Management Meeting

Good morning and thank you for being here today

I am pleased to address you once again to make good on our promise to hold regular briefings on management issues.

There 3 points I would like to discuss with you today.

1. Our 2015 Annual Report;
2. The progress made on Results Based Management, and;
3. The mapping of UNCTAD activities to the 2030 Agenda's Sustainable Development Goals.

Let me start with the Annual Report.

In front of you, you will find copies of the 2015 edition of this report.

This year's report outlines in concrete terms how UNCTAD is pivoting from decisions to actions. The report outlines, in concrete terms, how we transform economies; tackle vulnerabilities, improve competitiveness, and enrich multilateralism.

The report shows evidence of our success both at the macro and the micro level.

In 2015, UNCTAD implemented 299 projects with expenditures of $39.5 million. This outcome was possible thanks to the generous contributions of all our donors, and particularly the EU, Switzerland, Finland, the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden and Norway. On behalf of UNCTAD and our recipients, thank you for your support.

Of the $39.5 million in expenditures, I am proud to report that LDCs received nearly half - or 48% - of them.

Also in 2015, we increased UNCTAD's visibility: Our website got 4.4 million views, our Twitter account now has 90,000 followers, and our Facebook page has been liked 7,800 times.

But these top-line figures don't convey the true impact of our work - which also happens at the individual level.

That is why in this year's report, we also placed a special emphasis on sharing "Impact Stories" about the people whose lives we touch.

Our Empretec program, for example, help to train Beatrica Ayuru, the first women to be admitted to the University of Makere in Kampala. Using the profits from selling cassava roots, Beatrice was able to found a school that today, with UNCTAD's support, teaches over 1,500 students.

Aside from the "Impact Stories," the annual report also highlights the human-centered development story that UNCTAD makes possible. In Cambodia, for instance, the manager of a Kampot pepper farm was able to secure, with UNCTAD's assistance, a geographical indication. This increased the price of her peppers from $5 to $18 over four years, allowing her to create more jobs in her community.

I invite all of you read through the report and discover other stories. I trust you will find both the macro and the micro evidence that our work is contributing to sustainable development.

Let me now turn to our progress on the roll out of Results Based Management.

In January, we said that we would roll-out RBM in UNCTAD's technical cooperation activities by mid-2016.

I'm happy to confirm that on 1 July, we launched what we refer to as minimum requirements for RBM in technical cooperation. These will bring everyone to at least the minimum acceptable level for RBM.

You will find, before you, a one-pager with the basic steps of RBM to ensure a focus on results throughout the project cycle.

These steps are familiar to UNCTAD managers. Many of them have already implemented these steps. Either because it was required - for example, in the case of the Development Account - or from their own initiative - as in the case of ASYCUDA.

Up to this point, however, implementation has been ad hoc. Now, with minimum requirements, program managers can rely on a system. This will ensure the relevance, efficiency, effectiveness, impact, and sustainability of their projects. Everyone agrees that these are desirable criteria for UNCTAD projects.

So, how do these minimum requirements help?

1. They ensure more in-depth analysis of how the project can sustainably address the problems related to UNCTAD's mandate,

2. They ensure that UNCTAD projects add value, vis a vis other options in the market for technical cooperation,

3. They ensure the definition of indicators to measure impact,

4. They offer more comprehensive monitoring and evaluation of results,

5. They require regular reporting on results, including to our member states, and

6. And they incorporate lessons learned for future projects.

The second hand-out, summarizes the situation pre- and post-roll out.

We considered many options on how best to roll-out RBM. And we believe the minimum requirements offer sufficient flexibility to managers, while ensuring a high standard for RBM. There are a few reasons for this:

1. Through the minimum requirements, managers can tailor their project plans to the needs and circumstances of different countries. They will involve beneficiary countries in the design and planning of the projects.

2. They can also choose to do more than the minimum required when possible.

3. Finally, they will not need to fill out multiple project document templates to get a project approved. If donors require their own templates, managers can attach any additional information needed to meet the minimum requirements. They can then have the project cleared internally.

This brings me to another important point: Standardising the content of project documents also allows us to have a discussion on streamlined reporting.

In 2014, JIU issued a recommendation to UNCTAD to organize dialogues with donors and agree upon common reporting requirements. This was done with the aim of simplifying the reporting process.

We've already done this with DMFAS (before the JIU recommendation). DMFAS produces one annual report that is sent to donors with supplementary annexes as required. This has significantly increased the efficiency of their reporting.

