SEA/RC61/14 - UN reform process and health partnerships: progress and developments

REGIONAL COMMITTEE Sixty-first Session SEARO, New Delhi 8–11 September 2008

Provisional Agenda item 16 SEA/RC61/14 Inf.Doc.1 1 September 2008

UN REFORM PROCESS AND HEALTH PARTNERSHIPS: PROGRESS AND DEVELOPMENTS Status of Negotiations on the Recommendations Contained in the 1 Report of the High Level Panel on UN System-wide Coherence This information document has been prepared on the basis of available documents on the United Nations General Assembly discussions on this subject. Out of the eight thematic categories: (i) Delivering as One at country level; (ii) Human Rights; (iii) Funding; (iv) Environment; (v) Governance and institutional reform (vi) Humanitarian issues and recovery; (vii) Gender; and (viii) Business practices to be discussed at the UN General Assembly’s Consultation, only five have been discussed to date. On some of the issues, Member States have agreed to continue negotiating as consensus was unlikely to emerge during the consultation. Members of G77 and the Nonaligned Movement are insisting on addressing all issues at the same time because they consider that would give them an upper hand in negotiating an increase in Official Development Assistance. “Human Rights” and “Environment” will be the other two issues not yet discussed, and on which differences between developing and developed nations are expected. As indicated in the document, negotiations on the System-wide Coherence are based on “nothing is agreed until everything is agreed” and this highlights the provisional nature of negotiations.

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Source includes “Latest Developments — regular updates on current UN reform issues” published by ReformtheUN.org project of

the World Federalist Movement - Institute for Global Policy (WFM-IGP)

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Introduction 1. The UN World Summit 2005 called for the establishment of a High-level Panel (HLP) to study and issue specific recommendations on system-wide coherence to attain much stronger coordination across the UN’s development and operational activities. 2. The HLP made 48 recommendations in its Nov. 2006 report “Delivering as One”. Since then, these recommendations have been grouped into eight thematic categories; (1) Delivering as One at country level; (2) Human Rights; (3) Funding; (4) Environment; (5) Governance and institutional reform (6) Humanitarian issues and recovery; (7) Gender; and (8) Business practices. 3. After months of negotiations, the co-chairs of the UN General Assembly’s (UNGA) consultations on system-wide coherence (Ireland and Tanzania) proposed a “basket-by-basket” approach. They placed four issues; Delivering as One; Funding; Governance; and Gender into the “first basket” and the remaining four; Business Practice; Human Rights; Environment; and Humanitarian Issues and Recovery in the “second basket”. 4. The “basket-by-basket” approach was a deviation from the view of most Member States; mainly the G77 and Non-Aligned Movement, that there should be a single negotiation on all issues. To move forward, they agreed to work on each issue separately under the premise that “nothing is agreed until everything is agreed”. 5. The UNGA has held a series of meetings since 28 March 2008 and this document presents the conclusions of these meetings and the different opinions that emerged until 20 June 2008. The consultations will continue over the next few months.

Progress on First Basket Issue: – Delivering as One at County Level

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6. “Delivering as One” seeks to fundamentally restructure UN operational work at the country level, consolidating all UN development programmes as “One UN.” 7. Pilot schemes for “Delivering as One” have been ongoing in eight self-selected countries since 2007 and developments in the pilots have been closely monitored. 3

8. It was reported to UNGA that in several pilot countries, the initiative had positive effects where it successfully upheld two principles; national ownership and leadership; and that “no one size fits all”. 9. The co-chairs of the consultation who visited the pilot countries observed that the Delivering as One programme: has reinforced national ownership and leadership; has not set new conditionality for development aid; has abided by the principle that “no one size fits all”; that dealing with the UN through One accepted leader for One programme with One funding 2 3

Member States met on 28 March to discuss “Delivering as One at Country Level” Albania, Cape Verde, Mozambique, Pakistan, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uruguay and Vietnam

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arrangement reduced the burden on national administrations; and that developing countries were experiencing increased empowerment. They also recommended that the Delivering as One programme must seek to “strike a judicious balance between the ‘oneness’ of UN delivery and the strength and roles of individual agencies.” 5 4

10. A stocktaking exercise done at the end of 2007 provided the following preliminary analysis: (1) Increased government leadership and ownership is leading to greater alignment between UN and government development-related priorities; (2) UN agencies are demonstrating increased participation and joint programming; and (3) “One Programme,” “One Fund” and “One Leader” are proving to be effective tools. 11. However, progress during the first year has been held back by a) short-term start-up costs and workloads, and b) that of the four “Ones”, progress on “One Office” has been the slowest. This stocktaking exercise also identified the following additional problems; slow reform process at UN HQs; high expectations for funding leading to unrealistic programming; striking a balance between inclusiveness and overall strategic focus; and misconceptions on the role of Resident Coordinators (RC). 12. The stocktaking exercise also identified the following priorities; (1) ensuring good implementation of the One UN programme, by: ensuring government ownership and leadership, and continuing to map and address transaction costs in pilot countries; (2) ensuring that the lessons learnt from pilot programme are applied to future One UN efforts; and (3) ensuring that any required changes are implemented to pilot programme in a timely fashion, by: accelerating the speed of reforms at UN HQs, and taking action on areas of issue congestion as identified by UN headquarters and the RCs. 13. It was noted that Member States could not reach any definite conclusions until the eight “Delivering as One” pilots are evaluated conclusively at the end of 2009. 14. The G77 also stressed that there should be no systematic changes to the methods of formulating, approving, or financing of country programme without open and inclusive intergovernmental consideration. This comment came in light of much concern from many counties that they “were pressured into endorsing the One UN programme prematurely, before reports of the “pilot” countries’ experiences had come back” . 6

Comments 15. Approximately 30 small and medium-sized Member States are currently interested in joining the “Delivering as One” pilot . The UN is proposing to support these “Self-Starter” using the “New UN Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF)”. The final UNGA decision on 4 5 6 7

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Joint statement of UN GA Co-chairs on System Wide Coherence delivered on 28th March 2008. 2007 Pilot Stocktaking Exercise published in April 2008 As reported at the 22 February 2008 joint meeting of G77 and NAM Member States “Member States Resume Talks on the Future of the System-wide Coherence Process” Jonas von Freiesleben; Center for UN Reform Education; 12 Feb. 2008; http://www.centerforunreform.org/node/301

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“Delivering as One at County Level” will be influenced by the lessons from the New UNDAF as well. 16. The G77 has maintained their position that no change be implemented without a direction from UNGA. This is partly to increase their negotiating power over financing of the UN and the need to increase ODA.

Progress on First Basket Issue: Funding

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17. The HLP recommended that in order to achieve coherence across the UN system, the Organization should have sustained and predictable financing. 18. It was reported to the meeting according to OECD-DAC report of 2007 that most donors are not on track to meet their stated commitments to scale up aid and meet the targets they set for 2010. Hence, System-Wide Coherence cannot be achieved without increased financial commitment by Member States. 19. There was consensus that the savings made by the Delivering as One initiative should be used for development-related initiatives in the same countries. 20. The meeting also stressed: need to continue replicating the harmonization of budget cycles of various funds, programme and agencies; need to increase core funding to counteract the recent decline of core contributions; need to provide predictable, multi-year funding that is essential for the UN’s coherence and effectiveness; and that the increased donor activity in the Delivering as One pilot countries should not leave non-pilot countries deprived of funding, while, at the same time, the short-term increase in donor activity in pilot countries be continued in the long term. 21. It was concluded that the UN resolution on Triennial Comprehensive Policy Review (TCPR) of 2007 had made recommendations on: funding for Operational Activities of the UN Development System, and Transaction Costs and Efficiency at the UN and that it should provide the framework for the next steps.

Comments 22. The combination of decreased ODA in 2007 with increased donor activity in the pilot countries has the risk of decreased funding for non-pilot countries. This may be viewed as an indirect pressure from donor nations. This might have contributed towards more countries “selfstarting” the “Delivering as One” with hopes of increased international development aid.

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Member States discussed funding structures across the UN on 7 April 2008.

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Progress on First Basket Issue: Governance9 23. The High-level Panel on System-wide Coherence (HLP) proposed a series of changes at (1) the organisational level, (2) the regional level, and (3) the intergovernmental level and include; •

Establishment of Global Leaders Forum of the ECOSOC, comprised of selected Heads of State and the heads of the major international economic and financial institutions (the World Bank and IMF). Establishment of a UN Sustainable Development Board to oversee the Delivering as One initiative and the performance of Resident Coordinators in each country Review of the UN Chief Executives Board (CEB) to improving its performance and accountability.

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24. Member States saw these proposals as: possible erosion of national ownership of UN intergovernmental processes; the need for more information about the proposed new bodies; and the possible duplication of existing mandates and functions of the Executive Boards. 25. The meeting concluded by making clear Member States’ reservations about the governance structures recommended by the High-level Panel.

Comments 26. Member States had very diverse views on this from those who support some of the changes to those who even questioned the necessity of such reform in the first place. What was common was that most did not agree on the changes proposed and concluded the discussion with an indication that the institutional reforms could be undertaken within existing frameworks such as the Triennial Comprehensive Policy Review (TCPR). 27. Recommendations at the organizational level fall mostly within the remit of the Secretariat and the Chief Executives Board. Recommendations at the regional level are being dealt by the General Assembly under the existing TCPR process. 28. The relocation of UN Development Group (UNDG) under the CEB is one of the changes that emerged from the discussion on governance.

Progress on First Basket Issue: Gender

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29. The HLP called for the UN to streamline and consolidate three UN gender-related institutions – Office of the Special Advisor on Gender Issues (OSAGI), UN Division for the Advancements of Women (DAW) and the UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) – into

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Member States discussed Governance and Institutional Reform on 17 April 2008. Member States discussed Gender aspects of System-wide Coherence on 16 May 2008. A follow-up discussion on this issue was held on June 16 2008 and the negotiation has continued since.

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a single UN gender entity and the creation of an Under-Secretary-General (USG) post on gender and women’s rights. 30. No agreement among Member States was reached on the issue of Gender nor on the creation of new entities or posts. The meeting resulted in a decision asking for a non-paper on gender-related issues to be prepared by the Secretariat prior to further consultations.

Comments 31. Discussion on a new gender entity has been postponed partly because the G77 and NAM consider this issue a bargaining area.

