U.S. Remarks at UNHCR's Standing Committee
U.S. Statements to the UNHCR Standing Committee
March 10, 2004
Programmes -Budgets and funding
The Americas
Asia
Caswaname
Europe
Africa
Global Programs and Partnerships
Agenda Item Three: Programmes, Budgets
and Funding
- - Thank you Mr. Chair and thank you for your report on your
recent trip. It is clear from your remarks that you got the flavor
for the wide range of activities UNHCR is undertaking.
-- In this first Standing Committee meeting since her appointment,
we would like to formally welcome Wendy Chamberlin as the new
Deputy High Commissioner. We look forward to working with her
in these governing body meetings and as part of UNHCR's very able
senior management team.
-- Yesterday, was International Women's Day yesterday and our
thoughts are very much focused on the loss of a colleague and
friend, whose life was dedicated to improving conditions for refugee
women and refugee children everywhere. Mary Diaz, former Executive
Director of the Women's Commission for Refugee Women and Refugee
Children, was an inspiration. We, and the millions of refugees
for whom she passionately and tirelessly advocated, will miss
her.
-- As we begin our work for 2004,1 would like to highlight six
areas of priority for my delegation.
-- Protection, to which we will return: my government continues
to believe that UNHCR should increase its protection presence
in the field, particularly in Africa, and particularly to augment
physical protection for refugee women and refugee children. The
United States will, therefore, contribute additional funds, through
Part B of the Operational Reserve, to create and staff an additional
27 protection and community services positions.
-- We will also continue to provide funding for the Protection
Surge Capacity Project and are particularly pleased that this
will be funded this year through the Annual Program Budget, albeit
through Part B of the Operational Reserve. We are delighted that
the EC has joined us in supporting this project. We look forward
to seeing "Surge" integrated into the main body of the
budget in 2005.
-- As many delegations mentioned yesterday, another key element
of protection is registration. The roll out to the field of "Project
Profile" is a priority.
-- Information Technology: the mention of "Profile"
leads us to another area of focus - that of information technology.
We look forward to seeing forward movement on the rolling out
of elements of the MSRP this year and we fully agree with the
DHC's description of the importance of IT to HCR's core tasks.
-- Resettlement: The continuation of the enhancement of UNHCR's
resettlement capacity will again be a target for additional US
funding and scrutiny this year. We welcome the progress made in
2003 and urge that 2004 is equally successful. We would like to
reiterate that the funding of additional positions and capacity
is intended to lead to a permanent increase in UNHCR's focus on
resettlement as a protection tool and as a durable solution, and
is not meant to be a temporary measure.
-- Emergency Response: We will return to this item later, but
let me just say that UNHCR is to be commended on its efforts to
improve its emergency preparedness and response - in Afghanistan,
in Iraq.
-- Human Resources: The DHC in her opening remarks talked about
investing in staff and HR reform. A new human resources policy
was announced in November; we would appreciate an update,
-- Food: We applaud the efforts of UNHCR and WFP to coordinate
more closely regarding food aid for refugees. We are concerned
about perennial pipeline breaks in refugee feeding operations
and emphasize the need of UNHCR and WFP to step up to the responsibility.
We urge UNHCR and WFP together to develop a strategy of alerting
the international community to any anticipated problems or change
in circumstances.
-- While we welcome UNHCR's efforts in 2003 to better manage the
budget and avoid a negative impact on operations in the latter
part of the year, we regret the impact of continued under-funding
on UNHCR's ability to carry out its responsibilities. We note
the measures taken again this year and appeal to member states
to be generous in their support of UNHCR in 2004.
-- We would like to welcome new donor countries. A wider donor
base can only be good for the organization. We cannot overstate
the contributions made by refugee-hosting countries - you are
the true donors.
-- The United States remains committed to a multilateral approach
to refugee protection and assistance and to support for UNHCR.
We contributed some $310 million in 2003 - a banner year because
of supplemental funding for Afghanistan, Iraq and Liberia. We
do not anticipate reaching anywhere near that dollar amount in
2004 but will continue to do our fair share. To date this year
we have contributed some $90 million and we will shortly be giving
an additional contribution of $55 million towards the Annual Program
Budget. This will complete our initial pledge of $130,000. As
we noted earlier we also will provide an additional $3 million
through Operational Reserve Part B to increase UNHCR's physical
protection presence in the field as well as funding in support
of the "Protection Surge Capacity Project". In this
regard, we welcome the decision to create Part B of the Operational
Reserve and thus create a mechanism for donors to provide additionality.
