NEW AUDITS BY THE EXTERNAL AUDITOR AUDIT REPORT ON THE CULTURE SECTOR SUMMARY

Transcription

1 Executive Board Two hundred and second session 202 EX/32.INF.2 PARIS, 13 September 2017 English & French only Item 32 of the provisional agenda NEW AUDITS BY THE EXTERNAL AUDITOR AUDIT REPORT ON THE CULTURE SECTOR SUMMARY In accordance with Financial Regulation 12.4, the External Auditor submits his audit report on the Culture Sector. The short form of this report and the comments by the Director-General are contained in document 202 EX/32 Part II. Job:

2 202 EX/32.INF.2 EXTERNAL AUDIT OF THE UNITED NATIONS EDUCATIONAL, SCIENTIFIC AND CULTURAL ORGANIZATION AUDIT REPORT ON THE CULTURE SECTOR External Auditor reference: UNESCO

3 (i) TABLE OF CONTENTS I. OBJECTIVE AND SCOPE OF THE AUDIT... 1 II. LIST OF RECOMMENDATIONS... 2 III. AUDIT FINDINGS... 4 A. FOLLOW UP OF EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL AUDITS... 4 B. GOVERNANCE OF THE SECTOR... 9 C. STRATEGY OF THE SECTOR D. BUDGET MANAGEMENT E. MOBILIZATION OF RESOURCES F. HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT G. INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION SECRETARIATS H. MANAGEMENT OF RELATIONS WITH THE FIELD I. MANAGEMENT OF THE PROJECT PORTFOLIO J. THE SECTOR s PARTNERSHIPS K. THE CHALLENGE OF EMERGENCY IV. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ANNEX 1 VIEWS OF THE REPRESENTATIVES OF CONVENTION SECRETARIATS ANNEX 2 VIEWS OF CULTURE SPECIALISTS ASSIGNED TO FIELD OFFICES... 71

4 202 EX/32.INF.2 I. OBJECTIVE AND SCOPE OF THE AUDIT 1. A team of five auditors conducted an audit of the Culture Sector (CLT) at UNESCO Headquarters from 12 to 23 June The audit mainly concerned the management and activities of the Sector during the biennium and biennium. In some cases, operations carried out previously were considered and, where necessary, light was shed on the upcoming biennium. 2. The external audit of this programme sector of the Organization follows on from the audit of the Communication and Information Sector (CI), carried out in Spring 2016 and presented to the Executive Board at its 200th session, in October Some of the recommendations made on that occasion and still pending have been reprised when it seemed appropriate to do so. 3. UNESCO s Internal Oversight Service 2 conducted the most recent internal audit of the Culture Sector in December , at the request of its Assistant Director-General. The Service has though carried out various important tasks concerning the Sector since 2013, in particular on the convention secretariat work performed by the Sector. 4. The audit was conducted in accordance with the International Standards of Supreme Audit Institutions (ISSAI 4 ), established by the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI 5 ) and in accordance with applicable texts, in particular Article 12 of the UNESCO Financial Regulations and the Annex on the Additional Terms of Reference Governing the Audit. 5. Each finding and recommendation was discussed with the Sector s managers. The exit meeting was held at UNESCO Headquarters on 23 June 2017 with head of the Executive Office, the Sector s Assistant Director-General (ADG/CLT) having been met on three occasions during the audit. The Sector transmitted its initial comments on the draft recommendations and the Secretariat sent its written observations on 13 July Document 200 EX/20 Part III. 2 IOS. 3 IOS/AUD/2010/23 Control Assessment of the UNESCO Culture Sector. 4 International Standards of Supreme Audit Institutions. 5 International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions.

5 202 EX/32.INF.2 page 2 II. LIST OF RECOMMENDATIONS Recommendation No. 1. The External Auditor recommends devoting a paragraph in the Administrative Manual to the definition of the roles and responsibilities of a programme sector (ODG and BFM) Recommendation No. 2. The External Auditor recommends implementing the risk register on the basis of a more realistic internal control self-assessment. (Sector) Recommendation No. 3. The External Auditor recommends ensuring careful monitoring of the indicators for the new cross-cutting expected results (ER 5 and ER 8). (Sector and BSP) Recommendation No. 4. The External Auditor recommends making operational the Sector s resource mobilization framework by ensuring training for each of its senior staff at Headquarters and its field specialists, and assigning them quantitative resource mobilization targets. (Sector and BSP) Recommendation No. 5. The External Auditor recommends assigning the Sector an ambitious, realistic resource mobilization target for the forthcoming biennium so as to motivate its teams at Headquarters and in the field (Sector and BSP) Recommendation No. 6. The External Auditor recommends proposing to the Executive Board that it start the procedure to close the International Fund for the Promotion of Culture (IFPC) at the end of (Sector and BSP) Recommendation No. 7. The External Auditor recommends establishing a direct cost recovery framework for all extrabudgetary projects. (BFM) Recommendation No. 8. The External Auditor recommends launching as of September/October 2017 the process for replacing the Assistant Director-General for Culture so as to be in a position to make an appointment in Spring (ODG and HRM) Recommendation No. 9. The External Auditor recommends introducing a mechanism for appraising specialists in the field that enables the Sector s opinion to be taken into account. (Sector, HRM and FSC) Recommendation No. 10. The External Auditor recommends introducing as a principle a rule to ensure that Professional staff at Headquarters change posts after a certain length of duty. (HRM) Recommendation No. 11. The External Auditor recommends completing the staff appraisal process. (Sector and HRM) Recommendation No. 12. The External Auditor recommends proposing to the governing bodies of conventions that they set an ambitious objective to reduce the fixed costs of convention secretariats for the biennium. (ODG and Sector) Recommendation No. 13. The External Auditor recommends that a periodic report be made to the Executive Board on sites and properties included in the lists of the 1972 and 2003 conventions on the basis of a waiver. (ODG and Sector) Recommendation No. 14. The External Auditor recommends introducing a single management tool for the implementation of the conventions. (Sector and BFM) Recommendation No. 15. The External Auditor recommends observing the publication rules provided for by decision of the Director-General in 2011 by submitting projects systematically to the Publications Board. (Sector)

