General Assembly Managing change
Official Records
Fifty-fourth Session
Supplement No. 1 (A/54/1) Chapter VI
316. The United Nations Office for Project Services, the only entirely self-financing entity in the United Nations system, executes projects on behalf of United Nations agencies and other organizations around the world. Among the many services it provides are project management, loan administration, procurement of goods and services and recruitment of project personnel. The Office combines corporate and public values, putting private sector practices at the service of the ideals of the Charter of the United Nations.
317. In 1998, the total project portfolio of the Office for Project Services reached $3.5 billion, and new business acquisitions exceeded $1 billion for the first time. Actual delivery amounted to $713 million. This represents the value of all inputs -- goods, services and consultants -- contracted by the Office to execute projects entrusted to it by its clientele. It also includes the authorization of $175 million in loan disbursements for projects that the Office is supervising for the International Fund for Agricultural Development.
318. The Office for Project Services continued to work on behalf of UNDP in such traditional areas as environmental management, governance and the eradication of poverty. It also worked with new partners, including the Department of Political Affairs, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, in areas outside the strict purview of development.
319. Several milestones in 1999 highlighted the benefits of new partnerships with other entities of the United Nations system. On behalf of the Department of Political Affairs for example, support was provided to the Commission for Historical Clarification in investigating and documenting human rights abuses in Guatemala. The Office established the Commission's infrastructure, comprising 14 local offices in nine regions of the country, hired the interviewers who documented the country's long history of political violence, contracted services locally and internationally, procured equipment and provided training. The Commission presented its final report to me in February 1999.
320. The Office for Project Services also assisted the Electoral Assistance Division of the Department of Political Affairs, UNDP and the Government of Mexico in the production of a state-of-the-art CD-ROM, which provided guidelines on electoral assistance and was released in Mexico City in March 1999.
321. In June 1999, the Office's Mine Action Unit responded to the request of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations for assistance in laying the groundwork for United Nations mine-clearance operations in Kosovo -- a prerequisite for the large-scale return of refugees. The Unit is setting up a Mine Action Coordination Centre in Pristina, hiring a manager and key personnel, and procuring equipment as needed. The Geneva Office, home of the Rehabilitation and Social Sustainability Unit, is well placed to provide management services to United Nations organizations engaged in the reconstruction of Kosovo.
322. The Office for Project Services has made client diversification a top priority so as to broaden its financial base and better serve the needs of the international community. In 1999, as part of its move towards decentralization, the Office signed an agreement with FAO and opened a regional office in FAO headquarters in Rome. The Office hopes that its presence there will encourage new alliances with other United Nations partners as well as bilateral and multilateral development organizations.
323. In keeping with its innovative approach, the Office for Project Services seeks where possible to turn challenges into opportunities. Its own work on Y2K compliance, for example, has translated into new projects in several countries to help Governments deal with the challenges posed by the "millennium bug". Relocation to new offices in autumn 1999 has led to the development of a new expertise in architectural and construction management that can be tapped by other members of the United Nations system. The Office now has teams for business and project development that can design services to match the changing needs of its many partners.
324. As the United Nations embarks on a new relationship with the private sector, it can benefit from the experience of the Office for Project Services in outsourcing from, and working with, business to adopt best corporate practice while remaining faithful to the principles of the Charter.