UNESCO and the UN reform

High-level Panel on UN System-wide Coherence

The High-level Panel was established by the Secretary-General of the United Nations to explore how the United Nations system could work more coherently and effectively across the world in the areas of development, humanitarian assistance and the environment.

Since the launching of the report of the Panel, Delivering as one (UN document A/61/583), on November 2006, a process of informal consultations/dialogue, involving Government officials, senior officials from across the United Nations system and country-level stakeholders, was initiated to build broad-based common understanding of its objectives, contents and proposals.

The Secretary-General requested the executive heads of the United Nations specialized agencies, funds and programmes to transmit the report to their individual governing bodies for consideration to build deeper understanding and ownership of the Report’s proposals.

This process of informal consultations/dialogue culminated on 16 and 17 April 2007 in a formal debate of the plenary of the General Assembly who played a critical role in the consultation and decision-making process related to the critical recommendations of the report.

The Secretary-General presented to the Plenary his comments on the Panel’s report (UN document A/61/836) and expressed his broad support for the principle of a “stronger, more coherent United Nations” adding that in exploring a way forward for inter-governmental review, he was convinced that the Assembly needed to place the Panel's recommendations firmly within the context of the wider United Nations reform agenda. He also informed about the progress made so far by the UN system towards implementation of the Panel’s recommendations.

The Group of 77 and China and the Non-Aligned Movement, whose preliminary views were conveyed in a joint letter of 28 February 2007 urging the Secretary-General to avoid any hasty implementation of the report’s recommendations, reaffirmed during the debate that economic and social development should remain the centrepiece of deliberations at the United Nations and emphasized the need for a strengthened global partnership for development based on the recognition of national leadership and ownership of national strategies.