Progress on Second Basket Issue: Business Practices

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32. The HLP identified UN business practices as a core issue for improving coherence across the UN system, and recommended that the CEB should lead efforts to improve management efficiency, transparency and accountability of the UN system. Accordingly, the CEB presented its “Plan of Action for the Harmonization of Business Practices in the UN System ” for this discussion. 33. The plan identifies six high-level objectives for improved business practices and 19 specific projects where objectives can be implemented. 34. The objectives identified are: (1) Adoption of international standards and replication of best practices; (2) Facilitation of knowledge and resource sharing; (3) Enhanced transparency and accountability; (4) Enhanced public trust and engagement of stakeholders; (5) Facilitation of effective inter-agency coordination; and (6) Achievement of efficiency gains 35. The plan was based on three general principles: 1- improve accountability and reporting to Member States as well as to ensure the availability of easily accessible information, such as the implementation of International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) or the work on common data centres; 2- facilitate the operations of the UN country teams to ensure that they can provide the best support to their national partners; and 3- ensure strengthened programmatic performance through improved efficiency gains. 36. The 19 projects identified by the plan fall under four thematic areas: (1) human resource management (2) information and communications technology, (3) finance and budget, and (4) procurement. 37. The meeting made clear some Member States’ reservations concerning a potential overlap between the “Plan of Action” and the UN’s existing mandates on management reform, particularly in the UNGA’s Fifth Committee (administrative and budgetary). 12

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Member States discussed the CEB’s “Plan of Action” for Coherence of Business Practices on 13 June 2008. Negation is ongoing To date, the plan has received the approval of all CEB organizations.

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38. Member States’ statements generally noted their support for the work of the CEB, it was agreed to proceed with further consultations on the harmonization of business practices issues.

Comments 39. There is reservation over the past years from the UNGA’s Fifth Committee for proposed changes as they were considered by the committee to be an attempt to diminish the authority of the committee over administrative and budgetary matters. The elaboration of the Business Practices proposed to be changed is expected to help minimize the resistance.

General Comments 40. In light of the agreement; “nothing is agreed until everything is agreed”, no resolution on any of the eight thematic categories of the HLP recommendations may be expected until the final evaluation of the eight “Delivering as one” in 2009-2010 is reviewed by Member States. 41. UN General Assembly resolution on the Triennial Comprehensive Policy Review 2007 seems to have created a middle-way where both developed and developing countries agree. 42. It would be likely that at the end of the negotiations, Member States would agree to gradually shift from HLP recommendations on system-wide coherence to the existing recommendations in the resolution on the TCPR 2007 and from Delivering as One programme at country level to new UNDAF.



SEA/RC61/14 Inf.Doc. 2

REGIONAL COMMITTEE Sixty-first Session SEARO, New Delhi 8–11 September 2008

Provisional Agenda item 16 SEA/RC61/14 Inf. Doc.2 1 September 2008

UN REFORM PROCESS AND HEALTH PARTNERSHIPS: PROGRESS AND DEVELOPMENTS The attached document comprises: (1) “Progress reports requested by Member States: WHO and reform of the UN system: Impact at country level” (Working paper discussed at the sixtieth session of the Regional Committee in September 2007). “Triennial comprehensive policy review of operational activities for development of the United Nations system” (Resolution adopted by the UN General Assembly at its sixty-second session in March 2008).

(2)

Meeting of Advisory Committee (ACM) to Review Technical Matters to be Discussed at 61st session of the Regional Committee WHO/SEARO, New Delhi, 30 June – 3 July 2008

Agenda item 2.6

SEA/ACM/Meet.1/2.6-INF.DOC.2 26 June 2008

UN Reform Process and Health Partnerships: Progress and Developments

1. “Progress reports requested by Member States: WHO and reform of the UN system: Impact at country level” (A working paper discussed in the sixtieth session of the Regional Committee in September 2007) 2. “Triennial comprehensive policy review of operational activites for development of the United Nations system” (A resolution adoped by the UN General Assembly at its Sixty-second session in March 2008)

(Information Document)

REGIONAL COMMITTEE Sixtieth session Thimphu, Bhutan 31 August – 3 September 2007

Provisional Agenda item 14.3

SEA/RC60/14 13 July 2007

PROGRESS REPORTS REQUESTED BY MEMBER STATES: WHO AND REFORMS OF THE UN SYSTEM: IMPACT AT COUNTRY LEVEL This paper reviews the reform agenda of the United Nations with implications on health and WHO activities at the country level, and reports on the status of WHO’s involvement in support of Member countries of the South-East Asia Region. The paper recognizes the significant impact the various UN reform agendas have on WHO activities and on its relations with national authorities. Also noting that none of the eight “One UN” pilot countries are in the South-East Asia Region, the paper highlights that keeping Member countries informed on developments in these eight countries would facilitate informed decision while Member countries consider their reaction to UN reforms and to the enlargement of the list of pilot countries. The paper suggests that the impact of UN reforms will depend on Member countries’ reaction to three interlinked processes: consultations on the UN Secretary-General’s Highlevel Panel on UN System-wide Coherence (HLP-SWC) report; evaluation of “One UN” pilot programmes; and the Triennial Comprehensive Policy Review of Operational Activities of the United Nations Development System (TCPR) in 2007. At the country level, an inter-sectoral dialogue mainly between officials of ministries of foreign affairs and health will enable the health sector to gain optimally from the UN reform process. Such dialogue will facilitate coherent reform policies and directions for better health and development outcomes to be presented and agreed upon at the UN and WHO governing body forums. The Regional Office is planning to organize a meeting to facilitate such a dialogue between officials of the ministries of foreign affairs and health to explore areas of synergy. This paper was reviewed by the Joint Meeting of Health Secretaries and the Consultative Committee for Programme Development and Management held in the Regional Office, New Delhi, 2-6 July 2007.

The Joint Meeting made the following recommendations: Action by Member States To actively participate in the regional meeting planned by the Regional Office in October 2007 with the aim of facilitating dialogue between Health officials and Foreign Affairs officials and contributing to the UN reform debates; and to propose to set up a WHO Executive Board Working Group to investigate the implication of UN reform and the work of WHO and provide recommendations through the Executive Board on UN reform. Action by WHO-SEARO To facilitate capacity building in Member States towards understanding and actively participating in UN reform and its implication on health; and to communicate to Member States on the progress made and lessons learnt from UN reform and the work of WHO, including updates from the eight “One UN” pilot countries. The document is now submitted to the Sixtieth session of the Regional Committee for its consideration.

Contents Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 1 WHO policy directions ............................................................................................................... 1 Current status ............................................................................................................................. 3 Implementation at country level ................................................................................................. 5 WHO activities in the Region ..................................................................................................... 5 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................. 6

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Introduction 1. United Nations reform has been at the centre of the international development cooperation dialogue for the past few decades. In the last decade, many significant reforms were discussed or institutionalized, including the “Millennium Development Goals” of the 2000 Millennium Summit and the “Outcome Document” of the 2005 World Summit that, among other issues, emphasize the need for a more strategic, comprehensive and results-focused approach to UN reform. These reforms have also changed the role of the UN in the increasingly globalized and interdependent world with its structure and mandates significantly expanded. 2. The most recent reforms are contained in the Report of UN Secretary-General’s High Level Panel on UN System-wide Coherence (HLP-SWC) in the Areas of Development, Humanitarian Assistance, and the Environment; “Delivering as One”1 and the Triennial Comprehensive Policy Review of Operational Activities of the United Nations Development System (TCPR) of 20072. Although UN reform is not a new subject, the recent reforms are different, as seen by the strong commitment they are getting from Member countries. 3. Moreover, over the past decades health has become a well established priority for the international development agenda, well enshrined in the Millennium Development Goals. It is also viewed as a key aspect in humanitarian assistance, environment and security at national and global levels by the UN as well as the international community.

WHO policy directions 4. The UN reforms have a significant bearing on health and development cooperation at the country and international levels. Hence, the reforms initiated by various Secretaries General and UN bodies and their implications on health and the work of WHO have been the subject of discussions and resolutions at various WHO governing body meetings. In the past five years, the topic of UN reform has been a regular agenda item at the World Health Assembly and the Executive Board. Furthermore, two resolutions have also been passed3,4. 5. For WHO, World Health Assembly Resolution WHA 58.25 on “United Nations reform process and WHO’s role in harmonization of operational development activities at country level” adopted in May 2005 provided relevant policy guidance on UN reform issues on improving coherence at the country level. The resolution emphasized the following two main 1

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UN General Assembly: April 2007 (A/61/583): and Report of the Secretary-General on the Recommendations Contained in the Report (A/61/836) UN Economic and Social Council Substantive Session, to be discussed on 10th July 2007 (A/62/73-E/2007/52) 58th World Health Assembly, 2005 resolution WHA58.25: United Nations reform process and WHO’s role in harmonization of operational development activities at country level 59th World Health Assembly, 2006 Resolution WHA59.12: Implementation by WHO of the recommendations of the Global Task Team on Improving AIDS Coordination among Multilateral Institutions and International Donors

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points; (1) WHO should adhere to the international harmonization and alignment agenda by participating in the United Nations Development Framework, closely working with United Nations Country Teams and the UN Resident Coordinator at country level, in order to ensure coherence and efficiency; and (2) to take into account the Triennial Comprehensive Policy Review and to take specific steps to further rationalize procedures and reduce transaction costs. 6. Since the 2005 World Summit, the WHO Secretariat is actively engaged in internal and external consultations to define the Organization’s views and directions and issue guidance. WHO is also actively involved in the “One UN” pilot countries; the review of the UN Chief Executive Board and the various forums and working groups of the UN Development Group. 7. The current directions and guidance for WHO on UN reform at the country level are based on the following principles: • • • • • • •

Focus on improved health outcomes Accountability to Member countries Based on National needs and priorities Focus on aid effectiveness as reflected in the Rome & Paris Declarations Partnerships for support to countries Contributing to global commitments Ensuring coherence

8. The directions and guidance, among other issues, highlighted the following components and priorities: •

The need for WHO to actively advocate for and fully support UN reform efforts that will strengthen its global leadership, coordination and partnership roles while appropriately recognizing the increasing importance and cross-cutting nature of public health issues. WHO should also advocate for the UN system needs, redefine its strategic direction focusing on knowledge generation, norms and standards development, innovation and policy development. The need for WHO to advocate for implementation of a pragmatic and robust resultsbased, system-wide enabling environment throughout the UN system and for a better defined division of labour based on competency and complementarity. The need to focus on results within a common framework to achieve a more appropriate targeting of resources and greater transparency and accountability. Country ownership and leadership in national development as the basis for WHO’s cooperation. Key elements of WHO’s work at all levels are directed by national health and development needs and priorities. WHO has as the basis its Country Cooperation Strategy (CCS) and General Programme of Work (GPW) as tools for defining global, regional and national priorities and plans and ensures consistency with the

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internationally agreed development goals and the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF). •

The need for WHO to support cost-effective business–support functions, with particular emphasis on common standards, and due regard for the policies of individual organizations. The need for a strategic approach for coordination within the United Nations system, including effective alignment and, where appropriate, integration and rationalization of specific coordination needs for reform efforts and within the overall coordination framework of the United Nations system including reforming the Chief Executive Board (CEB) and the UN Development Group (UNDG). Efforts by organizations individually and the United Nations system collectively to improve their relevance and effectiveness need to go together with a coherent and effective approach to financing of the United Nations system by governments. Appropriate financing is essential if organizations are to act in a global, impartial and efficient manner.

