R 081222Z JAN 09
FM USMISSION GENEVA
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 7832
INFO USUN ROME IT
USMISSION IAEA

UNCLAS GENEVA 000009 
 
 
DEPT FOR IO/MPR 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KUNR
SUBJECT: UN IMPROVES - ONE REFORM AT A TIME 
 
REF: A) 08 GENEVA 805 B) 08 GENEVA 825 C) 08 GENEVA 
     1053 C) 08 GENEVA 1117 
 
 
¶1.  Summary:  For UN reform efforts, Mission Geneva has 
focused on informing UN agencies of the U.S. goals outlined 
in the UN Transparency and Accountability Initiative (UNTAI) 
assessments.  These clear benchmarks provide a focus for UN 
reform and progress over the last six months in Geneva has 
been steady.  Since June, the fruit of our efforts include 
gains in access to audit reports at ITU, ILO and WMO.  Such 
access to an audit report helped member states remove the 
Director General of WIPO, a process that was completed in 
September.  The new WIPO Director General is moving forward 
with a clear reform agenda as shown in his first two months 
in office.  Other improvements include a new access to 
information policy at the ILO and the beginning of an open 
discussion of program support costs.  Summary procurement 
information is still unavailable for most agencies and will 
be a continuing focus for the mission.  Details of each 
agency's efforts are outlined below.  End Summary. 
 
 
International Labor Organization (ILO) Focus on Procurement 
 
¶2. After repeated demarches by the U.S. Mission, the Director 
General of the ILO established a management team for 
transparency and accountability, which in turn established a 
publications policy clearly stating that ILO documents are, 
in principle, available to the public.  This is a major shift 
in sentiment since a GAO visit to the ILO in September 2006 
found that access to documents was considered a privilege. 
The transparency team created a link on the ILO website where 
major administrative documents are posted, such as the 
financial and staff regulations and ethics rules.  Ethics 
training has been implemented this budget biennium with an 
interactive CD as well as small classes.  In addition, the 
Director General has approved a policy of access to audit 
reports since August 2008.  In principle, this also applies 
to prior reports.  This policy change accompanied the 
appointment of a new head of the oversight office. 
 
¶3.  The disclosure policy has one weakness in that the 
Director General, rather than the internal auditor, approves 
redactions; however, the office has acknowledged that the 
policy can be reviewed.  The major missing component of the 
public access to information practices at the ILO is in the 
area of procurement information.  While bids and procedures 
are on the website, the actual contracts awarded are not. 
The head of the transparency and accountability work team, 
Executive Director for Administration Ms. O'Donovan, 
acknowledges this gap and has committed to put more 
procurement information onto the website.  This point will be 
a high priority for the United States as the ILO moves 
forward with its building renovation program. 
 
 
International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Focus on Program 
Support Costs 
 
¶4. During the USG's first UNTAI demarche in July 2007, ITU 
Deputy Secretary General stated explicitly that the ITU would 
not lead in any area of reform.  Instead, he made a 
commitment that the ITU would implement any reform that was 
approved or endorsed within the UN system.  ITU fulfilled the 
first task under that commitment in November when the Council 
 approved a change in the financial regulations to assure 
member state access to audit reports.  The internal auditor 
noted that he strongly supported the policy as proposed by 
the Representatives  of Internal Auditors of the UN System 
(RIAS).  While the proposed guidelines state that members 
review the reports physically in the auditor's office, under 
the ITU's policy of eliminating paper documents, the office 
will consider emailing copies of reports.  The auditor 
assured U.S. Mission officers that the default choice will be 
for transparency.  This change to the ITU financial rules 
required a U.S. Mission submitted paper and about eight 
months of Mission effort. (Ref B) 
 
¶5.  In the general discussion of program support costs, ITU 
administration officials noted that when the fee for 
satellite filings was high, no one paid them.  The new lower 
fee does not cover the full cost but the payment rate is 
higher.  Also as one of the few agencies with a time tracking 
system (TTS) for projects, ITU does allocate personnel costs 
by project, however, this is considered burdensome and 
ineffective. With the new computer system that will arrive 
with accounting reform, a new TTS will be required. 
 
