The General Assembly,
Reaffirming its resolution 41/213 of 19 December 1986 and subsequent relevant resolutions,
Recalling section VI, paragraph 1, of its resolution 45/248 B of 21 December 1990, in which it reaffirmed that the Fifth Committee is the appropriate Main Committee of the General Assembly entrusted with responsibilities for administrative and budgetary matters,
Recalling also its resolutions 45/253 of 21 December 1990 on programme planning and 47/213 of 23 December 1992 on the proposed programme budget outline for the biennium 1994-1995,
1. Endorses the conclusions and recommendations of the Committee for Programme and Coordination on the proposed programme budget for the biennium 1994-1995 contained in the report on the work of the second part of its thirty-third session, without prejudice to the priorities established by the General Assembly;
2. Deplores the extraordinary and unacceptable delay in the submission of the proposed programme budget for the biennium 1994-1995 by the Secretary-General, which compelled the General Assembly and its subsidiary organs to conduct a review on the basis of incomplete and inadequately transparent proposals;
3. Stresses that the activities included in the proposed programme budget must be derived from the medium-term plan for the period 1992-1997, as adopted by the General Assembly in its resolutions 45/253 of 21 December 1990 and 47/214 of 23 December 1992, and other relevant intergovernmental decisions, and should be aimed at the full implementation of the mandates, policies and priorities previously established;
4. Reaffirms its resolution 47/213;
5. Requests the Secretary-General, taking into account paragraph 69 of the first report of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions on the proposed programme budget for the biennium 1994-1995, to present extrabudgetary resources, including backstopping activities, in the proposed programme budget for the biennium 1996-1997 so as to show, to the extent possible, objects of expenditure, as is done in respect of the regular budget;
6. Regrets that the provisions of section III of its resolution 47/212 B of 6 May 1993 have not been applied to the sections of the proposed programme budget for the biennium 1994-1995;
7. Stresses the need for full and comprehensive information regarding the costing parameters applied in the programme budget, including instructions to programme managers on the preparation of the budget, and requests the Secretary-General to ensure that the proposed programme budget for the biennium 1996-1997 contains a clear indication of all the cost elements, including inflation, exchange-rate fluctuations and others;
8. Requests the Board of Auditors, as part of its audit of financial systems during the audit of regular budget accounts, to review the development of assumptions used in the presentation of the programme budget and performance reports, with a view to suggesting improvements;
9. Requests the Secretary-General to present in future budget documents the actual regular budget and extrabudgetary expenditure by object of expenditure by section for the prior and current bienniums, with appropriate forecasts to the end of the current biennium, to enable comparison with the request contained in the proposed programme budget;
10. Also requests the Secretary-General to include every three months in his report on the status of contributions a summary financial statement;
11. Regrets that the Secretary-General has not responded to the requests contained in section II, paragraphs 8 to 10, of its resolution 47/212 B;
12. Reiterates its request that the Secretary-General review the role of United Nations Headquarters, centres, the regional commissions and entities in the field, in particular the centres at Vienna and Nairobi, with a view to improving the distribution of responsibilities among them on the basis of their relative advantages; submit proposals to reflect the status of the centre at Nairobi; and identify activities that would benefit from relocation to Vienna;
13. Urges the Secretary-General to submit adequate proposals in response to these requests at the earliest possible time, but no later than at the forty-ninth session of the General Assembly;
14. Reiterates its request that the Secretary-General review and develop procedures and norms, including workload analyses, to justify the creation, suppression, reclassification, conversion and redeployment of posts, as contained in section II, paragraph 2, of General Assembly resolution 46/185 B of 20 December 1991, and requests the Secretary-General to report thereon to the Assembly at its forty-ninth session;
15. Stresses that, whenever a post becomes vacant, a proper programmatic/workload justification will be needed for its retention, abolition or redeployment;
16. Requests the Secretary-General to submit proposals relating to activities that may have become obsolete with a view to reallocating resources to priority areas;
17. Reaffirms the need for a comprehensive, substantive and timely dialogue between Member States and the Secretary-General on administrative and budgetary matters;
18. Recalls its resolution 47/211 of 23 December 1992, in which it approved, inter alia, the recommendations of the Board of Auditors with regard to payment to supernumerary staff contained in its report, and requests the Secretary-General to comply no later than 1 July 1994 and to report to the General Assembly at its forty-ninth session on its implementation in the context of the agenda item entitled "Personnel questions";
19. Endorses the recommendations and observations regarding the vacancy management system and "vacancy pool" contained in paragraphs 17 to 20 of the report of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions, and, in this regard, reiterates the obligation of the Secretary-General to comply with financial regulation 4.5 and financial rule 104.4 relative to transfers of resources between appropriation sections;