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Current status 9. Report of the High-Level Panel on UN System-wide Coherence: The Report has been submitted to the UN General Assembly for discussions with full endorsement from the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in April, 2007. Intergovernmental negotiations and discussions among UN agencies and other stakeholders are ongoing. The outcome of these negotiations will be crucial in determining how the UN will take in full or in part the various issues raised in the report. As the HLP-SWC report has a strong link with TCPR, the negotiations will also have an implication on the follow-up actions of the latter. 10. “One UN” Pilot: Following the submission of the report, “Delivering as One”, by the HLPSWC that recommended the implementation of “One UN” at country level to be piloted in five countries by the end of 2007, and the Secretary-General’s instruction to the UNDP Administrator as chair of the UN Development Group, eight countries5 requested to be included as pilot countries. The key features of the “One UN” country programme are one programme, one leader, one budgetary framework and, where appropriate, one office. The “One UN” pilot countries will be reviewed and evaluated mainly by the United Nations Evaluation Group (UNEG) and the result presented to Member countries. 11. WHO is an active partner in these “One UN” pilots. The lessons drawn to date by WHO have indicated the following as crucial factors for success; (1) national ownership and leadership; (2) the critical importance of having one UN country programme and 3) the need for the UNRC system and the “One UN” to be inclusive. 12. The latest Triennial Comprehensive Policy Review (TCPR) of 2007: During the first week of July 2007, the High-level Segment of ECOSOC will discuss the report submitted by the 5

Albania, Cape Verde, Mozambique, Pakistan, Rwanda, United Republic of Tanzania, Uruguay and Viet Nam.

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Secretary-General on the TCPR. The TCPR in addition to the updates on developments since the 2004 TCPR and the 2005 General Assembly’s resolution (GA 59/250) on the subject, highlighted the following; •

Acknowledging the shortcoming of the Resident Coordinator System, the Common Country assessment (CCA) and UNDAF, recommends for these processes to be more inclusive of other agencies and UN entities. Acknowledges that the specialized agencies and the Bretton Woods Institutes have independent governing bodies and structure that do not report to ECOSOC and GA and this factor has to be taken into the overall prospective while the review is considered in the Council. Appreciated WHO’s Medium Term Strategic Plan and the concept of negotiated core voluntary funding as potentially transaction cost saving and innovative. The review acknowledged that a significant amount of supplementary (voluntary) funding is raised from bilateral donors and public-private partnerships at country level and analyzed their shortcomings including the increase in transaction cost incurred on the UN agencies. Reaffirms the UN System’s comparative advantages in national capacity development and development effectiveness and acknowledges WHO’s contribution in development of technical and technological capacity including those in norm setting. Acknowledges that a new trend is developing where UN Country Teams (UNCT) are opting not to conduct a CCA but to make use of the national processes. More and more UNCTs are harmonizing their UNDAF with national programming cycles. The challenge is in striking a balance between the UN system’s strategic focus and the need for inclusiveness in order to best respond to national priorities. Acknowledges the UNRC system is firmly anchored in UNDP and this creates conflicts of interest where the UNRC is also Representative of UNDP. To address this, UNDP has started appointing UNDP country directors. Such appointments will number 40 by the end of 2007. Most of all, the report emphasised that the UNRC can correctly function only when it is based on the principles of collegiality and a high degree of participation of all agencies at country level. While discussing the regional dimension, the review emphasised the need for regional alignment in terms of location of regional offices and geographical coverage of UN agencies but failed to highlight the unique nature of WHO in this respect. Acknowledges increase in engagement of National Professional Officers as a positive development that would strengthen the national response capacity and increase relevance and continuity for the UN system programmes at country level.

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Implementation at country level 13. In support of the HLP-SWC, the Norwegian Government had initiated a high-level regional consultation in Indonesia in March 2007. From the South-East Asia Region, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand were represented by senior Foreign Affairs officials. Considering the strong influence officials of Foreign Affairs have in shaping the general UN reform agenda, it is important for health authorities to collaborate and create the necessary understanding of the implication of UN reforms on health and on WHO activities at the country level. 14. In related developments, the governments of Norway and France, together with Brazil, Indonesia, Senegal, South Africa and Thailand launched a “Global Health and Foreign Policy Initiative” aimed to explore the links between foreign policy and health. The initiative issued the “Oslo Ministerial Declaration” on 20 March 2007, that identified Global health as a pressing foreign policy issue of our time. SEAR Member countries could draw lessons from the experience of the Ministry of Health officials of Indonesia and Thailand who were active participants of the initiative. 15. None of the SEAR countries are included in the “One UN” pilot programme. Hence, the implication of the UN activities in support of the “One UN” pilot is not known. SEAR Member countries would have to rely on the updates, assessments and evaluation from the UN and individual agencies. 16. While recognizing the value of the UNDAF for the collective UN system, it also needs to be acknowledged that the UNDAF provides limited opportunities to articulate and thereby leverage action in the health sector. This limitation of UNDAF and the “One UN” approach is also observed by some of our Member countries who pointed out that the concept of “comparative advantage” implicit in the UNDAF is likely to undermine the contribution, which individual agencies bring to development cooperation.

WHO activities in the Region 17. WHO Representatives’ Offices are active in all the UNCT in Member countries of the Region. WHO is also involved in the CCA/UNDAF processes in all countries except in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea where a similar process known as “UN Strategic Framework” exists. In all the countries the WHO Country Cooperation Strategy guides WHO’s inputs to the CCA/UNDAF process. 18. With the aim of creating better understanding and getting inputs for the consultations on the subject, Ministry of Health counterparts and WHO staff participated in various forums organized by the WHO Regional Office for South-East Asia and WHO Representatives’ Offices where “UN Reform and its implication to health and WHO activities at country level” were discussed.

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Conclusion •

As mentioned above, the following processes will determine how the UN will take the reform agenda forward specially at the country level; 1) the intergovernmental negotiations at the UN General Assembly and the stakeholders consultations on the HLP-SWC report; 2) the result of the assessment and evaluation of the “One UN” pilot programmes in the eight countries; and 3) the debate at the high-level segment of ECOSOC on the 2007 TCPR in July 2007. Furthermore, these issues will also be discussed in the governing bodies of specialized agencies like WHO, ILO and FAO and interagency coordinating bodies of the UN like the CEB and UNDG as well. The coherence of positions taken by Member countries in the various governing bodies will also determine the policy alignment for the reform among UN programmes and funds and specialized agencies. In general, the current UN reform proposals as reflected in the TCPR as well as the HLP-SWC report are strongly supported by donor countries. Even before the debate on the HLP-SWC report at the UN General Assembly, there is already dedicated funding linked to implementation of the recommendations. This will put additional pressure on national authorities to agree on the recommendations before the full implications are examined in inter-sectoral forums. Such inter-sectoral opportunities are rarely available to foreign affairs officials to share with their health colleagues and present a common and coherent country position that is reflected in both the UN governing body forums and the World Health Assembly and Executive Board. WHO SEARO is planning a meeting that will facilitate such a dialogue between Ministry of health and Ministry of foreign affairs and explore areas of synergy in efforts to influence policy for better health and development outcomes.

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19. This meeting is requested to consider this paper and to provide its observations and recommendations.

United Nations

A/RES/62/208 Distr.: General 14 March 2008

General Assembly Sixty-second session Agenda item 59 (b)

Resolution adopted by the General Assembly [on the report of the Second Committee (A/62/424/Add.2)]

62/208. Triennial comprehensive policy review of operational activities for development of the United Nations system The General Assembly , Recalling its resolutions 44/211 of 22 December 1989, 47/199 of 22 December 1992, 50/120 of 20 December 1995, 52/203 of 18 December 1997, 52/12 B of 19 December 1997, 53/192 of 15 December 1998, 56/201 of 21 December 2001 and 59/250 of 22 December 2004, Economic and Social Council resolutions 2005/7 of 20 July 2005 and 2006/14 of 26 July 2006 and other relevant resolutions, Reaffirming the importance of the triennial comprehensive policy review of operational activities, through which the General Assembly establishes key systemwide policy orientations for the development cooperation and country-level modalities of the United Nations system, Reaffirming also the need to strengthen the United Nations with a view to enhancing its authority and efficiency, as well as its capacity to address effectively, and in accordance with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, the full range of development challenges of our time, Recalling the commitment of Member States to enhance the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, accountability and credibility of the United Nations system as a shared goal and interest, Recalling also the need to provide the United Nations system with adequate and timely resources with a view to enabling it to carry out its mandates, Reaffirming the need to ensure, in a coherent and timely manner, the full implementation of all the elements of its resolutions 44/211, 47/199, 50/120, 53/192, 56/201 and 59/250, and the parts of its resolution 52/12 B, relevant to operational activities for development, which should be considered as an integral part of the present resolution, Recalling the role of the Economic and Social Council in providing coordination and guidance to the United Nations system to ensure that those policy orientations are implemented on a system-wide basis in accordance with the present resolution and General Assembly resolutions 48/162 of 20 December 1993, 50/227 of 24 May 1996, 57/270 B of 23 June 2003 and 61/16 of 20 November 2006, Recalling also the outcomes of the major United Nations conferences and summits in the economic, social and related fields, such as the United Nations 07-47625

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Millennium Declaration of 2000, 1 the Monterrey Consensus of the International Conference on Financing for Development of 2002, 2 the Plan of Implementation of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (“Johannesburg Plan of Implementation”) of 2002, 3 the 2005 World Summit Outcome, 4 and its resolution 60/265 of 30 June 2006 on follow-up to the development outcome of the 2005 World Summit, including the Millennium Development Goals and other internationally agreed development goals, Recognizing the vital role played by these conferences and summits in shaping a broad development vision and in identifying commonly agreed objectives, which have contributed to our understanding of and actions to overcome the challenges to improving human life in different parts of the world, Reaffirming that each country must take primary responsibility for its own development and that the role of national policies and development strategies cannot be overemphasized in the achievement of sustainable development, and recognizing that national efforts should be complemented by supportive global programmes, measures and policies aimed at expanding the development opportunities of developing countries, while taking into account national conditions and ensuring respect for national ownership, strategies and sovereignty, Recognizing that the internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals, offer a framework for planning, reviewing and assessing the activities of the United Nations for development, Recognizing also that development, peace and security and human rights are interlinked and mutually reinforcing, and reaffirming that development is a central goal in itself and that it constitutes a key element of the overarching framework of the United Nations operational activities for development, Recognizing further that the private sector and civil society, including non-governmental organizations, can positively contribute to the achievement of the internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals, and encouraging their further contribution in supporting national development efforts in accordance with national plans and priorities, Recognizing that new technologies, including information and communications technologies, present an opportunity to accelerate development, especially in developing countries, and noting that access to those technologies remains uneven and that a digital divide still prevails , Reiterating the importance of the development of national capacities to eradicate poverty and pursue sustained and equitable economic growth and sustainable development as a central goal of the development cooperation of the United Nations system, Recognizing that current trends in development assistance, including sectorwide approaches and budget support, pose challenges to the United Nations, and stressing that the United Nations can play a role in assisting developing countries to manage these aid modalities, _______________ 1 2

See resolution 55/2. Report of the International Conference on Financing for Development, Monterrey, Mexico, 18-22 March 2002 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.02.II.A.7), chap. I, resolution 1, annex. 3 Report of the World Summit on Sustainable Development, Johannesburg, South Africa, 26 August– 4 September 2002 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.03.II.A.1 and corrigendum), chap. I, resolution 2, annex. 4 See resolution 60/1.