We will also be waiving the minimum requirements on a case-by-case basis for small projects under $30,000 which are not part of a larger technical cooperation programme; although these projects will still be evaluated as part of the subprogramme.

The third handout we've shared with you highlights the results of the Toolbox. This provides logical frameworks for each of our 29 products. It describes UNCTAD's activities and outputs and links them to expected medium and long term results, including their contributions to the SDGs. There are indicators to measure different levels of results.

Again, many of these indicators are not new. For training and capacity-building workshops, most managers request participants to evaluate the workshop through surveys, e.g. for P166, the STIP reviews, or the Biotrade Initiative.

On the UNCTAD Empowerment Programme for National Trade Facilitation Committees, there is even an exam to test understanding on key issues.

For the Investment Policy Reviews, there is follow up after 5 years on the implementation of the review recommendations.

DMFAS tracks the number of countries showing improvements in debt management capacity.

ASYCUDA now includes a performance management module that collects data on 29 indicators.

With the minimum requirements, now every programme will have such indicators. Managers will monitor and assess them regularly.

We'll be able to collect more evidence on what works and what does not, and improve our services to member states. For each project, managers will work with the beneficiaries to select indicators that work for them. Results will then be compiled for the programme and UNCTAD as a whole for the organization and member States to reflect on lessons learned.

Having said that, we are launching this initiative on a pilot basis so we can assess the resource requirements (i.e. staff time, financial resources, additional tools). During the one-year pilot, we aim to fine-tune the process as well as the indicators. Our goal is clear: to have an RBM system that works for UNCTAD and for its members.

To sum up,

1. We will increase the relevance, efficiency, effectiveness (including impact) and sustainability of our projects;

2. We will collect more evidence on what works and what does not, and reflect these in our programmes; and

3. We will pilot the minimum requirements for one year so we have an efficient RBM system that not only does not detract us from our work, but it helps us to improve it.

After UNCTAD 14, we will roll-out RBM in the other two pillars.

But let me stop here and move to my next point: UNCTAD's work and its contribution to the 2030 Agenda.

During another briefing, earlier this year, the Group of 77 requested a mapping of UNCTAD activities to the 2030 Agenda's Sustainable Development Goals. We have also received similar requests in person from individual delegations in recent months.

Mapping our work to the SDGs in a concise and comprehensive way is a challenging undertaking, given the interrelationships between SDGs, and the integrated nature of UNCTAD's work and the diverse areas in which it affects development outcomes.

To overcome this challenge we have pursued a TWO-TRACK approach.

First, we have internally compiled what we hope is an exhaustive inventory of how all our individual product lines relate to the SDGs. We have organized this inventory by Goal and by the three pillars of UNCTAD work in the 40 page room document available to you today. I am pleased to note that UNCTAD work does indeed impact on achievement of all 17 SDGs - but this is natural given the inter-related nature of the Goals - e.g., a study last year of the SDGs showed that if you work on at least three different goals, then in theory you work on ALL of the Goals. The purpose of this inventory is to be a "living" document, which we will periodically update - it is also a useful overview of which of our products can work well together going forward, and a good snapshot of what UNCTAD is doing across the entire organization, as well.

Second of all, however, it's clear that our work directly impacts on some Goals more than others. And to this effect, we have compiled a second shorter one-page draft document entitled the UNCTAD SDGs of focus. This document highlights the specific goals and targets, directly linked to our mandate. These goals and targets are a sub-set of the inventory, and includes targets, where multiple UNCTAD product lines contribute through direct impacts. The main focus for us is clearly Goal 17 on partnership, Goal 8 on growth and entrepreneurship, Goal 9 on infrastructure, industry and innovation and Goal 10 on reducing inequality between countries. But we also have quite a number of tools that impact on isolated targets under Goal 12, Goal 15 and Goal 16, as well. In addition, we are of the view that Goal 5 on Gender equality and Goal 1 on ending poverty in all its forms are goals that we need to ensure are mainstreamed across the organization, as far as we can.

The purpose of the SDGs of focus is different from the inventory. It is not only about branding our contribution to the SDGs but it also serves as a guide for which goals we should seek deeper partnerships on - both across product lines, but also across the UN system. It also offers guidance on which targets were we have the greatest potential for helping create new indicators and new evidence to help monitor implementation.

So while SDG inventory will serve as a reference for how we relate our individual tools to individual targets, the Goals of Focus document should be used to guide the strategic engagement of UNCTAD as a whole vis-a-vis the goals.

But let me know stop here, so we can have enough time for an interactive discussion and the issues I just presented to you.

Thank you very much.