Policy Dialogue Brief Foundation Critical Thinking from Stanley Foundation Conferences

The Stanley policy dialogue brief Foundation Critical thinking from Stanley Foundation Conferences

39th United Nations One UN Pilots: Issues Conference Aligning UN Capabilities in Support The Stanley Foundation of National Development March 14-16, 2008 Tarrytown House Estate One UN was created to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of UN agencies in delivering services to developing countries. It is a new program with eight coun- and Conference Center tries—Albania, Cape Verde, Mozambique, Pakistan, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uruguay, Tarrytown, New York and Vietnam—serving as volunteer One UN pilots. How well is it working so far? Is there better coordination among UN agencies? Have field operations improved? Most important, are the citizens of the pilot countries benefiting?

The creation of the Delivering as One pilot program was recommended by the Secretary-General’s High-level Panel on UN System-wide Coherence, a group of policymakers tasked to examine ways to strengthen the United Nations’ ability to respond to the challenges of the 21st century. The eight pilot countries are at different points in implementation with 2008 being the first full year of implementation for all of the pilots and a formal evaluation will be conducted in 2009. In the meantime, various UN entities—the Development Group (UNDG), the General Assembly, the Secretariat, the agencies—and national governments are conducting initial stocktaking exercises.

To support this stocktaking effort, the Stanley Foundation focused its 39th United Nations Issues Conference on the subject. “One UN Pilots: Aligning UN Capabilities in Support of National Development,” was held March 14-16, 2008, in Tarrytown, New York. This policy dialogue brief outlines the conference’s findings and recommendations Findings 1. Participants agreed that progress in development and the eradication of pover- ty is critically important. One UN is meant to improve effectiveness, and participants said effectiveness needs to be measured in many ways.

