Governing Body

---

GB.270/PFA/4/2 270th Session Geneva, November 1997

---

Programme, Financial and Administrative Committee

PFA

---

FOURTH ITEM ON THE AGENDA

International Training Centre of the ILO, Turin

Report of the 59th Session of the
Board of the Centre

1. The Board of the International Training Centre of the ILO, Turin, held its 59th Session in Turin on 7 November 1997.

2. Its report, which is reproduced in the appendix, is submitted to the Programme, Financial and Administrative Committee in accordance with a decision taken by the Governing Body at its 222nd Session (February-March 1983).⁽¹⁾ 

3. The Programme, Financial and Administrative Committee may wish to recommend that the Governing Body take note of the decision by the Board of the Centre to approve the proposals and the investment plan and its financing mechanisms, as set out in document CC 59/5.⁽²⁾ 

Geneva, 10 November 1997.

Point for decision: Paragraph 3.

---

Appendix

CC 59/Rep.

Report on the 59th Session of the Board of the Centre
(Turin, 7 November 1997)

1. The Chairman, Ms. Mary Chinery-Hesse, welcomed the members of the 59th Session of the Board of the Centre and drew attention to the importance of their contributions. She conveyed the regrets of the Chairman, Mr. Michel Hansenne, who was unable to attend the session and particularly thanked Ambassador Cavaglieri, the representative of the Italian Government, as well as the Region of Piedmont, the City of Turin, the representatives of the United Nations system and the donor community for their support for the Centre's activities. She underlined the prestige acquired by the Centre in recent years and noted with satisfaction the improvement in facilities. The Centre had truly become an institution of excellence and she congratulated the Director on these results. The establishment of the Staff College, inaugurated by the UN Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan, had increased the Centre's visibility while promoting the values of the ILO to a wider audience. She recalled the appreciation of the Secretary-General for the role played by the Centre in the reform process of the United Nations system.

First and second items on the agenda

Director's report on the activities of the Centre
in 1996: Report on the implementation of the
programme and budget for the current financial
year (1997), and programme and budget proposals
for the 1998 financial year

2. The Chairman proposed that the first and second items on the agenda be covered together.

3. The Director of the Centre presented the relevant documents indicating that 1996 had been a particularly positive year. Taking the analysis over a longer period, the comparative indicators for the years 1994-95 and 1996-97 could be considered exceptional since, between these two periods, the number of training programmes as well as the number of participants in the Centre's activities had doubled, while activities in the field had increased by 30 per cent. The only declining indicator was that for individual fellowships which continued their downward trend. This was the result of the reduction in the number of UNDP/ILO technical cooperation projects over which the Centre had no control. This tendency was set to continue over future years. The Centre had worked in close and growing cooperation with most of the technical departments of the ILO as well as with the regional offices, area offices and multidisciplinary teams in implementing the Active Partnership Policy. The Centre was also in close contact with the UN external offices, and especially with UN Resident Coordinators. The Director noted that the Centre's services had been increasingly solicited by traditional partners as well as by new partners. This proved that the programmes offered by the Centre were judged to be of quality and that the cost-effectiveness ratio was competitive compared to other training institutions. Indeed, several countries, including Brazil, China, Egypt and Malaysia, had fully financed the cost of their own training programmes. The Centre had won international tenders and was firmly committed in this direction, having created a special unit. The Director noted that the share of the contributions to the Centre's budget had decreased, indicating that the Centre had been able to build up a clientele and new partners. In this respect, the Director thanked the governments and institutions which helped the Centre to implement its programmes, especially, Italy, the European Union, Switzerland, France, the United States, the World Bank, Spain, Ireland, Belgium, the Flemish Community of Belgium, the Walloon Region and the French Community of Belgium, as well as numerous agencies of the UN system. The Centre had also been more active vis-à-vis industrialized countries and was implementing important programmes financed by the European Union for the benefit of its member States. Significant progress had been made in the development of advanced technologies and their increasing use in the Centre's activities. The San Paolo Foundation had recently approved a large financial contribution in order to equip the Centre, in the near future, with a "Global Learning Laboratory". The Director wished to thank the Foundation. Concerning the geographical distribution of the Centre's activities, the number of participants in the regional programmes for Africa and the Arab States was increasing rapidly, followed by those for Europe. There was a slight growth in the regional programmes for Asia and the Pacific and Latin America and the Caribbean, although overall the relative share of these programmes was decreasing. This was owing to a reduction in international technical cooperation for the benefit of these regions, their geographical distance from Turin and the fact that advanced training institutions were available locally. Nevertheless, renewed effort should be made to adapt the Centre's services to their needs and maintain a substantial level of activities for the benefit of these two continents. The Secretary-General of the United Nations had recently confirmed the importance of the Staff College Project which he envisaged as a useful instrument for realizing the reform of the United Nations. He had expressed his satisfaction that the project had been implemented by the Centre and had given his assurance that the project would continue to be developed in close collaboration with the ILO. In 1997, the activities of the Staff College had increased by 30 per cent. For 1998, a very comprehensive programme of activities had been prepared. The Staff College would improve the skills and efficiency of UN system officials, while opening up the system towards civil society and strengthening peacekeeping and international security. The Staff College had benefited from various financial support, notably from Denmark, Italy, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United States, the Region of Piedmont and different programmes, funds and agencies of the United Nations as well as of several foundations. Cooperation agreements had also been entered into with numerous institutions. From a general point of view, in years to come, the Centre would apply itself to optimizing the cost-effectiveness ratio of its activities, to further increasing the quality of its programmes and to fully evaluating their impact. The Director thanked the City of Turin as well as the different local institutions for their financial contributions which had allowed for very considerable improvement in the quality of accommodation and the catering services. In particular, the renovation of two pavilions had enabled the provision of 51 quality bedrooms, a new self-service and a new restaurant at no extra cost for the Centre, with the exception of the kitchen facilities which, as approved by the Board at its previous session, would be financed by an investment amortized over ten years at an annual cost of around US$40,000. The new facilities, installed in order to ensure the best possible balance between cost and quality while guaranteeing durability, had become necessary owing to the outdated kitchen facilities and to meet essential standards of safety and hygiene, as well as to keep on a par with the profile of the Centre's participants. This said, the Centre remained at a great disadvantage in its activities owing to the deterioration of 72 bedrooms which, unlike the others, had not yet been renovated. Their refurbishment had become urgent as the Centre had great need of them and it was almost impossible to use them in their present condition. The use of accommodation outside the Centre was costly and inconvenient. The Director had hence launched an appeal to the City of Turin and wished to thank them in advance for their assistance. Turning to personnel administration, the Centre had recruited an expert in human resources in order to obtain guidelines on the design and implementation of an active human resources management policy. Considerable resources had been earmarked for staff training and upgrading over the following three years. He thanked the countries that had gratuitously assigned staff to the Centre, namely China, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. The 1997 budgetary year should finish with a well-balanced outcome. As regards the budget for 1998, the Director foresaw a slight deficit owing to constantly increasing operating costs and a possible reduction in ILO/RBTC funds for the Centre; he hoped that it would be possible, as in previous years, to make up for this shortfall during the financial year.