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Recognizing also the urgent and specific needs of the least developed countries, landlocked developing countries and small island developing States, Recognizing further the special needs of Africa, I Introduction 1. Takes note with appreciation of the reports of the Secretary-General on the triennial comprehensive policy review of operational activities for development of the United Nations system 5 and on the comprehensive statistical analysis of the financing of operational activities for development of the United Nations system; 6 2. Notes the advances that the United Nations development system is making in the implementation of General Assembly resolution 59/250, and calls upon the United Nations system to accelerate its full implementation, taking into account the provisions of the present resolution; 3. Reaffirms that the fundamental characteristics of the operational activities for development of the United Nations system should be, inter alia, their universal, voluntary and grant nature, their neutrality and their multilateralism, as well as their ability to respond to the development needs of programme countries in a flexible manner, and that the operational activities are carried out for the benefit of programme countries, at the request of those countries and in accordance with their own policies and priorities for development; 4. Underscores that there is no “one size fits all” approach to development and that development assistance by the United Nations development system should be able to respond to the varying development needs of programme countries and should be in alignment with their national development plans and strategies in accordance with its mandates; 5. Recognizes that the strength of the United Nations operational system lies in its legitimacy, at the country level, as a neutral, objective and trusted partner for both programme countries and donor countries; 6. Stresses that national Governments have the primary responsibility for their countries’ development and for coordinating, on the basis of national strategies and priorities, all types of external assistance, including that provided by multilateral organizations, in order to effectively integrate such assistance into their development processes; 7. Emphasizes that the operational activities for development of the United Nations system should be valued and assessed on the basis of their impact on the programme countries as contributions to enhance their capacity to pursue poverty eradication, sustained economic growth and sustainable development; 8. Decides that, with the agreement and consent of the host country, the United Nations development system should assist national Governments in creating an enabling environment in which the links and cooperation between national Governments, the United Nations development system, civil society, national non-governmental organizations and the private sector that are involved in the _______________ 5 6

A/62/73-E/2007/52 and A/62/253. A/62/74-E/2007/54 and A/62/326.

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development process are strengthened, including, as appropriate, during the United Nations Development Assistance Framework preparation process, with a view to seeking new and innovative solutions to development problems in accordance with national policies and priorities; 9. Stresses that the purpose of reform is to make the United Nations development system more efficient and effective in its support to developing countries to achieve the internationally agreed development goals, on the basis of their national development strategies, and stresses also that reform efforts should enhance organizational efficiency and achieve concrete development results; 10. Requests the United Nations development system to continue its efforts to respond to national development plans, policies and priorities, which constitute the only viable frame of reference for programming operational activities at the country level, and to pursue full integration of operational activities for development at the country level with national planning and programming, under the leadership of national Governments, at all stages of the process, while ensuring the full involvement of all relevant stakeholders at the national level; 11. Recognizes that strengthening the role and capacity of the United Nations development system to assist countries in achieving their development goals requires continuing improvement in its effectiveness, efficiency, coherence and impact, along with a significant increase in resources and an expansion of its resource base on a continuous, more predictable and assured basis; 12. Encourages the Secretary-General, through the United Nations System Chief Executives Board for Coordination and the United Nations Development Group, as appropriate, to make efforts to enhance the coherence, effectiveness an d efficiency of the United Nations development system; 13. Recognizes that the individual United Nations funds, programmes and agencies have specific experience and expertise, derived from, and in line with, their mandates and strategic plans, and stresses, in this regard, that improvement of coordination and coherence at the country level should be undertaken in a manner that recognizes the respective mandates and roles and enhances the effective utilization of resources and the unique expertise of all United Nations funds, programmes and specialized agencies; 14. Urges all Member States to pursue full implementation of the internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals, and recognizes the positive contribution that these goals can make in providing direction to the operational activities for development of the United Nations system in accordance with national development efforts and priorities; 15. Recognizes that the transition from relief to development represents a complex challenge as regards the universal achievement of the Millennium Development Goals; 16. Also recognizes the importance of consistent, reliable and comprehensive statistical data and analysis about the United Nations operational activities in order to provide an understanding of evolutions and trends contributing to sound policy decisions;

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II Funding for operational activities of the United Nations development system 17. Acknowledges efforts by developed countries to increase resources for development, including commitments by some developed countries to increase official development assistance, notes with concern the overall decline in official development assistance in 2006, calls for the fulfilment of all official development assistance commitments, including the commitments by many developed countries to achieve the target of 0.7 per cent of gross national income for official development assistance by 2015 and to reach at least 0.5 per cent of gross national income for official development assistance by 2010, as well as the target of 0.15 per cent to 0.20 per cent for least developed countries, and urges those developed countries that have not yet done so to make concrete efforts in this regard in accordance with their commitments; 18. Stresses that core resources, because of their untied nature, continue to be the bedrock of the operational activities for development of the United Nations system, and in this regard notes with concern that the share of core contributions to United Nations funds and programmes has declined in recent years, and recognizes the need for organizations to address, on a continuous basis, the imbalance between core and non-core resources; 19. Urges donor countries and other countries in a position to do so to substantially increase their voluntary contributions to the core/regular budgets of the United Nations development system, in particular its funds, programmes and specialized agencies, and to contribute on a multi-year basis, in a sustained and predictable manner; 20. Notes that non-core resources represent an important supplement to the regular resource base of the United Nations development system to support operational activities for development, thus contributing to an increase in total resources, while recognizing that non-core resources are not a substitute for core resources and that unearmarked contributions are vital for the coherence and harmonization of the operational activities for development; 21. Also notes , in this regard, that the increased use of restrictively earmarked non-core resources reduces the influence of the governing bodies and can lead to the fragmentation of operational activities for development of the United Nations system and can thus constrain their effectiveness; 22. Recognizes the establishment of thematic trust funds, multi-donor trust funds and other voluntary non-earmarked funding mechanisms linked to organization-specific funding frameworks and strategies established by the respective governing bodies as funding modalities complementary to regular budgets; 23. Requests the United Nations funds and programmes, and urges the specialized agencies to avoid using core/regular resources to cover costs related to the management of extrabudgetary funds and their programme activities; 24. Stresses that the mobilization and management of extrabudgetary resources should not adversely impact the quality of the delivery of the programme of work of the funds, programmes and specialized agencies of the United Nations development system; 25. Notes with concern that, based on assessed contributions, the regular budgets of many specialized agencies have been stagnating, and invites countries to 5

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consider increasing their contributions to the budgets of the specialized agencies in order to enable the United Nations development system to respond in a more comprehensive and effective manner to the demands of the United Nations development agenda; 26. Recognizes the urgent and specific needs of low-income countries, in particular the least developed countries, and stresses the need to continue to assist those countries, including through the existing institutions and funding mechanisms of the United Nations development system; 27. Also recognizes that middle-income developing countries still face significant challenges in the area of poverty eradication and that efforts to address those challenges should be supported in order to ensure that achievements made to date are sustained, including through support to the effective development of comprehensive cooperation policies; 28. Requests the Secretary-General, making use of existing capacities within the Secretariat and, if necessary, voluntary contributions: ( a ) To continue to broaden and improve the coverage, timeliness, reliability, quality and comparability of system-wide financial data, definitions and classifications for the financial reporting of operational activities for development of the United Nations system, in a coherent way; ( b ) To build a comprehensive, sustainable and consistent financial data and reporting system for the operational activities for development of all the relevant organizations and entities of the United Nations system; ( c ) To include, in this regard, in the report to be submitted to the Economic and Social Council in 2008 a concise assessment of progress made and a description of planned activities; ( d ) To invite Member States to contribute to the support of the work mentioned above; 29. Also requests the Secretary-General to undertake, in full consultation with Member States, measures: ( a ) To promote an adequate and expanding base of development assistance from the United Nations system, taking into account, inter alia, the development priorities of programme countries; ( b ) To promote the continuation of the upward trend in real contributions to operational activities for development to identify obstacles to the achievement of that goal and to make appropriate recommendations in this regard; ( c ) To promote the predictability and the multi-year pledging of funding for operational activities for development; ( d ) To promote an appropriate balance between core and non-core contributions; 30. Further requests the Secretary-General to submit a report, pursuant to paragraph 29 above, to the sixty-third session of the General Assembly; 31. Calls upon developed countries to ensure that information on their efforts to increase the volume of official development assistance is made available to the relevant United Nations intergovernmental bodies;

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32. Emphasizes that increasing financial contributions to the United Nations development system is key to achieving the internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals, and in this regard recognizes the mutually reinforcing links between increased effectiveness, efficiency and coherence of the United Nations development system, achieving concrete results in assisting developing countries to eradicate poverty and achieve sustained economic growth and sustainable development through operational activities for development and the overall resourcing of the United Nations development system; 33. Stresses the importance for the United Nations development system to improve strategic planning, while noting that results-based management, accountability and transparency of the United Nations development system are an integral part of sound management; 34. Emphasizes that funding of operational activities for development of the United Nations system should focus on long-term development challenges based on national development strategies; III Contribution of United Nations operational activities to national capacity development and development effectiveness A. Capacity-building and development

35. Recognizes that capacity development and ownership of national development strategies are essential for the achievement of the internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals, and calls upon United Nations organizations to provide further support to the efforts of developing countries to establish and/or maintain effective national institutions and to support the implementation and, as necessary, the devising of national strategies for capacity-building; 36. Stresses that capacity development is a core function of the United Nations development system, and in this regard requests the Secretary-General, in consultation with Member States, to take measures to ensure a coherent and coordinated approach by the United Nations development system in its support to capacity development efforts of programme countries; 37. Calls upon the United Nations development system to further support capacity-building and capacity development of developing countries, upon their request, to effectively coordinate and evaluate the impact of external development assistance in line with national development plans and priorities; 38. Requests the United Nations development system to support the development of specific frameworks aimed at enabling programme countries, upon their request, to design, monitor and evaluate results in the development of their capacities to achieve national development goals and strategies; 39. Calls upon United Nations organizations to adopt measures that ensure sustainability in capacity-building activities, and reiterates that the United Nations development system should use, to the fullest extent possible, national execution and available national expertise and technologies as the norm in the implementation of operational activities by focusing on national structures and avoiding, wherever possible, the practice of establishing parallel implementation units outside of national and local institutions;

