|
||
|
TWN
Info Service on WTO and Trade Issues (Apr23/04) Geneva, 4 Apr (D. Ravi Kanth) — After failing to secure a budget hike of 7.7%, from CHF 197.2 million to CHF 212.45 million, for 2023, the World Trade Organization’s Director-General, Ms Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, appears to be still seeking a hike in the budget through creating her allegedly costly project – named the Transformation Office – to develop “a vision and strategy for the Secretariat”, said several trade envoys familiar with the development. Interestingly, the Transformation Office project, which seems to be modeled along the lines of such a division in the World Bank, comes at a time when the WTO is facing a resource crunch due to a variety of factors, including the DG’s allegedly lavish travel budget, said trade envoys familiar with the WTO’s finances. Several members seem somewhat aghast as to why the DG is pressing for the creation of a new Transformation Office that will involve considerable costs at a time when the organization is facing a severe financial crunch, said trade envoys, who asked not to be quoted. The former WTO’s General Council (GC) chair, Ambassador Dacio Castillo of Honduras, is expected to start consultations on the DG’s proposed project on Tuesday, said trade envoys, who asked not to be quoted. It remains to be seen what members will convey to the former GC chair, who is known for his credible and balanced negotiating skills, said trade envoys, who asked not to be quoted. FOUR THEMES The four themes that are apparently of serious concern to members are: (1) the mandate; (2) scope of the exercise; (3) the role of the Secretariat, which has been clearly defined in Article VI of the Marrakesh Agreement; (4) the likely erosion of member-driven work, said trade envoys, who asked not to be quoted. Paragraph 4 of Article VI of the Marrakesh Agreement states: “The responsibilities of the Director-General and of the staff of the Secretariat shall be exclusively international in character. In the discharge of their duties, the Director-General and the staff of the Secretariat shall not seek or accept instructions from any government or any other authority external to the WTO. They shall refrain from any action which might adversely reflect on their position as international officials. The Members of the WTO shall respect the international character of the responsibilities of the Director-General and of the staff of the Secretariat and shall not seek to influence them in the discharge of their duties.” More importantly, as the whole exercise involves monies, budgets and financing – it does have to go through multilateral processes, said trade envoys, who asked not to be quoted. Furthermore, the scope of the exercise is expansive, said trade envoys, suggesting that it is not simply about ensuring a recognition system for staff, but also that systemic changes are envisioned where they want to develop a strategy and vision by asking some very serious leading questions. The questions that seem to be posed to members include:
These questions are clearly about the direction of the organization which places the statutory obligation on the Member States to decide by consensus, a member said. Lastly, there is also the question of whether there is sufficient interest to even pursue this exercise because only a handful of Members have indicated their availability to consult on the issue, said another trade envoy, who asked not to be quoted. DG’S ASSERTIONS ON TRANSFORMATION OFFICE Regarding the Transformation Office, the DG announced her decision at a Doha Trade Negotiations Committee (TNC) meeting (Job/GC/336) early this month without even consulting members, said a trade envoy. The DG also announced that the proposed TO (Transformation Office) will have “a Director who will be assigned to help us spearhead this important initiative.” However, she said “the views of Members will be a key part of this work, and Ambassador Dacio Castillo (Honduras) has kindly agreed to help us in gathering your input.” “We will be organising focus groups and consultations so that Members can give us their views on what that Secretariat strategy and vision should be,” she told members at the TNC meeting. Ms Okonjo-Iweala said with members’ help, “we should be able to identify a high-level vision and strategy relatively quickly. This will not be the end of the story, however.” In a member-driven, rules-based, and intergovernmental organization, it appears somewhat puzzling as to why there should be a TO that could impose its views on members and thereby, undermine the proposals of 164 members when they clash with the grand vision and strategy of the unit, said a member, who asked not to be quoted. Without apparently first considering the budgetary implication of this new office, the DG said in her TNC statement, that “once we know where we want to go, we will need to work through what this means for our Secretariat processes, planning and budgeting – the points that Members have repeatedly raised in the CBFA (Committee on Budget, Finance, and Administration)”. She promised members that she will provide an “update on the Secretariat’s transformation exercise and to hear your comments. As I have done before, I will provide my speaking notes to you in writing following this meeting. I will provide additional updates as developments warrant, and the transformation work will remain on the agenda for discussion at our meetings.” DDG ELLARD’S UPDATE In a restricted Job document (Job/BFA/76), deputy Director-General Angela Paolini Ellard presented an update on 13 March. Ms