20. Requests the Secretary-General to consider the desirability and practicability of creating a new budget section relating to resources for the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions and external oversight mechanisms, including the Board of Auditors and the Joint Inspection Unit, without prejudice to their existing mandates or their autonomy, bearing in mind subparagraph (b) of General Assembly decision 47/454 of 23 December 1992, and to report thereon to the Assembly at its forty-ninth session;
21. Also requests the Secretary-General to respect fully the rules and regulations governing programme planning in the presentation of future proposed programme budgets;
22. Decides to make the following changes in the programmatic narrative in the final published version of the proposed programme budget for the biennium 1994-1995:
(a) To replace the references to the report entitled "An Agenda for Peace" as a mandate with references to General Assembly resolutions 47/120 A and B of 18 December 1992 and 20 September 1993, respectively;
(b) In section 3C (Department of Political Affairs II):
(i) To include, in paragraph 3C.36, after the words "resolution 46/137 of 17 December 1991", a reference to paragraph 4.37 of the medium-term plan, as amended in the annex to Assembly resolution 47/214;
(ii) To reformulate paragraph 3C.37 to ensure that references to procedures for electoral assistance duly reflect the provisions adopted by the General Assembly and properly respect the agreed specific functions of the resident coordinators;
(c) To delete the reference to preventive diplomacy under section 3B (Department of Political Affairs I), programme 3, subprogramme 4;
(d) In section 21 (Human rights):
(i) To include reference to the Working Group on the Right to Development;
(ii) To insert the word "mandated" before each reference to fact-finding missions;
23. Requests the Secretary-General:
(a) To identify appropriate activities under section 9 (Department for Economic and Social Information and Policy Analysis) of the proposed programme budget, with a view to implementing General Assembly resolutions 44/215 of 22 December 1989 and 46/210 of 20 December 1991;
(b) To reformulate activities under section 9, programme 1, subprogramme 5, in order to reflect all the aspects of the pertinent resolutions, as well as the relevant mandates of programme 21 (Public administration and finance) of the medium-term plan, and to report thereon to the General Assembly at its forty-ninth session;
(c) To reformulate activities under section 10 (Department for Development Support and Management Services), programme 2, in accordance with the relevant mandates of programme 21 of the medium-term plan, and to report thereon to the General Assembly at its forty-ninth session;
(d) To transfer the responsibility related to the preparation of the reports on the new international humanitarian order from section 21 to section 23 (Department of Humanitarian Affairs);
24. Also requests the Secretary-General to strengthen the coordination between the Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Branch of the Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs of the Secretariat and the United Nations International Drug Control Programme, taking into account the role of the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Vienna and the observations contained in paragraph IV.51 of the report of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions;
1. Approves the comments and recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions as expressed in chapter I of its first report on the proposed programme budget for the biennium 1994-1995, and requests the Secretary-General to take the necessary measures;
2. Takes note of the statement made by the Secretary-General to the Fifth Committee on 24 November 1993 regarding the temporary suspension of recruitment of Professional staff introduced in 1992 and of paragraph 57 of the first report of the Advisory Committee;
3. Requests the Secretary-General to submit proposals to the General Assembly at its current session on the provision of and related arrangements for travel services and allowances, with a view to making more effective use of resources, taking into account the practices of Member States;
4. Decides that, until such time as posts have been reclassified according to prescribed internal procedures and approved by the General Assembly, no staff member encumbering a post under reclassification review shall be paid at the higher grade level;
5. Decides also that the total allocation for consultants and ad hoc experts shall be maintained at its total revised appropriation amount for the biennium 1992-1993, and requests the Secretary-General to take action to make the best use of those resources, taking into account the relevant recommendations of the Board of Auditors and paragraph 74 of the first report of the Advisory Committee;
6. Decides further to set the vacancy factor in respect of General Service staff at 0.8 per cent;
7. Approves, subject to the modifications below, the recommendations and observations of the Advisory Committee as expressed in chapter II of its first report on the proposed programme budget for the biennium 1994-1995 and requests the Secretary-General to take the necessary measures;
Section 1. Overall policy-making, direction and coordination
8. Accepts, in addition to the recommendations of the Advisory Committee on this section, the establishment of one D-1, two P-3 and two General Service posts on a temporary basis for the Executive Office of the Secretary-General, decides to review the staffing of this Office, and requests the Secretary-General to ensure that there is no duplication with the work of other Secretariat units;
9. Invites Member States to make voluntary contributions for the financing of activities related to the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations;
