Standing Committee on Administration and Management (ADM)
The Standing Committee on Administration and Management (ADM) continued its work on Friday afternoon, continuing on the basis of the time management plan
C15/TD3.
ASHI
The Secretariat presented the Report on the status of After-Service Health Insurance (ASHI) liability,
C15/46, stating that the ASHI-related obligation as of 31 December 2014 amounts to CHF 512.7 million. The cost to the Union has significantly increased as a result of the augmentation in the number of retirees, the majority of whom reside in the Geneva area, and the corresponding increase in medical expense. Councillors acknowledged the good work of the Secretariat and recognized that there is no magic solution to this issue (either in ITU or in other UN agencies) – but that clearly steps are being taken by the Union in the right direction.
Publication of Council documents
The Secretariat presented two information documents concerning Decision 495 (the publication of Council documents) and Resolution 1141 (Reduction of the cost and volume of documentation for ITU conferences and assemblies and the Council),
C15/INF/21 and
C15/INF/22, clarifying some of the historical background between different types of documents, and reminding Council that at the time these distinctions were made, the Union worked primarily in a paper-based environment and had three working languages. Councillors discussed the issue and suggested that the relevant resolutions should be updated; the Chair of ADM asked the Chair of CWG-FHR to take the lead in this activity.
Human Resources
The Secretariat presented the progress report on the implementation of the HR Strategic Plan and of Resolution 48 (Rev. Busan, 2014),
C15/44, noting that particular emphasis has been placed on improving efficiency and effectiveness by pursuing efforts to simplify and streamline workflows, processes and paperless operations while maintaining a high quality of service.
A question was raised concerning the financial impact of raising the retirement age to 65 for staff joining the Union after 1 January 2014; the Secretariat confirmed that the measure should have a positive impact concerning both the pension fund and ASHI.
Conditions of service
The Secretariat presented the report on Changes in the Conditions of Service under the UN Common System,
C15/42; the report was duly noted by ADM, and the resolution in Annex was approved.
JIU
The Secretariat presented letters received from the Joint Inspection Unit,
C15/49, informing ITU that in 2015 the JIU will undertake a management and administration review of the Union. Councillors noted and welcomed the JIU inclusion in its programme of work for 2015 a review of ITU management and administration to be conducted during 2015, and congratulated the ITU Deputy Secretary-General on his appointment as the focal point for the review.
From the Terms of Reference, the review 'will focus primarily on issues such as governance, executive management, organizational structure, strategic planning, financial management, human resources management, ICT management and oversight mechanisms. In all these areas the JIU team intends to distil good practices and offer suggestions for improvement, as required'. JIU will also seek update on its recommendations to previous ITU reviews on ITU management and administration (2001) and ITU Regional presence (2009).
The methodology of work includes facilitation and access to relevant information and reports, as well as interviews and questionnaires to management and staff, including regional and area directors, IMAC, member states and sector members as appropriate. Final report should be made available in time for 2016 Council. Councillors requested that reports of the internal auditor also be made available for their review, and were interested in knowing more about the interview process as well as the interview selection. The importance of interviewing staff was mentioned, as well as the issue of confidentiality in individual interviews. It was further requested that the 2016 Council consider sending the final report to PP-18.
DSG
The Secretariat presented the document concerning the tasks and functions of the Deputy Secretary-General (Res. 148),
C15/36, which notes in particular that the Deputy Secretary-General shall be solely responsible for: the coordination of intersectoral task forces / groups of the Union; the approval of requests for internship, within the internship policy in force; the approval of staff request for temporary recruitment for a period of less than six months; the final approval of personal appraisal reports for staff members G1 to G7 and P1 to P4 included; and the approval of invoices of less than CHF 50,000.
Beyond these specific roles, the Deputy Secretary-General has a strategic role as a key member of the senior management team, and performs the duties of the Secretary-General during the latter's absence.
In response to concerns regarding the extent of the tasks and functions the Deputy Secretary-General, Malcolm Johnson, emphasized that as he performs the duties of the Secretary-General during the latter's absence, he also works closely with the Finance and Human Resources departments.
External Auditors
The Secretariat presented the document concerning the renewal of mandate of the External Auditor for a period of two years,
C15/5, noting the excellent work carried out so far by Corte dei Conti. In response to a query, the Secretariat clarified that the maximum term for the External Auditor is eight years, with the first mandate of four years and a possibility of renewal by two years, twice. ADM recommends the Plenary to approve the renewal of the External Auditor's mandate for a period of two years and to adopt the draft Decision contained in the Annex of the document.
