Summary: 11 October 2001: Statement by Mr. Michel Tilemans, First Secretary, Permanent Representation of Belgium to the United Nations. Declaration on behalf of the European Union concerning certain questions relating to the programme budget for the biennium 2000-2001 (New York)
Mr. Chairman,
Allow me to take the floor on behalf of the European Union. The countries of Central and Eastern Europe associated with the European Union (Bulgaria, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia), the associated countries of Cyprus, Malta and Turkey, and an EFTA country belonging to the European Economic Area (Norway), align themselves with this statement.
The specific questions this statement will be dealing with concern firstly the proposals for enhancing the United Nations experience for visitors (A/55/835) and improving the profitability of commercial activities (A/55/546) and secondly the action plan for information technology in the Secretariat (A/55/780).
May I first of all thank the Secretariat for the reports we have received. The technical information contained in those reports has enabled the European Union to establish the position I am presenting today.
Mr. Chairman,
The concept of the new visitors' programme is an interesting one because it extends the United Nations "window display" on view to the general public. The United Nations plays a key role and it is essential that as many people as possible should be made aware of that role.
The European Union notes, however, that something could be added to the Secretariat's analysis. The construction and management of a new building necessarily entail investment expenditure first, followed by operating expenditure, and the Secretariat's analysis is almost exclusively concerned with the second type of expenditure.
The European Union would refer in this connection to Resolution 55/238 concerning the master plan. In our opinion and as the ACABQ has emphasized, this programme is inextricably bound up with that plan. This proposal therefore will have to be re-examined on presentation of the subsequent stages of the master plan.
That being said, the European Union endorses the ACABQ recommendation on private-sector contributions in its insistence on a clear definition of the respective responsibilities of the Secretariat and of the bodies participating in this programme. Similarly, on the question of operating expenditure, the European Union questions the Secretariat's optimistic revenue forecasts, the desirability of creating a special fund and the special rules applicable to any such fund.
Fuller information and a more detailed examination of the programme will be required in order to provide material for further reflection on this matter.
Mr. Chairman,
The European Union approves the Secretary-General's report on the profitability of commercial activities and endorses the remarks of the ACABQ. The following points should be emphasized: first of all, a plan needs to be drawn up defining the commercial objectives and the measures to be taken to achieve them; the administrative structures underpinning these activities then need to be streamlined and simplified; preference should also be given as far as possible to the use of sub-contracting;
finally, any space or room at United Nations headquarters occupied by the system's other organizations must be accounted for.
Mr. Chairman,
I should now like to deal with the question of information technology, which these days provides the key to connectivity, the search for efficiency and optimum use of resources. The European Union is interested to note the Secretariat's willingness to improve coordination in this area.
The action plan spells out in considerable detail the information technology problems encountered by the Secretariat and outlines a general approach for achieving objectives, which we welcome.
The European Union subscribes to the ACABQ recommendations on three points in particular. Firstly, there is a need for a central authority to take decisions on general policy, strategic approach and the adoption of common standards. Secondly, investment in information technology should bring tangible efficiency and productivity gains and thus release resources that could be redirected to other sectors. Thirdly, consideration should be given to the question of linking systems so as to prevent
the proliferation of costly, incompatible, overlapping systems in funding and programmes.
The European Union has three further comments to make.
Regarding organizational structure, the European Union welcomes the principle of the semi-centralized model adopted by the Secretariat, but notes that it does not seem possible at this stage to put it into practice without precise criteria for distinguishing between the sphere for centralized and for decentralized decisions and the relevant administrative procedures.
As to investment in technical and human resources, the Secretariat gives no information on the cost-efficiency gains anticipated through coordination, although considerable investments have already been made in the past.
Regarding budgetary provisions, the European Union is concerned at the fact that the budgetary implications outlined by the Secretariat in this document have not been reflected in the proposed programme budget for the biennium 2002-2003, whereas a budget of approximately USD 150 million has already been proposed for the development of information technology over the next budget period. The action plan is, however, an essential prerequisite for any investment decision concerning information
technology.
Progress has undoubtedly been made in identifying problems and planning policy in theory but, like the ACABQ, the European Union would wish to see the Secretariat present to the 57th session of the General Assembly a new report, revising the action plan, with the inclusion of a timetable for implementation, the new organizational structure, the linkage between the different information technology systems and the anticipated cost-efficiency gains.
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