 
World Meteorlogical Organization (WMO) Focus on Internal 
Auditor Recommendations: 
 
¶6.  Beginning in January 2009, the WMO internal auditor will 
have the authority and responsibility to review all Financial 
Disclosure Statements except the Secretary General,s.  In 
the past, the SG has received financial statements, but he 
had never reviewed them.  In an indication that WMO's senior 
management has heard the U.S. Mission's arguments in favor of 
a dedicated ethics officer, the SG has appointed the internal 
auditor as interim ethics officer.  Meanwhile the WMO 
continues to explore other options, such as sharing an ethics 
office with other IOs.  WMO is challenged in addressing 
required human resource issues because it has been without a 
Human Resources Officer for over a year.  WMO is also losing 
its only lawyer.  On a positive note the WMO reported at the 
October 2008 Audit Committee meeting that 80% of the internal 
auditor,s recommendations had been met and the remaining 
recommendations would soon be complete. 
 
 
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Focus on 
Ethics and Human Resource Management Reform 
 
¶7.  The appointment of Francis Gurry in September as Director 
General of WIPO completed a year long process for the removal 
of Kamal Idris, the former Director General for fraud (Ref 
A).  The ability for member states to access the agency's 
audit reports was essential in the removal.  The new Director 
General is moving forward to address gaps in WIPO's ethics 
and financial disclosure policies.  There is no training or 
financial disclosure system in place to date.  These programs 
are being drafted and will be part of an overall reform of 
the human resources area over the next year.  WIPO has 
serious overstaffing and performance management issues, as 
identified by a desk to desk audit, and human resources 
reform is a major issue for the improvement of management at 
WIPO. 
 
 
World Health Organization (WHO) Needs an Audit Committee 
 
¶8. The Mission's focus at the WHO for this session has been a 
push to have the WHO establish an audit committee.  The WHO 
remains the only large organization in Geneva without one. 
After several demarches, and a coordinated effort at the 
World Health Assembly, the member states have placed the 
discussion of an audit committee on the agenda for the 
January Program, Budget and Administrative Committee (PBAC) 
meeting.  The Secretariat discussion paper contains four 
options, two supporting further study, one supporting a 
committee of member state representatives, and a fourth 
option which would be an independent, expert audit committee. 
 The Geneva Group oversight focal group has hosted two 
meetings to support the discussion of the audit committee at 
the WHO as well as hosting separate consultations with the 
Secretariat.  Reluctance remains both with the Secretariat 
and with some member states primarily because of the WHO's 
unpleasant experience with a prior committee of member 
states' representatives. Geneva Group members are 
coordinating in an effort to make further progress towards 
the establishment of an Audit Committee between now and the 
May World Health Assembly. 
 
 
UNHCR Launches Software Interface to Improve Accountability 
of its Activities 
 
¶9.   UNHCR managers updated the USG on its reform efforts at 
the December 1 USG-UNHCR End of Year Consultation (Ref C). 
Key UNTAI progress for the past six months occurred in 
September, when UNHCR established a fully independent ethics 
office whose Director reports directly to the High 
Commissioner and the Executive Committee and is responsible 
for whistleblower and financial disclosure programs.  During 
an October 2008 mission to New York, UNHCR,s Director of 
Organizational Development and Management established an 
informal network with other UN agencies to share information 
and best practices.  In July 2008 UNHCR hired IBM to 
recommend ways to streamline its human resource 
administration; the Canadian Consultancy Funds subsequently 
began a similar review of UNHCR,s Division of Information 
Services and Telecommunications.  The results of these 
reviews should be delivered to UNHCR in January 2009. 
 
¶10. In August, UNHCR issued a general "Terms of Reference for 
Regional Offices" to guide its regionalization process and a 
TOR for its internal Oversight Committee, expanding it to 
include three outside experts. In an effort to improve the 
transparency of program mission and priorities, UNHCR 
headquarters will conduct a Global Needs Assessment (GNA), a 
mapping of the total needs of populations of concern to UNHCR 
for the 2010-2011 budget cycle.  In January 2009 UNHCR should 
launch its interface between FOCUS software (a tool that 
simplifies reporting and enhances global data collection, 
monitoring, budgeting and analysis) and its MSRP (Management 
Systems Renewal Project) operating system, which has updated 
the organization,s procedures and practices in two main 
support services (finance and supply chain) as well as 
improved accountability of its activities, both internally 
and with its donors.  In April and May of 2009, UNHCR will 
begin consolidating its myriad training programs into a 
Global Learning Center (planned to be located in Budapest) 
and link staff training to career development.  UNHCR will 
also consider ways to reduce its headquarters cost, 
particularly in its agreements with UNOG. 
 
 
STORELLA