The third meeting of the Advisory Board on Human Security (ABHS) was convened on 8 November 2004 in New York. Mr. Jan Egeland (Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency relief Coordinator) welcomed the newly established Human Security Unit (HSU) in the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The meeting was chaired by Mrs. Sadako Ogata and attended by the following Board members: Professor Adebayo Adedeji, Ambassador Koichi Haraguchi, Ms. Sonia Picado, Mr. Surin Pitsuwan, Mr. Iqbal Riza, and Dr. Frene Ginwala. Also present were Mr. Kinichi Komano (Japan), Mr. Ed Tsui (OCHA), Mr. Hiroshi Minami (Japan), Mr. Guy Standing (ILO), Mr. Peter Schmitz (UN Secretariat), members of the HSU, and representative from the Permanent Missions of Japan and the Republic of South Africa to the United Nations.

1. Introductory remarks

Mrs. Ogata welcomed the members of the Board and the Commissioner to the third meeting of the Advisory Board. She thanked Mr. Egeland and the HSU for their efforts in preparation of the meeting and briefed the participants on the growing acceptance of the human security concept by a wide range of constituencies, most notably, the African Union, Japan, and the European Union. She urged the members and the participants to focus the discussion of the meeting on two broad issues of great importance to the Board. First, progress on the use of the United Nations Trust Fund for Human Security (UNTFHS) and, second, the promotion of human security, and in that context, the dissemination of the report of the Commission on Human Security (CHS).

2. Update on the establishment of the Human Security Unit

Mr. Egeland informed the Board on recent developments regarding the UNTFHS and the HSU. Mr. Egeland highlighted the steady progress made by OCHA in the management of the Trust Fund and the propagation of the human security concept. Mr. Egeland noted that due to improved Trust Fund management initiated by the HSU much progress has been made on the growing acceptance of the human security concept among UN agencies.

The Board noted with appreciation the initiatives taken by Mr. Egeland and OCHA to expedite the reviewing and approval processes of the UNTFHS. The Board welcomed the creation of the HSU in OCHA and expressed its strong hope that the Unit becomes operational as soon as possible, with its approved budget and personnel in place. The Board then reviewed and endorsed the proposed amendment to the terms of reference of the ABHS. The amendment is intended to reflect the relationship between the activities of the Board, the HSU and the UNTFHS.

In closing, Mr. Egeland requested the Board to consider funding by the UNTFHS for emergency situations, making use of expedited procedures, for their application and approval. In particular, Mr. Egeland stressed the importance to address the initial humanitarian phase when there is lack of funding from other sources. The Board noted that the limited resources of the UNTFHS would be depleted rather quickly if it were to be used for emergency assistance and expressed its view that the UNTFHS should address medium to long-term human security problems and should not use the Fund for emergency assistance.

3. Management of the UNTFHS

Mr. Tsui presented the Board with the Executive Summary of UNTFHS (in PDF) and briefed them on the transfer and the management of the UNTFHS to OCHA. It was noted that the substantive management of the UNTFHS was transferred from the Office of the Controller to OCHA on 16 January 2004. Furthermore, in May 2004, OCHA established the HSU, which became operational in September 2004. The overall objective of the HSU, which will also serve as the secretariat of the Advisory Board, is to combine the management of the UNTFHS and follow-up on the work of the CHS. The Board was informed that since assuming responsibility for the management of the UNTFHS, OCHA has cleared the backlog of pending projects and reviewed 56 project proposals. Of the projects submitted, many addressed community-based initiatives, focused on vulnerable people, and were based on multi-sectoral and in some cases multi-agency frameworks. In addition to the Executive Summary, a one-year work plan was also presented to the Board for their comments.

The Board discussed the Executive Summary of the UNTFHS and supported the proposals made by the HSU. Particularly, the Board endorsed the draft new Guidelines for the Trust Fund, which enables a new reviewing and approval procedures for the UNTFHS. The Board hoped that the new procedures will contribute to realizing genuine coordination and cooperation between the United Nations and the donor and will thus facilitate the effective and efficient use of the Fund.