4. The representative of the External Auditor stated that the audit process was designed to provide an impartial scrutiny of the Centre and to contribute constructively to the Centre's activities and financial stewardship. He declared that the 1996 Financial Statements properly presented the financial situation of the Centre and the results for the year in question. He went on to comment on the follow-up actions taken by the Centre on the recommendations made in 1995. The points covered were: cost savings through computerization of the financial systems including the adoption of a revised implementation plan; compliance with the recommendations concerning fixed assets but with emphasis on the need to carry out a complete physical inventory; the efforts made by the Centre to reduce costs and increase the revenue from individual fellowships. Concerning 1996, he pointed out that the United Nations Common Accounting Standards (revised in 1995) had been applied to the Centre and that the main changes concerned the inclusion of a Cash Flow Statement and a revision of the Income and Expenditure Statement. He noted that the internal controls over information systems were adequate and, considering the significant amount of money spent in this area, emphasized the need to produce a formal Information Technology Strategy document as a basis for estimating future expenditure as well as a Security Policy document. He raised the issue of commitments not being recorded in accordance with the Centre's Financial Rules and was supportive of the efforts made by the management to ensure that commitments were correctly made out before effecting an expenditure. Concerning accommodation, he noted that, at times, the campus facilities were underutilized (in January and August) whereas during other periods participants were too numerous to be accommodated at the Centre. Revised timing of courses to increase use of the Centre during quiet periods would have resulted in additional income in the order of US$90,000 had all participants resided at the Centre. He also recommended that the Centre consider whether less costly arrangements for services such as catering could not be introduced during underutilized periods. He closed by stating how much he valued the open cooperation and consideration extended by the Director, the Deputy Director and members of the staff with whom he continued to enjoy an effective and productive working relationship.

5. Mr. Torresin, Councillor for Labour, welcomed the members of the Board on behalf of the Mayor of the City of Turin, Mr. Castellani, who, owing to other engagements, was unable to attend the session. He recalled the importance that the City of Turin attached to the Centre's activities with a view to cooperation and international relations allowing for an exchange of experiences within the framework of globalization. The City of Turin reiterated its commitment to pursuing its efforts to renovate the Centre's infrastructure, in particular the bedrooms, with the help of banking institutions and private enterprises in the region. In this context, a three-year maintenance plan had been proposed. The plan was being examined by the competent authorities of the City of Turin and should provide the Centre with the means to conduct its activities under the proper conditions.

6. Mr. Majorino, Vice-President of the Region of Piedmont, conveyed the respects of the President of the Region to the members of the Board. He recalled the interest with which the Region followed the activities of the Centre and its progress. He expressed his support for the Staff College and informed the Board of the decision to entrust the Centre with the implementation of a major programme for the training of trainers that had been approved by the Region at its meeting on 3 November 1997. This decision was evidence of the reputation the Centre enjoyed in this field.

7. The Chairman thanked the City of Turin and the Region of Piedmont for their support and the prospects for the future which had just been outlined.

8. Ms. Sasso-Mazzufferi (spokesperson of the Employers' group) expressed her satisfaction with the Director's report on the activities of the Centre in 1996. Among other things, she noted an increase in activities and in the number of participants, as well as an improvement in the quality of the services; she was pleased that the programmes had been implemented in close cooperation with the ILO and its external offices. The Employers' group encouraged the participation of women in all the Centre's activities and appreciated programmes on gender-related issues, while hoping that men would increasingly take part in them. She emphasized the importance of the increase in the number of activities and participants, as well as the upward trend in activities for small and medium-sized enterprises. The Employers' group wished to know what impact the training package "Know About Business" had had and encouraged the promotion of further multilingual training initiatives along the lines of the activity conducted in Mauritius. The number of activities addressed solely to employers had increased in 1997, but the overall level was still considered to be insufficient. The increased use of videoconferencing was a positive development that had recently been tried and which allowed for savings in time and money. The Employers' group expressed its satisfaction concerning the publication of a greater number of training documents in Arabic as well as with the reduction in printing costs. She regretted the levelling off in the number of participants from Asia and Latin America, and hoped that this unsatisfactory situation would be corrected. She expressed her thanks to Italy for its financial contribution to the Centre's activities which were much appreciated on the present international market. The Employers' group spokesman took note of the investments which were still necessary for the future of the Centre and thanked the Director and his team for the successful achievements. She expressed the hope that a focal point for Employers' activities might be created at the Centre that could ensure a link with ACT/EMP, in the same way as the ACTRAV Workers' Activities Programme, so as to increase cooperation with the ILO, the Employers' group and the IOE. She noted the considerable efforts made by the Region of Piedmont and the City of Turin on behalf of the Centre and expressed her thanks. She hoped that with their assistance improvements to participants' accommodation facilities might be achieved by means of substantial investments in the near future. Services rendered to third parties should be pursued to the extent that they generate revenue and enhance the Centre's image. She remarked with pleasure on the end-of-year surplus as well as the accounting standards introduced at the Centre and the gradual computerization of financial administration. She reiterated the recommendations made by the External Auditor, the implementation of which should continue to be the object of special efforts. She expressed satisfaction with the good results achieved by the Staff College and welcomed the agreements with training institutions and the synergy of the project with the Centre's regional and technical programmes. Lastly, she stated that workers' education activities were also a priority for the Employers' group since they were partners in economic and social development and recalled the importance of bi-tripartite training.

9. The Worker Vice-Chairman congratulated the Director on his full and comprehensive report and on the rapid growth of activities. He wished to draw the attention of the Board to a few specific points. Although the number of participants was on the increase, the continued reduction in the number of individual fellowships remained a real cause for concern with the very future of the programme being at stake. In spite of the very widespread geographical distribution, with 161 countries being represented in 1996, he noted that Europe had become the prime beneficiary of the Centre's activities and that further efforts were needed to ensure a better representation of Latin America, Asia and the Pacific and the Arab States. He considered it particularly encouraging that two-thirds of the Centre's resources were generated through its training activities. The Workers' group was satisfied with the strengthened cooperation with the ILO and its external offices. He also noted the existence of a separate breakdown of figures for the Staff College Project, but unfortunately no figures on the total number of participants were given. The Workers' group confirmed that it was willing to examine procedures for trade unionists to take part in activities on economic and social policies and human rights, etc. conducted in the context of the Staff College programmes. An adequate balance in the distribution of activities organized in Turin and in the field should be maintained. The Workers' Vice-Chairman noted a strong growth in activities in favour of small and medium-sized enterprises while other sectors were declining, and hoped that a better subject balance might be found. Regarding staff questions, he expressed his concern as to the increasing number of short-term contracts. Turning to the Centre's administration, improvements in the accommodation of certain pavilions should be pursued and the Workers' group hoped for optimum utilization of the campus. As for finance, the Workers' group noted with satisfaction the net surplus resulting from the 1996 financial year, but expressed concern at the amount of the provisions for doubtful accounts. The "Report on the implementation of the programme and budget" was encouraging and the Workers' Vice-Chairman underlined the need to pursue the promotion of the Centre. This would enable it to meet the growing needs of societies which recognized that human resources played a prime role. He viewed positively the projections for 1997 which forecast an increase in the number of participants. He expressed his concern as to the reduction in the proportion of activities in favour of Latin America and Asia which, without the programmes financed by China, would have been limited and pointed out that a fair balance between and within the regions was essential.

10. The representative of the Government of Italy expressed his gratitude to the Director for the quality of the documents submitted in due time for examination by the Board and welcomed the upward trend in the number of participants, as well as the efforts made towards integration with the activities of the ILO. The visit of the UN Secretary-General had represented a turning point in the existence of the Centre and marked a recognition of the Centre's work and of its capacity for coordination with the United Nations system. Italy was committed to pursuing its interest in and support of the Staff College; this increased the visibility of the Centre and attracted new organizations to take part in its training programmes and activities. Italy contributed to the Centre's activities and showed particular interest in the improvement of the condition of women, small and medium-sized enterprises, international labour standards and workers' education. Several of these activities were aimed at following up the world conferences of Beijing and Copenhagen. The financial contributions of Italy, the ILO and donor countries continued to be necessary for the financial balance of the Centre. The representative of the Government of Italy expressed his thanks to the City of Turin and the Region of Piedmont for their support. He was aware of all the appeals made to the Centre. He counted on the Centre's financial solidity and technical expertise to cope with them.

11. The representative of the Government of Egypt expressed his satisfaction and congratulated the Director on the quality of the report and its presentation. He was also present as the representative of the Chairman of the Governing Body of the ILO, who regretted he had been unable to attend. He greatly appreciated the efforts made to improve the infrastructures, the efficacy of the services and the judicious utilization of financial resources. The Centre had gained the full confidence of its partners, and this in turn had brought about an increase in the number of training activities and participants. He noted with satisfaction the good results obtained in the implementation of the Development Plan, as well as the correct balance between activities linked to the mandates of the ILO and the United Nations. He was pleased to note that cooperation with the ILO and the financial stability of the Centre had improved. He encouraged the Centre to promote the trend towards the participation of an increasing number of women in its programmes, and set parity with men as its ultimate objective. He was pleased to observe the quality of the training material produced and hoped there would be a further increase in the production of documents in Arabic. He paid tribute to the role played by the Staff College in the policy of improving the coordination and effectiveness of the agencies of the United Nations system. As a member of the Board of UNITAR, he called for greater cooperation with this Institute for the design and implementation of joint programmes, and hoped to encourage such cooperation during the discussions of the General Assembly of the United Nations. He took note of the contribution of the ILO and other institutions to the Centre's budget and maintained that both the UNDP and the World Bank could increase their contributions in view of the utility and quality of the Centre's activities in favour of development. He was pleased to observe the Centre's success in the matter of the mobilization of resources, and suggested that agreements be reached with development banks. He laid stress on the participation of members of civil society and non-governmental organizations in the Centre's activities, both as beneficiaries and as supporters. He expressed his appreciation of the support of the Italian Government. In addition, he emphasized the need to continue the concentration of activities on the African region in view of the fact that it comprised a considerable number of less-advanced countries. The establishment of networks with African institutions would allow the transfer of methodologies and the strengthening of their capabilities. The Centre's activities in favour of the Arab States should be augmented and undertaken, amongst other things, in cooperation with the Arab Labour Organization. He noted with satisfaction the efforts made on behalf of the Palestinian Authority.

12. Mr. Owuor (Employer, Kenya) fully concurred with the comments made by Ms. Sasso-Mazzufferi and addressed his sincere thanks to the Director, as well as to the staff, for the excellent report on the Centre's activities, the increase in the number of programmes and participants, and the importance of the place of women in such programmes, as well as for the support given to initiatives in favour of Africa. He expressed his gratitude to the Italian Government for its contribution and noted with satisfaction the fact that 70 per cent of the budget was generated through training activities. He hoped that future programmes would lay stress on quality and productivity, and address ways of settling disputes, as well as rural activities that would enable new groups of economic actors (especially women) to be taken into account. He suggested that the number of regional programmes should be increased, and supported the proposal of the spokesperson for the Employers' group that an office should be created for liaison with ACT/EMP.

13. The representative of the Government of Malaysia congratulated the Director on his report and the economic measures undertaken. Although the rate of room occupancy had greatly increased by comparison with the period 1993-94, he hoped it would be possible to step up the utilization of the Centre's facilities at times when its activity was least.

14. Mr. de Arbeloa (Employer, Venezuela) supported the presentation of the spokesperson of the Employers' group. He expressed his thanks to the Italian Government, especially Ambassador Cavaglieri, and also to the authorities of the City of Turin and the Region of Piedmont. He stated his satisfaction with regard to the time accorded to the Management Training Committee for examination of the documents submitted to the Board, in keeping with the wishes expressed during the 58th Session. He hoped to see a better division of resources in favour of Latin America, especially those countries that were experiencing economic difficulties and high inflation. In addition, he was satisfied to note the creation of a unit responsible for the preparation of invitations to tender. As a means of securing the better temporal distribution of activities, he suggested that steps should be taken with users of the Centre to promote the provision of training during periods when there was least activity. With reference to the programme for 1998, he hoped that training actions in favour of small and medium-sized enterprises would also be accompanied by the launching of initiatives in the social security sector.

15. The representative of the Government of the United States thanked the Director for the report submitted to the Board. She was pleased to note the assessment made by the External Auditor and supported his recommendations concerning the use of the Centre's facilities so as to improve their cost-effectiveness ratio. During the previous meeting of the Board, the then representative of the Government of the United States had stressed the need to evaluate the Centre's programmes. She urged that further efforts should be made in this direction and that a report on the continuous evaluation of the Centre's activities be produced. She stressed the participation of women in all the Centre's programmes, including those conducted in the beneficiary countries. She expressed the hope that as much resort as possible would be made to new training technologies, particularly Internet, and especially for the follow-up of training actions.

16. The representative of the Government of Chile expressed his satisfaction with the Director's report and congratulated him. He regarded training as an important pillar in the modernization of Chile's state structures whose aim was to prepare the country to face the challenges of the future. He hoped that the level of activities for Latin America would be raised and joined with the previous delegates in thanking the Government of Italy and the City of Turin for their support.