6 202 EX/32.INF.2 page 3 Recommendation No. 16. The External Auditor recommends introducing a dashboard for the Sector s print and digital publications. (Sector and ERI) Recommendation No. 17. The External Auditor recommends studying alternative options for improving the Sector s regional capacity to achieve the objectives of Major Programme IV, in particular in Latin America and Africa. (Sector) Recommendation No. 18. The External Auditor recommends starting the procedure to close the 47 projects that might be terminated and updating on a regular basis the Sector s project database. (Sector and field offices) Recommendation No. 19. The External Auditor recommends bringing the map of Culture specialists into line with the actual priorities and projects of the Sector. (Sector) Recommendation No. 20. The External Auditor recommends establishing a partnership agreement between the Culture Sector and the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) so as to improve the production of the statistics needed to show the contribution of culture to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). (Sector and IUS) Recommendation No. 21. The External Auditor recommends submitting to the Executive Board an analysis of the suitability of each of the 24 category 2 institutes under the Sector so as to ensure their contribution to the objectives of Major Programme IV. (Sector and BSP) Recommendation No. 22. The External Auditor recommends submitting to the Executive Board an action strategy for the Emergency Fund which incorporates the existence of other bilateral and multilateral instruments. (Sector)

7 202 EX/32.INF.2 page 4 III. AUDIT FINDINGS A. FOLLOW-UP OF EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL AUDITS 1. External audits 6. Several external audits have directly or indirectly concerned the Culture Sector in recent years. Only three recommendations were the responsibility of the Sector (IFPC No. 1 and IFPC No. 2 in 2010, and Follow-up to the independent evaluation of implementation of the Global Strategy for the World Heritage List, 2015). According to the Bureau of Financial Management (BFM), on the date of the audit, these recommendations were considered applied. External audit of Follow-up to the independent evaluation of implementation of the Global Strategy for the World Heritage List (2015) 7. The External Auditor conducted an audit mission in November 2014 on follow-up of the evaluation he had himself carried out in 2011 on the World Heritage List. 8. On the date of this audit, only 10 of the 26 initial recommendations had been implemented. The follow-up audit made two new recommendations on preventing conflicts of interest in the World Heritage Committee and not inscribing on the List sites for which there was no management plan. 9. On the date of the current audit, these two recommendations had been at least partially implemented by the World Heritage Committee at its 39th session in 2015 by amending the Committee s Rules of Procedure as to the first point and amending guidelines on the second point The External Auditor nonetheless notes, regarding the first point, that the Committee s decision to restrict the speaking time of Member States of the Committee and to allow all States Parties to speak during debates is not enough to prevent conflicts of interest. 11. On the second point, it remains to be seen whether the management plans proposed are all credible and actually implemented. Audit of the governance of UNESCO and dependent funds, programmes and entities (2015) 12. This audit, conducted in 2014 and 2015 at the specific request of the General Conference in 2013, was submitted to the Executive board and the General Conference in October It led to the adoption of 15 recommendations. 13. Several of them directly or indirectly concerned the Culture Sector, including: - Recommendation No. 3. The External Auditor recommends that the General Conference: (i) delegate the steering and management of the following ten actions to the Bureau of the Executive Board; (ii) to that end, provide the Board with the appropriate means to ensure, after obtaining the opinion of each of the governing bodies, consulted as needed and in the most efficient way, the adoption, at the 39th session of the General Conference, of a guide to best practices applicable to the whole of UNESCO and its dependent funds, programmes and entities: accelerate the shortening of sessions, group meetings together, hold annual meetings biennial, and biennial meetings quadrennial, make more use of teleconferences, convene essential meetings only and finance them through the regular budget, 6 BFM, table of follow-up to recommendation, 15 June 2017.