-- We are also pleased to hear from Mr. Takizawa, as far as the
total Operational Reserve goes, that UNHCR has not frozen a level
and we hope this can continue throughout the year.
-- This brings me to the draft decision. We have two suggested
amendments. The first is in paragraph 1. We would like to include
reference to Part B of the Operational Reserve in the parenthesis
at the end of the paragraph. The $50 million notionally budgeted
for Part B may or may not be used. Because it is an amount that
will vary, it should not be part of the base against which contributions
to the Annual Program are counted. The revision would read, "which
includes the amount of $25 million from the UN Regular Budget,
$7 million for Junior Professional Officers, and up to $50 million
for Part B of the Operational Reserve".
-- We welcome any details UNHCR can provide regarding activities
funded to date through this new mechanism.
-- We would also request an amendment to paragraph 6 spelling
out exactly what the High Commissioner's proposal is. Suggested
language is: " Notes with interest the progress achieved
on the High Commissioner's proposal to establish a part B to the
operational Reserve which was approved by etc."
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
THE AMERICAS
-- We thank the Washington Regional Office and Americas Bureau
for the outstanding response to the Haiti crisis.
-- The Washington Regional Office has been laying the groundwork
for the past few years by nurturing the honorary liaison network
and establishing good working relationships with the countries
in the region.
- We greatly appreciate the work of the Director of the Americas
Bureau in mobilizing resources and personnel in Geneva to supplement
the region.
--We acknowledge the success of the first joint IOM/UNHCR Regional
Seminar last December. We hope this will be a model for other
regions.
-- Assistant Secretary of State Arthur E. Dewey is very concerned
about the condition of Colombian refugees and internally displaced.
He is visiting the region this week (March 7-10) to assess the
situation first-hand.
-- The Government of Colombia reported the return in 2003 of
40,000 IDPs. What was the role of UNHCR in assuring that
these returns are voluntary, safe, and sustainable? What is the
role of UNHCR in strengthening the capacity of the governments
IDP agency, the Red de Solidaridad Social, to provide protection
and assistance to these vulnerable Colombian citizens?
--We were gratified to hear that the number of new internally
displaced in Colombia dropped in 2003, after a decade of steady
increase. We hope this is the beginning of
a positive trend. With improvements in Colombia's security and
economy, we expect the government of Colombia to increase its
own contribution to the protection and welfare of its own citizens.
- We are concerned about the Colombians who have fled into neighboring
countries, particularly into Ecuador. We appreciate the increased
attention UNHCR is giving this in the 2004 program and budget.
The trip by Assistant High Commissioner Morjane in January was
useful in drawing attention to this.
-- We were pleased to hear that there have been two voluntary
repatriations - in December 2003 and February 2004 - of Colombians
from Panama. We commend UNHCR and the two governments for their
coordination and concern for humanitarian principles during these
returns.
- We continue to have concerns about the condition of Colombians
in border areas of Venezuela.
- We are gratified to see the emphasis of UNHCR on durable solutions,
including resettlement, for refugees in the Western Hemisphere.
- We commend also UNHCR,s attention to the potential of Brazil
and Chile as emerging resettlement countries.
- We continue to be very pleased with UNHCR's partnership and
spirit of cooperation in our Colombian P-l US refugee resettlement
program (USRP). We also thank UNHCR for hosting a productive USRP
partners meeting in Quito in January. Finally, we congratulate
UNHCR on identifying and referring
resettlement cases to the U.S. under the FY 2003 Resettlement
Initiative target. We expect the same strong performance in meeting
the target of 1000 Colombian referrals to the U.S.from the region
this year.
Asia and the Pacific
(Delivered remarks limited to first five paragraphs)
-- I,d like to thank Mr. Fakhouri for his report on the activities
of the Asia and Pacific Bureau. In his comments Jean-Marie answered
his own question about the relevance of UNHCR in the Asia region.
UNHCR's relevance is to ensure that refugees and people of concern
throughout Asia benefit from the global objectives and Agenda
for Protection. To achieve this UNHCR requires access be it to
Montagnards in Cambodia or vulnerable North Koreans in China.
-- Nepal/Bhutan: After over ten years of negotiations between
Bhutan and Nepal, we are very concerned that plans to begin repatriation
of the Bhutanese refugees in Nepal have stalled. Bhutan and Nepal
must move beyond the December 22nd incident in Khudunabari camp,
determine the status of the remaining refugees as soon as possible,
ensure that acceptable conditions for return are portrayed to
the refugees in a clear and transparent manner, and examine other
means and methods for providing durable solutions for this population.
-- We recommend that UNHCR keep the Bhutanese refugees, the Government
of Nepal (GON), other agencies and donors informed as it develops
plans to phase out its assistance in the camps. We also hope that
UNHCR will coordinate its moves with the GON.
-- Bangladesh/Burma: We support the efforts of UNHCR to resolve
the long-standing issue of the 22,000 Burmese Rohingya refugees
living in two UNHCR camps in Bangladesh. The United States also
supports the efforts of UNHCR to increase the chances of sustainable
reintegration in Northern Rakhine State and to seek the long-term
involvement of other agencies in providing assistance to returnees
there.
Additional comments:
-- Sri Lanka: The United States is pleased that the cease-fire
in Sri Lanka is holding. We will encourage the Government to resume
peace talks with the LTTE as soon as possible after the elections.
We support UNHCR's
involvement in Sri Lanka, but we are concerned about gaps in humanitarian
assistance resulting from UNHCR's transition out of the shelter
and wat/san sectors.
-- Nepal/Tibetans: The United States is pleased that the Government
of Nepal has permitted UNHCR to conduct border visits. Nevertheless,
we remain concerned about reports of refoulement of Tibetan refugees
crossing into Nepal.
-- China/North Koreans: We continue to urge the PRC, a signatory
to the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, to address
the humanitarian plight of North Koreans in China. We support
UNHCR's efforts to gain access to North Koreans in China.
-- Thailand/Burma: We appreciate the Royal Thai Government's record
as a generous host to the nearly 142,000 refugees from Burma.
We would like to encourage the Thai Government to expand its criteria
for granting asylum to include Burmese fleeing the effects of
fighting or other repressive policies. We also encourage the Thai
Government to become a signatory to the 1951 Convention and/or
the 1967 Protocol.
-- Cambodia/Montagnards: The United States is very concerned about
UNHCR's inadequate access to Vietnamese Montagnards seeking asylum
in Cambodia. We urge Cambodia as a signatory of the 1951 Convention
and the 1967 Protocol to permit UNHCR unrestricted access to all
Montagnard asylum seekers.
-- We are disappointed by the closing of UNHCR's office in Ratanakiri
Province. Without this office, it will be more difficult for UNHCR
to carry out its mandate.
-- We urge UNHCR to develop and implement appropriate mechanisms
with the Cambodian and Vietnamese authorities that would permit
the voluntary return and monitoring of any Montagnards wishing
to return to Vietnam.
CASWANAME
Iraq
-We applaud UNHCRfs efforts to work with the Iraqi Ministry of
Displacement and Migration on developing an Iraqi-owned strategy
for meeting the needs of refugees, IDPs and returnees in Iraq.
-The February 15-16 meeting in Amman that brought the Ministry
together with the UN, other lOs and NGOs to do strategic planning
was particularly useful and we urge UNHCR to maintain the momentum
through follow-up meetings and mechanisms, as I see from the draft
report circulated that the Iraqi ministers proposed.
-As a new institution, the Ministry of Displacement and Migration
is in need of resources and manpower. Call on all present to help
build its capacity through training, secondment of staff and assistance
programs, and promote sustainable reintegration in Iraq.
-We encourage countries hosting Iraqi refugees to continue providing
protection. Efforts are underway to promote conditions that are
conducive to repatriation, but the time is not yet right for large-scale
returns.
-We encourage UNHCR to continue to find creative ways to work
within the security environment in Iraq. Refugees and IDPs are
returning spontaneously in many parts of the country and are in
need of assistance.
Afghanistan
--I'll add my voice to Sweden's congratulations to UNHCR on the
excellent job it has done on returns to Afghanistan.
-It is important that donors ensure UNHCR's financial requirements
continue to be met through burden-sharing. And on a somewhat related
note, I wanted to thank my German colleague for the update on
planning for the Berlin Conference.