The Board suggested that further to the establishment of the new procedures, the UNTFHS should also ensure that projects are not agency driven but are nationally owned. Moreover, the HSU should request the concerned agencies to include a chapter on human security and the use of the UNTFHS in their annual reports to their respective boards. This will further advocate the concept of human security. Finally, to be more informed of the activities of the UNTFHS, the Board requested the HSU to send quarterly updates on projects being submitted and approved to the members of the Board.

The Board also agreed that the proposed development of evaluation criteria for the UNTFHS projects is important, but suggested that this process should begin at a later stage, with an accumulation of project implementation which is based on the current Guidelines.

4. Future strategic allocation of resources

Ambassador Haraguchi welcomed the establishment of the HSU and informed the members of the Board on the position of the Government of Japan (GoJ) with regards to the future allocation of resources. He noted that for the coming years, the GoJ would like the UNTFHS to focus on (i) protecting and empowering people in transition from conflict to peace, (ii) addressing complex multi-sectoral issues of human security, (iii) extending support to smaller-scale projects, (iv) promoting and disseminating the concept of human security, and (v) geographically, giving Africa high priority.

The Board welcomed the GoJ's proposal and stressed the importance of establishing clear priorities. Mr. Riza recalled that at the last meeting the ABHS, the Board agreed that in view of existing arrangements, funding for HIV/AIDS projects should not be a priority for the UNTFHS. The same would also apply to emergency assistance. It was recognised that under the guidelines for the UNTFHS, the Fund looks at vulnerable people not as a result of emergency situations but because of their particular nature as a result of prejudice, lack of resources, etc. Meanwhile, the Board noted that the success of the UNTFHS should also move beyond advocacy and into the expansion of the donor base of the Fund among those countries who are interested in the human security concept, such as, the Human Security Network, the EU and the US.

The Government of Japan expressed its intention to collaborate with the UN to explore the possibility of expanding the donor base of the Trust Fund and broaden support for the concept of human security.

5. Outreach for Human Security

The Board discussed the draft outreach programme submitted by the HSU. While supporting the proposals in principle, the Board recommended that the Unit should be selective in its focus and make the best use of existing initiatives and resources. In this regard, the Board reiterated its commitment in supporting the United Nations in its work on advancing human security and members agreed to provide continuous support to the HSU in promoting the concept of human security, both among member states and the general public.

Besides the launch events in Cairo and Moscow, the Board advised the HSU to consider outreach activities in Europe, Africa, and Latin America. Also, the Board recommended the HSU to establish a campaign to introduce the Unit and its activities to all regional organisations such as the ASEAN, the OAS, the LAS, etc. Furthermore, the Board encouraged the HSU to take stock of those organisations and countries that are using the human security concept and to proactively collaborate with these entities. Meanwhile, in order to better align the objectives of the HSU with the support of the Board, the Board advised the HSU to keep an updated calendar of activities for each of the Board members and to organise meetings in consultation with their schedules.

6. Follow-up on thematic areas endorsed in the 2nd meeting of the ABHS

Denial of citizenship and the concept of social minimum were confirmed as two areas where the Board will continue to undertake studies and related events. Presentations were made by Mr. Standing from the ILO on "social minimum and economic security" and Mr. François Fouinat on the "denial of citizenship." The Board advised the HSU to collaborate with the ILO on a possible meeting in Central America on the social minimum concept. Meanwhile, the Board noted with appreciation the support of the Ford Foundation and Mr. Bradford Smith, a member of the ABHS, on the denial of citizenship meeting to be held in Brussels on 25 February 2005.

7. Concluding remarks

The Board advised the HSU to concentrate on core activities until the next Board meeting, including the timely and effective implementation of the new procedures, better planning of projects, introduction of the new mechanisms in the UN system, and establishment of the HSU Internet web site. The Board looked forward to a report on the progress in the work of the Unit at the next meeting scheduled for 14 June 2005.

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