8 202 EX/32.INF.2 page 5 reduce the number of meeting participants, shorten agendas by prioritizing and delegating minor decisions, increase the delegation of authority to the bureaux, simplify and improve the dissemination of results encourage best practices. - Recommendation No. 5. On a provisional trial basis, the External Auditor recommends that the General Conference: (i) decide to elect, from 2016, the same States Parties to the governing bodies of the heritage-related conventions and that the governing bodies thus constituted shall hold their respective sessions in a single joint session, under appropriate legal arrangements ; (ii) entrust the Executive Board with organizing the implementation of this arrangement by its autumn 2016 session and provide it with appropriate resources ; (iii) request the Secretariat consequently to merge the secretariats of these conventions by 1 September On this basis, the General Conference decided to form a working group on governance, procedures and working methods. 7 Eighteen months after this decision was taken, the group had produced no substantial result on streamlining the governance of the dependent entities of the Culture Sector. 15. On the audit date, these recommendations had been only patchily applied or were under examination. Some small initiatives can be mentioned, such as the fact that the World Heritage Committee had reduced the length of its annual sessions from 13 days in 2013 to 10 in 2016, 8 but it also noted that most of the recommendations necessitated amendment of the 1972 Convention itself (reduced frequency of meetings) or of its Rules of Procedure (delegation of authority to the Bureau). 16. It should be noted in this regard that many of the corresponding decisions are not matters for the Secretariat but for Member States and can only be taken at meetings of the corresponding governance bodies. In order for these recommendations genuinely to enter into force, they need to be taking into account by the governing bodies of the conventions concerned. When the audit was submitted to it, the General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention decided, in November 2015, 9 to request the World Heritage Centre for an audit for its 21st session scheduled for autumn Questions of governance should also be raised at this session as proposed by the secretariat of the Heritage Committee. 10 External audit of the Communication and Information Sector (CI) (2016) 17. An external audit of programme sector CI was conducted in May It resulted in 15 recommendations, some of which concern all five of the Organization s programme sectors. 18. This audit noted that, Within the Organization, the definition of the responsibilities of a programme sector is somewhat laconic, with no precise description in the Organization s standardsetting documents. 19. This audit also noted that The programme sectors, however, are the key players of the Organization in implementing the major programmes determined and funded by the Member States. Starting with the 31st biennium ( ), each sector has thus been responsible for one of the major thematic programmes. Clarity about their responsibilities vis-à-vis the field offices, and about the mechanisms for arbitrating between sectors requires a complete definition of their mandate. This is also needed to allow the Organization to gain a better grasp of their responsibilities in leading their staff in the field and in mobilizing extrabudgetary resources. 7 Resolution 38/C 101 of November WHC/16/40.COM/13B of 10/06/ WHC-15/20.GA/11 Item 11 of 06/11/ WHC/17/41.COM/12B of 19/05/2017.

9 202 EX/32.INF.2 page Thus, several of the recommendations made in 2016 regarding the CI Sector are relevant for the Culture Sector, particularly the following nine: Recommendation No. 1. The External Auditor recommends that the Administrative Manual give a more precise definition of the roles and responsibilities of a programme sector. Recommendation No. 2. The External Auditor recommends that senior management issues terms of reference to each Assistant Director-General upon appointment, and that each ADG does the same for the directors of division under his or her authority. Recommendation No. 3. The External Auditor recommends setting up a process or clear methodology for intersectoral work as requested by the General Conference. Recommendation No. 4. The External Auditor recommends ensuring that the review evaluating the main lines of action (MLA) and expected results (ER) by 2017 required by the General Conference resolution of 17 November 2015 has been put in place. Recommendation No. 5. The External Auditor recommends putting a tool in place to allow summary six-monthly follow-up of the performance indicators and targets for 2017 using SISTER. Recommendation No. 8. The External Auditor recommends that the sectors be given a tool for the consolidated monitoring of all contracts entered into by Headquarters and the field, covering both regular and extrabudgetary funding. Recommendation No. 9. The External Auditor recommends the setting up, with the cooperation of the External Relations and Public Information Sector (ERI), of a dashboard showing the CI Sector s publications so that their real impact can be measured. Recommendation No.11. The External Auditor recommends better identification of roles and responsibilities within the Headquarters teams for the mobilization of resources, by setting targets for the directors, chiefs of section and directors of field offices that have a CI Sector specialist. Recommendation No. 12. The External Auditor recommends involving programme sectors more closely in the performance appraisals of field staff under their budget. 21. The Secretariat did not accept Recommendations No. 1 and No. 2 as it considered that documents C/4 and C/5 were sufficient to describe the responsibilities of a programme sector. Similarly, the Secretariat did not think it useful to issue terms of reference to each Assistant Director- General and director of division as their responsibilities are set out in vacancy notices and they are regularly evaluated (Performance Agreement). 22. Regarding Recommendation No.3 on developing intersectoral work, which remains open, the Secretariat has indicated that a methodology for such work would be drawn up during the first quarter of Regarding Recommendation No.4, the Secretariat considered that it had been applied and that the review evaluating the main lines of action and expected results requested by the General Conference in November 2015 had been carried out and submitted to the Executive Board in March 2016 (199 EX/4). 24. Regarding Recommendation No.5, the Secretariat considered that possible incompatibilities between SISTER and FABS applications should disappear at the latest in 2019 when the new integrated information system would be operational. The recommendation therefore remains open.

