypt), who was unable to be at the meeting.
The Committee also approved a draft resolution on gratis personnel provided by governments, introduced and orally amended by Mary Jo Aragon (Philippines). According to its provisions, the Assembly would note with concern that its resolutions on gratis personnel had not been fully implemented, and would reiterate the need for full compliance in the future.
Noting that except for one person, all of the relevant category of gratis personnel had been phased out by 28 February, the Assembly would confirm that they must all be phased out by the end of June. It would decide to continue considering the issue at its fifty-fourth session.
Statements were made on the draft by the representatives of Pakistan, Cuba and the United States. The Assistant Secretary-General for Human Resources, Ms. Salim, responded to questions.
The Committee recommended that the Assembly decide to resume its consideration of procurement reform, review of implementation of General Assembly resolution 48/218B (by which the Office of Internal Oversight Services was established) and management irregularities causing financial losses to the Organization, at its second resumed session.
The Committee's second resumed fifty-third session will be held from 10- 28 May, when it is to consider the financing of United Nations peacekeeping operations, the support account for peacekeeping operations and issues left pending from the current session.
Committee Work Programme
The Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) met this afternoon to take action on all outstanding matters and close the first part of its resumed fifty-third General Assembly session. It had before it five draft resolutions being considered under the following agenda items: review of the United Nations administrative and financial efficiency; programme budget for 1998- 1999; and human resources management. In addition, it was to review implementation of General Assembly resolution 48/218B, by which the Office of Internal Oversight Services was established.
Drafts
By a text on procurement-related arbitration (document A/C.5/53/L.44), the Assembly would express deep concern about the increase of pending procurement-related arbitration claims instituted against the United Nations, which, as of 19 March, total $56 million. It would request the Secretary-General to keep Member States informed about all arbitration and settlement cases by, among other things, identifying them as separate items in financial performance reports and indicating the related corrective and disciplinary measures taken.
The Secretary-General would also be requested to submit to the Assembly, early in its fifty-fourth session, a comprehensive report on arbitration. This should cover the following topics, among others: pending cases and the reasons for them; the sources of funding for arbitration awards and settlement payments; the roles of Secretariat structures and negotiating teams in arbitration and settlement processes; the selection of outside legal counsels and provisions to preclude conflict of interest; disciplinary action against staff responsible for wrongdoing; and measures to prevent future contract disputes.
A draft resolution on the Development Account (document A/C.5/53/L.42) would have the Assembly approve four of the Secretary-General's eight proposals for using the funds, in each case on an ad hoc and one-time basis. According to the text, the approval would not set precedent nor would it prejudice the outcome of the Assembly's consideration of the sustainability and establishment of the Account's mechanism and modalities.
The four projects concern: electronic commerce promotion (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development); capacity-building in economic and social policy analysis in Africa through the networking of expertise (Economic Commission for Africa); computer and telecommunication system for international and national drug control (United Nations International Drug Control Programme); and capacity-building and networking for implementing the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat) Agenda in least developed countries.
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The Assembly would emphasize that implementation should focus on promoting development activities and should demonstrate the benefits accruing in building national capacities, particularly in developing countries, and in countries with economies in transition, by other terms. It would stress that particular attention should be given to the utilization of technical, human and other resources available in developing countries.
Also by the draft, the Secretary-General would be requested to submit reformulated proposals to the Assembly's second resumed session, so the projects would: have multiplier effects and promote capacity-building primarily in developing countries; promote regional and inter-regional economic and technical cooperation among the developing countries; and use available human and technical resources from the developing regions.
By a text on the Integrated Management Information System (IMIS) (document A/C.5/53/L.41), the Assembly would approve an additional appropriation of $3.2 million under section 27D of the programme budget (under Common Support Services) for 1998-1999, to be charged to the contingency fund and reflected in the assessment to be determined on the basis of the final appropriation for 1998-1999. It would decide that resources for concluding the development of the system by August 2000 should not exceed $77.6 million and note that the services required from the main contractor are to end by the end of 1999, except for warranty-related activities.
Reiterating deep concern about the time and cost overruns for the project, the Assembly would request the Secretary-General to ensure that similar problems not recur, by other terms of the draft. Also, it would request him to ensure institutionalization of the system by the main user departments be completed as soon as possible.
Further by the text, the Assembly would reiterate the need for a comprehensive programme for IMIS training to be included as part of the ongoing training programme offered to staff at all duty stations, and request the Secretary-General to clearly establish roles, responsibilities and accountability of all offices and staff concerned in the implementation of the remaining releases.
