UN HIGH LEVEL PANEL ON SYSTEM-WIDE COHERENCE: U/S

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 000530

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NAIROBI FOR PERMREP

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAID EFIN ETRD KUNR AORC SENV UN
SUBJECT: UN HIGH LEVEL PANEL ON SYSTEM-WIDE COHERENCE: U/S
SHINER'S NEW YORK MEETINGS MARCH 13

REF: USUN 396


1. Summary: In New York consultations March 13, Under
Secretary Shiner surveyed the upcoming work of the UN

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Secretary General's High-Level Panel on UN System-wide

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Coherence in the Areas of Development, Humanitarian
Assistance, and Environment. The thirteen-member Panel --
mandated by the World Summit Outcome Document -- will begin
its tightly compressed work program in early April, with the
goal of completing its recommendations before the General
Assembly convenes in September. During these
pre-consultations, U/S Shiner met with the Panel's newly
formed Secretariat, as well as A/SYG Robert Orr, UNDP
Administrator Kemal Dervis, U/SYG Jan Egeland (Humanitarian
affairs),visiting UK Development Under Secretary Gareth
Thomas and Ambassador John Bolton. U/S Shiner's UN system
interlocutors were encouraged by the message of strong US
engagement in, and support for, this process. USG interest
in reforming the UN's development apparatus is high, but U/S
Shiner made it clear the USG had no predetermined outcome.
Because of the late start and fixed deadline, the Panel will
most likely face a race to completion, but key players
believe the task can be accomplished within the designated
timeline. Since so many parts of the UN system could be
affected by the recommendations, the Panel's work will face a
high level of scrutiny and aid recipients in particular will
monitor the results closely. End summary.


Panel Secretariat on Time Line and Objectives
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2. Meeting initially with the Panel Secretariat Director
Adnan Amin, U/S Shiner stressed the USG's intent to work
seriously and constructively on this project. The USG saw
important opportunities in this time of transformation to
move in the direction of ending poverty, and the UN had an
important role in this. It was important not to lose
momentum created by the 2005 World Summit. U/S Shiner
explained she would be in listening mode over the next weeks
and would be looking for gaps in assistance delivered by the
UN system and not just for the expected overlapping
functions. She was also looking for suggestions to rejuvenate
existing organizations as opposed to building new structures.
Amin noted that the new Panel had generated a lot of
conjecture. The high level of the panel members was
particularly important, with three serving prime ministers on
it. The critical element in the Panel's work was the ongoing
buy-in process by member states and the UN system. Previous
High-Level Panels had failed to achieve their objectives
because they lacked General Assembly buy-in, he noted.
Transparency was essential in this process.


3. U/S Shiner said she saw huge gaps in trade capacity
building within the entire development assistance spectrum.
This had to be addressed. China for example had lifted more
people out of poverty in recent years -- through trade --
than had ever been done before. Neither UNCTAD nor the World
Bank were doing this work, and even the USG's efforts were
still relatively modest. The US Millennium Challenge
Corporation was doing some innovative work and having good
results in what she termed the "tipping point" countries, but
much more needed to be done globally.


4. Explaining the time line of the Panel's work, Amin said
the initial meetings -- in a retreat format -- would be held
in the April 4-7 time frame in New York, including
consultations with member states. Then a group of Panel
members -- including U/S Shiner -- would attend the UN Chief
Executive Board meetings in Madrid April 7-8. U/S Shiner
asked about the Panel's work in the environmental area (this
is Amin's primary area of expertise). Amin said there was no
consensus on expanding the UN's role in this area, even
though the Europeans desired to emphasize it. Many developing
countries and the US opposed this view, he believed.
Assistance funding in the environmental sector goes primarily
to areas of quick wins, but large gaps remain in the
worldwide effort.


5. Amin noted a loss of focus in the UN system, and said UN
specialized agencies were almost independent of the center.
Amin explained that "coordination within the system" had
almost become a derogatory term. He held up the example of
UNICEF's efficiency, both operationally and in terms of
mobilizing financial support. He said UNICEF could prosper as
a private entity. U/S Shiner said the USG believed the most
effective actors in the UN system should retain their
operational flexibility and so was not seeking massive


changes there. On the humanitarian side, the USG is
interested in results, and has no plan to recast the
structures if those in place are effective. Furthermore, the
US Congress sees a "development marketplace," and wants to
fund the most effective organizations, whenever possible.
She recalled that the USG was funding development assistance
now, so that in the long run we could attain our global
development objectives and shift funding to other areas.