2. So far, the One UN effort seems to be working for the pilot countries. This brief summarizes the primary Participants from these countries report that the program is delivering results. findings of the conference as interpret- ed by the chair, conference organizer, Their views are augmented by reports from the field, reports of visits by the and rapporteur. Participants neither General Assembly cochairs, and other assessment information. Among the pos- reviewed nor approved this brief. itive results: Therefore, it should not be assumed that every participant subscribes to all of its recommendations, observations, • The host countries have significantly increased their “ownership” of the and conclusions. development program. They feel more in control of their own development. 2 • Progress is being made toward a more focused • Recognize that programming drives the process budget framework. and programs must show effectiveness and impact the bottom line if the Delivering as One • The resident coordinator (RC) position is pro- pilot effort is to be considered successful. viding leadership and better coordination of development work. • All involved should continue to learn from pilot program work, adapting and developing it for The United Nations is supporting and aligning even better results. its resources with national government priori- ties. The principle of “no one size fits all” is • Concepts and methodology learned from pilot clearly being followed—individual pilots are countries is being and should continue to be adapting to specific country needs. Together applied to other countries that are not pilots. these reforms facilitate more flexible and effective delivery on the ground, generating positive • Raise the profile of the resident coordinator (RC) momentum in the field. so he/she has more authority in-country. A key element of this effort must be building greater 3. There is agreement that savings from coherence awareness that the RC credentials come from the and efficiency should be plowed back into devel- secretary-general. Perhaps they should carry a opment. More important, most participants title like “representative of the secretary-general.” agreed that more effective development work will attract more resources. Success requires • Agencies and headquarters units should be coherence that involves the host country govern- encouraged to be as flexible and supportive as ments, the United Nations, and donor partners. possible of pilot countries and similar development work within the limitations of their present 4. UN agencies need reasonable amounts of core charters and governance. They should work to funding. Without sufficient core funding, some reduce regulatory and procedural blockages. agencies are left wholly dependent upon volun- tary funding, which in turn can produce • The United Nations has a number of system- unhealthy competition for resources. wide issues that will take time to address. These need study and assignment of responsibility. 5. Progress in the pilot countries has not been ade- Examples are procurement systems and ERP quately recognized within the political and, to a systems. While everyone understands that lesser extent, administrative organs at the UN addressing them will take time, the efforts headquarters in New York and elsewhere. The should be accelerated. effect is that headquarters is not yet aligning itself sufficiently with these positive in-country devel- • Headquarters and agency governance issues opments, thereby stymieing even better progress. should be approached carefully and slowly. UN agencies and headquarters need to provide Defining the functions that need to be performed better support to these more flexible, country- should be a first step, followed by adjustment in driven approaches if they are to take hold and be governance arrangments and function. applied effectively in other countries. • Establish a “Code of Conduct” to more clearly Recommendations define the RC relationship and responsibilities • The pilot country program should be continued relative to the agencies, country teams, and head- and the approach it uses should be extended. At quarters’ functions. a minimum, the programs in the current eight pilot countries should be continued. • Fast-track harmonization of business practices, information technology systems, and support • Consideration should be given to adding more services to provide field operations with the tools countries in a program that employs similar they need to be more efficient and effective. This methods. For example, those might include the will enable faster and better measurement of 15 United Nations Development Assistance empirical results and sharing of best practices Framework (UNDAF) countries that have across all countries—pilots and nonpilots. been identified. 3 • Manage internal and external expectations program. As the pilot country program is moving regarding short-term results. The effectiveness of forward, it is encountering constraints and limita- development programs is difficult to measure in tions from those regulations and procedures. the short-term. Rather, cost savings (efficiency measures) from streamlined business and tech- That is not to say that no progress has been made. nology practices are more likely to be seen in a Some headquarters units and agencies are working one- to three-year measurement period. to be flexible, adapting their regulations and procedures to the extent possible. However, the efforts • Promote and strengthen the United Nations’ need to be stepped up. important coordination role in-country, including its work with the Bretton Woods Institutions. It is recognized that there are sensitivities when new Other development organizations often look to practices brush up against the prerogatives and man- the UN presence and the success of its efforts to dates of long-established agencies or UN organs. determine if and when they should begin work in a region or state. Reform Depends Upon Increased Commitment to Core Funding Progress Report on Coherence There are concerns regarding the predictability and On the whole, most participants said the pilot coun- extent of funding. There is a need for more core try effort is going well. It is still early, but the pilot funding to improve the quality of strategic UN countries appear to be satisfied with the results, and planning and allow agencies to concentrate their observers confirm the encouraging signs. The pro- efforts on delivering results rather than competing gram definitely merits continuation and should be for funding. There are also concerns that without considered for expansion. Participants at the confer- additional funding, the positive momentum and ence expanded on lessons learned and challenges trends from the pilots may not continue, especially still to be met. in countries beyond the pilots that did not receive additional pilot monies. Programming Drives the Process Efficiency and effectiveness are both important to There are competing apprehensions on the part of the success of the pilot efforts. The growing num- member states. Some developing countries feel that ber of UN stakeholders involved at varying levels there may be a hidden agenda by the donors to take (from local to international) in delivering UN more control over development. Some developed development assistance has increased complexity countries want to donate more now but their tax- across the system. Given the size of the UN devel- payers want visible, measurable results so they know opment funds, system “incoherence” translates into that this funding is being used efficiently and effec- costs that, if decreased, would free up a significant tively. These concerns need to be discussed by the amount of money that could be plowed back into General Assembly in an effort to find common inter- actual development programming. At the same ests that enable the gains from the pilots to be sup- time it is important that these “efficiencies” be real ported in additional member states. If this doesn’t and not just the result of cutting corners. happen, the United Nations’ ability to compete in today’s development environment will be impaired. Program effectiveness is hard to measure in the short term as development efforts take years to Resident Coordinator Needs a Higher Profile yield results. Yet over the longer term, demonstra- There is a need to strengthen system-wide knowl- ble increases in effectiveness—the quality of the edge that the RC is a representative of the secretary- programming—should generate greater funding for general, which lends credence to the RC’s authority. UN efforts and lend greater credibility to UN The accreditation letter introducing the RC is signed efforts beyond just those in the development field. by the secretary-general who also makes the final decision on RC selection. The RC also prepares an Evolution of Agency and Headquarters annual report that is distributed to the secretary- Practices Is Still Needed general, the country, and other stakeholders. Agencies and headquarters units have their own set of regulations and procedures, most of which were Giving the RC a significant title that conveys his/her developed before the advent of the pilot country credentials, such as “representative of the S-G,” is one means for giving more stature to the position. 4 This perceived increase in stature may also help the Better Governance Is Necessary to UNDG meet RC recruiting guidelines, particularly Support Coherence Gains in the Field those relating to gender, geographic balance, and Headquarters at the United Nations and in agencies garnering applications from outside of UNDP. are not aligned optimally to support the newly aligned efforts in the field. Rather than first choos- “Code of Conduct” Can Help Clarify RC Role ing which intergovernmental body—ECOSOC or The complexity of the UN development system is agency boards—should oversee the process, a bet- visible across four levels: (1) from the field back to ter approach would be to first identify the gaps in headquarters; (2) between donors, agencies, the UN headquarters oversight and then determine the role development system, and recipient states; (3) across each body should play. It was noted that often new agencies and organizations in-country; and (4) and structures are simply created in lieu of reforming across the four “Ones”—program, budgetary the existing structures, which merely adds to over- framework, leader, and office. all system complexity.

