Statement of the Group of 77 and China
delivered by H.E. Ms. Carla María Rodriguez Mancia,
Permanent Representative of Guatemala
at the fifty-third reconvened session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs
Vienna, 2 December 2010
Mr. Chairman,
1. I have the honour to speak on behalf of the Group of 77 and China and I am
pleased to convey to you our pleasure in seeing you presiding over the 53rd reconvened
session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND). I also take this opportunity
to thank the Secretariat for the preparation of this resumed session.
2. The Group takes note of the outcome of the reconvened expert group meeting on data collection, held on 11-13 October 2010, and stresses the importance of enhancing the national capacities by providing appropriate technical assistance, financial resources, and equipment to overcome the difficulties faced by Member States in collecting and providing drug statistics and data in order to respond efficiently to the comprehensive Annual Report Questionnaires.
3. The Group attaches great importance to the follow up of the Annual Report questionnaires and its revision, as recommended by the expert group, to overcome and to take into account any new challenges.
4. The Group would like to commend the efforts undertaken by Mr. Ulises Canchola from Mexico, chair of the Expert Group in building consensus and finalizing the new version of the questionnaires.
5. The Group of 77 and China would like to remind the important decisions taken by CND and CCPCJ to establish an intergovernmental working group to improve the governance and financial situation of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime till half of 2011 and stresses the very positive role played by the group under the leadership of the co-chairs H.E. Mme Norma Goicochea Estenoz (Cuba) and Mr. Ignacio Baylina Ruíz (Spain) during the past two years.
6. The Group, persistently concerned about the financial situation of UNODC and the gaps in its governance continues to expect substantive and concrete recommendations on the improvement in these issues. To this regard, the Group considers that the Commission should receive a detailed substantive report from the FinGov on its activities, which includes such recommendations. Moreover, the Group looks forward to the continuation of the work of FinGov especially by making it a permanent body.
7. The Group believes that FinGov constitutes an appropriate forum for a fruitful dialogue on programme development of the office and its reviewing process, and acknowledges to this regard the achievements of the open-ended informal informals convened within that organ to implement the preparation and development of thematic and regional programmes. In addition, the Group reiterates the importance of FinGov for the improvement of the financial situation of UNODC to ensure sustainable and predictable resources required for the fulfillment of its mandate.
8. The Group expresses its appreciation to the Secretariat for its support for the work of FinGov and in particular for the preparation of the documentation.
