Information on the election process

The mandates of the current six Vice Chairs of the United Nations Centre for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business (UN/CEFACT) ends at the 29th Plenary on 9-10 November 2023.

Election of the new UN/CEFACT Vice Chairs will take place on 9 November 2023. According to the Consolidated UN/CEFACT Mandate and Terms of Reference (ECE/TRADE/C/CEFACT/2017/15), the UN Member States who are physically present at the Plenary meeting will elect at least four Vice Chairs.

UNECE is inviting UN Member States to nominate their candidates for elections. Each Country can nominate one candidate of its choice, using its own criteria for selection and taking into account criteria such as expertise, leadership, ability, willingness to work and geographic balance. The candidate must be a member of the Country’s delegation. It is at the Country’s discretion whether a nominated candidate if from the Government or the Private Sector.

The deadline to submit nominations is 25 September 2023.

The Bureau Vice Chairs terms of office are for three years, with the possibility of one re-election at the end of their term.

Responsibilities of Vice Chairs

The elected Vice Chair will be expected to actively participate in at least three physical meetings per year:

• UN/CEFACT Forum (twice per year, one in Geneva and another one in a different location)
• UN/CEFACT Plenary (one annual two-day meeting in Geneva)

The Vice Chairs together with the secretariat are responsible for preparing the programme of work for approval by the Plenary, with a view to providing a coherent framework that serves the needs of United Nations Member States and other stakeholders within the context of UN/CEFACT’s mandate and terms of reference. This involves outreach to and collaboration with parties interested in working with UN/CEFACT to achieve common goals and, wherever possible, to avoid duplication of work both within and outside of UN/CEFACT.

The principal functions of the Bureau (consisting of the Chair and at least four Vice Chairs) are:

1. To manage the ongoing strategic planning and coordination of the UN/CEFACT programme of work between Plenary sessions;
2. To verify that UN/CEFACT activities comply with its mandate, terms of reference and procedures;
3. To prepare UN/CEFACT meetings, including those of the Plenary, the Bureau and UN/CEFACT experts, in collaboration with the Secretariat;
4. To appoint and guide experts supporting the programme of work, especially in the context of PDAs, each of which will be supervised by a Bureau Vice Chair, in order to give consideration to strategic issues, provide advice on these issues to the Plenary and, where appropriate, work with experts on issues concerning related projects;
5. To develop and maintain procedures associated with reviewing and launching project proposals, especially those submitted for the development of UNECE recommendations and UN/CEFACT standards (which must be accompanied by written expressions of support from three UN/CEFACT country Heads of Delegation) and, as necessary, to approve the formation of project teams and appoint project leaders, subject to the provisions of the UN/CEFACT ODP;
6. To promote opportunities for outreach, cooperation and collaboration in order to advance projects supporting the programme of work, particularly through meetings of experts;
7. To ensure, with the support of the Secretariat, coherence in matters relating to policy, promotion, communication, cooperation and capacity building, particularly in the context of activities with other bodies; and
8. To be accountable for the operational functions of UN/CEFACT activities (e.g. project control, maintenance of UN/EDIFACT and other UN/CEFACT libraries) with the support of the secretariat, experts and task teams.

It is appreciated if Vice Chairs support the UNECE Secretariat in representing UN/CEFACT at official meetings and events as well as support with communications.

For more details, please consult the Consolidated UN/CEFACT Mandate and Terms of Reference (ECE/TRADE/C/CEFACT/2017/15):

Necessary forms

The following documents should be submitted for the candidate. This information must be sent directly from the Permanent Mission in Geneva to the UNECE Secretariat.

• Candidate’s Candidacy Form with motivational statement
• Government’s Nomination Form with statement of support
• Recent Curriculum Vitae (including current roles in other relevant organizations and membership in associations)

For any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact Ms. Kamola Khusnutdinova, Secretary of UN/CEFACT.

Information on the election process

The mandates of the current two Regional Rapporteurs of the United Nations Centre for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business (UN/CEFACT) will end at the 29th Plenary, which takes place on 9-10 November 2023.

Election of the new UN/CEFACT Regional Rapporteurs will take place on 9 November 2023. According to the Consolidated UN/CEFACT Mandate and Terms of Reference (ECE/TRADE/C/CEFACT/2017/15), the UN Member States who are physically present at the Plenary meeting will elect UN/CEFACT Regional Rapporteurs.

UNECE is inviting experts, who are active UN/CEFACT experts, to put forward their candidature must be an active expert within UN/CEFACT. They should have a strong knowledge of the work and deliverables of UN/CEFACT as well as confirmed links to related activities in the region.

The deadline to submit the candidacy is 25 September 2023.

Regional Rapporteurs are elected for two-year terms, renewable once, in so far as possible.

Responsibilities of Regional Rapporteurs

Within their defined region, the Rapporteur shall:

• Promote UN/CEFACT’s interests and activities among governments, intergovernmental organizations, relevant trade associations and business and trade facilitation organizations, with the assistance of the UNECE secretariat, which is responsible for official communications;
• Encourage the participation of experts in UN/CEFACT’s work programme and stimulate the implementation of UN/CEFACT’s standards, recommendations and other deliverables; and
• Coordinate UN/CEFACT’s activities in the region.

All Regional Rapporteurs shall present a report at each UN/CEFACT Plenary. They may raise issues directly with the UN/CEFACT Bureau and have an open invitation to attend the Bureau meetings in a consultative capacity.

For more details, please consult the Consolidated UN/CEFACT Mandate and Terms of Reference (ECE/TRADE/C/CEFACT/2017/15).

Necessary forms

The following documents should be submitted for the candidate.

• Candidate’s Candidacy Form
• Recent Curriculum Vitae (including current roles in other relevant organizations and membership in associations)

For any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact the UN/CEFACT Secretary: [email protected]

Agenda item 6 (a) Recommendations

• Summary of ECE Trade Facilitation Recommendations (ECE/TRADE/475)

Agenda item 6 (b) Standards

• UN/CEFACT Core Component Library (versions 22B and 23A)
• UN/CEFACT XML Schema Library (versions 22B and 23A)
• UN/EDIFACT Directory (versions D.22B and D.23A)
• UN/LOCODE Directory (versions 2022-1 and 2022-2)
• UN/CEFACT JSON-LD Web Vocabulary
• All UN/CEFACT e-business standards
• All UN/CEFACT e-business context files, schemas, and OpenAPI specifications on the Open-Source GitHub Environment

Agenda item 6 (c)  (ii) Deliverables in support of the outcomes of the seventieth Commission session

• Economic Commission for Europe Biennial report  E/2023/37      E/ECE/1503

Item 7: Evaluation of the Economic Commission for Europe Subprogramme 4 and Subprogramme 6 by the United Nations Office of Internal Oversight Services

• Informal Document No. 2023/21