Budget Committee Nominates Candidates to Fill Vacancies in Five Subsidiary Bodies of General Assembly

The Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today recomended personnel apppointments to fill upcoming vacancies in the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ) and four other bodies that help manage the United Nations vast human resources and its finances.

Those nominations will be forwarded to the General Assembly for approval during the current sixty-ninth session.  The other bodies considered today were the Committee on Contributions, Investments Committee, International Civil Service Commission and Independent Audit Advisory Committee.

Delegates first turned their attention to the five slots in the 16-member ACABQ, which plays a crucial role in helping the Fifth Committee examine the Organization’s budget and numerous management initiatives.  They recommended by acclamation the appointment or reappointment of Ali A. Ali Kurer (Libya) from the African States; Pavel Chernikov (Russian Federation) from the Eastern European States; Fernando de Oliveira Sena (Brazil) from the Latin American and Caribbean States; and Dietrich Lingenthal (Germany) and David Traystman (United States) from the Western European and other States, for three-year terms beginning 1 January 2015.

For the 18-member Committee on Contributions, which advises the Assembly on the apportionment of the Organization’s expenses among the Member States, delegates recommended by acclamation the appointment or reappointment of six persons for a period of three years beginning 1 January 2015: Fu Daopeng (China) and Dae-jong Yoo (Republic of Korea) from the Asia-Pacific States; Nikolay Lozinskiy (Russian Federation) from the Eastern European States; Henrique da Silveira Sardinha Pinto (Brazil) from the Latin American and Caribbean States; and Kunal Khatri (United Kingdom) and Thomas Schlesinger (Austria) from the Western European and other States.

Mohamed A. Elshakshuki (Libya) was also proposed to fill an existing vacancy due to the resignation of a member of that Committee whose term of office would have expired on 31 December 2016.  Mr. Elshakshuki would serve from the date of Assembly approval until the end of 2016.

Turning to the 9-member Investments Committee, which advises the Secretariat on the investments of the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund, delegates recommended by acclamation confirmation of the reappointment of Masakazu Arikawa (Japan), Madhav Dhar (India), Nemir A. Kirdar (Iraq), Michael Klein (United States) and Ivan Pictet (Switzerland) as regular members, as well as the conversion of Gumersindo Oliveros (Spain) from ad hoc to regular membership, all for one-year terms beginning next 1 January.

For the 15-member International Civil Service Commission, which regulates and coordinates the conditions of service of the United Nations common system, delegates recommended by acclamation the appointment of five members for four-year terms of office beginning on 1 January 2015.  They are Emmanuel Oti Boateng (Ghana) and Kingston Papie Rhodes (Sierra Leone) from the African States; Eugeniusz Wyzner (Poland) from the Eastern European States; Carleen Gardner (Jamaica) from the Latin American and Caribbean States; and Marie-Françoise Bechtel (France) from the Western European and other States.

Mr. Rhodes was nominated by acclamation to become the Chair of the Commission.

Moving on to the two upcoming vacancies at the Independent Audit Advisory Committee, which helps the Assembly meet its audit and other oversight responsibilities, delegates recommended by acclamation the appointment of Richard Quartei Quartey (Ghana) from the African States and reappointment of J. Christopher Mihm (United States) from the Western European and other States, for three-year terms beginning 1 January 2015.

For further details, delegates had before them the Secretary‑General’s notes on appointment of members of: ACABQ (documents A/69/101 & A/C.5/69/5), Committee on Contributions (documents A/69/102/Rev.1 & A/C.5/69/6); Investments Committee (documents A/69/103 & A/C.5/69/7), International Civil Service Commission (documents A/69/104, A/C.5/69/8 & Add.1); and Independent Audit Advisory Committee (documents A/69/105 & A/C.5/69/9).

The Fifth Committee will meet again at 3 p.m., on Monday, 10 November, to discuss the budget of the Capital Master Plan for the biennium 2014-2015.