Report of the Office of Internal Oversight Services on Strengthening the Investigation Functions in the United Nations

A/RES/59/287View PDF

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda item 107 Review of the efficiency of the administrative and financial functioning of the United Nations, published in 2004.

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

1 entity

Entity	(Sub-)Programme	Title	Total mandates cited	Expenditure
	Subprogramme 3	Investigations	3

Historical expenditure covers the complete programme or subprogramme, not this mandate. For an overview of all UN entities and programmes, see UN entities and programmes.

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

1 entity

Entity	(Sub-)Programme	Title	Total mandates cited	Expenditure
	Subprogramme 3	Investigations	3	—

Historical expenditure covers the complete programme or subprogramme, not this mandate. For an overview of all UN entities and programmes, see UN entities and programmes.

Which reports were submitted under this mandate?

21 reports · 2005–2025

Year	Symbol	Title	Mandate resolution
2025	A/80/533	Practice of the Secretary-General in disciplinary matters and cases of possible criminal behaviour, 1 January to 31 December 2024 report of the Secretary-General	A/RES/59/287
2024	A/79/615	Practice of the Secretary-General in disciplinary matters and cases of possible criminal behaviour, 1 January to 31 December 2023 report of the Secretary-General	A/RES/59/287
2023	A/78/603	Practice of the Secretary-General in disciplinary matters and cases of possible criminal behaviour, 1 January to 31 December 2022 report of the Secretary-General	A/RES/59/287
2022	A/77/606	Practice of the Secretary-General in disciplinary matters and cases of possible criminal behaviour, 1 January to 31 December 2021 report of the Secretary-General	A/RES/59/287
2021	A/76/602	Practice of the Secretary-General in disciplinary matters and cases of possible criminal behaviour, 1 January to 31 December 2020 report of the Secretary-General	A/RES/59/287

What subjects does this mandate have?

15 subjects

Codes of Conduct Criminal Investigation Field Offices Information Exchange Internal Investigations Internal Oversight Labour Discipline Management Managers Report Preparation Reporting Procedures Right to Privacy Rules and Regulations Sexual Harassment Standards

What’s in this document?

18 operative paragraphs

Takes note of the report of the Office of Internal Oversight Services on strengthening the investigation functions in the United Nations;1

Re-emphasizes the principle of separation, impartiality and fairness on the part of those with responsibility for investigation functions;

Re-emphasizes also that the Office of Internal Oversight Services is the internal body entrusted with investigation in the United Nations;

Notes the need to enhance the capacity of the Office of Internal Oversight Services to conduct its mandated investigation functions efficiently;

Recognizes that the Office of Internal Oversight Services has established an efficient mechanism to enable all staff members and other persons engaged in activities under the authority of the Organization to convey directly their allegations to the Office of Internal Oversight Services;

Stresses that sexual exploitation and abuse constitute serious misconduct and fall under category I;³

³Ibid., para. 26.

Notes that sexual harassment constitutes a serious concern to Member States, and, bearing in mind paragraph 12 of the present resolution, notes that the Office of Human Resources Management and programme managers may be entrusted to conduct investigations in this context;

Decides that the Office of Internal Oversight Services may entrust trained programme managers to conduct investigations on its behalf;

Also decides that in cases of serious misconduct and/or criminal behaviour, investigations should be conducted by professional investigators;

Requests the Secretary-General to implement the proposals of the Office of Internal Oversight Services to increase basic investigation training, as appropriate, for the handling of minor forms of misconduct, to develop written procedures for the proper conduct of investigations and to promote the concept of an independent investigation function within the United Nations;

Decides that the results of investigation conducted by programme managers should be reported to the Office of Internal Oversight Services;

Requests the Secretary-General to establish an administrative mechanism for the mandatory reporting by programme managers of allegations of misconduct to the Office of Internal Oversight Services and to report on the establishment of such a mechanism to the General Assembly at the resumed part of its sixtieth session;

Also requests the Secretary-General to ensure that the introduction of a mandatory reporting mechanism will not adversely affect the right of an individual staff member to report cases of allegations of misconduct directly to the Office of Internal Oversight Services;

Further requests the Secretary-General to ensure that where poor management practice is a contributory factor in cases of misconduct, appropriate managerial action is taken by the Office of Human Resources Management;

Requests the Secretary-General to ensure that an appropriate mechanism is in place to protect staff members who report misconduct within the Secretariat against retaliation;

Also requests the Secretary-General to ensure that, in case of proven misconduct and/or criminal behaviour, disciplinary action and, where appropriate, legal action in accordance with the established procedures and regulations will be taken expeditiously, and requests the Secretary-General to ensure that Member States are informed on an annual basis about all actions taken;

Further requests the Secretary-General to ensure that all staff of the Organization are informed of the most common examples of misconduct and/or criminal behaviour and their disciplinary consequences, including any legal action, with due regard to the protection of the privacy of the staff member(s) concerned;

Requests the Secretary-General to ensure that when conclusions of the Office of Internal Oversight Services are disputed by a programme manager, appropriate action will be taken to resolve the dispute and that information thereon will be included in the annual report of the Office of Internal Oversight Services.

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

Which reports were submitted under this mandate?

What subjects does this mandate have?

What’s in this document?

Table of contents

Who cites this mandate in the budget?