--We applaud UNHCR's strategy of establishing linkages with ministries,
other UN agencies, and bilateral donors, and like Canada, we believe
it is important to ensure that returnees are mainstreamed into
the development effort and that the transition from relief to
reconstruction is a seamless one. The USG continues to encourage
the Afghan government, UN agencies and donors to work together
on crosscutting and mainstreaming issues.
-There is a real danger that the deteriorating security situation
in the Pashtun-majority areas of the south and east will result
in less development aid reaching those regions. This will only
increase Pashtun feelings of marginalization and damage efforts
to establish a stable, democratic government representative of
all the people. We appreciate your comments about general and
Africa-specific security concerns.
--In order to meet the security challenge, the international donor
community, the GOA and the UN must develop a coordinated strategy.
-It is important not to forget the needs of the more than two
million Afghan refugees still remaining in neighboring countries.
I agree with the speaker from the Netherlands that, when the Tripartite
Agreements on Refugees expire at the end of 2005, Afghans remaining
in neighboring countries should not be left in a situation where
they have neither clear status nor options. For this reason we
would be interested to discuss strategies on cessation and whether
returns should be promoted.
Central Asia
-We are concerned about the lack of protection for ethnic Chechen
refugees and asylum seekers in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. We would
like to acknowledge UNHCR's efforts to facilitate discussions
and action plans for protecting Chechen refugees in the region.
-We would like to know the latest developments/accomplishments
of these efforts. We urge UNHCR to continue working with regional
governments to strengthen and implement protection and assistance
mechanisms for all refugees and asylum seekers.
-We commend UNHCR for its success in providing durable solutions
to over 10% of the refugee caseload in the region and on its successes
in the local integration and repatriation of Tajik refugees, particularly
in the Kyrgyz Republic. Is UNHCR considering invoking the cessation
clause forany populations in the region in the foreseeable future?
Specifically, is Tajikistan under consideration?
W. Morocco
-We listened with pleasure to news of "go-see" visits
between Tindonf and Laome. Such visits are significant mechanisms
to build confidence and hopefully move forward on this long-troubling
refugee situation.
Women and Children
-We agree with the UK and the Netherlands that we'd appreciate
more information on the subject of women.
EUROPE
--We understand that UNHCR is downsizing staff and programs by
30% or more at all Balkans missions. We would like more details
on the number and timing of reductions in staff, field offices
and programs that will occur. Also, we would like to know which
programs are continuing at each mission, which ones have been
dropped and the extent other programs have been downsized due
to the reductions.
--We wish to thank UNHCR for agreeing to conduct a re-registration
of the estimated 500,000 refugees and IDPs in Serbia-Montenegro
- this will help in the planning of durable solutions. While many
may still return, there is general agreement that most displaced
in Serbia will choose to integrate locally. What is the status
of re-registration efforts? What is the targeted completion timeframe?
Are there obstacles that need to be resolved before beginning
the re-registration process?
- Minority returns to Kosovo are a key USG goal and a focus of
on-going talks between governments in Pristina and Belgrade. Increasing
returns can be expected only if Kosovo,s security and economic
climate improve; breakthrough returns may not happen until there
is greater certainty over the province,s final status. Does UNHCR
expect final status talks to bring about greater population movement
within the region? Will UNHCR be in the position to assist these
individuals in light of the expected staffing and programmatic
reductions?
- We thank UNHCR for their leadership in assisting the approximately
2,500 Roma displaced from Kosovo in Macedonia: helping to resolve
the Roma refugee crisis at the Greek Border last summer, providing
guidance to the GoM in implementing their new asylum law and assisting
refugees applying for protected status under the new law. Can
you report status of the implementation of the new asylum law?
~ We hope that UNHCR will continue to encourage and support all
countries in the region in writing new asylum laws. We see this
as a particularly pressing issue in Serbia-Montenegro.
-- We are disappointed about the number of returns to Bosnia and
Croatia in 2003. Finding durable solutions for the displaced from
Bosnia and Croatia now requires political action by governments
in Balkans as well as large-scale economic and infrastructure
development. Commitment at the national level needs to be matched
by action at the local level.
