Statement by Paul Ballantyne, Adviser, Permanent Mission of New Zealand, on behalf of Canada, New Zealand and Australia to the United Nations fifth committee on the annual report of the Independent Audit Advisory Committee (IAAC)
9 October 2008
(As delivered)
Mr Chairman,
I have the honour to speak on behalf of the delegations of Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
I thank the Chairman of the Independent Audit Advisory Committee (IAAC), Mr David Walker for introducing the report and thank him and his distinguished colleagues for their time, expertise and stewardship of the Committee over its important first year.
The report before us today is a clear sign that the IAAC has ‘hit the ground running’. Already we see that the IAAC can be a great asset in advising the General Assembly in the discharge of our oversight responsibilities. We remain committed to continuing to engage constructively with Member States to further strengthen the governance and oversight framework of the organization in general, and to put the expert advice of the IAAC to the best use.
CANZ note the rules of procedure adopted by the committee, which are consistent with the IAAC’s terms of reference. We see clear benefits from the Committee’s proposed annual workplan and see its inclusion in the report as a clear sign of the Committee’s commitment to transparency. It is important that future work planning provide for interaction with the ACABQ on the budgetary issues it is responsible for advising upon. It is unfortunate that the ACABQ did not consider the IAAC advice on OIOS budgetary proposals.
We comment on only a few of the many interesting issues raised in the report. The IAAC points out the work done in the OIOS to develop a risk-based work plan. Looking ahead, we hope the IAAC will comment not only on the work plan, but also its completion rate. The Board of Auditors has pointed out that OIOS produces far fewer audits than planned.
Consistent with its specific mandate to advise on risk management, the IAAC has made very helpful comments in this area. We agree fully with the importance it attaches to the development of an enterprise wide approach to risk management and internal control. The IAAC emphasizes that this is not just a technical exercise, but a major change in organizational culture requiring clear leadership from the highest levels. We think it critical that the IAAC continue to be deeply engaged in the further development of the risk management framework in the United Nations. We look forward in the informal negotiations to more specific elaboration of what the IAAC would see as the logical next steps, what form the required leadership should take, the role of a possible Chief Risk Officer and when such a function could be phased in.
The IAAC draws attention to the some of the key issues emerging from the report of the Board of Auditors, including the issues of end-of-service liabilities and key aspects of asset management. We intend to engage constructively on these important issues when they are taken up under the relevant agenda items.
The IAAC raises the question of what role it might play in the evaluation and review of the functions and reporting procedures of the Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) and the selection of its future Under-Secretary-General, both in UNGA64. These are issues worth reflecting upon.
CANZ looks forward to working closely with the Committee in the future, and we wish to assure Mr Walker and the rest of the Committee of our full support.
Thank you, Mr Chairman.