10 202 EX/32.INF.2 page Regarding Recommendation No.8, the Secretariat considered that action had been undertaken to improve the visibility of all Headquarters and field office contracts but has not provided clear evidence of this. BFM requested that the recommendation be abandoned. 26. Regarding Recommendation No.9, which remains open, the Sector for External Relations and Public Information (ERI) had made a commitment to improve follow-up of media impact (including Internet downloads) of programme sectors by the end of Regarding Recommendation No. 11, which remains open, it has been indicated that by 2017 better identification of the roles of directors, chiefs of section and field office specialists would be sought for the mobilization of resources. 28. Regarding Recommendation No.12, which is considered applied, the rule, laid down in DG/Note/14/3 of 3 January 2014 on delegation of authority to field offices, on consultation of programme ADGs by directors of field offices during performance appraisals of specialists under them was recalled. The Sector confirmed that this rule was not applied to field specialists of the Sector. 29. After examining the situation of the Culture Sector, the External Auditor considers that these recommendations remain relevant. With the exception of Recommendations Nos 1, 9, 11 and 12, they will not be repeated in this audit. External audit of implementation of the reform following the budget crisis (2017) 30. This recent audit, submitted to the Executive Board at its 201st session in March 2017, involved an in-depth analysis of reforms implemented by the Organization since Fifteen recommendations were made, none of which was directly addressed to the Culture Sector. On the date of the audit, they remained open in part. 2. Internal audits 31. The Internal Oversight Service (IOS) has conducted various important studies of the Sector in recent years. Apart from the Sector audit conducted in 2010 mentioned above, most took place in 2013 because of a several-year cycle of work followed by the Service. In order not to overlap with the external audit, IOS does not plan to conduct further internal audits of the Culture Sector in According to the internal auditor who conducted these audits, the Sector is very willing to improve its management and methods but is subject to the political will of the governing bodies. 33. IOS has not conducted a specific audit of relations between Headquarters and field offices from the point of view of steering by programme sectors. Furthermore, it confirms that there is no comparative management performance table of programme sectors. IOS audit of working methods of culture conventions (2013) 34. At the Sector s request, IOS carried out an audit of working methods of the secretariats of the six main conventions in September 2013 to try to reduce the gap between work generated by convention secretariats and the Sector s resources. Four of the conventions have their own governance. All are financed by the regular budget and extrabudgetary resources, but sometimes also by funds created for a specific convention. 35. The internal audit found that the increasing workload (connected with the conventions) with decreasing funding was unsustainable. Four recommendations were made to try to remedy this: 1. Propose to the governing bodies: (a) collect additional funds (General Trust Funds); (b) set priorities for work; (c) reduce the frequency, length and agendas of meetings; (d)

11 202 EX/32.INF.2 page 8 harmonize interpretation and translation needs; (e) amend the Financial Regulations to enable costs to be shared; 2. Obtain reimbursements from States for advisory services; 3. Develop a common platform of support services for convention secretariats; 4. Draw up a coordinated fund-raising strategy for all the conventions with the Bureau of Strategic Planning, Division of Cooperation with Extrabudgetary Funding Sources (BSP/CFS). 36. The Sector accepted these recommendations and thought they could all be implemented by December 2015 at the latest, Recommendations No.3 and No.4 having been implemented as early as January Although on the date of the audit all these recommendations were considered implemented, the conclusions of the external audit on governance, recalled above, showed that this was not quite true of Recommendation No.2. IOS audit of the World Heritage Centre (2013) 38. This audit was conducted in May 2013 and resulted in two recommendations, one on introducing results-based budgeting 11 and the other on the Centre Director exploring new programme-financing options. 39. On the date of the audit, both recommendations had been implemented. A comparative mapping of forms and models for use of advisory services by international instruments and programmes (2017) 40. This audit was conducted by the internal auditor in Spring 2017 at the request of the World Heritage Centre, which devotes 75% of the budget of the World Heritage Fund to advisory services offered by three international bodies (ICCROM, 12 ICOMOS 13 and IUCN 14 ). It followed on from Recommendation No.2 made by the 2013 internal audit. 41. Four recommendations were made to reduce costs and diversify the possibilities of using these external services. 42. On the date of the audit, these recommendations remain open as they were so recent. 11 RBB. 12 International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property. 13 International Council on Monuments and Sites. 14 International Union for Conservation of Nature.

