EU Presidency Statement - The Joint Inspection Unit

Mr. Chairman,

I have the honor to speak on behalf of the European Union. The countries of Central and Eastern Europe associated with the European Union (Bulgaria, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia), the associated countries of Cyprus, Malta and Turkey and an EFTA country belonging to the European Economic Area (Norway), align themselves with this statement.

First of all, the European Union would like to thank the inspectors Sumihiro Kuyama, Fatih Bouayad-Agha, Francesco Mezzalama and Raul Quijano for their presentation. The European Union also thanks the Secretariat for its presentation of document A/56/135 on the implementation of the JIU recommendations.

Mr. Chairman,

May I make some general comments first of all.

The European Union regrets the late submission of Report A/56/356 on this subject and will use the informal sessions to discuss it.

It welcomes the introduction of a mechanism for the systematic follow-up of JIU recommendations, in accordance with Resolution 54/16.

It reiterates the importance of effective implementation of these recommendations by the organizations inspected. Like the JIU (A/56/34), it notes with regret how only a few of these organization's bodies have taken specific measures to follow them up.

Furthermore, the European Union reiterates its desire that the JIU's recommendations be as operational as possible, more geared to action.

As far as the JIU reports are concerned, it will ask the inspectors in informal session for clarification as to how discussions with the organizations concerned are progressing. It stresses that it may prove useful, in terms of efficiency and legibility, to include the comments by the institutions inspected in the body of reports so that a comprehensive text may be presented to the General Assembly.

Mr. Chairman,

The work programme for 2001 and beyond (A/56/84) is useful and is receiving our full attention. However, the European Union wonders about the way in which the JIU is coordinating this programme with the other supervisory bodies.

It would like this programme to be included within the JIU's field of competence, thereby avoiding duplication of the activities of the other supervisory bodies.

Mr. Chairman,

With regard to the report on private management consulting firms (A/54/702), the European Union praises the JIU's prudence in emphasizing the absence of contact with the firms which provided services to the organizations concerned, thereby indicating the incomplete character of the report.

Following the example of the Secretary-General's note, the European Union notes that some of the JIU's conclusions seems to be a generalization of some one-off impressions whereas others do not seem justified after an attentive reading of the report itself.

The European Union takes note of the recommendation that recourse should be had to internal or external supervisory bodies as an alternative source of free management expertise. It considers, however, that the provision of such services by those bodies should be made within certain limits as it could exceed the framework of their terms of reference and give rise to an additional cost equivalent to the resources they would have to mobilize or even recruit to adequately meet demand.

The European Union notes that the recommendation concerning the increased dissemination of invitations to tender via the press is likely to be ineffective in terms of cost and impact and suggests that recourse should instead be had to the Internet, which allows accessibility to all the management consulting firms, which could be considered for such services.

It supports the recommendations tending to extend cooperation and coordination between organizations with a view to sharing their evaluation of the services provided by private firms.

At the informal session, the European Union will ask the inspectors for their opinions concerning the generalization of a cost accounting system for all the products and services offered by certain horizontal UN departments and organizations and their "customers" within the system.

Finally, it points out that the choice of consulting firms must be made in accordance with the rules and regulations in force in the UN system, namely on the basis of the criterion of the highest quality service at the lowest cost, without regional or other preference.

Mr. Chairman,

By and large, the European Union approves the JIU's recommendations, the comments made by the Secretary-General and the Administrative Committee on Coordination and the ACABQ's recommendations on common services in Geneva (A/55/856 and Add.1).

It will ask the inspectors at the informal session for details on the Common Medical Service and the Common Purchasing Service.

The European Union endorses the JIU's recommendations on increased recourse by organizations in the system to common services with a view to reducing costs. It states that this objective must go hand in hand with obtaining high quality services.

Mr. Chairman,

The European Union approves the JIU's recommendations and the Secretary-General's comments on management of buildings (A/56/274 and Add.1).

It agrees with the Secretary-General's opinion on the relevance of a fund for repair and renovation expenses and on the desirability of carrying out a feasibility study in this connection, which takes account of the UN's financial regulation and financial management rules.

With regard to the master plan, the European Union considers that the professional skills required for supervising its implementation exist among the current staff and welcomes this fact. It emphasizes moreover the importance of the JIU's recommendations concerning management of premises with this plan in mind.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

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