17. The representative of the Government of Poland expressed his satisfaction with the training programmes organized by the Centre in conjunction with the Italian Government and with sponsors, in accordance with the guidelines laid down by the Board during its previous sessions. Turning to the programme for Europe, he hoped that the particular features of the Central and Eastern European countries in the process of transition would be taken into fuller account, especially with respect to the labour market, industrial relations and social policies. He suggested that specific projects, at both the regional and the national level, should be conducted for these countries in the transition stage and made the subject of separate initiatives within the Regional Programme for Europe. As to the five-year investment plan, he wondered whether it would be possible to direct lines of credit to the growth of technical cooperation in favour of Central and Eastern Europe, and supported the pursuit of the improvement of the Centre's infrastructures. By way of an example, he cited the tripartite seminar on the settlement of labour disputes arranged in October for 11 countries from the region and the fruit of excellent cooperation between the Turin Centre, the multidisciplinary team for Central and Eastern Europe and the Polish Ministry of Labour and Social Policy. In the name of the Minister, he expressed his thanks to the officials of the Centre for the quality of their contribution. He hoped that this initiative, which met the needs of countries that were candidates for accession to the European Union, would be repeated and assured the Centre of the support of the Government of Poland.

18. The representative of the Government of Saudi Arabia expressed his satisfaction with the support given to the programmes in favour of the Arab States, and was interested to note that the number of participants had doubled with respect to the previous year. He nonetheless called for certain clarifications concerning the way in which the figures for participants from the Arab States were broken down. He hoped that this trend would continue and thanked Italy, the management of the Centre and the members of the Regional Programme for the Arab States for their action.

19. Mr. M'Kaissi (Employer, Tunisia) presented his warmest compliments to the Director with regard to the clarity of the report and the work that had been accomplished. The progress made in favour of the quality of the programmes, the Centre's image and strengthening of cooperation with the ILO was in each case a reason for satisfaction. He also hoped that collaboration with the IOE would be developed. Enterprises faced with the challenges posed by globalization needed executives trained in the management of productivity, quality and human resources. He was in favour of the growth of the Centre's activities in the field and those on behalf of African employers. Particular interest should be devoted to Arab employers' associations, especially Palestinian associations, to enable them to play an important role in the political, economic and social stability of their region. Mr. M'Kaissi concluded by thanking Italy, the City of Turin, the Region of Piedmont and the donor community for their support, as well as the management and staff for their efforts.

20. The representative of the Government of China took note of the excellent report submitted to the Board and was pleased with the fine work achieved despite the difficult conditions associated with variations in the rates of exchange. He warmly thanked the Director and the staff of the Centre and paid tribute to Italy for its contribution. He referred to the importance of the co-financing of activities by the member States, since this permitted the real involvement of beneficiaries.

21. The representative of the Government of Germany replied to the various remarks made with regard to the better distribution of activities during the course of the year by stressing that the priority for the Centre was to respond to the imperative needs of users such as the States and institutions that supplied the funds for its activities. This dominant factor offered a substantial explanation of the situation, which was not easy to remedy and to a certain extent provided its own justification.

22. Mr. Beye (Employer, Senegal) expressed his gratitude to the Italian Government and the local authorities for their support. He attached prime importance to strengthening of the Centre's image based on the active partnership policy, flexibility and evaluation procedures, and on effective communication. The Centre should make increasing use of the external offices of the ILO in order to improve the account taken of the needs of its constituents. Increased utilization of the area and regional offices should result in a reduction of costs and boost the transfer of skills. He was satisfied to observe the employment of new technologies, such as videoconferencing, and the production of training materials. He underscored the importance of programmes in favour of the promotion of the private sector, small and medium-sized enterprises, social protection, social dialogue and reform of the public sector.

23. The representative of the Government of France complimented the management on having succeeded in developing some activities, which involved the taking of a risk to the extent that the Centre's fixed resources covered no more than a small part of its fixed costs. Mobilization of the difference required was a difficult exercise for the management. He also congratulated the management on the prospects for the future as formulated in the recommendations relating to the Five-year Development Plan. He was of the opinion that training would change considerably in the years to come, and this would require a substantial effort with respect to the utilization of new technologies. He expressed his satisfaction with regard to the envisaged creation of a global learning laboratory.

24. The representative of the Government of Brazil expressed his appreciation of the important part played by the Centre in the dissemination of knowledge. He regarded this effort as important, notably for the observance of international standards. He was pleased to note the regional approach of the Centre's training and its targeting to the needs of countries, and expressed the hope that there would be an increase in the participation of Latin American countries.

