Special Report No 15/2009#EU assistance implemented through United Nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring
Date: 2009-10-22
Institutions: European Court of Auditors
Subjects: EU financing, UNO, financing of aid, international aid, management audit, transparency in decision-making, use of aid

EUropEan 
coUrt of aUditors

4
3
8
0
-
1
3
8
1
n
s
s

i

9
0
0
2

5
1
o
n

t
r
o
p
e
r

l

a
i
c
e
p
s

EU assistancE implEmEntEd 
throUgh UnitEd nations 
organisations: dEcision-
making and monitoring

En

 
 
 
 
special r eport no 15 

 2009

EU assistancE 
implEmEntEd throUgh 
UnitEd  nations 
organisations: 
dEcision-making and 
monitoring

(pursuant to article 248(4), second subparagraph, Ec )

EUropEan coUrt of a Uditors

EUropEan coUrt of a Uditors 
12, rue alcide d e g asperi
1615 luxembourg
lUXEmBoUrg

tel.: +352 4398-1
fax: +352 4398-46410
E-mail: euraud@eca.europa.eu
internet: http://www.eca.europa.eu

special r eport no 15 

 2009

a great deal of additional information on the European Union is available on the internet.

it can be accessed through the Europa server (http://europa.eu).

cataloguing data can be found at the end of this publication

luxembourg : office for publications of the European Union, 2009

isBn 978-92-9207-546-0

doi:10.2865/40036

© European communities, 2009

reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged.

Printed in Luxembourg

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

contEnts

3

Paragraph

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

I-VI 

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1-10 

1-7 

CHAPTER 1 - INTRODUCTION

SECTION 1.1 - CONTEXT OF THE AUDIT

8-10 

SECTION 1.2 - REGULATORY  FRAMEWORK

11-13 

CHAPTER 2 - AUDIT SCOPE AND APPROACH

14-46 

CHAPTER 3 - OBSERVATIONS

14-28 
15-25 
26-28 

29-46 
31-32 
33-36 
37-39 
40-44 
45-46 

SECTION 3.1 - DECISIONS  TO IMPLEMENT AID THROUGH THE UN
 stratEgic rEQUirEmEnts insUfficiEntl Y translatEd into practicE
formal comparison With altErnatiVE aid dEliVEr Y mEchanisms shoUld BE sY stEmatic

SECTION 3.2 - SYSTEMS  FOR MONITORING  AND AUDITING AID DELIVERED THROUGH THE UN
thE foUr pillar anal Ysis doEs not coVEr sY stEms rElating  to sUBcontractEd actiVitiEs
Un rEports proVidE insUfficiEnt information on rEsUlt
commission fiEld monitoring doEs not compEnsatE for lack of information in Un rEport
commission VErifications QUEstionEd BY Un panEl of a Uditors
coUrt of a Uditors EncoUntErs oBstaclEs carr Ying oUt financial chEcks

s

s

47-49 

CHAPTER 4 - CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

REPLY OF THE COMMISSION

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

list of aBBrEViations

5

CIDA: c anadian i nternational d evelopment agency

CRIS: common rElEX i nformation system

DFID: d epartment for i nternational d evelopment

EAMR: External assistance management report

ECA: European c ourt of auditors

ECHO: directorate- general for humanitarian a id

EU: European Union

EuropeAid: Europea id cooperation o ffice

FAFA: financial and administrative framework agreement

FAO: food and agriculture organisation

IFAD: i nternational fund for agricultural d evelopment

ILO: i nternational labour organisation

NGO: non-governmental organisation

ROM: r esults-oriented monitoring

UN: United nations

UNDP: United nations d evelopment programme

UNFPA: United nations p opulation fund

UNHCR: United nations h igh commissioner for r efugees

UNICEF: United nations children’s f und

UNOPS: United nations o ffice for project s ervices

UNRWA: United nations r elief and Works agency

WFP: World f ood programme

WHO: World health organisation

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

6

EXEcUtiVE 
sUmmar Y

I.
E U   f u n d s   m a n a g e d   b y   E u r o p ea i d   a n d 
E c h o   w h i c h   w e r e   c h a n n e l l e d   t h r o u g h 
Un organisations increased from 500 mil-
lion euro in  2 002  to over 1 billion  euro in 
2008. the increase can be explained par t -
l y   b y   s t r e a m l i n e d   p r o c e d u r e s   a n d   p a r t l y 
b y   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n’s   r e s p o n s e   t o   m a j o r 
c r i s e s   i n   a fg h a n i s t a n ,   i r a q,   t h e   o c c u p i e d 
palestinian territor y and sudan which was 
l a r g e l y   c h a n n e l l e d   t h r o u g h   t h e   Un.   t h e 
d e c e m b e r   2 0 0 5   E u r o p e a n   c o n s e n s u s   o n 
d e v e l o p m e n t   a n d   t h e   m a r c h   2 0 0 5   pa r i s 
d e c l a r a t i o n   o n   a i d   E f fe c t i ve n e s s   c o m m i t 
t h e   E U   t o   c o o r d i n a t e   a n d   h a r m o n i s e   a i d 
i n   c l o s e   c o o p e r a t i o n   w i t h   i n t e r n a t i o n a l 
organ isat ion s  suc h  as  th e  Un ite d  n at ion s 
( see paragraph s 1 to 1 0) .

II.
t h e   a u d i t   a d d r e s s e d   t h e   f o l l o w i n g   t w o 
quest ion s (se e paragraphs  1 1  to 1 3) :

( a)  d o e s   t h e   p r o c e s s   fo r   d e c i d i n g   t o   i m -
p l e m e n t   a i d   t h r o u g h   t h e   Un  d e m o n-
s t r a t e   t h a t   t h i s   i s   t h e   m o s t   e f f i c i e n t 
an d effec tive option?

( b)  d o   m o n i to r i n g   a r ra n g e m e nt s   p rov i d e 
ass uran ce on th e robust nes s o f f in an-
c i a l   p r o c e d u r e s   a n d   o n   t h e   a c h i e v e -
ment of  obj ec tives? 

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

77

EXEcUtiVE   
sUmmar Y

V.
t h e   U n   p a n e l   o f   E x t e r n a l   a u d i t o r s   h a s 
contin ually  questioned  the   commiss ion’s 
r i g h t   t o   c a r r y   o u t   f i n a n c i a l   c h e c k s.   i t   a r -
g u e s   t h a t   i t s   o w n   a u d i t   a r r a n g e m e n t s 
a r e   s u f f i c i e n t ,   b u t   d o e s   n o t   p r o v i d e   t h e 
c o m m i s s i o n   w i t h   s a t i s f a c t o r y   e v i d e n c e 
th at   fin anc ial  control  procedures   wo r k   i n 
p r a c t i c e .   t h e   c o u r t   o f   a u d i t o r s   h a s   a l s o 
e n co u n te re d   d i f f i c u l t i e s   a c c e s s i n g   i n fo r -
m a t i o n   f ro m   Un  o rg a n i s a t i o n s   w h e n   c a r -
r ying out its annual financial audit of the 
c o m m i s s i o n’s   a c c o u n t s   ( s e e   p a r a g r a p h s 
4 0 to 46 ).

VI.
on   t h e   b a s i s   o f   t h e s e   o b s e r v a t i o n s ,   t h e 
c o u r t   m a k e s   r e c o m m e n d a t i o n s   t o   i m-
p r o v e   d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g   p r o c e d u r e s   a n d 
t o   f o c u s   o n   t h e   a c h i e v e m e n t   o f   r e s u l t s 
which  could h elp the commiss ion  to pro -
vide  more  ef fic ient  and  effec tive   aid  (s ee 
paragraph s 48  to 49 ).

III.
t h e   s t r a t e g i c   a n d   l e g a l   r e q u i r e m e n t s 
t o   s e l e c t   p a r t n e r s   i n   a n   o b j e c t i v e   a n d 
t r a n s p a re n t   w a y   a re   i n s u f f i c i e n t l y   t r a n s-
l a t e d   i n t o   p r a c t i c a l   c r i t e r i a   t o   s u p p o r t 
d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g.   d e s p i te   b e i n g   s at i s f i e d 
w i t h   i t s   c h o i c e   o f   p a r t n e r,   t h e   c o m m i s-
s i o n   d o e s   n o t   co nv i n c i n g l y   d e m o n s t rate, 
before deciding to wor k with a Un organ-
i s a t i o n ,   t h a t   i t   h a s   a s s e s s e d   w h e t h e r   t h e 
advantages offset any disadvantages. the 
c h o i ce   o f   a   U n   o rg a n i s a t i o n   i s   n o t   b a s e d 
on  suf ficient evidence that this approa c h 
is more  effic ient  and effec tive th an  ot he r 
ways of deliver ing aid. neither Europea id 
n o r   Ec h o  s y s t e m a t i c a l l y   c a r r i e s   o u t   fo r -
m a l   a p p ra i s a l s   o f   a l te r n at i ve   a i d   d e l i ve r y 
m e c h a n i s m s   i n   o r d e r   t o   c o m p e n s a t e   f o r 
t h e   a b s e n c e   o f   c o m p e t i t i v e   t e n d e r i n g 
(see  paragra phs  14  to  28 ).

IV.
t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   v e r i f i e s   t h e   r o b u s t n e s s 
of financial management systems through 
a pr ior assessment of the control systems 
o f   i t s   Un  p a r t n e r s   ( t h e   fo u r   p i l l a r   a n a l y -
s i s ) .  t h e   co m m i s s i o n   s e e k s   c o n f i r m a t i o n 
o n   t h e   p r a c t i c a l   o p e r a t i o n   o f   f i n a n c i a l 
s y s t e m s   a n d   t h e   a c h i e v e m e n t   o f   r e s u l t s 
t h r o u g h   Un  r e p o r t s ,   i t s   o w n   f i e l d   m o n i-
toring and verification missions. however, 
the commission has not yet succeeded in 
o b t a i n i n g   f r o m   Un  r e p o r t s   a d e q u a t e   i n-
for mation on the efficienc y of implemen-
tation and the achievement of objec tives. 
the commission’s own field monitoring is 
not designe d to  comp en sate fo r  th e  lim i-
t a t i o n s   o f   Un  re p o r t s   ( s e e   p a ra gra p h s   2 9 
to 39).

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

chaptEr 1  
introdUction 

8

SEC TION 1.1 
CONTEX T OF  THE  AUDIT

1. 

2. 

 in implementing overseas aid the commission works through vari-
ous par tners including national gover nments, the pr ivate sec tor, 
ngos and international organisations such as the United nations 
(Un ). Where aid is implemented through the Un , the commission 
p r o v i d e s   f u n d i n g   f o r   a c t i v i t i e s   t o   b e   i m p l e m e n t e d   b y   a   Un  o r -
ganisation. commission decisions to channel aid through Un or -
ganisations from the Europea id co - operation o ffice (Europea id) 
a n d   f ro m   t h e   di re c t o r a t e - g e n e r a l   fo r   hu m a n i t a r i a n   a i d   ( Ec h o ) 
incre ase d as sist ance from 500 m illi on  e uro in  2 0 02  to ove r  1  bi l-
l i o n   e u r o   i n   2 0 0 8   a s   s h o w n   i n   F i g u r e   1.   t h i s   i n c r e a s e   r e f l e c t s 
t h e   co m m i s s i o n’s   s t rate gi c   co m m i t m e nt s   ( s e e   p a ra gra p h   5 ) ,   t h e 
re s p o n s e   to   m a j o r   c r i s e s   i n   afg h a n i s t a n ,   i ra q,   t h e   o cc u p i e d   pa l-
e s t i n i a n   te r r i to r y   a n d   s u d a n   ( s e e   p a ra gr a p h   6 )   a n d   s t re a m l i n e d 
pro cedu res (se e p aragrap hs  8 an d 9 ) .

 Euro pea id  is   res po nsib le   for  t he  commiss ion’s  developm ent  aid 
incl u ding   lo ng er-ter m  rehab ilitation .  i n   2 00 8  it  comm itted  a  to -
t a l   o f   8   8 9 0   m i l l i o n   e u r o   o f   w h i c h   6 7 0   m i l l i o n   e u r o   ( 8   % )   w a s 
channelled through Un organisations. commission delegations in 
bene ficiar y  co untr ies  p l ay  a  k ey   rol e  in   th e   pro ces s  for   de cid ing 
th e me chanism for imp l ement ing  a i d.

F I G U R E   1

COMMISSION OVERSEAS  A I D TH RO UGH  T H E  UN   2 0 02 – 0 8

o
r
u
e
n
o

i
l
l
i

m

1 400

1 200

1 000

800

600

400

200

0

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

EuropeAid

ECHO

S o urce:  European commission.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
 
9

 Echo is responsible for the  commission’s response to humanitar-
i a n   c r i s e s.   i t   f u n d s   a c t i v i t i e s   d e s i g n e d   t o   s a ve   a n d   p re s e r ve   l i fe 
d u r i n g   e m e rg e n c i e s   a n d   s h o r t - te r m   re h a b i l i t a t i o n   wo r k .   i t   d o e s 
not implement ac tivities direc tly, but through par tners consisting 
o f   i n t e r n a t i o n a l   o r g a n i s a t i o n s   a n d   n o n - g o ve r n m e n t a l   o r g a n i s a-
tions (ngos). in 2008 Echo committed a total of 937 million euros 
of which 404 million euros (43 %) was channelled through Un or -
ganisations. the subdelegated  author ising o fficer is responsible 
fo r   t h e   c h o i c e   o f   a i d   i m p l e m e n t a t i o n   m e c h a n i s m ,   a c t i n g   o n   t h e 
a d v i c e   o f   d e s k   o f f i c e r s   i n   B r u s s e l s   a n d   f i e l d   o f f i c e r s   l o c a t e d   i n 
bene ficiar y co unt r ies. 

1  European parliament decisions on 

the discharge for implementation 

of the EU general budget for the 

financial years 2004, 2005, 2006 and 

2007.

 the Un is funded par tly by mandator y contributions from Un mem-
ber countries based on their gross national income, and par tly by 
v o l u n t a r y   c o n t r i b u t i o n s   t o   Un  o r g a n i s a t i o n s.   t h e   co m m i s s i o n’s 
funding takes the form of voluntar y contributions and represents 
in the order of 6 % of Un resources.  the commission may contrib -
ute to multi- donor funds as one of several donors suppor ting the 
ac t io n, or it  may  b e the o nl y do nor. i t does not cont r ibute to t he 
g e n e r a l   b u d g e t   o f   Un  o rg a n i s a t i o n s   w i t h   t h e   e xc e p t i o n   o f   a   Un  
agenc y in t he  o cc u p ied pal es tinian  ter r itor y, to whic h it contr i b -
uted  66 millio n euro  in 2007.

 t h e   d e c e m b e r   2 0 0 5   E u r o p e a n   c o n s e n s u s   o n   d e v e l o p m e n t   a n d 
t h e   m a r c h   2 0 0 5   pa r i s   d e c l a r a t i o n   o n   a i d   E f f e c t i v e n e s s   c o m m i t 
the EU to coordinate and harmonise aid in close cooperation with 
i n t e r n a t i o n a l   o rg a n i s a t i o n s   s u c h   a s   t h e   U n i t e d   n a t i o n s.   i n   2 0 0 6 
and   2007  t he  co mmis sio n  mad e  over  700   separate   co nt r i but io ns 
to some 30 different Un organisations.  the main par tners and the 
amou nt s rece ived are sh own in  Fi gu re   2. 

 the ac t ivities fin anced were  s pread  over  mo re  th an 9 0 cou nt r ie s. 
t h e   f o u r   c o u n t r i e s   w h i c h   r e c e i v e d   m o s t   c o n t r i b u t i o n s   w e r e   a l l 
conflic t-affec ted (the occupied palestinian territor y, i raq, afghan-
istan a nd su dan), as s how n in Fi g ur e  3.

 t h e   E u r o p e a n   pa r l i a m e n t   i n   i t s   d i s c h a r g e   d e c i s i o n s   h a s   q u e s-
tione d why t he co mm issio n c h anne ls  fun ds  t hrou gh  t he  Un,  a nd 
e n co u ra g e d   m o re   d i re c t   m a n a g e m e nt   by   t h e   co m m i s s i o n .   i t   h a s 
expre ss ed co ncer n at the l ack  of  tran sparen c y  a nd v i sibi li t y con-
ce r n i n g   co m m i s s i o n   f u n d i n g   t h ro u g h   t h e   Un  a n d   h a s   re q u e s te d 
assu rance o n t he adeq uac y of t he  man age m ent o f t he se   f und s 1.

3. 

4. 

5. 

6. 

7. 

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
 
 
 
10

F I G U R E   2

CONTRIBUTION S TO UN  ORGAN I SATI ON S   I N   2 0 06   A N D   2 0 07

o
r
u
e
n
o

i
l
l
i

m

800

700

600

500

400

300

200

100

0

UNDP WFP

UNICEF UNRWA UNHCR

FAO

WHO

UNFPA UNOPS

ILO

IFAD

Other

EuropeAid

ECHO

S o urce:  European commission.

F I G U R E   3

CONTRIBUTION S TO UN  BY  REC I PI EN T  CO UN TRY   I N   20 0 6   A N D  2 0 07 
(MILLION EU RO)

Other, 1 082 (47 %)

Palestine, 232 (10 %)

Iraq, 222 (10 %)

Afghanistan, 171 (8 %)

Sudan, 147  (6 %)

Bangladesh, 89 (4 %)

Ukraine, 61 (3 %)

Sri Lanka, 48 (2 %)

Indonesia, 40 (2 %)

Somalia, 40 (2 %)

Myanmar, 38 (2 %)

Tanzania, 32 (1 %)

Congo, 34 (1 %)

Zimbabwe, 36 (2 %)

S o urce:  European commission.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
11

8. 

9. 

