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Statement by H.E. Ambassador WANG Min, Deputy Permanent Representative of China to the U.N., at the Fifth Committee of the 66th Session of the UN General Assembly, under Agenda Item 134: Proposed Program Budget for the Biennium 2012-2013

2011-10-28 04:03
 

Mr. Chairman,

At the outset, I would like to congratulate you and other members of the Bureau on your election. The Chinese Delegation is convinced that under your leadership and with the joint efforts of all Member States, the work of the Fifth Committee during this session of the General Assembly will be crowned with success.

The Chinese Delegation wishes to thank Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for his introduction of the UN biennial program budget for 2012-2013, and the Chairman of the ACABQ, Mr. Collen Kelapile, for his presentation of the Committee’s report. While associating itself with the statement made by Argentina on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, my delegation would like to make the following observations and proposals:

Firstly, stable and sustained financial support should be maintained to ensure the effective implementation of all program activities of the U.N.

The United Nations, as the most important inter-governmental organization in the world, plays an irreplaceable role in international affairs. We value the important role of the U.N. and always support the provision of sufficient resources for the smooth operation of the Organization. We believe that the regular budget of the U.N. should be allocated fairly to all priority areas including development and the U.N. should give full attention and vigorous support to regional economic commissions in terms of financial and human resources.

Secondly, the U.N. should fully leverage available resources and maximize its output and efficiency.

Currently, the international community is taking concerted actions to tackle the challenges of global economic and financial crisis. When formulating budget, the U.N. should base itself on its capabilities and take into full consideration the financial capacity of Member States, especially developing countries. It should enhance efficiency in resource utilization through such measures as management reform and use a greater part of the savings thereof for development-related projects and activities. We take note of the efforts by the Secretary-General to this end, including his request for all Secretariat departments to do more with less. Meanwhile, we hope that the Secretary-General will take concrete measures to ensure the smooth implementation of all program activities and unaffected service to Member States.

Thirdly, budget discipline should be strictly enforced and result-based budgeting should be effectively improved.

The Secretariat should strictly comply with all financial disciplines, effectively strengthen accountability and base itself on reality and strive for savings in preparing the budget. Every effort should be made to maintain the integrity of the budget by incorporating to the extent possible all necessary additional expenses into the biennial budget, thus avoiding the piece-meal approach. Management and resource utilization should be improved to save resources and reduce waste so as to make good use of every penny contributed by Member States.

Fourthly, the principle of matching practical needs with available resources should be abided by and the budget should be kept at a rational and appropriate level.

We note that the proposed biennial program budget of the United Nations for 2012-2013 stands at $5.197 billion, a reduction of 3.7% from the budget outline approved by the General Assembly. We also note that if additional items are included, the final budget is likely to exceed $5.5 billion. We hope that Member States, through serious consideration and full consultations, will finally arrive at a rational and appropriate level of the U.N. budget, which, while ensuring the efficiency and accountability of the Organization, will guarantee sufficient resources for the U.N. to implement programs and activities mandated by Member States.

Mr. Chairman,

The biennial program budget for 2012-2013 is an important agenda item for this session of the General Assembly. The Chinese Delegation will participate constructively in the consideration of this agenda item and stands ready to make joint efforts with all other Member States to complete, in a responsible, pragmatic and cooperative approach, the consideration of the budget with high quality and efficiency.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

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