4th meeting - Executive Board of UNDP, UNFPA and UNOPS (Annual Session 2025)
Economic and Social Council
Date: 3 June 2025
Language: English
Transcript: https://transcripts.un.org/ru/asset/k18/k18cmxcw0i?lang=en
Transcripts available through this tool are created by using automatic speech recognition and are not official records nor official documents of the United Nations. Official records and official documents are available on the Official Document System of the United Nations.

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UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board · President [0:03]:

Very good afternoon, colleagues. I'd like to start the meeting, please. Excellencies, distinguished delegates, friends, very good afternoon. I'm pleased to welcome you to the opening of item 18 of our agenda for the UNOPS segment at our annual 2025 session of the UNDP, UNFPA, UNOPS Executive Board. I'm delighted to welcome Jorge Moreira da Silva, Under-Secretary-General and UNOPS Executive Director. Mr. Moreira today will be accompanied by Ms. Kirstin Damjaia, Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director, as well as Hillary Balbuena, Chief of Staff. From the People and Culture Group, and Abdul Dieng, Internal Audit and Investigations Group, as well as Mr. Oren Ginsberg, Process Innovation and Digitalization Program Director. Allow me also to welcome Raoul Malhotra, Director of the New York Board and External Relations Office at UNOPS, who will serve as the Secretariat for the UNOPS segments. Colleagues, in the context of item 18 of the agenda, we'll examine the following aspects: the annual report of the Executive Board, including the strategic reform-related strategic plan for UNOPS, the UNOPS report on recommendations of the Joint Inspection Unit in 2024, and the external third-party review of the implementation of the Comprehensive Response Plan. First of all, we'll hear from the Executive Director, after which I'll open the floor to board observers so that they can deliver statements or ask questions. So without further ado, I'd like to turn to the Executive Director, Mr. Moreira da Silva, to deliver his presentation.


UNOPS · USG and Executive Director · Jorge Moreira da Silva [2:57]:

Mr. President, honourable members of the Executive Board, it's a pleasure to join you today. This is indeed an important session, not only due to the content of your deliberations, but also because it's the last session of my dear friends, Achim and Natalia, at the head of UNDP and UNFPA. And obviously, as you imagine, it has been a pleasure to partner with them along the journey and to also benefit from their experience leading the those agencies for so many years. In my statement today, I will focus on details on our operations, which is what defines us— the projects on the ground— also sharing some highlights from that experience, sharing information on the reforms, and looking ahead based on the recent discussions on the Strategic Plan 2026. 29. So we'll take stock and look forward, which is always something that is beneficial for our deliberations. But the moment is crucial. We are in a crucial moment in time. We find ourselves in a moment where we see geopolitical tensions rising, and wars raging, the climate crisis continuing despite the fact that it's no longer in most of the news headlines, the inequality is mounting and the debt crisis worsening the capacity for developing countries to develop their aspirations, and limited resources for sustainable development. The numbers are quite eloquent when it comes to the gap in the Paris Agreement, but towards 2.7 to 2.9 degrees. This is the state of the world on financing, on SDGs, on climate, on poverty, on inequality, and on conflicts. Mr. President, we are living indeed in a truly unique moment of time, fraught with challenges, but let me emphasize this element also, filled with opportunities. And the Pact for the Future represents one such opportunity for countries to gather to accelerate changes for a better world. Simultaneously, our collective responses across humanitarian, development, peace and security operations are suffering from the proliferation of wars and conflicts not seen in decades. And in parallel, we see funding contexts reshaping the multilateralism that should be the bedrock of coordinated action for the benefit of all on our shared planet. In the face of these challenges, UNOPS continues to focus on action, on implementation, on operations, on making tangible changes to people's lives through our practical solutions. This year, in fact, marks the 30th anniversary of our practical solutions— building schools, hospitals, roads, clean energy infrastructure, bringing critical supplies where they are most needed, supporting peace and security efforts, demining, helping countries and communities drive climate action. This is UNOPS— its solutions, its operations, its implementation. We work to improve lives and livelihoods, in the most difficult context. From Gaza to Ukraine, from Yemen to Myanmar, from Afghanistan to Sudan, from Haiti to Somalia, we are committed, we are resilient, and we are driven by a determination to get the job done, no matter how challenging the context. But Mr. President, distinguished members, these are difficult times. And this is almost an understatement. Only 2 months ago, We mourned at UNOPS our colleague Marin Marinov, killed in Gaza following an Israeli military assault on UNOPS premises. In the same attack, 9 other colleagues, 6 from UNOPS, were also injured in this incident. Last year, we also lost another colleague in Gaza, Loay Yaghi, where all his family— 24— were killed in one single strike. Only his daughter of 9 survived. As you are aware, attacks against humanitarian premises are a breach of international law. Over 300 UN workers have been killed in Gaza since the conflict began. Despite these losses, we remain committed to support civilians in Gaza. I was quite moved when I went to the funeral in Bulgaria of our colleague Marin, where my colleagues from Mine Action and from the UN 2720 mechanism that were there, the first thing that they told me, we want to go back. We want to go back to Gaza to support the people in it. Reports from recent days— and you have seen the footage— have shown Palestinians killed and injured while seeking aid in Gaza. We saw children starving. And this is unacceptable. Aid is simply not negotiable. It cannot be conditional on political and military aims. Humanitarian principles are non-negotiable. We need immediate and unimpeded entry of assistance at scale to meet the enormous needs in Gaza. We need our UN colleagues, including my amazing team on the ground, to be allowed to work in safety and security under conditions of full respect of humanitarian principles. We already have a mechanism to do this. We have a plan. We have a plan. The UN has a plan, and we, UNOPS, we have a mechanism to do this. The United Nations 2720 Mechanism, approved by the Security Council, that UNOPS manages, is there to expedite, streamline and accelerate the delivery of aid into Gaza. It is recognized by the key stakeholders and broader international community. It is mandated by the Security Council. It is a proven mechanism that has worked, especially during the ceasefire, to temporarily alleviate the suffering of the population. As a reminder, UNOPS is also focused on the delivery, monitoring and distribution of fuel, and with the UN Mine Action Service, working to mitigate explosive hazards to safeguard critical humanitarian aid efforts. During the brief ceasefire, the 42 days, we delivered more than 1 million litres of fuel per day. We went from 100,000 on average for more than 1 year to 1 million per day to enable the humanitarian response. This is what happened during those 42 days. And those— during those 42 days, We facilitated the delivery of almost 40,000 tonnes of supplies through the so-called UN 2720 mechanism. As you know, this mechanism is a one-stop shop to approve all aid into Gaza— transparent, predictable, ensuring that all aid that was coming to Gaza was based on the real needs, that everyone would know why some aid was being rejected, what has been approved, what happens with the consignments, where they are coming from, what's the final destiny and use. This is the UN— not UNOPS— the UN 2720 mechanism. Even during the brief window to resume delivery of aid into Gaza last month, when we were allowed just for a few days to enter again, my UN 2720 mechanism colleagues worked day and night to support humanitarian response in Gaza. We worked with our sister agencies in Gaza to supply fuel to bakeries that worked with limited flour. To power hospital generators. To move ambulances. To do this, our team ran convoys to the destroyed areas and evacuation zones— operating at great risk to access our fuel storage tanks. We still have 3 million liters of fuel inside Gaza, but we can't get there. All fuel retrieval missions have been denied since 25 May, and accessible fuel supplies are now running critically low. But the fuel is there, inside Gaza. Since 25 May, all attempts to deploy UNOPS humanitarian aid monitors to Kerem Shalom/Kerem Abu Salem crossing have been denied by the Israeli authorities. Mr. President, distinguished members, I visited Gaza twice during the war. I saw destruction that I will never forget. What I saw in the children's eyes is something that I will never forget. But I will never forget also the restless commitment of the UN team, the humanitarians, UNOPS, to stay and deliver. Last time I went to Gaza, it was in February 2025, during the ceasefire, when thousands of trucks were flowing in. The markets were getting food. We saw hope in the children's eyes, in the people's aspirations. We saw it during the ceasefire. At the time, When aid was flowing, the needs and the scale of the devastation were so immense that a humanitarian catastrophe was fully visible. Since then, the situation has gone from catastrophic to beyond imagination. I repeat, we have a system in place and it worked. But we need the conditions that allow us to do what we are there to do— to support humanitarian relief for all civilians in need transparently and with no impeded circumstances. I echo the calls for a lasting ceasefire, the release of all hostages, to end all hostilities and to allow for rapid and safe humanitarian relief. This atrocity must stop. I think that you understand why I started my statement with Gaza, but now I would like to go through other areas where we work beyond Gaza. In our Annual Report 2024, there are many examples of projects in all continents where we work across humanitarian, development and peace. Last year, my colleagues implemented over 1,100 projects across more than 130 countries. We supported over 200 partners, delivering about $2.7 billion in goods and services for peace and security, humanitarian and development efforts. Collectively, our efforts created 14 million days of paid work for local people. We constructed, designed or rehabilitated 113 schools, almost 700 kilometres of roads, 23 hospitals and health clinics. In an increasingly violent and unstable world, two-thirds of our work took place in special or fragile situations. This is what also makes UNOPS special. We work in 130 countries, but two-thirds of everything we do is in highly fragile, conflict and violent contexts. And we deliver one-third of all our activities in least developed countries. Allow me to share some examples. I started with Gaza, but now I would like to share many other examples. In Ukraine, over 3 years into the war, my colleagues continue to respond to the needs. They improve access to healthcare, renovate schools, refurbish homes, keep buildings warm, and help to reduce the threat of explosive ordnance. Our work in Ukraine is also an example of how the UN family can pool together resources effectively to better support local and national needs. As an example, UNOPS and the Government of Ukraine have worked with local partners restoring homes in Kharkiv. With a near continuous need for housing repairs, we established a new format of cooperation with the private sector to engage construction companies quickly to work on improving living conditions in communities, and we partner with many governments present in this room in this kind of project. Building on this success, we are now leading a process with UNDP and UNICEF for an interagency design and engineering agreement for crucial construction services. This will make the 3 agencies more agile and efficient in responding to needs, increasing resilience and supporting the Ukrainian private sector. In the examples that I will share with you today, I will highlight many partnerships with other UN agencies. Here is an example with UNDP and UNICEF, but I will go through other examples. In Myanmar, Where UNOPS has the largest UN presence— we are the largest UN agency in Myanmar— my colleagues worked to swiftly mobilize more resources for emergency relief work following the devastating earthquake in March. Our team worked closely with the entire UN family, local and other humanitarian partners to provide immediate assistance and support recovery efforts. Moving to Africa, let me share some examples of impact that I recently observed in a visit to Sudan, Somalia and Ethiopia, following a visit to Gaza, Lebanon and Syria. In Somalia, we worked together with UNFPA and WHO to support the construction of the country's first fully functioning national blood bank, which I had the chance to visit when I was there. A major milestone in the country's efforts to provide safe and reliable blood products to those in need. We all remember when there was a tragic attack 7 years ago, when more than 600 people died in Somalia. We have been told that part of the deaths were also unfortunately related with a lack of access to blood. So this was a huge aspiration for the country. Having a blood bank as a life-saving platform was crucial, is crucial. That's why we are very honoured that with UNFPA and WHO we were part— we were constructing this blood bank in Mogadishu. In Sudan, 2 years of conflict has led to immense human suffering and widespread destruction. Again, I visited Sudan and we saw the impact of the war on IDPs, on forced displacement, on refugees, the conditions, the difficult conditions that people face. I still remember an IDP centre with 800 girls, girls going there every day in a school, plus 300 people living there as families, with only 3 latrines. 1,000 people. This is the way that these citizens live in these forced displacement conditions. Nearly half of the population is in need in Sudan, in need of humanitarian assistance and protection. Sudan is also the world's most pressing displacement crises, as I mentioned. Our support in Sudan has been varied: strengthening health infrastructure, improving access to clean, safe water, supporting peacekeeping operations to protect civilians, working with the UN Mine Action Service, and facilitating a more sustainable and equitable use of natural resources. One example: we are supporting efforts to improve health services for 2.8 million people, including almost 200,000 internally displaced persons living in Kasala Centre. As you know, during this war, even the health facilities in Sudan have been targeted. The destruction of hospitals and clinics in Sudan is immense, so the early recovery of Sudan requires a huge investment on health, and as I've shared with distinguished members, it's an area where we have been working. In Ethiopia— and I had the chance to share this experience with the Ambassador, dear Vice President of the Executive Board— in a recent visit, I could see the results of our partnership and our work. Implementing the Response and Recovery Programme in Tigray. This programme brings together humanitarian, development, environmental, and peace and security strands in a coordinated approach. It is pivotal in a post-conflict recovery, restoring essential services for over half a million people and creating resilience for those most vulnerable. UNOPS has supported the distribution of humanitarian aid, provided capacity building, rebuilt WASH, health and education infrastructure, and restored essential services in 500 sites across Tigray. We have supported agriculture, fostered social cohesion and economic revitalization. This work has been done in partnership with the government, but also with UNICEF, and UNFPA. So you can see again how the partnership with other UN agencies is so important for UNOPS. In Syria, we support humanitarian mine action on behalf of UNMAS. This work is extensive. In 2024, my colleagues surveyed nearly 60 square kilometers and cleared over 600 thousands of square meters of explosive threats so that communities can return safely to their farms, schools and homes so that they can recover. This work is part of our broader partnership with UNMAS. UNOPS is the largest operational branch of mine action in the UN system. We work under the political mandate of of UNMAS, but we are on the ground doing the demining, the mine action activities. We work with UNMAS across 12 countries, which in 2024 led to the destruction of nearly 2 million explosive ordnance items, improved safety for over 900,000 civilians. In Afghanistan, And it's the last example that I'm sharing in the interest of time. In Afghanistan, amid intensifying needs and a restricted operating space, the Afghanistan Community Resilience and Livelihoods Project provides short-term employment, offering a lifeline for vulnerable households, with the benefits of the work activities extending to entire communities. This work relies on a strong model of community engagement, inviting the local communities to select work activities. So it's the local community, it's not the DFA, it's the local community that selects work activities, manages the talent force and provides channels for grievances. Any potential activity is checked against key environmental and social considerations before a final selection is made. Additionally, the project extends social grants to particularly vulnerable households who are unable to participate in work, prioritizing women-headed households, people with disabilities, and those suffering from drug addiction. Esteemed delegates, as I mentioned, 25% of the population live impacted by conflict, and UNOPS has been able to stay and deliver in this difficult context. But let me highlight one area or two areas where it's at the heart of our mandate: infrastructure and procurement. They underpin sustainable development and are central to climate action. Infrastructure influences 92% of the targets across SDGs and 79% of all greenhouse gas emissions. So without the right infrastructure, we won't be able to succeed delivering on the SDGs and we won't be able to succeed on the climate action. So there is a correlation between infrastructure, SDGs, and climate impacts. But the same happens with procurement. And I will not go, as I planned, through more examples. I had some examples from Sierra Leone and Argentina, but in the interest of time, I'm cutting parts of my statement. On public procurement, also the correlation with SDGs is quite eloquent. It has the potential to create jobs, drive equity, and reduce the CO2, the greenhouse gas emissions. The scale of public procurement makes it so relevant to the SDGs that around the world public procurement represents on average 13% to 20%, so if we get the public procurement right, we will have the capacity to influence the way that we produce, the way that we consume, and therefore aligning production and consumption with the Sustainable Development Goals. We have been helping countries responding through procurement to conflicts and crises, advancing their climate priorities, and foster sustainable inclusive development around the world. Again, I had some examples that I will not mention, such as Guatemala on the health procurement. But I would like to also emphasize our contribution to climate action, which is a topic that Member States, this Executive Board, have been clearly asking us to deliver. It's part of the restated Strategic Plan 2022-2025. You asked us to align everything we do with SDGs and with climate action. And we have integrated this call for action in our activities. We support efforts to turn climate ambitions into climate action and address the triple planetary crisis on climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution— from supporting platforms for multilateral action to helping communities and countries to mitigate and adapt. Our efforts continue together with the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, UNDRR, to co-host the Santiago Network, which catalyzes technical assistance to avert, minimize, and address loss and damage in developing countries. We also host Sustainable Energy for All— it's one of the UNEP-hosted entities— an international initiative to accelerate progress on energy transition in emerging and developing countries. And through the initiative for ICAT, the Climate Action Transparency, again hosted at UNOPS, we help countries build robust data and assessment frameworks essential for effective climate action aligned with the national development goals. In Madagascar, for example, we support the government to address the high levels of acute food insecurity by implementing with IFAD a sustainable agriculture development project. And in North Macedonia, we have been working supporting the government efforts to clean up an industrial pollution site at a former chemical plant. Let me now turn to reforms. Now that I covered the projects and activities in 2024— and I would like to kindly invite you to go through our report, because it's not just a glossy presentation, it also brings lots of good examples about what you do, what we do under your guidance. I would like now to turn to reforms. We have been dedicated to reforms. We have established a deal, a contract between the shareholders and management. After the crisis that the organization faced in 2022, Member states approved a comprehensive response plan. It was a contract, a deal, with guidance to the management, to us. Now it's the moment to say it's done. The deal included recommendations and actions. The deal anticipated the need to have a third-party review, not having UNOPS telling you it's done, but having others independently sharing with you it's done. This is the moment of truth today, where following the conclusion from our side in December of the Comprehensive Response Plan, we have the chance today based on the third-party review that was shared with Member States to assess the implementation of the contract, our deal. Because we know that trust is the most important element when it comes to recovering from a crisis. And trust ultimately depends on your ability— I mean, on our ability— to deliver on our commitments. And I don't take this lightly. Or by surface. We take this deeply. So let me go to the facts. Out of the 43 recommendations, we implemented fully 41, with 2 recommendations that were already planned to continue beyond the deadline of 2024. It's the recovery from the recovery of funds from SRI investments, and tomorrow we'll have another closed session to share more information with Member States on that topic. So that recommendation was never planned to be closed by 2024. It's an effort that will continue, and I will not comment more on this. I prefer to share information tomorrow in the closed session. And there is another recommendation, which is the process innovation and digitalisation, which is a long-term programme to reform the way we work and to get a new ERP. Those 2 recommendations were— we agreed to continue beyond the deadline. But the other 41 are concluded. The third-party review recognises the meaningful progress by UNOPS and that the Comprehensive Response Plan can be considered completed. The review also recognizes that several recommendations require long-term action to achieve the intended impact, which is something that I always said that would be needed. That's why, even before the closing of the CRP, as you remember, one year ago, we launched something called Transformation Initiatives. To assure you that we would continue reforming even beyond what you asked us to reform. So this third-party review confirms what we always expected, which is we delivered as agreed, but it requires continued action because there is always a delay between the moment you approve a reform, the moment you implement the reform, and the moment you see the impact of the reform. One good example is culture. Would anyone think that the culture of UNOPS would change just because we approved a culture strategy?


