Mr. Chairman,

            I have the honour to make this statement on behalf of Group of 77 and China. 

2.         The Group of 77 and China would like to thank the Bureau and the Secretariat for the preparations for the second resumed session of the Fifth Committee. We have a heavy agenda to dispense with in a period of four weeks which underlines the need for efficient time management and coordination of items before us. We welcome the designation of the Coordinators by the Bureau and hope that they would guide us to conclude the consideration on all items reflected in the programme of work. 

3.         The Group of 77 and China would like to reiterate its serious concerns over the status of documentation for this session.  The General Assembly in its resolutions 59/265, 58/250, 57/283B, 56/242, 55/222, 54/248 and 53/208 has called for issuance of all documents, in all working languages, six weeks before the opening of the session.  However, we regret to note that the six-week rule has not been complied with and the Committee is forced to consider the documents that it receives, in certain cases, hours before the formal session. It is equally regrettable that contrary to the General Assembly resolutions, very often no reason for the delayed issuance is given at the time of the introduction of these reports.

4.         The late submission of the documents seriously undermines the quality of our decision making on important matters before us.  It constrains large groups such as the Group of 77 and China to undertake effective coordination. The smaller delegations cannot even read these voluminous reports and seek guidance from their capitals.  The Committee is thus deprived of their valuable inputs. The late submission of documents often leads to lengthy question and answer sessions as there is no time for the Groups to seek informal briefings from the Secretariat officials. It is the only option left with interested delegations to clarify the issues of concern to them. 

5.         The current practice of the issuance of documents is unacceptable and needs to be brought in conformity with the six-week rule as stipulated in the relevant resolutions.  We would request the Secretary-General as well as the Chairman of the ACABQ to pay serious attention to this long standing concern of the Group of 77 and China and other delegations in order to enable the Committee to conclude its consideration of all items in an efficient and effective manner.

6.         The Group of 77 and China considers the second resumed session as dedicated to the adoption of the peacekeeping budgets and accordingly it would remain our priority. We would approach all other items on the agenda with an open mind.  However, the consideration of other issues should have no impact on the approval of the peacekeeping budgets. 

7.         The Group of 77 and China would also like to voice its concern that as a result of the introduction of additional reports, the Committee is not likely to meet the timeline for consideration of reports on important reform tracks such as Human Resources Management, Procurement and Information and Communication Technology as envisaged in the relevant resolutions adopted during the earlier sessions. This would not only impede further reform in these areas but would add to the workload in a budget year. Despite these constraints, the Group of 77 and China would like to assure you of its constructive approach to ensure a successful outcome of the current session.   

I thank You Mr. Chairman.