Inter-sectoral coordination
The Deputy Secretary-General, Malcolm Johnson, presented the document concerning the strategy for the coordination of efforts among the three Sectors of the Union (Res. 191),
C15/38 (Rev.1), implemented by the Secretariat as well as the enhanced coordination between the Advisory Groups for each of the three Sectors. Councillors expressed their satisfaction with the proposals made, and commended the improvements being proposed. The Deputy Secretary-General noted that the improved coordination also extended to the regional offices, through their membership of the new Task Force and also the intention to work closely with the new Advisory Groups enhanced coordination.
Staff Council
A statement was presented by the ITU Staff Council, which is continuing its policy of dialogue and cooperation with ITU management. The Staff Council has been active in working with management on seeking cost cutting and efficiency measures, particularly relating to PP-14 Decision 5, Annex 2. The need to continue efforts in terms of training and staff mobility was emphasized, and the Staff Council looked forward to the new electronic staff appraisal system. The Staff Council thanked the Human Resources Management Division for its transparency and cooperation.
Councillors thanked the Staff Council for its positive statement and collaborative activities with management; a message which was echoed by the Deputy Secretary-General, Malcolm Johnson, who also thanked the Staff Council for its contribution to the efforts to reduce expenditure, its support for the new electronic appraisal system, as well as its work in helping to host the 2016 Inter-Agency Games, held in Spain, which were the most successful to date.
Seventh Plenary Meeting
The seventh Plenary Meeting took place in the morning of Monday 18 May. The Chair congratulated the whole ITU family, and especially the Secretary-General and the Secretariat, and the Chair of the ITU 150 Committee, for the wonderful celebrations on Sunday, with special thanks to Switzerland for the dinner cruise. The Chair also thanked Croatia, on behalf of Council, for the postage stamp commemorating ITU's 150th anniversary.
Throughout the meeting, Councillors expressed their great satisfaction with the ITU 150 celebrations, and thanked the organizers and the host country. As you can see from the pictures and videos on the right hand side of this page, it was an incredible day, celebrating an incredible anniversary!
Gender mainstreaming
The Secretariat presented a document on the implementation of the Resolution on gender mainstreaming in ITU (Res 70),
C15/6, highlighting, among other activities, the GEM-Tech Awards, the intensifying of online training, the completion of the gender guidelines, and the annual celebrations for International Girls in ICT Day on 23 April.
Councillors congratulated the Secretary-General, the Secretariat, and Doreen Bogdan-Martin in particular for the work achieved in this area, but noted that much remains to be done and encouraged ITU to work harder to achieve better gender balance within the Union, especially in the higher and professional categories. The Secretariat noted a number of new initiatives already undertaken in this area, including the new stipulation that at least one woman be included on all interview panels.
ICT Discovery
The Councillor from the UAE presented a contribution on the ICT Discovery,
C15/88, noting the inauguration of the ICT Discovery visitor centre in 2012, with the support of UAE. In 2014, the ICT Discovery welcomed about 6,000 visitors, an increase of approximately 50% from the previous year. In 2015, the ICT Discovery has played a key role in celebrating ITU's 150th anniversary, with various Member State national expositions. UAE proposed that the museum should become self-sufficient, and independent of the Union's regular budget.
The Secretary-General, Houlin Zhao, said that he welcomed the UAE proposal, and supported the idea of a museum at ITU in Geneva, but noted the less than desirable proximity to ITU meeting rooms, as well as a number of other issues to be resolved.
Councillors supported the further development and fostering of the ICT Discovery, noting the need for the museum to be self-sustaining, and fully-accessible, not just for those with disabilities, but also for those not physically present in Geneva. Council agreed that a status and future development report would be prepared by the Secretariat and presented to Council in 2016.
Connect 2020
The Secretariat presented a document on the Connect 2020 agenda for global telecommunication/ICT development (Res. 200),
C15/93, presenting the roadmap for implementation. 2015 will be a key year to build momentum around the Connect 2020 Agenda, to further develop the methodologies to assess progress towards the Connect 2020 goals and targets, and to build ownership of the Agenda.