- We remain concerned about the treatment of displaced
Roma/Ashkalia/Egyptians (RAE) from Kosovo continues to receive
special
attention as a human rights issue. The Organization for Security
and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which views the more than 70,000
RAE
displaced from Kosovo as highly vulnerable, has developed an action
plan to
provide aid and protection to this group. What role will the UNHCR
have in
the OSCE action plan?
-- We greatly appreciate the work that UNHCR is doing in the North
Caucasus, and its efforts to persuade the Russian government and
local authorities not to implement forced returns of IDPs to Chechnya.
The USG continues to be concerned with the volatile situation
in the North Caucasus. Camp closures, forced returns and impeded
humanitarian access to IDPs remain a problem. UNHCR,s two-pronged
approach to assistance is fine, but the USG strongly urges UNHCR
to put more emphasis on providing adequate protection to IDPs
and returnees in Ingushetiya and Chechnya.
~ We turn to the South Caucasus: New leadership presents new prospects
for resolving the Abkhazia and South Ossetia conflicts. We urge
UNHCR to encourage the parties to continue working on the return
of refugees and IDPs
- a key provision in the Sochi agreement, which was established
at a summit
between President Putin and former Georgian leader, Eduard Shevardnadze
in 2003. We support UNHCR,s efforts to provide assistance and
protection
to Chechen refugees in Georgia.
- CIS Conference: We welcome the re-scheduling (May 2004) of the
High-Level Review Meeting, which was originally scheduled for
October 2002 to assess the Follow-up to the 1996 Regional Conference.
-- We support the assessment of progress and plans by country
(or regionally), urge continued coordination among the three primary
agencies -UNHCR, IOM, OSCE - on the ground at the country/regional
level, and encourage CIS countries to develop greater ownership
of the follow-up activities to the Plan of Action.
-- Azerbaijan: We commend UNHCR,s success with the Azeri government
in allowing refugee children to attend public schools. We urge
UNHCR to work closely with the Azeri government on its 2004 decree
to build new houses for IDPs in Azerbaijan. We support UNHCR,s
efforts to encourage the Azeri government not to refoule Chechen
and other refugees who are seeking asylum in Azerbaijan.
-- Armenia: In its Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper, the Armenian
government now recognizes refugees as a poor group with special
needs which need to be addressed. We commend UNHCR for its continued
advocacy for the inclusion of refugees in national development
programs
AFRICA
- Repatriation: We appreciated the opportunity to discuss repatriations
in detail on Monday with Ministers from several impacted African
countries. We will keep our comments here relatively brief.
~ We very much welcome the positive developments in Africa over
the past year and the new repatriation opportunities for many
of Africa's long-staying refugee populations. We could very well
see half of Africa's refugees safely returned over the next year
or two. It will be incumbent upon both donor and host countries
to support UNHCR in its effort to return people in safety and
dignity.
-- In Angola, we congratulate UNHCR on its success to date in
helping to repatriate and reintegrate more than 200,000 returnees
to date. We will continue to support UNHCR and critical partner
agencies such as IOM as they bring people home this year. In returnee
areas, we note the continued lack of basic services and urge increased
investment on the part of the Government of Angola in ensuring
that services such as health care and education are available
to returnees,
- In Burundi, we are pleased to see that conditions in some areas
have improved to the point where more than 50,000 refugees have
felt safe in returning. We support UNHCR in its efforts to assist
returnees, but continue to caution against promoting return before
safety can be guaranteed. We welcome Tanzania's continued hospitality
towards Burundi refugees.
-- In Liberia, we are very hopeful that a corner has been definitively
turned and that the country will be able to recover quickly from
the unspeakable violence and abuses of the last 14 years. The
results of the Liberia Reconstruction Conference were gratifying
and we call upon all to maintain a strong focus on Liberia, to
continue to work towards peace and stability.
-- We are likewise hopeful that a similar corner may soon be turned
in Sudan. We welcome UNHCR's planning for large-scale repatriation
of refugees. In both countries, intense UNHCR coordination will
to be required with other UN organizations, NGOs, and governments,
including donor bilateral aid programs. We urge UNHCR to work
closely with others
in an effort to maximize scarce donor resources and to most effectively
bridge the gap between relief and development.
- On-going Programs: While repatriation will certainly be a priority
this
year, we urge continued attention to assuring that ongoing UNHCR
protection and assistance programs are up to international standards.