SEC TION 1.2 
REGUL ATORY FR AM E WORK

 a r t i c l e   5 3   o f   t h e   fi n a n c i a l   r e g u l a t i o n   w h i c h   c a m e   i n t o   fo r c e   i n 
2003 and was revised in 2007 sets out the conditions for wor k ing 
w i t h   i n te r n a t i o n a l   o rg a n i s a t i o n s 2.  th i s   m e t h o d   o f   i m p l e m e n t i n g 
t h e   b u d g e t   i s   c a l l e d   j o i n t   m a n a g e m e n t .   d e s p i t e   i t s   n a m e ,   t h e 
tasks related to the implementation of these funds are not jointly 
man ag ed, b u t are del egated to inter n ati on al org ani s ation s  to b e 
implemented in accordance with their own procedures 3. never the -
less,  the  treat y and the  finan cia l r eg ulation in sist that th e com-
m i s s i o n   re t a i n s   o ve r a l l   re s p o n s i b i l i t y   fo r   s o u n d   m a n a g e m e n t   o f 
the budget 4. tasks can be direc tly delegated to organisations and 
ar tic l e 43 o f t he  i mp l em ent ing rules on the  fin anc ial r eg ulation 
r e q u i r e s   t h a t   t h e   o r g a n i s a t i o n s   a n d   t h e   a c t i o n s   t o   b e   f i n a n c e d 
sha l l  be  cho sen in  an ob jec t ive an d  tran spare nt  man n er 5. 

 t h e   2 0 0 3   fi n a n c i a l   a n d   a d m i n i s t r a t i v e   fr a m e w o r k   a g r e e m e n t 
(fa fa )   t ra n s l ate s   i nto   co nt ra c t u a l   te r m s   t h e   re q u i re m e nt s   o f   t h e 
fi n a n c i a l   r e g u l a t i o n   a n d   a p p l i e s   t o   a l l   f u n d i n g   a g re e m e n t s   b e -
t w e e n   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   a n d   t h e   U n .   i t   s e t s   o u t   a   f r a m e w o r k   i n -
ten ded   to  en han ce  coo p erat ion  by   allowin g   Un  organ i sat ion s   to 
m a n a g e   co nt r i b u t i o n s   i n   a cco rd a n ce   w i t h   t h e i r   ow n   p ro ce d u re s. 
the  p ro cedu res fo r jo int  managem ent wi th  Un org an is at ion s di f-
fe r   f ro m   t h o s e   re q u i re d   fo r   a c t i o n s   i m p l e m e nte d   t h ro u g h   n g o s, 
w h i c h   g e n e ra l l y   i nvo l ve   co m p e t i t i o n   a n d   t h e   u s e   o f   co m m i s s i o n 
pro cedu res.  ar tic l e 3.1  o f t he fafa requires  all ac tions  to com ply 
w i t h   t h e   p r i n c i p l e s   o f   s o u n d   f i n a n c i a l   m a n a g e m e n t ,   i n   p a r t i c u -
lar val u e fo r m o ney  and cos t- ef fe c t iven es s.  th e fafa en courages 
m u l t i - d o n o r   a c t i o n s,   re q u i re s   Un  o rg a n i s a t i o n s   t o   p u b l i c i s e   t h e 
role of EU funding, outlines the use of subcontrac tors and defines 
t h e   f i n a n c i a l   f r a m e w o r k   a n d   p a y m e n t   p o l i c y.   i t   d e s c r i b e s   p r o -
ced ures  for  che ck ing   t hat   fu nds   are  man ag e d  prope r ly  in cludi ng 
the submission of repor ts by the U n and the right of the commis-
sion to c ar r y o ut ch ecks. 

10.  

 a contr ibution agreement is signed for each Un ac tion funded by 
the commission, describing the amount of funding, the objec tives 
of the ac tion, the ac tivities to be carried out and their timing. the 
co nt r i b u t i o n   a gre e m e nt   i n co r p o rate s   t h e   p rov i s i o n s   o f   t h e   fa fa 
re g a rd i n g   t h e   u s e   o f   t h e   U n   o rg a n i s at i o n’s   ow n   p ro ce d u re s,   v i s -
ibilit y, use of subcontrac tors, financial framework and procedures 
for c he ck ing  and rep o r ting.

2  council regulation (Ec, Euratom) 

no 1605/2002 of 25 June 2002 on  

the financial regulation applicable  

to the general budget of the 

European communities (oJ l 248, 

16.9.2002, p. 1).

3  Un organisations may manage 

commission funds in accordance 

with their own accounting, audit, 

internal control and procurement 

procedures, provided these conform 

to internationally accepted standards 

(article 53d(1) of the financial 

regulation and the preamble to the 

fafa). 

4  article 274 of the Ec treaty states 

that the commission shall implement 

the budget on its own responsibility. 

article 27 of the financial regulation 

states that budget appropriations 

shall be used in accordance with 

the principles of sound financial 

management. article 165 of the 

financial regulation states that 

the implementation of actions by 

international organisations is subject 

to scrutiny by the commission.

5  commission regulation 

(Ec, Euratom) no 2342/2002 of 

23 december 2002 laying down 

detailed rules for the implementation 

of council regulation (Ec, Euratom) 

no 1605/2002 on the financial 

regulation applicable to the general 

budget of the European communities 

(oJ l 357, 31.12.2002, p. 1).

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
 
chaptEr 2  
aUdit scopE and approach

12

11.  

 th e   p re s e nt   a u d i t   cove re d   ove r s e a s   a i d   o f   Ec h o  a n d   Eu ro p ea i d 
f u n d e d   t h ro u g h   Un  o r g a n i s a t i o n s   a n d   a d d re s s e d   t h e   fo l l o w i n g 
t wo q ue st ions:

(a)  d o es t he  p ro cess  fo r dec iding to i mple m ent  aid  th rough  th e 
Un  de mon strate  that   this  is  th e  mo st   e f fi c ie nt   a n d  e f fe c t ive 
o p tio n?

(b)   d o   m o n i t o r i n g   a r r a n g e m e n t s   p r o v i d e   a s s u r a n c e   o n   t h e   r o -
b us tn ess o f financial  p rocedures  an d on  t he  ach ie vem ent of 
o b jec t ives?

6  the sample of 52 contracts with 

a total value of 764 million euro 

represented 7 % of the total number 

of contracts (741) agreed with the Un 

in 2006 and 2007 comprising 33 % of 

their total value (2 286 million euro).

12 .  

 th e   co n s e q u e n ce   o f   we a k   p ro ce d u re s   i s   a   r i s k   o f   a   re d u c t i o n   i n 
t h e   e f f i c i e n c y   a n d   e f f e c t i v e n e s s   o f   c o m m i s s i o n   s p e n d i n g.   t h e 
secon d p hase  o f the au dit,  to be  re por ted  on  at a later  d ate, wi ll 
ass es s t he ex tent to w hich this  r i s k m ate r i alis es.

13.  

 th e au dit was  b as ed  on :

(a)  a n   a n a l y s i s   o f   d o c u m e n t a t i o n ,   i n c l u d i n g   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n’s 
m ay  200 8  evaluatio n  o f  its   coope rat io n  w i th   t he   Un  an d  re -
por ts of the commission’s i nternal audit s er vice (ias) on the 
imp l em ent atio n o f the fafa in  2 00 6,   20 0 7  a nd  20 0 9 ; 

(b) 

inter views wit h co mmis s ion an d Un staff at  the ir h ea dq uar -
te rs in Br uss els  and new  Yor k ;

(c)  o n - t h e - s p o t   v i s i t s   to   t h e   o cc u p i e d   pa l e s t i n i a n   te r r i to r y   a n d 
su d a n   i n   o rd e r   t o   c o r ro b o r a t e   t h e   re l i a b i l i t y   o f   m o n i t o r i n g 
sys tem s;

(d)  obser vation of the april 2008 fifth annual fafa work ing group 
in Vienna and the april 2009 sixth annual fafa work ing group 
in B rus sel s;

(e)  p r e v i o u s   a u d i t s   o f   t h e   c o u r t   i n   w h i c h   Un  a c t i o n s   w e r e   i n-

cl u ded ; and 

(f )  the results of 52 questionnaires, addressed to delegations in 
t he c ase  o f Eu rop ea id an d desk officer s in  t he case of  Echo , 
concerning the reasons for work ing with the Un and the sys-
te ms fo r mo nito r ing imp lem entatio n 6.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
 
chaptEr 3  
oBsEr Vations

13

 SEC TION 3.1 
DECISIONS TO IM PLE MENT  A I D TH ROU GH  TH E  UN

14.  

 robust procedures for selec ting the most appropriate aid deliver y 
mechanism to achieve Ec polic y objec tives are necessar y in order 
to en su re t hat  t he ch oice is b as ed  on  th e orga ni sation’s c apac i t y 
to   c a r r y   o u t   t h e   t a s k   e f f i c i e nt l y   a n d   e f fe c t i ve l y.  th e   a u d i t   t h e re -
f o r e   e x a m i n e d   w h e t h e r   t h e   p r o c e s s   f o r   d e c i d i n g   t o   i m p l e m e n t 
c o m m i s s i o n   a i d   t h r o u g h   t h e   U n   w a s   o b j e c t i v e   a n d   t r a n s p a r e n t 
and whether it demonstrated that this was the most efficient and 
e f fec t i ve   o p t i o n .   i n   p a r t i c ul a r   t he   a u d it   ex a m in e d   w h e t h e r   d e c i-
sions  to  f und Un o rg anisat io ns were  in for m e d by :

7  com(2001) 231 of 2.5.2001 

‘Building an effective partnership 

with the United nations in the 

fields of development and 

humanitarian affairs’. the subsequent 

communication com(2003) 526 of 

10.9.2003 ‘the European Union 

and the United nations: the choice 

of multilateralism’ discussed how 

the EU council, member states 

(a)  s trate gic p olic y guidelines re quiring an assessment of the Un 
o rg anis ati o n’s sui t ab ili t y to c ar r y o u t th e  p ro p os e d  t ask s;

and commission could make the 

EU more effective in shaping Un 

policy, but did not revise the strategy 

concerning cooperation in the 

development and humanitarian 

fields. these two communications 

are complemented by strategic 

partnership agreements with 

a number of Un organisations.

(b)  a co mp ar is o n  w i th  al te r nati ve  ai d  d e li ve r y  m e chanisms .

STR ATEGIC REQUIREME NTS INSUF FICIENTLY 
TR ANSL ATED INTO PR AC T ICE

15.  

 i n  add itio n  to   t he  commitments   of  th e  Europe an  cons ens us  (se e 
p a ra gra p h   5 ) ,   t h e   2 0 0 1   co m m i s s i o n   co m m u n i c at i o n   o n  ‘ B u i l d i n g 
an effec tive par tnership with the United nations’ set out the  com-
mission’s strategy for funding aid through Un organisations 7 and 
c o n t a i n e d   t h e   fo l l o w i n g   t w o   m a i n   m e s s a g e s   w h i c h   r e m a i n   p r e -
condit io ns  o f wor k ing w it h the  Un:

(a)  t h e   d e c i s i o n   t o   f u n d   a   U n   o r g a n i s a t i o n   s h o u l d   b e   b a s e d   o n 
its capacit y to car r y out the proposed task efficiently and ef-
fec t ivel y ; and

(b)   t h r o u g h   t h e   p r o v i s i o n   o f   s y s t e m a t i c   r a t h e r   t h a n   p i e c e m e a l 
funding, the commission should focus on results, rather than 
inputs, and ensure that Un repor ting adequately demonstrates 
t he ac hieveme nt  of wel l - def in ed  o bjec t ives. 

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
14

8  the six priority areas were:  

(i) trade and development;  

(ii) regional integration and 

cooperation; (iii) macroeconomic 

policies and social sector support ; 

(iv) transport; (v) food security and 

sustainable rural development;  

(vi) institutional capacity building.

9  United nations: improving lives — 

results from the partnership of the 

United nations and the European 

commission in 2007.

10  Europeaid cooperation office: 

annual report 2008 on the Ec’s 

development and external assistance 

policies and their implementation 

in 2007. 

16. 

17. 

18.  

 t h e   co m m i s s i o n’s   s t r a t e g y   w i t h   re g a rd   t o   E U   a s s i s t a n c e   f u n d e d 
through Un organisations covered both development cooperation 
and humanitarian aid. i t suggested that cooperation should focus 
on  t he  six  t hematic  areas   ident if ie d  as  a  pr ior i t y   for   al l  d eve lop -
ment aid in the november 2000 statement by the  council and the 
commission on ‘ the European community ’s development polic y ’ 8. 
however,   in  2007  over  hal f  the  commiss ion   fund in g  th roug h  th e 
Un  re l a te d   to   d e a l i n g   w i t h   c r i s e s   ( m a i n l y   p o s t- c r i s i s   h u m a n i t a r -
ian aid, rehabilitation and recover y), rather than the six thematic 
 a r e a s   i d e n t i f i e d   i n   t h e   c o m m u n i c a t i o n .   s o m e   4 0   %   o f   c o m m i s-
sion  a id   thro ug h  th e  Un  was  s pent  on   t he s e  s ix   are as 9,  cons id er-
a b l y   l e s s   t h a n   t h e   p r o p o r t i o n   o f   g l o b a l   c o m m i s s i o n   a i d ,   w h i c h 
a m o u nte d   to   a l m o s t   8 0   % 1 0.   i t   i s   n o t   c l e a r   w h at   a d d e d   va l u e   t h e 
focus   on   t hem atic   areas  b r ings   beca use   i t  appea r s   not   to  be   fol-
lowed  in p rac tice. 

 the strategic requirements are insufficiently translated into prac -
t i c a l   c r i te r i a   fo r   a s s e s s i n g   t h e   a d v a n t a g e s   a n d   d i s a d v a n t a g e s   o f 
wo r k i n g   w i t h   U n   o rg a n i s at i o n s.  th e   co m m i s s i o n   h a s   c a r r i e d   o u t 
re t ro s p e c t i ve   a n a l ys i s   w h i c h   s h ows   t h a t   t h e re   a re   g o o d   re a s o n s 
for implementing aid through the Un (see paragraph 20) and that 
the commission was satisfied with its choices (see paragraph 27). 
ho w e v e r,   b e f o r e   d e c i d i n g   t o   w o r k   w i t h   a   Un  o r g a n i s a t i o n ,   t h e 
com miss io n do es n ot  systematica lly  doc ume nt i ts  as se ss me nt  of 
whe th er the add ed val ue o f the  Un  offs et s  any  di sa dva nt ag es. 

 B e fo re   c o n t r a c t i n g   w i t h   a   Un  o r g a n i s a t i o n ,   E u ro p ea i d   d o e s   n o t 
systematically carr y out a documented assessment of its suitabil-
i t y   t o   i m p l e m e n t   t h e   p r o p o s e d   t a s k .   i n f o r m a t i o n   o n   p a s t   p e r -
for man ce,  inc luding   t he  findings   o f  re s ults - or i ented   m oni tor in g, 
is  avail ab le  to  del egat io ns  throug h  th e  cr is data base,  an d,  s ince 
2 0 0 8 ,   t h e   t w i c e - ye a r l y   e x t e r n a l   a s s i s t a n c e   m a n a g e m e n t   re p o r t s 
(Eamrs) include a specific sec tion on international organisations. 
howe ve r,   t h e   i n fo r m at i o n   i s   n o t   c u r re nt l y   a n a l ys e d   a n d   co m m u-
nicated to delegations in a way which could more usefully inform 
such assessments. one of the purposes of the  commission’s evalu-
at i o n   i n   2 0 0 8   wa s   to   e s t a b l i s h   w h e t h e r   t h e re   we re   c l e a r   re a s o n s 
for implementing aid through the Un. Europe aid has also car r ied 
out sur veys to establish why Un organisations have been selec ted 
as pa r t ners.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
 
15

19. 

20.  

 B e c a u s e   o f   t h e   u r g e n t   c h a r a c t e r   o f   i t s   i n t e r v e n t i o n s ,   Ec h o  e n-
ters  into  framewor k  agreements  with  all  its  par tners,  having  first 
 a s s e s s e d   t h e i r   s u i t a b i l i t y.   i n   a d d i t i o n ,   b e f o r e   e n t e r i n g   i n t o   a n 
agreement for a specific inter vention, it systematically carries out 
and documents an appraisal of the capacit y of the par tner for the 
specific ac tion proposed. however, the useful information on past 
p e r fo r m a n c e   o f   Un  p a r t n e r s,   c o n t a i n e d   i n   Ec h o ’s   p ro j e c t   m o n i-
t o r i n g   s y s t e m ,   i s   s t o r e d   a t   t h e   l e v e l   o f   o p e r a t i o n a l   u n i t s   r a t h e r 
than being made readily available to all desks to infor m decisions 
o n   f u n d i n g   Un  o r g a n i s a t i o n s.   co n s e q u e n t l y,   Ec h o ’s   a s s e s s m e n t 
process may be based on incomplete information and so the par tner  
may not have the capacity to deliver the expec ted results, par ticu -
lar ly where it diversifies outside its core ac tivit y. 

 the   co ur t ’s  qu estio nnaires  (see  paragraph   13 )   aim e d  to  ide nti f y, 
fo r   e a c h   o f   t h e   5 2   co nt r i b u t i o n   a gre e m e nt s,   t h e   t h re e   m a i n   re a-
sons for choosing to work with the Un. the relative impor tance of 
th e reas ons fo r sel ec ting th e Un are  sum m ar ise d i n   Fi gu re 4.   th e 
res ul t s of  the  ques tionnaires  co nf ir m e d th e f in din g s of th e  com-
mission’s evaluation and sur veys that the commission chooses to 
wor k with the Un pr imar ily for attr ibutes linked to its capacit y to 
d e l i ve r,   s u c h   a s   i t s   ex p e r i e n ce,   ex p e r t i s e,   l o gi s t i c a l   c a p a c i t y   ( i n-
cluding access to insecure zones) and past per for mance.  another 
r e a s o n   w h y   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   c h o o s e s   t h e   Un  i s   i t s   c a p a c i t y   f o r 
coo rdinatio n an d hig h-l evel  d ia log ue. 

F I G U R E   4

REL ATIVE IMPO RTANC E O F  REA S O N S   F O R  C H OO S I N G  UN

Speed
5 %

Low cost
2 %

Guidelines
3 %

Simple procedures
6 %

Special mandate
6 %

Visibility
2 %

Experience and 
expertise
24 %

Coordination/ dialogue
19 %

Relevance of proposal 
7 %

Past performance
12 %

S o urce:  r eplies by European commission to Eca questionnaires.

Logistics
14 %

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
16

21.  

22.  

 the commission’s strategy, the financial regulation and the fafa 
req uire  t hat  t he  d ecisio n-mak ing   proce s s   is   obj ec ti ve  an d  t ran s-
parent and aims  for eff ic ienc y an d  ef fe c ti ven e ss ( se e  paragraph s 
8, 9 and 15). Whilst elements such as cost (see paragraphs 22 and 
2 3 ) ,   s p e e d   ( s e e   p a r a g r a p h   2 4 )   a n d   v i s i b i l i t y   ( s e e   p a r a g r a p h   2 5 ) 
were also considered, in the replies to the cour t ’s questionnaires 
requesting the three main reasons for choosing the Un these cr i-
ter ia d id not  fe atu re p romi nently. 

 con cer ning  co st,  t he co mm ission has limited in for m at ion  on  th e 
cost efficienc y of implementation. the commission makes a contri-
bution, not exceeding 7 % of direc t costs, to the U n organisation’s 
i n d i re c t   co s t s 1 1.   a r t i c l e   5   o f   t h e   fa fa  s t ate s   t h at   s u b co n t ra c t i n g 
should not lead to increased costs over direc t implementation by 
the Un itself.  however, when ac tivities are subcontrac ted, the to -
tal level of the contribution to indirec t costs for all organisations 
involved is not repor ted as, for example, in the case of the interim 
disarmament,  demobilisation and reintegration programme in su-
dan, where one Un organisation subcontrac ted half the ac tivities 
to another Un organisation which fur ther subcontrac ted ac tivities 
to n gos fo r imp l ement ation. 