Assistant Secretary General Orr on System-Wide Coherence
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6. Assistant Secretary General for Policy Planning Robert
Orr welcomed U/S Shiner and explained that his
responsibilities do not directly address those that are the
focus of the SYG Panel, but do address matters related to the
other principal reform tracks - Mandate Review, Management
Reform and general substantive reforms, such as the
Peacebuilding Commission. He noted that the lack of
development coherence and other issues facing the UN stem
from a history which did not previously provide for
system-wide coordination, noting that before the present SYG,
the previous SYG convened meetings of the heads of the
various UN entities which remain subject to their own
governing boards. Orr referred to the difficulties in
getting the different pieces of the UN structure to
communicate with each other on matters of shared interest.
While acknowledging progress in getting the separate parts of
the UN to coordinate and communicate, he stressed that the
enormous growth in the UN's activities, particularly in the
field, have changed the character of the demands on the UN
and dramatically increased the need for further coordination
and communication. During the course of the discussion, Orr
referred to the Peacebuilding Commission as an example of an
emerging reform that, for the first time, will bring all of
the diverse stakeholders related to an initiative to the same
table to address the large complex mission of peacebuilding,
as an example of the kind of coordination and communication
-- both within the UN and among the other related
organizations -- necessary to deal with the complex problems
faced by the global community in the 21st century.


7. Orr emphasized the need also for a cultural shift in the
UN -- away from an attitude where a staff member focuses not
simply on his/her particular entity, but one that focuses
more on the staff member's identification with the UN
organization as a whole. He suggested that such a shift may
take considerable time and effort. In the same context, Orr
stressed that in promoting changes to UN management that will
enhance not only coordination but the effectiveness and
efficiency, care should be taken not to hold up to the rest
of the UN system the reputation of these other, favored
parts, such as UNICEF and WFP. Finally, Orr indicated that
the SYG Panel, while politically sensitive, could be
tremendously helpful in moving the UN in the right direction
in the area of development over the longer period.


8. U/S Shiner asked whether the UN should be considered the
center of gravity in the area of development or, indeed,
whether it should be in the development business at all. She
suggested that the UN must show adaptability to the mission
of our times. She referred to "best practices" and to UNICEF
and WFP as examples of entities that are seen as having
adapted to the mission of our times. Orr emphasized that
while agreeing on the need to adapt "best practices," this
should be done without specific reference to the particular
entity, such as UNICEF or WFP. Similarly, while recognizing
that the impetus for such best practices may come primarily
from the fact that these entities operate on voluntary
funding, care should be exercised in suggesting that this is
the only impetus and would be appropriate for other parts of
the UN. Finally, U/S Shiner asked about the possibility of
using UNCTAD as the focus within the UN system on trade
issues. Orr demurred, noting the very serious problems with
the way UNCTAD is presently organized and focused.


UNDP Administrator Dervis Suggests a Radical Approach
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9. UNDP Administrator Kemal Dervis met briefly with U/S
Shiner, and explained that he would be personally involved in
the Panel's work as an ex oficio member. The Panel's work
program was heavily compressed and the first weeks would be
critical, Dervis said. Because the results could turn out to
be extremely helpful to the entire UN system, he believed the
effort required would prove a good investment. He likened


the work to writing a new computer program when the old one
had too many add-ons to remain useful. Dervis argued the
Panel should take a radical approach, but cautioned that the
institutional structures required to support development
needed to be built for the long term.


10. U/S Shiner stressed the USG's desire to identify and
support the comparative advantage the UN system might have in
development. While the USG would be deeply involved in the
development business for the foreseeable future, the ultimate
objective was to succeed, and to the extent we could, leave
the field. The discussion then touched briefly on whether
the "middle income" countries around the world (Brazil and
Turkey were mentioned) were really making as much progress up
the development chain as expected and whether crime and
poverty might be partially obscured in these countries by
certain economic and social data, especially if there are
large variations in income distribution.


Humanitarian Affairs: U/SYG Jan Egeland Identifies Key Gaps
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11. Meeting with U/S Shiner, Under Secretary General for
Humanitarian Affairs Jan Egeland noted that some current
efforts in humanitarian reform might be of relevance to the
wider system. Egeland stressed that the Panel must be
realistic in what it recommends, possibly going for "five big
things" rather than taking on many elements of the system.
Egeland also stressed that the Panel should go for those that
are "enforceable." Egeland identified two major gaps in the
current UN system, which he thought would benefit from the
Panel's focus and analysis.

(a) Preparedness: The issue of preparedness links to many UN
agencies but lacks a formal "home" in the UN system.
Strengthening this area could have strong positive impact in
mitigating disasters and therefore reducing response demands
on the system. (Comment: This is an ongoing topic of
discussion within the UN, both where this activity should be
"housed" and how it links to the more operational elements of
the UN's work. End comment.)