25. Mr. Kikongi di Mwinsa (Worker, the Democratic Republic of the Congo) called attention to the high quality of the Director's report, which was evidence of sustained activity. He thanked Italy, the City of Turin and the Region of Piedmont for their support, and was pleased to see that Africa was the prime beneficiary region. He took pleasure in the fact that women constitute one-third of the participants, and expressed his satisfaction with respect to direct financing by the beneficiary countries. He was disturbed by the downturn in individual fellowships, all the more so as most of these were for the benefit of trade union representatives. He queried the follow-up ensured after training and the results of the evaluations. The Centre had to make sure that the entirety of the executives it trained acquired a trade union culture in view of the fact that its primary task was to provide tripartite training. He thought that the Centre could and should play an important part in making executives of financial and monetary institutions aware of social problems, and the heads of police forces and armies aware of human rights. He regretted the complete absence of a programme for the protection of children and hoped that this topic would be considered in the future. He noted that the distinction between donors and beneficiaries was becoming less marked and hoped that workers' organizations would continue to draw full benefit from the Centre's activities.

26. Mr. Rampak (Worker, Malaysia) concurred with the remarks of the Worker Vice-Chairman in calling for greater participation of Asia and Latin America in the Centre's programmes. Despite the difficulties connected with the search for funds, efforts should be continued to increase the offer of training. He hoped the management of the Centre would make precise statements concerning the strategy to be brought into operation for the coming millennium, especially in response to the challenges of globalization.

27. In his reply to the various comments, the Director thanked those who had spoken for their suggestions, of which the fullest account would be taken. With reference to the use of the Centre's facilities, he assured the members of the Board that the Centre had made and was continuing to make every effort to ensure a better spread of its activities throughout the year. He reminded them that the periods of least activity were very hard to reduce, because approval procedures were lengthy and often took place late in any current year. Furthermore, a certain amount of slack time was needed to allow the Centre's officials to prepare its programmes. Even so, thanks to the efforts made for a number of years, the rate of utilization during the traditionally empty months had markedly improved in general, especially in July and even in August when, in 1997, a 20 per cent increase in occupancy had been recorded. It was, however, necessary to pursue and explore the suggestion made by the External Auditor to reduce or adapt certain services during the period of least attendance. As to the participation of women in the Centre's programmes, he pointed out that efforts were being and would continue to be undertaken to increase their representation. With regard to new technologies, the Director stated that the Centre was already making a wide use of hypertext, information technology and videoconferencing in training, and that a programme developed with ACTRAV for the training of trade union representatives in the use of these tools would soon be launched. Distance training, too, was in the process of development. The imminent creation of the global learning laboratory using the most advanced technologies would be a major step forward. He pointed out that all these programmes were the subject of evaluation and that a database was being prepared to allow capitalization of the results obtained. He considered it would be both desirable and possible to give more detailed information concerning the outcome of these evaluations in his report to the next session. Turning to the geographical distribution of activities, he expressed the hope that the development of new technologies would provide better access to the programmes for participants from Asia and Latin America and gave his assurance that he would seek means of enabling the Centre to augment its usefulness for these two continents. The Centre's programmes were increasingly integrating international labour standards, human rights, social security and courses devoted to the labour market and industrial relations. Moreover, the part assigned in the programmes to questions linked to the globalization of the economy was growing rapidly. Lastly, the Director recalled that the first and second Development Plans had drawn up the strategy for the future of the Centre and the content of its programmes. He assured the members of the Board that their proposals and suggestions would be taken into consideration in the refinement and completion of this strategy, and that their advice on this subject would always be valuable.

28. The Board approved the paragraph and the budget proposals for 1998, summarized in paragraph 27 and in the synopsis presented in the table in Information Annex I of document CC 59/2 "Report on the implementation of the programme and budget for the current financial year (1997) and programme and budget proposals for the 1998 financial year". It also took note of documents CC 59/1; CC 59/1/Add.1; CC 59/1/Add.2; CC 59/1/Add.3 and CC 59/2/Add.1.

Third item on the agenda

Reports of the Management Training Committee
and the Trade Union Training Committee

29. The Chairman called upon the representatives of the Management Training Committee and the Trade Union Training Committee to present the reports of their meetings to the members of the Board.

30. The representative of the Management Training Committee expressed the hope that in 1998 the results would be as satisfactory as in 1996-97, and that a particular effort could be made for activities in favour of Latin America. She laid stress on the utilization of new technologies for training. She was also pleased to observe the collaboration with ACT/EMP and the other ILO departments.

31. The representative of the Trade Union Training Committee summarized the Committee's main conclusions and stressed the integration with ACTRAV. Qualitative improvements and the utilization of new training technologies had to be included in future activities. He suggested that future meetings of the Board should take place earlier in the day than at present.

32. The Board took note of documents CC 59/3/a and CC 59/3/b.

Fourth item on the agenda

Staff questions

33. In accordance with the usual practice, the Chairman asked the Board to listen to the statement by the Chairman of the Staff Union Committee (the text of the statement is annexed to this report). She also invited the Board to examine documents CC 59/4/a "Amendments to the Staff Regulations", CC 59/4/b "Proposed amendments to the Staff Regulations", and CC 59/4/c "Appointment of the Director of the Training Department".

34. The Director explained that documents CC 59/4/a and CC 59/4/b enabled the Staff Regulations to be adapted to conform to the rules in force in the international civil service, and that document CC 59/4/c concerned the appointment of the new Director of the Training Department.

35. The Director paid tribute to the remarkable work of Mr. Geiser, now called to other functions within the United Nations system. For more than eight years he had placed his great professional and personal qualities at the service of the Centre and its development.