We
particularly welcome the UNHCR standards setting exercise in this
regard
and hope that the new focus on "good humanitarian donorship"
will stress
the importance of adequate programming.
- We welcome UNHCR's progress in advancing the Agenda for Protection
in Africa and the collaboration of the African Union in this effort.
We support UNHCR and AU efforts to promote refugee law and to
develop national legislation to better protect refugees.
-- At the field level, we welcome the improvements that UNHCR
has made in protecting refugee women in Africa. We have observed
first hand the increased participation of refugee women in decision
making as well as the widespread dissemination of information
and programs to better protect women from sexual and gender-based
violence. It is not time to rest on our laurels, however. More
can be accomplished. We must all continue to work together to
combat exploitation and abuse of refugee women and refugee children.
-- We continue to be concerned about shortages and gaps in UNHCR
protection staffing in Africa, most notably in West Africa. Without
adequate staffing, particularly at the field level, UNHCR will
not be able to continue to build on the progress made to date.
Wee have recently provided additional funding to UNHCR ($3 million)
this year to augment protection and community services officers,
especially in Africa.
- On assistance programs, we will continue our efforts to ensure
that
programs for Africa refugees meet the internationally agreed upon
standards
such as the Sphere Standards and that assistance be directed to
the greatest
extent possible toward self reliance and refugee dignity. We call
upon host
governments to create an enabling environment for refugee self-reliance.
We urge that UNHCR, as it develops its 2005 program plans, keep
these
standards in mind and base its budget on actual needs and not
expected
donor contributions. We also urge UNHCR to adequately fund its
NGO
implementing partners, recognizing that these partners are the
key to meeting assistance goals.
Global Programs and Partnerships
-- We particularly welcome the theme of "partnership"
running through these global objectives.
- We also welcome the development of the Practical Guide to the
Systematic Use of Standards and Indicators in UNHCR Operations.
We
look forward to a report on the progress made in applying these
Standards
and Indicators - particularly reflecting them in program budgets
- to improve
refugee protection and assistance. We hope UNHCR will make this
a
high priority issue.
- On Women, Children and Community Development, we look forward
to
the fuller report at our next meeting. We will only be comfortable
with the
decision to restructure DOs and take a new approach in the field
to these
priority issues if we see real progress and a positive impact
quickly in the
field. We are interested to know more about the planned pilots
and how they
will be monitored. Women's and children's lives cannot be put
on hold
while UNHCR Headquarters get its new structure in place.
- The children's evaluation and the women's assessment took place
in 2001
and produced some excellent recommendations. It is not acceptable
to this
delegation that in the Plan of Action, there is only a blank space
for
Operationalization in 2003. We would like to know more about the
planned
pilots for this year - are they already underway? How will they
be assessed?
- We are pleased that UNHCR has convened a Steering Group to work
on
the Plan of Action but regret that this was not done earlier.
We would like to
suggest that the Steering Group plan to meet again in early May.
-- We would appreciate information on the review of the community
services function referred to in the summary paper before us.
- We hope that at the June Standing Committee, an assessment will
be provided on the implementation of the High Commissioner's five
commitments - not just in selected operations, but in all operations.
We
understand that these do not constitute the totality of commitment
to
women, but they do serve as indicators as to the depth of
this commitment.
-- The United States takes its own responsibilities under the
Agenda seriously and is embarking on a new series of discussions
to identify areas where we can make further progress. We will
be making a presentation on the status of our implementation of
the Agenda at the June Standing Committee, as requested by the
Department of International Protection.
-- We thank UNHCR for the revised schedule before us and would
like to make a few comments. We have read the footnote clarifying
that this does not reflect the full-range of activities - only
those requiring action by EXCOM and those which are Headquarters-based
responsibilities. In our view, however, Headquarters also has
the responsibility to ensure that Country Operations Plans and
Annual Protection Reports fully address critical women's and children's
rights issues. We would appreciate an assessment on how well this
is being done.
~ Similarly, we would like to know whether UNHCR is confident
that a gender-equality perspective is mainstreamed in all its
training and learning programs and that training programs on the
rights of refugee children for UNHCR and implementing partner
staff are underway.
- We would also like to hear about UNHCR progress on improving
methods
and mechanisms to minimize potential for malfeasance and address
corruption and fraud in resettlement programs, as well as an update
on the
status of increased resources for resettlement. We would suggest
that the
schedule in the future go beyond guidelines, conclusions and studies
to
reflect concrete actions in operations, like the roll out of "Project
Profile11 in
2004.
