Since his election in June 2015, President Lykketoft has committed to running his Presidency in the most open and transparent manner possible. In this regard, he has outlined a set of principles of conduct that he and his office will adhere to during the 70th session, and has taken a number of steps to live up to these principles.
Principles of Conduct of PGA70
Integrity and impartiality
Adhering to the highest standards of conduct during his tenure, the President will conduct his duties from the moment he is elected in accordance with the values of this Organisation and the purposes and the principles of the UN Charter. He will remain independent and his conduct and that of his office will reflect that independence at all times. He will seek to avoid conflicts of interest and the appearance of any conflict, and will not place himself under any obligation that might influence his mandate and the performance of the functions of the Presidency. He will also ensure that his Office is balanced both geographically and from a gender perspective.
Transparency and accountability
Conducting his Office from the time of his election in an open and transparent manner, the President will be accountable to the UN General Assembly. He will provide relevant, accessible, timely and accurate information regarding the activities, engagements and finances of his Office in the discharge of his mandate. He will continue to periodically brief Member States on his activities, including official travel, will engage proactively with other stakeholders and will make full use of the website of the PGA to communicate the work of his Office.
Professionalism and effectiveness
He will aim for the highest standards of efficiency and competency in discharging his mandate and in achieving objectives and results in a timely manner. He will ensure that the staff of his Office conduct their work efficiently and in a manner becoming of this Office. He will endeavour to preserve the institutional memory of the Office and to provide the next President with best practices and lessons learned. He will ensure a smooth transition to the President of the seventy first session.
Transparency actions of PGA70
Information on finances
The PGA is committed to openness relating to the financing of his office which comes from three sources:
UN Regular Budget
In the UN Regular Budget, member states have allocated 322,000 USD annually to OPGA to cover hospitality, official travel and other expenditures relating to the PGA’s official responsibilities. Expenditures from the regular budget are managed on behalf of the OPGA by the Executive Office of DGACM in accordance with the Financial Regulations and Rules of the United Nations.
Donations in support of OPGA
Donors can directly support the work of the PGA through contributions channelled through the UN system, including to the dedicated PGA Trust fund, which is regulated by UN rules and procedure. PGA 70 will report publicly on contributions made to the fund.
It should also be noted that General Assembly Resolution 69/321: “Stresses the importance of the contributions of Member States to the Trust Fund in support of the Office of the President of the General Assembly, and in this regard notes with appreciation contributions that have been made to the Fund and encourages Member States to continue to contribute to the Fund”.
| Date |
Contributor |
Project |
Commitment |
| Nov 2015 |
Government of Turkey |
High-Level Thematic Debates |
USD 50,000 |
| Nov 2015 |
Government of People’s Republic of China |
General administrative, logistical and management support |
USD 300,000 |
| Dec 2015 |
Government of Ireland |
Staffing |
USD 114,038 |
| Jan 2016 |
Government of Denmark |
High-Level Thematic Debates |
USD 365,593 |
| Apr 2016 |
Government of Germany |
General administrative, logistical and management support |
USD 56,150 |
| May 2016 |
Government of Kazakhstan |
High-Level Thematic Debate on UN, Peace and Security |
USD 15,207 |
This section will continue to be updated periodically.
Government of Denmark
The Government of Denmark is responsible for expenses relating to the PGA’s salary, accommodation, and some other expenses related to travel and office administration which is governed by Danish government rules and regulations.