36. The Chairman and the three Vice-Chairmen expressed their great appreciation of the work done by Mr. Geiser, who had also been the first Director of the Staff College, and wished him every success in his new post. The representative of the Government of Italy also thanked Mr. Geiser for his work and wished him every success.

37. The Board took note of documents CC 59/4/a and CC 59/4/c and approved paragraph 4 of document CC 59/4/b.

Fifth item on the agenda

Other questions

38. The Chairman called upon the Director to present document CC 59/5.

39. The Director explained that document CC 59/5 requested the authorization of the Board to draw on the Working Capital Fund in order to finance the capital investments needed for the satisfactory execution of the last three years of the second Five-year Development Plan. These investments were grouped under four headings. They were currently the subject of detailed examination by different working groups: some adjustments might be made within and between the headings to take account of work now in progress. The document also called for approval of amendments to the Financial Rules with respect to the employment of funds by authorized officials. These amendments had received the prior approval of the legal and financial services.

40. The three Vice-Chairmen approved paragraph 11 of point I and paragraph 7 of point II of document CC 59/5.

41. The Board approved paragraph 11 of point I of document CC 59/5 and recommended that the Governing Body of the ILO should take note of its decision to approve the proposals and the investment plan and its financing mechanisms. The Board also approved paragraph 7 of point II of document CC 59/5.

42. The Board conferred on the Chairman a mandate to approve the text of the report of its 59th Session and submit the same to the 270th Session of the Governing Body of the ILO through its Programme, Financial and Administrative Committee.

Sixth item on the agenda

Place and date of the next session

43. The Chairman proposed that the date of the 60th Session of the Board should be determined, as usual, by the Officers of the Board, and that its proceedings should begin at 9 a.m. She thanked the members of the Board for their attention.

Turin, 7 November 1997.

---

Annex 1

Statement by the Chairman of the Staff Union
of the International Training Centre of the ILO
in Turin to the Board of the Centre
(7 November 1997)

Madam Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen,

The last ten years have marked a significant turning point in our history: we have changed from the "International Centre for Advanced Technical and Vocational Training" to the "International Training Centre of the ILO" and the home of the United Nations Staff College, and are now pursuing the ambitious objective of becoming a "Centre of Excellence" by the year 2000. This development has been dictated by real needs that came to light during a close examination of the transformation under way at the world level, in keeping with the reform process of the United Nations.

The process of reform also requires staff representatives to adopt common strategies and strengthen relations between the unions. In this connection, we are pleased to report that, in response to our invitation, the Staff Union Committee of the ILO in Geneva came to Turin and took part in a meeting with the Centre's officials, during which the question of interorganizational mobility emerged. This meeting served to formalize contacts between the two Committees so as to better defend and promote the interests of the staff of both organizations.

While, on the one hand, we are ready to recognize that, under the guidance of Mr. Trémeaud, the Centre has succeeded in adapting itself to the needs of a world in the process of transformation, and has obtained international recognition in the field of training, we would, on the other hand, emphasize that this has been made possible by the commitment, flexibility and efforts displayed by its staff, who have been subjected to ever-increasing and more exacting workloads.

During the course of a seminar arranged by the Training Department last July, an analysis was presented of the number of activities completed in the years from 1991 to 1997 in relation to the number of officials working in this Department. It is interesting to observe that over the period in question the activities rose by 124 per cent from 134 to 300, whereas the staff increased in number by only 18 per cent from 95 to 112. This result underscores what the Staff Union Committee has repeatedly pointed out to the Director, namely that staff numbers have not grown in proportion to the number of activities.

How long can the staff keep up this commitment without impairing the quality of the services rendered?

It is therefore essential to find agreed solutions that enable the Department's staff to be strengthened without placing a burden on operating costs: for example, by drawing on competences existing within the Centre in order to boost the offer of training, or by calling on even more governments to make associate experts available. This second alternative would also lead to an improvement in the geographical distribution of the staff.

A further consideration concerning the imbalances detected in the current handling of the human resources stems from the tables we are submitting in Annex A. These show that:

1. The staff of the Centre consists of 145 "stable" officials, while another 67, a number that corresponds to 46 per cent of the "stable" staff, are present on short-term contracts charged to the Centre's budget, project-linked short-term and fixed-term contracts and on secondment from other organizations.

2. A concentration of officials in the higher grades can be noted within each category. If this trend persists, it will overturn the hierarchical pyramid. Replacement within the Centre will be weakened, career development will be jeopardized and a feeling of frustration will inevitably arise among the staff.

3. Solely 7 per cent of those holding "higher executive" posts (P.5 to ADG) are women, namely one woman in P.5.

4. Women constitute a full 45 per cent of the "middle executive" staff (P.2 to P.4). This proportion, however, progressively decreases in the higher grades to only seven women out of 20 in P.4.

5. Women account for 33 per cent of those in the entire Professional category, compared with 73 per cent in the General Service category (mostly in the intermediate grades).

6. Examination of the figures regarding short-term contracts charged to the Centre's budget and project-linked short-term and fixed-term contracts reveals a disturbing tendency to resort to contracts that do not ensure continuity of employment, nor any form of social protection.

