10-10-2005 - Statement to the Board of Auditors - Australian Permanent Mission to the United Nations

Australian Permanent Mission to the United Nations

New York

Permanent Mission address: 150 East 42 Street, Level 33, New York, New York 10017 - Telephone: 1 212 351 6600 - Fax: 1 212 351 6610

UNGA 60

10 October 2005

Item 121: Statement to the Board of Auditors

Fifth Committee

Delivered by Ms Jocelyn Kinnear, Advisor - Fifth Committee, Permanent Mission of Canada to the United Nations on behalf of Canada, Australia and New Zealand

Mr. Chairman,

I have the honour today to speak on behalf of Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. I would like to thank the Chair of the Board of Auditors for his introduction. We appreciate also the introductions by Mr. Saha on behalf of the ACABQ and Mr. Abelian for the Secretary General.

Our delegations would like to emphasize how much we value the work of the Board of Auditors and its role, and how important the Board is for improving management, transparency, and accountability in the various organizations. We appreciate the quality of the Board’s reports. We join others in regretting the serious delay in documentation which undermines our ability to put these reports to the best use.

Among the many issues detailed in the reports before us, there are a number of points we would like to underscore.

Mr. Chairman,

Australia, New Zealand and Canada endorse the assessments contained within the report of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions with regard to the Board of Auditors’ report on the financial statements of the United Nations High Commissioner on Refugees and to its report on the implementation of its recommendations relating to the biennium 2002-2003.

We welcome the Board’s recommendations to the United Nations High Commission on Refugees, particularly those aimed at improving the UNHCR’s management, including through enhanced definition of indicators and the evaluation process to strengthen to effectiveness of the Results-Based Management framework. Drawing on best practices from other bodies within and outside of the UN system can help to enhance further the effectiveness of management. We further encourage suggested measures to improve accounting practices and to render more accountable inter-agency arrangements for the transfer of funds.

We are pleased to note the progress that the UNHCR has made in regularizing project posts, and look forward to the completion of this task. We expect that the High Commissioner will make clear what residual authority he would require to use this mechanism, for example, to meet surge demands for posts. We share the concern expressed by the ACABQ about the lack of automation of human resource and administration processes.

We appreciate the Board’s review of the status of implementation of previous recommendations it has made to various bodies. This type of review serves as an extremely important tool in monitoring the development and strengthening of management practices. We therefore echo the suggestion by the ACABQ that additional analysis and clarity be provided in this regard, and welcome their recommendation that the Board also include a systematic analysis of the impact of the Board’s recommendations on all audited entities.

Concerning UNICEF, we note the comments made by the Board about the application of the special operations approach and the application of certain staff rules. CANZ remain committed to the common system of staff salaries and benefits. We recognize that organizations require flexibility to manage their staffing requirements efficiently and effectively, but this should be based on a shared understanding among member states that common system principles and standards will be applied.

Finally, Mr. Chairman,

It is the season to strengthen oversight. At the 59th session, we asked the Secretary General and the executive heads of funds and programmes to examine governance structures, principles, and accountability. The importance of such a review has been underscored by the strong message sent by world leaders at the Summit this year, emphasizing the need for effective governance, management, oversight and accountability, which act as a cornerstone for public confidence in the United Nations. We are thus at a crossroads to review of the quality and effectiveness of the UN’s oversight machinery, its capacity not only for financial audit but also to assess value-for-money. We are keen for further information on the status of this review, and for any plans that the Secretary General has to further develop the review in light of the Summit outcome. We urge the Secretary General to proceed with a comprehensive review in order to help the membership ensure that our governance and accountability arrangements, practices, and methods, correspond to current needs and good institutional practice.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.