Dean K. CROWTHER (Assistant Director-General, Administration and Finance Department): As is customary, you have before you the audited accounts for the Organization for 1982-83. This includes three sets of accounts, one for the Regular Programme, one for the UNDP programme and the other for the World Food Programme for the same biennium. The details of the accounts, financial statements, and auditors' opinion are all contained in the three documents C 85/5; C 85/6 and C 85/7. In C 85/LIM/4 there is a resolution for your consideration and adoption regarding these accounts. The Council, as well as the Finance Committee, has reviewed these documents and prepared the resolution that you will see in C 85/LIM/4. This is now presented for your consideration and adoption. If there are any questions on the financial statements, the audited accounts or the resolution we will be happy to provide whatever answers we can give.
CHAIRMAN: I ask whether anyone wishes to speak on this item or to make comments? As I see that no one wishes to do so, this means that the Commission endorses the draft resolution.
- Problems of Late Payments and Arrears in
Contributions
- Problèmes posés par les
versements tardifs et les arriérés de contributions
- Problemas que plantean las demoras en los
pagos y las cuotas atrasadas
D.K. CROWTHER (Assistant Director-General, Administration and Finance Department): If I may, I will make reference to the state of the contributions, at the same time referring to the problems of late payment.
The documents relevant to this item are C 85/LIM/12 and C 85/LIM/32. Document C 85/LIM/12 is an extract of the report of the Eighty-eighth session of the Council, which refers in paragraphs 96 through 104 to the "Status of Contributions" at 6 November 1985, and in paragraphs 105-106 to "Delayed Payments of Assessed Contributions".
C 85/LIM/32 updates the information to 19 November 1985. Subsequent to 19 November and up to this moment, the following has been received from Nicaragua: US$18,670.10, representing partial payment of the balance of its current assessment for 1985.
As will be noted from Paragraph 4 of C 85/LIM/32, 92.32 percent of 1985 assessments had been received as at 19 November, which is somewhat more favourable than the percentage received at the same date during any of the previous four years. It is to be noted, however, that applications to 1985 assessments of the cash surplus for the 1982-83 biennium, amounting to some US$41 million, represented 20.72 percent of 1985 assessments received.
Paragraph 5 of the same LIM document sets out the month-end cumulative percentages of 1985 assessments received during the first ten months of 1985, as compared to receipts during the previous four years. The application as of 1 January 1985 of the significant amount from the cash surplus of the previous biennium makes the statistics look favourable for 1985, as compared with the previous years.
While the position as of today may be considered relatively satisfactory, from paragraph 4 of C 85/LIM/32 it will be noted that 72 Member Nations have not yet paid in full their assessments for 1985, nothwithstanding that the Financial Regulations of the Organization required payment in full within 30 days of the receipt of the communication of the Director-General calling for contributions, which, in fact, was sent on 20 December 1984, or as of 1 January 1985, whichever is the later. It is clear from the month-end cumulative percentages of current assessments received that most Member Nations are, unfortunately, not meeting this basic obligation of membership in the Organization.
I would also attract attention to the fact that 40 Member Nations continue to have arrears of con tributions outstanding relating to 1984 and prior years. During 1985, there have, however, been significant receipts of contributions in arrears, reducing considerably the amount of arrears out standing as of the beginning of this year.
The Conference may wish to endorse the appeal of the Council to those Member Nations with outstanding contributions to arrange to remit amounts due and overdue without further delay. The Conference may also wish to call upon all Member Nations to make immediately arrangements for the timely remittance of their 1986 assessments. A document setting out those assessments, which are at virtually the same level as the 1984-85 assessments, will be available in a day or two.
I would also draw attention to the deliberations of the Finance Committee and Council concerning alternative measures to deal with the problems of delayed payment of assessed contributions. The general approach of the Finance Committee, endorsed by the Council, is outlined in paragraph 105 of C 85/LIM/12. The Conference will also note that the problem is a particularly difficult one, with no simple solution which could be considered both equitable and effective on a continuing basis. The Finance Committee had requested the item again be on its Agenda for its next session.
CHAIRMAN: Does any delegation wish to speak on this matter? If not, I can conclude that the Commission has taken due account of the information given in the documents and in the introductory remarks by Mr Crowther. With this, we conclude our business today.
Our next meeting will deal with the acceptance of the Draft Report of the Commission. As of now we do not know the exact date of the next session, so I would just say that the date will be given in the next Journal of the Conference. You are asked to watch out for it and to attend in order that we may have a quorum.
The meeting rose at 10.45 hours
La
séance est levée à 10 h
45
Se levanta la sesión a las
10.45 horas
