ILO is a specialized agency of the United Nations
ILO-en-strap

GB.274/PFA/9/1
274th Session
Geneva, March 1999


Programme, Financial and Administrative Committee

PFA


NINTH ITEM ON THE AGENDA
 

PROGRAMME AND BUDGET PROPOSALS FOR  2000-01

VOLUME 1

STRATEGY AND ORIENTATION


Page 43 Page 44
Strategic Objective No. 4 :
Strengthen tripartism and social dialogue

97. Employers' organizations, workers' organizations and governmental authorities dealing with labour issues face formidable challenges to their dynamic operation. Workers' organizations find their efforts to organize members thwarted by new forms of production and work organization, expanded use of technology, enterprise restructuring, legal constraints and ideological currents that question collective action. Employers' organizations, faced with competition from consultancies and business groups, must span the heterogeneous breadth of needs from transnationals to micro-enterprises in an environment of heightened competition, decentralization and a simultaneous call for increased social responsibility. Both groups often perceive a lack of understanding by government of their respective roles and usefulness.

98. Labour ministries, the ILO's traditional interlocutors, increasingly share with other units of government key decisions affecting employment and social policy, such as privatization, structural adjustment and investment strategy. In many countries, the strength of the social partners is sapped by inefficient or non-existent mechanisms to resolve disputes that cripple useful dialogue on broader issues as well. The potential contribution of workers' and employers' groups remains to be sufficiently recognized by governments and other segments of civil society. Tripartite institutions and dialogue are underexploited as instruments for problem solving. An InFocus programme is proposed to improve this situation.


 

InFocus: Strengthening
the social partners

The social partners need reinforcing to gain a stronger voice in economic and social policy, from the community to the international level.

The InFocus programme will address three issues:

• strengthening representation,

• strengthening capacity and services, and

• strengthening institutions of governance.

The first will aim at assisting workers' and employers' organizations separately to reach out to new constituencies, especially women and youth. For trade unions, this will include highlighting successful organizing techniques and, for employers, development of relationships with agents of job creation (with small and medium-sized enterprises as

well as large companies). For both, it will involve effective exploitation of cutting-edge communications technology in different contexts and for various types of organizations.

The second issue relates to guidance in improving the quality and depth of the services these organizations offer to their members. This would range from the development of innovative services and alliances to principles of sound internal administration and support to change-oriented leadership, with an integrated gender component. This aspect will also involve strengthening the social partners' capacity to engage effectively in debates on social and economic policy at the national and supranational level. It will also address the important question of developing the skills of organizational leadership.

The programme will work on identifying the key contact points within governments that deal with labour and related issues, with a view to creating and nurturing networks among various administrative units and between them and employers' and workers' organizations. At the regional and international level as well, the programme will seek to forge stronger links between policy-makers and representatives of workers and employers.

This third aspect of the programme will stress the importance of building strong bipartite and tripartite institutions, by putting the spotlight on success stories such as those in dispute prevention and resolution, innovative enterprise-level and sectoral bargaining, and economic and social councils or pacts that have contributed to social peace and economic growth in specific ways. The programme will try to outline the key policy parameters in which such governance initiatives have emerged. It will also take a close look at how alliances with other groups have been used to strengthen the social partners at various levels of interaction.

The programme will use a variety of means and approaches adapted to each constituent, including exchanges of experience, training, research, and the development of manuals and media packages. It will contribute to realizing both operational objectives 4(a) and 4(b).


 

Operational objective 4(a):
Employers' and workers' organizations have the necessary capacity to serve their members and to influence economic and social policy

99. In recognition of the importance of having strong employers' and workers' organizations, it is planned to have a relatively larger programme of technical assistance, particularly in the regions. The capacity of trade unions and employers' organizations will be enhanced in particular to deal with protection of the health and safety of those working under precarious conditions as well as the protection of the environment, and to intervene with the international financial institutions and other relevant institutions to ensure that the economic reforms they advocate are developed through tripartite dialogue and with regard to international labour standards. These efforts will be complemented by those made under Strategic Objectives Nos. 1 and 3.