23.  

 i n   a d d i t i o n   t o   i t s   c o n t r i b u t i o n   t o   i n d i re c t   c o s t s,   t h e   co m m i s s i o n 
a l s o   f u n d s   t h e   s u p p o r t   c o s t s   o f   l o c a l   o f f i c e s,   s t a f f   a n d   t r a n s p o r t 
d i r e c t l y   r e l a t e d   t o   a c t i v i t i e s   f i n a n c e d .   a n   a n a l y s i s   o f   p r o j e c t s   i n 
sudan showed a range in the level of suppor t costs of between 6 % 
and  60  %  of  the  total  projec t  cost 12. the  commission  does  not  as -
sess the level of suppor t costs with reference to a nor mal range or 
benchmar k for the t ype of projec t to establish if it is reasonable.

11  article 4.1 of the fafa states that 

a fixed percentage of direct eligible 

costs, not exceeding 7 %, shall be 

eligible to fund the indirect costs of 

Un organisations. the indirect costs 

funded by the commission are not 

separately identified by its financial 

systems. however, based on annual 

funding of over 1 billion euro and 

allowing for some projects which do 

not receive the 7 % contribution to 

indirect costs, the court estimates 

that the total annual contribution to 

indirect costs of Un organisations is 

in the order of 50 million euro per 

year.

12 

 the instance of 60 % support costs 

related to a food assistance project, 

and the support costs included local 

transport, storage and handling. the 

commission considered that these 

were extremely high due partly to 

conditions in darfur, but also to the 

need to streamline operations to be 

more cost-effective.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
 
17

24.  

25.  

 concer ning speed of implementation, in some cases, for example 
the large quantities of food transpor ted, the Un has demonstrated 
i t s   c a p a c i t y   t o   d e l i v e r   a i d   t o   b e n e f i c i a r i e s   r a p i d l y.   ho w e v e r,   e x -
amples of slow deliver y (see Box 1) should feed into the decision-
mak ing process.

 concerning visibility, the commission’s evaluation concluded that, 
w h i l s t   v i s i b i l i t y   w a s   s a t i s f a c t o r y   a t   c o u n t r y   l e v e l ,   E U   t a x p a y e r s 
w e r e   g e n e r a l l y   n o t   a w a r e   o f   t h e   p r e s e n c e   a n d   r o l e   o f   t h e   co m -
m i s s i o n   i n   t h i s   t y p e   o f   i n t e r v e n t i o n .   i n   t h e   c a s e   o f   t h e   i n t e r i m 
disar m ament,  d em ob il isat ion  an d  r einte grat ion   program me,   for 
example, whilst the role of the Ec was clear at the level of the na-
tion al ad minist rat ion  in su dan , it was rarely  mention ed  in  publi c 
a n d   f o r m a l   d o c u m e n t s .   t h e   2 0 0 6   j o i n t   a c t i o n   p l a n   o n   v i s i b i l i t y 
re co gn i s e s   t h e   r i s k   o f   re d u ce d   v i s i b i l i t y   a n d   e m p h a s i s e s   t h e   i m-
por ta nce o f add ressing  this is sue.

B O X   1

EXAMPLES OF SLOW IMPLEMENTATION OF AID

a november 2006 review of the interim disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration programme 
in sudan reported on the high level of frustration with delays and lack of implementation.  in de-
cember 2007 the sudanese government expressed disappointment at the slow implementation of 
the programme, which was confirmed by a subsequent commission mission to sudan. 

in south sudan, Europeaid selected a Un organisation as a partner to supervise the emergency 
construction of legal offices. Beneficiaries agreed to a prefabricated construction which could be 
quickly delivered and assembled. however, they were frustrated by delays in implementation as 
foundations were initially dug in the wrong location, prefabricated panels were delivered late and 
the project manager departed.

the camp development project managed by a Un organisation in the occupied palestinian territory 
was initially planned for a period of 12 months ending in June 2007 but after two extensions was 
still continuing at the end of 2008.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
18

26.  

27.  

28.  

FORMAL COMPARISON WITH ALTERNATIVE  AID 
DELIVERY MECHANIS MS S HOULD  BE  SYSTEMATIC

 ne i t h e r   E u r o p ea i d   n o r   Ec h o  s y s t e m a t i c a l l y   c a r r i e s   o u t   f o r m a l 
 a p p r a i s a l s   o f   a l t e r n a t i ve   a i d   d e l i ve r y   m e c h a n i s m s.   co m p a r a t i ve 
o r   s t a n d a rd   c o s t   i n fo r m a t i o n   i s   n o t   u s e d   to   a n a l y s e   t h e   c o s t - e f-
fe c t i ve n e s s   o f   p ro j e c t   p ro p o s a l s   i n   o rd e r   t o   c o m p e n s a t e   fo r   t h e 
a b s e n c e   o f   c o m p e t i t i ve   t e n d e r i n g.  th e   c h o i c e   o f   u s i n g   a   U n   o r -
ganisat io n  to   del iver  aid,  is  not,  t he re fore,  suppo r te d  by   con clu-
s i ve   e v i d e n c e   t h a t   t h i s   a p p ro a c h   i s   m o re   e f f i c i e n t   a n d   e f fe c t i ve 
th an o t he r ways o f del iver ing aid.

 t h e   r e p l i e s   t o   t h e   c o u r t ’s   q u e s t i o n n a i r e s   i n d i c a t e d   t h a t   w h e r e 
com p ar iso ns with  al ter nat ives were c ar r i e d out  th e y we re g e ne r-
ally not documented. the commission’s evaluation similarly found 
that there was no for malised appraisal of alter native for ms of aid 
a n d   l i t t l e   i n f o r m a t i o n   c o u l d   b e   f o u n d   o n   a ny   a n a l y s i s   o f   p o s s i-
ble alter natives pr ior to the decision. however, even where there 
w a s   l i t t l e   re co rd   o f   t h e   d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g   p ro c e s s   t h a t   h a d   t a k e n 
p l a c e ,   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   w a s   s a t i s f i e d   w i t h   i t s   c h o i c e s   t o   d e l i v e r 
a i d   t h r o u g h   Un  o r g a n i s a t i o n s .   ch a n n e l l i n g   a i d   t h r o u g h   t h e   Un  
was frequently considered to have been the only option, par ticu-
lar ly  in  c r isis sit uat ions. Where t h ere  ha d  bee n  o th e r  opt ion s  t h e 
com mis sio n ge neral ly  considered  t hat  th e  Un had  be e n th e  be st 
choice,  de sp ite  the  ab s ence  of  syste mati cal ly  doc ume nte d  just i-
ficat io ns at t he  t ime w hen the d eci sio ns  we re  tak e n. 

 i mpl em ent at ion   by   the  co mm ission  its elf   is   on e  of  th e  ot he r   op -
t i o n s   fo r   d e l i ve r i n g   a i d.  t h e   l e a d   r o l e   o f   t h e   co m m i s s i o n   i n   t h e 
implementation of the temporar y international mechanism in the 
o c c u p i e d   pa l e s t i n i a n   t e r r i t o r y,   t h r o u g h   w h i c h   o v e r   6 0 0   m i l l i o n 
euro were channelled in 2006 and 2007, demonstrates the capac -
ity of the commission to implement and coordinate aid on a large 
scal e  in  an  u nst ab le  environm ent.   ar t icle  1 8( 1)   of  th e  revised  fi-
nancial regulation explicitly states that commission programmes 
c a n   b e   f i n a n c e d   b y   f i n a n c i a l   c o n t r i b u t i o n s   f ro m   m e m b e r   s t a t e s 
and   o the r  do no rs,  w hic h  p rovide s   an   oppor tun it y  to   ex plore   th e 
possibilit y of multi- donor funds managed and coordinated by the 
com mis sio n.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
 
19

29.  

30. 

SEC TION 3.2 
SYSTEMS FOR MONITO RI NG  AN D  AUD I TI N G  AI D 
DELIVERED THROUGH TH E  UN 

 robust financial management procedures are a legal and strategic 
requ ireme nt  (se e p aragrap h s 8 an d 1 5 ).  th ey are  necessar y in  or-
der to reduce the risk that commission funding is used uneconom-
i c a l l y   o r   i n a p p ro p r i a t e l y.   r e l i a b l e   i n fo r m a t i o n   o n   t h e   e f f i c i e n c y 
o f   i m p l e m e n t a t i o n   a n d   t h e   a c h i e v e m e n t   o f   r e s u l t s   i s   n e c e s s a r y 
i n   o r d e r   t o   e n s u r e   t h a t   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n’s   o b j e c t i v e s   h a v e   b e e n 
met. the audit therefore examined whether monitoring and audit 
a r r a n g e m e n t s   p ro v i d e   a s s u r a n c e   o n   t h e   ro b u s t n e s s   o f   f i n a n c i a l 
pro ced ures an d on the ac hieveme nt of  res ul ts.

13  article 165 of the financial 

regulation states that the 

implementation of actions by 

international organisations is subject 

to scrutiny by the commission. such 

scrutiny shall be exercised either by 

prior approval, by ex post checks or 

by a combined procedure.

14   the commission defined 

benchmarks relative to each 

procedure as the basis for this 

assessment.

 the co mm issio n has res p onded to th e re qui re ment to en s ure  ro -
b u s t   f i n a n c i a l   m a n a g e m e n t   p ro c e d u re s   b y   d e ve l o p i n g   m o n i t o r -
i n g   a n d   c o n t ro l   m e c h a n i s m s   w h i c h   c o m b i n e   p r i o r   a p p ro v a l   a n d 
e x   p o s t  c h e c k s 1 3  ( s e e   Fi g u r e   5) .   th e   co m m i s s i o n   f i r s t   c a r r i e s   o u t 
an as sess ment  of th e f inancial co nt rol s ys te m s of  it s Un  par t ner s 
(the four pillar analysis) to ensure they meet inter national stand-
ards 14.   i n  o rde r  to  e ns ure  that  the se  s yste ms   o perate  in   prac t ice, 
t h e   co m m i s s i o n   i s   p rov i d e d   w i t h   i n fo r m at i o n   by   i t s   U n   p a r t n e r s 
th ro ug h rep o r ts.  the co mmis s ion als o conduc ts field mon itor in g 
visit s   and  car r ie s   out   ve r ific ation   mis sions.  alth oug h  n ot   par t   of 
t h e   co m m i s s i o n’s   m o n i t o r i n g   p ro c e d u re s,   t h e   co u r t   o f   au d i t o r s 
also checks the eligibility of a sample of expenditure implemented 
th ro ug h  U n  org anis at io ns   as  par t  of  it s  ann ual  f in a nc ial   audit   of 
th e c o mmis sio n’s accounts.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
20

31.  

32.  

THE FOUR PILL AR ANALYSIS DOES  NOT COVER  SYSTEMS 
REL ATING TO SUBCONTR AC TED  AC TIVITIES

 the  fo ur p illar  an alys is  as s esses  t he  ade quac y  of  th e  account in g, 
internal control, external audit and procurement procedures of Un 
par tners. By 2008 it had been completed for nearly all commission 
f u n d s   m a n a g e d   t h ro u g h   t h e   Un.  W h i l s t   i t   w a s   b e i n g   c a r r i e d   o u t 
th e co mmis sio n co nt inu ed to wor k wi th  Un o rga n isati ons  on  th e 
bas is o f  a p res um p t ion  of  co nfo r mit y.

 U n   o rg a n i s at i o n s   f re q u e nt l y   s u b co n t ra c t   t h e   i m p l e m e n t at i o n   o f 
ac tiv ities to  ot her o rganis ation s wh ose  f i na nci al control  s yste m s 
h ave   n o t   b e e n   re v i e we d   by   t h e   co m m i s s i o n .   fo r   ex a m p l e,   i n   t h e 
co n te x t   o f   t h e   Ec h o - f i n a n ce d   e m e rg e n c y   h e a l t h   c a re   p ro j e c t   i n 
s u d a n ,   t h e   U n   o r g a n i s a t i o n   s u b c o n t r a c t e d   a c t i v i t i e s   t o   n g o s 
wh ich   had  no t  entered  into  a  par t n er s h ip  agree m ent  wi th   Echo . 
the commission relies on the Un organisation’s systems to control 
the  ac tiv it ies  of  the s ub co ntrac tor s. 

F I G U R E   5

MONITORING  AND CO NTRO L  A R R AN GEM E N TS

1. Four pillar analysis
Commission examination of the 
four main types of financial control 
(accounting, internal control, external 
audit and procurement) of UN  
organisations to check they meet 
international standards.

3. Field monitoring
Commission visits to projects and 
meetings with partners to ensure 
the efficiency of implementation and 
achievement of objectives. Includes 
results-oriented  monitoring (ROM).

4. Verifications
Commission checks, including  on 
the spot, to confirm the  adequacy of 
the procedures  identified in the four 
pillar  analysis and to examine whether 
value for money has been  obtained. In 
addition, evaluations check the efficiency 
and effectiveness of aid.

2. UN reports
UN organisations are required to provide 
annual progress reports plus a final 
report within six months of the end 
of  implementation (three months 
for humanitarian assistance). The 
annual strategy is supported through 
programming dialogues.

■  Prior approval
■  Ex post checks

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
21

UN REPORTS PROVIDE INSUFFICIENT  INF OR MATION  ON 
RESULTS

33. 

 t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   i s   c r i t i c a l   o f   Un  r e p o r t s   w h i c h   a r e   e xc e s s i v e l y 
general, do not communicate problems encountered and are fre -
q u e n t l y   l a t e 1 5.  t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   h a s   n o t   s u c c e e d e d   i n   o b t a i n i n g 
a d e q u a t e   i n fo r m a t i o n   o n   p ro j e c t   a c h i e ve m e n t s   b e c a u s e   c l e a r l y 
quantified output targets are not developed for all projec ts. When 
p e r f o r m a n c e   i n d i c a t o r s   a r e   q u a n t i f i e d   t h e y   f o c u s   o n   t h e   m o r e 
easily measurable projec t output rather than projec t impac t. the 
commission’s projec t c ycle management guidelines (m arch 2004) 
d i s t i n g u i s h   b e t w e e n   o u t p u t   i n d i c a t o r s ,   o n   t h e   o n e   h a n d ,   a n d 
o u tco m e   a n d   i m p a c t   i n d i c ato r s,   o n   t h e   o t h e r.   o u t p u t   i n d i c a to r s 
mea su re  t he  immediate  and  con c re te  con se que nces   of   me asu re s 
taken whilst outcome and impac t indicators measure the effec t of 
th e  pro je c t  on  benefic iar ies   an d  t he   l ong -ter m  con se que n ces.   i n 
some cases impac t indicators were included but were not measur-
able, par ticularly within the shor ter repor ting timescale of Echo 16 
(see B ox  2).

15  over 70 % of the replies to the 

court’s questionnaires from Echo 

indicated that Un reports were late.

16   article 2.6 of the fafa requires 

a final report within three months 

after the end of implementation for 

humanitarian aid and six months in 

other cases.

B O X   2

DIFF ICULTIES IN ME ASUR IN G P ER F OR MA N C E

Where projects included both output and outcome indicators, the Un organisation was not neces-
sarily able to report on the outcome indicators within the reporting timescale. for example in the 
case of one Un project in  darfur,  sudan, an output target was for 25 000 households to receive 
seeds for crop production whilst the outcome target was for each beneficiary to cultivate an addi-
tional 1,2 hectares from the assistance provided. in the case of the Un health, nutrition and water 
project in Blue nile and khartoum states the output indicators related to the number of clinics sup-
ported whilst the outcome indicators concerned mortality and morbidity rates. although for both 
these Echo projects the Un organisations were able to report on the output indicators, they were 
unable, within the reporting timescale (three months after the end of the project), to report on the 
outcome indicators concerning the additional land cultivated or mortality and morbidity rates. 

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
22

34.  

35.  

 the qualit y of repor ting is impor tant in the contex t of the aid ef-
fec tiveness agenda and the aim of the commission and the Un to 
focus on results 17. the 2005 paris declaration on aid Effec tiveness 
commits donors to implementing common arrangements at coun-
t r y   l e ve l   fo r   p l a n n i n g   a n d   f u n d i n g   a c t i v i t i e s.  th e   2 0 0 5   Eu ro p e a n 
consensus on development similarly emphasises the EU’s commit -
ment   to   wor k ing  w ith  p ar tners   in  har m on isi n g  aid  th roug h   more 
p re d i c t a b l e   a i d   m e c h a n i s m s.  th e   g o o d   h u m a n i t a r i a n   d o n o r s h i p 
pr i n c i p l e s   a gre e d   i n   s to c k h o l m   i n   2 0 0 3   co m m i t   d o n o r s   to   s t r i ve 
to ensure predic tabilit y and flexibilit y in funding to U n organisa-
t i o n s   a n d   to   e x p l o re   t h e   p o s s i b i l i t y   o f   re d u c i n g   e a r m a r k i n g   a n d 
i n t ro d u c i n g   l o n g e r - t e r m   f u n d i n g   a r r a n g e m e n t s.   E a r m a r k i n g   a i d 
for a l arg e nu mb er of sp ec ific  ac t ivi ti es  can  be a me an s to t arge t 
resources in order to achieve specific results, but it is not consist -
ent with the common approach envisaged by the aid effec tiveness 
agend a.   howeve r,  pa r tl y   due  to  inadeq uate   repor ti n g  by   t he   Un, 
the commission has preferred to earmark funds, rather than fund-
ing l o ng er-ter m co operatio n 18. 

 E ve n   w h e re   t h e   co m m i s s i o n   c o n t r i b u t e s   t o   a   m u l t i - d o n o r   f u n d, 
i n s t e a d   o f   p o o l i n g   i t s   f u n d i n g   w i t h   t h e   o t h e r   d o n o r s   i t   s o m e -
times ear mar ks its funding for specific ac tivities within that fund 
( s e e   B o x   3 ) .   E a r m a r k i n g   b r i n g s   w i t h   i t   a d d i t i o n a l   r e p o r t i n g   r e -
quirements and associated costs. the cour t ’s 1999 annual repor t 
c r i t i c i s e d   t h e   d e v o t i o n   o f   s c a r c e   U n   a n d   co m m i s s i o n   r e s o u r c e s 
t o   t h e   l a rg e l y   u n p ro d u c t i ve   a d m i n i s t r a t i ve   t a s k   o f   re p o r t i n g   o n 
earmarked expenditure 19. the commission replied that it was look-
i n g   at   n e w   a p p ro a c h e s   w h i c h   wo u l d   t a k e   a cco u nt   o f   t h e   co u r t ’s 
suggestion to reduce earmark ing. the results of the cour t ’s ques-
tion naires showed that  for 10 out  of  2 9  mul ti - d on or  f un ds  (3 4  % ) 
th e c o mmis sio n had  ear mar ked its  fu nds  fo r  s pe ci fi c  ac t iv i ti es.

17  the preamble to the fafa states ‘all 

activities undertaken hereunder are 

directed towards the attainment of 

results: humanitarian, developmental 

or otherwise. the shift to a results 

orientation should be accompanied 

by a corresponding shift away from 

the exclusive examination of inputs 

and activities.’ the april 2007 Joint 

guidelines on reporting under 

the fafa similarly emphasise the 

importance of focusing on results, in 

accordance with the Un’s results-

based management principles, to 

allow the commission to assess 

whether the objectives of the action 

have been met.