Councillors emphasized the importance of Connect 2020 as setting the ultimate goals for the ITU and its membership, including growth, inclusiveness, sustainability, and innovation and partnership. Councillors also requested that progress be reported back to Council annually, while it was highlighted that the implementation of the agenda requires active participation and involvement of all stakeholders in the ICT ecosystem. The Secretariat confirmed that it would be continuing its work in this area and would provide annual reporting, and highlighted the importance of the Connect 2020 agenda in supporting the implementation of the UN post-2015 development agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals. The Chair, along with several Councillors, encouraged Member States to do even more in promoting the agenda and engaging stakeholders.
ICTs and youth
The Secretariat presented a document on the empowerment of youth through ICTs (Res. 198),
C15/91, detailing ITU's numerous activities on youth and ICTs over the 12 months to February 2014, and plans to accelerate the implementation of the resolution in the 2015-2018 period.
The Councillor from the United States presented a contribution on accelerating the empowerment and engagement of youth through ICTs,
C15/58. The Councillor from Costa Rica presented a contribution on the empowerment of youth through ICTs,
C15/81.
Councillors acknowledged the importance and value of these documents and contributions, and the need to engage with youth not just in the Union's activities but also in the activities of Member States.
The Chair noted a number of similarities between the contributions from Costa Rica and the United States and suggested the creation of a drafting group to create a common resolution to be presented to Council later in the week.
Conformance and interoperability
The Deputy Director of TSB, Reinhard Scholl, presented a document on ITU's conformance and interoperability (WTSA Res 76, WTDC Res. 47, Res 177), C15/24, summarizing the status of the programme since Council 2014. The C&I programme is based on four pillars: conformity assessment programme; interoperability events; capacity building; and establishment of test centres in developing countries. The first two actions are led by TSB; the second two by BDT. A major achievement has been the launch of the 'ICT product conformity database' which now contains about 100 entries of e-health devices compliant with Recommendation ITU-T H.810, as well as mobile phones that were found to be compatible with Bluetooth-enabled hands-free terminals in cars as determined by an
ITU testing event last year.
Councillors expressed support for the programme and discussed ways of potentially expanding its scope, as well as its importance in helping develop capacity for establishing C&I programmes, especially in developing countries. One Councillor requested clarification concerning the relationship between conformance and counterfeit equipment, which is a great concern for developing countries. The Secretariat responded with clarification concerning the separate resolutions (and work in ITU-T study groups) concerning conformance and interoperability on the one hand, and counterfeiting on the other. It was emphasized that entries into the conformity database are voluntary and that permission needs to be sought from the respective vendors.
RA-15 & WRC-15
The Deputy Director of BR presented a document concerning the Secretariat preparations for RA-15 and WRC-15 (Council R 1343),
C15/41. A Councillor requested that members who are not part of regional telecommunications organizations should still be able to participate in the regional meetings. The Director of BR, François Rancy, responded that the regional meetings are held to establish common proposals from those organizations, but that ITU-R is nonetheless trying to ensure that countries that are not members of regional organizations are included in the preparatory process, and detailed a number of specific actions that have already been undertaken in this regard.
The Councillor from Korea presented a contribution concerning possible dates for WRC-19,
C15/78, which was originally to have been held in 2018. Support was given to the proposal from Korea, but Councillors raised questions concerning the financing and scheduling of CPM-2 for WRC-19, given that there needs to be six months between the two events, and that PP-18 will be taking place in the final quarter of 2018. Some Councillors suggested deferring this decision until Council 2016, at which point the outcomes of RA-15 would be known, along with the provisional agenda for WRC-19.
Council asked the Secretariat to prepare a document to RA-15 and WRC-15 illustrating the importance of WRC-19 timing and its implications. Council will decide on the final dates for WRC-19 at its 2016 session.
BDT & Korea partnership agreement
The Secretary-General, Houlin Zhao, took the floor at the end of the plenary session to announce that during the coffee break, the Director of BDT, Brahima Sanou, had signed a partnership agreement on innovation with Korea worth US$ 140,000, and congratulated Korea on being the first Member State to sign an agreement with ITU since ITU's 150th anniversary (yesterday).
The Council Highlights are provided as a service to ITU Member State Administrations. They are not official documents, and do not provide a substitute for the Summary Record; we nonetheless hope that Member State Administrations will find them useful and informative.
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Happy Birthday ITU!
Girls in ICT Day 2015 @ ITU
ICT Discovery: Radio on board Titanic
ITU150 Historical Video
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