Employers' organizations

100. Liaison with employers' organizations will emphasize improvement of the ILO's image and visibility among such organizations and mobilization of ILO support for them. It will also help to ensure that the views of employers' organizations are heard and understood in relation to all forms of ILO action.

101. Employers' organizations will be assisted in devising strategies to respond to the needs of their members. This will include holding an employers' symposium on developing a workforce for competitiveness and employment generation. In all regions ILO action will, taking into account the cross-cutting equity and development concerns, promote stronger and better equipped employers' and workers' organizations through training, technical advisory services and the dissemination of information. In the Arab States and Central and Eastern Europe, for instance, advisory services, training and fellowship programmes will continue to promote the establishment of independent and representative employers' and workers' organizations and to enhance their institutional capacity and broaden their membership base, in particular through greater outreach to small enterprises. Much of this assistance will be provided in association with employers' organizations in industrialized countries.

102. Specially designed staff training will cover such areas as the management of employers' organizations, policy lobbying, information management, analysis and delivery, negotiations, addressing gender concerns, and training services. Successful examples of employer influence on education and training systems will be identified and disseminated. Other training and dissemination activities will cover occupational safety and health, industrial relations and productivity, including productivity bargaining.

Workers' organizations

103. The ILO will maintain close relations with workers' organizations, and trade unions will be kept informed of ILO activities, programmes and policies. Training and information activities will be organized and support provided for the training courses, seminars and conferences held by trade unions to increase their understanding of the ILO, its standards and supervisory system, and to define the roles, policies and strategies to be followed by trade unions in their advocacy role, particularly in relation to other international organizations. Technical assistance will also be designed to help trade unions plan action to combat child labour.

104. Technical assistance and workers' education programmes will be undertaken in all regions, in order to establish and strengthen workers' education infrastructures and basic trade union skills, such as collective bargaining, grievance handling, organizing techniques, including the promotion of gender equity, and other initiatives to increase trade union density. Training manuals and studies, including the adaptation and translation of existing materials, will be published on labour education, ILO activities and services, and other topics.

105. Another priority will be to help trade unions overcome their communication deficit in relation to national and transnational enterprises through the adoption of new communication technologies and the improvement of their access to information, including ILO databases. Regional and international networks of trade union research staff with expertise in the identification and interpretation of information and distance learning techniques will be developed.

106. National and international trade union organizations will be helped to balance the debate about globalization. Research will be conducted on policy options and institutional arrangements that can be proposed by trade unions to improve the governance of globalization and ensure that its economic benefits are more broadly distributed. Training will be organized on economic policy and industrial relations practices adapted to the new situation. An international symposium will be held to strengthen workers' participation in the United Nations system and impact on the Bretton Woods institutions.

107. Trade unions and workers in particular situations will be given special attention, for example, to support trade union action for the protection of workers in the informal economy and the improvement of their working conditions. In transition countries and particularly in Europe, assistance will be provided to overcome new challenges in such areas as basic trade union functions, collective bargaining, grievance handling and organizing techniques. Rural workers will be helped to organize in spite of the constraints of poor access to education, training, capital and information.

Operational objective 4(b):
Machinery for social dialogue and consensus is widely adopted and fully operational on a bipartite or tripartite basis as appropriate

108. In response to constituents' requests for assistance in strengthening tripartism, social dialogue and the labour institutions that underpin them, the ILO will undertake a range of advisory, training and research activities operating in synergy with the InFocus programme and the Active Partnership Policy.

109. Best practices highlighting bipartite and tripartite approaches to improving productivity and competitiveness and promoting the social responsibility of enterprises in the context of development and gender perspectives will be disseminated. A comprehensive study will be undertaken on enterprise responses to social expectations and on the implications for enterprise management of applying international labour standards and the principles of corporate citizenship. Efforts will be made to strengthen action by employers' and workers' organizations in order to enhance the contribution of transnational enterprises to economic and social progress and to minimize and resolve the difficulties to which their operations may give rise.