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40. Calls upon the United Nations development system to continue to strengthen national execution bearing in mind the importance of building national capacity, simplifying procedures and aligning them with national procedures; 41. Requests the United Nations development system to strengthen its procurement systems, guided by best practices, and to progressively rely on national systems for procurement; 42. Also requests the United Nations development system, in consultation with Member States, to create and report on a specific, measurable, achievable and time-bound results framework to measure capacity-building initiatives and activities of the United Nations development system in developing countries; 43. Encourages the funds, programmes and specialized agencies of the United Nations development system to intensify collaboration at the country and regional levels to achieve more effective use of their expertise, resources and actions towards strengthening national capacities, in accordance with national priorities and development plans, including through the common country assessment, when required, and the United Nations Development Assistance Framework; 44. Welcomes efforts and initiatives to enhance the quality of aid and to increase its impact, including the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness, and calls for concrete, effective and timely action in implementing all agreed commitments on aid effectiveness, with clear monitoring and deadlines; 45. Stresses that programme countries, in order to meet the internationally agreed development goals, including those contained in the Millennium Declaration, 1 should have access to new and emerging technologies, which requires technology transfer, technical cooperation and the building and nurturing of scientific and technological capacity to participate in the development and adaptation of these technologies to local conditions, and in this regard urges Member States and the United Nations system to support the promotion and transfer of new and emerging technologies to programme countries; 46. Requests the United Nations development system to strengthen its role in facilitating access of developing countries to new and emerging technologies; 47. Urges all organizations of the United Nations development system to intensify inter-agency sharing of information at the system-wide level on good practices and experiences gained, results achieved, benchmarks and indicators and monitoring and evaluation criteria concerning their capacity-building and capacity development activities; B. South-South cooperation and development of national capacities

48. Reaffirms the increased importance of South-South cooperation, and in this regard encourages the funds, programmes, specialized agencies and other entities of the United Nations system involved to mainstream support to SouthSouth cooperation and triangular cooperation to help developing countries, at their request and with their ownership and leadership, to develop capacities to maximize the benefits and impact of South-South cooperation and triangular cooperation in order to achieve their national goals, with special emphasis on internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals; 49. Calls upon donors and Member States in a position to do so to strengthen their support for South-South cooperation, including triangular cooperation, 8

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especially by mobilizing financial resources on a sustainable basis and by providing technical assistance; 50. Invites all Member States and the United Nations development system to actively participate in the High-level Committee on South-South Cooperation; 51. Requests the United Nations development system to intensify its information-sharing and reporting on support to and results achieved through SouthSouth cooperation, including triangular cooperation; 52. Stresses that further efforts are required to better understand the approaches and the potential of South-South cooperation to enhance development effectiveness, including through national capacity development; 53. Also stresses the importance of strengthening the Special Unit for SouthSouth Cooperation within the United Nations Development Programme, and calls upon the United Nations development system to provide the Special Unit with further support to enable it to fulfil its mandate; 54. Welcomes the fact that the Special Unit for South-South Cooperation continues to facilitate the wide diffusion of and access to information relating to experiences, best practices and potential partners in South-South cooperation on the Web of Information for Development, its electronic databank; 55. Invites Member States and the United Nations development system to celebrate the United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation in an appropriate manner; C. Gender equality and women’s empowerment

56. Reiterates its call upon the organizations of the United Nations development system, within their organizational mandates, to mainstream a gender perspective and to pursue gender equality and the empowerment of women in their country programmes, planning instruments and sector-wide programmes and to articulate specific country-level goals and targets in this field in accordance with national development strategies; 57. Encourages the governing bodies of United Nations agencies, funds and programmes to ensure that gender perspectives are integrated into all aspects of their monitoring functions in relation to policies and strategies, medium-term plans, multi-year funding frameworks and operational activities, including those relating to the implementation of the Millennium Declaration and the outcomes of major United Nations conferences and summits in the economic and social fields; 58. Takes note of the adoption by the United Nations System Chief Executives Board for Coordination of the United Nations system-wide policy on gender equality and the empowerment of women and strategy on gender mainstreaming, 7 and the efforts made by the Inter-Agency Network on Women and Gender Equality; 59. Calls upon the United Nations development system to consider the role of men and boys in gender mainstreaming policies; 60. Requests the United Nations development system to further enhance the effectiveness of gender specialist resources, gender focal points and gender theme _______________ 7

CEB/2006/2 and Corr.1, annex.

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groups, inter alia, by establishing clear mandates, ensuring adequate training, access to information and to adequate and stable resources and by increasing the support and participation of senior staff; 61. Calls upon the organizations of the United Nations development system, within their organizational mandates, to further improve their institutional accountability mechanisms and to include intergovernmentally agreed gender equality results and gender-sensitive indicators in their strategic frameworks; 62. Calls upon the United Nations development system to further improve qualitative and quantitative reporting on gender equality, including gender disaggregated data; 63. Requests the Secretary-General to ensure that the annual report of resident coordinators includes adequate and concise information on progress on the above; 64. Calls upon the United Nations development system to avail itself of the technical experience of the United Nations Development Fund for Women on gender issues; 65. Urges the organizations of the United Nations development system, in accordance with their respective mandates, to take a coherent and coordinated approach in their work on gender-related issues and to share good practices, tools and methodologies through appropriate means; 66. Calls upon the organizations of the United Nations development system to continue efforts to achieve gender balance in appointments within the United Nations system at the central, regional and country levels for positions that affect operational activities for development, including appointments of resident coordinators and other high-level posts, with due regard to representation of women from programme countries, in particular developing countries, and keeping in mind the principle of equitable geographic representation; D. Transition from relief to development

67. Stresses the need for transitional activities to be undertaken under national ownership, and requests the United Nations development system to contribute in this regard to the development of national capacities at all levels to manage the transition process; 68. Recognizes that the United Nations development system has a vital role to play in situations of transition from relief to development; 69. Requests the United Nations development system, upon the request of affected countries, to respond to countries affected by disasters or conflicts in transition from relief to development in support of national priorities, while recognizing the differences in these situations; 70. Also requests the United Nations development system, in responding to countries in transition from relief to development, to tailor support to countryspecific needs and to develop approaches in order to effectively provide support for early recovery, in accordance with national strategies, policies and requirements, while assisting in restoring or developing national capacity; 71. Requests the organizations of the United Nations development system to strengthen interdepartmental and inter-agency coordination in order to ensure an integrated, coherent and coordinated approach to assistance at the country level, 10

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which takes account of the complexity of challenges that countries in those circumstances face and the country-specific character of those challenges; 72. Also requests the organizations of the United Nations development system to support, at the request of national Governments of countries in transition from relief to development, national capacity-building efforts and to report on their initiatives and activities in annual reporting to their respective governing bodies; 73. Encourages the United Nations system and the Bretton Woods institutions to continue their efforts to improve coordination with regard to the transition from relief to development, including, where relevant, the development of joint responses for post-disaster and post-conflict need assessments, programme planning, implementation and monitoring, including funding mechanisms, to deliver more effective support and to lower transaction costs for countries in the transition from relief to development; 74. Requests the United Nations development system to take measures, in line with guidance provided by Member States, that further strengthen the coherence, relevance, effectiveness, efficiency and timeliness of operational activities of the United Nations development system in countries in transition from relief to development; 75. Notes, in this regard, the need for the United Nations development system to consider ways to improve the effectiveness of its resource mobilization for transition from relief to development; 76. Recognizes , in this regard, the important role that the effective and responsive resident coordinator/humanitarian coordinator systems can play in situations of transition from relief to development; 77. Calls upon the relevant United Nations entities to further increase efforts, where appropriate, with due consideration of national data, to harmonize data collection and information management during the transition phase from relief to development and to make that information available to the Member State concerned; 78. Requests the United Nations development system to build its support capacity for early recovery in situations from relief to development, while noting the role that the United Nations Development Programme can play in this regard; 79. Recognizes that the exchange of expertise and experiences among countries of the South enables countries in situations of transition from relief to development to benefit from the experiences of other developing countries, and encourages the further development of South-South cooperation modalities, including triangular cooperation modalities, in this regard, while recognizing the need to adapt experiences to national contexts; 80. Invites the United Nations development system to take into account in its assistance to countries emerging from conflict that are on the agenda of the Peacebuilding Commission, the advisory role that the Commission can play in relation to peacebuilding and recovery strategies, with a view to helping countries lay the foundation for their economic and social recovery and development and ensuring national ownership of the peacebuilding process; 81. Urges United Nations agencies and the donor community, in coordination with the national authorities, to begin planning the transition to development and taking measures supportive of that transition, such as institutional and capacitybuilding measures, from the beginning of the relief phase;

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82. Urges all donors and countries in a position to do so to consider more coordinated and flexible approaches to the funding of operational activities for development in situations of transition from relief to development, making use of multiple resource mobilization instruments, and stresses that contributions to humanitarian assistance should not be provided at the expense of development assistance and that sufficient resources for humanitarian assistance should be made available by the international community; 83. Stresses the need for adequate, predictable and timely funding of operational activities for development in countries in situations from relief to development, and calls upon donors and countries in a position to do so to provide timely, predictable and sustained financial contributions for the operational activities of the United Nations system for early recovery and long-term development for countries in transition from relief to development; 84. Requests the resident coordinator system and the United Nations country teams, at the request of national Governments and in coordination with them, to promote the inclusion of prevention strategies in national development plans, bearing in mind the importance of national ownership and capacity-building at all levels; 85. Encourages Member States and relevant United Nations organizations to integrate disaster risk reduction into their respective activities, including measures aimed at restoring and improving services and infrastructure as part of the early recovery and transition phase; IV Improved functioning of the United Nations development system A. Coherence, effectiveness and relevance

86. Underscores that the ownership, leadership and full participation of national authorities in the preparation and development of all planning and programming documents of the United Nations development system, including the common country assessment and the United Nations Development Assistance Framework, are key to guaranteeing that they respond to the national development plans and strategies, and requests the United Nations development system to use the Framework and its results matrix, where applicable and with the agreement of the programme country, as the common programming tool for country-level contributions of the funds and programmes towards the achievement of the internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals, to be fully endorsed and countersigned by the national authorities; 87. Recalls the potential of the United Nations Development Assistance Framework and its results matrix as the collective, coherent and integrated programming and monitoring framework for the operations of the United Nations development system at the country level, bringing increased opportunities for joint initiatives, including joint programming, and urges the United Nations development system to fully utilize such opportunities in the interest of enhancing aid efficiency and aid effectiveness; 88. Emphasizes , in this regard, that planning and programming frameworks of operational activities for development of the United Nations system, including the United Nations Development Assistance Framework, need to be fully aligned with national development planning cycles, whenever possible, and that they should make use of and strengthen national capacities and mechanisms; 12

