Introduction by the UNECE Executive Secretary

Since its creation 60 years ago, the overall UNECE mandate of promoting region-wide cooperation and integration has been regularly confirmed in spite of the drastic geopolitical, institutional and economic changes experienced by the region.

This remarkable continuity likewise applies to the core areas of UNECE work, such as the development of transport infrastructure, norms and standards for road safety, vehicle construction and transport of dangerous goods, the facilitation of trade and border-crossings, the compatibility of energy networks and the international comparability of statistics. Obviously, the treatment of these issues, transboundary by nature, has changed over time, but UNECE has consistently been able to adapt its work, particularly since the end of the Cold War. Furthermore, UNECE has extended its work to new issues as they have arisen, an outstanding example being, since the beginning of the 1970s, the protection of the environment in Europe.

Actually, the continuity in the mandate and fields of work of UNECE is at the root of its success as it has enabled the organization to build structural comparative advantages, namely a long-standing expertise in a wide range of sectoral areas, combined with well-established networks of governmental experts. As a result, UNECE work leads to tangible outcomes, mainly in the form of negotiated and agreed norms and standards embodied in either legally binding instruments or softer legislation. Due to this well-defined “niche”, UNECE work is widely recognized by its member States and the other regional organizations.

In addition to its legal and technical work, UNECE is uniquely positioned to organize high-level expert dialogue focusing on the issues falling within its mandate, as was the case with the Energy Security Forum and, on a recurrent basis, the “Environment for Europe” Ministerial Conferences.

Not only has the recent reform reaffirmed and consolidated these assets of UNECE, it has also provided the organization with a new impetus through the regained trust resulting from a streamlined governance structure and reinforced result-based management, which in turn has produced a high degree of responsiveness, transparency and accountability.

How best to move ahead? At the present time, the situation of the UNECE region is marked by an accelerated integration due to the enlargement of the European Union (EU), the implementation of partnership agreements and the emergence of new integration processes in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. However, the region remains heterogeneous in many ways: a number of countries still face problems of poverty, the transition towards market institutions is still unfinished for these and other countries, differences in the degree of competitiveness are still relatively large, and disparities in environmental performance are also quite substantial.

A major UNECE objective in the coming years is to contribute to lessening this heterogeneity by ensuring the access of countries with transition economies to regional public goods. Priorities in this respect include further development of transport links through Eastern Europe and Central Asia, progress in the harmonization of border-crossing procedures, improved enforcement of the UNECE environmental conventions and protocols, triggering of more investment in energy-saving equipment, and more extensive use of trade facilitation standards for the full exploitation of business opportunities within the region and beyond. All these require a strong focus on capacity-building for the effective implementation of the UNECE norms and standards.

UNECE can provide such expert advice directly to individual countries in need. However, acting in a subregional framework and cooperating with other regional organizations and institutions are far more cost-effective. This is why we want to make our expertise available for the relevant domains of the EU Neighbourhood Policy, to strengthen the Special Programme for the Economies of Central Asia, as well as to initiate a qualified cooperation with the Eurasian Economic Community.

As an integral part of the United Nations, the role of UNECE is to promote the internationally agreed development goals within the region. We shall, therefore, continue to monitor and support the implementation of these goals, particularly in such areas as sustainable development, the environment, population and gender. As the only United Nations intergovernmental body for the region, we have also to play our role of catalyst for convening meetings, at the request of member States, on broader and more cross-sectoral themes such as the Millennium Development Goals and Financing for Development.

Here, we want to team up with other organizations. Such teaming up, based on a fair and mutual recognition of mandates and expertise, not only avoids undue competition and waste of public resources, but also maximizes the synergies required for effectively addressing development challenges of a cross-sectoral nature.

This inclusive approach is a prerequisite for improving coherence in United Nations development work, a major concern in the ongoing global reform of the Organization. UNECE, as lead actor for norms and standard-setting at the regional level, and UNDP, as lead actor for the coordination of operational work at the country level, have complementary core roles and functions and must therefore strengthen their cooperation on the basis of their respective responsibilities.

I would like to express my conviction that an organization that is efficient, relevant, cost-effective and demand-driven, as I believe UNECE is, requires competent people. This is true for the UNECE: its staff are not only committed to its work, but also truly oriented towards the future. Together with the support and trust of its member States, this is crucial for UNECE to fulfill its mission of addressing the development challenges which the region will confront in the years ahead.