10. Requests the Secretary-General to clarify and review the distribution of responsibilities and liaison functions between the United Nations centres in Europe vis-a-vis organizations in Europe, taking into account all pertinent considerations and views expressed in the Fifth Committee;
11. Accepts the Secretary-General's proposals for an additional P-5 and an additional P-3 post for the Office of the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva on a temporary basis and decides to keep under review the staffing of the Office of the Director-General on the basis of a report to be submitted to the General Assembly at its forty-ninth session;
Section 3. Political affairs
12. Notes that the proposals of the Secretary-General for the merger of sections 3B and 3C of the proposed programme budget should release resources for redeployment within this section;
13. Accepts the proposal of the Secretary-General for the conversion of the post of Director of the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Asia and the Pacific from the date the Director is permanently located in the Centre at Kathmandu;
14. Also accepts the proposals of the Secretary-General for consultants and ad hoc expert groups for the Office of Disarmament Affairs;
Section 4. Peace-keeping operations and special missions
15. Takes note of the recommendation of the Advisory Committee in its report and the report of the Secretary-General on the support account for peace-keeping operations, and decides to consider the criteria for the scope and use of the support account for peace-keeping operations for headquarters support for peace-keeping operations at the earliest opportunity during its current session, and, pending the outcome of that review, authorizes the Secretary-General to continue current administrative arrangements concerning the Situation Room;
16. Decides to review, at its fiftieth session, the impact of the merger of the Field Operations Division into the Department of Peace-keeping Operations on the overall effectiveness of the Headquarters support system for peace-keeping operations and other field activities, on the basis of a report to be submitted on this matter;
Section 8. Department for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development
17. Accepts the proposals of the Secretary-General for full funding for the ad hoc secretariat on desertification for the biennium 1994-1995, subject to any expenditure in 1995 being mandated by the appropriate intergovernmental body;
18. Endorses provisional financing for the Non-Governmental Liaison Service through the United Nations regular budget in the amount proposed by the Secretary-General, on the understanding that such financing should not be used for salaries, travel and representation activities of the staffs of non-governmental organizations; in this regard, the Secretary-General shall require a report from the Non-Governmental Liaison Service on the use of this amount, which will be subject to audit by appropriate bodies;
19. Takes note of the proposal of the Secretary-General regarding the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s, and requests the Secretary-General to consider the creation of a new budget section relating to the New Agenda with recommendations for additional resources and to report thereon to the General Assembly at its resumed forty- eighth session;
20. Accepts the proposals of the Secretary-General for the World Summit for Social Development, the Fourth World Conference on Women and the Global Conference on Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States in the light of the recommendation of the Committee for Programme and Coordination in paragraph 90 of its report, and requests the Secretary-General to ensure that adequate services and resources are provided for those events;
Section 9. Department for Economic and Social Information and Policy Analysis
21. Accepts the proposals of the Secretary-General for resources for the preparation for and servicing of the International Conference on Population and Development;
22. Also accepts the level of resources recommended by the Advisory Committee and requests the Secretary-General to provide adequate posts for activities dealing with micro-economic issues through redeployment;
Section 10. Department for Development Support and Management Services
23. Accepts, on a provisional basis, the proposal of the Secretary- General for section 10 related to regular budget funding, and requests a review of his proposals in the light of relevant recommendations and decisions of the Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme and the recommendations of the Advisory Committee;
24. Requests the Secretary-General, in the context of paragraph 33 of the report of the Committee for Programme and Coordination, to review the activities, resources and institutional and organizational arrangements of the Department for Development Support and Management Services, including those related to natural resources, and to report thereon to the General Assembly at its forty-ninth session with proposals aimed at the most effective delivery of technical cooperation to developing countries;
Section 11A. United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
25. Calls upon the Secretary-General to ensure that the distribution of resources among the subprogrammes of section 11A properly reflects the priorities agreed at the eighth session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development at Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, taking into account the views of the Trade and Development Board, as well as the restructuring in the economic and social sectors;
26. Requests the Secretary-General to submit proposals for the implementation of section III, paragraph 4 (b), of its resolution 47/212 B in the context of his revised estimates for the biennium 1994-1995, and decides in the meantime to redeploy for activities relating to transnational corporations the temporary D-2 post proposed for abolition in paragraph 11A.57;