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89. Underscores the fact that the resident coordinator system is owned by the United Nations development system as a whole, and that its functioning should be participatory, collegial and accountable; 90. Recognizes the central role of resident coordinators in making possible the coordination of United Nations operational activities for development at the country level to improve the effectiveness of their response to the national development priorities of programme countries, including through appropriate resources and accountability; 91. Reaffirms that the resident coordinator system, within the framework of national ownership, has a key role to play in the effective and efficient functioning of the United Nations system at the country level, including in the formulation of the common country assessment and the United Nations Development Assistance Framework, and is a key instrument for the efficient and effective coordination of the operational activities for development of the United Nations system; 92. Urges the United Nations development system to provide further financial, technical and organizational support for the resident coordinator system, and requests the Secretary-General, in consultation with the members of the United Nations Development Group, to ensure that resident coordinators have the necessary resources to fulfil their role effectively; 93. Notes that coordination activities, while beneficial, represent transaction costs that are borne by both programme countries and the organizations of the United Nations system, and requests the Secretary-General to report on an annual basis to the Economic and Social Council at its substantive session on the functioning of the resident coordinator system, including costs and benefits; 94. Encourages efforts by the United Nations development system to improve the selection and training process of resident coordinators, and requests the Secretary-General to report on this subject to the Economic and Social Council at its substantive session in 2009; 95. Also encourages the use of advanced information and communications technologies, including knowledge management, that will facilitate the contribution of United Nations funds, programmes and specialized agencies, including non resident agencies, to the United Nations Development Assistance Framework and other planning frameworks and mechanisms, as well as overall information-sharing; 96. Underscores that the resident coordinator, supported by the United Nations country team, should report to national authorities on progress made against results agreed in the United Nations Development Assistance Framework; 97. Also underscores the importance of ensuring that the strategic plans of funds and programmes are consistent with and guided by the comprehensive policy review, which establishes the main intergovernmentally agreed parameters of the operational activities for development of the United Nations system; 98. Requests the Secretary-General, in this regard, to report to the General Assembly on the implications of aligning the strategic planning cycles of the United Nations funds and programmes with the comprehensive policy review and to provide recommendations on changing the comprehensive policy review from a three-year to a four-year cycle, in order for the Assembly to make a well-informed decision during its sixty-third session; 99. Welcomes the efforts made by the United Nations development system in the use of the common country assessment and the United Nations Development 13

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Assistance Framework and the alignment of the Framework cycle with national planning processes and frameworks in an increasing number of countries, and notes the efforts made to improve coherence, coordination and harmonization in the United Nations development system, including at the country level; 100. Invites the United Nations system and the Bretton Woods institutions to explore further ways to enhance cooperation, collaboration and coordination, including through the greater harmonization of strategic frameworks, instruments, modalities and partnership arrangements, in full accordance with the priorities of the recipient Governments, and in this regard emphasizes the importance of ensuring, under the leadership of national authorities, greater consistency between the strategic frameworks developed by the United Nations agencies, funds and programmes and the Bretton Woods institutions, while maintaining the institutional integrity and organizational mandates of each organization and the national poverty reduction strategies, including poverty reduction strategy papers, where they exist; 101. Emphasizes that programme countries should have access to and benefit from the full range of mandates and resources of the United Nations development system, whereby the national Governments should determine which resident and non-resident United Nations organizations will best respond to specific needs and priorities of the individual country, including in the case of non-resident agencies, through hosting arrangements with resident organizations, as appropriate; 102. Calls upon the Secretary-General to improve the transparency and competitiveness of the recruitment processes for senior high-level posts in the United Nations development system in order to find the best candidates both inside and outside the United Nations system, and in this regard calls upon the chief executives of the United Nations specialized agencies, funds and programmes to fully cooperate with the Secretary-General, through the United Nations System Chief Executives Board for Coordination, in harmonizing recruitment processes for senior officials by 2009, making the selection criteria transparent and ensuring that, for candidates with equivalent competencies, gender and geographical balance are duly taken into account; 103. Encourages that the United Nations development system be invited to participate, ex officio, in current and new aid modalities and coordination mechanisms, at the request of the programme country, and invites the United Nations development system to enhance its participation in this regard; 104. Requests the Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme, in the exercise of responsibilities for the management of the resident coordinator system, which continues to be firmly anchored in the United Nations Development Programme: ( a ) To establish appropriate mechanisms to ensure that the cost of the resident coordinator system does not reduce resources that are destined for development programmes in programme countries; ( b ) To ensure, where possible, that cost savings, as a result of joint efforts and coordination, will accrue to development programmes; 105. Recalls the mandate of the United Nations Development Programme, within the existing programming arrangement, to appoint country directors to run its core activities, including fund-raising, so as to assure that resident coordinators are fully available for their tasks;

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B.

Regional dimensions

106. Recognizes the contribution of interregional, regional and subregional cooperation to addressing development challenges related to the achievement of the internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals; 107. Encourages , in this regard, the United Nations development system to strengthen collaboration with regional and subregional intergovernmental organizations and regional banks, as appropriate and consistent with their respective mandates; 108. Requests the United Nations regional commissions to further develop their analytical capacities to support country-level development initiatives at the request of the programme countries, and to support measures for more intensive inter-agency collaboration at the regional and subregional levels; 109. Recognizes , in regard to the functioning of the United Nations development system, the importance of aligning regional technical support structures and the regional bureaux to provide support to the United Nations country teams, including enhanced technical, programme and administrative support, increasing their collaboration at the regional level, including through co-location, where appropriate and consistent with the needs of the programme countries of the regions concerned, and identifying appropriate mechanisms at the subregional level, where appropriate and in close consultation with the programme countries concerned, to respond to specific challenges that cannot be adequately responded to at the regional hubs; 110. Requests the funds, programmes and specialized agencies and other entities of the United Nations development system at the regional level and the regional commissions to further strengthen cooperation and coordination among each other at the regional level and with their respective headquarters, inter alia, through closer cooperation within the resident coordinator system and in close consultation with Governments of the countries concerned and, where appropriate, to include the funds, programmes and specialized agencies that are not represented at the regional level; 111. Calls upon the organizations of the United Nations development system, its regional commissions and other regional and subregional entities, as appropriate and consistent with their mandates, to intensify their cooperation and to adopt more collaborative approaches to support country-level development initiatives at the request of recipient countries, in particular through closer collaboration within the resident coordinator system and by improving mechanisms for access to the technical capacities of the United Nations system at the regional and subregional levels; C. Transaction costs and efficiency

112. Requests the executive boards and governing bodies of the United Nations funds, programmes and specialized agencies to assess the progress achieved, including costs and benefits, in the area of simplification and harmonization of the United Nations development system at the global, regional and country levels, analyse the potential impacts on development programming and report to the Economic and Social Council at its substantive session on an annual basis;

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113. Calls upon the United Nations funds, programmes and specialized agencies to continue to harmonize and simplify their rules and procedures, wherever this can lead to a significant reduction in the administrative and procedural burden on the organizations and national partners, bearing in mind the special circumstances of programme countries, and to enhance the efficiency, accountability and transparency of the United Nations development system; 114. Also calls upon the United Nations funds, programmes and specialized agencies to ensure, to the extent possible, that savings resulting from reductions in transaction and overhead costs accrue to development programmes in programme countries; 115. Recognizes that the growth of non-core/supplementary/extrabudgetary funding and of the number of associated projects increases transaction costs and is an important factor that can hinder efforts to maximize efficiency of the United Nations development system; 116. Requests the executive boards of the United Nations funds, programmes and specialized agencies to review the issue of cost recovery to ensure that core resources do not subsidize the projects undertaken through non-core/supplementary/ extrabudgetary funding; 117. Requests the United Nations development system to further standardize and harmonize the concepts, practices and cost classifications related to transaction cost and cost recovery, while maintaining the principle of full cost recovery in the administration of all non-core/supplementary/extrabudgetary contributions, including in joint programmes; 118. Encourages the United Nations funds, programmes and specialized agencies, as appropriate and in consultation with programme countries, to further lower transaction costs, to conduct missions, analytical work and evaluations at the country level jointly, to provide their capacity development support through coordinated programmes consistent with the requests of programme countries and national priorities and to promote joint training and sharing of lessons learned; 119. Encourages the United Nations development system to make increased use of national public and private systems for support services, including for procurement, security, information technology, telecommunications, travel and banking, as well as, when appropriate, for planning, reporting and evaluation, and also encourages the United Nations development system to avoid and significantly reduce the number of its parallel project implementation units in programme countries as a means of strengthening national capacities and reducing transaction costs; 120. Encourages the funds, programmes and specialized agencies of the United Nations system to step up their efforts, in consultation with national Governments of programme countries and in accordance with their development needs and priorities, to rationalize their country presence through common premises, co-location and, where appropriate, to implement the joint office model and expand common shared support services and business units, in order to reduce United Nations overhead and transaction costs for national Governments; 121. Encourages the continuing development of harmonized approaches such as the adoption of the International Public Sector Accounting Standards, the standardization of audit definitions and ratings and the harmonized approach to cash transfers, calls upon the United Nations funds, programmes and specialized agencies to further harmonize and simplify their business practices, and recognizes the 16

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importance of harmonizing human resources management, enterprise resource planning systems, finance, administration, procurement, security, information technology, telecommunications, travel and banking, and of making use of information and communications technologies to the fullest extent possible in order to reduce travel costs and other recurring communications costs; 122. Requests the Secretary-General to submit to the Economic and Social Council, at its substantive session in 2008, a programme of work for the full implementation of the above-mentioned actions, to be completed before the end of 2010, including a specific, measurable, achievable and time -bound results framework, benchmarks, responsibilities and provisions to phase out redundant rules and procedures, as well as a timetable to monitor the progress made towards meeting these targets; D. Country-level capacity of the United Nations development system

123. Reiterates the need for the range and level of skills and expertise assembled by the United Nations system at the country level to be commensurate with that needed to deliver on the priorities specified in each country’s United Nations Development Assistance Framework or country programme documents, in line with the national development strategies and plans, including poverty reduction strategy papers, where they exist, and to correspond to the technical backstopping and capacity-building needs and requirements of developing countries; 124. Encourages the organizations of the United Nations development system to take all necessary measures in their human resources policies to ensure that United Nations staff involved in operational activities at the country level have the skills and expertise required for effective management, policy advisory and other capacity development work, in line with national development priorities and plans; 125. Stresses the need for the United Nations development system to adopt comprehensive policies and strategies for human resources and workforce planning and development, and in this regard requests the Secretary-General to prepare a report identifying human resources challenges within the development system at the country level and formulating recommendations for improvements; 126. Requests the Secretary-General, through the United Nations System Chief Executives Board for Coordination, to continue and intensify efforts related to inter-agency staff mobility, re-profiling and redeployment of staff, as well as training and skills upgrading, notably at the United Nations System Staff College at Turin, Italy; 127. Underscores the importance of the use of national professional staff and national consultants, wherever feasible and to the advantage of the programme countries; 128. Encourages the United Nations development system to further promote, develop and support knowledge management systems, so that programme countries can avail themselves of knowledge and expertise that is not readily accessible at the country level, including resources readily available at the regional level and from non-resident agencies; E. Evaluation of operational activities for development

129. Emphasizes that programme countries should have greater ownership and leadership in the evaluation of all forms of assistance, including that provided by the United Nations development system, and requests the United Nations development 17