By other provisions, the Assembly would note with concern the findings in the report of the Office of Internal Oversight Services, particularly that the increase in the cost of the IMIS development contract could have been reduced with careful planning, that delays in addressing deficiencies placed undue reliance on the contractor, that insufficiently progress had been made with respect to long-term operational support, software maintenance and staff training functions so reliance on the IMIS project team and the contractor might continue. It would also note with concern that there was no assurance that problems would not recur in implementing remaining releases.
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According to the provisions of a draft resolution on gratis personnel provided by governments (document A/C.5/53/L.43), the General Assembly would note with concern that its resolutions on gratis personnel had not been fully implemented, and reiterate the need for full compliance in the future.
The Assembly would decide to consider the question of the recruitment of 17 gratis personnel in the International Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia and the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda under the agenda item on human resources management, since it contravened Assembly resolution 51/226.
Noting that except for one type II gratis personnel, all others had been phased out by 28 February, the Assembly would endorse the observation of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ) that confirmation should be given that all type II personnel had been phased out at the end of June. The Assembly would decide to continue considering the question of gratis personnel at the main part of its fifty-fourth session.
The Committee was also to take action on a draft resolution on human resources management (A/C.5/53/L.45). The draft's 12 sections cover the following aspects of human resources: principles; role of the Office of Human Resources Management; planning; delegation of authority and accountability; recruitment and placement; staff development, performance management and career development; employment of retirees; consultants and individual contractors; composition of the Secretariat; status of women in the Secretariat; staff management consultations; and amendments to the staff rules.
By the terms of the section on principles, the General Assembly would decide that all issues related to human resources management, including reform, be considered under the relevant agenda item of its Fifth Committee. It would reiterate its full support for the Secretary-General as chief administrative officer of the Organization, reaffirm its support for the integrity and independence of the international civil service and reiterate that human resources management reform should not be a budget or staff reduction exercise. It would emphasize that any reform proposals should conform to the United Nations Charter, rules, regulations and Assembly resolutions, and any amendments which require amendments to rules or regulations or provisions of Assembly resolutions should be submitted to the Assembly prior to implementation.
By other terms, the Assembly would request the Secretary-General to include all resources necessary for human resource management, and stress both that all such matters should be financed in accord with the rules and regulations and that decisions about additional resources requirements should be passed to and approved by the Assembly.
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By the section titled role of the Office of Human Resources Management, the Assembly would decide that the Office would remain the central authority for monitoring and approval of staff recruitment and placement and for interpretation of the relevant rules; reiterate its role and responsibility in establishing policies and guidelines; and recognize its role in ensuring implementation of the Assembly's basic human resources mandates. It would also note the Secretary-General's reported intentions on human resources reform and look forward to the proposals he intends to submit to the Assembly for consideration.
Under human resources planning, the Assembly would express concern at the growing number of Secretariat resignations and ask the Secretary-General to study the causes and report on them. It would emphasize that mobility of staff was an integral part of their obligation and request the Secretary- General to identify problems related to mobility and propose solutions. It would request him to implement a policy and mechanisms for enhanced mobility across functions, departments and duty stations, explore through the Administrative Committee on Coordination (ACC) possible enhanced mobility across the United Nations system and report to it at its fifty-fifth session on progress. It would also reaffirm that staff are subject to the Secretary- General's authority and subject to his decision to assign them to any United Nations activities and offices, in accordance with staff regulation 1.2.
Emphasizing the importance of human resources planning and that effective planning had an impact on all aspects of human resource management, it would note the Secretary-General's intention to establish a Secretariat- wide integrated human resources planning system and request him to report on this to the fifty-fifth Assembly session. It would also regret high vacancy rates at some regional commissions and duty stations and request the Secretary-General to ensure proper mobility to correct this.
By the section of the draft on delegation of authority, the Assembly would recognize the need to promote responsibility and accountability of staff at all levels. Noting the Secretary-General's intention to improve procedures through delegation to programme managers, it would request him to ensure that before he does this, effective accountability procedures are in place and ask him to report on those to the fifty-fifth Assembly session. It would also note that such accountability measures have not been established, and request his report to include elements in paragraph 5 of its resolution 48/218A and also on: a mechanism to review programme managers' decisions; back evaluation; the role of appointment and promotion panels and bodies; the role of programme managers in preparing budget proposals and in programme delivery; the role of coordination, supervision and leadership; the accountability of staff to him when they have his delegation; and the degree to which programme evaluation affects performance appraisal.
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The Assembly would reiterate that under the financial and staff rules every staff member is responsible and accountable to the Secretary-General and emphasize that any delegation of authority should be in accordance with the Charter and the Organization's rules and regulations; and should entail clear lines of accountability and responsibility and improvements in administration of justice, taking into account the central role of the Office of Human Resources Management. It would note with concern that some administrative instructions on delegation do not accord with Assembly provisions and request the Secretary-General to fully comply with those provisions. In addition it would ask the Secretary-General to submit, through the ACABQ, a comprehensive compendium of all such administrative circulars to the fifty-fourth Assembly session.