12 202 EX/32.INF.2 page 9 B. GOVERNANCE OF THE SECTOR 1. Definition of a sector of the Organization 43. As the External Auditor noted in 2016, the definition of the responsibilities of a programme sector is somewhat laconic. The Basic Texts (2016 edition) make no mention of the concept, nor do the Human Resources Manual or the Staff Regulations and Staff Rules. The Administrative Manual (Chapter 1.5, Secretariat) merely states that the Secretariat is divided into Sectors responsible for programme, administration and external relations and that the sectors are headed by Assistant Directors-General (ADGs) and divided into bureaux, offices and divisions. The responsibilities of the sectors are indeed mentioned in the various chapters of the Manual (for instance, 2.2. Programme and Budget (C/5), 2.4 Work Plans, 8.3 Programme Documents, etc.) but in an incomplete and scattered fashion. 44. The programme sectors are, however, key players concerning the Organization s ability to implement the programmes decided on and funded by Member States. Clarity about their responsibilities vis-à-vis the field offices, and about the mechanisms for arbitrating between sectors requires a complete and precise definition of their mandates. This is a prerequisite for significantly greater efficiency in leading their staff in the field and mobilizing the extrabudgetary resources needed by the Organization. 45. Recommendation No. 1 made by the External Auditor on this subject last year in the Communication and Information Sector (CI) audit last year was deemed inapplicable by the Secretariat on the ground that a sector s responsibilities were adequately defined in the Organization s strategic and programmatic documents (C/4 and C/5 documents). This position is untenable, as it confuses the operational dimension (the major programmes) with the organizational dimension (the programme sectors responsible for implementing them). 46. The External Auditor is therefore led to renew his recommendation to ensure that the Organization can make the most of the programme sectors, which are its key players. Recommendation No. 1. The External Auditor recommends devoting a paragraph in the Administrative Manual to the definition of the roles and responsibilities of a programme sector. (ODG and BFM) 2. Mandate of the Sector 47. The Culture Sector has been a cornerstone of the Organization ever since it was set up. As one of the five programme sectors, it accounts for 8.1% of regular programme expenditure for the biennium and 7.8% of the budget for the current biennium, ranking it third among the programme sectors and even second, ahead of the Natural Sciences Sector, if their Category I institutes are excluded. 48. One of its specific features is to manage six of the eight international conventions for which UNESCO is the repository. 49. It also has three of the Organization s 17 programmes that have their own governance: the International Fund for the Promotion of Culture (IFPC), the Intergovernmental Committee for Promoting the Return of Cultural Property to its Countries of Origin or its Restitution in Case of Illicit Appropriation, 15 and the Executive Committee of the International Campaign for the Establishment of the Nubia Museum in Aswan and the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization in Cairo This Committee, established in 1978, meets every two years. 16 This Committee, established in 1960, enables the Sector to manage jointly with the Egyptian Government a trust fund with a balance of some $5 million for heritage development projects in Egypt.

13 202 EX/32.INF.2 page On the other hand, the Sector has no dependent category 1 institutes or centres but has links with 25 of the Organization s 115 category 2 institutes in principle. Figure 1: UNESCO international and intergovernmental bodies Source: External audit on reform of the Organization submitted at the 201st session of the Executive Board (April 2017). 3. Leadership of the Sector 51. The Culture Sector has been led on an interim basis since October by Mr Francesco Bandarin, former director of the World Heritage Centre from 2000 to 2010, who had already acted as the Sector s Assistant Director-General from May 2010 to June 2014 before he retired. The successor appointed by the Director-General in September 2014, 18 Mr Alfredo Perez de Arminan, occupied this position for only 13½ months before joining the Spanish Heritage Foundation in October Mr Bandarin should normally remain in his position until February 2018 under the terms of the appointment decision. 4. Structure of the Sector 53. The Sector s current structure was laid down by a decision of the Director-General. 19 It has been in place since 1 May This decision simplified the organization of a sector that had previously had four divisions from 2008 to 2011 and then three divisions from 2011 to It has three new features: (i) Two sector divisions, one for creativity and the other for 17 DG/Note/15/27 of 22 October DG/Note/14/43 of 29 July DG/Note/14/21 of 19 May 2014.

14 202 EX/32.INF.2 page 11 heritage; 20 (ii) a Conventions Common Services Unit (CLT/CCS); (iii) an Emergency Preparedness and Response Unit (CLT/EPR). 55. Over the past three years this structure has undergone only two minor adjustments. The first was the transfer of the History and Memory for Dialogue Section (CLT/HER/HMD) to the Division of Social Transformations and Intercultural Dialogue (TSD) in the Social and Human Sciences Sector (SHS) in September The second was the transfer of a P-3 Finance and Administrative Officer post to the World Heritage Centre in February 2016 following amalgamation of the Sector s two administrative units. 22 Figure 2: Culture Sector organization chart 56. The current directors of the Sector s two divisions have been appointed in the past few years: the Director of the Division for Heritage (D-2) in September and the Director of the Division for Creativity (D-1) in March The latter s late appointment, when the division had been set up since May 2014, seems to have resulted from the uncertainty that prevailed between 2014 and 2016 as to the Sector s scope The Sector has an Executive Office (EO) headed by an experienced P-5 official in post since November With its staff of 15 (including eight in the Professional category) the Office is responsible for advising the ADG on strategic matters and providing him with support concerning Sector management and quality control. 26 In addition, the Office provides general coordination for development, implementation and monitoring of the Sector s approved programme and budget and 20 The Division for Heritage houses the World Heritage Centre established in 1992 and attached to the Sector in 1999, which is officially headed by the Director of the Division. 21 ADG/SHS and ADG/CLT memo to the Director-General dated 21 September Dir/HRM memo of 2 February DG/Note/15/21 of 11 September DG/Note/16/04 of 21 March See, for example, the of 19 January 2015 from the head of the Executive Office to BSP. 26 ADG/CLT memo of 20 April 2016.

