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.
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Marek Belka
Executive Secretary
United Nations Economic Commission
for Europe
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