By the draft, the Assembly would reiterate its previous request to enhance management accountability regarding human resources management, including imposing sanctions for demonstrated mismanagement, wilful neglect or disregard for rules and procedures, while safeguarding staff rights to due process. It would request the Secretary-General to review the internal justice system, and it would emphasize that his discretionary powers should be in conformity with the Charter, United Nations rules and regulations and Assembly mandates.
According to the section on recruitment and placement, the Assembly would request the Secretary-General to ensure that the prime considerations in employment are competence and integrity, with due regard to equitable geographic representation, and reiterates employment decisions should be made without distinction as to race, sex or religion. It would ask him, as a matter of priority, to ascertain whether there is racial discrimination in United Nations employment and to report to the fifty-fifth Assembly session on this.
By other terms it would reiterate that external vacancy announcements should be distributed to Member States and placed on Headquarters' notice boards. It would decide they should be circulated on the date of issue, and that at least two months from that date be allowed for submissions. It would reaffirm the policy to internally and externally circulate vacancies at the P-5 level, decide that the Secretary-General may consider external candidates for P-4 posts, urge him to comply with the principle that P-2 level and conference services special language appointments should be exclusively through competitive examinations and report on reasons for non-compliance, and reaffirm that P-3 level appointments should normally be through competitive exams.
Reaffirming that the national competitive examination is a useful tool for recruiting from under-represented countries, it would request the appointments from competitive exams be made in a timely fashion and that special efforts be made to clear the exam rosters, ask the Secretary-General
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to adapt the number of occupational groups for competitive exams to meet the Organization's needs and call for a report on placements via exams by department, failures to place, and reasons for failures, in his fifty-fifth session human resources report. It would also request the Secretary-General to continue probationary appointments for staff recruited via the exam, and to complete the realignment of the national competitive exam with the competitive examination for promotion to the Professional category.
It would encourage him to continue his efforts with a view to increasing the share of fixed-term appointments in the Secretariat, reaffirm that secondment from government service was consistent with the United Nations Charter and beneficial to the Organization and urge him to pursue such secondments on a wider scale. Additionally it would note his intention to report proposals on the dual-track career/non-career appointments system, and ask the International Civil Service Commission (ICSC) to prepare a study on fixed-term contracts.
By the draft's terms, the Assembly would note with concern 17 exemptions to rules governing recruitment of former gratis personnel to the Former Yugoslavia Tribunal, ask for full compliance with Assembly decisions on this, and request the Secretary-General not to extend the contracts of the personnel so appointed.
It would also ask the Secretary-General to recruit to ensure the highest standards of translation, request him to continue to improve existing procedures to make them more transparent and timely and to ensure uniform application of relevant United Nations rules and regulations, and urge him to continue efforts to ensure all Member States are adequately represented in the Secretariat.
By the section on staff development, the Assembly would note with concern that a comprehensive and systematic career development policy had not yet been developed by the Secretary-General, and reiterate its request that such a policy be developed on a priority basis.
It would request that the Secretary-General implement a transparent promotion policy, augmented by use of a simplified and appropriate performance appraisal system, adequate training and competitive examinations, in order to provide for recognition of competence and outstanding performance, and that he facilitate the continuous professional growth of staff at all levels. The Secretary-General would be requested to ensure that the performance appraisal system be applicable to all staff and continue striving for consistent application throughout the Secretariat.
Also, the Assembly would ask the Secretary-General to streamline the personnel manual. It would also approve the step-by-step approach of performance recognition measures as enumerated in paragraphs 24 to 34 of the
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Secretary-General's report on performance management (document A/53/266). [According to those paragraphs, managers are to be encouraged to explore a range of means to express personal recognition. Later, consideration might be given to travel awards, sabbaticals, study leave, cash awards or bonuses.] Regarding underperformance, the Assembly would request the Secretary-General to address the issue and request him to submit revised policy proposals.
By the draft's provisions concerning retirees, the Assembly would request that they be employed only when the Organization's operational requirements could not be met by existing staff; and it would endorse the recommendations and observations of the ACABQ on the matter.
Under the section on consultants and individual contractors, the Assembly would reiterate that the Secretary-General should refrain from using consultants to carry out functions assigned to established posts, and that consultants should only be hired in accordance with the existing rules, relevant Assembly resolutions and where in-house expertise is not available in the Organization. It would emphasize where consultants were hired frequently for a period of more than one year, the Secretary-General should submit proposals for establishing posts.