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system to pursue and intensify its efforts to strengthen evaluation capacities in programme countries; 130. Notes the endorsement in 2005 of the norms and standards for evaluation by the United Nations system through the United Nations Evaluation Group, constituting a contribution to strengthening evaluation as a United Nations system function; 131. Requests the Secretary-General to continue to assess the effectiveness of the operational activities for development of the United Nations system, including, in particular, by assessing the effective use of all capacities available to provide a comprehensive and flexible response to the demand of developing countries for development support, and to report on the results of this assessment in the context of the next comprehensive policy review; 132. Recognizes the need to optimize the linking of evaluation to performance in the achievement of development goals, and encourages the United Nations development system to strengthen its evaluation activities, with particular focus on development results, including through the effective use of the results matrix of the United Nations Development Assistance Framework, the systematic use of monitoring and evaluation approaches at the system-wide level and the promotion of collaborative approaches to evaluation, including joint evaluations; 133. Emphasizes the importance of the independence and impartiality of the evaluation function within the United Nations system; 134. Reaffirms that the effectiveness of operational activities should be assessed by their impact on the poverty eradication efforts, economic growth and sustainable development of programme countries; 135. Recalls the need for country-level evaluations of the United Nations Development Assistance Framework at the end of the programming cycle, based on the results matrix of the Framework, with the full participation and leadership of the recipient Government; 136. Requests the United Nations development system to further develop guidance and oversight mechanisms for the funding, planning and implementation of the monitoring and evaluation of United Nations Development Assistance Frameworks, with a view to assessing their contribution to national development and the achievement of the internationally agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals; 137. Encourages all United Nations organizations involved in operational activities for development that have not already done so to adopt, as appropriate, monitoring and evaluation policies that are in line with system-wide norms and standards and to make the necessary financial and institutional arrangements for the creation and/or strengthening of independent, credible and useful evaluation functions within each organization; 138. Encourages the United Nations development system to further strengthen evaluation, with the agreement of the governing bodies of the funds, programmes and agencies, and in this regard encourages the United Nations development system to continue efforts to strengthen evaluation across the system and to promote a culture of evaluation; 139. Notes the voluntary efforts to improve coherence, coordination and harmonization in the United Nations development system, including at the request of some “programme country pilot”; encourages the Secretary-General to support 18

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“programme country pilot” countries to evaluate and exchange their experiences, with the support of the United Nations Evaluation Group; and emphasizes, in addition, the need for an independent evaluation of lessons learned from such efforts, for consideration by Member States, without prejudice to a future intergovernmental decision; V Follow-up 140. Reaffirms that the governing bodies of the funds, programmes and specialized agencies of the United Nations development system should take appropriate actions for the full implementation of the present resolution, in line with paragraphs 91 and 92 of resolution 56/201; 141. Requests the Secretary-General, after consultation with the funds, programmes and specialized agencies of the United Nations system, to submit a report to the Economic and Social Council, at its substantive session of 2008, on an appropriate management process, containing clear guidelines, targets, benchmarks and time frames for the full implementation of the present resolution, that defines results to be achieved through the implementation of the present resolution in a format that will allow for adequate monitoring and evaluation of these results, and interdepartmental and inter-agency measures that need to be set in motion, for the implementation of the present resolution; 142. Also requests the Secretary-General, on the basis of information provided by the funds, programmes and specialized agencies of the United Nations development system, to submit to the Economic and Social Council, at its substantive sessions of 2009 and 2010, detailed reports on results achieved and measures and processes implemented in follow-up to the present resolution on the triennial comprehensive policy review in order to evaluate the implementation of the resolution, with a view to ensuring its full implementation; 143. Further requests the Secretary-General to submit to the General Assembly at its sixty-fifth session, through the Economic and Social Council, a comprehensive analysis of the implementation of the present resolution in the context of the triennial comprehensive policy review, inter alia, by making use of relevant documentation, and to make appropriate recommendations. 78th plenary meeting 19 December 2007

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REGIONAL COMMITTEE Sixty-first Session SEARO, New Delhi 8–11 September 2008

Provisional Agenda item 16 SEA/RC61/14 17 July 2008

UN REFORM PROCESS AND HEALTH PARTNERSHIPS: PROGRESS AND DEVELOPMENTS The WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia deliberated and provided guidance on the subject of WHO and Reforms of the UN System during its Sixtieth session, held in Bhutan in 2007. This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the developments that have occurred since. It focuses on: • • • the ongoing inter-governmental negotiation on the Report of the UN SecretaryGeneral’s High Level Panel on UN System-wide Coherence: “Delivering as One”. the triennial comprehensive policy review of operational activities for development of the UN system 2007 and the UN General Assembly resolution 62/208 on the review. the developments observed at global, regional and country levels including the integration of UN Development Group under the Chief Executives Board and its restructuring; changes in regional UN coordination; lessons from “Delivering as One” pilot initiative; and emergence of the “New UNDAF” for 2008 and 2009.

The paper also presents WHO’s role in the harmonization and alignment of development activities, as well as the approch the Organization is taking towards health partnerships. The Meeting of the Advisory Committee (ACM) reviewed the paper and made the following recommendations: Action by Member States • To individually and collectively analyse how best they can move ahead for better coordination of external development partners and UN reform based on lessons learnt from other regions and countries.

Action by WHO/SEARO • To continue cooperating in UN reform in line with WHO’s global policy to maximize the benefit for the health sector while maintaining its identity as a specialized agency for health; to conduct and present an analysis to assist Member States’ engagement in UN reform; to use the Country Cooperation Strategy as WHO’s contribution to UNDAF; to provide appropriate technical support to Member countries when necessary in elaborating/defining UNDAF; to provide training to increase capacity in harmonization and alignment to Member countries, WHO country teams and partners; and to report updated information to the Regional Committee based on the outcome of the ongoing process.

The paper is now submitted to the Sixty-first Session of the Regional Committee for its consideration.

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1. At the sixtieth session of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia the report on “WHO and Reforms of the UN System: Impact at Country Level”1 was presented with highlights of recent developments at the UN; the policy direction WHO was taking and the activities and initiatives undertaken to support Member States in this regards. The Committee provided guidance and emphasized the need for a continuing dialogue and information exchange. 2. The paper provided a comprehensive analysis of the developments that have occurred since and includes WHO’s experience in the UN reform process. It also presents WHO’s role in harmonization and alignment of development activities and health partnerships.

UN reform: progress and developments 3. The drive for UN reform that dominated the international debate on multilateral relations since 1995 reached its peak with the release of the Report of the UN Secretary-General’s High Level Panel on UN System-wide Coherence (HLP-SWC) in the Areas of Development, Humanitarian Assistance, and the Environment; “Delivering as One” in November 2006. The HLP-SWC made 48 recommendations that were later grouped into eight thematic categories; (1) Delivering as One at Country Level; (2) Human Rights; (3) Funding; (4) Environment; (5) Governance and Institutional Reform, (6) Humanitarian Issues and Recovery; (7) Gender; and (8) Business Practices. 4. The UN Secretary-General submitted the report with his recommendations to the General Assembly in April, 20072 and the Assembly has continued to debate its contents. Although some consensus has been reached on some recommendations, no resolution is expected until a single decision on all issues is reached, as the bases of the negotiations were that “nothing is agreed until everything is agreed”3. 5. While debate has continued on the HLP-SWC report, the focus of UN reforms has shifted towards the Triennial comprehensive policy review of operational activities for development of the United Nations system (TCPR). The UN General Assembly (UN GA) deliberated on TCPR 2007 and adopted Resolution 62/208 on the TCPR in November 2007 after a debate at the High-level Segment of ECOSOC in July 2007, where a sharp divide between the Non-Aligned Movement, G77 plus China and a group of developed nations was observed. 6. Resolution 62/2084 is seen as the reaffirmation of the TCPR as the primary tool through which the UN GA establishes key system-wide policy orientations for development cooperation at country-level. It also provides a solid and sufficient inter-governmental mandate for the work to be carried out particularly in the areas of funding; capacity building; South-South

1 2

Documents SEA/RC60/14 and SEA/RC60/27 Report of the High-level Panel on United Nations System-wide Coherence in the areas of development, humanitarian assistance and the environment (UN GA document A/61/583) and Report of the Secretary-General on the Recommendations Contained in the Report (UN GA document A/61/836) See information document “Status of negotiation on the recommendations contained in the HLP-SWC report” See information document “Gist of the TCPR - 2007 and UN GA Resolution 62/208”

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Cooperation; gender equality and women’s empowerment; transition from relief to development; coherence, effectiveness and relevance (including the UN Resident Coordinator (RC) System); regional dimensions; transaction costs and efficiency; country-level capacity; and evaluation. 7. While negotiations are continuing at the inter-governmental level, the following developments are observed at the global level: • the UN Development Group (UNDG) is now integrated in the Chief Executives Board (CEB) structure as a third pillar focussing on country-level operations along with its other two pillars; the High-Level Committee on Programmes (HLCP) and on Management (HLCM). the UNDG’s Working Groups were reduced from 19 to 5 – these now deal with: (1) Resident Coordinator System Issues; (2) Joint Funding Mechanisms, Financial and Audit Issues; (3) Country Office Business Operations; (4) Post Crisis/Transition Issues; and (5) Programming Issues. the leadership of UNDG would include, in addition to the UNDP administrator as chair, a Vice-Chair from one of the Specialized Agencies. The UNDG ExCom that comprised of UNDP, UNICEF, WFP and UNFPA, will be replaced by an Advisory Group, composed of permanent and rotational members, which would be a more broadly representative group to provide advice, not a decision-making group, as the UNDG decisions would be made either by the full UNDG on technical issues or the CEB on policy issues. the Development Group Office (DGO) was renamed the Development Operation Coordination Office (DOCO). It is tasked to help the Working Groups set terms of reference and workplans as well as providing technical support to the UNDG and to country level coordination through the RC System.

•

•

•

8.

Developments at the regional level include: • the difference in the geographical coverage, and organizational arrangement and structure of UN regional entities was highlighted as a major challenge. The UN has taken a dual approach to strengthen collaboration at the regional level; through the UN regional commissions and through the Regional Director Teams (RDT). The two approaches have the potential for complementing as well as competing against each other. the RDT, that used to be exclusively for Regional Directors of ExCom agencies, is being further expanded to include most entities that have members on the UNCTs. One of the tasks assigned to the RDT is to conduct performance assessments for all RCs.

•

9.

Developments at the country level include: • the “Delivering as One” or the “One UN” pilot initiative in eight self-selected participating countries has continued with varied results. In these pilots, some of the critical lessons learned are; where government leadership and involvement is strong and the UN system is aligned with the national priorities, the UN Country Team (UNCT) is more effective and finds ways to draw on a wider range of UN assets; “joint

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programming” brings the UNCT to work as “One” and the critical remaining challenge is to translate this coherent effort into the implementation stage • It was agreed that there will not be any new “Delivering as One” pilots and the focus will be on ensuring that the lessons learnt from the eight pilots is disseminated and mainstreamed to all other countries as relevant. Evaluation of the eight “Delivering as One” pilots will be done between 2009 and 2011. The “New UNDAF” that would draw its direction from Resolution 62/208 and lessons from the eight pilots is seen by the UN GA as the way forward. The “New UNDAF” is planned to be conducted in 15 countries in 2008 and 20 during 2009. In the SouthEast Asia Region Bangladesh and Indonesia will have their UNDAF prepared in 2009. For countries who are motivated by the “Delivering as One” concept and would like to undertake some reform, the UN will encourage and support them to take forward the reform based on the “New UNDAF”. This category of countries are termed “Selfstarters”.