Speaker 3 [33:24]:

No.


UNOPS · USG and Executive Director · Jorge Moreira da Silva [33:25]:

We need to nurture this daily for several years, as my colleague Valerie Kouchatta has been sharing with you. Our reforms have been shared with Member States every month, every month in the last 2 years I've been in sessions with you every month. You know everything about the organization. So it's not just a paper or a report. You know the organization. We have had the chance to be with you for 2 years monthly. There is no other organization in the system, no other organization in the system that has been under this kind of scrutiny and accountability. That's why I speak today with some confidence, because after those efforts for the last 3 years, the fact that the third-party review confirms that it is completed, it's not my victory, it's not our victory, it's your victory. It's the member states that called for action, that guided action, and we delivered. So allow me to say that these reforms helped us turning the page. And let me highlight just a few examples of the relevance of the reforms that you approved and we implemented. We delivered our very first integrated people strategy to put our people at the centre of all we do. We have submitted proposals to revise our financial regulations and rules. We are overhauling our legislative framework. We have taken key steps to strengthen our risk management framework. And we place integrity as a cornerstone of our operations and organizational culture. We have an enhanced accountability framework designed to strengthen governance through clear lines of responsibility and transparency in all aspects of operations. So I think that we could say that we are proud to have come to the end of one chapter of our reforms, but I want to assure Member States that we are committed, we remain committed to continue going above and beyond with further transformation. Because we want to be an agile and fit-for-purpose partner in today's world, always building on what we have Let me end with the future. I know that my intervention is being too long— apologies, Mr. President and distinguished members— but this is an important moment where we are taking stock of the annual plan, taking stock of the reform and outlining the vision. We'll have the chance in August to go through the Strategic Plan 2026-2029, but It's important that we prepare the ground, and I want to thank Member States for the active contribution in the recent months, in the meetings with my colleague Christine Damkjær and Raul Malhotra, in the regional consultations, precisely to discuss this Strategic Plan in the process led by Ilary Balbuena and Thomas Lundh. So this has been collective effort with Member States deeply involved. What's our ambition and aspiration? To scale up and to speed up. In a moment in time where people are facing immense needs, we can't hesitate between being frugal or being ambitious. We need to efficiently deliver at scale, which means that UNOPS needs to partner even more with other UN agencies. In a moment where resources are being restrained, we have to work as one, to deliver as one across the system, relying on the Resident Coordinator System. But we also need not only to scale up, we need to speed up. We need to deliver faster. Because the time is at ansest for so many people in it. It will be focused on infrastructure procurement and project management. It is focused on implementation. We won't move one inch from our mandate. We are just operations. This agency value is just operations, just implementation. We have no interest at all at all to move into any area that might look normative or programmatic. There are so many good agencies in the system that are normative and programmatic. We just want to do operations. So I want to assure Member States that it's our focus, our added value, and we are not deviating at all from that objective. That's why we want to work with all sister agencies in the system and entities with a normative function to bridge implementation gaps and deliver peace and stability, sustainable development and climate action. Rather than competing, UNOPS is committed to find alignment, complementarity and collaboration. And this is all the more important in the spirit of UN80: alignment, complementarity and collaboration. Understanding the mandates as lines of complementarity rather than lines of separation. We are fully committed to supporting our collective efforts to become more effective, cost-efficient and responsive to the people we serve. And I want to insist on the role of Resident Coordinators. Over the past years, we have consistently relied on and benefited from our engagement with UN Resident Coordinators to ensure alignment, so we can better support national and international development priorities. The RC system is key not only to better align UNOPS and all agencies' responses to the real needs of the countries we serve, the people we serve, but also to ensure that there is no competition, but rather collaboration across the system, and therefore the Resident Coordinator Systems have been playing a key role. In the same spirit, our Strategic Plan 2026-2029 is fully aligned with the Quadrennial Comprehensive Policy Review, QCPR. I still remember, for instance, a statement last time from the Ambassador from the Netherlands about this idea of ensuring that we would align everything we do with the QCPR and to see whether we could assess our response through the Strategic Plan in a complementary manner with other UN agencies. We are including this in our strategic plan. In the strategic plan, we will have a section precisely seeing how complementary UNOPS activities are vis-à-vis other UN agencies. Distinguished delegates, Mr. President, we live in a moment defined by uncertainty, polycrisis. We have been talking a lot about financing, about policy, about the policy gap, about the financing gap, But I always say that there is a third gap, that is the implementation gap. And I know many, many contexts. I've been visiting, extensively visiting on the ground, and I've seen places where the gap is not just about the financing or the policy. In some cases, it's not even the financing or the policy; it's the implementation gap. Elements related with technical assistance, capacity building, project design. So we need to put the focus on this, and this is an area where we will focus in our strategic plan, focusing on the implementation gap. Other agencies will do their job on the policy gap and on the financing gap; we will just focus on the implementation gap. Our vision will enhance our focus on solutions rather than just projects. Driven by clear missions, which are not programmes, I insist, and dedicated to creating impact for the people we serve. I know that the use of the word missions— and I always prefer to bring the difficult points to the conversations— I know that the use of the word missions has created in some delegations some questions. What does it mean? Is UNOPS becoming normative or programmatic? No. The idea of the missions is a readiness. It's just to be ready to the demand. So it's not to create any programme, it's internal knowledge management platforms to respond to the need. So we just want to be fit for the demand. So it's a readiness approach. It's not a programmatic approach. And we are ready to strengthen this language as needed so that it's clear for everyone that the objective is get ready. It's not to tell member states what they should be implementing. That's something that is not in our core mandate. Let me end, Mr. President, and distinguished members, with a final element about the yardstick. What you measure matters. We used to say that we only can manage what we measure, and we would like in the next Strategic Plan to go from outputs to outcomes. to stop counting hospitals and schools and counting number of people with access to education and to health. So this is probably the most significant change in the Strategic Plan, is shifting the results framework from outputs to outcomes, and I think that this is very much aligned with what we've been hearing from member states in the last few years. Mr. President, at a time of global upheaval, I choose— we choose— to be hopeful. To be hopeful that a better future is within reach, and looking at what UNOPS has achieved over the past year gives me hope. We have achieved concrete results by joining forces, by pooling our resources together, and by focusing on tangible actions. And we look to the future As we look to the future, we will bring that spirit to our partnerships in the service of those left behind for a more peaceful, fairer, and greener world for all. I thank you.


UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board · President [44:25]:

Muchas gracias, director.

I thank the executive director. I will open the floor. I won't repeat the protocol. You'll see the Countdown clock on the screen. I have no control over that clock, so once your time is up, your microphone will be cut off. You can all, though, submit your full interventions to the e-statement system. So following the usual protocol, I would like to give the floor first of all to the Vice President of the Board, Romania. You have the floor.


Romania · Vice President [45:03]:

Thank you.

Thank you very much, Executive Director, for the briefing, and I'll try to stay in my time. We appreciate the level of engagement of UNOPS in all the regions of the world, but especially in the most affected ones and the ones that you were actually talking about, the fragile ones, the ones affected by the conflict. We regret the loss of the lives among the UNOPS personnel, and please accept our condolences. The level of engagement of the—


Speaker 7 [45:28]:

Who? Sorry.


Romania · Vice President [45:31]:

The level of engagement of the organization in delivering essential goods to the people in Gaza and Ukraine is extraordinary. And UNOPS' level of cooperation with other UN agencies is exactly what you just showcased, the idea of partnership, and in the efforts deployed in implementing the mandate is commendable. The capacity of being versatile and adaptive is essential in the current context that UNOPS is implementing its projects. However, it is of utmost importance not to overlap with other agencies' mandate, but rather to complement, especially in the humanitarian context. And this is one of the topics that we wanted to address, the question, but you extensively, I think, you addressed it in the last part of your intervention, the issue of complementarity, which we see it in line with the UNAID initiative. My delegation appreciates the efforts UNOPS is undertaking in aligning the Strategic Plan 2026 2029 to the realities of our nowadays world. We have enough time to evaluate it and to decide upon the main aspects until the 2nd regular session, and I appreciate very much the over-the-summer informal briefings and discussions with you and the delegates. And I would like to commend the initial plan circulated recently and its level of details in structuring the implementation of the mandate. Through impact, implementation, and management. We commend UNOPS' efforts in modernizing itself and in integrating a set of reforms, and we encourage you to push back on any attempts to make— or not to make, but to reduce to mere footprints or footnotes your and your management. And I mean, the whole team stands on reform, so never give up on Romania values a good implementation of a culture of transparency and oversight. This is why we highly value the activity of the UNOPS Office of Internal Audit and Investigation, as well as the Ethics Office, and we pledged that support yesterday in our intervention as well. So, Mr. Executive Director, I'm sure you saw the movie Spider-Man, and there is a famous line there, with big powers come big responsibilities. And UNOPS is not shielded from that. The rising number of— and there is also a topic that we also want to draw attention is the rising number of the anonymous letters that we have received. As a Bureau member, we are paying attention to this, and we also commend the fact that you and also your team are responding to that. Because we want to encourage you and everyone in UNOPS to apply the highest standards in combating any deficiencies. Just to conclude, Mr. Executive Director, one question from our side. It's on localization and how it is approached in the implementation gap that you are talking about for the UNOPS. How do you use the principle of localization? Thank you very much.

Gracias.


UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board · President [48:38]:

I thank you, Romania. Next, I will give the floor to the Permanent Representative of Ethiopia, also a Vice President of this Board. You have the floor, Ambassador.


Ethiopia · Permanent Representative; Vice President [48:51]:

Thank you, Mr. President, for giving me the floor, and let me thank the Under-Secretary-General, Mr. Jorge Moreira da Silva, for a very comprehensive report and a very touchy one. He took us across the globe, actually, to all the difficult spots where we read in the newspapers. And thank you for your service, USCG George da Silva. And he told us harrowing stories of 3 toilets for 1,000 people. Most likely all of us in this hall have toilets in our apartments individually. So the kind of contrast is a little bit harrowing, really. And that kind of service is required.


UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board · President [49:56]:

Thank you.


Ethiopia · Permanent Representative; Vice President [49:59]:

Then, of course, he did give service in my own country, in the region, in the Horn of Africa region, in Ethiopia, in accessible places with difficulty has been assisted by UNOPS, and we are grateful for that as well. Then, with regard to the CRP, I think the third-party review was very helpful. That confirmation was very helpful. The recommendations were overwhelmingly implemented. It's understandable that we are cautious about those things because of the background, because of the history. I think history weighs very heavily on Europe. That's what we understand. The background is very heavy. And that's why we make them pass through a scrutiny under microscope in several cases, unlike many other organizations. And I think that's justified in my view. It's good that we review every move and every activity. I agree with that. Recovery of funds is the most concerning part. I have been asking questions, probably the most vocal person in the hall, asking several questions about this before, and it's a process. We'll have to close the file at some point down the road. PID is a project for the organization. So if there are issues that we need to look into, they should be tabled by member states here. Otherwise, I think we have to bring in some kind of closure to this file and let them move as fast as they can to deliver in the troubled spots. They are delivering now. The microscope should be kept. We should always watch them, but in the meantime, we shouldn't chain them to restrain their their flights and movement capacity. In my view, we should just put a closure to this, then keep the microscope and scrutinize them. I thank you, Mr. Chairman. Muchísimas gracias.


UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board · President [52:33]:

Thank you very much, Ambassador of Ethiopia. I now give the floor to Mozambique, speaking on behalf of a group of countries. Mozambique, please.


Mozambique · African members of the Executive Board [52:57]:

Mr. President, I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the African members of the Executive Board, namely Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Nigeria, Tunisia, Zambia, and my own country, Mozambique. At the outset, we extend our sincere appreciation to Mr. Jorge Moreira da Silva for his insightful remarks and commend his leadership, particularly amid a challenging global landscape that continues to constrain the delivery of enhanced and sustainable results. We have taken note of the report on the implementation of the restated UNOPS Strategic Plan 2022-2025. We welcome the the notable progress made and acknowledge that only one of the 43 recommendations from the Third-Party Review remains open within the framework of the Comprehensive Response Plan. Furthermore, we commend UNOPS for the scale of its implementation in 2024, with a portfolio of over 1,000 projects across 130 countries. This wide geographical reach reflects not only the extensive footprint of UNOPS, but also its strategic comparative advantage within the UN development system. We believe this strength should be further leveraged, especially in the ongoing discussions under the UNAIDS Initiative. We believe that the lessons learned from the implementation of Strategic Plan 2022-2025 should serve as a foundation for the formulation of the next cycle, 2026-2029. In this regard, we emphasize the need to address the risks arising from the ongoing global financial uncertainties. Mobilizing predictable, adequate, diversified, and resilient financing is pivotal to ensuring that UNOPS remains fit for purpose and leaves no one behind. Mr. President, we note with appreciation that UNOPS sourced 46% of its goods and services from suppliers registered in the same country as the project and 10% from other suppliers in the same geographical region. We encourage UNOPS to scale up these efforts, particularly in countries in fragile and complex settings. The multiplier effect of such an effort cannot be overstated, as it serves as a catalyst for accelerating progress toward the 23rd Agenda for Sustainable Development. We remain deeply concerned by the slow pace of SDG implementation, with only 17% of the goals currently on track. This is particularly concerning for Africa, a region that, while being the second largest recipient of UNOPS in-country activities continues to experience disproportionate impacts due to the underachievement of the goals. We therefore call for increased focus on the sustainability and impact of UNOPS support in African context. In addition, we underscored the importance of robust Internal UNOPS justice mechanisms to ensure accountability and transparency. Allegations of fraud, abuse of authorities, harassment, and conflicts of interest must be addressed decisively to restore confidence and trust. We commend the strengthening of the UNOPS Ethics Office to protect whistleblowers from retaliation. In conclusion, Mr. President, we reaffirm our commitment to working constructively with UNOPS to ensure the organization remains responsive to the interconnected and complex challenges of peace, security, development, and humanitarian action. I thank you. Thank you.


UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board · President [57:51]:

I thank Mozambique. We will now continue with the group statements. I'd like to first of all give the floor to Denmark, to be followed by the Netherlands. So Denmark first, please.


Denmark · Nordic Group [58:09]:

President, Excellencies, Executive Director, I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Nordic countries. Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and my own country, Denmark. First of all, I would like to thank the Executive Director for his annual report. It was very interesting to listen to. This Executive Board meeting takes place at a time when the UN stands at a critical juncture. The Nordic countries welcome the UN Secretary-General's UN80 reform initiative, and at this critical moment, each of the UN development system entities will have to review their operations, processes, organizational setups, and value propositions with the purpose of delineating the core functions necessary for mandate delivery. The situation calls for genuine coordination, enhanced cooperation, firm prioritization, and committed action at global and country level with a view to promoting effectiveness and efficiency. Against this backdrop, it remains essential that UNOPS' new strategic plan centers on core mandate delivery on project management, procurement, and infrastructure. At the same time, it must reflect agility and commitment to contributing to UNAD improvements with a focus on effective joint UN system delivery. To achieve efficient and effective results on the ground, it is crucial to uphold robust risk management systems, a solid organizational accountability infrastructure, an organizational culture as well as appropriate complaint and recourse mechanisms are fundamental. This is something UNEP has been working on devotedly for the past years, as also highlighted by the Executive Director. The Nordics welcome KPMG's second interim review of the remaining recommendations of the Comprehensive Response Plan, an important stocktake opportunity. A number of KPMG's observations regarding governance, risk management, and internal control systems are described as needing development in advancing the maturity of UNEP's risk management. Similarly, the annual report of the IAIG presented for this session identifies a number of systemic and recurrent issues related to accountability, governance, decision-making, communication, and risk management. So, Executive Director, we acknowledge the commitment of UNEP to making necessary reforms, learning from the past, and emerging stronger with a renewed focus on accountability and integrity. But we, the Nordics, would appreciate hearing your reflections on how you see the above-mentioned issues being prioritized after the completion of the Comprehensive Response Plan and how they will be firmly reflected in the new strategic plan. Transparency and accountability remain key. We expect UNEP's management to keep the Executive Board adequately and timely informed about challenges encountered and issues which may emerge. Thank you.


UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board · President [1:01:00]:

Thank you very much to Denmark. Next, I'd like to open the floor to the Netherlands on behalf of a group of countries. You have the floor.


Netherlands (Kingdom of the) · Canada, Denmark, Finland, Georgia, Germany, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye and the Kingdom of the Netherlands [1:01:12]:

Mr. President, I deliver this statement on behalf of Canada, Denmark, Finland, Georgia, Germany, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and my own country, the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Let me start by thanking the Executive Director for his extensive briefing and also extend our condolences to those families of UNOPS staff lost— who lost their lives in Gaza. And let me also— allow me also to condemn the attack last night on the joint WFP-UNICEF humanitarian convoy near Alkoma, North Darfur, where 5 people were killed and more were injured, and reiterate that attacks on humanitarian personnel, facilities, and vehicles are a grave violation of international humanitarian law and must end. Ladies and gentlemen, this year marks the 3rd year since the S3I crisis and a period of reforms, while UNOPS also begins to look forward to 2026, 2029. At this crucial point for UNOPS, we would like to underscore 3 points. First, we acknowledge UNOPS' progress in strengthening the organization. We reiterate our appreciation for the effort of both UNOPS leadership and the wider workforce for their work on the Comprehensive Response Plan while maintaining delivery in complex settings. Undeniably, UNOPS has become stronger, more transparent, and responsive to organizational challenges than it was 3 years ago. We do, however, also note the KPMG review's conclusion: while key actions have been implemented, sustained action and continuous investments remain necessary to realize the intended impact in key areas. Such as culture, risk management, and financial and performance management. This is not surprising, as reforming an organization requires many years of sustained efforts. We look forward to engaging constructively with UNOPS to continuously follow up on the review. Second, we underscore the importance of a strong and broadly supported Strategic Plan in 2026 to shift our collective focus to the future. In that vein, we do regret that UNOPS did not follow the example of its sister agencies in engaging extensively with the Executive Board prior to drafting the new Strategic Plan. Particularly in today's context, a comprehensive, transparent, and inclusive consultative process is essential to bring and keep everyone on board. As there is still time until August, we call on UNOPS to improve engagement with Member States on the future course of the organization. Third, we have consistently during previous sessions, decisions, and conversations engaged with UNOPS to reorient the organization towards its non-programmatic core mandate of infrastructure procurement and project management services. We are concerned that the draft strategic plan does not fully reflect this notion. Instead, we see UNOPS positioning itself as a platform for implementation, which in our view is a significant— significantly different role than the one of service provider infrastructure and procurement expertise function that we believe it should play based on its General Assembly mandate. We do expect UNOPS to follow the guidance provided by the Executive Board and particularly in the context of the current system-wide discussions and UNAT, on efficiency and comparative advantages, and we caution against UNOPS veering away from its core mandate. Furthermore, we see UNOPS' value first and foremost as central resource and support functions— function for the United Nations system, as indicated in their mandate. Demand for from IFIs and national governments should be carefully considered against the UNOPS mandate, and we would welcome further attention in the Strategic Plan on how UNOPS will weigh and assess demands from different partners. Mr. President, Mr. Executive Director, please be assured of our continued willingness to work with UNOPS on its forward-looking trajectory. Thank you.

Gracias.


UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board · President [1:05:50]:

Thank you very much to the Netherlands. We will now begin with individual country statements, and first of all, I'd like to give the floor to the Ambassador of the United Kingdom. You have the floor.


United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland [1:06:05]:

Thank you, Mr. President. Let me start by thanking UNOPS staff for their continued dedication against the backdrop of new and concurrent crises. We want particularly to acknowledge the work of staff on the front lines over the past year, including in Gaza and Myanmar. We welcome the progress made in implementing the restated Strategic Plan 2022 to 2025 and the lessons identified to inform the upcoming strategic planning cycle. The emphasis on strengthening financial management, mainstreaming gender and climate action, enhancing impact measurement is timely and necessary. We also acknowledge the rollout of a new results framework and digital systems to support these goals. The report testifies to improved governance, and we welcome the enhancements to the accountability framework and the structured approach to organizational transformation. Such elements are crucial for the smooth functioning of the agency. The Comprehensive Response Plan and the Process Innovation and Digitalization Plan are important for driving course corrections in institutional culture and for improving organizational efficiency. For this reason, it's important that we are able to fully absorb the third-party report from KPMG. Mr. President, we stress the importance of sustaining momentum on cultural change. Trust, integrity, and accountability should be embedded at all levels. As UNOPS elaborates its 2026 to 2029 strategic plan, we reiterate our call for UNOPS to focus on its core mandate, providing infrastructure procurement and project management services, and to focus and articulate clearly its comparative advantage and value within the UN system. The next strategic plan should be grounded in this core mandate, should be responsive to lessons learned, and aligned with the quadrilateral— with the QCPR. Flexibility and a continued focus on joint working will be particularly important given the backdrop of UN 18. The UK looks forward to continued collaboration with UNOPS to ensure that it delivers effectively, efficiently, and ethically for those it serves. Thank you.


UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board · President [1:08:29]:

I thank the United Kingdom. Next, I'd like to give the floor to Germany, to be followed by the United States. Germany, please.