18  com(2001) 231 of 2.5.2001 

‘Building an effective partnership 

with the United nations in the fields 

of development and humanitarian 

affairs’ states that several obstacles, 

including inadequate reporting, 

have hindered the development 

of programmatic, longer-term 

cooperation.

19  court of auditors’ annual report 

concerning the financial year 1999.

B O X   3

EXAMPLE OF EARMARKI NG

the commission contributed 1 million euro to a Un organisation’s multi-donor fund of 14 mil-
lion  euro to support elections in guyana in 2006.  other donors including canada (cida) and the 
Uk (dfid ) did not earmark their contributions for specific activities, but the commission did. for 
 example, it allocated 146 000 euro for information technology, 418 000 euro for voter education, 
143 000 euro for media monitoring and 115 000 for local observation. however, the Un organisa-
tion’s accounting systems did not record expenditure according to these budget headings and it 
was unable to provide the commission with a list of transactions in each category.   

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
23

36.  

37.  

38.  

 the commission has not funded the general budget of Un bodies 
w i t h   t h e   e xc e p t i o n   o f   a   Un  a g e n c y   i n   t h e   o c c u p i e d   pa l e s t i n i a n 
te r r i to r y 2 0.   B y   co nt r i b u t i n g   to   t h e   g e n e ra l   b u d g e t   o f   t h i s   a g e n c y 
t h e   co m m i s s i o n   w a s   a b l e   t o   e n g a g e   i n   a   h i g h - l e ve l   d i a l o g u e   t o 
improve the system for measuring the organisation’s per formance 
and providing clear and reliable infor mation on the achievement 
o f   re s u l t s.  th e   c u r re n t   p i l o t   Un  i n i t i a t i ve   to   p re s e n t   a   s i n g l e   Un  
i n t e r f a c e   f o r   d o n o r s   i n   a   p a r t i c u l a r   c o u n t r y   m a y,   i n   t h e   f u t u r e , 
p r e s e n t   a   f u r t h e r   o p p o r t u n i t y   f o r   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   t o   c o n s i d e r 
funding in a less fragmented way, ensuring greater harmonisation 
of aid. however, any move away from ear mar k ing needs to be ac -
co m p a n i e d   by   a   ro b u s t   re p o r t i n g   s ys te m   w h i c h   p rov i d e s   d o n o r s 
wi th  rel iab le infor matio n o n th e  ac hi eveme nt   of   res ul ts.

20  the 2001 communication 

com(2001) 231 of 2.5.2001 ‘Building 

an effective partnership with the 

United nations’ stated that the 

commission was not, at that stage, 

recommending core contributions 

to the general budget of Un 

organisations as there would be no 

added value for the Ec simply to pass 

on the resources entrusted to it by 

member states to Un agencies as 

core contributions.

COMMISSION FIELD MONITORING  DOES  NOT 
COMPENSATE FOR L ACK OF INFORMATION   
IN UN REPORTS

 Europeaid field monitoring by delegation staff includes meetings 
with Un staff, field visits to projec ts and beneficiaries and attend-
ance at steer ing committees. Un organisations, beneficiar ies and 
other donors generally perceive Europea id as a relatively involved 
dono r.  i n ad ditio n, re su lt s- or iented mo nito r ing  (r o m)  v i sit s, car -
ried out for Europea id by consultants, assess a project ’s relevance, 
efficie nc y,  e ffe c t iven ess, imp ac t  a n d pote nt ial  sus ta in abili t y. 

 h owe ve r,   m o n i to r i n g   c a r r i e d   o u t   by   d e l e g a t i o n s   a n d   t h e   r o m   i s 
not designed to compensate for the limitations of Un repor ting on 
the efficienc y of implementation and achievement of results (see 
Box 4). the rom methodology is based on sampling, and secur it y 
i s s u e s   a re   a l s o   a   c o n s i d e r a t i o n .  t h e   re s u l t s   o f   t h e   co u r t ’s   q u e s-
t i o n n a i re s   s h owe d   t h at   o n l y   s e ve n   o u t   o f   3 7   Eu ro p e ai d   p ro j e c t s 
(19  %)  had  b ee n monito red th roug h  t he  r o m.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
 
24

39. 

 i n   c o n t r a s t ,   Ec h o ’s   f i e l d   o f f i c e r s   s y s t e m a t i c a l l y   c a r r y   o u t   m o n i-
t o r i n g   v i s i t s   t o   p ro j e c t s   o n c e   e ve r y   s i x   m o n t h s   ( e xc e p t   w h e n   i t   i s 
not  possible,  for  example,  for  secur it y  reasons)  and  document  the 
f i n d i n g s.  th e s e   m o n i to r i n g   re p o r t s   a re   a   u s e f u l   to o l   fo r   i n i t i a t i n g 
a n y   n e c e s s a r y   r e m e d i a l   a c t i o n ,   t h o u g h   t h e i r   e f f e c t i v e n e s s   c o u l d 
b e   e n h a n c e d   b y   s h a r i n g   t h e   w r i t t e n   re p o r t   w i t h   p a r t n e r s   i n s t e a d 
o f   p ro v i d i n g   o n l y   ve r b a l   fe e d b a c k .  t h e   m o n i t o r i n g   b y   Ec h o  f i e l d  
o f f i c e r s ,   t o g e t h e r   w i t h   v i s i t s   o f   e v a l u a t o r s ,   m i s s i o n s   b y   d e s k  
officers and annual strategic programming dialogues with Un orga-
nisations, helps to compensate for the limitations of Un repor ts.

B O X   4

LIMITATIONS OF EU ROPEA I D  FI EL D  M ON I TOR I N G

in sudan,  commission aid was distributed evenly between the north and the south of the country. 
however, the delegation was based in khartoum in the north and there was only one programme 
manager working in the south, in particularly difficult conditions. the planned opening of the south 
office in Juba in 2009 will provide an opportunity to address this imbalance in the distribution of 
monitoring resources. 

Where projects encountered problems, as in the case of the emergency construction of legal offices 
in south sudan, delegation monitoring had not compensated for ineffective Un supervision.

in sri lanka, adequate monitoring and supervision procedures had not been established for the com-
munity roads project implemented by a Un organisation 21.

21  European court of auditors’ special report no 6/2008: European commission rehabilitation aid following the tsunami and hurricane mitch 

(http://eca.europa.eu). the commission later reinforced independent quality control before the acceptance of finished works.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
25

22  for example, the Echo 2008 

verification of projects implemented 

by a Un organisation for the support 

and protection of internally displaced 

persons in Uganda included a review 

of progress against indicators.

40.  

41.  

COMMIS SION VERIFIC ATIONS QUESTIONED  BY 
UN PANEL OF AUDITORS

 th e   fa fa   s t ate s   t h at   t h e   Eu ro p e a n   co m m u n i t i e s   m ay   u n d e r t a k e, 
inclu ding   on  the  s pot,   checks  re lated   to  th e   o perati on s  f in an ce d 
by the European communities. the purpose of these checks is not 
only to review financial management systems, but also to examine 
w h e t h e r   v a l u e   f o r   m o n e y   h a s   b e e n   o b t a i n e d   i n   t h e   i m p l e m e n -
t at i o n   o f   p ro j e c t s.  Wi t h   s o m e   exce p t i o n s 2 2,   ve r i f i c at i o n   m i s s i o n s 
focus on the adequac y of procedures whereas examination of the 
e f f i c i e n c y   o f   i m p l e m e n t a t i o n   o r   t h e   e f fe c t i ve n e s s   o f   re s u l t s   a re 
issues addressed by Un repor ts and  commission field monitoring. 
typ ical  ter ms o f referen ce of a ver i fi c at ion  mi ss ion  a re:

(a)  to   eval uate  t he  l o cal   s ys tems  for   a ccount in g   for  commiss ion 
fu ndin g and con fir m th at th ey  operate  in  pra c t ice ;  a nd

(b)  to   chec k  t he  el igib il it y  of  expend i ture   on  t he   s peci f ic   ac t iv i-

t ies f inanced.

 a t   t h e   s a m e   t i m e   a s   t h e   l e v e l   o f   c o m m i s s i o n   f u n d s   c h a n n e l l e d 
t h r o u g h   t h e   Un  h a s   i n c r e a s e d   ( s e e   p a r a g r a p h   1 ) ,   t h e   c o m m i s-
sion has increasingly exercised its right to carr y out verifications. 
B et wee n  2004  and  2006  Eu ropea id  an d  Echo  car r ied   out  a  com-
bined total of 22 ver ification missions, or roughly seven per year. 
i n  2 007  t he  nu mbe r  s ignific antly  in c re as ed   as   Europea id  c ar r ie d 
o u t   3 8   v e r i f i c a t i o n   m i s s i o n s   a n d   Ec h o  a   f u r t h e r   n i n e .   i n   2 0 0 8 
Europeaid car r ied out 25 ver ification missions and E cho nine. to 
p u t   t h e   n u m b e r   o f   ve r i f i c at i o n   m i s s i o n s   i nto   co ntex t,   Eu ro p ea i d 
and   Ec ho  e ach enter  ann ual ly  into approxi mate ly  1 8 0  co nt rac ts 
wi th  Un org anisat ion s (s ee paragraph  5) .

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
26

42. 

 a t t i t u d e s   t o w a r d s   v e r i f i c a t i o n s   v a r y   w i t h i n   t h e   Un,   b u t   t h e   Un  
pa n e l   o f   au d i t o r s   h a s   c o n t i n u a l l y   q u e s t i o n e d   t h e   co m m i s s i o n’s 
r i g h t   t o   c h e c k   e x p e n d i t u re,   a rg u i n g   t h a t   i t s   o w n   a u d i t   a r r a n g e -
ments are sufficient (see B ox 5). the Un B oard of auditors car r ies 
out the ex ter nal audit of the financial statements of Un bodies 23. 
the  var io us Un ag encies  al s o have  th ei r  own  i nte r n al audi t fun c -
tion. for example, one Un organisation has an  o ffice of audit and 
pe r fo r m a n c e   r e v i e w   w h i c h   i s   r e q u i r e d   t o   a u d i t   e a c h   a c t i v i t y   a t 
leas t o nce  in its  lifetime. 

23  the Un Board of auditors consists 

of three auditors-general of Un 

member states and carries out 

the external audit of the financial 

statements of Un bodies. the role of 

the panel of External auditors, which 

includes the members of the Board of 

auditors, is to coordinate audits and 

exchange information on methods 

and findings.

B O X   5

LONG-STANDING CO NTROVERS Y   OVE R  COM M I S SI ON  VERI F I C ATI ONS

in 1993 the Un panel of External auditors wrote to the secretary general of the Un insisting that 
donors should rely on normal Un audit arrangements.  this view was endorsed by the Un  general 
assembly.

in 1994, the verification clause was agreed, providing the basis for Ec access to all relevant Un  
information and the right to carry out checks, though stating that transactions and financial state -
ments were subject to Un internal and external auditing procedures. 

the Un  panel of External auditors continued to voice its concerns over independent audits by 
donors and in 2001 a supplementary agreement was signed on the application of the verification 
clause.

in 2005 the Un  high level committee on management claimed the exclusive right of audit of Un 
auditors, despite what it described as pressure from some donors, including the commission, to 
break the single audit principle.

in early 2008 the Un  controller requested all verification missions to be put on hold until the veri-
fication clause, considered contrary to the independence of the Un, was renegotiated or removed. 
the commission refused the request.

in april 2008 the question of verifications was the main subject discussed at the fifth annual fafa 
working group. the Un and the  commission agreed to draft common terms of reference for verifi-
cation missions, which were adopted at the sixth annual working group in april 2009.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
27

43 . 

44.  

 t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   r e l i e s   o n   t h e   w o r k   o f   t h e   U n   a u d i t o r s   w h e n     i t 
is available for review and scrutiny 24. the audited financial state -
m e n t s   o f   t h e   Un   o rg a n i s a t i o n   a s   a   w h o l e   a re   p u b l i c l y   av a i l a b l e. 
however, the financial statements of ac tions funded by the  com-
mis sio n are not   sep aratel y au dite d. 

 t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   a n d   Un  h a v e   w o r k e d   t o   o v e r c o m e   t h e i r   d i f fe r -
ences regarding verifications but the commission has encountered 
restr ic ted access to Un systems and documents (see B ox 6).

24  international standard on auditing 

600 on Using the Work of another 

auditor; international standard on 

auditing 402 on audit considerations 

relating to an Entity Using a third 

party service organisation; opinion 

no 2/2004 of the court of auditors 

on the ‘single audit’ model (oJ c 107, 

30.4.2004, p. 1).

B O X   6

EXAMPLES O F RE STRIC TED  CO M M I S S I ON   ACC ES S

Europeaid’s 2007 verification of a Un organisation’s support to elections in  guyana could not ac -
cess the Un organisation’s accounting system.

Europeaid’s 2007 verification of a Un organisation’s polio eradication programme was not allowed 
to take copies of documents. 

due to limitations imposed by the hQ of one Un organisation, Echo ’s 2008 verification of projects 
in Uganda was not able to select a reasonable number of transactions for testing in order to arrive 
at a general conclusion on the eligibility of costs.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
28

COURT OF AUDITORS ENCOUNTER S  OBSTACLES 
C ARRYING OUT  FINANCIAL CHECK S

45.  

46.  

 in order to carr y out its annual financial audit of the commission’s 
accounts, the cour t of auditors checks the eligibilit y of a random 
samp l e  of   paym ent s 25.   fo r  t hose  t ran sac tion s  relat ing  to  th e   Un, 
t h e   co u r t   c h e c k s   t h a t   e x p e n d i t u re   h a s   b e e n   i n c u r re d   i n   a c co rd -
ance  w ith t he  ter ms  of th e agree ment  wit h  t he  c ommiss ion . 

25  the court is required by article 

248 of the Ec treaty to provide the 

parliament and the council with 

a statement of assurance as to 

the reliability of the accounts and 

the legality and regularity of the 

underlying transactions.

 the   co mm issio n  ensured   that  th e  ver if ic at io n  c laus e  o f  t he   fafa 
provided the cour t of auditors with the necessar y access to infor-
mation in order to per form these checks 26. the verification clause 
of the fafa states that the European  communities, and therefore 
the cour t, even though not specifically mentioned, may under take 
o n - t h e - s p o t   f i n a n c i a l   c h e c k s ,   a n d   t h a t   t h e   Un  s h a l l   p r o v i d e   a l l 
relevant financial infor mation. never theless, the cour t has expe -
r ienced  so me dif ficul ties  accessi n g  Un i n for mat ion  ( se e  B ox  7). 

26  article 43.4(h) of the 

implementing rules on the financial 

regulation states that agreements 

concluded with international 

organisations shall contain provisions 

granting the court of auditors 

access to the information required 

to perform its duties.

B O X   7

COU RT OF AUDITORS HA S  DI FF I C ULT I ES   ACCE SS I N G  I N F O RMATI ON

the court’s annual reports for 2001 and 2004 describe the difficulties of the  court in accessing 
data from Un organisations.

the court’s 2007 audit of the European development funds reported that out of 11 payments to 
Un organisations, two payments could not be fully audited because the  court could not obtain 
the underlying documentation. the audit of other Un payments was hampered by inadequate 
cooperation by Un organisations and was eventually made possible only by the intervention of 
the commission. 

the court’s 2007 annual report on the general budget reported that for three payments to Un 
organisations some of the documents needed could not be provided in good time by the organi-
sations concerned.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
29

chaptEr 4  
conclUsions and  
rEcommEndations

47.  

48.  

 the European consensus on development commits the EU to coordi-
nate and harmonise aid in close cooperation with Un organisations. 
the 2003 financial regulation and the fafa provide the framework 
e n a b l i n g   t h e   co m m i s s i o n   t o   c o n t r a c t   d i re c t l y   w i t h   Un   o r g a n i s a-
t i o n s .   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   r e m a i n s   a c c o u n t a b l e   f o r   t a s k s   d e l e g a t e d 
to  Un  organisations.  on  the  basis  of  the  financial  r egulation  and 
the arrangements in the fafa, it therefore checks that Un  financial 
procedures meet international standards and seeks confirmation on 
t h e   p ra c t i c a l   o p e rat i o n   o f   t h e s e   s ys te m s   a n d   o n   t h e   a c h i e ve m e nt 
o f   re s u l t s   t h ro u g h   Un  re p o r t s   a n d   i t s   ow n   ve r i f i c a t i o n s   a n d   f i e l d 
monitor ing. 

DECISIONS TO  IMPLEM ENT  A ID  THROUGH  TH E  UN

 t h e   p ro c e s s   fo r   d e c i d i n g   t o   i m p l e m e n t   a i d   t h ro u g h   t h e   Un  d o e s 
n o t   d e m o n s t r a t e   t h a t   t h i s   i s   t h e   m o s t   e f f i c i e n t   a n d   e f fe c t i ve   o p -
t i o n .   i n   o rd e r   to   co m p e n s ate   fo r   t h e   a b s e n ce   o f   co m p e t i t i o n ,   t h e 
co m m i s s i o n   h a s   re co gn i s e d   t h e   n e e d   fo r   ro b u s t   d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g 
p r o c e d u r e s   i n   c h o o s i n g   i t s   i m p l e m e n t i n g   p a r t n e r.   ho w e v e r,   t h e 
strategic  and  legal  requirements  are  insufficiently  translated  into 
p ra c t i c a l   c r i te r i a   to   s u p p o r t   d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g.   B e fo re   d e c i d i n g   to 
work with a Un organisation, the commission does not convincingly 
demonstrate that the advantages offset any disadvantages. nor is 
the  choice  of  using  a  Un  organisation  to  deliver  aid  suppor ted  by 
sufficient evidence to show that this approach is more efficient and 
effec tive than other ways of deliver ing aid. 

RE C O M M E N D AT I O N   1

t h e   co m m issi o n   sh o u l d   issu e   an d   e nsu r e   th e   im p l e m e nt ati o n 
o f   p r a c t i c a l   g u i d e l i n e s   i n   o r d e r   t o   i m p r o v e   t h e   d e c i s i o n -
m a k i n g   p r o c e s s   f o r   s e l e c t i n g   t h e   i m p l e m e n t i n g   c h a n n e l   f o r 
the proposed task . the guidelines should lead to a transparent, 
objec tive and systematic demonstration that the choice is more 
e f f i ci e nt  an d e f f e c ti ve than oth e r   ai d  d e li ve r y  m e chanisms .

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
 
30

S YS TE MS FOR MO NITO RING AND  AUDITING AID 
DELIVE RED T HRO UG H THE UN

49.  

 m o n i t o r i n g   a r r a n g e m e n t s   d o   n o t   p rov i d e   a d e q u a t e   i n fo r m a t i o n 
on the robustness of financial procedures and on the achievement 
of objec tives. Un repor ts do not systematically provide adequate 
i n fo r m a t i o n   o n   p r o j e c t   a c h i e v e m e n t s   a n d   w h i l s t   m o n i t o r i n g   b y 
the commission provides complementar y infor mation, it is insuf-
fici ent to  f ul ly co mp ens ate fo r th es e  li mi tati ons. th e Un  pan el of 
E x t e r n a l   au d i t o r s   h a s   c o n t i n u a l l y   q u e s t i o n e d   t h e   co m m i s s i o n’s 
r i g h t   t o   c h e c k   e x p e n d i t u r e   a n d   t h e   c o u r t   o f   a u d i t o r s   h a s   a l s o 
encou ntered diffic ul t ies  acces si ng  i n for m at ion . 

