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Title : Future work and procedures of the Executive Board
Document Type : Executive Board Decisions - Work and Procedures

Country : Headquarters Document Symbol/Series: 1992 / 5
Year Published : 1992 PDF Link :
OSEB Doctype : Executive Board Decisions
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Executive Summary:



Document Text:

On the recommendation of the Chairman,

The Executive Board,

Recalling its decisions 1987/1, 1987/2, 1989/1, 1989/3 and 1990/1 regarding rationalizing and streamlining the work of the Executive Board,

Taking into account that the General Assembly, in paragraph/20 of its resolution 46/190 of 20 December 1991, invited the Executive Board to review its meeting and documentation requirements in the light of their significant financial implications and to report thereon to the General Assembly at its forty-seventh session (1992), through the Committee on Conferences,

Having examined the major issues identified in the Chairman's discussion paper on this subject as contained in document E/ICEF/1991/CRP.6,

Decides to improve further its procedures and to rationalize the utilization of time of the regular Board sessions as follows:
1. Rationalization of time

(a) Meetings should be convened on schedule and the documentation for each session should be made available to delegations in all languages at least six weeks in advance;

(b) The time allocated to the general debate should be shortened by concluding it on the evening of the second day of the Board session;

(c) During the general debate, the order of speakers will be organized to give precedence to ministers and high-level functionaries, followed by Board members and observer delegations;

(d) The response of the Executive Director should be delivered on the morning of the fourth day of the session, as is the case in other forums, to give the secretariat adequate time to prepare it;

(e) The 10-minute time-limit for interventions in the general debate should be scrupulously observed. Permanent missions are requested to stress this to their delegations in advance of the Board session. Delegations that so desire could circulate longer versions of their statements;

(f) The 7-minute time-limit for interventions by delegations in committees and 15 minutes for presentations by the secretariat should be scrupulously observed;

(g) The secretariat is requested to investigate with the United Nations the possibility of installing an appropriate signalling system in the conference room to indicate and monitor the time-limit to speakers, the Chairman and participants alike.

2. Rationalization of subjects to be considered at the regular Board session

(a) The secretariat is requested to provide, at both the winter organizational and regular sessions of the Board, a table indicating the subjects included in the agenda for the previous, the present and the two subsequent years;

(b) The Board should devote special attention at its winter organizational session to additional possibilities for the rationalization of the work of the Board, including a review of meeting and documentation requirements;

(c) The Board should review, at each regular session, the subjects planned for inclusion in the agenda of the following session, with a view to eliminating those items that are no longer relevant or that bear less frequent reporting and to further streamlining the agenda of the Board;

(d) The Board should examine, before the end of each regular session, a comprehensive list of the reports being requested in draft Board decisions, with a view to reducing the overall number and volume of separate reports.

3. Documentation

Taking into consideration that page limits have already been established, of 6 pages for regional progress reports, 12 to 14 pages for smaller country programme recommendations and 16 to 18 pages for medium-sized and larger ones, and recognizing that the Executive Director's report, the budget document and the medium-term plan are, by their nature, exempt from a standard page limitation:

(a) A maximum length of 15 pages, as opposed to the current limit of 24 pages, is set for policy papers and other similar documents (1);

(b) The following schedule of documents for future Board sessions identifies some documents that should be considered annually by the Board and others biennially, or as otherwise mandated. In turn, this list could determine the frequency of listing the relevant issues on the agenda of the Executive Board, leading, at the same time, to lightening the agenda of the Board and facilitating more in-depth discussions of fewer major agenda items.

4. Periodicity of reporting

Based upon current expectations and foreseeable needs, the secretariat is requested to observe the following reporting cycle:

Document Frequency

Progress report on Summit follow-up Annual

UNICEF strategy for Africa Annual

Report on Children's Vaccine Initiative Annual, in the Executive Director's report

Strategy for prevention of human Annual, in the Executive Director's report
immune deficiency virus (HIV)/acquired
immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS)

Progress report on UNICEF policy on Biennial, in non-budget years (in interim years, to be included in
women in development, including the the Executive Director's report)
situation of the girl child

Acute respiratory infections Annual, in the Executive Director's report

Report on overall progress and results Periodicity subject to discussions
achieved in evaluation at the 1992 Board session

Documents pertaining to the work of Any follow-up will be dependent on discussions at the 1992 the Executive Board Reference Group on Board session
the format of the budget