United Nations

A/62/605
Distr.: General 26 December 2007 Original: English

General Assembly

Sixty-second session Agenda items 136 and 128

Report on the activities of the Office of Internal Oversight Services Proposed programme budget for the biennium 2008-2009
Report of the Fifth Committee
Rapporteur: Mr. Steven Ssenabulya Nkayivu (Uganda)

I. Introduction
1. At its 3rd plenary meeting, on 21 September 2007, the General Assembly, on the recommendation of the General Committee, decided to include in the agenda of its sixty-second session the items entitled "Report on the activities of the Office of Internal Oversight Services" and "Proposed programme budget for the biennium 2008-2009" and to allocate them to the Fifth Committee. 2. The Fifth Committee considered the items at its 4th, 20th, 23rd and 26th meetings, on 10 October, 20 November and 17 and 21 December 2007. Statements and observations made in the course of the Committee's consideration of the items are reflected in the relevant summary records (A/C.5/62/SR.4, 20, 23 and 26). 3. For its consideration of the items, the Committee had before it the following documents: Report of the Secretary-General on Procurement Task Force (A/61/603) Report of the Office of Internal Oversight Services on the activities of the Procurement Task Force for the 18-month period ended 30 June 2007 and the comments of the Secretary-General thereon (A/62/272 and Add.1) Report of the Secretary-General on resource requirements for procurement investigations (A/62/520) Related report of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (A/62/7/Add.15)

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Report on the activities of the Office of Internal Oversight Services for the period from 1 July 2006 to 30 June 2007 and the comments of the SecretaryGeneral thereon (A/62/281 (Part I) and Add.1 and 2) Report of the Office of Internal Oversight Services on the audit of the activities of the United Nations Thessaloniki Centre for Public Service Professionalism (A/62/176) Report on the activities of the Office of Internal Oversight Services for the period from 1 July 2005 to 30 June 2006 (A/61/264 (Part I) and Add.1 and 2) Report of the Office of Internal Oversight Services on the inspection of the programme and administrative management of the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia and the comments of the Secretary-General thereon (A/61/61 and Add.1)

II. Consideration of draft resolution A/C.5/62/L.26
4. At its 26th meeting, on 21 December, the Committee had before it a draft resolution entitled "Reports of the Office of Internal Oversight Services and financing of the Procurement Task Force" (A/C.5/62/L.26), submitted by the Chairman on the basis of informal consultations coordinated by the representative of Belgium. 5. At the same meeting, the Committee adopted draft resolution A/C.5/62/L.26 without a vote (see para. 6).

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III. Recommendation of the Fifth Committee
6. The Fifth Committee recommends to the General Assembly the adoption of the following draft resolution:

Reports of the Office of Internal Oversight Services and financing of the Procurement Task Force
The General Assembly, Having considered the reports on the activities of the Office of Internal Oversight Services 1 and the related notes by the Secretary-General, 2 the report of the Office of Internal Oversight Services on the inspection of the programme and administrative management of the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia 3 and the related note by the Secretary-General, 4 the report of the Office of Internal Oversight Services on the audit of the activities of the United Nations Thessaloniki Centre for Public Service Professionalism, 5 the report of the SecretaryGeneral on the Procurement Task Force, 6 the report of the Office of Internal Oversight Services on the activities of the Procurement Task Force 7 and the related note by the Secretary-General, 8 the report of the Secretary-General on the resource requirements for procurement investigations 9 and the related report of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions, 10 1. Takes note of the reports on the activities of the Office of Internal Oversight Services1 and the related notes by the Secretary-General,2 the report of the Office of Internal Oversight Services on the inspection of the programme and administrative management of the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia3 and the related note by the Secretary-General,4 the report of the Office of Internal Oversight Services on the audit of the activities of the United Nations Thessaloniki Centre for Public Service Professionalism,5 the report of the SecretaryGeneral on the Procurement Task Force6 and the report of the Secretary-General on the resource requirements for procurement investigations;9 2. Regrets the piecemeal manner in which the investigations-related issues contained in these reports have been presented to the General Assembly for its consideration; Endorses the conclusions and recommendations contained in the report 3. of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions,10 subject to the provisions of the present resolution;

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A/61/264 (Part I) and Add.1; and A/62/281 (Part I) and Add.1. A/61/264 (Part I)/Add.2; and A/62/281 (Part I)/Add.2. A/61/61. A/61/61/Add.1 A/62/176. A/61/603. A/62/272. A/62/272/Add.1. A/62/520. A/62/7/Add.15.

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4. Decides to conduct an overall review of the capacity of the Investigations Division of the Office of Internal Oversight Services by 30 June 2008, and that the review will include, inter alia, the activities of the Procurement Task Force; Notes the ad hoc nature of the Procurement Task Force and, in 5. accordance with regulations 7.6 and 7.7 of the Financial Regulations and Rules of the United Nations, 11 requests the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions to request the Board of Auditors to conduct an audit of the activities of the Task Force for the period from 1 January 2006 to 30 June 2007, including its compliance with established transparency and accountability measures of the Organization and the Office of Internal Oversight Services, and to report thereon separately to the General Assembly at the main part of its sixty-third session; Decides to revert to the consideration of the report of the Office of 6. Internal Oversight Services on the activities of the Procurement Task Force7 and the related note by the Secretary-General8 at the first part of the resumed sixty-second session; 7. Recalls its resolutions 61/275 and 61/279 of 29 June 2007, and decides to revert to the consideration of the report on the overall review of the capacity of the Investigations Division of the Office of Internal Oversight Services at the first part of the resumed sixty-second session; Requests the Secretary-General to bring the report referred to in 8. paragraph 7 above to the attention of the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations.

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ST/SGB/2003/7.

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