RE C O M M E N D AT I O N   2

t h e   co m m i s s i o n   s h o u l d   co nt i n u e   to   e x p l o r e   o p p o r t u n i t i e s   to 
r e l y   o n   a u d i t   w o r k   c a r r i e d   o u t   b y   U n  b o d i e s   a n d   co n t i n u e   t o 
e nsu re  th at th e  fafa is  ap p li e d s o that any issu e s  o f  a cce ss  to 
inf o r m ati o n are r ap i d l y  re s o l ve d .

RE C O M M E N D AT I O N   3

i n   o r d e r   t o   r e s p o n d   t o   t h e   a i d   e f f e c t i v e n e s s   a g e n d a ,   t h e 
co m m is si o n   s h o u l d   e nsu r e   t h at   U n  r e p o r t s   p r ov i d e   a d e q u ate 
i n f o r m a t i o n   o n   p r o j e c t   p e r f o r m a n ce   a n d   t h e   a c h i e v e m e n t   o f 
r e s u l t s   i n c l u d i n g   t h e   a c h i e ve m e n t   o f   l o n g e r- t e r m   i m p a c t   n o t 
m e asu r ab l e  w i thin  th e e x is tin g  re p o r tin g  tim e - f r a m e.

RE C O M M E N D AT I O N   4

E u r o p e a i d   s h o u l d   e n s u r e   t h a t   i t s   f i e l d   m o n i t o r i n g   p r o v i d e s 
a d e q u a t e   c o v e r a g e   o f   p r o j e c t s   i m p l e m e n t e d   t h r o u g h   U n 
o r g a n i s a t i o n s   t o   s u p p l e m e n t   a n d   co n f i r m   t h e   i n f o r m a t i o n   o n 
result s o b t ain e d f ro m U n re p o r t s . 

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
31

RE C O M M E N D AT I O N   5

t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   s h o u l d   c o n s i d e r   w h e t h e r   i t   c a n   b u i l d   o n 
i t s   e x p e r i e n c e   w i t h   o n e   U n  a g e n c y   b y   c o n t r i b u t i n g   i n   a   l e s s 
f r a g m e n t e d   w a y,   f o r   e x a m p l e   a t   c o u n t r y   l e v e l ,   t o   o t h e r   U n 
o r g a n i s a t i o n s   w i t h   a   v i e w   t o   e n g a g i n g   i n   a   s i m i l a r   h i g h - l e v e l 
dialogue enhancing the focus on their per formance in achieving 
objec tives.

this report was adopted by the court of auditors in luxembourg at its 
meeting of 22 o ctober 2009.

Fo r  th e  Co u r t  o f  Au d ito r s

Vítor m anuel da silva c aldeira 
Presi d e nt

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

32

rEplY of thE 
commission

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

I.
B e t w e e n   2 0 0 1   a n d   2 0 0 3   t h e   E u r o p e a n 
 U n i o n   a d o p t e d   a   n e w   p o l i c y   a p p r o a c h 
t o   p a r t n e r s h i p   w i t h   t h e   U n i t e d   n a -
t i o n s .   t h i s   w a s   r e i n f o r c e d   i n   t h e   2 0 0 3  
fi n a n c i a l   r e g u l a t i o n ,   w h i c h   i n t r o d u c e d 
the concept of joint management, specifi-
cally  to  enable  the  European  commission 
(Ec ) to channel funds through internation-
al organisations using the own procedures 
of those organisations. an agreement was 
reached with the Un in  2003  — the finan-
cial and administrative framework agree -
ment (fafa ) — which clarifies the respon-
sibilities of the commission and the Un in 
t h e   m a n a g e m e n t   o f   E U   f u n d s .   t h e s e   d e -
v e l o p m e n t s   h a v e   e n a b l e d   t h e   E U   t o   j o i n 
with other donors in suppor ting the Un in 
major rehabilitation  programmes.

III.
t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   d e c i d e s   t o   c h a n n e l 
f u n d s   t h ro u g h   Un  o rg a n i s at i o n s   fo r   va r i-
o u s   r e a s o n s .   i n   s o m e   c a s e s   t h e r e   i s   n o 
a l t e r n a t i ve,   e. g.   t h e   Un  h a s   a   c l e a r   m a n-
date to ac t  on beh alf of th e inte r n at ion al 
c o m m u n i t y,   o r   i t   h a s   s p e c i f i c   e x p e r t i s e 
n o t   fo u n d   e l s e w h e r e .   i n   o t h e r   c a s e s   t h e 
Un  h a s   b e e n   i d e n t i f i e d   a s   t h e   o n l y   a l-
t e r n a t i v e   w i t h   t h e   r e q u i r e d   l o g i s t i c a l   o r 
m a n a g e m e n t   c a p a c i t y   f o r   t h e   o p e r a t i o n 
i n   q u e s t i o n .   t h e   Un  h a s   a l s o   f r e q u e n t l y 
been   s elec ted  as  a  par tn er  becau se   o f  it s 
e x p e r i e n ce   a n d   a b i l i t y   to   wo r k   i n   a   p o s t-
c r i s i s   e n v i r o n m e n t   a n d   i t s   i n - c o u n t r y 
presen ce in s uc h  situations. 

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

3333

rEplY of thE 
commission

t h e   U n   c o n t i n u e s   t o   p r o v i d e   r e p o r t s 
o n   i m p l e m e n t a t i o n   o f   h u m a n i t a r i a n   a i d 
w h i c h   a l l o w s   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   t o   a s s e s s 
t h e   e f f i c i e n c y   a n d   a c h i e v e m e n t   o f   h u-
m a n i t a r i a n   o b j e c t i v e s .   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n 
h a s   c o m p r e h e n s i v e   m o n i t o r i n g   s y s t e m s 
based  on a n et wor k of over  1 0 0 te c h n ical 
a s s i s t a n t s   o p e r a t i n g   i n   t h e   f i e l d .   E a c h 
projec t  is monitored in  the field.

V. 
Ve r i f i c a t i o n   i s   o n e   o f   t h e   m e a n s   a t   t h e 
d i s p o s a l   o f   t h e   co m m i s s i o n   to   o b t a i n   a s-
s u r a n c e   o n   t h e   u s e   o f   Ec  f u n d s   b y   i n t e r -
n a t i o n a l   o r g a n i s a t i o n s .   i t   i s   f o r e s e e n   i n 
t h e   fi n a n c i a l   r e g u l a t i o n   a n d   t h e   re s p e c -
t i v e   f r a m e w o r k   a g r e e m e n t s .   i n   g e n e r a l , 
m o s t   U n   a g e n c i e s   co o p e rate   ve r y   we l l   i n 
t h e   v e r i f i c a t i o n   p r o c e s s   a n d   t h i s   c o o p -
e r a t i o n   c o n t i n u e s   t o   i m p r o v e .   i n   f a c t   i n 
2 0 0 9   t h e   Ec  a n d   t h e   Un  a g r e e d   o n   c o m-
m o n   t e r m s   o f   r e f e r e n c e   f o r   v e r i f i c a t i o n 
m i s s i o n s.  th e s e   m i s s i o n s   a l l ow   t h e   Ec  to 
o b t a i n   e v i d e n c e   o n   U n   f i n a n c i a l   c o n t r o l 
p r o c e d u r e s .   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   t h e r e f o r e 
disagrees  with  th e c our t' s view. 

t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   f u l l y   s u p p o r t s   t h e 
cour t's requests for infor mation from the 
Un  a g e n c i e s   i n   t h e   f r a m e w o r k   o f   t h e   fi-
n a n c i a l   a n d   a d m i n i s t r a t i v e   f r a m e w o r k 
agreement (fafa ) .

o v e r   t h e   l a s t   f o u r   y e a r s   E u r o p ea i d   h a s 
c a r r i e d   o u t   s u r v e y s   o f   i t s   d e l e g a t i o n s   t o 
i m p rove   i n fo r m a t i o n   o n   t h e i r   re a s o n s   fo r 
c h a n n e l l i n g   f u n d s   t h r o u g h   t h e   Un,   a n d 
t h e y   a r e   t h e r e f o r e   w e l l   k n o w n  —   t h e r e 
m u s t   b e   d o u b t s   t h a t   o t h e r   s o l u t i o n s , 
w h e r e   t h e y   e x i s t e d ,   w o u l d   h a v e   b e e n 
m o r e   e f f e c t i v e .   m o r e o v e r,   a s   a   r e s u l t   o f 
t h e   re c e n t   e v a l u a t i o n ,   a l l   E u ro p ea i d   s e r -
vices and delegations have been instruc t-
e d   t o   d o c u m e n t   m o r e   c a r e f u l l y   t h e i r 
r e a s o n s   f o r   p r o p o s i n g   t o   c h a n n e l   f u n d s 
th roug h t he Un. 

E a c h   p r o p o s a l   s u b m i t t e d   b y   a n   E c h o 
p a r t n e r   i s   a s s e s s e d   n o t   o n l y   o n   i t s   o w n 
m e r i t s   b u t   a l s o   i n   c o m p a r i s o n   t o   o t h e r 
p r o p o s a l s   t o   e n s u r e   t h e   c o m p l e m e n t a-
r i t y   o f   a c t i o n s   i n   t h e   d e s i gn   a n d   d e l i ve r y 
o f   a i d .   fu r t h e r m o r e ,   E c h o   d o e s   i m p o s e 
c o m p e t i t i v e   t e n d e r i n g   r e q u i r e m e n t s   o n 
p a r t n e r s   w h e n   t h e y   p r o c u r e   g o o d s   a n d 
s e r v i c e s   n e e d e d   f o r   t h e   d e l i v e r y   o f   h u-
manitar ian aid.

IV. 
i n   2 0 0 7   t h e   U n   a n d   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n 
a g r e e d   o n   j o i n t   r e p o r t i n g   g u i d e l i n e s 
w h i c h   a r e   s i g n i f i c a n t l y   i m p r o v i n g   t h e 
q u a l i t y   o f   U n   r e p o r t i n g ,   p a r t i c u l a r l y   o n 
f i n a n c i a l   a s p e c t s.   o n   t h e   a c h i e ve m e nt   o f 
o b j e c t i v e s ,   a   j o i n t   m o n i t o r i n g   s y s t e m   i s 
b e i n g   d e v e l o p e d .   ho w e v e r   t h e   c o m m i s-
sion's ow n field m onitor ing  syste m i s  d e -
s i g n e d   t o   c o m p l e m e n t   t h e   r e p o r t i n g   o f 
ot hers.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

34

rEpl Y of thE 
commission

7 .
the European parliament, during the 2007 
d i s c h a r g e   d i s c u s s i o n s ,   r e p e a t i n g   e a r l i e r 
s t ate m e nt s,   c a l l e d   o n   t h e   co m m i s s i o n   to 
e s t a b l i s h   a   Eu ro p e a n   i n s t r u m e nt   to   m a n-
a g e   m u l t i - d o n o r   t r u s t   f u n d s   i t s e l f,   p a r -
t i c u l a r l y   fo r   t h e   i m p l e m e nt at i o n   o f   c r i s i s 
management. the commission has stated 
t h a t   i t   i s   i n   f a vo u r   o f   t h i s,   p ro v i d e d   t h a t 
t h e   fi n a n c i a l   r e g u l a t i o n   i s   m o d i f i e d   t o 
allow it,  wh ic h is not th e case  at  pre se nt. 

t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   d i s a g r e e s   t h a t   t h e r e   i s 
a   l a c k   o f   t ra n s p a re n c y   a n d   v i s i b i l i t y   co n-
c e r n i n g   i t s   f u n d i n g   t h r o u g h   t h e   Un  a n d 
c o n s i d e r s   t h a t   t h e   a c t i o n s   i t   h a s   u n d e r -
t a k e n   c o n t r i b u t e   t o   e n h a n c i n g   t r a n s p a r -
en c y fur the r.

9 .
t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   p r o c e d u r e s   o n   j o i n t 
m a n a g e me nt   a re  b a s ed   o n   a   f ul l   a p pra i s-
al  of  th e  Un   organ isation s  in  t he  areas  of 
a c c o u n t i n g ,   a u d i t ,   i n t e r n a l   c o n t r o l   a n d 
p r o c u r e m e n t ,   a s   r e q u i r e d   b y   a r t i c l e   5 3 d 
of th e f in ancial r eg ulation.

n g os,   o n   t h e   o t h e r   h a n d,   g i ve n   t h e   h e t -
e r o g e n e i t y   o f   t h e i r   s y s t e m s ,   d o   n o t   u n i-
f o r m l y   o f f e r   s i m i l a r   s t r e n g t h s .   c o n s e -
q u e n t l y   t h e y   a re   s u b j e c te d   to   p rov i s i o n s 
r e l a t e d   t o   t h e   d i re c t   m a n a g e m e n t   m o d e 
foreseen  by  the f in anc ial r eg ulation.

1 0.
i n   a d d i t i o n   t o   t h e   fa fa ,   t h e   s t a n d a r d 
c o n t r i b u t i o n   a g r e e m e n t   a l s o   i n c o r p o -
r a t e s   a l l   t h e   r e q u i r e m e n t s   e m a n a t i n g 
from t he f in anc ial r eg ulation.

INTRODUCTION

1.
t h e   i n c r e a s e   i n   c o n t r i b u t i o n s   f r o m   t h e 
comm iss ion to  t he Un is no t a con s tant ly 
r ising trend. While the Ec is an impor tant 
p a r t n e r   fo r   t h e   U n ,   t h e   i m p o r t a n ce   o f   E c 
f u n d i n g   t o   t h e   Un  i s   o f t e n   e x a g g e r a t e d . 
i n   f a c t   E c   f u n d i n g   t o   t h e   U n   v a r i e s   b y 
a g e n c y,   a n d,   a cco rd i n g   to   t h e   Un,   i t   re p -
resents, on average, bet ween 3  % and 8 % 
of Un res ou rce s. 

t h e   i m p o r t a n c e   o f   t h e   p a r t n e r s h i p   r e -
s i d e s   m o r e   i n   t h e   n a t u r e   a n d   v a r i e t y   o f 
t h e   w o r k   t h a t   t h e   E c   a n d   t h e   U n   d o   t o -
g e t h e r   o n   p r o g r a m m e s   t h a t   r a n g e   f r o m 
impor tant   p olic y  and  no r mat ive   to  m ajor 
r e h a b i l i t a t i o n   a n d   p o s t - c r i s i s   i n t e r v e n-
t i o n s   a n d   l e s s   i n   t h e   a n n u a l   f l u c t u a t i o n s 
in cont r ibu tio ns. 

4.
Wi t h   re g a rd   t o   t h e   Un  a g e n c y   i n   t h e   o c -
c u p i e d   p a l e s t i n i a n   t e r r i t o r y,   t h e   c o m-
m i s s i o n ' s   m a i n   c o n t r i b u t i o n   i s   t o   t h e 
a g e n c y ' s   g e n e r a l   f u n d   t o   s u p p o r t   t h e 
a g e n c y ' s   c r u c i a l   c o r e   p r o g r a m m e   s e r v -
ices in the areas of health, education and 
s o c i a l   s e r v i ce s.  th e   co m m i s s i o n' s   co nt r i-
b u t i o n   i s   e s s e n t i a l l y   u s e d   to   p ay   s a l a r i e s 
fo r   t e a c h e r s,   d o c t o r s   a n d   s o c i a l   w o r k e r s 
ac tive in the refugee camps. the commis-
sion provides additional suppor t through 
ad hoc  p rojec t s  and throu gh Ech o . 

i t should be noted that the commission is 
a member of one Un organisation. as such 
i t   p a y s   a n   a n n u a l   m e m b e r s i p   f e e ,   w h i c h 
in 200 9 amo unted to  264 002, 50 e uro.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

 
3535

rEpl Y of thE 
commission

t h e   a n n u a l   a c t i o n   p r o g r a m m e s ,   a s   r e -
v i s e d   i n   2 0 0 8 ,   r e q u i r e   i n f o r m a t i o n   o n 
t h e   i m p l e m e n t i n g   p a r t n e r s   s e l e c t e d   t o 
b e   i n c l u d e d ,   i n c l u d i n g   t h e   r e a s o n s   f o r 
c h o o s i n g   t h e   o rg a n i s a t i o n   a n d,   i f   k n ow n 
a n d   w h e r e   a p p r o p r i a t e,   t h e   n a m e   o f   t h e 
par t ner s that t he  organisation  wi l l us e to 
implement the ac tion and the reasons for 
th is ar ran geme nt.

i n   t h e   i m p l e m e n t a t i o n   o f   h u m a n i t a r i a n 
a i d   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   d o e s   n o t   f a v o u r   e i-
ther the Un agencies or its other par tners 
(n g os   o r   o t h e r   i n t e r n a t i o n a l   o r g a n i s a-
t i o n s ) .  t h e   co m m i s s i o n   s e l e c t s   t h e   p a r t -
n e r s   o n   t h e   b a s i s   o f   s u i t a b i l i t y   a n d   c o m-
p l e t e n e s s   o f   t h e   p ro p o s a l s   fo r   a   s p e c i f i c 
i nte r ve nt i o n   p re s e nte d   i n   re l at i o n   to   t h e 
n e e d s   o f   v i c t i m s   o f   m a n - m a d e   a n d   n a t u-
ral disaster s.

t h e   e v a l u a t i o n   f o u n d   t h a t   ‘d e c i s i o n s   t o 
c h a n n e l   f u n d s   w e r e ,   i n   t h e   m a j o r i t y   o f 
c a s e s   e x a m i n e d ,   b a s e d   o n   d o c u m e n t e d 
s t u d i e s.   fo r   t h e   o t h e r s,   l i t t l e   d o c u m e n t -
e d   e v i d e n c e   c o u l d   b e   r e t r i e v e d   o n   t h e 
r a t i o n a l e   o f   t h e   d e c i s i o n s ,   b u t   c o m m i s -
sion   st aff  g enerally  con sider   th at   t he   d e -
c isions  were j ust ifie d.’

OBSERVATIONS

16 .
t h e   s i x   t h e m a t i c   a re a s   m e n t i o n e d   i n   t h e 
co u n c i l ' s   n o ve m b e r   2 0 0 0   s t a t e m e n t   a n d 
i n   t h e   E u r o p e a n   c o m m u n i t y ' s   d e v e l o p -
m e n t   p o l i c y   we re   p ro p o s e d   fo r   d e ve l o p -
m e n t   i n t e r v e n t i o n s   b y   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n , 
c o - o r d i n a t e d   w i t h   m e m b e r   s t a t e s .   i t   i s 
not expec ted that the commission should 
c h a n n e l   f u n d s   t h r o u g h   i n t e r n a t i o n a l   o r -
g a n i s at i o n s   i n   t h e s e   a re a s   o n l y.  th e   a d d-
ed value of the Un lies in areas identified 
s e p a r a t e l y,   n a m e l y   re c o n s t r u c t i o n   ( l a rg e 
m u l t i - d o n o r   t r u s t   f u n d s ) ,   a r e a s   c o v e r e d 
by a sp ecific  mandate ( su ch as U n r Wa or 
Wfp) and specific exper tise (such as Who 
on  hea lt h p o l ici es  and p and emics ).

th e   2 0 0 1   co m m i s s i o n   co m m u n i c at i o n   o n 
‘ B u i l d i n g   a n   e f f e c t i v e   p a r t n e r s h i p   w i t h 
t h e   U n i t e d   na t i o n s ’  t a k e s   t h e   c o o p e r a-
t i o n   w i t h   t h e   Un  b e yo n d   t h e s e   s i x   a re a s. 
i t should also be noted that the adoption 
of the European consensus in 2005, which 
sets out the EU vision of development, no 
l o n g e r   re fe r s   to   t h e   t h e m a t i c   a re a s   m e n-
tioned in t he ear l ier 20 00  docu m ent.