This complexity requires clear role and responsibil- Manage Expectations Regarding Results ity definition for the RC relative to headquarters, There is tremendous interest in the pilots within the agencies, and country teams. Currently, this lack of entire coherence effort. This is the first full year of clarity can cause friction and often leaves the RC implementation. Therefore, current stocktaking without the support necessary to achieve his/her efforts are by necessity more qualitative than quan- assigned objectives. titative in nature. Yet even with the formal measurement in 2009, stakeholders must realize that it is Harmonization of Practices, Systems, and still difficult to measure development effectiveness Services Must Become a Higher Priority after a year or two. Development efforts are long Streamlining the plethora of business practices, term in nature. Results in the short to midterm are processes, systems, and services is critical if the most likely to be seen in the area of efficiencies— pilots are to operate cost effectively and realize the cost and other resource savings due to better align- lower transaction costs that are expected. ment of business processes, practices, and systems.

A major issue is the number of procurement sys- At the same time, this effort also entails significant tems and practices that are both time-consuming change management components that impact the and often result in purchases that do not meet the people involved. Therefore, qualitative measures needs of the field. Poor knowledge management along with employee satisfaction measures are also systems is another area that is preventing effective important to determine what is facilitating or capture and sharing of best practices within and impairing people’s willingness and ability to change. across countries as well as with headquarters and donors. The ability to quickly share such informa- UN Coordination Role in Overall tion and implement such practices should be ODA Must be Strengthened important measures for overall success of the Even with the trends showing that the United Delivering as One initiative. Nations is losing ground as a channel for multilateral Official Development Assistance (ODA) com- Finally, the use of different enterprise resource plan- pared to other organizations—such as the European ning (ERP) systems makes it difficult to streamline Commission, World Bank, and regional develop- overall business practices and processes as these are ment banks—the United Nations does provide a built into these systems. Data warehousing can over- vital normative, advocacy, and convening role upon come different systems at headquarters level, but this which the other institutions depend. is not effective when working in the same office at the country level. Most UN agencies now use one of two By better aligning its capabilities with country systems. A move to one system becomes even more needs, which begins with state-level development critical in countries that have peacekeeping and other plans, the United Nations can strengthen its role in operations, as the Department of Peacekeeping assisting a country’s overall use of ODA. It is also Operations (DPKO) will soon choose one of these important for the United Nations to capitalize on two systems. The choice of one of these systems will this strategic role by strengthening its ties with impact the effectiveness of future integrated missions. these other ODA providers, particularly the Bretton Woods Institutions. 5 Conclusion Igor Dzundev, Chef de Cabinet, Office of the Improved delivery of services to developing coun- President of the General Assembly, United Nations tries is a winning proposition for all involved—the United Nations, its family of programs and agen- Sally Fegan-Wyles, Director, UN Development cies, the countries themselves, and most of all the Group Office, United Nations people in those countries. Over the years, the United Nations has accumulated sets of practices Thomas Gass, Counselor, Permanent Mission of and prerogatives that, notwithstanding the best Switzerland to the United Nations intentions, have made suboptimal progress on development. Those results, in turn, have weakened Bruce Jenks, Assistant Administrator and Director, political support for development programs. The Partnerships Bureau, United Nations Development coherence effort offers the opportunity to turn Programme around this dynamic. All involved at the United Nations and in the pilot countries should make John Paul Kavanagh, Permanent Representative of every effort to seize the opportunity. Ireland to the United Nations Participant List Srgjan Kerim, President of the 62nd General Assembly, United Nations Chair Richard H. Stanley, Chair, The Stanley Jiro Kodera, Ambassador, Permanent Mission of Foundation Japan to the United Nations

Conference Organizer Dumisani S. Kumalo, Permanent Representative of Kathy Gockel, Program Officer, The Stanley the Republic of South Africa to the United Foundation Nations

Rapporteur Liu Zhenmin, Deputy Permanent Representative Raj Chitikila, Analyst, US Government of the People’s Republic of China to the United Accountability Office Nations

Participants Johan Ludvik Løvald, Permanent Representative Maged A. Abdelaziz, Permanent Representative of of Norway to the United Nations the Arab Republic of Egypt to the United Nations Augustine Philip Mahiga, Permanent Representative Bui The Giang, Deputy Permanent Representative of the United Republic of Tanzania to the United of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam to the Nations United Nations Peter Maurer, Permanent Representative of Mustapha Darboe, Regional Director for West Switzerland to the United Nations Africa, Regional Bureau for West Africa, World Food Programme Asha-Rose Migiro, Deputy Secretary-General, United Nations Patricia W. de Mowbray, Former Resident Coordinator, One UN, Cape Verde Adrian Neritani, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Albania to the United Nations Stefan Delfs, Counsellor, Climate Change, System- wide Coherence, Office of the President of the Joseph Nsengimana, Permanent Representative of General Assembly, United Nations the Republic of Rwanda to the United Nations

Hugh Dugan, Foreign Affairs Officer, Economic Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, Director, Office of the and Social Section, United States Mission to the Deputy Secretary-General, United Nations United Nations Conrado Ramos, Director, Planning and Budget, Office of the Presidency of the Republic, Uruguay 6 Vladimir P. Sambaiew, President and Director of The Stanley Foundation Programs, The Stanley Foundation The Stanley Foundation is a nonpartisan, private operating foundation that seeks a secure peace with John Sawers, Permanent Representative of the freedom and justice, built on world citizenship and United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern effective global governance. It brings fresh voices Ireland to the United Nations and original ideas to debates on global and regional problems. The foundation advocates principled Mari Simonen, Deputy Executive Director, multilateralism—an approach that emphasizes External Relations, UN Affairs and Management, working respectfully across differences to create United Nations Population Fund fair, just, and lasting solutions. Carsten Staur, Permanent Representative of The Stanley Foundation’s work recognizes the Denmark to the United Nations essential roles of the policy community, media pro- fessionals, and the involved public in building sus- Sanja Štiglic, Permanent Representative of the tainable peace. Its work aims to connect people Republic of Slovenia to the United Nations from different backgrounds, often producing clari- fying insights and innovative solutions. Piragibe dos Santos Tarragô, Deputy Permanent Representative of Brazil to the United Nations The foundation frequently collaborates with other organizations It does not make grants. Alejandro D. Wolff, Deputy Permanent Representative of the United States to the United Nations Stanley Foundation reports, publications, programs, and a wealth of other information are available on Alexandre Zouev, Head of UN and Intergovernmental the Web at www.stanleyfoundation.org. Office and Deputy Director of Governance, UN and Multilateral Affairs, United Nations Children’s Fund The Stanley Foundation The Stanley Foundation Staff 209 Iowa Avenue Muscatine, IA 52761 USA Susan R. Moore, Conference Management 563-264-1500 Associate, The Stanley Foundation 563-264-0864 fax Patricia Papke, Director of Events Management, [email protected] The Stanley Foundation Production: Amy Bakke, Jeff Martin, and Margo Schneider

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