110. Machinery for tripartite consultation, collective bargaining and the resolution of labour disputes is by now established in most countries, but it still operates imperfectly in practice. Labour institutions have limited influence on policy making concerning globalization, regional integration and economic crisis issues. Advisory notes will be prepared for ILO constituents that review the current state of social dialogue in its various forms and at various levels, identify areas calling for improvement and propose specific measures to encourage effective social dialogue. The feasibility of adopting new international labour standards in this area will be examined. Technical notes will also be prepared on aspects of collective agreements, the representative nature of workers' and employers' organizations, minimum wage determination, etc. The notes will explore the positive contributions which collective bargaining, sound dispute prevention and resolution mechanisms, and industrial relations generally, can make to labour market flexibility and to employment creation and protection. Enhanced advisory services will be provided to help construct sound legislative frameworks and institutions for good workplace relations.

111. New technical cooperation programmes and training activities will be launched mainly in Africa, the Americas and Asia and the Pacific to help meet the need for improved tripartite consultation and industrial relations to address the effects of economic crises, structural adjustment policies and technological change. Agreements on social pacts will be encouraged.

112. The vibrancy of collective bargaining and tripartite solutions found in particular sectors of the economy will be highlighted in research and meetings. Many sectors have recently undergone changes which have intensified the need for social dialogue, and its strengthening at the sectoral level will be stressed, with inclusion of gender and development perspectives.

113. To assist in delivering outputs and associated activities under this operational objective, the Industrial Relations Database (IRD) will be kept up to date and expanded to cover selected key industrial relations issues, such as union membership and density, as well as other issues of interest to constituents. Through research and data collection, a clearer picture will be gained of industrial relations practices at the enterprise level. Much of this work is related as well to that set out under operational objective 2(a) and Strategic Objective No. 3.

The Turin Centre and the International Institute for Labour Studies

114. Partnerships between the Turin Centre and ILO technical programmes reinforce the effectiveness of ILO action related to all four strategic objectives. The Centre offers training and meeting facilities, advanced audio-visual capabilities, extensive experience with multi-cultural and high-impact training methodologies, and a long-term commitment to the ILO's principles and objectives. In addition, the Centre provides human resource development opportunities for ILO staff and promotes ILO policies throughout the United Nations system through its Staff College. It supports ILO technical cooperation and participates in several action programmes and inter-regional ILO programmes, notably IPEC, Strategies and Tools against Social Exclusion and Poverty (STEP), ISEP and More and Better Jobs for Women. At the same time, in an increasingly competitive market, the Centre will concentrate on training activities that receive financial sponsorship. The Centre's second Development Plan will terminate in 2000, as will the current phase of the United Nations Staff College project. These two completion dates will provide an opportunity for the Centre to review activities undertaken in the 1990s and the Centre's role in the United Nations system in order to orient its future activities.

115. The International Institute for Labour Studies carries out research to identify emerging labour policy issues. Its social policy forums allow ILO constituents and staff to engage in dialogue with the international academic community and other policy makers. The Institute's courses introduce new leaders from government, employer and worker circles to the ILO, and provide them with an international comparative perspective on labour issues. The activities of the Institute focus on the changing interaction between labour institutions, social actors and economic development in a global economy. Its programmes aim at placing tripartism in the contemporary perspective of globalization and social change. In accordance with the usual practice, Programme and Budget proposals for 2000-01 will be submitted to the Institute's Board and to the Governing Body in November 1999.

Technical and sectoral meetings

116. In November 1998 the Programme, Financial and Administrative Committee was asked to give its comments on 15 proposals for technical meetings. Taking account of the various comments, it is proposed that the meetings listed below be retained for the biennium 2000-01:

(a) World Employment Forum;

(b) Tripartite Meeting of Experts on the Management of Disability at the Workplace;

(c) Meeting of Experts on Workers in Situations Needing Protection;

(d) Meeting of Experts on Occupational Safety and Health Management Systems and Safety Culture;

(e) Meeting of Experts on Labour Statistics: Comparison and Reconciliation of Employment and Unemployment Data from Different Sources;

(f) International Symposium on the Development of a Workforce for Enterprise Competitiveness and Employment Generation;

(g) International Symposium to Strengthen Workers' Participation in the United Nations System and Impact on Bretton Woods Institutions.

