Administrative and Budgetary Committee (Fifth Committee)
Overview Programme of work Fifth Committee of the General Assembly during the 56th session
Week of 29 October to 9 November 2001
During the week of 29 October to 2 November, the Committee held general discussion on the comprehensive review of the whole question of peacekeeping operations in all their aspects, under two agenda items, the programme budget for the biennium 2000-2001 and the administrative and budgetary aspects of the financing of the United Nations peacekeeping operations. The Committee has before it the statement of programme budget implications of draft resolution A/C.4/55/L.23 on the matter. The additional estimates proposed to implement the recommendations of the United Nations Panel on Peacekeeping Operations were $25.8 million, for which about 2.7 million was for the regular budget. The biennial full costs for the regular budget was in the amount of $3.7 million. The annual full cost for the support account was some $33.5 million. In his statement of programme budget implications, the Secretary-General requested 216 posts for the support account, of which 9 posts were for the regular budget. The Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions in its related report (A/56/478) recommended some $1.6 million for the regular budget and about $16.2 million for the support account. The ACABQ has also recommended approval of 7 additional posts under the regular budget and 122 additional posts under the Support account. Nineteen delegations participated in the general discussion. All supported the conclusions and recommendations of the UN Panel of Peacekeeping Operations, and strongly favoured that the budgetary decision of the Committee should reflect the political consensus reach in the Fourth Committee. This question is now in informal consultations.
The Committee also took up three issues under the item on Human resources Management, namely, the question of delegation of authority, the use of consultants and Young professionals. After two rounds of informal consultations, the Committee arrived at a draft proposal on each of them.
On 2 November, the Committee considered the item on Appointments to fill vacancies in subsidiary organs and other appointments, and recommended to the General Assembly, by acclamation, the appointment or reappointment of the following persons: 17 (a) Appointment of members of the Advisory Committee for Administrative and Budgetary questions (three year-term beginning 1 January 2002): M. Rajat Saha of India; Ms. Sun Minqin of China; Mr. Juichi Takahara of Japan; Ms. Nazareth A. Incera of Costa Rica; Mr. Michiel W.H. Crom of Netherlands; Mr. Nicholas Alan Thorne of the United Kingdom. 17 (b) Appointment of members of the Committee on Contributions (Three year term of office beginning 1 January 2002): Mr. Henry Siegfried Fox of Australia; Mr. Bernardo Griever of Uruguay; Mr. Hassan Mohammed Hassan of Nigeria; Mr. Eduardo Iglesias of Argentina; Mr. Omar Kadiri of Morocco and Mr. Eduardo Manuel de Fonseca Fernandes Ramos of Portugal. 17(c). Appointment of a member of the Board of Auditors ( for a six-year term of office beginning on 1 July 2002). The Chairman of the Commission on Audit of the Philippines. (d) Confirmation of the appointment of members of the Investment Committee (three-year term of office beginning 1 January 2002). M. Yves Oltramare of Switzerland; Mr. Emmanuel N. Omaboe of Ghana; and Mr. Jurgen Reimnitz of Germany, and 17 (f ) Appointment of members of the International Civil Service Commission (four-year term of office beginning 1 January 2002). Mr. Mario Bettati of France Mr. Joao Augusto de Medicis of Brazil; Ms. Lucretia Myers of the USA; Mr. Alexis Stephanou of Greece and Mr. Minoru Endo of Japan.
On 5 November, the Committee held its general discussion on the Note of the Secretary-General on the reformulated programme narratives for Section 8: Legal Affairs and section 27C: Human resources management, under the item proposed programme budget for the biennium 2002-2003. Both are now under consideration in informal consultations under the item on the proposed programme budget for the biennium 2002-2003.
Due to the general debate in the Plenary, the Committee did not hold any meetings – formal or informal – during the week 12 to 16 November 2001.