17. 
a s   a   re s u l t   o f   t h e   e v a l u a t i o n   o f   co m m i s-
s i o n’s   e x t e r n a l   c o o p e r a t i o n   w i t h   p a r t n e r 
c o u n t r i e s   t h r o u g h   t h e   o r g a n i s a t i o n s   o f 
t h e   Un  f a m i l y 1,   a n d   s i n ce   t h e   t i m e   o f   t h e 
audit, instr uc t ions were is sued  to  s ta ff  i n 
Europea id  and  in  de le gat ions   on   1 7   Jun e 
2 0 0 9 .  th e s e   i n s t r u c t i o n s   re q u i re   t h e m   to 
r e c o r d   t h e i r   a s s e s s m e n t ,   w h e n   i d e n t i f y -
i n g   p r o p o s a l s   fo r   f i n a n c i n g   t h r o u g h   t h e 
Un,   o f   t h e   a d d e d   v a l u e   o f   t h i s   a p p ro a c h . 
t h e   a s s e s s m e n t   p r o c e s s   w i l l   t h e r e f o r e  
b e  m o r e   s y s t e m a t i c a l l y   a n d   c l e a r l y 
 docume nte d.

1  http://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/how/evaluation_reports/ 

2008/1252_docs_en.htm

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

36

rEpl Y of thE 
commission

2 0.
t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   d e c i d e s   t o   c h a n n e l 
f u n d s   t h ro u g h   Un  o rg a n i s at i o n s   fo r   va r i-
o u s   r e a s o n s .   i n   s o m e   c a s e s   t h e r e   i s   n o 
a l t e r n a t i ve,   e. g.   t h e   Un  h a s   a   c l e a r   m a n-
date to ac t  on be half of the  inter nati onal 
c o m m u n i t y,   o r   i t   h a s   s p e c i f i c   e x p e r t i s e 
n o t   fo u n d   e l s e w h e r e .   i n   o t h e r   c a s e s   t h e 
Un  h a s   b e e n   i d e n t i f i e d   a s   t h e   o n l y   a l-
t e r n a t i v e   w i t h   t h e   r e q u i r e d   l o g i s t i c a l   o r 
m a n a g e m e n t   c a p a c i t y   f o r   t h e   o p e r a t i o n 
i n   q u e s t i o n .   t h e   Un  h a s   a l s o   f r e q u e n t l y 
been   s elec ted  a s  a  par tn er  bec aus e  of   i ts 
e x p e r i e n ce   a n d   a b i l i t y   to   wo r k   i n   a   p o s t-
c r i s i s   e n v i r o n m e n t   a n d   i t s   i n - c o u n t r y 
p r e s e n c e   i n   s u c h   s i t u a t i o n s .   t h e s e   r e a -
s o n s   a r e   r e f l e c t e d   i n   t h e   a n s w e r s   t o   t h e 
cour t' s questionn aire.

2 1.
Wi t h   re g a rd   t o   t h e   d e c i s i o n   m a k i n g   p ro -
ce s s   a n d   t h e   re p l i e s   to   t h e   co u r t ' s   q u e s-
t i o n n a i re   o n   t h i s   m at te r,   t h e   f a c t   t h a t   a n 
e l e m e n t   i s   n o t   i n d i c a t e d   a s   o n e   o f   t h e 
m a i n   t h re e   f a c t o r s   fo r   d e c i s i o n   d o e s   n o t 
m e a n   t h a t   i t   i s   b e i n g   d i s re g a rd e d   o r   n e -
g l e c t e d .   t h e s e   f a c t o r s   h a v e   b e e n   t a k e n 
i n t o   c o n s i d e r a t i o n   a s   a d d i t i o n a l   re a s o n s 
b u t   w e r e   n o t   a l w a y s   c o n s i d e r e d   a m o n g 
t h e   t h r e e   m o s t   r e l e v a n t   d e p e n d i n g   o n 
th e sit uation.

fu n d i n g   f o r   h u m a n i t a r i a n   a i d   i s   p r i m a-
r ily   direc ted  to  th e  areas  of  high e s t  ne e d 
a n d   t h e   c a p a c i t y   t o   d e l i v e r.   c o n s i d e r a-
t i o n s   o f   c o s t   a n d   s p e e d   o f   d e l i v e r y   a r e 
also of great impor tan ce an d fo r  all larg e 
p r o j e c t s   s p e c i a l   a t t e n t i o n   i s   p a i d   t o   t h e 
v i s i b i l i t y   c o m p o n e n t .   t h e   d e c i s i o n - m a k-
i n g   p r o c e s s   i s   f i n a l i s e d   b y   t h e   au t h o r i s -
in g o fficer.

18.
t h e   i n s t r u c t i o n s   i s s u e d   b y   E u r o p e a i d   t o 
delegation staff ensure that any proposal 
to cha nnel  f unds  throu gh an inter n ati on-
a l   o rg a n i s a t i o n   i s   b a c k e d   u p   w i t h   a   c l e a r 
wr itten justification (see instruc tion note 
o f   1 7   J u n e   2 0 0 9 ) .   i n   a d d i t i o n ,   t h e   a n a-
l y s e s   o f   t h e   s e c t i o n   o n   i n t e r n a t i o n a l   o r -
g a n i s a t i o n s   i n c l u d e d   i n   t h e   t w i c e   ye a r l y 
e x t e r n a l   a s s i s t a n ce   m a n a g e m e n t   re p o r t s 
(Eamrs )  have   been  co mmu nic ate d   to  op -
eration al st aff an d del egatio ns.

o t h e r   i n i t i a t i v e s   h a v e   a l s o   b e e n   t a k e n 
i n c l u d i n g ,   f o r   e x a m p l e ,   t h e   p r o d u c t i o n 
o f   v a r i o u s   m e t h o d o l o g i c a l   g u i d e l i n e s , 
t h e   m o s t   r e c e n t   o f   w h i c h   c o v e r s   t e c h n i-
c a l   co o p e rat i o n ,   s e l e c te d   a s s e s s m e nt s   o f 
o u r   U n   p a r t n e r s,   t h e   p ro d u c t i o n   o f   a   s e t 
o f   f r e q u e n t l y   a s k e d   q u e s t i o n   o n  i n t e r -
n a t i o n a l   o r g a n i s a t i o n s   a n d   t r a i n i n g 
courses of relevance to staff work ing with 
inter n atio nal  o rganisat ion s.

19.
m o n i t o r i n g   i n f o r m a t i o n   o n   a l l   t h e   p a s t 
and current projec ts is now readily acces-
sible  to  al l des k o fficers.

th e   co m m i s s i o n   i s   f u l l y   aw a re   o f   t h e   i m -
p l e m e n t a t i o n   c a p a c i t y   a n d   s t r e n g t h s   o f 
individual Un agencies implementing hu-
m a n i t a r i a n   a i d.  t h e   i n fo r m a t i o n   o n   t h e i r 
p a s t   a n d   p l a n n e d   a c t i v i t i e s   i n   re l at i o n   to 
o n g o i n g   a n d   re c u r re n t   h u m a n i t a r i a n   c r i -
s e s   i s   a n n u a l l y   a n d   i n d i v i d u a l l y   r e v i s e d 
i n   t h e  ‘s t r a t e g i c   p r o g r a m m i n g   d i a l o g u e’ 
meetin gs.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

37

rEpl Y of thE 
commission

th e   co m m i s s i o n   f u n d s   t h e   s u p p o r t   co s t s 
in so far as they are costs incur red direc t-
l y   re l a te d   t o   t h e   p rov i s i o n   o f   h u m a n i t a r-
ian  aid.

2 4. 
i n   add ition  to  th e  exam ple  of  food   t ran s-
p o r t e d ,   c i t e d   b y   t h e   co u r t ,   t h e   co m m i s-
sion channels aid through the Un in other 
areas where the capacit y of the Un to de -
l i ve r   q u i c k l y   i s   we l l   k n o w n ,   i n   p a r t i c u l a r 
post cr isis and rehabilitation. the Evalua-
tion of the Commission's ex ternal co op era-
tion with par tner countries through the or-
ganisations of the UN family  cites positive 
e x a m p l e s   o f   f u n d s   c h a n n e l l e d   t h r o u g h 
t h e   Un  i n   c r i s i s   o r   p o s t - c r i s i s   s i t u a t i o n s, 
w h e re   t h e   at t r i b u te s   o f   t h e   Un  ( e. g.   n e u-
tralit y, exper tise, field presence) were in-
strumental in ensur ing that Ec assistance 
reach ed benef iciar ies.

t h e   E a m r s   h a v e   b e e n   a d a p t e d   t o   h i g h -
light those programmes where delays oc-
c u r   s o   a s   i n i t i a t e   r e m e d i a l   a c t i o n .   t h u s , 
s u c h   e x p e r i e n ce s   fe e d   i n to   t h e   d e c i s i o n -
mak in g process. 

22 . 
U n d e r   a r t i c l e   5   o f   t h e   fa fa ,   t h e   U n   i s 
o b l i g e d   t o   p r o v i d e   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   w i t h 
details of contrac ting arrangements and is 
a s k e d   to   e n s u re   t h a t   t h i s   s h o u l d   n o t   l e a d 
t o   i n c re a s e d   c o s t s   o ve r   d i re c t   i m p l e m e n-
tation. the commission considers that the 
c a s e   m e n t i o n e d   i s   n o t   s u b s t a n t i a t e d   a s 
l e a d i n g   t o   i n c re a s e d   c o s t   o ve r   d i re c t   i m -
p l e m e n t a t i o n .   ho w e v e r,   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n 
w i l l   e n s u r e   t h a t   i t   r e c e i v e s   t h i s   i n f o r m a-
tion from the Un organisation for the case 
m e n t i o n e d   w h e n   t h e   f i n a l   r e p o r t   i n   r e -
spec t of the ac tion is presented and, if not 
satisfied  that  ar ticle  5  has  been  complied 
w i t h ,   w i l l   co n s i d e r   a p p ro p r i ate   co r re c t i ve 
m e a s u r e s ,   p o s s i b l y   i n c l u d i n g   a   r e c o v e r y 
order against the Un organisation.

i n   t h e   c a s e   o f   h u m a n i t a r i a n   a i d,   t h e   co m-
m i s s i o n   o n l y   s u p p o r t s   d i re c t   c o s t s   o f   t h e 
intermediar y. these may include payments 
t o   o t h e r   o r g a n i s a t i o n s .   t h e   p a y m e n t s 
m a d e   b y   t h e   Un  m u s t   b e   i n   l i n e   w i t h   i t s 
n o r m a l   p ro c e d u re s,   fo r   a c t i v i t i e s   d i re c t l y 
re l ate d   to   t h e   p ro j e c t   a n d   b e   i n   t h e   t i m e -
frame given by the projec t objec tives.

23 . 
t h e   c o n t e x t   i n   w h i c h   a i d   i s   d e l i v e r e d   i n 
s u d a n   i s   p a r t i c u l a r l y   c o m p l e x   a n d   d i f f i -
c u l t .   W i t h o u t   a d e q u a t e   t r a n s p o r t ,   s t o r -
a g e   a n d   h a n d l i n g,   t h e re   i s   a   r i s k   t h at   t h e 
fo o d   w o u l d   b e   d a m a g e d   o r   n o t   a r r i ve   a t 
t h e   f i n a l   b e n e f i c i a r i e s .   s o u t h e r n   s u d a n 
a n d   da r f u r   a r e   t w o   r e g i o n s   w h e r e   i n f r a-
s t r u c t u re   i s   ve r y   p o o r,   t h e   p r i v a te   s e c to r 
i n e x i s t e n t   a n d   q u a l i f i e d   s t a f f   v e r y   d i f f i-
c u l t   t o   f i n d   a n d   v e r y   e x p e n s i v e .   a l l   t h i s 
r e s u l t s   i n   s u p p o r t   c o s t s   b e i n g   h i g h e r 
t h a n   w h a t   m i g h t   b e   c o n s i d e r e d   u s u a l   i n 
o t h e r   p l a c e s.  th i s   i m p l i e s   t h a t   e n h a n c e d 
s u p e r v i s i o n   i s   n e e d e d.   su c h   co s t s   a re   d i-
rec t co sts acco rding  to  t he f ir st  i n de nt  of 
ar t icle 3 .2 o f t he fafa.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

38

rEpl Y of thE 
commission

t h e   c a m p   d e v e l o p m e n t   p r o j e c t   h a d   t w o 
c o m p o n e n t s :   a   s o c i o e c o n o m i c   s u r v e y 
o f   pa l e s t i n i a n   r e f u g e e s   i n   a l l   f i e l d s   a n d 
t h e   c a m p   d e ve l o p m e nt   co m p o n e nt.   B o t h 
c o m p o n e n t s   w e r e   i n t e r r e l a t e d .   t h e   f i r s t 
t a s k   w a s   h i g h l y   c o m p l e x   a n d   t o o k   l o n g -
e r   t o   c o m p l e t e   t h a n   a n t i c i p a t e d .   r e c o n -
s t r u c t i o n   i s   a   s e n s i t i ve   i s s u e   a s   i t   c a n   b e 
see n as compromisin g th e r ight  to re t ur n 
a n d   c o n s i d e r a b l e   t i m e   w a s   s p e n t   b y   t h e 
U n   o rg a n i s at i o n   to   e x p l a i n   t h e   a p p ro a c h 
to re fugees an d to get th em  on  bo ard.

t h e   Un  o r g a n i s a t i o n   w a s   g r a n t e d   t h e 
f l e x i b i l i t y   t o   f u l f i l   t h e   o b j e c t i v e s   o f   t h e 
program me  d ue  to t he impor tan ce  o f  t h e 
o u t p u t s   o f   t h e   i n i t i a t i ve   a n d   to   e n a b l e   i t 
t o   i n s t i t u t i o n a l i s e   t h i s   f u n d a m e n t a l   a p -
proach within its camp development pro -
gramme and depar tment ser ving millions 
o f   r e f u g e e s   i n   t h e   o c c u p i e d   pa l e s t i n i a n 
ter r itor y, s y r ia, J ordan an d  l eban on.

2 5. 
the commission has made huge effor ts in 
recent  yea rs  to  e nsure  th at  cont r ibuti ons 
t h r o u g h   t h e   Un  r e c e i v e   a p p r o p r i a t e   v i s-
ibilit y  and  that  t h e  result s  of   commun it y 
i n t e r ve n t i o n s   a re   c o m m u n i c a t e d   w i d e l y. 
t h e   U n   i s   aw a re   o f   i t s   o b l i g a t i o n s   u n d e r 
t h e   fa fa   a n d   h a s   co m m i t te d   i t s e l f   at   t h e 
highest level to ensure that the letter and 
s p i r i t   o f   t h e s e   p r o v i s i o n s   a r e   r e s p e c t e d . 
J o i n t   v i s i b i l i t y   g u i d e l i n e s   w e r e   a d o p t e d 
a n d   i n c l u d e d   i n   t h e   co m m u n i c a t i o n   a n d 
Vi s i b i l i t y   m a n u a l   fo r   E U   E x t e r n a l   ac t i o n s 
i n   a p r i l   2 0 0 8 .  th e s e   i n i t i a t i ve s   a n d   c o m -
m i t m e n t s   c o m b i n e   to   e n s u re   t h a t   t h e   Ec  
receives appropr iate visibilit y when par t-
n er in g with  the  Un . 

B ox  1 —  Exa mp le s o f  slow 
 implem e ntatio n of a id
i t   i s   t r u e   t h a t   i m p l e m e n t a t i o n   o f   t h e 
 i nte r i m   di s a r m a m e nt,   d e m o b i l i s at i o n   a n d 
 r e i n t e g r a t i o n   p r o g r a m m e   (i d d r p)   m a n-
a g e d   b y   a   U n   o r g a n i s a t i o n   i n   s u d a n   w a s 
d e l a y e d .   ho w e v e r,   u n t i l   J u n e   2 0 0 8   t h i s 
w a s   l a r g e l y   d u e   t o   t h e   l a c k   o f   p o l i t i c a l 
w i l l   o n   t h e   p a r t   o f   t h e   s i g n a t o r i e s   t o   t h e 
c pa  ( c o m p r e h e n s i v e   p e a c e   a g r e e m e n t ) . 
this  was  a  fac tor  beyond  the  Un  organisa-
t i o n’s   co nt ro l,   a n d   i s   a l s o   w hy   t h e   d e l e g a-
tion  and  the  g over nment  of  sudan  agreed 
t o   a n   e x t e n s i o n   o f   t h e   p r o j e c t   u n t i l   J u n e 
2 0 0 9   w i t h o u t   a d d i t i o n a l   c o s t s .   ho w e v e r, 
although the disarmament, demobilisation 
a n d   re i nte grat i o n   p ro ce s s   k i c k e d   o f f   a f te r 
June 2008, there were still some additional 
delays.

the second ex tension focused on concrete 
a n d   c l e a r l y   v i s i b l e   a c t i v i t i e s.  t h e   re m a i n-
i n g   o r i g i n a l   a c t i v i t i e s   w h i c h ,   fo r   p o l i t i c a l 
reasons,  could  not  be  implemented  by  the 
e n d   o f   J u n e   2 0 0 9   a r e   b e i n g   f i n a n c e d   b y 
other donors. 

t h e   s l o w n e s s   o f   i m p l e m e n t a t i o n   o f   t h e 
 i d d r p  h a s   b e e n   re g u l a r l y   r a i s e d   w i t h   t h e 
Un organisation. 

t h e   c h a l l e n g i n g   c o n t e x t   o f   s o u t h   su d a n 
m u s t   b e   f a c t o r e d   i n .   W i t h   r e g a r d   t o   t h e 
c o n s t r u c t i o n   o f   t h e   l e g a l   o f f i c e s,   w h i l e   i t 
i s   t r u e   t h a t   t h e   p a r t n e r   u n d e r p e r fo r m e d , 
i t   wo u l d   b e   i n co r re c t   to   l ay   t h e   b l a m e   e n-
t i re l y   o n   t h e m   b u t   a l s o   o n   p a r t l y   o b s t r u c -
t i ve   b e n e f i c i a r i e s.  th e   d e l e g at i o n   h a s   fo l -
l owe d   u p   t h i s   p ro j e c t   c l o s e l y   a n d   w h e n   i t 
became apparent that implementation was 
n o t   o n l y   p r o g r e s s i n g   s l o w l y   b u t   t h a t   t h e 
o p t i o n s   s u b m i t t e d   b y   t h e   p a r t n e r   f o r   a n 
e x t e n s i o n   wo u l d   l e a d   t o   a   s u b s t a n t i a l   re -
duc tion in the scope of works, the decision 
was taken not to endorse the request. 