Noting with concern that 31 per cent of contractees were hired from only four Member States and were paid 38 per cent of total fees in 1996-1997, the Assembly would request the Secretary-General to take remedial measures in that regard.
By other provisions, the Assembly would note the guidelines on consultants in the Secretary-General's report subject to certain provisions: there should be a separation of functions between the requesting officer and the one who processes the contract; the approved terms of reference should form a part of the contract; consultants and individual contractors should be selected on a wider geographical basis and the question of travel expenses should not distort geographical balance in the award of contracts; in awarding contracts, gender balance should be achieved without prejudice to wide geographical distribution; and the Office of Human Resources Management should have authority to take a final decision on whether contracts should be awarded again in case of unsatisfactory performance evaluation by a programme manager.
The Assembly would request the Secretary-General to circulate the revised guidelines on the use of consultants throughout the Secretariat, as a matter of priority, with a view to ensuring full compliance. Noting with concern the Board of Auditors observation on persistent inadequacies in the hiring of consultants, the Assembly would reiterate its request that the Board's recommendations be fully implemented. It would note the comments by the ACABQ in its report on consultants and request the Secretary-General to ensure full compliance with the provisions of paragraph 7, section VI of
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resolution 51/226 [that the Secretariat should submit biennially a report on the hiring and use of consultants].
According to provisions in the section on the composition of the Secretariat, the Assembly would note with concern that 24 Member States were unrepresented and 10 were under-represented as of 30 June 1998. Also, it would note with concern the reduction in the number of posts subject to geographical distribution at the P-2 and P-3 levels, and the increase in such posts at the D-2 and Assistant Secretary-General levels. It would urge the Secretary-General to take necessary measures, as a matter of priority, to address the imbalance in the post structure of the Secretariat in the context of the proposed programme budget for the biennium 2000-2001.
The Assembly would reaffirm that no post should be considered the exclusive preserve of any Member State or group of States, and request the Secretary-General to ensure, as a general rule, that no national of a Member State should succeed a national of that State in a senior post. It would request the Secretary-General to take all necessary measures to ensure the equitable representation of Member States at the senior and policy-making levels and in particular developing countries.
By other terms, the Assembly would reiterate its request to the Secretary-General to increase his efforts to improve the composition of the Secretariat by ensuring equitable geographical distribution in all departments; take note of the Secretary-General's observation in his report on the subject with regard to anticipated vacancies in posts subject to geographical distribution; and request that, when filling those vacancies, he take into account the continuing unequitable representation among the Member States.
Further, the Assembly would urge all Member States, and in particular those with inadequate representation, to make every effort to identify candidates for consideration for appointment in the Secretariat, and request the Secretary-General to ensure that among equally qualified candidates, preference is given to those from under-represented Member States.
Regarding women in the Secretariat, the Assembly would decide that all reports dealing with administrative and budgetary aspects of the status of women in the Secretariat shall be considered by the Fifth Committee. It would note that while there had been improvement in the status of women, the rate of progress in the representation of women from developing countries -- particularly at the senior level -- has been very slow, and urge the Secretary-General to make greater efforts in redressing the situation.
The Assembly would recall its resolution 53/119, and reaffirm the goal of 50/50 gender distribution by the year 2000 in all categories of posts within the United Nations system, especially at the D-1 level and above, with
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full respect for the principle of equitable geographical distribution, by other terms. It would note with concern the imbalance in representation of women from different regions and request the Secretary-General to take appropriate remedial action when pursuing the goal of 50/50 gender distribution.
By the section on staff-management consultations, the Assembly would take note of the views of the staff representatives and ask the Secretary- General to take them into account; emphasize the need to improve the staff- management consultative process in all issues related to human resources management; and reaffirm the need for the Secretary-General to use, to the fullest extent, the consultative mechanisms set out in staff rule 108.2.
On amendments to the Staff Regulations and Rules, the Assembly would decide that staff rule 101.3 (c) should read: "Performance reports shall be prepared regularly for all staff members, including at the Assistant Secretary-General level and above, in accordance with procedures promulgated by the Secretary-General". Also, it would request the Secretary-General to expedite the issuance of the report requested in resolution 52/252 and to ensure that revised Staff Regulations and Rules, or amendments thereto, are issued in a timely manner after the Assembly's approval.
Action on Texts
MOVSES ABELIAN (Armenia), Fifth Committee Chairman, proposed that the Committee recommend to the General Assembly that it decide to resume its consideration of the question of management irregularities causing financial losses to the Organization at its next resumed fifty-third session, pending receipt of the relevant information to be provided by the Secretariat and the ACABQ.