Germany [1:08:37]:

Mr. President, Executive Director, Excellencies, let me begin by commending UNOPS and UNOPS staff for the results achieved over the last year. We acknowledge the important work undertaken by its personnel, often in, in very complex and fragile environments. We heard some examples today. They are really impressive, and we also join the condolences made by colleagues for the loss of lives of some of your staff. The continued commitment to delivering essential services on the ground in these difficult circumstances deserves our sincere appreciation. We also welcome the sustained commitment to the Comprehensive Response Plan and acknowledge the progress achieved, as highlighted in the most recent KPMG review. Since 2022, in collaboration with the Board, UNOPS has taken significant steps to address structural shortcomings. But at the same time, we are mindful that these efforts are not yet entirely completed. KPMG assessed that all recommendations have been completed in the area of financial and performance management, but underlines that achieving the intended impact will require sustained long-term efforts. In the areas of risk management and control environment, 3 recommendations were highlighted for further attention. In ethics compliance and organizational culture, there are 4 recommendations identified for continued monitoring. As you mentioned as well, Executive Director, in particular, cultural and structural reforms take time to accomplish lasting impact. So, this chapter is not yet closed, and we believe that reforms and change must continue to be a priority and should be clearly reflected in the next Strategic Plan and embedded in a forward-looking, credible vision to build a more resilient organisation. We will continue to pay close attention to work with you on the impact of measures taken. In reviewing the current draft of the Strategic Plan, we believe that further precision and reassurance would be valuable with regard to the core mandate. You have reassured us that you will focus on the core mandate, but there are still some terms in the strategic plan draft, like implementation platform or the proactive expansion of strategic partnerships, that might signal a shift beyond the non-programmatic role of UNOPS. And so we would really urge you to have a plan ready that reaffirms UNOPS' core mandate as a service provider in infrastructure procurement and project management, in particular and increasingly to the UN system. The UN initiative, for which we expect your and all other entities' full engagement, is an opportunity to spur greater efficiency and focus on comparative advantages. And as all parts of the system, UNOPS must ensure complementarity and avoid new competition. And so we would be interested to understand better where you see your role with regards to these issues in comparison to other agencies that work in implementation on the ground. We look forward to further collaborating with UNOPS together with our colleagues from other member states of the Board, and we ask you to continue with your engagement, your transparency, and accountability going forward. Thank you.


UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board · President [1:11:47]:

Thank you, Germany. Next, I'd like to give the floor to The representative of the European Union, please. European Union.


EU · EU [1:12:04]:

Thank you for the floor. Good afternoon, Mr. President, Mr. Executive Director, Excellencies, dear colleagues. I am delivering this statement on behalf of the European Union as a donor. I would like to make 3 points. First of all, the EU reiterates its appreciation for UNOPS' efforts under the Comprehensive Response We welcome the conclusions of the third-party review, which is a positive foundation on which, on which to keep building our partnership in support of the SDGs, emphasizing accountability and transparency. Second, in the context of UN80, we commend UNOPS for its role in the UN Development Cluster. We hope that UNOPS' own reform experience can help the wider UN system and urge it to lead by example. In light of recent developments, the EU would also like to recall the importance of upholding meaningful standards and consultation in the adoption of sustainable development cooperation frameworks. It is essential that these frameworks align not only with the fundamental principles of the UN Charter, but also actively support progress towards the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs. As we have consistently emphasized in the context of UNDS reform, and more recently in discussions on UNAT, transparency must remain a cornerstone of the process, particularly with respect to the consultation and development of framework documents. In this regard, close cooperation and inclusive consultations, as outlined in the EU-UN Joint Guidance, are indispensable to ensuring both the effectiveness and legitimacy of SDCFs and DCPs. Third, the EU congratulates UNOPS on progress regarding the 2022-2025 Strategic Plan, with projects last year focusing on fragile regions and all 3 UN pillars. We, however, call for further attention to cross-cutting priorities, favoring a systemic approach to those during the project design phase. Looking ahead at 2026-2029, we thank UNOPS for sharing a draft strategic plan aligned with the 2024 QCPR. We welcome the focus on UNOPS' core strength, particularly in procurement and human resources, where it has already demonstrated effective delivery at scale. Mr. President, Mr. Executive Director, the EU reaffirms its support to UNOPS in its indispensable effort to reform the Office and to close the implementation gap. We hope that the new UNOPS can provide even more scale, more solutions, and more value for money in the spirit of UN80.

Thank you.

Gracias.


UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board · President [1:14:32]:

Thank you. We have now heard the last speaker on our list for this part of the meeting, and so I'd like to give the floor back to the Executive Director to answer the questions posed and respond to the comments we've heard. You have the floor, Executive Director.


UNOPS · USG and Executive Director · Jorge Moreira da Silva [1:14:49]:

Thank you very much, Mr. President. I'd like to thank all delegations for their statements, um, kind words, but also the reflections on the present and on the future. I won't be able to cover everything, as Mr. President said. I have extensive notes taken, but I would like to respond and to focus on the most critical elements. And I would like to start with this point of the reforms. And I think that we are completely aligned on this. In our interest to continue reforming. We were not waiting for this day to receive a request from members that please continue reforming. That was a decision that we took already more than a year ago. Why? Because we realized that the reforms that were designed and implemented would require more time to reach the impact. Again, I insist on the point: one thing is approving a reform, implementing a reform; a different thing is having the impact of the reform. So I clearly needed, as the head of this agency, to send a signal internally to my team, but to the shareholders and to the partners, that we want to continue reforming and we shouldn't go to any kind of complacency, that it's done. No, it's not done. So it's in our interest, it's in our interest and in the interest of those we serve to continue reforming. And again, I would like on the record to say that we said it more than one year ago. We created transformation initiatives. The Chief of Staff is at the same time the Chief Transformation Officer. We have a horizontal process of reforms beyond those that were designed precisely to ensure that there is no vacuum after the Corep, that we will not enter into a vacuum. No, these reforms will continue and we are completely interested— not available— we are totally interested in remaining accountable to you on this reform agenda beyond what was planned. The second thing, reason why we wanted to reform beyond the Corep, it's because the Corep didn't include all the reforms needed. I didn't negotiate the Corep with the member states. I was not here at the time. And I saw during the implementation that something was missing. And as I noticed that something was missing, we were approving things beyond what was planned. For instance, the code of ethics. There was no provision on the Corep about the code of ethics. We approved the code of ethics, the first code of ethics. And what about the Ethics at UNOPS. The transformation of the EAC into a POC committee to ensure accountability and compliance not only when a project is approved, but in the rolling out of a project— that was not part of the Corep. We did it for us. So now we have a new configuration of this oversight committee that is not just meeting in a moment where we have a project crossing a threshold of risk and it goes to the committee. No, that committee continues overseeing the projects when something happens in the project, and this has been used. At the same time, we created another committee that is led by the other DD, so we have one DD leading the POC and the other DD leading the Strategic Portfolio Committee, and that was not in the Corep, Why? Because we wanted to ensure that we are not franchising. We are not franchising. It's one UNOPS to ensure that a project that is being implemented in one country is consistent in the best practices with a project that is implemented in another country. So it's important to oversee the portfolio, not just the project. Lessons learned— what have we learned from a project? So you can see some examples of things that were not planned, were not part of the core app, so we reformed beyond the core app. You are seeing in front of you someone that is completely committed with reform, with reforms. Our team, and you can see some parts of our team today, we are completely committed with the reform agenda and we are very glad to continue being accountable to you on that, which includes the risk. I read the Corep. the third-party review. And as members said very rightly, KPMG says that 12 recommendations out of the 41— so they are all completed, so except the 2 that were not planned to be completed, you can see in the table that all recommendations, the 41, are completed. But they said that 12 out of the 41 requires additional action in the future to ensure the highest impact. So I think it's important not to confuse what does it mean completion with impact, because the deal was not about impact when we had the deal 3 years ago, was not about sharing with you the impact and only then closing the corep. the deal was, having the completion of the measures, and then we continue working on the impact. But there is no doubt on that. We are totally committed on that, on culture. It's clear on risk management, on accountability. Those areas are areas that obviously require a long-term perspective, and we can see already lots of change in the in the organisation. Another point that has been made by distinguished members was about the Strategic Plan and the idea of the mandate, and I really appreciate this conversation because it's a way for us to better calibrate language, because language matters. We know that Strategic Plans are UN documents where language matters and we need to be sure that we are not creating any confusion. I am totally available, distinguished members, to further clarify any language needed, but I want to assure you that the objective is to remain committed on our mandate. So what is our mandate? And I have heard some narratives about mandates, not today in this but some narratives about UNOPS should go back to its original mandate. We are in our original mandate, which is to focus our activities in expanding our partners' capacity for implementation. That's the mandate. So UNOPS' mandate is partnering to expand our partners' capacity for implementation. Who are our partners? It's not UN sister agencies. It's no longer UN sister agencies. That approach ended decades ago. If you check who are the UNOPS partners, it's the UN agencies, it's governments. 75% of everything we do, we do directly with you, Member States, the developing countries. but also the MDBs and other partners. So the partnership— even if I would like UNOPS to partner even further with UN agencies, we are not the UNOPS that was once in time, 30 years ago or 40 years ago or 50 years ago, a department of UNDP. UNOPS is an agency that supports other UN agencies, governments, and MDBs on implementation. So let me go to this topic of implementation, because I really appreciate the fact that we are having a conversation so granular, because it allows to dispel some conceptions that we may have in the conversation, because it might be perceived differently depending on the way that we use the words. For instance, Is our mandate procurement infrastructure project management? Definitely. But can we design strategies on infrastructure?


