Introduction by the UNECE Executive Secretary

UNECE reform. After the adoption of an in-depth reform of the UNECE in 1997, the UNECE initiated its Second Round Reform in 2002, in the context of the second round of the Secretary-General's reform, adjusting its programme of work, governance structure and secretariat to new demands. In February 2004, at the 59th Annual Session of UNECE, the decision was taken "to commission a comprehensive report on the state of the UNECE, with the aim of developing recommendations to determine what changes to the role, mandate and functions of UNECE are necessary in light of the changes in the European institutional architecture …". The report is supposed to be submitted to member States by mid-2005. It is assumed that it will contribute to ongoing discussions of different UNECE intergovernmental bodies on the impact of the EU enlargement, developments in the countries with economies in transition, etc. upon the work of the organization. Reform of the UNECE, as an integral part of the United Nations, should also reflect the findings of the High-Level Panel appointed by the Secretary-General on Threats, Challenges and Change, particularly the recommendations to transform ECOSOC into a development cooperation forum and to take on board a more normative and analytical role. If agreed by the General Assembly, this will have significant implications on the work of the UNECE.

After the fall of the iron curtain, the UNECE concentrated its efforts on assisting the new democracies in their difficult transition from planned to market economies. Fifteen years later, we face:

Heterogeneity in transition and in development in the region. The transition process in the CEE and CIS has advanced considerably but the progress achieved is very heterogeneous. In this context, three categories of post-communist countries can be recognized: (1) newly emerging market economies; (2) countries with economies in an advanced stage of transition; and (3) countries with economies in an early stage of transition. Heterogeneity is further strengthened by a differentiation in economic and social development. Many of the countries in groups (2) and (3) have not achieved the pre-transition level of GDP per capita; some of them face extremely high unemployment rates and high poverty rates, many of them are still conflict-prone countries, etc. The varying progresses in transition and in economic development require different policies, different approaches in implementation, different actions and different assistance from international organizations. The priorities for international cooperation of the three groups differ from each other and - at the same time - they differ considerably from the priorities of the most advanced UNECE member States. The differentiation in the development and priorities of the UNECE member States is a real challenge for a regional organization. How can UNECE, with its resources not only constrained but also reduced as compared to the 2002/2003 budget, respond adequately to the needs of its member States so that it meets their expectations? Its programme of work should continue to be demand driven but - as previously stated - priorities and needs sometimes compete for budget resources. The answer to this is sought repeatedly in the deliberations of member States in which the UNECE secretariat has a supporting role. In the area of technical assistance - as already decided - the prioritized members are lower income countries.

New focus on less advanced countries. At its 59th Session, the General Assembly adopted a resolution on "Integration of the economies in transition into the world economy". The resolution also stresses that international assistance should focus on countries with economies in transition which face particular difficulties in social-economic development, implementing market-oriented reforms and meeting internationally agreed development goals, including those contained in the United Nations Millennium Declaration. The UNECE therefore increasingly focuses on the less advanced countries in Central Asia, the Caucasus and South-East Europe. The UNECE/UNESCAP Strategy for Central Asia prepared for the 60th Annual Session illustrates this. We expect that a revised programme for the economies of Central Asia (SPECA) will be discussed and adopted on the margin of the international conference in Astana in May 2005 which, we hope, will be a nucleus for the future of the Central Asian Economic Forum, or Central Asian "Davos".

The Economic Survey of Europe, in this context, focuses more on the second and third group of countries with economies in transition, providing qualified analysis of economic reforms, economic and social developments and independent policy recommendations and policy options that should allow decision-makers to make their choice. Furthermore, a new instrument to better formulate long-term structural reforms and to disseminate this information to policy-makers is the latest initiative of the PTEPF (Post-transition Economic Policy Forum) - bringing together internationally well-known experts and policy-makers from governments. In addition, the UNECE strengthens its cooperation with some country-grouping initiatives, working inter alia with the Initiative for Social Cohesion of the Stability Pact, (Table II), on housing policy and on "women's entrepreneurship as an engine for job creation in the Balkans".

Strengthening the regional dimension. Strengthening the role of the regional level in the process of implementation of global commitments made at the major United Nations Conferences and Summits is increasingly requested. In addition to this the role of the regional dimension in providing input to global processes, shaping global decisions and drafting global binding and non-binding legal instruments, is expanding. In this context, at the request of the Commission on Sustainable Development, the UNECE organized the first Regional Implementation Forum for Sustainable Development in 2004, as a follow-up to the WSSD in Johannesburg in 2002, which provided the first opportunity to review the implementation of the commitments of the WSSD on water, sanitation and human settlements. The European Population Forum (January 2004), co-organized with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the Government of Switzerland, assessed the implementation of the Programme of Action of the ICPD, Cairo 1994. Finally, the Regional Preparatory Meeting for the 10-year Review of Implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action (December 2004) discussed progress and challenges, particularly in the areas of women and economy, institutional mechanisms for promoting gender equality, and trafficking in the context of migratory movements.

The UNECE, in some fields, is becoming more global. A good example is the programme of work in transport. In addition to its World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations and its work on the transport of dangerous goods, etc., the UNECE, with its existing expertise, will play an important role in improving global road traffic safety.

The regional dimension of achieving the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. The 2005 General Assembly will be marked by the first review of the commitments decided upon at the Millennium Summit in 2000 in New York. We can agree that to fulfill the goals is primarily the task of individual countries but the international community has an indispensable role to play. The UNECE offers assistance in achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) to individual member States through different programmes of work in environment, trade, timber, transport, statistics, etc. In addition to this, it assists in shaping regional policies for achieving the MDGs, provides a forum for exchange of practices, and so on. In 2004 the UNECE, together with its sister regional commissions, made great efforts with the aim of ensuring that the regional dimension of the MDGs is included in global reporting.

The economic and environmental dimension of security. The UNECE makes continued efforts to integrate conflict prevention into its traditional mandate and its primary goal which is to encourage greater economic cooperation among its member States. The recognition of an economic, social and environmental dimension of security is a basis for a long-term cooperation between the UNECE and the OSCE, which has intensified since 2003, when the OSCE Strategy Document for the Economic and Environmental Dimension was adopted at the Eleventh OSCE Ministerial Council in Maastricht. The OSCE Strategy Document initiated the preparation of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the OSCE and the UNECE, in which the role of the UNECE was specified in the regular review of the OSCE commitments and in the preparation of an early warning mechanism. The MOU was signed at the Twelfth OSCE Ministerial Council in Sofia, in December 2004. The MOU starts a new round of review reports based on the OSCE Strategy Document, which the UNECE should submit to the Economic Forum upon the request of the OSCE. The 2004 interim review, prepared by the UNECE, focused on the Investment Climate. The 2005 review will focus on integration, trade and transport. A workshop on the development of an early warning mechanism in the economic and environmental dimension of security (Vienna, November 2004) opened an extremely challenging area of future cooperation between the two regional organizations.

I hope that the 2004/2005 UNECE Report will reassure the reader that my immediate affirmative answer to the question "Is the UNECE needed?" does not lack strong arguments. Together with the dedicated UNECE staff, who are competent and hard-working, we wish to continue to deliver to our shareholders - the UNECE member States.