The Committee agreed to that decision.
Next, the Committee turned to the issue of procurement reform.
MILES ARMITAGE (Australia), the Committee's Vice-Chairman, introduced the draft on procurement-related arbitration (document A/C.5/53/L.44).
The Committee approved the draft resolution without a vote.
The representative of Mexico, speaking for the Rio Group, said the Group attached major importance to the Organization's purchases, and was convinced of the benefits of a transparent system based on the principle of equal opportunity for vendors. Ideally, the Rio Group would have liked to have concluded consultations on the item, but due to the complexities involved, conclusion had been postponed in order to draft a text to promote enhanced
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procurement. He appreciated the support a varied number of countries had expressed for the proposals made by the Group.
Information was a factor that contributed to transparency in decision- making, he said. The open-mindedness demonstrated by the staff involved in the procurement system should be maintained. The Rio Group would continue to work constructively on the issue during the next resumed session.
The CHAIRMAN proposed that the Committee recommend the General Assembly decide to consider procurement reform at its resumed fifty-third session.
The Committee did so.
It then turned its attention to the draft resolution on the Integrated Management Information System (document A/C.5/53/L.41), submitted by the Chairman following informal consultations.
The draft resolution was approved without a vote.
The Committee then turned to the a draft resolution on the Development Account (A/C.5/53/L.42), which was submitted on behalf of the Chairman by HUMAYAN KABIR (Bangladesh).
The representative of the Russian Federation said that he had no objection to the approval of this draft by consensus, as he thought it would allow the achievement of practical activities for which the Development Account had been established and would allow for more consideration leading to the agreement on modalities for use of the Account. He sought confirmation from the Secretariat that the relevant conference room paper, reflecting the agreement reached in informal consultations on resource and budgetary aspects of the matter, would be issued in time to allow Member States to study it before the continued consideration of the matter.
The representative of Cuba said that while the draft resolution regrettably did not resolve outstanding matters about the Development Account, it did allow for progress on four projects and use of some of the funds already approved. As per the understanding reached in informal consultations, the Secretary-General would have to take budgetary and financial rules into consideration when dealing with the Account. The Assembly would have to consider and adopt any changes to the budget process. Cuba looked forward to the discussion of the sustainability of the Account, which she hoped would be concluded at the next Committee session.
JOSEPH ACAKPO-SATCHIVI, Secretary of Committee, said the conference room paper would be submitted to Member States at the Committee's second resumed session in May, in the form of a Secretary-General's report.
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The Committee then approved the draft resolution without a vote.
The representative of Guyana, speaking for the "Group of 77" developing countries and China, said the Group attached great importance to the Development Account and was pleased with the progress that had been made. However, it regretted that a comprehensive conclusion had not been reached. It looked forward to the early reformulation of the proposals made by the Secretary-General on the basis of guidelines contained in the draft resolution, so a decision could be made on the projects by the Assembly.
The representative of Germany, speaking for the European Union, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Cyprus, said the Union had from the outset supported the concept of the Development Account. Based on the advice of the ACABQ, it had supported the Secretary-General's proposals on the procedures for building up the Account and utilizing the development dividend. In December 1997, the General Assembly had appropriated $13.1 million for projects and activities to be financed from the Account during 1998-1999. At this very late stage, the Assembly was only now agreeing to release part of those funds for a limited number of the projects proposed by the Secretary-General. Still, the Union welcomed the resolution just approved.
The proposed activities should have succinct objectives, measurable outcomes, clear performance indicators and should complement existing programmes, he said. The Secretary-General had been asked to reformulate some of his proposals. That provided an opportunity to further refine those proposals in the delineation of indicators, including a description of the situation before the implementation of the projects. Otherwise, Member States and the Secretariat would be unable to fully measure the accomplishments achieved.
The representative of Mexico, for the Rio Group, said the text was the outcome of complex negotiations and strong will to find common ground. The Rio Group was pleased that after protracted discussion, the Development Account was beginning to be implemented. It awaited with interest the presentation of the proposals requested in the draft text. In any reformulation of projects, consideration must be given to the Latin American and Caribbean region.
The representative of New Zealand, speaking also for Canada and Australia, welcomed the text and commended the efforts of the coordinator. This was the first substantive resolution on the Account since the Assembly had endorsed the concept in 1997. Still, the Committee was far from agreeing to the Secretary-General's reform proposal, which was regrettable. Her delegation had supported the Account since it was first proposed. To reach a decision on how to maintain and sustain the Account, political will and flexibility were required.