117. At its 273rd Session (November 1998) the Governing Body decided that the following 12 sectoral meetings should take place in the 2000-01 biennium:

(a) Agriculture, plantations and other rural sectors: Moving to sustainable agricultural development through the modernization of agriculture and employment in a globalized economy;

(b) Basic metal production: Safety and health in the non-ferrous metals industries;

(c) Construction: The construction industry in the twenty-first century: its image, employment prospects and skill requirements;

(d) Education: Lifelong learning in the twenty-first century: the changing roles of educational personnel;

(e) Financial and professional services: Employment impact of mergers and acquisitions in the banking and financial services sector;

(f) Forestry, wood, pulp and paper: Social and labour dimensions of the forestry and wood industries on the move;

(g) Hotel, tourism and catering: Human resources development, employment and globalization in the hotel, catering and tourism sector;

(h) Media, culture and graphical: Information technologies in the media and entertainment industries: their impact on employment, working conditions and labour-management relations;

(i) Textiles, clothing, leather and footwear: Labour practices in the footwear, leather, textiles and clothing industries;

(j) Transport equipment manufacture: The social and labour impact of globalization in the manufacture of transport equipment;

(k) Maritime, ports, fisheries and inland waterways: 29th Session of the Joint Maritime Commission (JMC);

(l) Private and public services sectors: The impact of decentralization and privatization on municipal services.

118. In future, agendas of sectoral meetings should, to the extent possible, be better aligned with the four strategic objectives and the InFocus programmes to enhance their impact on the achievement of the Organization's objectives.

Strengthening institutional capacities

119. At the start of the new biennium the ILO is called upon to become more visible, more authoritative and more effective in its action while at the same time improving its internal efficiency.

120. One of the ILO's goals is to exert a greater influence on the wider public, and more specifically on international economic policy. In order to achieve this the ILO will seek high visibility among its constituents and the general public through extensive media coverage and dissemination of high quality publications and promotional material, with greater emphasis on video and the Internet. Renewed emphasis will be given to publicity for ILO values and principles, particularly in other organizations and in industrialized countries through the network of branch offices.

121. In a different way, the ILO ensures that its tripartite principles and policies are well known to international policy makers through a proactive approach to policy debates within ECOSOC and the United Nations system and among the Bretton Woods institutions and other inter-governmental and non-governmental organizations. The ILO will actively contribute to the major policy debates falling under its mandate, notably by its leadership role in global conferences and their follow-up.

122. As almost 70 per cent of the total expenditure of the ILO covers human resources, it is also important for staff to have the skills and capacities as well as the tools and resources necessary to carry out their work in a changing world. The ILO's human resources must constantly be adapted to the needs of the Organization and to the achievement of its strategic objectives.

123. In order to provide an efficient and safe working environment, essential logistical coordination and support is necessary to administer the ILO's premises effectively and economically. The Office needs effective communication systems, information technology and procedures, equipment and materials, in order for its staff to perform their duties. Access to appropriate new technologies is critical to ensuring productive delivery of services to constituents, especially in the more decentralized environment in which the Office currently operates.

124. A further goal is that programming and management systems, including evaluation, are streamlined. This Strategic Programme and Budget, the first of its kind, may with refinements become a model for future budgets. Less detail would be proposed on the activities to be undertaken, particularly as the programming cycle requires these to be identified as long as three and a half years before implementation. Budgetary envelopes would set the financial framework. This broad planning would, however, be accompanied by full reporting to the Governing Body on activities undertaken, the use made of funds and the evaluation of results. The Office's system of work planning, monitoring and evaluation will be refined to focus more on key results and on independent evaluation.