Speaker 27 [1:23:17]:

No.


UNOPS · USG and Executive Director · Jorge Moreira da Silva [1:23:19]:

For instance, energy. Can UNOPS go to a country and help a country design the energy infrastructure strategy? No, this is a job for UNDP. That's why I'm saying that we are implementation, because even within infrastructure, even within procurement, even within project management, we can only do the implementation part. We cannot do the normative, the programmatic, the political part. So what is being perceived by some member states as maybe we are widening, it's the opposite. When we say that we are just implementation, we are precisely ensuring that even in the areas of infrastructure, we are not going beyond implementation on infrastructure. infrastructure, going to strategy. Some member states have approached us asking whether we could provide strategies. We said no. We have refused $250 million of projects last year precisely because it's not aligned with our mandate and with the risk appetite. So I think that this kind of clarification will be very important in the next few weeks. I'm not in New York. contrary to my colleagues, the heads of UNDP and UNFPA, with whom it's easier to engage daily. We are based in headquarters in Copenhagen. I'm travelling and coming to New York every month. My colleague, Roel Malhotra, is here. I've checked how many consultations did we have, extensive consultations that I'm seeing here, 12, a list of 12 meetings on the consultation on the Strategic Plan, but I'm happy to go even further. It's in our interest. So, Mr. President, of course I rely on the Bureau, we rely on the Bureau to identify any additional platforms for engagement. Regarding— as you can see, I'm grouping questions rather than going country or group of countries to save time. The topic of localization that was mentioned by several delegations. This is really one of the areas where I think that we are an example and why working on implementation can make a different— particularly when there are some market failures. Almost 50% of all our procurement is local; 10% is regional. For instance, in Mozambique— Mozambique is a good example— in Cabo Delgado, in the area affected by forced displacement, 100% of all procurement— and it's a project of $300 million, $300 million with the World Bank— 100% of the procurement, 100% of the procurement is local, Mozambique, and more than 50% it's within the province of Cabo Delgado. And we have other examples on that. On infrastructure, 60% of all our infrastructure rely on local providers. So this idea of creating supporting decent job creation through procurement and through infrastructure is key. And this is a topic, Mr President, distinguished members, where it could be interesting to have some interactive dialogues, because I think that this topic of localization is fundamental, and I'm particularly worried in countries and in contexts that are highly fragile, where project management skills are fundamental to the risk investment, because some of the member states, what they are basically doing is transferring to UNOPS the risk management component. For instance, when we construct an hospital or a school or a road or an energy transition system, couldn't the private sector do it?


Speaker 29 [1:27:27]:

Of course.


UNOPS · USG and Executive Director · Jorge Moreira da Silva [1:27:29]:

Why are the member states approaching us, can you do it? Because it's a way to allocate to an expert entity on project management that responsibility, and then we go to the private sector, and we go to the private sector, local private sector. But it means that the government prefers, or the donor, or the MDB prefers, to transfer to UNOPS as a project manager the responsibility to manage the project and to take the risk for the project. That's why the element of risk management is so important, because lots of the projects that we take involve a risk, because if there was no risk, obviously the government maybe would have transferred that directly to the private sector. So this is the element of localization associated with the the best practices on risk management is very, very important. Other point that was made about UNAID: how do you see UNOPS in the context of UNAID? Several delegations mentioned that, and as you know, distinguished members, I'm part, with my colleagues, heads of UNDP, UNICEF, DCO, and UN Women, I'm part of the coordination of the UN cluster. the development cluster within the UN80. I see the UN80 as an opportunity for impact, not an opportunity just for efficiency. It's not an effort for frugality or austerity. It's not a way to save the UN. It's a way to serve the people. So the focus of the UN80 is to find a way— find a way, in a context that is difficult, it's the context, but finding a way in this context to reorganize ourselves to be more impactful, more efficient, and to deliver at scale. So I think that there is a paradox that we should avoid, which is choosing between 2 options: deliver at scale or deliver within the budget. No, we need to deliver within the budget but deliver at scale, and that's why the reorganization is key. What are, in my opinion, the key words in this context? Clarity, having a good division of labour about who does what, and the dos and don'ts are relevant. Agencies that are just about implementation, like us, shouldn't dare to enter into norms and programmes and policy. Others that are just about programming and policy and norms shouldn't waste their talent going into areas of project implementation, where there are others that can maybe deliver that with better capacity. So I think that this element of clarity of the mandates, but not to the elbowing exercise, but to the complementarity, so I think that this element of clarity is key. The other element is the element of integration, collaboration. The Resident Coordinators system is a good example of these synergies on the ground, but I think that other synergies on the top, globally and regionally, would be most welcomed. I'm eager, I'm literally eager to partner with other UN agencies across some common challenges, like how can we ensure that more people have access to electricity? We need all hands on deck. How can we ensure that more people have access to sanitation, to water, to education, to health— these are challenges that one agency alone cannot deliver, so we would need to better integrate, to better articulate. That's where I see the UNAID, so I'm very excited and committed with UNAID. I think it's a moment of hope for the entire system. Mr. President, regarding I think that about the last point on integrity, several points made about integrity, accountability, also a reference to the anonymous letters. As you imagine, I cannot comment on, on, on intentions because I'm— I, I will not enter into speculative exercises. I would just say that we remain available to the, to the board to share all information about any specific letter that you may have received, even letters that are not revealing the origin of the letter or even letters that are not related with any specific project. But we remain totally available, as Mr. President knows. We have regularly provided information and we remain available. But the key element is about the system, because I don't— I will not enter into anything about transforming the Executive Board into a chamber of appeal. Of our administration of justice. We have a system, a system that says that discrimination— and this is my last reference— discrimination and harassment is dealt by PCG. Protection against retaliation is dealt by the Ethics Office. Other areas of misconduct, including sexual harassment, are dealt by IAIG. So there is a clear division of labor on the administration of justice. I also want to emphasize that the independence of IAG and ethics was strengthened. They report to you. My colleagues, the directors of IAG and ethics, they go to regular sessions with the board, closed sessions. I don't know what's happening in those sessions, and I don't need to know. So they are they are accountable. And reporting to the, to the board. Their budgets were reinforced in the, in the couple years ago. We had the first code of ethics. We have a new whistleblowing system, a new, a new whistleblowing system. We replaced the NavEx portal by an integrity portal that makes things much easier for staff personnel to understand what are their rights, which door should they knock depending on the issue that they are facing. We have created a system where even non-staff, even ICAC contracts, can present requests for MERs. We have a new workplace conduct team. So you can see that we didn't take these things lightly, so the system is functioning. It gives me confidence the way that the system, the internal system, is functioning, and I just want to remain totally available to answer to any question that member states may have. But you also have the chance to directly engage with the heads of IAG and Ethics, and even if needed, with the other parts of the files. Finally, I want to say a word which is about personal associations. I think it's the first time that I'm going to mention this topic. One of the first things that I incentivized since I joined UNOPS was the creation of personal associations. I truly believe in the value of independent, trusted channels for colleagues in the system to channel their concerns. When someone is concerned about a topic that is not about their own problem but it's about something that affects a group of colleagues, they should have the right to bring it to the personal association, staff council and personal association, not just going to the People and Culture Group. So I'm very glad to see that since I joined UNOPS, the number of personal associations, the creation of personal associations have dramatically increased and I hope that we can go even further. I hope that every office at UNOPS would have a personal association. One of the things that I do every month is I meet every month for more than 1 hour with the personal association of Copenhagen. So this element of strengthening the capacity for the personnel to have a voice is not just through the whistleblowing system, it's also through this kind of mutual accountability mechanism. And thank you for your indulgence, Mr. President, but there were so many questions.