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It would have been preferable for the Committee to have approved the full range of projects proposed by the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, which would have fully utilized the $13.1 million in the Account, she said. For reasons her delegations could not fully comprehend, the Committee had been unable to agree to this, and had therefore prevented the United Nations from immediately helping developing countries and countries with economies in transition in four key areas. When the four remaining projects were augmented along the lines of paragraph 5 of the resolution, she hoped the Committee could approve them without delay.
After one year of deliberations, the Committee had only been able to take a tentative step and agree to the use of 50 per cent of the money in the Account, she said. That was not enough, and the Committee should strive to do better in its support of the Secretary-General in reforming and strengthening "our United Nations" along the lines the General Assembly had agreed to in its resolution 52/12B.
The representative of Guatemala thanked the Secretary-General for the innovative Development Account proposal. She also agreed with the idea that a percentage of United Nations moneys be devoted to development. To the extent that the Development Account would contribute to this, she would watch it with interest. She hoped it would be an incentive for efficiency savings to be dedicated to development rather than for budget cuts. She would welcome specific information on the most depressed areas of Africa which could best use those resources.
The representative of Japan said he considered early implementation of the Development Account important. He realized that the Committee still had to consider mechanisms and modalities of the Account and also decide how to use the rest of the development dividend, but the Committee had achieved something. Japan hoped the process would continue in a spirit of cooperation and constructiveness.
The representative of the United States said his country supported the use of efficiency savings to fund priority issues including development, and had therefore been prepared to approve all eight initial projects proposed. They represented a small contribution towards full participation in the emerging global information network. The United States believed other committees with technical expertise should consider any project proposals, and the Fifth Committee should look just at the budgetary and administrative aspects. Unfortunately the Committee had only been able to agree on four project proposals. While awaiting the Secretary-General's reformulation of the other four projects, the United States wished to reiterate the importance of clear indicators of performance and statements of objectives. Those were essential to allow Member States and Secretariat officials to determine whether proposal objectives were achieved.
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The Committee had deferred consideration of the modalities of the Account and other matters, he continued. Those deferrals put pressure on the Committee in its May resumed session. He was sceptical that it could accomplish what it had to in May, particularly as it had completed so little in the March resumed session. He was also concerned about the effect on available time and energy for consideration of financing peacekeeping missions -- usually the key items considered in the May resumed session.
The representative of Pakistan said the Committee had noted eight proposals in the Secretary-General's report, but had not noted the other contents of that report (document A/52/1009). The consensus had no implications for matters of implementation of the proposals as mentioned in the report. He was confident that consensus on the report would be reached during the second resumed session. By the resolution just approved, all proposals must be implemented and reformulated in accord with existing rules of the Organization. Pakistan hoped the Committee would bear in mind the importance of United Nations rules and established budgetary procedures, as the Development Account was a part of the regular budget.
The representative of Indonesia said he had joined the consensus, but with the disappointment that once again the Committee had been unable to deal with the question once and for all, especially on the modalities of the Account, despite the political will displayed by the Group of 77 and China. The decision was an interim one, and the matter needed to be addressed comprehensively.
MARY JO ARAGON (Philippines) introduced the draft resolution on gratis personnel and amended it. In the second line of operative paragraph 4, the phrase "International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda" should be deleted.
The representative of Pakistan sought clarification on two points. According to the draft's paragraph 2, the Assembly would reiterate the need for full compliance with previous resolutions on gratis personnel in the future. Would the reports that had been requested in resolution 51/243 continue to be provided? Also, he asked for confirmation from the Secretariat that in cases of exceptional circumstances, only the Assembly could grant approval.
The representative of Cuba said her delegation also wanted confirmation from the Secretariat. The resolution reaffirmed earlier ones, and the Assembly would continue considering the issue. She wanted confirmation that decisions of the General Assembly regarding requests for quarterly and annual reports on the issue would indeed be submitted at the next session, to be used as a basis of consideration of the item. Her delegation noted with concern through reports of the ACABQ that a considerable number of the functions carried out by gratis personnel could have been carried out by in-house staff. Recruitment practices should be improved to avoid such situations.
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RAFIAH SALIM, Assistant Secretary-General for Human Resources Management, said that the reports on gratis staff would be submitted for as long as the Assembly wanted them. If there were exceptional circumstances which required consultation with the General Assembly, that would be done in the future.
The Committee then approved the draft, as orally revised, without a vote.
The representative of the United States said the Secretary-General's decision to extend one gratis officer at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia had provoked "unseemly outrage" from some delegations. Substituting attorneys mid-trial would be problematic at best and could perhaps be cause for a mistrial, with all the attendant consequences. Member States must acknowledge the unique nature of the Tribunals' obligations and applaud the Secretary-General's efforts to comply with the Assembly's resolutions while meeting the requirements of due process and the rule of law. The General Assembly must allow the Secretary-General, as the Organization's chief administrative officer, sufficient managerial flexibility to ensure that the Tribunals' judicial processes were not irreparably compromised.