Information on the Trust Fund of previous sessions of the General Assembly:
| GA Session |
Contributor |
Project |
Commitment |
64th session
(Sep 2009 – Sep 2010) |
Government of Norway |
Thematic Debate on Disarmament |
USD 50,134 |
| Government of Algeria |
Thematic Debate on Disarmament |
USD 10,000 |
| Government of Egypt |
Thematic Debate on Disarmament |
USD 10,000 |
65th session
(Sep 2010 – Sep 2011)
|
Government of the Republic of Korea |
Staffing |
USD 126,500 |
| Government of Italy |
Staffing |
USD 265,000 |
| Government of Slovenia |
Thematic Debates during 65th session, including on Least Developed Countries |
USD 7,060 |
| Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation |
Thematic Debates for the preparation of 4th Least Developed Countries Conference (including other thematic debates during the 65th session) |
USD 59,700 |
| MacArthur Foundation |
Thematic Debate on International Migration and Development |
USD 37,178 |
67th session
(Sep 2012 – Sep 2013)
|
Government of Qatar |
|
USD 100,000 |
| Government of Luxembourg |
For initiatives in the area of the reform and revitalization of the UN |
USD 12,872 |
| Government of People’s Republic of China |
General administrative, logistical and management support |
USD 300,000 |
| Government of Turkey |
General administrative, logistical and management support |
USD 60,000 |
| Government of Japan |
|
USD 6,471 |
68th session
(Sep 2013 – Sep 2014)
|
Government of Italy |
To support Post-2015 Development Agenda |
USD 50,000 |
| Government of Antigua and Barbuda |
Concert |
USD 47,164 |
69th session
(Sep 2014 – Sep 2015)
|
Government of United Arab Emirates |
General administrative, logistical and management support |
USD 50,000 |
| Government of South Africa |
General administrative, logistical and management support |
USD 50,000 |
Information on travel
The PGA discloses information about any official visits he undertakes overseas.
To date, the PGA has travelled on official visits to:
From 15 June 2015 (election) to 14 September 2015
- Ethiopia, 10-15 July 2015 (supported by Denmark)
- Germany and Denmark, 26-29 August 2015 (supported by Denmark)
- India, 29 August – 1 September 2015 (supported by India)
- Liechtenstein, 4-6 September 2015 (supported by both Denmark and Liechtenstein)
- Japan, 7-9 September 2015 (supported by both Denmark and Japan)
From 15 September 2015 (assumption of office)
- Peru, 9-11 October 2015 (supported by Denmark)
- China, 25-29 October 2015 (supported by China)
- Europe (Paris, Vienna, Copenhagen), 29 November-7 December 2015 (supported by Denmark)
- UAE, Jordan and Davos, 15-23 January 2016 (supported by UAE for UAE visit and WEF for Davos visit)
- Europe (Stockholm, Brussels) and Morocco, 14-20 February 2016 (supported by PwC for Sweden and Morocco for Morocco visit)
- Switzerland (Geneva) and Ethiopia (Addis Ababa), 28 February – 4 March 2016 (supported by PGA Trust fund)
- Washington D.C. (United States of America), 4-5 May 2016 (supported by PGA Trust fund)
- Copenhagen (Denmark), 17-20 May 2016 (supported by PGA Trust fund)
- Doha (Qatar), 21-22 May 2016 (supported by State of Qatar)
- Turkey (Istanbul, Antalya, Gaziantep), 23 – 27 May 2016 (supported by Government of Turkey, UN OCHA and UN OHRLLS)
- Egypt (Cairo), 28 May 2016 (supported by Government of Egypt)
- Havana (Cuba), 23 – 24 June 2016 (supported by Government of Cuba and PGA Trust fund)
This list will continue to be updated periodically.
Information on staff profile
OPGA staff are identifiable through their biographies on the website. The overall composition of the Office is as follows:
- OPGA 70 currently has 35 team members, 11 of whom are Danish nationals (including the President)
- 10 team members are funded by the UN budget
- 21 team members are seconded/nominated by member states (including Denmark and including the PGA himself)
- 1 team member is provided through the UN Associate Expert Programme (similar to the Junior Professional Officer Programme) which is a member state funded programme
- 3 OPGA team members are UN interns
Strengthening OPGA
The PGA has requested that the working group responsible for revitalizing the work of the General Assembly give immediate and urgent consideration to further strengthening the effectiveness, independence and integrity of the Office of the PGA. Details on that process are available here.
Further information
Information Note on the Office of the President of the UN General Assembly
PGA Handbook
Speech to the plenary session on GA Revitalization
Ad-hoc Working Group on the revitalization of the work of the General Assembly
Report of the SG’s Task Force on the functioning of the OPGA
Summary note – Report of the SG on the OPGA
