UNITED NATIONS, July 1: The United Nations General Assembly late on Friday night formally lifted a spending cap on budget allocations, averting a possible shutdown of the world body.
It also left the body’s biggest financial contributors - the United States and Japan — at odds with an overwhelming majority of the 192 member states . The developing countries insist they also want management reform and an efficient UN secretariat, but they object to any measures that would diminish their control over the UN budget and management.
American Ambassador John Bolton said the United States wanted substantial decisions on a review of mandates and management reform by June 30. The only reforms being discussed are ‘bits and pieces’, he said.
“It’s extremely unfortunate that we didn’t achieve any tangible results ... with the expenditure cap in place,” he added. “And it’s hard to see how we’re going to achieve results without the expenditure cap.”
Actions on Friday evening on budget issues were accompanied by the adoption of measures aimed at further reforming the UN, particularly in the area of managerial accountability. For example, the 192-member Assembly called upon the Secretary-General to ensure that the application and enforcement of accountability be carried out impartially at all levels and without exception.
But the assembly did not take action on a proposed managerial overhaul of the UN submitted by Secretary-General Kofi Annan in March. His recommendations, contained in a report entitled ‘Investing in the United Nations’, were geared to fundamentally alter the organisation in a bid to keep pace with its shift in recent years from mainly headquarters-based activities to extensive life-saving work in the field.