125. In accordance with the conclusions reached in the Governing Body in November 1998 on the Active Partnership Policy, action will be taken to strengthen managerially and politically the planning processes with constituents and to have a system of regular evaluation of the results achieved from work done in the regions. The ILO's regional organizational structures will be reviewed. As part of that review the geographical coverage of the multidisciplinary teams will be examined. Personnel issues will also figure in this study. In parallel with this work there will be a review of the policies and managerial arrangements for technical cooperation. The 1999 session of the International Labour Conference will have technical cooperation among its items for discussion, and this debate will no doubt provide policy guidance to the Office. The estimated technical cooperation delivery for 2000-01 is 218 million dollars. Tables 5 and 6 below show, based on current projections, the expected distribution of technical cooperation delivery among the strategic objectives and the regions.

 

Table 5 .

Estimated extra-budgetary technical cooperation delivery in 2000-01, by strategic objective (in US dollars)

 


Strategic objective

Estimates for 2000-01


Principles and rights at work

27,339,580

Employment

99,441,180

Social protection

62,498,560

Social dialogue

28,720,680

 

218,000,000

 

Table 6 .

Estimated extra-budgetary technical cooperation delivery in 2000-01, by region (in US dollars)

 


Region

Estimates for 2000-01


Africa

86,897,000

Americas

25,719,200

Arab States

8,296,400

Asia and the Pacific

49,992,000

Europe and Central Asia

13,606,600

Interregional

33,488,800

 

218,000,000


126. To respond effectively to constituents as they face adjustment and development challenges, the formulation and implementation of ILO policies and programmes should explicitly consider regional diversities and specificities. This calls for an effective ILO technical presence in the regions. But it also calls for flexibility and local sensitivity in the development of ILO technical services both in the field and at headquarters. Both upstream and downstream technical work by the ILO will have to be sensitive to the principles of diversity of needs and specificity of action. The adherence to these principles is a prerequisite for the efficacity of the ILO's design and delivery of its services.

127. The ILO is a service, knowledge and advocacy institution. As such, ideas and information are essential inputs to promoting its strategic objectives and fundamental principles. In order to maintain its status as a centre of excellence and relevance, the ILO must strengthen its capability to speak authoritatively in a wide range of research circles, to provide unique sources of data and statistics, and to undertake top-quality research. Strengthening capacity in the areas of economic analysis and in data and statistics are of particular importance for achieving these goals.

128. The justification for strengthening the ILO's capability in economic analysis is based on the linkages between economics, labour and social policy, as well on the relevance of economic analysis for programme and policy work. On the first point, there is a duality between economic development and labour, between human development and labour, and between economic growth and labour. Well-functioning labour markets are key inputs into economic growth and development. Similarly, macro- and micro-economic performance plays an important role in the determination of labour market outcomes and social progress.

129. The ILO, as an international organization with a wealth of practical experience and a historical focus on the role of institutions and on achieving social justice, is in a unique position to play a vital role in the debate on the economics of employment, labour markets and social policy. Still, to be able to take advantage of this opportunity, the ILO must strengthen its capability in economic analysis through a combination of outward- and inward-looking programmes.

130. In the area of macroeconomics, ILO work in several areas, notably employment policies, enterprise development, wage policy and various aspects of social protection depends heavily on the macroeconomic environment and the globali

zation process. While large-scale, macroeconomic work is carried out in other international agencies, such as the World Bank or the IMF, an internal ILO capability is important for the ILO to participate effectively in policy debates.

131. Another aspect of economic analysis that is important for ILO activities concerns institutions in the labour market, in the industrial relations system, in the workplace. Recent developments in institutional economics have opened new ways of exploring the economic and social effectiveness of these institutions, and have applications in contexts as diverse as unemployment insurance, workplace safety and training.

132. Expanding the degree and quality of analytical work in micro-economics, particularly in terms of empirical applications, will also be an important element. The results of this work will be especially useful for programmes to promote gender equity and employment, to prevent child labour, and to evaluate the economic impact of standards and labour market policies.

