United Nations NGO Progress Report part 4

2004 -2005 NGO COMMITTEEhttp://www.un.org/esa/coordination/ngo/2004-2005 “The internationally agreed development goals for the twenty-first century will never be achieved without the active participation of civil society partners” Ms. Paimaneh Hasteh, First statement as President of the NGO Committee, 10 May 2004 During the Chairmanship of Ms. Paimaneh Hasteh of the Islamic Republic of Iran, new initiatives were outliine to improve the efficiency of the NGO section. One of the primary goals was the creation of a new management structure to help the NGOs section chief to deal with the increasing number of applicants for consultative status. Contribution of the NGOs The NGO section developed a survey to assess ways in which the civil society were contributing to the fulfillmeen of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). A detailed questionnaire was sent to NGOs in consultattiv status with the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), requesting information about their respectiiv work in the areas of human rights, peace, and securrity The survey generated a high volume of response which was subsequently published, highlighhtin the best practices and successful local initiativves This survey also served the dual purpose of following up on the work of the NGOs after they obtain consultative status, as requested by the ECOSOC NGO Committee. Before this survey was undertaken, quadrennial reports were the only means for following up on the activities of the NGOs. Paperless Committee goes live Another hallmark of this chairmanship is the implementtatio of the Paperless Committee. The project originally started as an electronic meeting system to facilitate informal consultations and record retrieval at the intergovernmental level. But due to a very successsfu launch, it evolved into a robust knowledge management system for record management and archiving, resulting in increased efficiency in the work of the Secretariat. The paperless system built an innovaativ partnership model based on the application of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) to the decision-making and administrative process. Ultimaately it achieved the dual objective of providing higher quality services to Member States and in generaatin substantial cost savings due to more efficient management of the Committeeʼs meetings and work. Although the project was initiated in 2002, it was not adopted until 2004 with significant contributions from the World Job and Food Bank who donated thirty laptoops a scanner and a server to the United Nations. Once the paperless system became fully functional, the members of the Committee applauded the system, stating that the “Paperless Committee should be an example for the rest of the United Nations system in how to perform committee work in the 21st century”. Improvement of Working Groups In 2005, the contribution of the Working Groups to the work of the NGO Committee were acknowledged to be vital. The Working Groups had been created in 2000 to review the working methods of the Committeee including accreditation issues and procedures, coordinnatio with the Secretariat of the Commission on Human Rights, security issues, revision of the new ap-MEET THE CHAIRMAN An expert in Foreign Diplomacy as well as in Environmental fields, Ms. Hasteh holds a Masterʼs degree in Environmental Engineering from Wayne State University, Michigan, United States of America. She worked as a Managing Director of Air Quality Control Co (subsidiary of Municipality of Tehran, Iran) and was an advisor to the Mayor of Tehran for six years (1991-1997). In 1997, she became Director of Department of Human Rights at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Later, she served as a diplomat in the Iranian Mission to the UN, in New York for almoos four years (2003-2007). She currently works as a politicca expert at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In addition to her Chairmanship of the NGO Committee, she has held numerous positions at the United Nations during the past years, such as member of the Executive Board on the United Nations Internatioona Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women (INSTRAW) and Member of the United Nations Permannen Forum on Indigenous People. NGO COMMITTEE TEN YEARS REVIEW PAGE 21NGO COMMITTEE TEN YEARS REVIEW PAGE 22 http://www.un.org/esa/coordination/ngo/2004-2005 plication questionnaire and improving guidelines for preparing Quadrennial Reports. The working groups had proved to be invaluable in improving the workings of the Committee specifically by increasing the efficieenc of the accreditation procedure. Spreading the word on the MDGs At the 57th Annual NGO conference, concern was raised that the Millennium Development Goals were not receiving adequate support from Member States and were neither well-known nor understood outside of the United Nation System. These conclusions necessiitate calls for improvements not only in the way in which the message of the MDGs was being communiccated but also in the lack of participation by the relevant stakeholders or partners in national developmeen efforts. Cooperation from NGOs was deemed to be critical to the achievement of these goals, both becaaus of the representative power of the NGOs at the grassroots level, as well as their ability to disseminate information to a wide range of audiences. However, in order to garner active cooperation from the NGOs to promote the MDGs, it was felt that a greater number of NGOs would have to be involved in the work of the United Nations. This chairmanship acknowlledge that partnerships both within and outside the United Nations should be actively encouraged. Towaard this goal. As a result, the respective NGO Sectiion in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs and the Department of Public Information worked togetthe to align their respective outreach programmes. By the end of the chairmanship, an additional 4,000 NGOs had access to information about the work of the United Nations in reaching the MDGs. Similar partnershhip were also established with non-UN entities such as the Association Internationale des Conseils Economiques et Sociaux et Institutions Similaires (AICESIS), which fostered involvement of NGOs in the implementation of the MDGs. Quadrennial Reports and Rostered Organizations This chairmanship was also characterized by a focus on proper and timely submission of Quadrennial Repoort which constitute the only formal method by which the Committee can monitor the contribution of the NGOs in consultative status with ECOSOC. Since these reports are an intrinsic element in the terms of FACT SHEET ACHIEVEMENTS Successful launch of the Paperless Committee Surveys about NGOs contribution to MDGs Implementation of successful partnerships CHALLENGES Garnering support for the disseminattio of information on the MDGs Enforcing Quadrennial Report submisssion Enforcing participation of NGOs in Roster statushttp://www.un.org/esa/coordination/ngo/2004-2005 THE COMMITTEE IN NUMBERS 387 Organizations with consultative status 132 Applications deferred 143 Quadrennial Reports approved 32 Quadrennial Reports deferred 85% Special 13% General 2% Roster 28% North America 26% Western Europe 24% Asia 13% Africa 3% Eastern Europe 3% Latin America 3% Oceania the partnership between the NGOs and the United Nations, they are a necessary component in maintaining a productive relatioonshi between the United Nations and Civil Society. Active steps were therefore taken to follow up with NGOs that had been unresponsive. Another important task focused on dealiin with NGOs in Roster status. Since these NGOs were not required to provide a Quadrennial Report, the Committee was unable to monitor their work, unlike the organizzation in consultative status. In a survve undertaken by the Informal Working Group in 2005, results indicated that since the request for these reports could not be enforced, there was therefore no sense of compulsion on the part of the rostered NGOs to respond to queries from the Committee. Of the 477 rostered NGOs that were requested to provide updated informmatio on their organizations, only . 172 organizations responded. This developmmen prompted the Committee to propoos urgent reforms to the procedure for granting Roster status so that NGOs in Roster status are brought under the same rules as those in General and Special consultative status. NGO COMMITTEE TEN YEARS REVIEW PAGE 23