27. Accepts the proposal of the Secretary-General for resources for consultants and ad hoc expert groups as contained in paragraph 11A.159;
Section 11B. International Trade Centre UNCTAD/GATT
28. Reiterates its request in section I, paragraph 3 (b), of its resolution 47/212 B, for the prompt appointment of the Executive Director of the International Trade Centre UNCTAD/GATT;
Section 12B. United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat)
29. Reiterates its request in section I, paragraph 3 (c), of its resolution 47/212 B, and stresses the need for the Secretary-General to implement fully and promptly the decisions of the General Assembly contained therein;
30. Accepts the proposal of the Secretary-General for the staffing level for this budget section, as shown in staffing table 12B.3;
31. Requests the Secretary-General to assure the allocation of adequate resources for the preparatory activities for the United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II), to be held in 1996;
Section 15. Economic Commission for Africa
32. Requests the Secretary-General to keep the financial situation of the United Nations African Institute for the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders under active review and to submit proposals for any necessary additional funding for the Institute;
Section 21. Human rights
33. Accepts the proposals of the Secretary-General for the staffing resources for human rights activities;
34. Requests the Secretary-General to review the allocation of resources among the approved programmes in section 21 so as to ensure the most effective delivery of all mandated activities;
35. Takes note of the comments of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions in paragraph VI.2 of its report on section 21 of the proposed programme budget, in particular the issue of workload justification, and requests the Secretary-General to provide the information requested by the Advisory Committee for review by the General Assembly at its resumed forty-eighth session;
Section 22A. Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
36. Requests the Secretary-General and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to review the existing arrangements for regular budget and extrabudgetary funding for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, taking fully into account the increased demand upon the Office since 1989, and, if necessary, to submit proposals to the General Assembly at its forty-ninth session through the appropriate intergovernmental bodies;
Section 23. Department of Humanitarian Affairs
37. Accepts one additional D-1 post located at Geneva and one additional P-2 post located in New York, decides to increase the reduction proposed by the Advisory Committee in its report from three to five General Service posts, and requests the Secretary-General to keep the staffing needs of this section under review;
Section 24. Public information
38. Requests the Secretary-General to review the requirements of the Department of Public Information, taking into account its role, functioning and activities, with a view to making it more effective, more relevant and more cost-effective and enhancing its ability to respond to the mandates entrusted to it;
39. Also requests the Secretary-General to review the resources devoted to public information activities currently proposed outside section 24, to assess their use and to examine the viability and implications of their possible consolidation within that section;
Section 25. Administration and management
40. Requests the Secretary-General to study the management and organizational structure of the Department of Administration and Management, in particular the senior posts structure, and the possible consolidation of administrative functions in various units of the Secretariat, and to report thereon to the General Assembly at its forty-ninth session;
41. Also requests the Secretary-General, in the light of paragraph VIII.23 of the report of the Advisory Committee, to submit a report to the General Assembly at its resumed forty-eighth session giving justification for his proposals to abolish nineteen posts in the Office of Conference Services, describing carefully the impact of such proposals on activities of the Office and programme delivery, and to submit proposals in this regard;
42. Further requests the Secretary-General to submit to the General Assembly at its forty-ninth session a comprehensive study on the organization, management and human resources requirements for the provision of adequate conference services as a basis for the consideration of his proposals for the regular budget for the biennium 1996-1997, and to provide Member States with previous studies on this matter that were carried out during the biennium 1992-1993;
43. Notes that the proposed increase in the section for the Department of Administration and Management is not fully justified;
44. Also notes the growing imbalance between proposed expenditures for administrative matters and those for substantive issues;
45. Further notes the observation of the Committee for Programme and Coordination in paragraph 35 of its report that preference should be given to the redeployment of the proposed increase to the extent possible to priority areas;
Section 27. Special expenses
46. Expresses concern about the high costs of after-service health insurance and requests the Secretary-General to seek ways and means to reduce the increases in these costs;
Section 30. Construction, alteration, improvement and major maintenance
47. Accepts the recommendations of the Advisory Committee, and decides to reduce further, by 6 million United States dollars, the proposed estimates of the Secretary-General for alterations, improvements and major maintenance at major headquarters locations.
87th plenary meeting
23 December 1993