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

39

rEpl Y of thE 
commission

2 8. 
t h e   f i n a n c i a l   r e g u l a t i o n   f o r e s e e s   t h e 
p o s s i b i l i t y   o f   m e m b e r   s t a t e s   p r o v i d i n g 
c o n t r i b u t i o n s   d i r e c t l y   t o   t h e   c o m m i s-
s i o n' s   b u d g e t   w h e n   a l l owe d   by   t h e   l e g a l 
base.

3 2. 
i n   J u n e   2 0 0 9 ,   t h e   t e r m s   o f   r e f e r e n c e   i n 
u s e   t o   c o n d u c t   t h e   c o m p l i a n c e   a s s e s s-
m e n t   e x e r c i s e   w e r e   m o d i f i e d   a n d   n o w 
provide  for an  as sessme nt of how t he  e n-
tit y controls the systems of other entities 
w h e r e   i t   u s e s   p r o c e d u r e s   o t h e r   t h a n   i t s 
own (e.g. local systems of the beneficiar y 
co u nt r y   o r   o f   t h e   i m p l e m e nt i n g   b o d y )   to 
impleme nt  proje c ts/programm es.

W h e n   c o n f e r r i n g   a   t a s k   t o   a   U n   a g e n c y, 
t h e   co m m i s s i o n ,   i n   a c c o r d a n c e   w i t h   t h e 
f i n a n c i a l   r e g u l a t i o n ,   u s e s   j o i n t   m a n -
a g e m e n t   a s   t h e   m o d e   o f   o p e r a t i o n .   t h i s 
r e s u l t s   i n   t h e   Un   a g e n c y   u s i n g   i t s   p r o -
c e d u r e s   f o r   t h e   i m p l e m e n t a t i o n   o f   h u -
m a n i t a r i a n   a i d.  t h e   Un  a g e n c y   m a y   c o n-
f i n e   s o m e   i m p l e m e n t at i o n   t a s k s   to   o t h e r 
par ties ac ting under the Un's responsibil-
it y. i n the case cited, the output achieved 
w a s   t h e   a d d e d   v a l u e   i n   t e r m s   o f   t h e   Un  
o r g a n i s a t i o n   c o o r d i n a t i n g   t h e   e m e r g e n-
c y   r e s p o n s e   w h i c h   i n v o l v e d   m a n y   o t h e r 
 ac tors.

3 3. 
t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   r e c o g n i s e s   t h a t   t h e 
qualit y  an d timin g of  U n  repor t ing is n ot 
o p t i m a l.  th i s   m at te r   co nt i n u a l l y   re ce i ve s 
c o m m i s s i o n   a t t e n t i o n   a n d   r e p o r t i n g   i s 
a l s o   a d d r e s s e d   i n   t h e   i n s t r u c t i o n   i s s u e d 
b y   E u r o p ea i d   t o   d e l e g a t i o n s   a l r e a d y 
mention ed.

feedback  fro m del eg at ions t hro u gh  t he ir 
regular  rep or t ing   s hows   th at  th is   is s ue   is 
bein g addres sed at f iel d l evel  and  e f for t s 
are  als o  mad e  to   en su re  th at  infor m ati on 
f ro m   t h e   f i e l d   i s   c o m m u n i c a te d   to   a n   E U 
a u d i e n c e.   i n   g e n e r a l ,   t h e   c o n c l u s i o n s   o f 
ve r i f i c a t i o n   m i s s i o n s   a re   a l s o   p o s i t i ve   i n 
relatio n to  visib il it y.

i n   a d d i t i o n   t h e   Un  i t s e l f   h a s,   s i n ce   2 0 0 6 , 
p r e p a r e d   a n   a n n u a l   p a r t n e r s h i p   r e p o r t , 
w h i c h   p re s e n t s   t h e   re s u l t s   o f   t h e   U n – E U 
par t ne rship  in  devel op ment  and  hu man i-
ta r ian  co op erat ion to  a w ide au d ie nce.

26. 
t h e   i n s t r u c t i o n s   i s s u e d   b y   E u r o p e a i d   t o 
delegation staff ensure that any proposal 
to cha nnel  f unds  throu gh an inte r nat io n-
a l   o rg a n i s a t i o n   i s   b a c k e d   u p   w i t h   a   c l e a r 
w r i t t e n   j u s t i f i c a t i o n .   t h e s e   i n s t r u c t i o n s 
re q u i re   t h e m   to   re co rd   t h e i r   a s s e s s m e nt , 
w h e n   i d e nt i f y i n g   p ro p o s a l s   fo r   f i n a n c i n g 
t h r o u g h   t h e   U n ,   o f   t h e   a d d e d   v a l u e   o f 
t h i s   a p p ro a c h   a n d   t o   t a k e   a c c o u n t   o f   a l -
ter natives and cos t- effec t ivenes s  is s ue s.

f u r t h e r m o r e ,   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   c a r r i e s 
o u t   a n   e v a l u a t i o n   o f   b o t h   p a r t n e r s   a n d 
p r o j e c t s   w h e r e   t h e   e f f i c i e n c y   a n d   e f -
f e c t i v e n e s s   o f   a i d   d e l i v e r y   i s   e x a m i n e d . 
these  evalu at io n s are p ub lic l y ava ilabl e. 

r e g a r d i n g   h u m a n i t a r i a n   a i d ,   p l e a s e   s e e 
reply to  p ara grap h 4 8.

27. 
f o r   h u m a n i t a r i a n   a i d ,   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n 
w i l l   e n s u r e   a   b e t t e r   d o c u m e n t a t i o n   o f 
t h e   a l t e r n a t i v e s   a n d   c o m p l e m e n t a r i t i e s 
consid ered.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

40

rEpl Y of thE 
commission

i n the area of humanitarian aid most mul -
t i   d o n o r   gra n t s   a re   e a r m a r k e d   to   co m p l y 
w i t h   t h e   h u m a n i t a r i a n   a i d   r e g u l a t i o n   i n 
t e r m s ,   f o r   e x a m p l e ,   o f   p r o j e c t   d u r a t i o n 
limits. 

t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   a l s o   s t r i v e s   t o   e n s u r e 
t h a t ,   i n   t h e   a b s e n c e   o f   e a r m a r k i n g,   p r o -
g r a m m e s   h a v e   c l e a r l y   i d e n t i f i e d   o b j e c -
t i ve s   w h e re   re s u l t s   c a n   b e   d e m o n s t r a te d 
an d monitored. 

3 5.
E a r m a r k i n g   o n l y   o cc u r s   fo r   re a s o n s   m e n -
t i o n e d   i n   p a r a g r a p h   3 4   a n d   t h e   a s s o c i-
a t e d   c o s t s   a r e   n e c e s s a r y   a n d   c a n n o t   b e 
c o n s i d e r e d   a s   a n   u n p r o d u c t i v e   u s e   o f 
 resources.

B ox 3  —  E xamp le o f  earmark in g
c o m m i s s i o n   s u p p o r t   t o   t h e   e l e c t i o n s   i n 
guyana was decid ed before it  was  k n ow n 
th at   oth er  donor s  would  be   invol ve d  an d 
b e fo re   i t   w a s   k n ow n   t h a t   a   Un   o rg a n i s a-
t i o n   w o u l d   c o o r d i n a t e .   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n 
n e g o t i a t e d   i n i t i a l l y   w i t h   t h e   E l e c t i o n s 
c o m m i s s i o n   a n d   d e c i d e d   t o   f i n a n c e   a 
number of ac tivities it wanted to suppor t 
a n d ,   s o   a s   t o   a v o i d   f u r t h e r   c h a n g e s   a n d 
d e l ay s,   i t   m a i n t a i n e d   t h i s   e a r m a r k e d   a p -
p r o a c h .   i n   t h e   e n d ,   U k   a n d   c i d a   o p t e d 
f o r   n o n - e a r m a r k e d   f u n d i n g   t h r o u g h   t h e 
Un  o r g a n i s a t i o n ,   a n d   Us a i d  g r a n t e d   i t s 
funding direc tly to the Elec tions commis-
sion. as regards the recording of expendi-
ture in the Un accounting system, the Un 
i s   m o v i n g   t o   a c t i v i t y - b a s e d   b u d g e t i n g , 
m a k i n g   r e c o n c i l i a t i o n   a c c o r d i n g   t o   c o n-
t r i b u t i o n   a gre e m e nt   b u d g e t   h e a d i n g s   a n 
o n e r o u s   t a s k .   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   d o e s   n o t 
i n s i s t   o n   a   p a r t i c u l a r   b u d g e t   f o r m a t   f o r 
t h e   Un  a n d   fo r m u l at i n g   t h e   b u d g e t   f ro m 
t h e   o u t s e t   i n   a c c o r d a n c e   w i t h   t h e   Un' s 
a c c o u n t i n g   s y s t e m   w o u l d   f a c i l i t a t e   u n-
der stan ding  and subseq uent repor ti n g.

r e p o r t i n g   g u i d e l i n e s   a d o p t e d   i n   2 0 0 7 
c l a r i f y   t h e   re s p o n s i b i l i t i e s   o f   t h e   Un   a n d 
h a v e   r e s u l t e d   i n   i m p r o v e m e n t s .   r e p o r t -
i n g   i s   a l s o   r e g u l a r l y   d i s c u s s e d   w i t h   t h e 
Un. as a result, fur ther clarifications were 
p r o v i d e d   i n   t h e   f r e q u e n t l y   a s k e d   q u e s-
t i o n s,   w h i c h   we re   p o s te d   o n   t h e   Eu ro p e -
aid  web s ite in Januar y 2009. 

th e   co m m i s s i o n   a p p re c i a te s   t h e   n e e d   fo r 
o u t c o m e   a n d   i m p a c t   i n d i c a t o r s   a n d ,   i n 
common with other donors, has been work-
i n g   t o   e s t a b l i s h   s u c h   i n d i c a t o r s .  ne v e r -
t h e l e s s ,   t h e   d e v e l o p m e n t   o f   s u c h   m e a s-
ures is difficult and there is no consensus 
a m o n g   d o n o r s   o n   h o w   b e s t   t o   m e a s u r e 
r e s u l t s   i n   a   s a t i s f a c t o r y   w a y.   E u r o p e a i d 
h a s ,   o n   t h e   b a s i s   o f   e x   p o s t   m o n i t o r i n g 
r e p o r t s ,   r e c e n t l y   c o m p l e t e d   a   s t u d y   o f 
t h o s e   f a c t o r s   w h i c h   d e t e r m i n e   g o o d   o r 
p o o r   p e r f o r m a n c e .   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   h a s 
a l s o   i n i t i a t e d   t h e   d e v e l o p m e n t   o f   j o i n t 
m o n i to r i n g   m e t h o d s   w h i c h   co u l d   b e   c a r-
r ied out with U n agencies, should the U n 
decide  to  p ar tic ip ate in t his end e avour. 

B ox  2 — D if ficu ltie s in  me a suri ng   
p er form a nce
to   o v e r c o m e   t h e   d i f f i c u l t i e s   a s s o c i a t e d 
with shor t repor ting timescales, the com-
m i s s i o n   c a r r i e s   o u t   e v a l u a t i o n s   o f   h u-
m a n i t a r i a n   a c t i v i t i e s   w h i c h   a l s o   i n c l u d e s 
th e im pac t  o f hum anitar ian aid.

34. 
t h e   co m m i s s i o n   i s   e x p l o r i n g   w a y s   t o   re -
d u c e   e a r m a r k i n g   i n   a c c o r d a n c e   w i t h   i t s 
i n t e r n a t i o n a l   c o m m i t m e n t s .   h o w e v e r,   i t 
must be borne in mind that for operation -
a l,   t e c h n i c a l   o r   l e g a l   re a s o n s   e a r m a r k i n g 
may be necessar y. this is the case, for ex-
a m p l e   f o r   Ed f  p r o g r a m m e s ,   w h e r e   l e g a l 
constraints  apply,  in  that  the  money  allo -
cated can only be spent in acp countr ies.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

36 . 
t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   a g r e e s   w i t h   t h e   c o u r t 
that by contributing to the general budg-
e t   o f   a   Un  a g e n c y   i t   w a s   a b l e   t o   e n g a g e 
i n   a   h i g h - l e v e l   d i a l o g u e   t o   i m p r o v e   t h e 
s y s t e m   fo r   m e a s u r i n g   t h e   o r g a n i s a t i o n’s 
p e r fo r m a n ce   a n d   p rov i d i n g   c l e a r   a n d   re -
lia ble info r matio n o n th e ac hieve me nt   of 
res ult s. 

38. 
r o m  i s   a   c o m p r e h e n s i v e   a n d   r e s u l t -
 o r i e n t e d   m o n i t o r i n g   s y s t e m   w h i c h   c a n 
co m p l e m e n t   i n s u f f i c i e n t   s e l f - m o n i to r i n g 
c a r r i e d   o u t   b y   t h e   i m p l e m e n t i n g   a g e n-
c i e s   a s   i t   p r o v i d e s   a   g o o d   o v e r v i e w   o f 
t h e   i m p l e m e n t a t i o n   o f   t h e   p ro j e c t s   w i t h 
c l e a r l y   d e f i n e d   c r i te r i a .   r o m   i s   b a s e d   o n 
s a m p l i n g,   w i t h   t h e   c o ve r a g e   v a r y i n g   d e -
p e n d i n g   o n   f a c t o r s   s u c h   a s   p r o j e c t   s i z e 
a n d   a c c e s s i b i l i t y   t o   t h e   p r o j e c t   a t   f i e l d 
l e v e l   ( d u e   t o   s e c u r i t y   a n d   o t h e r   c o n s i d -
e r a t i o n s ) .   t h e   c o v e r a g e   o f   p r o j e c t s   m a y 
also var y by region and  is  no t neces sar i ly 
different  fo r Un-imp l emented p ro jec t s. 

t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   h a s   i n i t i a t e d   t h e   d e -
v e l o p m e n t   o f   j o i n t   m o n i t o r i n g   m e t h o d s 
which could be carried out with Un agen-
c i e s ,   s h o u l d   t h e   Un  d e c i d e d   t o   p a r t i c i-
pate in t his endeavo ur.

41

rEpl Y of thE 
commission

B ox 4   — L imitat io ns  o f  Euro p eAi d   
field  monitoring 
th e   o p e n i n g   o f   a n   o f f i ce   i n   J u b a   wa s   d e -
l a y e d   f o r   s t a f f i n g   a n d   s e c u r i t y   r e a s o n s . 
a   l i m i t e d   b u t   p e r m a n e n t   p r e s e n c e   w a s 
en sured  s in ce  ear ly  2 00 6  by   th e  commis-
sion   an d  an  E U  compoun d  was   open ed   in 
august  20 09 .

t h e   p r o j e c t   r u n   b y   a   Un  o r g a n i s a t i o n   i n 
south  sudan  for  the  construc tion  of  legal 
o f f i c e s   p r o g r e s s e d   w e l l   fo r   t h e   f i r s t   y e a r 
w i t h   r e g u l a r   u p d a t e s   a n d   s t e e r i n g   c o m-
m i t t e e   m e e t i n g s .   W h e n   i t   b e c a m e   c l e a r 
t h a t   d e l a y s   w e r e   a f f e c t i n g   i m p l e m e n t a-
tion the delegation reinforced monitoring 
and kept ver y regular contac t with the Un 
o r g a n i s a t i o n   l e a d i n g   t o   t h e   d e c i s i o n   n o t 
to endorse a requested ex tension.

i n sri lank a, the commission has since re -
i n fo rc e d   i t s   i n d e p e n d e n t   q u a l i t y   c o n t ro l 
before th e acceptance of finish ed  wo r ks.

4 0. 
th e  commiss ion   avails  it self  of  a  num ber 
o f   t o o l s   t o   p r o v i d e   a s s u r a n c e   o n   t h e 
u s e   o f   c o m m u n i t y   f u n d s .   i n   a d d i t i o n   t o 
t h e   v e r i f i c a t i o n   m i s s i o n s ,   o t h e r   a r e a s   o f 
c o n t r o l   i n c l u d e   t h e   c o m p l i a n c e   a n a l y s i s 
p r o c e s s,   w h i c h   c h e c k s   t h a t   t h e   a c c o u n t -
i n g,   i n t e r n a l   c o n t r o l ,   e x t e r n a l   a u d i t   a n d 
p ro c u re m e n t   p ro c e d u re s   o f   U n   a g e n c i e s 
comply  with   inter national  s tanda rd s.  th e 
c o m m i s s i o n   a l s o   p l a c e s   r e l i a n c e   o n   r e -
por tin g  by   the  organisation s  th ems el ve s, 
i n s i s t i n g   t h a t   r e p o r t s   f o c u s   o n   r e s u l t s 
a n d   r e v i e w i n g ,   a s   n e c e s s a r y ,   t h e   f r e -
q u e n c y   a n d   c o n t e n t   o f   r e p o r t s .   i n t e r n a l 
m o n i t o r i n g ,   i n c l u d i n g   f i e l d   m o n i t o r i n g 
an d  manag ement  repor tin g,   co mplem e nt 
t h e s e   to o l s.  to g e t h e r   t h e s e   va r i o u s   to o l s 
p r o v i d e   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   w i t h   a s s u r a n c e 
t h a t   f u n d s   a r e   b e i n g   m a n a g e d   p r o p e r l y 
and in line with the highest inter national 
sta ndards. 

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

42

rEpl Y of thE 
commission

41. 
t h e   n u m b e r   o f   v e r i f i c a t i o n   m i s s i o n s   t o 
t h e   Un  h a s   i n d e e d   i n c r e a s e d   o v e r   t h e 
ye a r s   to   re a c h   a   p e a k   i n   t h e   2 0 0 7   a n n u a l 
p l a n .   h o w e v e r,   t h e   v e r i f i c a t i o n   m i s s i o n s 
a r e   o n e   a m o n g s t   o t h e r   t o o l s   a t   t h e   d i s-
posal  o f  t he  co mmis sio n  to   ob tain  ass ur-
ance  o n the p ro p er u se o f its f u nd s.

42. 
a t t i t u d e s   t o w a r d s   v e r i f i c a t i o n   v a r y   b u t 
a r e   p r o g r e s s i n g   p o s i t i v e l y.   Ve r i f i c a t i o n 
m i s s i o n s   a r e   p e r f o r m e d   o n   a   r e g u l a r 
b a s i s ,   c o n t a c t s   a r e   i n t e n s e   w i t h   t h e   U n 
re p re s e n t a t i ve s   i n   B r u s s e l s   t o   c l a r i f y   a ny 
misunderstanding, common tors for veri-
f i c a t i o n   m i s s i o n ,   h ave   b e e n   a gre e d   u p o n 
bet ween  t he  E c   and  t he  U n  and   common  
Ec– Un  t r a i n i n g s   a re   b e i n g   h e l d   p re s e n t -
ing,  inter al ia , t he ver ificat ion c l ause  and 
m i s s i o n s .   a p p r o x i m a t e l y   1 5 0   U n   s t a f f 
have  fo l lowed th e t rainings  so  f ar.

