MANAGEMENT
MANAGEMENT
This chapter provides an overview of the efforts of UN Human
Rights to ensure its decision-making, planning, management
and evaluation processes operate at a high standard.
It includes highlights of results achieved under UN Human
Rights’ nine Organizational Effectiveness Action Plans (OEAPs).
Decision-making
and accountability
framework
(PAG), chaired by Directors on a rotational basis, is an additional forum for senior
managers to exchange views. It provides
recommendations to the SMT on critical
policy- and management-related matters.
EXTERNAL TO UN HUMAN RIGHTS
In 2018, the SMT met on nine occasions
and, taking advice from the PAG, approved
a number of new standard operating procedures (SOP) (i.e. for donor relations
and resource mobilization, classified and
declassified documents) and adopted
Office-wide engagement with non-State
armed groups and de facto authorities
and on reasonable accommodation for
staff with disabilities. The SMT also discussed the position of UN Human Rights
on a number of human rights issues, including climate change and migration,
and examined the work of internal task
forces established in October by the High
Commissioner on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights (ESCR), on the SDGs and
on prevention. These task forces identified gaps in capacity and information
management, and developed recommendations for adjustments to programme
implementation. Next steps are underway to integrate the arising activities into
the 2018-2021 OHCHR Management Plan
(OMP). In cooperation with the PBRB, the
SMT also adopted the UN Human Rights
field deployment strategy and analysed
budget allocations to the human rights
mechanisms. Overall, the SMT provided
the High Commissioner with a clear overview of critical operations and ensured a
more strategic positioning of UN Human
Rights within the UN System and with
Member States and other partners.
Mandated by General Assembly resolution
48/141, UN Human Rights is a department
of the United Nations Secretariat. It does
not have its own executive board but is
directly accountable to the SecretaryGeneral and the General Assembly.
The High Commissioner for Human Rights
is the United Nations principal independent human rights official being appointed
by the UN General Assembly for a fixed
term of four years, with the possibility
of one renewal for another fixed term of
four years.
UN Human Rights is led by the High
Commissioner for Human Rights, with the
support of the Deputy High Commissioner
and the Assistant Secretary-General for
Human Rights, who is based in New York.
INTERNAL TO UN HUMAN RIGHTS
Office-wide decision-making takes place
through the Senior Management Team
(SMT) chaired by the High Commissioner
and the Programme and Budget Review
Board (PBRB) chaired by the Deputy High
Commissioner. These bodies meet regularly to make recommendations to the
High Commissioner on policies, operating procedures, programme and resource
allocations. The Policy Advisory Group
56 UN HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2018
In the course of 2018, through its monthly
and virtual meetings, the PBRB reviewed
more than 55 fundraising/fund allocation
proposals submitted by Divisions, for
programme activities under their annual
workplans, to ensure that those proposals were in line with the Office’s overall
strategic direction. Exercising its financial and income monitoring functions, the
PBRB ensured fiscal responsibility in the
allocation and management of human
and financial resources under the Office’s
programme. Results of independent
evaluations and programme reviews, and
thematic analyses of implementation of
planned activities, were regularly presented to the PBRB to inform its strategic and
programmatic decision-making.
The PAG met 28 times throughout the year
on a variety of thematic issues, including
digital governance, the SDGs, climate
change, emergency response, disability, LGBTI persons and the human rights
treaty bodies. The group also received
country/regional briefings on Afghanistan,
Asia, Europe, the Pacific and Somalia;
and discussed proposed strategic partnerships with the African Union and the
European Union, and strengthened engagement with the business sector. These
discussions ensured that proposals were
informed by perspectives from across the
office before being presented to the SMT.
In 2018, the terms of reference of the PAG
were revised to improve its effectiveness
and responsiveness. A more management-oriented “extended” PAG was also
introduced to provide a regular management and organizational matters forum
for managers of four or more staff. The extended PAG considered matters related to
the Secretary-General‘s reforms; gender
parity; the Office Dignity@Work policy;
branding, and reasonable accommodation for staff with disabilities. It helped
strengthen the capacity of managers to
apply coherently both Secretariat-wide
and Office-specific policies which in turn
enhanced organizational effectiveness.
Results-Based
Management
PLANNING
UN Human Rights work is guided by the
OHCHR Management Plan (OMP) that
is firmly situated under the SecretaryGeneral’s strategic framework 2018-2019.
It integrates the mandates given to UN
Human Rights by United Nations intergovernmental bodies and engages the High
Commissioner’s overarching mandate
to promote and protect all human rights
for all.
In 2018, UN Human Rights transitioned
into its new OMP 2018-2021, which was
launched in June with printed versions
available in all six UN languages. A longer version which includes more detailed
results, the programmes of all field presences in all regions, and key targets is
available online in English.
The OMP positions the work of UN Human
Rights under its ongoing thematic “Pillars”:
Support for the international human rights
mechanisms; Mainstreaming human rights
within development and within peace
and security efforts; and Advancement
of the core human rights principles of
non-discrimination, accountability and
participation. To maintain relevance in a
changing world, UN Human Rights also introduced “Shifts” under the Pillars in order
to strengthen its work to prevent conflict,
violence and insecurity; help expand civic
space; broaden the global constituency for
human rights; and further explore emerging human rights concerns (frontier issues)
in the context of climate change, corruption, inequalities, people on the move and
UN HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2018 57
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