Mr. Chairman,

         I have the honour to speak on behalf of the Group of 77 and China on Agenda item 129 entitled "Programme Planning".

2. The Group of 77 and China would like to thank Mr. Ron Adam, Chairman of the Committee for Programme and Coordination for introducing CPC Report for its 47th session and express its appreciation for the useful work of the Committee on Programme and Coordination.

3. The Group would also like to thank Ms. Sharon Van Buerle Director of Programme Planning and Budget Division for introducing the relevant reports of the Secretary General.   

Mr. Chairman,

4. Programme Planning deals with the crucial task of translating the intergovernmental mandates into implementable programmes. In this regard, the Group wishes to underline the importance of the work of the Committee on Programme and Coordination as the main subsidiary organ of the General Assembly and Economic and Social Council for planning, programming and coordination. The CPC not only gives guidance to the Secretariat on programme design by interpreting legislative intent but also considers and develops evaluation procedures for the improvement of programme design besides making recommendations to avoid overlapping and duplication. In fact the work of the CPC forms the core of the General Assembly's capacity to provide oversight in this key area.  

5. The Group of 77 and China therefore commends the work done by the Committee on Programme and Coordination for the improvement of its working methods in its 47th session. These recommendations address a broad range of issues pertaining to its work from improved time management and coordination to accountability mechanism for late issuance of documentation and consideration of the evaluation reports. The Group of 77 and China is fully confident that this effort would add further value to the Committee's work. It is also a manifestation of CPC's ability to respond to changing needs of the UN.

6. The Group of 77 and China appreciates the work done by the Committee of Programme and Coordination in its 47th session. Like the previous years it provides an excellent basis for the consideration of these issues in the Fifth Committee. We highly value the inputs provided by the CPC and fully endorse the recommendations contained in the Report of the Committee on Programme and Coordination.  

Mr. Chairman,

7. The General Assembly in its Resolution 58/269, decided to replace, on a trail basis, the four-year medium-term plan with the current two year Strategic Framework. Since then, the Strategic Framework has been the principal policy directive of the United Nations and serves as the basis for programme planning, budgeting, monitoring and evaluation. In the same resolution 58/269, the General Assembly had also decided to take the final decision during the 62nd session with regard to the format, content and duration of the Strategic Framework Plan, based on recommendations of the CPC.

8. The Group of 77 and China shares the CPC recommendation of maintaining the format, content and duration of the Strategic Framework Plan, including Part One (Plan Outline). The Group would like to highlight the importance of Part One as an essential component of the Strategic Framework Plan as it is to capture the longer term objectives of the Organization. We believe that its format needs to be improved in order to better reflect the agreed priorities of the UN. The endorsement of the recommendations of the CPC in this regard is therefore of significant importance.

9. With regard to the changes in the proposed programme budget for the biennium 2008-2009, the Group of 77 and China would like to welcome the guidance provided by the CPC on the programmatic aspects of the changes in the biennial programme plan for 2008-2009. The Group would like to reiterate the central role of the CPC in this regard and notes with concern that all of the budget fascicles were not available during discussion on this item in the CPC and that translation of some of the fascicles contained inaccuracies. The Group would like to highlight the importance of the General Assembly to decide on those changes since they have a direct impact in the implementation of the budget 2008-2009 by the Secretariat.

Mr. Chairman,

10. The Group of 77 and China takes note of the initiative of the Chief Executives Board to conduct review of its functioning, in order to make it more result oriented and accountable to the Member States. The Group would further like to highlight the CPC recommendation for the CEB for its continued monitoring of the effective collaboration of the system-wide efforts against hunger and poverty.

11. With regard to the UN support for the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), the Committee on Programme and Coordination has rightly stressed the crucial role of the Special Advisor on Africa in the inter-agency cooperation and in institutionalizing the UN support for NEPAD. The Group of 77 and China attaches high importance to the valuable contribution NEPAD is making in Africa and urges the Secretary-General to fill this vacancy at the earliest.

12. To conclude, the Group of 77 and China would like to reiterate the importance of this agenda item provides a critical link between our decisions and the actual action on ground. We look forward to constructive negotiations on this item.     
           
Thank you Mr. Chairman.