Mr/Mrs.President,
Allow me to start by thanking the Administrator for his frank and insightful statement on a broad number of issues, encompassing the work of UNDP and beyond. He has shed light on a number of current challenges to poverty reduction and reconfirmed that UNDP has an important role to play to meet many of them. In addition, the UNDP has a critical role to spearhead multilateral efforts for development cooperation.
Let me reassure you of Sweden’s solid commitment to UNDP. The organization remains one of our most important partners for global development. This is duly reflected in our financial support. Last year we disbursed more than two-hundred and fifty million dollars to the organization, a contribution equivalent to 27 dollars from each citizen of my country.
To us, the very core of UNDP is its legitimacy as a partner guided by global standards and norms while responding to the needs of developing countries. Building national capacity is key.
Our vision is that of an organization that firmly represents the norms and values of the United Nations, that advocates change and connects countries to knowledge, experience and resources and that provides solutions to countries’ development challenges.
In order to fully realize its potential, UNDP should have a widespread representation covering all countries in need of UNDP, without exception. We consider it critical that UNDP can reestablish itself in Pyongyang as soon as possible, and we would like to see a proposed country program for this Executive Board to consider in January.
UNDP has a role to play in all of Sweden’s priority areas for equitable and sustainable development. That is one of the main findings in the recent assessment of UNDP that we have done as part of our new strategy for multilateral development cooperation. Another important outcome of the assessment is that UNDP is on the right track regarding the development of a results-based management system, but that challenges remain in several areas.
Sweden welcomes UNDP efforts to strengthen accountability and we applaud the proposed accountability system. It provides a good basis for further strengthening the oversight and assurance functions. It not only responds in a fairly balanced way to many of the legitimate concerns of all parties but also clarifies roles and responsibilities of the different stakeholders, which increases the opportunities to hold the organization accountable in the implementation of its activities. Hence, it is a major step forward and a proof that UNDP is capable of adapting to new realities. We look forward to an agreement on the internal audit and oversight policies of UNDP, UNFPA and UNOPS during this session. (We will elaborate a bit further on this issue in a joint statement on agenda item 10).
We wish to thank the Assistant Administrator for the information given, including his update on steps and progress made on realigning cost classification. We encourage continued close consultations with other United Nations funds and programs in order to harmonize the attribution of costs between program and management budgets, as well as to align its cost recovery policies. This important reform will contribute to greater financial transparency and to improve administrative efficiency in the delivery of development results. In this regard, we look forward to consider your proposals on cost classification reform at the first regular session 2009.
Mr. President,
We welcome the self-criticism that the UNDP is subjecting itself to in the evaluation on environment and energy and the third global framework. The supply driven, project oriented approach which comes to the fore in these evaluations is clearly not in line with the approach we all have signed up to in the Paris Declaration and affirmed last week in Accra. Obviously UNDP will have to make important efforts to move towards a more client oriented and demand driven approach in many of its programs.
In the area of climate change it is important that UNDP stick to its comparative advantages. We would therefore ask UNDP to further clarify which direction its Energy and Environment work should take in the future, including how it intends to build on its partnership with the UN Environment Programme.
In conclusion, Mr./Madam President, let me assure you of Sweden’s continued commitment to UNDP.