Thank you.


UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board · President [1:36:20]:

Thank you, Executive Director. I do not see any further requests for the floor. Allow me to make a final comment, a personal comment, with your forbearance. My grandmother used to say that opportunity is part and parcel of the goodness of things. That's what she said. I think it's very important to take that into account.


Speaker 32 [1:36:56]:

Thank you.


UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board · President [1:36:57]:

We have an opportunity at this moment to get to the heart of these matters, and that's what I think should be guiding this board. Linked to that more general consideration of opportunity, I'd also like to mention that for all of us, it's vital to guarantee. Accountability, transparency. I don't think we can be indulgent about that or complacent about that. And I'm reminded of the words of a vice president at the beginning of their intervention, which is that we need to look at matters on such subjects in microscopic detail when these matters are of such interest to the entire membership. All of this to say that we are not stagnating or in the midst of cathartic activities, which is a form of preventing us from looking forward at such an important juncture. But we are taking into account what is the accountability and mandate of the board and also setting out the parameters of the bureau so that we can make headway with these strategic themes. In my initial words to the board yesterday or the day before, I can't quite recall now, we've had so many meetings, I wanted to highlight that this bureau needs vice presidents who are able to support concrete measures to make progress with dialogue. Which in turn brings me to another theme, which is the readiness of you, Executive Director. You talked about a platform for engagement, which is linked to the strategic plan. I remember having chaired, I think, just one meeting on the strategic plan, but I know that my regional group had various consultations about it. Now, that's probably not quite enough, but I would still like to thank you for considering that this could— that we could have a platform for continuing to discuss this theme. If it's necessary for the President of the Board to—


Speaker 34 [1:39:39]:

Yes.


UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board · President [1:40:06]:

Dialogue, but they need more information first. I think they're quite right, and we'll all play our part so that this dialogue can continue. So having said that, I'd like to inform the board that a draft decision is being prepared on item 18 of the agenda on the subject of the annual report of the executive director, which will be presented for the board's consideration later in the session. That concludes the Board's discussions under item 18 of the agenda under the UNOPS segment. We will now take a few minutes to reorganize the High Table. Buenas tardes de nuevo.

Well, a very, very good afternoon to you once again. I think we can get back to our session now. Distinguished colleagues, friends, ladies and gentlemen, let's continue by taking up agenda item 19 of the UNOPS segment. That is formative evaluation of the Process Innovation and Digitalization Program. Under this agenda item, Mr. Abdul Dieng, Director of the UNOPS Internal Audit and Investigations Group, will present the evaluation. To be followed by a statement by Ms. Sonia— by Hillary Balbuena, also of UNOPS. So without further ado, I'd like to give the floor to Mr. Abdul Dieng to deliver his presentation. Sir, you have the floor.


UNOPS · Director, Internal Audit and Investigations Group · Abdul Dieng [1:48:38]:

Thank you, Mr. President. Distinguished, for your information, back in 2025, for at the 2nd Regular Session, the Executive Board decided to ask ISJ to commission a 3rd party to conduct an independent evaluation of the program innovation and digitalization around the business case, the process, the risk management, and the roadmap. implementation of the roadmap. Based on that, I commissioned KPMG based on, on the procurement process. They conduct their independent evaluation. My role was to ensure that everything they need to conduct their job was ready, any interview they require was done, and the draft report was shared for fact- checking, and the second draft was shared for final comment from the executive management. And the last step for me was to come here with KPMG last week to present in the very close board meeting the key result of the independent evaluation. So today I think it's about leaving the floor to you and getting questions to the director of the PID or any member of the UNOPS senior management. Thank you.

Muchas gracias.


UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board · President [1:50:15]:

Well, thank you very much, Mr. Jiang. I'd now like to offer the floor to Ms. Balbuena.


UNOPS · Chief of Staff · Hillary Balbuena [1:50:27]:

Mr. President, distinguished members of the Executive Board, It's an honour to address you today and have this opportunity to provide an overview of how the UNOPS leadership is responding to the formative evaluation of the Process Innovation and Digitalization Programme, which for short we call the PID Programme. The multi-year PID Programme is at the heart of UNOPS' transformation efforts. The Programme is focused on simplifying processes and improving our systems. We aim to improve the quality, efficiency, and agility of our services to enhance our capacity to make data-driven decisions, ensuring that UNOPS and our frontline teams focus on the delivery of practical solutions for our partners and beneficiaries. Almost a year ago, when the Executive Board requested a midterm formative evaluation of the PID Programme, UNOPS paused activities related to the selection and implementation of a new ERP. That's an enterprise resource planning system. This was because we saw the formative evaluation as an opportunity to receive independent and objective feedback about our strategy, our progress, and areas that require strengthening. We have already implemented many reforms at UNOPS, and our commitment throughout all these reforms is to do the right thing and to do it well. This is why the PID programme is so important for UNOPS. And in that regard, the formative evaluation made several important recommendations that will serve as a very good guide as we move ahead in implementing this multi-year program that will bring about meaningful and impactful changes. So in our management response to the evaluation, we outlined 5 conclusions that are strongly supported by the report. First, the report confirms that the program is relevant. Finding that the Programme's high-level strategy is clearly outlined in the roadmap and it's logical. Second, the report confirms that the Programme is on track, progressing towards its objectives of strengthening UNOPS delivery for partners and beneficiaries, and has gained momentum in 2024. Third, the report confirms the business case to replace the UNOPS ERP and confirms that UNOPS needs a Tier 1 ERP. The report confirms that the PID program has been prudent in its budgeting and spending. And finally, the report confirms the importance of funding predictability, given the scope, complexity, and long-term nature of the program. That said, I think it's fair to say that over the last few days and in your deliberations on decision points, we see that the Executive Board delegates may not feel sufficiently informed about the PID program so as to be in a position to make some key decisions. We are implementing the EB decision to hold informal briefings on a quarterly basis, and in March we held a specific briefing for board members on the PID program. And throughout, we've always been open and ready to answer any questions that members may have. So as we prepare for the 2nd regular session, we really wish to ensure that member states have all relevant information you need to make informed decisions. Between now and the Second Regular Session, and in addition to the informal briefing proposed for early August, we would also like to offer an additional informal briefing at the end of this month. Our commitment to you is that the information we provide is clear and comprehensive while providing you with the space to go deeper into the substantive questions you may have on the PID program. In these briefings, we would address the multi-year budget requirements for the program, including activities and expenditures, how UNOPS is responding to the findings and recommendations of the formative evaluation. We would also address ongoing progress on the PID program implementation, what the PID has delivered so far, what it is delivering, and what it will deliver, and a clear link between deliverables and the budget. We will also address the proposed approach to the ERP and a detailed discussion of options. And finally, we will brief the Board about how UNOPS proposes to fund the PID Programme, ensuring funding predictability over a multi-year commitment. For that, we will be presenting the idea of a PID Reserve, which we will explain in detail ahead— of course, in these informal briefings ahead of the Regular Session in August. In conclusion, Let me reiterate that we have heard you over the last few days. We have heard your need for clarity, for an understanding of the PID's big picture and the key details, the budget, the approaches, and the deliverables. We are committed to providing the Board with that clarity so that together we can continue implementing this crucial program for UNOPS. Thank you.

Muchas gracias.


UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board · President [1:55:16]:

Thank you. Thank you ever so much, Ms. Balbuena. I'd like to thank Mr. Dieng and Ms. Balbuena. I think you were quite clear in your presentations, and I don't see any requests for the floor, which is surprising to me sitting on this board as I do, following the surprises we've had over the last few days. Welcome that as some much-needed respite, allowing our co-facilitators and experts who are in negotiations for decisions to press ahead with that work. I'd like to mention that we're also preparing a draft decision on item 19 of the agenda. On the formative evaluation of the Process Innovation and Digitalization Program. And it will be presented for the board's consideration later in the session. So having said that, I'd like to thank you for being here today. The board's discussions are hereby concluded on item 19 of the UNOPS segment. This afternoon meeting is adjourned. Thank you.