Committee Meetings

Decisions of the Program and Budget Committee

WIPO Member States, meeting in the Program and Budget Committee (PBC) from January 11-13, took a number of decisions relating to the work of the Organization.

The PBC accepted the proposal that the recommendations of the United Nations Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) on budget transfers should be adapted to the specific needs of WIPO, and that this decision should not be applied before the 2008/09 biennium, and until after the completion of the desk-to-desk review of WIPO’s human and financial resources.

Member States also agreed that work should start on a draft comprehensive review of WIPO’s Financial Rules and Regulations for submission to its April 2007 session. The secretariat briefed the PBC on the actions taken since the September 2005 Assemblies on other JIU recommendations, most of which have now been implemented. (The JIU recommendations were part of the report carried out in early 2005 entitled "Review of Management and Administration in WIPO: Budget, Oversight and Related Issues.")

Following the decision of the 2005 WIPO Assemblies, the PBC conducted a preliminary discussion on ways to further involve Member States in the preparation and follow-up of the Organization’s program and budget, and welcomed the document prepared by the Secretariat as a useful basis for further work. The PBC agreed that the Secretariat should convene two rounds of informal consultations and a session of the PBC in order to identify a mechanism to be submitted for approval at the 2006 WIPO Assemblies.

The secretariat briefed the PBC on action taken since the 2005 Assemblies to restart the WIPO new construction project, including arrangements for the project management, the establishment of a Selection Board comprised of Member States representatives, and the plans for the various tenders to be run in connection with the project. The PBC agreed that the Audit Committee should consider the organizational chart of the project prior to the meeting of the Selection Board scheduled for January 16.

The PBC elected seven independent expert members – from China, Jordan, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Russian Federation, Togo and the United Kingdom – to serve on the Audit Committee from among candidates nominated by Member States. The Audit Committee is expected to meet shortly to commence its work and to elect...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT