RESTRICTED  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/BFA/76 
11 March 2005 
 (05-1033) 
Committee on Budget, Finance and Administration  
  
 
 
REPORT OF THE MEETINGS HELD ON 29 OCTOBER, 11, 22, 29 AND 30 NOVEMBER  
AND 1 AND 3 DECEMBER 2004
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1. The WTO Committee on Budget, Finance and Admini stration met formally and informally on 
29 October, 11, 22, 29 and 30  November and 1 and 3 December 2004 under the chairmanship of 
Ambassador Henrik Rée Iversen from Denmark.  The terms of reference and composition of the 
Committee are set out in document WT/L/44/Rev.1.  The Agenda contained in document WTO/AIR/2420, was adopted. 
I. FINANCIAL MATTERS: DIRECTOR-GENERAL'S BUDGETARY AND 
FINANCIAL REPORT FOR 2003 AND REPO RT OF THE EXTERNAL AUDITOR 
THEREON; DIVISIONAL REPORTING ON OBJECTIVES AND EXPENDITURES FOR 2003 AND REPORT ON EXTR A-BUDGETARY FUNDS FOR 2003 
2. A member of the Secretariat presented: (i) the Director-General's Budgetary and Financial 
Report for 2003 and Report of the External Aud itor thereon (WT/BFA/W/114), (ii) the Divisional 
Reporting on Objectives and Expenditure in 2003 (WT/BFA/W/115) and (iii) Report on Extra-
Budgetary Funds for 2003 (WT/BF A/W/116).  He highlighted the accumulated deficit in the Surplus 
Account of CHF 6.6 million which was covered by a transfer from the Working Capital Fund, in 
accordance with Financial Regulation 26, paragraph 4.  With regard to the budgetary situation of the 
WTO Secretariat at the end of 2003, there w as an under-spending on personnel-related costs 
amounting to CHF 0.2 million, and budgetary savings  totalling CHF 1.3 million on administrative and 
other costs, leading to an overall budgetary surplus of CHF 1.5 million. 
3. With regard to the Appellate Body and its S ecretariat, there was an overall budgetary deficit 
of CHF 0.7 million.  The situation was due to th e fact that the Appellate Body Operating Fund 
(ABOF) had not been replenished for 2003, which r esulted in a deficit at the end of the year.  The 
Secretariat recalled that the Committee agreed in Ap ril 2004 to cover the deficit by an extra-ordinary 
expenditure under the 2003 budget af ter having received information that the deficit could be 
accommodated in the overall expend iture of the Organization. 
4. With regard to the ABOF, the deficit of CHF 0.8 million at the end of 2003 was charged to 
the regular budget as an extra-ordinary expenditu re, in accordance with the recommendation of the 
Committee as set out in document WT/BFA/W/110. 
5. Further, the Secretariat drew Members' attention to the comments and recommendations in 
the report of the External Auditor regarding (i) th e application of WTO Financial Regulation 44 with 
regard to closing the outstanding situation relating to  taxes, (ii) the examination of possibilities for 
either writing off or collecting the outstanding cont ributions for the former Yugoslavia for the years 
1991 and 1992, and (iii) the establishment of the writ ten procedures for the maintenance of accounts 
in the existing IT accounting system. 
                                                     
 
1  This report should be read in conjunction with document WT/BFA/75, which contained the 
recommendations to this report, and was approved by the Genera l Council on 13 December 2004. WT/BFA/76 
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6. The Secretariat also indicated that document WT/BFA/W/115 provided, on a divisional basis, 
information regarding allocations  and expenditures, as well as an assessment of the attainment of 
objectives.  The information provided a tool for both Members and the Secretariat to assess 
performance, and for Members to provide input and advice with regard to priorities and activities on a 
divisional basis. 
7. With regard to the Extra-budgetary funds, the report WT/BFA/W/116 provided detailed 
information on all extra-budgetary funds in the WTO,  both in aggregated and on a fund-by-fund basis. 
8. A Member noted that, in some Divisions, fu nds for Temporary Assistance were overspent 
while, in others, they were under spent.  The Secr etariat clarified that variations in expenditure 
relating to different items within the Division were  accepted provided that the total funds relating to 
staff resources in a Division were not over-spent.  
9. See recommendations I, paragraphs  1and 2 of document WT/BFA/75. 
II. TARGET AMOUNT FOR THE DOHA DEVELOPMENT AGENDA GLOBAL 
TRUST FUND (DDAGFT) 
10. A member of the Secretariat presented document CRP(04)25 which provided the estimated 
resources required in 2005 for the implementation of the WTO Technical Assistance and Training 
Plan.   The implementation of the DDAGTF in 200 5 was set at CHF 24 million over and above the 
regular budget funds available for technical co-ope ration and training.  He drew the attention of 
Members to the fact that there still remained one l ast outstanding issue representing an envelope of 
approximately CHF 0.3 million to be resolved.  Further, on the assumption that the outstanding contributions pledged for 2004 were  received before the year end, it was anticipated that the 
DDAGTF would show a balance of approximate ly CHF 8 million on 31 December 2004.  The 
balance would then exceed the 25 per cent of th e 2005 target amount and would thus allow the 
Secretariat to start implementing the 2005 Plan.  The pledges already registered for 2005 amounted to CHF 2.5 million. 
11. At the request of a Member, the Chairman of the CTD, Ambassador Trevor Clarke clarified 
that considerable progress had been made in th e debate on the outstanding issue concerning textiles 
and clothing.  It was hoped that the outstanding issue would be solved in the near future.  He then 
referred to the amended draft recommendation on th e DDAGTF and indicated that it represented the 
position of the CTD on the matter. 
12. See Recommendation V, paragraph 6 of document WT/BFA/75. 
III. 2005 REVISED BUDGET ESTIMATES AND MID-TERM REVIEW 
A. 
WTO SECRETARIAT AND THE APP ELLATE BODY AND ITS SECRETARIAT  
13. A Deputy Director-General introduced th e 2005 Revised Budget Estimates, document 
WT/BFA/SPEC/118.  He highlighted that the current exercise of mid-term review of a biennium was 
a new experience and consisted of two main elem ents, namely (i) the budgetary performance report 
and (ii) the proposals for a revision to the original 2005 budget which had been approved by the 
Members in 2003.  He noted that total estimated expenditure for the WTO and the Appellate Body 
Secretariats for 2004 was foreseen at CHF 160,910, 240 which represented 99.46 of the total approved 
appropriation.  With regard to the 2005 proposed  revised budget estimates, he pointed out that the 
proposed increase for the WTO Secretariat and the A ppellate Body and its Secretariat amounted to 
1.99 per cent over the original approved budget.  The increase consisted mainly of: (i) statutory 
adjustments in salary, pension and common staff cost s and (ii) other adjustments with regard to the 
WTO staff training programme, and the security and safety programme.  He also drew the attention of  WT/BFA/76 
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Members to information regarding the efficiency measures undertaken to contain costs which formed 
part of the budget revision document . 
14. Members welcomed the inclusion of information on cost containment and efficiency 
measures.  It was recognized that  the first revision of a biennium would inevitably be a learning 
process.  Some Members, however, questioned whet her all of the proposed revisions fell under the 
guidelines for the biennial process.  They pointed out that a revision should be based on unexpected 
and unavoidable changes which might occur in the time period since the biennium was originally 
approved.  One point which raised questions, for example, was the establishment of the WTO Medical 
Service, which some Members felt, in their opinion , should not normally have been included in the 
process of a budget revision.  After further discussi on, the Committee agreed that the completion of 
the transition to the WTO Medical Service should proceed.  Members showed concern over the level 
of the revised budget, especially in view of the increase already approved in the original 2005 budget 
estimates.  They stressed the need for restraint as their national res ources were limited.  In addition, as 
the July package in the General Council had narro wed the scope of the D oha Development Agenda, 
Members questioned how this would be reflected in the WTO.   
15. The Committee devoted considerable time to the discussion of safety and security in the 
WTO, reflecting the great importance both Members and the Director-General attached to this 
question.  A number of concerns were raised, incl uding the impact and implications of outsourcing 
certain aspects of the security programme, as we ll as the cost-neutrality of any change. Members 
noted the multi-year needs for both the equipment and non-equipment components of the Security 
Enhancement Programme contained in document CRP(04)22 and queried how the costs for the 
initially-proposed first year would be met.  One Member expressed the wish that recourse to the 
Working Capital Fund to meet such costs be avoided.  Some Members thought that the personnel-related issues should be considered as an internal  management question and be dealt with separately 
from the equipment and infrastructure aspects of the programme.  After further discussion, the 
Committee agreed to separate the personnel -related issues from the security programme. 
16. The Secretariat informed the Comm ittee that the exact cost of  the outsourcing of the security 
matters would be known only when the call for tenders  had been completed.  Further, the Secretariat 
indicated that it would continue discussions on an i ndividual basis with the security staff members 
concerned with a view to identifying, where possibl e, individual solutions, including the possibility of 
either internal redeployment or facilitating alte rnative employment with private agencies.  The 
Secretariat also indicated that a way might be found to utilize budgetary savings from 2004 to meet 
the initially-proposed first year costs of the Security Enhancement Project.  
17. With regard to the redeployment of resources,  the Secretariat informed Members that the 
Human Resources Management Committee (HRMC) was currently examining redeployment of 
resources in the light of the decision of the Ge neral Council in August 2004 that no work towards 
negotiations on issues of trade and investment, in teraction between trade and competition policy and 
transparency in government procurement would take place in the WTO during the Doha Round.  At 
the same time, the HRMC had examined areas where strengthening of resources would be required.  Further, the Secretariat provided document CRP(04) 27 on the possible availability for redeployment 
of 8.5 posts and indicated areas where strengthening would in all likelihood be required, especially in 
work related to dispute settlements, rules and legal affa irs.  It was stressed that the resource allocation 
exercise was an on-going exercise and the HRMC would continue to re view and assess evolving 
needs. 
18. Members of the Committee were not convinced of the necessity to reinstate funds relating to 
the vacancy factor, as had been put forward in th e 2005 revised proposals.  As a consequence, the 
amount was deleted from the amended proposed  revision which was ultimately accepted. WT/BFA/76 
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19. The Committee then undertook a detailed line-by-line examination of the 2005 revised budget 
estimates.  The Secretariat provided additional information on (i) Temporary Assistance (TA) positions that might involve multi-year needs, docum ent WT/BFA/SPEC/118/Add.1, (ii) staff training 
policy in the WTO, document WT/BFA/W/124, (iii ) Overall Budget Details 2004 to 2005 original, 
document CRP(04)20, and (iv) sta ffing questions, document CRP(04)24. 
20. The Secretariat clarified that the anticipated 2.0 per cent salary increase in the 2005 revised 
budget estimates was only indicative and that, as in th e past, any actual increase would be known only 
in January.  With regard to re-grading posts, the Se cretariat clarified that this mechanism related to 
posts whose responsibilities had increased or decrease d, and recalled the understanding that a total of 
25 posts would be allowed for re-grading each year. In addition, in the course of a year, a certain 
number of posts would be vacant due to resignation or retirement, and pending the arrival of the new 
staff, the Divisions concerned would be authorised  to call on other resources to meet the needs.   
21. Members supported efforts to increase, to th e extent possible, the use of electronic 
transmission of documents. 
22. Subsequently, after further discussions, the Secretariat distributed document CRP(04)28 on a 
proposed revision to the 2005 Budget Estimates and an Information Note highlighting in particular 
reductions in proposed allocations for the Appe llate Body Operating Fund (ABOF) and the 
contribution to the ITC. 
23. The delegate of the United Kingdom (UK) indi cated that the UK, in accepting the overall 
budget revision for 2005, noted its continued uncer tainty about the degree to which the WTO had 
adopted the rigorous approach to resource manageme nt and prioritisation which many of its Members 
have been obliged to do. 
24. See Recommendation VII, paragraphs 8 and 9 of document WT/BFA/75. 
IV. INTERNATIONAL TRADE CENTRE UNCTAD/WTO 
A. 
PERFORMANCE AGAINST BUDGET AS AT 30 SEPTEMBER  2004 
25. The Director of the Division of Programme Support of the International Trade Centre 
UNCTAD/WTO (ITC) presented the document ITC/BUD/48.  He drew the attention of Members to 
the fact that the projected overall balance at the end of the year was CHF 900,032, which represented 
97.19 per cent of the approved 2004 budget estimates.   Further, he informed Members that savings 
were made in staff costs mainly due to the difficu lties in identifying adequate candidates for the seven 
new posts approved for the biennium 2004-2005.  As  a result, the posts were filled on a temporary 
basis at a lower cost. 
26. In reply to a query on the reason for the high co st in communications, the Director explained 
that the figures given were conservative.  The ITC informed the Committee that  it had entered into an 
agreement with UNOG on communication and teleco mmunication matters in 2004 as the latter had 
agreements with various main providers.  The ex act expenditures would only be known in March 
2005 when the ITC received the invoices from UNOG. 
27. The Committee took note of the report. 
B. PROPOSED REVISED REGULAR PROGR AMME BUDGET OF THE ITC FOR 2005 
28. The Director of the Division of Programme Support of the International Trade Centre 
UNCTAD/WTO (ITC) introduced document ITC/BUD/49.  The proposed revised 2005 budget estimates consisted of two main elements (i) stat utory adjustments, and (ii) security and safety  WT/BFA/76 
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programme.  In December 2003, the United Na tions Security Coordinator (UNSECOORD) 
promulgated an integrated set of new security  standards referred to as Headquarters Minimum 
Operating Security Standards (H-MOSS).  As a first step towards compliance with the H-MOSS 
standards, a thorough security audit was conducted in  Geneva for all UN annexes including the ITC 
premises.  The conclusions of the survey were  validated both in Geneva and New York by 
independent security experts and the proposals rela ting to security are based on the conclusions 
arising from the survey.  The proposed revised 2005 budget estimates had been submitted to the 
ACABQ. 
29. Members thanked the ITC representatives for the submission of the revised 2005 budget 
estimates, and indicated their understanding of the gene ral trend in enhancement of security measures.  
Some Members asked whether it would be possible to  outsource security matters to private agencies 
and whether any study had been undertaken in this r espect.  They also questioned the status of the two 
additional security staff officers. 
30. The Director of the Division of the Programme Support explained that the question of 
outsourcing had been discussed among the Directors of Administration of the Geneva based UN 
agencies and the consensus is that  the security operatives of the host country and other governments 
are more likely to share intelligence with the UN as co mpared with a private company.  ITC therefore 
took advantage of the services provided by UNOG and had entered into a Memorandum of 
Understanding with the latter on security matters.  The four security guards (two current and two 
requested) would be provided by UNOG on a reimbursable basis representing a recurrent cost.  The UN security budget proposed the creation of a depart ment of security located in New York with an 
Under Secretary-General for Security who would be  in charge of intelligence and measures to be 
taken in the field, and training of staff in and for the field, as well as the supervision of security staff at the various duty stations.  As with other sp ecialized agencies and UN funds and programmes, ITC 
would be required to contribute to the costs of th e department.  With regard to equipment, the ITC 
would rent the metal detectors as and when required,  and the unit cost of the rest of the equipment 
would be relatively small so leasing would not be a viable option.  
31. See Recommendation IV, paragraph 5 of document WT/BFA/75. 
V. OTHER ITEMS 
A. 
ADMINISTRATIVE UP -DATES AND PROGRESS REPORTS  
32. A member of the Secretariat presented the cash  situation, the statement of outstanding 
contributions as at 31 October 2004, the progress report on instalments for countries in arrears, the 
contributions of Observer countries towards the cost  of services provided by the Secretariat, and a 
report on the scheme to facilitate the payment of pr e-1988 arrears.  As at 31 October 2004, an amount 
of CHF 119,843,910 had been received from Member s for the 2004 contributions.  Three Members, 
namely Cuba, India and the USA had made paymen ts since 31 October 2004.  The Working Capital 
Fund stood at CHF 9,065,103 as at 30 September 2004.  He drew the attention of Members to the cash 
situation as of end October, whic h would be sufficient to cover e xpenses of the Organization only for 
the month of November.  The WTO was in serious need of contributions from Members for its operation for the coming months.  Members with outstanding contributions were urged to make 
payments as soon as possible. 
33. The Secretariat also presented a progress report on human resources, document CRP(04)16 
which referred to the restructuring and realignmen t of the Human Resources Division and the function 
of the Human Resources Policy Counsellor who woul d concentrate on staff development strategies, 
learning and career management.  The Secretariat also informed Members of the E-recruitment 
project which would provide an on-line recruitment system for all types of applications and should 
begin early in 2005.  Further, the Secretariat drew the attention of the Members to the need for staff WT/BFA/76 
Page 6  
 
development and learning in the Organization.  The proposed development and learning plan would 
be presented in the context of the 2005 budget revisi on.  From January 2004 to September 2004, the 
Secretariat had advertised a total of 30 posts.   
34. The Secretariat also presented a progress report on the WTO Pension Plan.  The new transfer 
agreement with the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund would be su bmitted to the General 
Council and the United Nations General Assembly for endorsement and would take effect on 
1 January 2005.  The WTO Pension Plan Manageme nt Board had reached an agreement with its 
outsourced administrative service provider for the intr oduction of a self-service facility in 2005.  The 
service would enable Plan participants to access th eir files, obtain pension estimates and download 
forms and reports, thus having to rely less on the Secretariat. 
35. Another member of the Secretaria t presented documents CRP(04)21 and 
WT/BFA/SPEC/121.  With regard to the Doha Development Agenda Global Trust Fund (DDAGTF), 
a total of CHF 27.8 million had been pledged th us far for 2004, taking into account the pledges 
initially made for 2002 that would be cashed in 2004, the pledges for 2004 as well as the transfers received from other funds. At the end of Octobe r 2004, the total expenditures related to the 
implementation of the Technical Assistance a nd Training Plan stood at CHF 22.7 million which 
corresponded to 95% of the budgeted cost of the Pl an.  Open commitments stood at CHF 6.5 million 
as at the end of October, representing almost 30% of  total expenses.  With regard to cash flow, the 
DDAGTF showed an uncommitted balance of  CHF 3.2 million as at end October 2004. 
36. The Committee took note of the various progress reports and the comments of Members. 
B. 
ASSESSMENT OF ADDITIONAL CONTRIBUTION TO THE 2004  BUDGET AND ADVANCE TO THE 
WORKING CAPITAL FUND :  ACCESSION OF THE KINGDOM OF CAMBODIA  
37. The Chairman introduced document WT/B FA/W/122 concerning the assessment of a 
contribution on the Kingdom of Cambodia. 
38. See Recommendation II, paragraph 3 of document WT/BFA/75.  
C. ORAL REPORT OF THE CHAIRMAN ON THE WORKING GROUP ON SECURITY  
39. The Chairman gave an oral report on the meetings held by the Working Group (WG) on 
Security Matters.  The discussions centred on two main points namely (i) the outsourcing of the guards' function; the financial im plications of which were taken up in more detail in document 
WT/BFA/SPEC/118, and (ii) the physical elements re lating to security matters.  With regard to the 
outsourcing of the guards' function, the Working Group had requested the Secretariat to undertake 
exploratory talks with the persons concerned.  A decision on the physical aspects had to be taken up 
as soon as possible so that the Secretariat could in clude the financial implications in the Revised 
Budget Estimates for 2005.  The question of cons truction of a new underground car park was also 
discussed which gave rise to a number of comments on the need to optimize traffic flow to and from, 
as well as within the immediate vicinity of, the Ce ntre William Rappard (CWR).  The Chairman noted 
that Members were open to various proposals. 
40. Members were concerned about the adequacy of parking space. They questioned who would 
assume the cost of security measures surrounding the CWR.  The Swiss delegate indicated that his 
authorities were seriously studying the matter, in cluding the various possibilities of access to the 
WTO, and took note of the request for an addi tional level in the new underground car park.  
Subsequently, the Swiss delegation presented the Swiss federal report on security concerning the 
reinforcement of security measures with regard to the WTO (document CRP(04)23).  He drew 
Members' attention to the fact that a formal requ est from the WTO to the Swiss authorities on security 
enhancement was required in this context.  He s uggested the establishment of a "Management Group"  WT/BFA/76 
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to manage the security enhancement project.  Th e Group would be made up of the Director-General, 
the Chairman of the General Council, the Chairm an of the Committee of the Budget, Finance and 
Administration, and the Swiss authorities.  The Members, the Secretariat, and the Swiss authorities would thus have a forum for finding quick solutions to on-going questions.  For the sake of transparency, the Committee would receive progress reports from the Management Group. 
41. Members considered it important to send out a cl ear signal on the need to ensure safety and 
security for all in the WTO and welcomed the fo rmation of a Management Group in this respect. 
42. See Recommendation VII, paragraph 8 of document WT/BFA/75. 
D. 
LETTER FROM THE CHAIRMAN OF THE APPELLATE BODY  
43. The Chairman recalled the discussions held in the previous meetings of the Committee in 
2004 on the letter from the former Chairman of the Appellate Body (WT/BFA/W/109) with regard to 
a possible adjustment of compensation provided to A ppellate members.  He also referred to document  
WT/BFA/W/118 prepared by the Secretariat and whic h had been discussed in the meeting of 28 June 
2004.  Further, he indicated that he had had contact with the current Chairman of the Appellate Body on the matter and had the feeling that the Appella te Body members considered the present daily 
allowances were quite low in comparison with t hose offered by other institutions.  Taking into 
account the professional requirements for Appellate Body  members, it might be difficult in the future 
to engage persons of the needed calibre if the c onditions of service were not reviewed.  The Chairman 
suggested focusing the discussion on an increas e in the amount of the daily allowance. 
44. Some Delegates considered that there could be reasonable grounds for focusing primarily on 
the level of the daily allowance, while others were of the opinion that an adjustment to the retainer 
fee, administrative allowance and daily fee would be a more reasonable approach.  
45. Subsequently, the Secretariat distributed docum ent CRP(04)26.  After further discussion, it 
was considered that adjustments should be made to the three elements mentioned above.  It was noted 
that the exercise would be considered to be a one -time adjustment and that its implementation would 
be effective 1 January 2005. 
46. See Recommendation VI, paragraph 7 of document WT/BFA/75. 
E. 
ADJUSTMENT TO WTO DEPENDENCY ALLOWANCES  
47. A member of the Secretariat presented document WT/BFA/W/125 and highlighted that the 
purpose of the exercise was to arrive at a mechanis m that would allow the Secretariat to implement 
dependency allowance adjustments more smoothly in the future rather than to make retro-active 
adjustment at the beginning of the year as in th e past.  The proposal would, therefore, entail the 
following: (i) incorporating the methodology which had been consistently used into the Staff 
Regulations, (ii) reporting the results of the implementation based on the methodology to the 
Committee and subsequently to the General Council.  S hould there be a desire in the future to change 
the methodology, it would be presented to the Co mmittee for recommendation to the General Council. 
48. In reply to a query, the Secretariat clarifie d that contrary to the United Nations common 
system which had two categories of staff, Professional and General Service, the WTO had only a 
unified category of staff, and as the WTO was b ased in Geneva, its adjustment of dependency 
allowances resembled more that of the UN General Service category.  As requested by a Member, the 
Secretariat indicated that the annual dependency allowances would be reported to the Committee and to the General Council. WT/BFA/76 
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49. One Member suggested that the incorporation of  the adjustment should be in the Staff Rules 
rather than the Staff Regulations as the adjustment w as a matter of detail rather than a new policy.  He 
also indicated that, from the accountability stand point, the adjustment should not be entirely 
automatic.  The Director-General could be authoriz ed to calculate and implement the adjustment on a 
provisional basis, subject to subseque nt approval of the General Council. 
50. Subsequently, the Secretariat prepared and distributed the document WT/BFA/W/125.Rev.1 
taking into account of the comments of the Members. 
51. See Recommendation III, paragraph 4 of document WT/BFA/75. 
F. 
MONITORING TEMPORARY ASSISTANCE  
52. A member of the Secretariat presented document WT/BFA/W/123 explaining that the 
objective of the exercise was to return to a pos ition where Temporary Assistance (TA) funds were 
used for the purpose for which they were intended.  He also drew the attention of Members to the 
proposals set out in the document to reduce the number of staff funded from TA on a long-term basis and other measures which could limit TA expenditure. 
53. Members fully agreed that there was a need to monitor and cont rol TA.  In this respect, the 
Members expressed the need for a frank discussion with  the Secretariat.  They were concerned that 
the consolidation of TA posts would open up an a lternative avenue for the establishment of permanent 
posts.  In addition, they felt that the consolid ation of TA posts should not distort the normal 
recruitment process.  With regard to paragraph 3(c)  they questioned the crite ria to be used by the 
Deputy Director-General for approval of a new TA c ontract of more than three months' duration, or 
any extension of a TA contract over three months. 
54. One Member requested that a quarterly repo rt on TA expenditure be provided to the 
Committee.  Another Member indicated the need for further information on the results of the 
Resource Allocation Exercise that had been undertaken  by the Secretariat earlier in the year.  One 
Member indicated that the proposed actions re ferred to in paragraph 3(c) of document 
WT/BFA/W/123 to monitor and contro l TA were insufficient to address the concerns of the Members; 
it did not provide sufficient tools for control.  Furt her, the Member pointed out that the consolidation 
of TA posts would have gradual l ong-term financial implic ations and that more effective measures to 
control TA were necessary.  In addition, it was felt that the use of TA funds for any contract extending 
beyond 11 months of continuous service s hould be examined in the Committee. 
55. The Secretariat explained that the current situ ation had developed over a number of years and 
for various reasons and, as such, could not be reso lved overnight.  Nevertheless, it was felt that the 
measures outlined would, in time, lead to a mo re rational use of resour ces and would permit the 
Committee to monitor the use of TA funds more closely. 
56. In addition, a competitive recruitment procedure w ould be used to fill consolidated TA posts.  
A mechanism would be developed to have a gr eater control on utilization of overtime and the 
application of a mandatory policy for taking a certa in amount of overtime as compensatory time-off.  
The criteria for the approval of a TA contract of mo re than three months' duration or extension of TA 
contracts over three months would have  to be developed.  With regard  to the number of regular posts, 
the Secretariat referred to document WT/BFA/SPEC/ 118 which showed the increase in the number of 
posts since 1995 as well as the 2004 regular staff positions. 
57. Subsequently, the Secretariat, taking into acc ount the comments of Members, prepared and 
distributed documents WT/BFA/W/123/Rev.1 and 2.  WT/BFA/76 
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58. The Committee endorsed the measures outlined  in document WT/BFA/W/123/Rev.2.  See 
Recommendation VII, paragraph 8 pf document WT/BFA/75. 
G. INTERIM AUDIT OF FIRST FINANCIAL PERIOD OF A BIENNIUM  
59. A member of the Secretariat presented document WT/BFA/W/121 and recalled the decision 
of the General Council in 2003 to introduce, as from the period 2004-2005, biennial budgeting in the 
WTO.  Accordingly, an interim audit would be made after the first year of the biennium.  He drew the 
attention of the Members to the WTO Revised Fina ncial Rules and Regulations on the subject.  In 
order to assure maximum transparency in the account s of the WTO, it was suggested that the accounts 
for the first year would be audited and the results of the audit, along with any comments the auditors 
might make, would be communicated to the Committee,  which would take note of the information.  
At the end of the biennium, the second year's acco unts would be audited in the same manner and the 
results of the two audits would then be consolidated and a full report of the auditors on the biennium, 
in the form which had been presented on an annual b asis, would be submitted to the Committee, with 
a view to the formulation of recommendation to the General Council. 
60. Some Members expressed the wish that th ere should be no loss of transparency and 
information in the interim audit report. 
61. The Committee accepted the a pproach to the interim audit as outlined in document 
WT/BFA/W/121 and noted that the Secretariat w ould seek feedback from Members on the level of 
information provided. 
H. TENTATIVE BUDGET COMMITTEE WORKPLAN FOR 2005 
62. The Chairman referred to document CRP(04) 19 which proposed a list of items to be 
discussed in 2005.  He indicated that if in the cour se of the year more meetings were required, or 
additional issues necessitated discussion or review, th ey would be added to the proposed schedule.  
The work plan would be reviewed again early next year with proposed dates. 
 
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