Report on the Activities of the Office of Internal Oversight Services

A/RES/68/21No PDF available

Who created this mandate?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda items 132Review of the efficiency of the administrative and financial functioning of the United Nations and 142Report on the activities of the Office of Internal Oversight Services, published in 2013.

What other versions does this mandate have?

12 versions · 2013–2025

This is an older version — the most recent is A/RES/80/237

2025A/RES/80/237Report on the activities of the Office of Internal Oversight ServicesLatestCompare with previous version
2023A/RES/78/247Report on the activities of the Office of Internal Oversight ServicesCompare with previous version
2023A/RES/77/259Report on the activities of the Office of Internal Oversight ServicesCompare with previous version
2022A/RES/76/241Report on the activities of the Office of Internal Oversight ServicesCompare with previous version
2021A/RES/75/247Report on the activities of the Office of Internal Oversight ServicesCompare with previous version

Versions are identified automatically by matching titles within the same organ (~97% accuracy on a manual audit).

What subjects does this mandate have?

4 topics

Auditing Internal Oversight Programme Implementation Reporting Procedures

Which reports were submitted under this mandate?

1 report of the Secretary-General submitted under this mandate, 2016.

2016A/71/256Sustainable mountain development report of the Secretary-General

Identified automatically from the metadata in each report’s UN Digital Library catalogue record.

What does this mandate say?

23 operative paragraphs

I.Activities of the Office of Internal Oversight Services

Reaffirms its primary role in considering and taking action on reports submitted to it;

Also reaffirms its oversight role and the role of the Fifth Committee in administrative and budgetary matters;

Further reaffirms the independence and the separate and distinct roles of the internal and external oversight mechanisms;

Recalls that the Office of Internal Oversight Services of the Secretariat shall exercise operational independence relating to the performance of its internal oversight functions, under the authority of the Secretary-General, in accordance with the relevant resolutions;

Encourages United Nations internal and external oversight bodies to further enhance the level of cooperation with one another, such as through joint work-planning sessions, without prejudice to the independence of each;

Takes note of the report of the Office;Error: Reference source not found

Emphasizes the importance to effective internal oversight of good cooperation at all levels between management and the Office;

Requests the Secretary-General to ensure that all relevant resolutions pertaining to the work of the Office are brought to the attention of the relevant managers;

Also requests the Secretary-General to ensure that all relevant resolutions, including those of a cross-cutting nature, are brought to the attention of relevant managers and that the Office also takes those resolutions into account in the conduct of its activities;

Further requests the Secretary-General to continue to ensure the full implementation of the accepted recommendations of the Office, including those relating to cost avoidance, recovery of overpayments, efficiency gains and other improvements, in a prompt and timely manner, and to provide detailed justifications in cases in which recommendations of the Office are not accepted;

Encourages the Office, in future annual reports, to further enhance its analysis of general trends and strategic challenges regarding internal oversight in the United Nations and to include an update of all critical recommendations, taking into account the risk category, the target date for implementation and the office to be held accountable for such implementation;

Notes the role of the Management Committee in monitoring closely the implementation of the recommendations of oversight bodies, and stresses the importance of follow-up with programme managers to ensure the full implementation of those recommendations in a prompt and timely manner;

Reaffirms that the Board of Auditors and the Joint Inspection Unit shall continue to be provided with copies of all reports produced by the Office, requests that those reports be made available within one month of their finalization, and emphasizes the need for comments by the Board and the Unit, as appropriate;

Recalls paragraph 68 of the report of the Independent Audit Advisory Committee on its activities for the period from 1 August 2012 to 31 July 2013 regarding the proposal to transfer all investigations to the Office in the long term, and in this regard requests the Secretary-General to report thereon to the General Assembly by no later than the main part of its sixty-ninth session;

Encourages the Office to make every effort to ensure that oversight assignments by the Office, in particular investigations, are completed in a timely manner;

Emphasizes the need for the Office to continue to refine its risk-based workplan in order to ensure that it fully captures high-risk areas, such as those relating to procurement activities at the mission level;

Notes the external quality reviews conducted in different divisions of the Office, and looks forward to receiving updates on the implementation of the recommendations of those reviews in the context of future annual reports;

Welcomes the efforts made in addressing vacancy rates in the Office, and in this regard encourages the Secretary-General to continue to make every effort to fill the remaining vacant posts, particularly in the Investigations Division and in the field, in accordance with the relevant provisions governing recruitment in the United Nations;

Reaffirms section III of its resolution 67/258;

II.Activities of the Independent Audit Advisory Committee

Recalling its resolutions 61/275 of 29 June 2007, 64/263, section II of its resolution 66/236 and section II of its resolution 67/258,

Having considered the report of the Independent Audit Advisory Committee on its activities for the period from 1 August 2012 to 31 July 2013,

Notes with appreciation the work of the Independent Audit Advisory Committee;

Reaffirms the terms of reference of the Committee, as contained in the annex to its resolution 61/275;

Endorses the observations, comments and recommendations contained in paragraphs 16, 19, 22, 24, 27, 29, 33, 38, 41, 42, 45, 50, 54, 56, 58, 61, 63, 65, 68, 71, 76 and 77 of the report of the Committee;

Recalls paragraph 13 of its resolution 64/263, and in this regard invites the Committee, in the context of its terms of reference, to continue to provide advice to the General Assembly on relevant issues relating to the effectiveness, efficiency and impact of the audit activities and other oversight functions of the Office, as it deems necessary.

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