Ellard informed members that “current transformation work continues to focus on implementing the outcomes approved by the Transformation Steering Committee.” “As I reported at our last meeting,” Ms Ellard said, “progress is most advanced for Rewards Outside Promotion, Procurement, and Mobility.” She informed members that “the new policy, “Recognition and Rewards Programme”, entered into effect in early 2023,” saying that “the policy creates new awards to recognize and reward staff for teamwork, innovation, and excellence in management, and updates an existing peer award system enabling staff to recognize good colleagues.” According to the DDG, “the new policy also makes changes to the annual performance bonus award,” and “the policy is a key part of ongoing work to reinforce a culture of recognition and praise in the Secretariat.” Ms Ellard informed members: “Our revised internal Procurement Policy also entered into force at the beginning of 2023. As I previously reported to you, the amendments to this internal policy updated our low-value purchase thresholds. Work is continuing in the Procurement stream to update internal manuals, templates, and training materials, and to increase digitization in our procurement processes.” “Regarding mobility within the Secretariat,” the DDG said, “we are carrying out a pilot project to encourage short-term secondments to different divisions for entry-level staff who have joined the Secretariat in the last seven years.” Apparently, “this internal temporary mobility exercise will showcase the benefits of mobility for individuals and the Secretariat as a whole,” Ms Ellard said, adding that “in addition to this exercise, work continues on revising our internal and external mobility policies.” According to Ms Ellard, “the work on Risk Management has also progressed.” Interestingly, “a small group of staff volunteers has worked with the Transformation Office and the Office of Internal Oversight and our Human Resources Division to define the responsibilities and functions for the position of a senior risk officer,” including launching a recruitment campaign for that position, the DDG said in her note. However, she did not provide any costs that the WTO will have to incur for these new posts and whether the budget is able to provide the necessary funds. She said, “an initial review of the Secretariat’s existing risk management policy and previous practices has been conducted” and “recommendations have been made on potential improvements to the overall risk management processes, elaboration of a modern risk taxonomy, and risk appetite statement.” “This work on risk management policy will be taken forward once the new risk officer is on-boarded,” and “we continue to work on promotions and recruitment policies, recognising existing budgetary constraints,” she said. As regards the focus on the digital transformation exercise, the DDG said that it will focus on “the costing and prioritisation of use cases.” “We are also considering how the improvements we want to make fit alongside other initiatives already being rolled out and Member expectations and interests,” she assured members. Acknowledging the limited budget, she said “we are developing an internal governance structure to ensure coordinated oversight.” After outlining the work that is being undertaken by the so-called new offices, Ms Ellard emphasized on beginning the “work on developing a vision and an overarching strategy/mission statement for the Secretariat. The Transformation Office will lead this process.” Ms Ellard assured members that “their views will be a significant part of this work, and Ambassador Dacio Castillo (Honduras) has kindly agreed to help us in gathering your input.” She said “the Secretariat will soon share with you a document providing more details on what we have in mind and our near-term plans.” “With your help, we are aiming to shape a high-level vision and strategy for the Secretariat relatively quickly,” Ms Ellard said, adding that “this will be an important first step, but there will be much more work to follow.” Without naming these members, Ms Ellard said “as Members of this Committee have said on many occasions, our Secretariat processes, including planning, budgeting, and resourcing, need to be animated by and aligned with clear strategic goals.” “The work that we are about to launch will start to respond to what the CBFA has been requesting for many years,” Ms Ellard concluded. Apparently, the DG is seeking money to establish a Strategic Unit, and a Risk Administration Unit but following push-back from members, she has now decreed that all vacant posts should not be filled, so that she can use these posts for the strategic needs of the Secretariat, said trade envoys as well as WTO insiders. Even though the WTO Secretariat currently has excellent economists and lawyers, her constant refrain that the Secretariat does not have the necessary skills appears to be without merit. DG’S TRAVEL BUDGET Privately, there are concerns that the DG is always travelling on official grounds but apparently she is the one soliciting these travels to visit countries so as to “rub shoulders with Heads of State and Government and put them on Twitter,” said trade envoys, who asked not to be quoted. The Secretariat is facing financial difficulties, yet there is no leadership from the top, said trade envoys as well as WTO insiders. Apparently, the DG is allowed an annual travel budget of CHF 200,000 (more than $200,000) but her constant travels with several WTO officials seems to be causing a drain on the WTO’s funds, said several WTO insiders. +
|
||