We are perfectly aware that new forms of mobility and new types of contract are being introduced in the labour market. We nonetheless believe that an institution wishing to put itself forward as a driving force of economic and social development and social justice, both within and without the United Nations system, must apply the fundamental principles of the International Labour Organization.

We therefore call upon the management of the Centre, which we know to be inspired by these same principles, to set in motion all the mechanisms capable of awarding a greater number of "stable" contracts, and thus ensuring the Centre a sustainable development that meets the legitimate expectations of its officials.

Within this general frame of reference, we believe that human resources are one of the key features for the success of an organization. When significant changes are in progress, it is essential that the skills needed by the Organization be precisely defined. While it is true that the management has expressed its conviction that there is a need to establish an integrated human resources development policy, we feel that it is necessary to move without further delay from a declaration of intent to the undertaking of all the measures capable of transforming the current purely administrative management of staff into a veritable integrated management of the development of human resources. This involves the elaboration of an operating strategy aimed at:

• analysing and forming an inventory of the existing skills and competences;
• analysing and defining the short and medium-term skills needed for the creation of a true "Centre of Excellence";
• drawing up individual career and training plans according to the results of potential and professional aspirations of the staff; these analyses, and reconciliation of mobility and incentives;
• drawing up impartial performance evaluation procedures.

Implementation of these measures would allow the full value of the existing potential to be achieved, identify the training requirements needed to remedy any shortcomings at all levels, and provide an answer to the numerous and legitimate requests of officials for a consistent and transparent staff policy. Active participation of the Staff Union is indispensable in fostering the establishment of an atmosphere of trust, serenity and security within the Organization.

We are of the opinion that the presence of an expert in the development and handling of human resources within the Personnel Service should promote the accomplishment of this change.

The Board has before it the question of a withdrawal from the Centre's Working Capital Fund for the implementation of the second Development Plan. We feel it important to express our perplexities concerning the ways in which this sum is to be employed, since we consider that priority should be given to staff development activities.

While we appreciate the management's good intentions, we feel that investments in staff training, including that of the middle and higher grades, should be directed to development of the competences the Organization needs, planned with respect to both time and volume, and above all rigorously evaluated in terms of the results achieved. The definition of a single credit line for staff training would have been desirable, rather than the piecemeal approach proposed, since this would make it easier to understand the auditing of the employment of these funds.

We also hope that the portion of the funds assigned to the restructuring of buildings will also be employed for improving safety at work, undertaking an ergonomic assessment of the offices and a more rational distribution of spaces, and improving the accommodation services for course participants.

The transformations now taking place within modern organizations presuppose a new managerial pattern marked by a transition from the hierarchical style to the conferment of greater responsibility on officials at various levels, starting with dialogue and the active participation of the staff.

In keeping with the example set by our parent organization, therefore, it is our intention to establish collective bargaining mechanisms that should not be based on relations expressed in terms of power, but on continuous dialogue and concerted action. Relations between the management and the Staff Union Committee, while characterized by an atmosphere of reciprocal respect, do not always lead to concrete results. It would be preferable to envisage "cascade" mechanisms for delegation of the decision-making power so as to facilitate the speedy solution of a number of pending questions, such as how the time allocated for union activities should be employed.

We have for some time been perceiving unmistakable signs of discontent among our colleagues. It is with very great interest, therefore, that we have noted the initiative promoted by the FICSA in the United Nations organizations whereby a survey is being made of working conditions and management styles by means of a questionnaire that has been distributed to every member of staff. We shall be publishing the results of this survey and will submit them to the management with a view to agreeing on any measures that may prove appropriate. We can already state that one reason for such discontent stems from an increase in camouflaged bureaucracy generated by unstructured and poorly performing computerized procedures.

Madam Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen,

May we, in concluding, be permitted to reassert the willingness of the Union to participate in a constructive manner through dialogue and concerted action in the efforts needed to build up a Centre of Excellence. We are certain you will agree that the subject of the development of human resources is not only a priority requirement for an organization such as ours, but also at all levels of the United Nations system.

We believe that the Centre, thanks to its first Development Plan, has achieved significant goals. We also think that even more ambitious targets can be reached through the second Development Plan.

Yet, we are equally convinced that the staff must be one of the actors in this evolution. Not as a second lead, but as a true partner endowed with responsibility, committed and sensitive to the vast changes sweeping through the system as a whole. This can only be achieved if the management includes all our claims with regard to the management and development of human resources within the second Development Plan.

Lastly, we wish to take this opportunity of saying farewell to the Director of the Training Department, Mr. Geiser, who is leaving the Centre and has been one of the actors in the process of renovation of this Organization.

Thank you for your attention.

---

Annex A

The Centre's staff at 1 November 1997

 

These tables do not include officials on secondment or on loan to other organizations, nor those on special leave.

---

1. GB.222/10/31, para. 46.

2. Appended to GB.270/PFA/4/1.

---

For further information, please contact the Official Relations Branch at Tel: +41.22.799.7732, Fax: +41.22.799.8944 or by e-mail: RELOFF@ilo.org

International Labour Conference: [ Home ]