UN BUDGET: FIFTH COMMITTEE APPROVES RESOLUTIONS

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 000911 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: AORC KUNR UNGA SUBJECT: UN BUDGET: FIFTH COMMITTEE APPROVES RESOLUTIONS RELATED TO THE PROGRAM BUDGET FOR 2006-2007 REF: A. SECSTATE 64713 ¶B. SECSTATE 49099 ¶C. USUN 774 ¶1. SUMMARY: The Fifth Committee, at its meetings on April 11 and April 24, adopted resolutions approving additional funding for special political missions, the Peacebuilding Support Office (reported septel),and the UN Capital Master Plan. In addition, the Committee adopted resolutions on the after-service health insurance program and harmonization of the conditions of travel throughout the UN system. As instructed in reftels A and B, USDel disassociated from the consensus on the resolution on the Capital Master Plan and joined consensus on financing for special political missions. The General Assembly is expected to adopt the Fifth Committee's recommendations during the week of May 8th, where the USDel will again disassociate from the consensus on the Capital Master Plan resolution. The Committee will revert to the Capital Master Plan during the second resumed session; please see action request in para. 5 END SUMMARY. SPECIAL POLITICAL MISSIONS -------------- -------------- ¶2. Per reftel B, USdel joined consensus on a financing resolution for Special Political Missions (SPM) for 2006. The Fifth Committee agreed to the ACABQ level of $302,469,500 for the financing of 29 SPMs in 2006, and provided for an additional charge of $202,469,500 in light of the previous charge of $100,000,000 approved in December 2005. In its resolution, the General Assembly highlighted the need for the Secretary-General to implement and report on synergies and SIPDIS complementarities among SPMs, so as to provide the most efficient and effective use of resources. The GA also called for the formulation and presentation of future budgets to be based on analysis of actual expenditure patterns, including vacancy situations and variances between appropriations and expenditures, for the purpose of achieving more realistic budgeting. ¶3. Other elements of the resolution included the approval of a P-4 post for a Political Affairs Officer in the Office of the Personal Representative of the SG for Lebanon (to be funded from within the level recommended by ACABQ and without additional appropriation). In response to the concerns of the Syrian Arab Republic with respect to the indicators of achievement used in the budget formulation related to the mandate of Security Council resolution 1559, the Committee agreed to include existing language previously approved with respect to the formulation and implementation of results based budgeting. The inclusion of the language in the text of the resolution makes no link to Security Council resolution 1559 or any other special political mission in particular. UN CAPITAL MASTER PLAN -------------- -------------- ¶4. Per reftel A, USDel disassociated from the consensus on the resolution for the Capital Master Plan (CMP). The resolution appropriated $23.5 million to complete the design and pre-construction phases and authorized the Secretary-General to enter into commitments of up to $77 SIPDIS million for the biennium 2006-2007 for requirements related to the construction of a temporary conference swing space building on the North Lawn and leasing office and library swing space. The resolution also requested the Secretary-General to present a more detailed "business SIPDIS analysis" on the possibility of constructing a new permanent building on the North Lawn and decided to revert to the issue at the second resumed session of the General Assembly. The adoption of this resolution concluded a long discussion in the Committee which included the following concerns: Member States' commitment to the project; the additional costs of delaying work on swing space; and the possibility of a "brain drain" in the CMP office, possibly including ASG Reuter, if there were further delays. ¶5. The second resumed session is scheduled for May 22- June 30, 2006. The main topic of discussion on the Capital Master Plan at this session will be the strategy for the project, with the goal of reaching an agreement on one strategy to be pursued. ACTION REQUEST: USUN hopes that continued engagement with Members of Congress, as indicated in reftel A, will allow the U.S. to be in a position to agree to a strategy during the resumed session and requests guidance for Fifth Committee discussions prior to the beginning of the resumed session. OTHER ISSUES -------------- -------------- E ¶6. After-service health insurance benefits: The Committee's discussion on this issue made it clear that the Committee would be unable to make final decisions on the items noted in the Secretary-General's report (A/60/450 and Corr. 1). A number of questions were raised by the Committee, in particular with regard to eligibility requirements, the status of liabilities at the end of the 2004-2005 biennium, and the Secretary-General's recommendations to fund the program's liabilities. The Committee adopted a short resolution, based on U.S.-provided language, that requested the Secretary-General to provide further information to address these issues to the General Assembly in its sixty-first session. ¶7. Harmonization of the conditions of travel: The Committee continued consideration of the Joint Inspection Unit's (JIU) report on conditions of travel (A/60/78) after having begun consultations during the main session. USDel submitted language to adopt the JIU's recommendation that only heads of organizations should travel in first-class accommodations, but the Committee was not willing to take action on any of the JIU recommendations. The resolution adopted by the Committee requested the Secretary-General to review the travel standards and entitlements for staff members, members of organs and subsidiary organs of the UN and organizations of the UN system, through the Chief Executives Board, and submit a report to the GA at the first part of its resumed sixty-first session. The resolution stated the GA's intent to use this information to adopt a common policy for the UN system. The GA also decided to revert to the JIU report during the sixty-first session, under the agenda item "standards of accommodation for air travel," allowing another chance to adopt JIU recommendations. BOLTON