Geneva hosted last 12 June the third meeting of the Management and Budget Group (MBG) of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), which basically worked to revise decisions made in the scope of the Council working groups on Financial Regulations (FINREGS) and Human Resources.
In the scope of FINREGS the proposal to set up an independent Audit Committee was discussed and it was agreed that the idea requires more analysis of issues such as how the committee will work and its added value for the Union.
Regarding human resources management matters, agreement was reached that the way to apply an ethics policy in the ITU should be based on the experience of other United Nations specialised agencies. This information will be gathered and presented to the 2009 session of the ITU Council scheduled for October 2009 in Geneva.
ITU Secretary General (SG) Hamadoun Touré presented the proposed strategy plan, of which various initiatives stand out, including the creation of a new Council working group devoted to producing the strategy and financial plan, and revision of the Union's basic instruments. Also examined was Russia's proposal, whereby given the proliferation of high level sessions on the occasion of ITU meetings, same should be concentrated in the World Telecommunications Policy Forum, which should hence take place every two years during the Telecom Fair. The SG indicated his intention for the high level sessions to continue, basically due to the visibility and level of debate they bring to the organisation. As no conclusion was reached on the subject, this proposal will be considered again at the 2009 Council session.
The next meeting will be held in early 2010 before that year's Council session.