(b) Transition: Egeland expressed that OCHA repeatedly
struggles with a lack of clarity within the international
system on the overall responsibility for coordination
following the initial emergency phase. There are generally
multiple actors for post-emergency reconstruction (IFIs,
affected governments, UNDP/UNDG) but no clear leadership and
often not much "deployable" capacity, leaving a void in
coordination. Egeland feels that the UN (through the
Resident Coordinator) must play a central role in
coordination during the transition phase, and that the IFIs
should focus on macro-economic issues. (Comment: Linked to
the lack of transition leadership is the issue of Resident
Coordinators (RCs) and Humanitarian Coordinators (HCs).
Egeland reported that nearly all RCs are automatically
dual-hatted as an HC when a disaster strikes. This points to
a current weakness in the system, that not many RCs --
generally career UNDP officers with little background in
emergency response -- have the skills or experience to be
effective HCs. There are attempts to address this by
widening the pool of potential HCs to include candidates from
other UN agencies and NGOs. However, there has been
resistance within UNDP in the past to having HCs from outside
the system. End comment.) Egeland noted that staff teams
deployed by OCHA support the HCs, but when the HC function
ends the RC does not benefit from a similar support team for
the post-emergency/transition phase. Egeland noted that this
gap is also a matter of donor coherence. Donors generally
fund humanitarian and transition activities from different
accounts, offices, etc, adding to the lack of coherence
within the UN system.


Ambassador Bolton: Panel may Generate Far-Reaching Changes
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12. Ambassador Bolton described the work of the Panel as
potentially very important insofar as it had the potential to
rationalize the UN's development activities. Its
recommendations would be taken seriously, he said. If the
myriad of UN specialized agencies, funds and humanitarian
programs could be made to work in efficient tandem, that
focus might be a kind of revolution in itself. On the other
hand, an agenda that simply seeks more funding would be
counterproductive. Those parties that unconditionally sought
more money for development, pursuant to a "right to


development," and who also strived to create a global UN
environmental agency, could push the Panel in the wrong
direction.


13. U/S Shiner responded that Washington cared deeply about
the work of the Panel, particularly because of the perception
that the UN had failed to help countries build the
infrastructure that would foster their own growth and
stimulate trade and investment. She said she would raise the
overarching question of how to create a modern "paradigm of
effectiveness" and to better define the mission of the UN.
The interconnectedness of American security and well-being
with that of the rest of world was indisputable, Shiner said.
The question remained, what is the UN poised to handle well,
and how can the UN empower countries, so that they can
graduate up the ladder of economic sufficiency and shrink the
number of those in need?


14. Ambassador Bolton suggested that, as the Panel looked at
such central questions and at UN structural issues, the U.S.
should insist on analyzing what entities performed well and
what enabled them to operate effectively. He suggested that
U/S Shiner try to meet with Catherine Bertini, former Under
Secretary-General for Management and Director of the World

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Food Program. Describing the UN as "a competitor in the
international marketplace for problem solving," Ambassador
Bolton said the USG needed to focus on the question of how
the UN could add value in this competitive arena, and to
resist efforts of others on the Panel, possibly led by the
EU, to coalesce around aid flows and a business-as-usual
restructuring agenda.


Meeting with Gareth Thomas: Donors Should Coordinate
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15. UK Permanent Under Secretary for International
Development (DFID),Gareth Thomas, asked to meet with U/S
Shiner while both were in New York. Thomas noted the
extremely compressed period of work for the Panel, but said
it represented the biggest opportunity to upgrade the UN
development machinery in 20 plus years. Thomas saw a number
of strong partners in place in various UN agencies, such as
Ann Veneman at UNICEF, and also saw good work coming together
on the humanitarian side with Jan Egeland's "cluster
approach." He argued that there could be a need to strike a
bargain with the G77 for real reform to proceed, requiring
more funding and greater authority within the UN system to
redeploy funds. Otherwise the G77 would see this Panel as
little more than another western "funds-cutting exercise."
Thomas noted it was critical to get UN agencies to improve
in-country coordination, citing the example of a shared
in-country UN platform in Cape Verde. He also thought it
would make sense for donor countries on the Panel to get
together early to plan a common strategy.


16. U/S Shiner noted the Panel could promote positive change
and could also help to rebuild US support for the UN itself
if it produced tangible results. She noted a gap in the area
of trade capacity building and wondered if the UN could play
a role in this. The USG wanted to see best practices from
one UN agency expand to others. Washington was most
interested, she said, in funding development mechanisms that
produced the best results. Efficiency also mattered, she
said, noting the Millennium Challenge Corporation was able to
deliver 97 percent of its funding to recipients through
focused and innovative management.


17. Thomas again asked for close coordination, and requested
any concept papers the USG might develop. He thought the most
immediate reform that could be adopted would be to develop UN
common country platforms in 40 or so countries over a
one-year period. But much thinking on long-term reform was
also needed. U/S Shiner noted the Panel has a good mix of
countries and experienced personnel and should be able to
make headway rapidly, as long as it had a clear vision that
was not the result of a lowest common denominator approach.


18. This cable has been cleared by U/S Shiner.





BOLTON