• •

•

10. WHO’s perspective • WHO is actively participating in the “Delivering as One” pilot initiative and this has helped it to increase its efficiency in programming and coordination. A pragmatic approach to legal and procedural aspects of the arrangements (staffing, finance…) has helped achieve the change. WHO has continued to support and cooperate with the UN RC System but WHO Representatives will continue to be responsible to the respective Regional Director and the Director General only. The Country Cooperation Strategy will continue to be WHO’s prime contribution to UN reform and to harmonization of operational development activities at country level. To reduce transaction costs, WHO has instituted various initiatives5. WHO’s regional geographical coverage, governance structure and organizational arrangement is unique among UN agencies. Any change proposed would pose a major challenge requiring constitutional amendment. Moreover, the right of Member States in the six Regions to elect their respective Regional Directors could be considered core to the Organizations’ unique strength. As directed by the Sixtieth Session of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia, officials from the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Foreign Affaires met at a “Regional Consultation on UN Reform, Health and Development” in Colombo, Sri Lanka, in December 2007. They recommended WHO to continue facilitating intersectoral dialogue on UN Reform; build capacity in Member States to facilitate engagement in UN reform; and consider organizing a high-level inter-ministerial meeting at decision-makers level.

•

•

• •

•

5

This includes adopting the International Public Accounting Standards, creating partnerships with WFP for use of their logistic support platform, recruiting associate/junior professional officers through UNDP and moving some of its administrative processes to low-cost, new global-centre. See WHA document A61/32:

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•

WHO is active in the UN Regional Coordination Mechanism (UNRCM-AP) convened by the Executive-Secretary of ESCAP. WHO also co-chairs the health thematic working groups with UNFPA and participates in the other working groups. It has also recently assigned an additional staff member for liaising with the ESCAP, UNRCM-AP and the Inter-Agency Coordination for humanitarian issues in the WHO Representative’s office in Bangkok. To strengthen regional collaboration among health agencies in the Asia and the Pacific, SEARO and WPRO have started regular high-level meetings at the level of Deputies to the Regional Directors with UNICEF and UNFPA.

Harmonization and alignment 11. If aid is to do as much good as it possibly can, it must be available in adequate amount to make a sustainable change; it must be used as effectively as possible; and it should be targeted to improve people’s lives. Recent initiatives within the international development community are urging partners to improve coordination, harmonize and reduce duplication of efforts, and help build up the capacities of countries to enable them to take charge of their own development process. 12. The international development community by signing or endorsing the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness has also made 56 partnership commitments organized around five key principles; ownership; alignment; harmonization; managing for results; and mutual accountability. These commitments are expected to make a significant difference because: • • • 7 6

they are more than statements of general principles and lay down a practical, actionorientated roadmap to improve the quality of aid and its impact on development; the 12 indicators of aid effectiveness were developed as a way of tracking and encouraging progress against the broader set of partnership commitments; and they promote a model of partnership that improves transparency and mutual accountability on the use of development resources.

13. Resolution WHA58.25 on the UN reform process and WHO’s role in harmonization of operational development activities at country level has made harmonization and alignment a priority for WHO. Some of the activities below show how it is taking forward this agenda. • WHO fully relies on country ownership and leadership for its development partnership with Member States as evidenced in its Country Cooperation Strategy (CCS), the Medium Term Strategic Plan (MTSP) and Programme Budget (PB). Moreover, these essential tools also ensure that it aligns itself with priorities identified by Member States; The CCS is also the pillar of WHO’s contribution to the harmonization of operational development activities among the UN partners at country level, through the UNDAF process;

•

6

Examples, United Nations reform process, the International Conference on Financing for Development, Monterrey (2002), the Rome Declaration on Harmonization (2003) and the Paris High-Level Forum on Harmonization, Alignment and Results (2005). Chapter 3 of the OECD-DAC Development Cooperation Report 2005 titled "Aid Effectiveness: Three Good Reasons Why the Paris Declaration Will Make a Difference" takes an in-depth look at these three reasons.

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•

WHO’s adoption of the International Public Accounting Standards, and its developing a Global Management System that can “talk” to other UN Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems will facilitate harmonization; As one of the first UN agencies to practice “Result-Based Management” for over eight years, WHO is also committed to managing for results.

•

14. Strengthening WHO country teams on harmonization and alignment has been echoed as a priority action for WHO in the context of its engagement in the follow-up to the Paris Declaration and to UN reforms. In a collaborative effort between HQ, AFRO and SEARO, “WHO Alignment and Harmonization Learning Toolkit for Country Teams” was developed and tested in three countries including Nepal in December 2007. The toolkit sets out basic concepts, discusses impact on health and implications for WHO, and is intended to foster specific skills and competencies required for more effective engagement in supporting countries further the principles of the Paris Declaration. 15. In connection with Harmonization and Alignment, the OECD-DAC is leading a Joint Venture on Monitoring the Paris Declaration and has conducted a baseline survey in 2006 covering 34 countries including Bangladesh, with complementary data from 60 donors. The second survey commenced in March 2008 and Bangladesh, Indonesia and Nepal from the South-East Asia Region have participated. The result is expected to inform the global debate on aid effectiveness and provide inputs to the Third High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness to take place in Accra, Ghana on 2-4 Sep. 2008.

Engagement in health partnerships 16. The recognition of health as a key element of development has contributed to the almost doubling of global resources for health between 2002 and 2005 alone. At the same time, the diversity and number of health actors has also increased significantly with the emergence of the private and non-state actors as major players in development assistance for health. The number of health partnerships has increased steadily over the past decade and several of these health partnerships also control significant amount of resources. 17. WHO is involved in nearly 100 partnerships which vary in their functions and missions, roles and focus as well as in their governance and organizational structure. At the 122nd and 123rd Sessions of the WHO Executive Board the Secretariat presented its reports8 focusing on the analysis of these partnerships and the principles of involvement in partnerships. In response to the Board’s request, the Secretariat will submit draft policy guidelines to the 124th Session of the Board in January 2009. 18. The Secretariat’s reports highlighted that one of the major concerns for WHO is the increased demand for it to scale up the provision of technical support to countries in response to rapidly increasing partnership financing without support for the additional workload and costs incurred by WHO. To address this concern it had proposed a method of work that partnerships it involves in (1) to be guided by WHO’s technical norms and standards; (2) should not impose 8

WHO Executive Board documents; EB122/19: Partnerships; January 2008; and EB123/6: Global health partnerships: progress on developing draft policy guidelines for WHO’s involvement; April 2008.

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additional workloads on the Secretariat without provision of resources for the additional work involved; (3) roles should be clear, not duplicating or competing; (4) ensure adequate participation of stakeholders and encourage cross-sectoral relationships; (5) whenever private (commercial, for profit) companies are considered as potential partners, WHO’s guidelines on collaboration with the commercial sector must be followed; (6) the structure of the partnership should be determined by its focus and functions; and (7) partnership should have a selfmonitoring mechanism. 19. Currently the Regional Office for South-East Asia has working relations with a number of health partnerships (mostly Global). Although it is instrumental in the ongoing establishment of the Asia-Pacific Dengue Partnerships, it has not provided hosting arrangement for any regional or inter-regional partnerships yet. 20. International Health Partnership and Related Initiatives (IHP+): Realizing that the healthrelated MDG goals (MDG 4, 5 and 6) will not be achieved without a revised and streamlined approach, in line with the 2005 Paris Declaration, the IHP+9 was launched by WHO and partners. This partnership aims to accelerate action to scale up coverage and use of health services, and deliver improved outcomes against the health-related MDGs and universal access commitments through country-focused and country-led activities. The IHP+ is expected to result in (i) an increased focus of national health and AIDS strategies and plans on health-related MDGs; (ii) improved harmonization and alignment of aid; and (iii) long-term predictable financing. Nepal is being supported as one of the “first wave” of countries involved, in the IHP+. No country in the Region has yet joined the “second wave” of self-selecting countries for the IHP+.

Follow-up plans 21. Considering the substantial implication UN reform has on health and development globally, regionally and at the country level, it is important for Member States to be fully informed and be engaged. To this effect WHO will; facilitate access to relevant information in a timely manner; facilitate opportunities for Member States to interact and discuss in depth issues related to UN reform and health at all appropriate forums; and build national capacity to the extent possible for understanding, coordinating and coherently engaging on UN reform and health at all levels. 22. It is increasingly being realized and expected from both the CCS and the UNDAF processes to benefit significantly from informing each other. To ensure that the interaction is optimal, focused support will be provided to countries in the Region that would participate in the “New UNDAF” process in 2009. 23. To enable WHO country offices support the harmonization and alignment in health and development, over the current biennium, the interactive training using “WHO Alignment and Harmonization Learning Tool for Country Teams” will be conducted for all WHO offices in

9

Ten developing countries (including Nepal), WHO, the World Bank, the Global Fund, GAVI Alliance, UNFPA, UNAIDS, UNICEF, UNDP, EC, Australia, Canada, France, Finland, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden UK, the Gates Foundation and the African Development Bank are signatories to the “IHP global compact”.

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Region. Moreover, the training module is being adaptation for use by Member countries of the Region for national capacity building. 24. Provision of technical support to countries in their engagement with global health partnerships like the Global Fund and GAVI is one of the areas of work for SEARO. Hence, the draft policy guidelines to be presented to the Executive Board in January 2009 will impact on the work of WHO in the Region. Therefore efforts will be taken to be involved in the consultation that is leading to the preparation of the draft policy document. In this process, SEARO will fully inform and engage Member States. 25. Considering that IHP+ is a new and innovative partnership, efforts will be made to document in detail, to the extent possible, the lessons learnt and inform Member States.

Conclusion 26. UN reform remains a rapidly evolving issue and WHO is committed to the process. The recognition as indicated in the UN GA Resolution 62/208, UN reform at the country level needs to be led and owned by the country itself; that there is no “one size fits all” approach to development; and that improvement of coordination and coherence at the country level must be undertaken in a manner that recognizes the respective mandates, roles and unique expertise of all UN funds, programmes and specialized agencies has laid the roadmap for attaining improved efficiency for the UN at the country level. 27. Harmonization and alignment and, moreover, the overall principles of the Paris Declaration are powerful tools that Member States could use to achieve aid effectiveness. Efforts to build national capacity with skills for implementing the principles of the Paris Declaration and monitoring its indicators would be a valuable investment. From such investment, health will continue to benefit most. 28. The changing landscape of health partnerships provides opportunities and poses challenges to Member States and WHO. Gathering and disseminating information of developments related to partnerships; and learning from the global and country level engagements will be the tasks at hand. Studying the developments in the Region and developing a strategy and policy for regional engagement are also worth considering.

Action by the Advisory Committee 29. The Committee is invited to note the report and provide its comments, guidance and recommendations.