15 202 EX/32.INF.2 page 12 the Sector s communication with other sectors and Headquarters services, other United Nations agencies and external partners. 58. The Office also contains the Sector s administrative unit, which has eight staff members and is headed by an experienced P-4 official. This was the entity that in April 2016 benefited from the transfer of a P-3 post previously allocated to the World Heritage Centre following amalgamation of the two administrative units. 59. The Conventions Common Services Unit (CCS), established in 2014 in response to the recommendations of the internal audit and numbering 14 members of staff, reports officially to the Director of the Division for Heritage in her capacity as head of the group in charge of the convention secretariats. 5. Management of the Sector 60. The current ADG introduced the practice of weekly meetings of the Sector s senior staff in October 2016, 27 with the head of the Executive Office stating in an that the Sector should change its ethos at Headquarters to achieve a better balance between statutory activities and implementation of all the conventions in the field and encourage a more open approach and sharing of best practice. 61. Each division also holds a weekly coordination meeting in which the administrative unit has been successfully involved. 62. Lastly, the Sector endeavours to hold a meeting of its staff at Headquarters at least once a year. Since January 2015 it has thus held meetings on September 2015, 17 December 2015, 18 April 2016, 23 January 2017 and 6-8 June 2017, which have been followed by field network specialists by video link or at Headquarters. At the last meeting in early June 2017 many of these specialists were at Headquarters for an exchange of views on the Organization s new budget framework and the resource mobilization process among other things. 6. Sector reporting 63. The Sector is supposed to provide the Director-General with a quarterly report. In reality, for 2015 only three- or four-page reports were produced, for January-March 2015, April-June 2015 and July-December Since January 2016, only one three-page report (Consolidated Programme Implementation Report to the DG) has been produced, for the period from January 2016 to March 2017, although the Sector s activities have been treated at greater length in the Director-General s reports to the Executive Board. 64. Information has also been produced since January 2016 for inclusion in three other reports to Member States. 7. Implementation of internal control 65. The Sector produced its annual attestations on internal control as required for 2014, and In the most recent internal control self-assessment questionnaire accompanying its annual attestation for 2016, the Sector considered that the six main management processes were all globally under control, including those relating to the programmes, programme management 27 EO/CLT of 12 October ADG/CLT memo of 30 January ADG/CLT memo of 14 January ADG/CLT memo of 23 February 2017.

16 202 EX/32.INF.2 page 13 and human resources management. 67. This assessment may be somewhat optimistic, given the verification of human resources management processes carried out by the External Auditor. Table 1. Verification of assessment of human resources management processes Human resources management Planning of needs and vacancies in collaboration with HRM Contracts signed in accordance with established management rules Selection procedure for all profiles/statuses guaranteeing optimum recruitment Verification by senior management of completeness of MyTalent information Verification by supervisors of completeness and relevance of training needs Rating in selfassessment questionnaire 31 Rating attained in June Not measurable by end of audit, but a 1 rating is optimistic given some of the post vacancy rates and durations. 1 Not measurable at end of audit 1 1 Source: External Auditor based on self-assessment questionnaire Comments The rate of abnormally long vacancies for some posts suggests that the staff review process has failed to provide staffing solutions incomplete or nonactivated files out of the 184 inventoried for the period, lacking staff member s clearance (double clearance, in addition to supervisor s) or not initiated. According to the Sector, as at 12 July 2017 ten files had been closed. 2 2 Out of a sample of 20 performance assessments, few (over 70%) mentioned formal training needs. 68. In 2017 the Sector plans to produce a risk register as part of risk management across the Organization. 33 Recommendation No. 2. The External Auditor recommends implementing the risk register on the basis of a more realistic internal control self-assessment. (Sector) 31 Internal control self-assessment questionnaire Headquarters, MyTalent: performance assessment application. 33 DG/Note/17/02 of 30 January 2017.

17 202 EX/32.INF.2 page 14 C. STRATEGY OF THE SECTOR 1. Strategic positioning of the Sector 69. The Sector s strategy is set out in the C/5 document and the Strategic Results Report for 2015, 34 the most recent version of which dated 7 March 2016 was submitted to the Executive Board in Spring The Sector is also directly concerned by nine of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2030 adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in September 2015, namely those relating to quality education, climate change, protection and promotion of terrestrial ecosystems, economic growth, sustainable consumption and production patterns, peaceful and inclusive societies, reduced inequality, gender equality, and sustainable cities. 71. Goal 11 concerning sustainable cities recognizes the vital role of culture in achieving sustainable urban development goals, particularly in strengthening efforts to protect and safeguard the world s cultural and natural heritage. This goal, regarded as central by the Sector, is being put into practice by targeted actions: publication of the UNESCO Global Report on Culture for Sustainable Urban Development; organization of events such as the International Conference on Culture for Sustainable Cities that was held in Hangzhou in December 2015; and promotion of a cultural approach to urban planning, regeneration and development through the New Urban Agenda adopted in Quito in October 2016 by the third United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III). 72. The multi-year strategy in the C/4 document 35 was drawn up for four biennia and approved by the General Conference in autumn Whereas the previous strategy 36 had three strategic objectives (SOs) for the Culture Sector, the current strategy assigns it only two: SO 7 Protecting, promoting and transmitting heritage and SO 8 Fostering creativity and the diversity of cultural expressions. 73. In the draft budget in document 38 C/5, Priority Africa accounted for 14.3% and gender equality 6.7% of Major Programme IV allocations in the regular budget for the biennium. The corresponding breakdown is 8.8% for Africa and 4.5% for gender equality 37 in document 39 C/5, which is a decrease and lower than for other sectors. This situation is due to the limited extrabudgetary resources anticipated (0.8% for Africa) but is partially offset by the fact that some convention-related activities pertain to Africa 38 or gender equality but are not recognized in the budget as such. 2. Setting of objectives (MLAs) and expected results (ERs) 74. Major Programme IV, entrusted to the Culture Sector by the General Conference, was broken down into two main lines of action (MLAs) for the 37 C/5 and 38 C/5 biennia. This distinction was maintained when the draft budget for was submitted to the Executive Board in October 2016 in document 39 C/5. Each division of the Sector (Creativity and Heritage) manages one of these MLAs, which has the advantage of simplicity. 75. Starting with the biennium, expected results (ERs) were introduced. From the original seven in , the number of ERs has been reduced to six in the current biennium at the Sector s suggestion, 39 with the Expected Result Access to knowledge enhanced through the promotion of shared history and memory for reconciliation and dialogue having been cut by transfer EX/4 Part I (B), 4 March C/4 Medium-Term Strategy C/4 Medium Term Strategy Regular budget of $653 million EX/4 Priority Africa. 39 ADG/CI note of 29 July 2013.