133. Statistics and data are also key supports for all of the technical and service functions of the ILO. High quality, easily accessible data are an essential cross-cutting product for external users and constituents, as well as for the organization as a whole. Further, recent improvements in communications, computing, data collection and empirical research have generated tremendous possibilities for the development and upgrading of data, statistics and information. The flexibilization and informalization of labour markets, coupled with the process of globalization, have changed the nature of the requirements for statistical information. These processes have worked both to increase the speed and quantity of data flows and to generate a pressure to update constantly the nature and content of statistical information.

134. As in the case of economic analysis, developments in the area of data and statistics present a challenging opportunity for the ILO. The Organization must respond to this challenge by strengthening and expanding its statistical functions at the international level in the definition, organization, dissemination, design and promotion of data and statistics. This is a logical area for increased action for the ILO, given its mandate, experience and international scope. Further, data and statistics will be crucial for guaranteeing the role of the ILO as a centre of excellence in the production of knowledge and services relating to labour and social policy, and for improving external relations and communications.

Rapid ILO response

135. As well as playing a more proactive role in analysing rapid changes in international economic relations and their effects on employment policy, there are many situations where ILO expertise and values can play an important role. These require a rapid response to emerging problems or opportunities. The circumstance may be natural calamity, a sudden social movement, the aftermath of conflict, abrupt economic change. The ILO's responses in these different situations may be very different in nature, but they have in common the need to act fast and decisively, to reorganize activities at short notice, and to mobilize a range of capabilities which cut across ILO concerns. This need is widely recognized and forms part of the mandate of multidisciplinary teams. However, in practice the requirement for detailed advance programming of all resources and the lack of mechanisms for identifying and responding to crises has sometimes impeded rapid and flexible reactions.

136. The development of ILO capabilities in this respect involves four functions: barometer; strategic planning; resource mobilization and coordination; and mapping and development of substantive capabilities.

137. The barometer provides the permanent function of tracking and analysing developments of relevance for the ILO's work. It will review and foresee crises and inflexion points in economic, social, physical, political and gender terms, evaluating their importance and pointing to those where a major effort by the Organization is called for. This will require the monitoring and analysis of economic and social trends and events in close coordination with the regional departments, which will have primary responsibility for gathering relevant intelligence.

138. The strategic planning function will define the nature of the response required, on the basis of the analysis provided by the barometer, and determine how to provide it, the sequencing of actions to be taken and the division of labour with other organizations concerned.

139. Resource mobilization and coordination will require that resources are rapidly reassigned to the task in hand. By their nature, these resources will correspond to technical capabilities in specific departments; the responses might involve public works and other employment generating schemes, assistance in reallocating social expenditure, social protection for the homeless or for short-term migrants, credit or training for the survival and regeneration of small enterprises, monitoring of needs and gender impacts, support to workers' and employers' organizations in organizing local interventions, opening up of social dialogue as a means of solving conflict, redesigning institutional frameworks, etc. External resources will often have to be mobilized rapidly as well.

140. Mapping and developing substantive capabilities will be the responsibility of the technical departments. A systematic mapping of capabilities, regularly updated, is required to permit the identification of available instruments and of possible ILO technical contributions in different national situations. In addition, the evaluation of ILO responses to different crisis and change situations will suggest areas where ILO capabilities need to be developed, and will identify lessons to be learnt and disseminated.

141. As a result of this programme, the ILO will be able to respond more rapidly and more effectively to critical changes and developments which affect its constituents. The ILO's goals will remain at centre stage in the countries and regions concerned, both in the high profile short term, and in the development of medium term strategies of recovery and development.