The Committee then turned to consideration of the draft resolution on human resources management (document A/C.5/53/L.45), which was introduced by the Committee's Vice Chairman, MILES ARMITAGE (Australia). He proposed certain oral amendments related to items that were still not fully agreed upon when the printed text before the Committee was produced.
The representative of Syria said he had commented on a number of occasions on the translation of the title of the Office of Internal Oversight Services, which was still being incorrectly translated. The Arabic translation used a term that meant "watching" not "oversight". In addition, the use of the term "Middle East" as a regional group title was incorrect. The Secretary-General's appeal to Member States to consider amending the group system had not yielded much result. It was time to do away with the term "Middle East", which was not geographical but political. There was no agreement on the number of States included in the category. Moreover, some States listed by the Secretariat under the category were not in the Asian region. The informal consultations' coordinator had taken his concerns on the matter into account, and so he would accept the draft as presented. However, the system of groups should be standardized.
The Committee approved the draft, as orally revised, without a vote.
The representative of Guyana, speaking on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, said the Group attached great importance to human resources, which were the Organization's most valuable asset. The Group regretted the delay of the
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conclusion of the item caused by the delayed submission of documents. All the documentation should have been submitted on time, as the human resources agenda item was only discussed every second year, and therefore there had been ample time for the Secretariat to prepare them. Although the draft resolution did not meet all the Group's concerns, the Group was pleased that the Committee could agree on the text by consensus.
The Group noted that Assembly resolution 51/226 had not been fully implemented by the Secretariat, he said. The draft resolution should be fully implemented, both in letter and spirit. It also looked forward to the timely submission of the reports requested within the draft.
The Group wished to underline the primary role of the Assembly in all human resources issues, including reform, he said. It attached great importance to the role of the Office of Human Resources Management in implementing General Assembly mandates on the subject. It noted that the proposed delegation of authority was the main issue of concern under this agenda item, and that, before the delegation proposal could be enacted, a comprehensive system of accountability and responsibility must be in place. The Group looked forward to a report on this delegation that would allow the Assembly to take a final decision on the matter.
The Group also placed great importance on recruitment of staff in accordance with United Nations Charter Article 101.3, and particularly regarding wider geographical representation, he said. Recruitment and placement should be made without distinction as to race, sex and religion. Regarding the gratis personnel recruited in violation of Assembly resolution 51/226, he said that in future the Secretary-General should fully comply with all relevant Assembly resolutions. The Group also wished to emphasize that the Secretary-General's guidelines as revised by the Assembly for awarding contracts and consultancies should be fully implemented, and circulated to all department heads and programme managers to ensure compliance. Lastly, it placed great importance on the views of staff representatives, which should be taken into account when proposals affecting staff were made.
The representative of Germany, speaking for the European Union, said that one year ago, the Secretary-General had issued a bulletin entitled "building the future", in which he spoke of creating a management culture in which staff was the Organization's greatest resource, and managers must assume responsibility to make the most effective use of it. The past three weeks had given Member States the first opportunity since the submission of the reform proposals by the Secretary-General in July 1997 to discuss, in detail, human resources management reform issues, which were key elements of his efforts to instill a new management culture in the Organization. The current resolution was an important step towards the United Nations institutional reform. It signalled that the Secretary-General's initiative to modernize the Secretariat
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and increase its effectiveness was firmly on track. The Union was committed to that endeavour.
The Union particulary welcomed the Committee reaching agreement on the issue of delegation of authority, he said. The Secretary-General had been tasked with further streamlining administrative procedures and eliminating duplication through such delegation. At the same time, it had been emphasized that accountability should continue to remain the guiding principle of reform, requiring a strengthening of dialogue up and down the line of management. Reform, including that of human resources management, was not an exercise in budget reduction or staff cutting. The central role of the Office of Human Resources Management in areas such as planning, recruitment, placement, promotion and mobility had been recognized in the text, while in the area of recruitment, the utmost importance had been attached to the Organization's ability to attract and retain qualified young professionals.
The Union had joined the consensus language on the issue of former gratis staff at the International Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia on the understanding that the personnel in question would, in the future, be eligible to be considered for the posts they were currently encumbering, he said.
The representative of Japan said that after almost five months of considering the matter, the Fifth Committee had approved the draft on human resources management. The Organization would be facing a profound demographic change in the coming decade. The draft emphasized the importance of human resources planning, the central role of the Office of Human Resources Management and repeatedly requested the Secretary-General to take advantage of every opportunity to achieve equitable geographic representation throughout the Secretariat. The Secretary-General should take all measures to achieve that goal, as instructed by the General Assembly.