18 202 EX/32.INF.2 page 15 to the Social and Human Sciences Sector. 76. The future budget in document 39 C/5 document is to contain eight ERs, including two new cross-cutting expected results for priorities concerning emergency response and contribution to SDGs. Table 2. Main Lines of Action and Expected Results of the Culture Sector SO 7: Protecting, promoting and transmitting heritage 38 C/ MLA 1: Protecting, conserving, promoting and transmitting culture, heritage and history for dialogue and development ER 1: Tangible heritage identified, protected, monitored and sustainably managed by Member States, in particular through the effective implementation of the 1972 Convention ER 2: Policy dialogue promoted to combat illicit import, export and transfer of ownership of cultural property through enhanced, strengthened and more efficient international cooperation, including the implementation of the 1970 Convention and enhanced capacities of museums SO 8: Fostering creativity and the diversity of cultural expressions MLA 2: Supporting and promoting the diversity of cultural expressions, the safeguarding of the intangible cultural heritage, and the development of cultural and creative industries ER 5: National capacities strengthened and utilized to safeguard the intangible cultural heritage, including indigenous and endangered languages, through the effective implementation of the 2003 Convention ER 6: National capacities strengthened and utilized for the development of policies and measures to promote the diversity of cultural expressions, in particular through the effective implementation of the 2005 Convention ER 3: Global, strategic and forward-looking directions developed and applied through the effective implementation of the 1954 Convention and its two Protocols and multiplier effect achieved ER 4: Global, strategic and forward-looking directions developed and applied through the effective implementation of the 2001 Convention and multiplier effect achieved Source: C/5 Programme and Budget approved by the General Conference on 17 November SO 7: Protecting, promoting and transmitting heritage 39 C/5 MLA 1: Protecting, conserving, promoting and transmitting culture and heritage for dialogue and development ER 1: Tangible heritage identified, protected, monitored and sustainably managed by Member States, in particular through the effective implementation of the 1972 Convention ER 2: Illicit import, export and transfer of cultural property combatted by Member States, in particular through the effective implementation of the 1970 Convention and the works of the ICPRCP and the role of the museums enhanced by stakeholders implementing the UNESCO 2015 Recommendation on museums and collections ER 3: Protection of cultural property improved by Member States, in particular through the wide ratification and effective implementation of the 1954 Convention and its two (1954 and 1999) Protocols ER 4: Underwater cultural heritage identified, protected and sustainably managed by Member States, in particular through the wide ratification and effective implementation of the 2001 Convention ER 5: Culture protected and cultural pluralism promoted in emergencies through better preparedness and response, in particular through the effective implementation of UNESCO s cultural standardsetting instruments Source: Draft Programme and Budget for 2018/2019. SO 8: Fostering creativity and the diversity of cultural expressions MLA 2: Fostering creativity and the diversity of cultural expressions, as well as the safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage for sustainable development ER 6: Intangible cultural heritage identified and safeguarded by Member States and communities, in particular through the effective implementation of the 2003 Convention ER 7: Policies and measures to promote the diversity of cultural expressions designed and implemented by Member States, in particular through the effective implementation of the 2005 Convention ER 8: Culture integrated into policies and measures at the national and local levels by Member States for their effective implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development 77. As in the other major programmes, each ER has a different priority for resource allocation. For the current biennium, they have all received the same priority levels (B-A), since the reduced