Draft budget of expenditure and income for 2000-01

142. In preparing the Programme and Budget proposals for 2000-01 in a form that would provide the flexibility requested by the Governing Body, a number of assumptions have had to be made that have an impact on the budgetary aspects of the Programme and Budget. In particular, assumptions have been made that are based upon current trends in the distribution of staff between the Professional and General Service categories and between external offices and headquarters. These proposals include a total of 1,428 Professional work-years and 1,887 General Service work-years for the biennium (comparative totals for 1998-99 are 1,418 work-years and 1,918 work-years respectively). The ratios of headquarters to field work-years are 968:460 and 986:901 for the Professional category and General Service category respectively (comparative ratios for 1998-99 are 956:462 and 1,018:900). The estimates have also assumed that the mix of dollar-based and Swiss franc-based expenditure will follow similar patterns to that experienced in recent biennia.

143. After providing for movements in costs, the Programme and Budget proposals for 2000-01, valued at the 1998-99 budget rate of exchange of 1.46 Swiss francs to the US dollar, amount to $481,050,000, which is the same level as in the present biennium. Net cost savings of $785,000 have enabled additional resources to be allocated to substantive programme activities. The cost savings result from actual cost increases during 1997and 1998 and those projected for 1999 being less than those anticipated in the 1998-99 Programme and Budget, particularly for post adjustment and related benefits for Professional category staff and for General Service salary movements. These savings, currently estimated at some $12 million for the 1998-99 biennium, have been taken into account in preparing the 2000-01 proposals, which have more than offset anticipated cost increases for 2000-01. Full information on movements in cost factors is provided in the Programme and Budget proposals for 2000-01, Volume 2.

144. The budget rate of exchange for the biennium 2000-01 will be set at the market rate at the time the budget is reviewed by the Finance Committee of Government Representatives at the 87th Session (June 1999) of the Conference. These proposals have accordingly been valued at the same budget rate of exchange (1.46 Swiss francs to the US dollar) as the Programme and Budget for 1998-99, both to facilitate comparison and because the cost of the proposals in both US dollar and Swiss franc terms will continue to evolve with the exchange rate changes until the budget is finalized.

145. As an indication, however, the United Nations monthly accounting rate of exchange rate for December 1998 was 1.41 Swiss francs to the dollar. Should this rate remain valid in June 1999, the proposed budget level in dollar terms would be some $491.6 million, with resulting assessments of some 693.2 million Swiss francs.

146. The contributions payable by member States in 2000-01 will thus depend on the overall budget level, on the budget rate of exchange which is finally set, and on the scale of contributions approved by the Conference.

147. The draft expenditure and income budget in the form required for adoption by the Conference, with the corresponding figures for 1998-99, is shown below.  


Expenditure


 

Income


 

1998-99 budget


 

2000-01 estimates


 

 

1998-99 budget


2000-01 estimates


 

US dollars

 

US dollars

 

 

US dollars

SF

 

US dollars

SF


Part I Ordinary budget

480,175,000

 

480,175,000

 

Contributions from Member States 1

481,050,000

702,333,000

 

481,050,000

702,333,000

Part II Unforeseen expenditure

875,000

 

875,000

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Total Budget


481,050,000

 


481,050,000

 

 


481,050,000


702,333,000

 


481,050,000


702,333,000

1 Contributions for 199899 include a transfer from the cash surplus for 199697 of 23,822,826 Swiss francs. At its 85thSession (1997) the International Labour Conference decided, in derogation from article 18 of the Financial Regulations, to transfer 25,177,742 Swiss francs from the expected budgetary sur plus to budgetary income for 1998, and that, should the said budgetary surplus be less than 25,177,742 Swiss francs, arrears of contributions received should be used to finance the income budget, subject to the resolution adopted by the 82nd Session (1995) concerning the utilization of arrears of contributions to cover budgetary deficits.


148. After completing its examination of the draft estimates submitted in this document, the Programme, Financial and Administrative Committee will wish to submit to the Governing Body for proposal to the International Labour Conference a draft resolution for the adoption of the programme and budget for the 67th financial period (2000-01) and for the allocation of expenses between member States for 2000-01. The proposed text of this draft resolution is as follows:


Updated by VC. Approved by RH. Last update: 26 January 2000.