7. Agenda item 6 - Protection/Program Policy
~ We are grateful to refugee-hosting countries for the harbor
of security they provide to the world's refiigees and give a special
thanks to those governments who agree to locally integrate refugees
for whom repatriation is not a viable option. Similarly we appreciate
UNHCR's increased efforts to recognize the contributions of refugee
hosting countries, and look forward to the Chairman's consultations
on this subject in May.
- We support UNHCR's refugee protection and assistance efforts
by
providing generous funding in support of UNHCR programs, and,
when
appropriate, by making third-country resettlement a viable durable
solution. Resolution of refugee situations requires all our best
efforts: UNHCR and its implementing partners, refugee hosting
governments, and donor governments. We believe that efforts such
as the Zambia Initiative will prove to be a successful model for
resolving refugee situations. We are supporting this initiative,
and encourage others to do so as well.
- We acknowledge the contributions refugees can make to the communities
in which they live, if given the tools with which to do so. As
UNHCR has pointed out, the international community needs to provide
refugees with the opportunity to become productive members of
society.
(i) Update on Follow-up to Recommendations in U.N. Board of Auditors
Report, 2002
-- We acknowledge UNHCR's continued efforts to address the concerns
expressed in the most recent UN Board of Auditors Report. However,
we remain very concerned about the speed with which these are
being addressed. - We remain concerned with the auditors findings
on issues such as the inadequate accountability and financial
controls on field operations, the poor default values on asset
management, the need for better accounting of non-expendable property
as well as a better review of implementing partners to ensure
accounting systems and internal controls are adequate, and the
use of human resources.
- We understand that the Management Systems Renewal Project (MSRP)
is expected to address many of these concerns. The serious nature
of these problems, though, calls for improved results as soon
as possible. How is roll out of MSRP proceeding and when can we
expect to see favorable results?
~ Other questions we would like to raise are how do the new rules
and procedures on the rotation policy limit the number of exceptions?
Have steps been taken to ensure active employment of SIB As. Is
UNHCR expecting to lose additional money in 2004 due to SIBAs
without full-time assignments? What were the results of the review
of the legal basis of its specific allowances? Are allowances
in compliance with what the High Commissioner has authority to
grant? Does changing the classification of expenditures (Hi) solve
the problem or merely shift or redefine it? We note the increased
receipt of audit certificates from UNHCR implementing partners,
but again urge that more needs to be done in this regard.
~ The bottom line is that we need to see more the result of the
changes, rather than simply learn what the changes are. We urge
UNHCR to consider other actions that might be taken to rectify
as quickly as possible the most serious concerns identified by
the UN Auditors, and hope to get another oral update at the next
Standing Committee.
- We would like to reaffirm our commitment to the Agenda for Protection
as a valuable roadmap for States and UNHCR in improving protection
for refugees globally.
- On the environment, while we welcome the mainstreaming of this
into
refugee operations, we would urge that targeted attention be given
to ensure
that the progress made over the past years is maintained and reinforced.
-- We commend the work UNHCR is doing on HIV/AIDS. A great deal
has been accomplished - the assessments and evaluation missions,
the upgrading and expansion of programs, and the leadership that
UNHCR is providing within the health community here in Geneva.
We encourage the expansion of programs to West Africa and Asia
this year. We are interested in the development of policy on antiretrovirals
and look forward to hearing more about this. We would appreciate
an update on the status of coordination with WFP on providing
nutritional support to refugees living with HIV/AIDs.
« We hope that efforts to seek co-sponsorship of UNAIDS
will soon be finalized, and support the proposed sub-regional
approach which is an excellent initiative. We very much want to
hear what impact the HIV/AIDs initiatives are having in the field
in preventing HIV/AIDs among refugees and in providing them with
care and treatment.
~ Much work has been done on registration and on the development
of "Project Profile". The new Registration Handbook
is excellent. How soon will the three implementation teams begin
work on "Profile" and when will the roll out to the
anticipated 20 country operations begin? -- Is UNHCR in a position
yet to quantify the impact that efforts over the past year have
had on increasing not only the quality, but also quantity/percentage
of refugees registered, as well as in providing refugees with
adequate identification documents? We would be interested in the
results of the fingerprint technology tested in Tanzania.
- UNHCR efforts to strengthen partnerships with NGOs and other
UN
agencies on education in emergencies are welcomed as are efforts
to redress
low enrolment rates of girls. We would be interested in an updated
estimate
of the percentage of refugee children that receive primary education.
-- At the next meeting of Standing Committee, we hope that DOS
will include specific emphasis on efforts to increase its focus
on the needs of adolescent refugees. We thank UNHCR for the information
provided in the
presentation and the summary document on partnerships, stand-by
agreements and MOUs.
-- The priority the United States accords these global programs
cannot be overstated. Their impact on refugee operations everywhere
is enormous. Much is done with little resources, and the UNHCR
staff who work in the Division of Operational Support are to be
commended. And, we hope in 2005, increased.
(iii) Emergency Response and Preparedness (EC/54/SC/CRP.4)
- We applaud UNHCR staff around the globe, who work valiantly
and in
many cases heroically to provide life-saving aid and protection
to conflict
victims in ever more complex and dangerous operating environments.
- The USG remains strongly committed to supporting UNHCR9s
Emergency and Security Service Office and their activities related
to agency
and staff readiness and strongly urge other governments to do
so as well.
- We strongly applaud UNHCR's efforts to invigorate early warning
mechanisms by incorporating real-time assessments, as well as
identification
of trigger points that allow for revisions to the assistance strategy,
if
necessary.
~ We strongly encourage UNHCR to work with other UN agencies with
a similar field-based focus, to expand country-specific information
networks, which will enhance the current knowledge and early warning
information, as well as threat assessments about specific locations.
This can be an important element of improving on-the-ground security
assessments. We look forward to seeing the results of Emergency
and Security Service's (ESS) timely review of UNHCR's Contingency
Planning Guidelines.
- UNHCR did an excellent job in their recent response to the Haiti
crisis. We want to specifically complement the UNHCR Washington
Office for the extensive groundwork it conducted in areas of contingency
planning which improved the response. Given the number of emergencies
over the last two years, we would appreciate more information
on what the status is of the emergency roster? Does ERSS have
sufficient resources?
5. Agenda item 4 - Management, Finance, Oversight, and Human Resources
- We agree wholeheartedly with UNHCR on the need for a strong
institutional emergency preparedness and response capacity in
Africa. As
the Chad influx has shown us, continued support for UNHCR's emergency
response is critical for Africa. We applaud UNHCR's efforts to
date in
responding to new Sudanese refugees in Chad, and welcome the High
Commissioner's visit. UNHCR needs to 1) Move aggressively to staff
up its
operations in Chad over these next critical weeks, including filling
permanent positions; 2) Quickly identify and develop new campsites
for
refugees; and 3) Complete the transfer of refugees to camps by
the onset of
rains in May. We hope that our recent contribution ($5 million)
will pave
the way for other donor support as well.
- The challenge of ensuring refugee camp security and neutrality
will
always be before us given the circumstances that generate refugee
flows.
We must all (hosts, UNHCR, donors) remain vigilant in monitoring
and
using the range of tools available - from refugee registration
to policing - to
achieve the greatest degree possible of security/neutrality.
-- Admissions: Third-country resettlement can offer new hope to
refugees, particularly those who have been displaced for many
years and for whom no other durable solution is available. Resettlement
can also be the preferred durable solution for refugees in precarious
first asylum situations, regardless of the length of their displacement.
We particularly appreciate UNHCR's recent efforts in Africa to
identify refugees in need of resettlement, and its recent coordination
of several UNHCR/US government/NGO joint missions to look at new
groups for resettlement.
- Thanks to UNHCR's lead role in group identification, some 8,000
newly displaced at-risk Liberian refugees in Ivory Coast gained
access to the U.S. resettlement program in 2003. UNHCR also played
a vital role in referring to the U.S. program 14,000 long-suffering
Somali Bantu from camps in Kenya.
- The Resettlement Initiative undertaken by UNHCR's Resettlement
Section
with USG funding in the last two years has been highly successful.
During
calendar 2003, UNHCR used the additional resources to refer nearly
24,000
refugees for resettlement, over 16,000 of them to the U.S. program.
We commend the Section for its work in 2003 and look forward to
similarly successful results in calendar 2004.