19 202 EX/32.INF.2 page 16 priority (C) shown for ER 6 concerning the 2005 Convention is apparently the result of a material error. These priorities have not yet been set for the future biennium in the 39 C/5 document. 78. As in the case of the current biennium, ER 1 on the 1972 World Heritage Convention dominates the Sector s activities. In document 39 C/5 it is set to represent 52.3% of the total budget. This ER and the new ER 5 (21.8%) will therefore account for 74.1% of the programme s total budget on their own. Table 3. Breakdown of Sector budget by objective for biennium (in US dollars) 38 C/5 Approved ($667 million) Expenditure plan ($518 million) Operational budget Staff budget Total Operational budget Staff budget Total Extrabudgetary resources MLA 1 12,419,800 20,212,200 32,632,000 6,416, % 19,277, % 25,693,500 30,885, % ER1 7,306,300 14,440,600 21,746,900 3,451, % 14,203, % 17,655,400 28,986, % ER2 2,782,900 2,911,800 5,694,700 1,798, % 2,809, % 4,607,900 1,386, % ER3 1,350,300 1,292,600 2,642, , % 994, % 1,600, , % ER4 980,300 1,567,200 2,547, , % 1,269, % 1,829, , % MLA 2 8,074,200 13,733,200 21,807,400 5,006, % 12,968, % 17,974,500 14,523, % ER5 4,332,700 8,173,900 12,506,600 2,857, % 7,590, % 10,448,600 9,036, % ER6 3,741,500 5,559,300 9,300,800 2,148, % 5,377, % 7,525,900 5,486, % Total, MP IV 20,494,000 33,945,400 54,439,400 11,422, % 32,245, % 43,668,000 45,408, % Source: 38 C/5 Approved, reworked by the External Auditor 79. As the External Auditor has already pointed out in his audit of the Communication and Information Sector, in its budget resolution for the current biennium the General Conference requested the Director-General to carry out a review of the MLAs and ERs by 2017, to include the two intergovernmental programmes, so as to propose their continuation, reorientation, including possible reinforcement, exit strategies or termination, based on clear evaluation criteria. 80. This exercise is still in progress for preparation of document 39 C/5. Thematic extrabudgetary programmes could be phased out or carried out by partner organizations such as category 2 centres under the auspices of UNESCO. The Sector is continuing to reflect on this matter. In 2016, for example, the world heritage thematic programmes were reviewed and reorientation proposals were made at the fortieth session of the World Heritage Committee in July In the field of creativity, the Sector is currently considering the option of cutting the indirect costs ($2.4 million funded from extrabudgetary funds) of the Creative Cities Network established in 2004 or even of outsourcing it The ERs are tracked in SISTER software. They are classified by item for the projects monitored by Headquarters and for the different geographical areas. Despite consolidation of work plans and activity results for the regular and extrabudgetary programmes every six months, together with a summary of results for Priority Africa and gender equality, the software still provides no overview for programme sectors. 3. Performance indicators and quantitative objectives 82. Since the last biennium, the expected results have been broken down into performance indicators, which have targets/benchmarks for For the current biennium, 41 the Sector has no fewer than 31 performance indicators and 63 targets, usually indicating the number of 40 To date, this plan to outsource the Creative Cities secretariat by asking the 116 member cities to provide the secretariat themselves has not been approved by the Sector. 41 Programme Implementation Report, 199 EX/4 Part I (A), March 2016.

20 202 EX/32.INF.2 page 17 countries in which progress should be made, 42 the number of studies carried out on sites, or the number of States Parties to a convention increased. 83. Of these 31 indicators, it was considered that the majority had a high likelihood of being attained. Only ten of them had a medium likelihood, in the case of the 1970, 1954, 2003 and 2005 Conventions. Only one indicator has a low likelihood of being attained; it concerns the 1954 Convention covered by ER Some indicators are harder to track than others. This is the case for those relating to governance, which seem to be procedural and of little relevance The indicators are tracked closely using SISTER. The External Auditor verified the reliability of the following five performance indicators in the Performance Implementation Report (PIR) in document 200 EX/4 of 5 September 2016, which call for no particular comment Indicator monitored Number of World Heritage properties where capacity of staff is enhanced, including in collaboration with category 2 institutes and centres Table 4. Monitoring of performance indicators Expected results (Quantitative targets) : At least 150 sites : At least five additional sites Sector assessment in Programme Implementation Report 44 of 5 September 2016 Verification carried out on 14 June sites Examination of national reports on UNESCO website Number of reports on the implementation of the 1970 Convention at the national level provided by Parties analysed and monitored Number of Member States which have adapted national legal and institutional frameworks in line with the new Recommendation on Museums (extrabudgetary) New cultural property entered on the List of Cultural Property under Enhanced Protection and tentative lists submitted Number of States Parties to the 1954 Convention (and its two Protocols) increased Source: External Auditor : At least 30 national reports : 20 Member States : 20 Member States implementing the 2015 Recommendation : - 5 cultural properties entered on the List - 10 tentative lists submitted :12 new ratifications of the Convention and both Protocols (at least 4 in Africa) 57 national reports submitted and analysed A few Member States started implementing the 2015 Recommendation through the establishment of national institutions, laws and related measures (Tunisia, Cambodia) Nine requests for Enhanced Protection (from Bosnia and Herzegovina (two), Cambodia, Egypt, Georgia, Italy, Mali and Nigeria (two)) Only two files (Georgia and Mali) were considered complete. In 2015, Mali submitted its tentative list with 3 properties. Since 1 January 2014 Ethiopia and Togo have become parties to the 1954 Convention and its First Protocol. South Africa, Norway, Togo, Liechtenstein and France have become parties to the Second Protocol (1999). Examination of national reports on UNESCO website Count of countries concerned Verification with Chief of Unit Verification from updated list of States Parties to the Convention on the UNESCO website 42 Number of Member States having adapted national legal and institutional frameworks in line with the UNESCO Recommendation on Museums, number of world heritage sites where capacity of staff has been enhanced, etc. 43 Governing bodies of the x Convention exercise sound governance thanks to effective organization of their statutory meetings with the objective Decisions taken providing strategic guidance for the implementation of the Convention x EX/4.INF.3.