B ox  5 — Long -s ta nding controvers y 
over Com mis sion  ve rif ic ations
t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   c o n t i n u e s   t o   r e c o g n i s e 
a n d   r e s p e c t   t h e   r i g h t   o f   a u d i t   o f   Un  a u-
d i t o r s .   i t   a l s o   s u b s c r i b e s   t o   t h e   s i n g l e 
a u d i t   p r i n c i p l e .   fo r   i t s   p a r t   t h e   Un  r e c -
ognise s  t he  co mmis sio n' s  r ig ht  to  obtain 
a s s u r a n c e   o n   t h e   u s e   o f   i t s   f u n d s.  t h e s e 
pr incip le s are retained in the ve r if i cati on 
cla use  o f the  fa fa . 

i n response to the request of the Un con-
troller to put the ver ification missions on 
h o l d ,   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   r e f u s e d   a n d   t o o k 
t h e   v i e w   t h a t   v e r i f i c a t i o n   m i s s i o n s   a r e 
n o t   a u d i t s   a s   t h e re   a re   s i gn i f i c a nt   d i f fe r -
e n c e s ,   fo r   e x a m p l e,   i n   o b j e c t i v e s ,   s c o p e 
and  leve ls o f test in g.

4 3.
th e   co m m i s s i o n   d o e s   i n d e e d   re l y   o n   t h e 
wo r k   o f   t h e   Un  a u d i t o r s   t o   o b t a i n   a s s u r -
ance on the use of Ec funds since it offers 
g u a r a n te e s   e q u i v a l e n t   to   i n t e r n a t i o n a l l y 
a c c e p t e d   s t a n d a rd s,   a s   a p p r a i s e d   b y   t h e 
c o m p l i a n c e   a s s e s s m e n t s .   a s   a d d i t i o n a l 
m e a n s   t o   o b t a i n   a s s u r a n c e   f o r   a c t i o n s 
f u n d e d   b y   i t ,   t h e   co m m i s s i o n   a l s o   re l i e s 
on  the  ver if ication clause.

t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   i s   b o u n d   b y   i t s   fi n a n-
c i a l   r e g u l a t i o n   ( a r t i c l e   5 3 d )   a n d   i t s   i m-
p l e m e n t i n g   r u l e s   ( a r t i c l e   3 5 ( 4 ) ) ,   w h i c h 
state s  t hat   whe re  the   commiss ion  imple -
m e n t s   t h e   b u d g e t   by   j o i n t   m a n a g e m e n t , 
t h e   v e r i f i c a t i o n   a g r e e m e n t s   s h a l l   a p p l y. 
the commission has consistently defend-
e d   i t s   r i g h t   to   c a r r y   o u t   ve r i f i c a t i o n   m i s-
s i o n s ,   a n d   t h r o u g h   t h e   a d o p t i o n   o f   t h e 
c o m m o n   t e r m s   o f   r e fe r e n c e   fo r   v e r i f i c a-
t i o n   m i s s i o n s   h a s   s o u g h t   t o   i m p ro ve   t h e 
w a y   i n   w h i c h   t h e s e   m i s s i o n s   a r e   c a r r i e d 
out.

th e   co m m i s s i o n   w i l l   co nt i n u e   to   ex p l o re 
f u r t h e r   m e a n s   o f   o b t a i n i n g   a s s u ra n ce   o n 
t h e   a c t i o n s   i t   f u n d s   t h ro u g h   t h e   Un  s y s-
tem of audit an d control.

4 4.
t h e   i n c r e a s i n g   n u m b e r   o f   v e r i f i c a t i o n 
m i s s i o n s   o v e r   r e c e n t   y e a r s   h a s   i n d e e d 
g e n e r a te d   d i s c u s s i o n s   o n   t h e   i m p l e m e n-
t a t i o n   o f   t h e   m i s s i o n s.   h owe ve r,   m o s t   o f 
the problems were addressed with the Un 
represe nt ations  in   Br ussels  and  t he   com-
mission believes that significant progress 
h a s   b e e n   m a d e   t h a t   a l l o w s   s m o o t h   c o n-
d u c t   o f   t h e   ove r a l l   ve r i f i c a t i o n   m i s s i o n s ' 
process.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

43

rEpl Y of thE 
commission

4 6. 
i n  addition  to th e provis ions of t he  fafa, 
t h e   r i g h t   o f   a c c e s s   o f   t h e   co u r t   t o   i n fo r -
m a t i o n   i s   s p e c i f i c a l l y   m e n t i o n e d   i n   a r t i -
c l e   1 6 . 4   o f   t h e   g e n e r a l   c o n d i t i o n s   o f   t h e 
standard contr ibution agreement with an 
inte r national organisat ion . 

t h e   co m m i s s i o n   h a s   f u l l y   s u p p o r t e d   t h e 
c o u r t ’s   r e q u e s t s   f o r   o b t a i n i n g   f r o m   Un  
o r g a n i s a t i o n s   n e c e s s a r y   s u p p o r t i n g   e v i-
d e n ce,   a n d   t h i s   p r i n c i p l e   i s   c l e a r l y   s t i p u-
lated  in  the   fafa. Wh ere  t he  commiss ion 
i s   i n f o r m e d   b y   t h e   c o u r t   o f   d i f f i c u l t i e s 
e n c o u n t e r e d   i n   t h i s   r e s p e c t ,   i t   c a n   a p -
proach its counterpar ts at the U n in order 
to   f i n d   a   s o l u t i o n   a n d   t o   e n s u re   t h a t   t h e 
cour t re ceives  the in for mat ion  require d.

B ox  6 —  Exa mp le s o f  re s tric te d   
Comm is sion a cce ss
With  reg ard  to  the  co mmis sio n' s   suppor t 
t o   t h e   e l e c t i o n   i n   gu y a n a ,   t h e   s e c u r i t y 
protocols of the Un organisation restr ic t -
e d   t h e   a c c e s s   t o   t h e   a c c o u n t i n g   s y s t e m . 
ho w e v e r,   a s   s t a t e d   i n   t h e   v e r i f i c a t i o n 
mis sio n rep o r t,  the miss ion was  provi de d 
with a detailed transac tion listing of each 
d o n o r ' s   f u n d s   a n d   a c c e s s   t o   s u p p o r t i n g 
docum ent at ion .

the cour t notes that documents were not 
a l l o w e d   t o   b e   c o p i e d   b y   t h e   t e a m   v e r i-
f y i n g   t h e   p o l i o   e r a d i c t i o n   p r o g r a m m e . 
acco rd i n g   to   t h e   te r m s   o f   t h e   fa fa,   p ro -
v i s i o n   o f   c o p i e s   o f   d o c u m e n t s   i s   n o t   a n 
obligation and can even be subjec t to the 
a g r e e m e n t   o f   t h e   Un  B o a r d   o f   a u d i t o r s . 
h owe ve r,   i n   t h e   c a s e   o f   m o s t   ve r i f i c at i o n 
m i s s i o n s,   n o   d i f f i c u l t i e s   h ave   b e e n   ex p e -
r ienced  in  t his  reg ard. 

t h e   d i f f i c u l t i e s   e n c o u n t e r e d   i n   2 0 0 8   i n 
t h e   v e r i f i c a t i o n   p r o c e s s   w e r e   a d d r e s s e d 
in the fafa  wor k ing group which defined 
c o m m o n  te r m s   o f   r e fe re n c e   fo r   ve r i f i c a-
t i o n .  th e s e   we re   s i n ce   s at i s f a c to r i l y   te s t-
e d   b y   Ec h o  i n   a   re c e n t   ve r i f i c a t i o n   m i s-
sion  in  Ju ne 2009 in Bu rund i.

45. 
t h e   c o u r t   w a s   p r e s e n t   a s   o b s e r v e r   a t 
b o t h   t h e   f i f t h   a n d   s i x t h   a n n u a l   fa fa 
 w o r k i n g  g r o u p s .   t h e   m i n u t e s   o f   t h e 
fif th  work ing group record that ‘ the Euro -
p e a n   co u r t   o f   au d i to r s   a n d   t h e   Un  pa n e l 
o f   E x te r n a l   au d i to r s   a re   s t ro n g l y   e n co u r -
a g e d   t o   d i s c u s s   u r g e n t l y   t h e   a p p l i c a t i o n 
o f   t h e   s i n g l e   a u d i t   p r i n c i p l e   t o   p r o v i d e 
assurance to the Ec.’

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

44

rEpl Y of thE 
commission

the  commission  is  bound  by  its  financial 
r e g u l a t i o n   ( a r t i c l e   5 3 d )   a n d   i t s   i m p l e -
menting  rules  (ar ticle  35(4))  which  states 
t h a t   w h e r e   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n   i m p l e m e n t s 
t h e   b u d g e t   b y   j o i n t   m a n a g e m e n t ,   t h e 
v e r i f i c a t i o n   a g r e e m e n t   s h a l l   a p p l y.   t h e 
c o m m i s s i o n   h a s   c o n s i s t e n t l y   d e f e n d e d 
its right to carr y out verification missions, 
and through the adoption of the common 
t e r m s   o f   r e f e r e n c e   f o r   v e r i f i c a t i o n   m i s-
s i o n s   h a s   s o u g h t   t o   i m p r o v e   t h e   w a y   i n 
which these missions are car r ied out.

i n   2 0 0 7   t h e   U n   a n d   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n 
a g r e e d   o n   j o i n t   r e p o r t i n g   g u i d e l i n e s 
w h i c h   a r e   s i g n i f i c a n t l y   i m p r o v i n g   t h e 
q u a l i t y   o f   Un  r e p o r t i n g ,   p a r t i c u l a r l y   o n 
financial aspec ts.

t h e   r o m  i s   a   c o m p r e h e n s i v e   a n d   r e s u l t -
o r i e n t e d   s y s t e m   w h i c h   c a n   c o m p l e m e n t 
self-monitor ing  car r ied  out  by  the  imple -
m e n t i n g   a g e n c i e s.   ad d i t i o n a l l y   t h e   co m-
m i s s i o n   h a s   i n i t i ate d   t h e   d e ve l o p m e nt   o f 
joint monitor ing methods which could be 
c a r r i e d   o u t   w i t h   Un  a g e n c i e s,   s h o u l d   Un  
decided to engage in this endeavour.

t h e   co m m i s s i o n   h a s   f u l l y   s u p p o r t e d   t h e 
c o u r t ’s   r e q u e s t s   f o r   o b t a i n i n g   f r o m   Un  
o r g a n i s a t i o n s   n e c e s s a r y   s u p p o r t i n g   e v i-
d e n ce,   a n d   t h i s   p r i n c i p l e   i s   c l e a r l y   s t i p u -
l ate d   i n   t h e   fa fa.  Wh e re   t h e   co m m i s s i o n 
is informed by the cour t of difficulties en-
countered in this respec t, it can approach 
its counter par ts at the Un in order to find 
a   s o l u t i o n   a n d   t o   e n s u r e   t h a t   t h e   c o u r t 
receives the infor mation required.

CONCLUSIONS AND  
RECOMMENDATIONS

48 .
fo l l o w i n g   c o n s i d e r a t i o n   o f   t h e   e v a l u a-
t i o n   o f   c h a n n e l l i n g   o f   f u n d s   t h ro u g h   t h e 
U n ,   i n s t r u c t i o n s   w e r e   i s s u e d   t o   s t a f f   i n 
Europea id  and  in  de le gat ions   on   1 7   Jun e 
2 0 0 9 .  th e s e   i n s t r u c t i o n s   re q u i re   t h e m   to 
r e c o r d   t h e i r   a s s e s s m e n t ,   w h e n   i d e n t i f y -
i n g   p r o p o s a l s   fo r   f i n a n c i n g   t h r o u g h   t h e 
Un,   o f   t h e   a d d e d   v a l u e   o f   t h i s   a p p ro a c h , 
a n d   t o   t a k e   a c c o u n t   o f   a l t e r n a t i v e s   a n d 
cost  ef fe c tive nes s  is su es.

Echo provides funding on a needs-based 
a p p r o a c h .   i t   r e c e i v e s   f u n d i n g   p r o p o s a l s 
f r o m   b o t h   n g o s   a s   f r o m   i n t e r n a t i o n a l 
o r g a n i s a t i o n s .   E a c h   o f   t h e s e   p r o p o s a l s 
i s   s c r u t i n i s e d   a n d   a s s e s s e d   o n   i t s   o w n 
m e r i t s   o n   t h e   b a s i s   o f   a   d e t a i l e d   l o g i c a l 
f r a m e w o r k .   i t   i s   a l s o   c o m p a r e d   t o   o t h e r 
proposals to ensure complementarit y and 
b e s t   va l u e   fo r   m o n e y.   i n   m a ny   c a s e s,   t h e 
Un  i s   o f t e n   t h e   o n l y   p o s s i b l e   m e a n s   t o 
e n s u r e   t h a t   g o o d s   a r e   d e l i v e r e d   t o   t h e 
beneficiar ie s.

Recom me ndat ion 1
i n s t r u c t i o n s   o n   w o r k i n g   w i t h   i n t e r -
n a t i o n a l   o r g a n i s a t i o n s   w e r e   i s s u e d   t o 
s t a f f   i n   Eu ro p e a i d   a n d   i n   d e l e g a t i o n s   o n 
17 June  20 09 . 

49.
r o b u s t n e s s   o f   f i n a n c i a l   p r o c e d u r e   i s   a s-
s e s s e d   e x   a n t e  b y   t h e   f o u r   p i l l a r   r e v i e w 
f o r   e a c h   o r g a n i s a t i o n .   Q u a l i t y   o f   i m p l e -
m e n t a t i o n   o f   f i n a n c i a l   p r o c e d u r e s   i s   a s-
s e s s e d   a t   f i e l d   l e v e l   d u r i n g   v e r i f i c a t i o n 
m i s s i o n s.  th e re fo re   t h e   co m m i s s i o n   co n-
s i d e r s   t h a t   m o n i t o r i n g   a r r a n g e m e n t s   d o 
p rov i d e   a d e q u a te   i n fo r m at i o n   o n   t h e   ro -
bustne ss o f financial  p ro cedure s.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

45

rEpl Y of thE 
commission

Recommend atio n  5
t h e   e x p e r i e n c e   w i t h   o n e   U n   a g e n c y   i s 
ve r y   u s e f u l,   a n d   t h e   co m m i s s i o n   w i l l   e x-
plore  ways  of  en han cin g  t he  foc us   on   Un 
per formance to better achieve objec tives, 
usin g exist in g poss ibilities  offered  un de r 
th e f in anc ial r eg ulation.

Recom m en datio n 2
the  co mmis sio n  is   alread y  relyin g  on   au-
d i t   w o r k   o f   t h e   U n   a n d   w i l l   c o n t i n u e   t o 
explore fur ther means of obtaining assur-
a n ce   o n   t h e   a c t i o n s   i t   f u n d s   t h ro u g h   t h e 
Un sys tem o f audit and  contro l.

i t already considers that it constantly en -
s u re s   t h a t   t h e   fa fa   i s   a p p l i e d   a s   re g a rd s 
the  ver ificat ion c laus e.

Recom me nd ation  3
i n   2 0 0 7   t h e   U n   a n d   t h e   c o m m i s s i o n 
a g r e e d   o n   j o i n t   r e p o r t i n g   g u i d e l i n e s 
w h i c h   a r e   s i g n i f i c a n t l y   i m p r o v i n g   t h e 
q u a l i t y   o f   U n   r e p o r t i n g ,   p a r t i c u l a r l y   o n 
f i n a n c i a l   a s p e c t s .   t h e   r e p o r t i n g   g u i d e -
l i n e s   s t r e s s   t h e   n e e d   t o   fo c u s   o n   r e s u l t s 
(see  als o rep l y to p aragraph 33) .

Recomm e ndatio n 4
the co mmis sio n is mo nito r ing Un-imple -
m e n t e d   p r o j e c t s   a c c o r d i n g   t o   i t s   c r i t e -
r i a .   r o m  i s   b a s e d   o n   s a m p l i n g,   w i t h   t h e 
c o v e r a g e   v a r y i n g   d e p e n d i n g   o n   f a c t o r s 
s u c h   a s   p r o j e c t   s i z e   a n d   a c c e s s i b i l i t y   t o 
t h e   p ro j e c t   at   f i e l d   l e ve l   ( d u e   to   s e c u r i t y 
a n d   o t h e r   c o n s i d e r a t i o n s ) .  t h e   c o ve r a g e 
o f   p r o j e c t s   m a y   a l s o   v a r y   b y   r e g i o n   a n d 
is  not  ne cess ar il y  different  for  Un- impl e -
mente d p ro je c t s.

the commission has already initiated the 
d e v e l o p m e n t   o f   j o i n t   m o n i t o r i n g   m e t h-
o d s   w h i c h   c o u l d   b e   c a r r i e d   o u t   w i t h   U n 
agencies.

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

special r eport no 15/2009 - EU assistance implemented through United nations organisations: decision-making and monitoring

European court of auditors

Special Report No 15/2009 

EU assistance implemented through United Nations organisations:  

decision-making and monitoring

luxembourg: publications office of the European Union

2009 — 45 pp. — 21 × 29.7 cm

isBn 978-92-9207-546-0

doi 10.2865/40036

How to obtain EU publications

Publications for sale:

•	

•	

•	

via	EU	Bookshop	(http://bookshop.europa.eu);

from	your	bookseller	by	quoting	the	title,	publisher	and/or	ISBN	number;

	by	contacting	one	of	our	sales	agents	directly.	You	can	obtain	their	contact		details	on	the	Internet	
(http://bookshop.europa.eu) or by sending a fax  to +352 2929-42758.

Free publications:

•	

•	

via	EU	Bookshop	(http://bookshop.europa.eu);

	at	the	European	Commission’s	representations	or	delegations.	You	can	obtain	their	contact	details	
on the internet (http://ec.europa.eu) or by sending a fax to +352 2929-42758.

Q
J
-
a
B
-
0
9
-
0
1
5
-
E
n

-
c

co m m i s s i o n  a i d  i m p l E m E n t E d  t h r o U g h  U n i t E d  n at i o n s 

organisations  amoUnts to  oVEr  1  Billion  EUro  pEr YEar. 

in this  rEport thE  coUrt  EXaminEs  WhEthEr  dEcisions to 

channEl  aid throUgh thE  UnitEd  nations  arE thE  rEsUlt 

of a transparEnt and oBJEctiVE sElEction procEss. it also 

EXaminEs  WhE thEr  monitoring  and  aUdit  arrangEmEnts 

p r o V i d E  a d E Q Uat E  i n f o r mat i o n  o n  t h E  r o B U s t n E s s  o f 

financial  procEdUrEs  and  on  WhE thEr  fUnds  haVE  BEEn 

UsEd for thEir intEndEd pUrposE.

EUropEan coUrt of aUditors