"ONE UN" PILOT PROGRAM INCHING FORWARD IN VIETNAM

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HANOI 001009

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EAP/MLS AND IO/EDA CHARLES CHANG
STATE PASS USAID FOR ANE/AA KUNDER/KENNEDY/WARD
USUN FOR ALEC MALLY
AMEMBASSY BANGKOK FOR RDM/A
ROME FOR FODAG, NAIROBI FOR US PERMREP JAMES STEWART

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KUNR PREL UN EAID SOCI PHUM AL CV MZ PK RW TZ UY
VM
SUBJECT: "ONE UN" PILOT PROGRAM INCHING FORWARD IN VIETNAM

(U) SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED. NOT FOR INTERNET.

REF: (A) STATE 43368 (B) 06 STATE 187687


1. (SBU) Summary: The "One UN" pilot program in Vietnam has taken
its important first steps, but much work remains before the program
becomes operational. According to Hanoi-based UN diplomats, the
Government of Vietnam (GVN) strongly supports the "One UN" pilot,
which Vietnam began last February as one of eight countries aiming
to achieve greater cohesion among UN agencies at the country level.
The One Plan combines and synthesizes the work of the six
participating UN organizations in Vietnam-namely UNDP, UNICEF,
UNFPA, UNAIDS, UNV and UNIFEM. The One Plan "Fund," which will
become operational in June 2007, will mobilize and allocate funding
to implement the One Plan. UN Resident Coordinator Hendra publicly
said donors that are required to earmark funds as they did before
the One UN program began can continue to do so through
agency-specific cost-sharing arrangements. They can also earmark
funds at the level of "outcome" in the One Plan. While some details
of the initiative need to be worked out and progress is slow, the
program is well underway. End Summary.

STARTING TO IMPLEMENT THE "ONE UN" PROGRAM
--------------


2. (SBU) The main objective of the One UN initiative is to
strengthen program coherence and coordination by enabling
participating agencies to be a more focused, responsive partner of
the GVN. Since the UN began the One UN process earlier this year in
February, UN agencies in Vietnam report that the "One UN" program
has progressed significantly, though it is not yet fully
operational. UN agencies across the country have worked more
closely together to enhance impact, to reduce overlap and look for
opportunities to strengthen and take better advantage of the
specific skills and experience of UN agencies, according to Vietnam
UN Resident Coordinator John Hendra. With strong support from the
GVN, the "One UN" in Vietnam comprises five elements, including: the
One Plan, which will create greater coherence in UN programming; the
One Plan Fund, which will establish a single budgetary mechanism;
the One Set of Management Practices, which will work together to
reduce transaction costs for government counterparts and key
partners; the One Leader, which will lead high level policy dialogue
and develop and manage a shared communication strategy; and the One
UN House, which will increase cooperation, coordination for
information sharing. This set of "deliverables" is also referred to
as the "Five Ones." The launch of the One Plan, the One Plan Fund,
and the One Leader is expected to take place in late May, Hendra
said.


3. (SBU) On April 19, the Vietnamese state press reported that
Vietnam's UN Ambassador Ly Luong Minh said in New York that "the
UN's effectiveness in assisting the socio-economic development of
Member States is limited because of a lack of coherence in policies,
overlapping programs and shortage of funds." The GVN, therefore,
is strongly behind the "One UN" Initiative, according to UN
officials in Hanoi. Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dzung has been
engaged in the initiative. Last year, he approved the "Agreed
Principles, Objectives and Instruments" to achieve the One UN in
Vietnam and signed the Terms of Reference for a Tripartite National
Task Force (TNTF),which will guide the implementation of the
initiative. The task force consists of representatives of the
Ministry of Planning and Investment, Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
Ministry of Finance, Office of the Government, as well as
participating UN agencies and bilateral donors.


4. (SBU) The One UN program in Vietnam is based on a format
contained in the draft Guidelines for the Common Country Program
Action Plans (CPAP),but has been amended as needed to reflect
Vietnam-specific circumstances. The "One UN" program aims to
supersede individual country-specific action plans, with
representatives of the participating UN agencies and the GVN signing
off on the plan, said Kitty Van Der Heijden, of the office of the UN
Resident Coordinator in Hanoi. The draft program was transmitted to
the GVN at the end of January 2007. Based on the first round of
consultations, a second draft has been prepared. This draft will be
forwarded to the GVN for its review by the end of April and is
expected to be finalized in June.

ALLOCATIONS FROM THE ONE PLAN FUND
--------------


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5. (SBU) Under the plan, RC Hendra will make allocation decisions
based on recommendations of an internal allocation committee. The
RC and the GVN have consulted donors in the formulation of the
single country program and single budget. Donor consultations have
taken place within the context of the TNTF. A TNTF meeting to
present the draft One Plan is scheduled for the end of April,
according to Van Der Heijden. A consultative TNTF on the One Plan
will take place in May, 2007, Van Der Heijden added.


6. Implementation of the One Plan will be funded through a range of
UN regular (core) resources and through other (non-core) resources,
Van Der Heijden continued. (Note: "Core" resources refer to
un-earmarked resources to various UN agencies. "Non-core" resources
are funds that UN agencies mobilize with individual donors to
certain specific programs or projects. End Note.)


7. (SBU) A One Plan Fund for Vietnam will be established as the
primary mechanism to mobilize other resources at the country level.
The new pooled fund will be directly linked to the One Plan, and the
resources will be allocated to program priorities within the One
Plan. Financial support by donors should preferably be given as
multi-year contributions without earmarks to the pooled fund. While
such contributions will be strongly encouraged, donors that are
required to earmark funds can continue to do so through
agency-specific cost-sharing arrangements or at the level of
"outcome" in the One Plan, RC Hendra said publicly. (Note: In
Vietnam, therefore, the United States will have a mechanism to
ensure that U.S. funds will not be shared with those UN agencies or
programs from which the U.S. withholds funding, such as UNFPA. End
Note.)


8. (SBU) The One Plan Fund will be implemented in line with the new
relationship between RC Hendra and the heads of participating UN
agencies. In this relationship, UN agency heads are more
accountable to the RC than in the past. Allocation of resources
mobilized through the One Plan Fund will be determined by a new One
Plan Fund Management Committee, consisting of the heads of the
participating agencies and chaired by RC Hendra. At this time, the
One Plan and the One Plan Fund are not yet operational. Finalization
and launch of One Plan and One Plan fund will implement in June,

2007. As the One Leader, RC Hendra has the authority to make final
decisions and is responsible and accountable for results, according
to a report from the UN office in Hanoi.

AUDITS AND EVALUATION
--------------


9. (SBU) Audit findings in Vietnam continue to be guided by the
audit procedures of the UN agencies involved, said Van Der Heijden.
The evaluation of the "One UN" program will be undertaken by the UN
Evaluation Group (UNEG). RC Hendra will provide inputs for the
performance evaluation of UN Country Directors based on their
contribution to the United Nations country team, according to a
report of UN office in Hanoi. The UN Country Team will evaluate the
performance of the Resident Coordinator, according to the same
report.


10. Comment: Local diplomats have complained about slow
implementation of the "One UN" concept in Vietnam. While some
details of the initiative need to be worked out and progress is
slow, the program is well underway. Moreover, strong backing from
the GVN and UN RC Hendra have helped move the program forward. Post
will continue to monitor implementation of this reform. At this
point it is too early to judge whether this pilot project is more
efficient or producing better results on the ground in Vietnam than
the decentralized system. End Comment.

MARINE



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