Japan attached the utmost importance to the national competitive examination programme to identify the best qualified candidates from underrepresented Member States, he said. He welcomed the Secretariat's efforts to accelerate the placement of successful candidates, and looked forward to hearing in the near future that the roster had been cleared. Regarding paragraph 20 of section V of the draft, on recruitment and placement, the paragraph should not be viewed as requesting a reduction in the number of examinations, but rather as an effort to make the programme more effective with a view to encouraging more potential candidates from those Member States to apply for posts.
The representative of the Russian Federation said today's draft was of great significance, in that it set future priorities and gave management clear guidance. For his delegation, certain elements were of particular importance. The Organization must consider ending its practice of permanent contracts and changing to fixed terms and indefinite contracts. That would be better for
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Member States, management and staff, particularly as regards incentives for conscientious performance. His delegation was eagerly awaiting the Secretary- General's proposals on developing a system of career and non-career appointments, and also the results of the ICSC's look at the use of fixed-term contracts.
He noted the completion of the phase-out of gratis personnel and referred to the principle of secondment of staff from government service to service with the United Nations. The Office of Human Resources Management should heed the Assembly's appeal to use experts needed by the United Nations on a secondment basis.
The draft contained useful decisions regarding recruitment and placement, he said. There were broad possibilities to attract new talent while paying attention to the Charter principle of ensuring the highest standards of efficiency and integrity. The Organization should not overtrain staff, but instead attract experts with modern and advanced expertise. He hoped the performance appraisal system would be fine-tuned so that, in the Fifth Committee's future discussions on personnel, it would be able to draw initial conclusions as to the system's effectiveness. The Secretary-General intended to present proposals on human resources management reform; those should be based on the Assembly's latest decisions. The entire Secretariat should take into account the provisions of the text approved today, he added.
The representative of the United States said he was encouraged by how well reform of human resources management was moving forward. He looked forward to further streamlining and appropriate delegation of human resources management to programme managers. The United States looked to the Office of Human Resources Management to set policy and monitor implementation. It was pleased that recruitment time had halved and encouraged further improvements.
The United States interpreted the draft resolution's paragraph on the employment of gratis personnel to mean that the individuals in question currently occupying the posts would be able to apply and compete for those posts when they were advertised. It was important that the work they were doing not be unnecessarily interrupted.
The representative of Canada, speaking also for Australia and New Zealand, said he was pleased that the Committee could approve a resolution after lengthy and intense negotiations. The United Nations must transform itself into a versatile, competent and results-oriented body, and an essential component of that transformation would be a modern dynamic staff with the highest standards of efficiency, competency and integrity. He was pleased that the resolution recognized the importance of human resources planning, encouraged enhanced mobility and urged the Secretary-General to improve representation of women.
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The draft resolution was roughly 120 paragraphs long, he said. In that regard, it was similar to the previous resolution on the item -- 51/226 -- and would require a large investment of the Secretariat's time for full implementation. He would have preferred a shorter, focused resolution which set broad policy and left day-to-day management to Secretariat officials. A shorter, more focused resolution would also have obviated the need for marathon Fifth Committee negotiation sessions. He hoped the resolution would not inadvertently impede the Secretary-General's efforts to move towards a stronger and more effective United Nations.
The representative of France thanked the translation staff for completing a difficult job in a short time, but drew attention to an omission in the French version of the resolution, which had a substantive impact on the paragraph's meaning.
Ms. SALIM, Assistant Secretary-General for Human Resources Management, drew the Committee's attention to the implication of including in paragraph 22 of section V of the text the phrase "equitable geographic distribution" as part of the realignment of the national competitive examination and the "G-to- P" exams. The latter was not a recruitment exam, but a promotion exercise. It was the only means of promotion from the General Service to the Professional category. Hundreds of staff competed each year for a very small number of posts. Hundreds more each year, at their own expense, continued their education to acquire a university degree with the hope of sitting for the "G-to-P" exam in the future. The wording of paragraph 22 would mean that, based on their nationality, some General Service staff would be denied any opportunity for possible promotion, which had never been a criteria for promotion, or for denying promotion. It would be extremely damaging for staff morale. Staff in all categories should be afforded opportunities for career growth with the Organization.
The Committee then turned to consideration of its agenda item on the review of the implementation of General Assembly resolution 48/218B. The Chairman proposed that the Committee recommend the General Assembly decide to resume consideration of the item at its second resumed session, and it was so decided.
The representative of Syria drew attention to a translation problem in the Arabic version of the human resources draft resolution.
The CHAIRMAN then adjourned the resumed session.
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