Report of the Committee of Experts on Public Administration on Its 23rd Session

E/RES/2024/16View PDF

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

A Resolution of the Economic and Social Council, under agenda item 18f Public administration and development, published in 2024.

What other versions does this mandate have?

3 versions · 2022–2024

Year	Symbol	Title	Word length	Text similarity
2024	E/RES/2024/16	Report of the Committee of Experts on Public Administration on its 23rd session	2,022	65%Compare
2023	E/RES/2023/28	Report of the Committee of Experts on Public Administration on its 22nd session	1,983	64%Compare
2022	E/RES/2022/9	Report of the Committee of Experts on Public Administration on its 21st session	1,758	–

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

1 entity

Entity	(Sub-)Programme	Title	Total mandates cited	Expenditure
	Subprogramme 7	Institutions and digital transformation	22

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 7	Institutions and digital transformation	22	—

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.

What subjects does this mandate have?

6 subjects

Development Policy Governance Poverty Mitigation Public Administration Resilience Sustainable Development

What’s in this document?

26 operative paragraphs

Takes note of the report of the Committee of Experts on Public Administration on its twenty-third session,⁶ and expresses its appreciation for the work done by the Committee on new governance insights to advance the Sustainable Development Goals and eradicate poverty while promoting the effective delivery of sustainable, resilient and innovative solutions in alignment with the 2024 theme of the Economic and Social Council and the high-level political forum on sustainable development;

⁶Official Records of the Economic and Social Council, 2024, Supplement No. 24 (E/2024/44).

Invites the Committee to continue to place the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development⁷ at the centre of its work and to continue to advise the Council on how public administrations can support the implementation and progress reviews of the Sustainable Development Goals;

⁷General Assembly resolution 70/1.

Welcomes the contribution of the Committee to the high-level political forum, and reaffirms that the principle of leaving no one behind should be a core principle of public administration;

New governance insights to advance the Sustainable Development Goals and eradicate poverty

Recognizes that achieving sustainable development and strengthening resilience at a time of multiple crises require both a short-term and a long-term perspective in public policymaking, together with institution-building at all levels, based on effective governance for sustainable development, as well as a steadfast commitment to promoting peaceful, just and inclusive societies, and encourages Governments to integrate reflections of a long-term vision of society into their planning, monitoring and reporting on the Sustainable Development Goals and into their voluntary national reviews of progress towards 2030;

Encourages Governments to address the complex problems underlying crises in a holistic manner, ensuring that crisis management does not hinder the continuous implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals;

Urges Governments to reinforce action on commitments to the 2030 Agenda and promote the effective delivery of sustainable, resilient and innovative solutions, inter alia, by systematically incorporating assessments of the social, environmental and economic impacts of public policy in all areas of decision-making, strengthening multilevel governance strategies and actions in pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals as a matter of priority, and redoubling efforts to promote awareness of the Goals within the context of national sustainable development plans across the whole of government and the whole of society;

Recognizes that accelerating the delivery of the 2030 Agenda at all levels calls for more integrated solutions to achieve the vision and Goals of the 2030 Agenda as well as a capable State at all levels, and encourages countries to design and implement integrated national institution-building strategies that address important capability gaps across the whole of government;

Expresses concern at the limited capacity to foresee and build resilience against the diverse challenges originating from multiple shocks in many countries, and calls for a rapid upgrade of the risk management function in government and its integration into Sustainable Development Goal-related coordination mechanisms at the highest level;

Calls for increased efforts to support national and international peer exchanges and peer learning on the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and effective governance for sustainable development, including through cooperation with existing international networks;

Reiterates that eradicating poverty in all its forms and dimensions, including extreme poverty, is the greatest global challenge and an indispensable requirement for sustainable development, and encourages Governments to accelerate efforts to build inclusive institutions at all levels through holistic, people-centred policies and interventions that empower and promote the social, economic and political inclusion of all segments of society, reduce inequalities and address the needs of those furthest behind first;

Encourages governments at all levels to enhance efforts to promote the meaningful participation of stakeholders in matters that directly affect them, including the poorest and most vulnerable, and to implement models of participation based on whole-of-government and whole-of-society approaches that leave no one behind;

Reaffirms the need for pragmatic ongoing improvements in national and subnational governance capabilities to achieve the 2030 Agenda and other international agreements, and encourages governments at all levels to apply the principles of effective governance for sustainable development,⁸ endorsed by the Council in its resolution 2018/12 of 2 July 2018, to all public institutions and in support of the implementation of all Sustainable Development Goals, taking into account different governance structures, national and subnational realities, capacities and levels of development and respecting national policies and priorities;

⁸Official Records of the Economic and Social Council, 2018, Supplement No. 24 (E/2018/44), chap. III, sect. B, para. 31.

Encourages the Committee to continue to identify and review related technical guidelines and experiences to operationalize the principles at the national and subnational levels, including from sectoral perspectives, and to further engage the relevant United Nations organizations, regional organizations and professional and academic communities in this regard, in an inclusive manner, together with all relevant stakeholders;

Welcomes the ongoing initiative of the African Peer Review Mechanism of the African Union to promote the application of the principles among its member States in collaboration with the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the Secretariat, and encourages other regional mechanisms, such as those associated with the United Nations regional commissions, to develop and implement similar initiatives in alignment with their own mandates and processes;

Notes the increasing demands for assistance with operationalization of the principles of effective governance for sustainable development and the Committee’s emphasis on the need to strengthen the secretariat of the Committee to enable it to respond effectively;

Reiterates that the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has both accelerated the digital transition and revealed technological weaknesses of public administrations while exacerbating inequalities caused by digital divides, and encourages Governments to manage digitalization of public services in an inclusive, fair, ethical and people-centred manner, while accelerating efforts to bridge digital divides, inter alia, through hybrid models of public service delivery;

Recognizes that Governments play a central role in ensuring equal access to the benefits of digital technology and preventing harm, and underscores the need for Governments, in collaboration with the relevant entities and forums of the United Nations system, to identify guiding principles and policy priorities for the regulation and use of artificial intelligence by the public sector so that the diffusion of the technology reinforces implementation of the 2030 Agenda and leaves no one behind;

Encourages Governments, especially in view of stronger budget pressures, to accelerate action to increase transparency and equal participation in and oversight of the budgeting process, establish transparent and sustainable public procurement frameworks as a strategic tool to reinforce sustainable development and curb corrupt practices, and to strengthen budget credibility;

Also encourages Governments to embed commitments to the Sustainable Development Goals in budgetary and financial processes at the national and subnational levels by adopting practices to monitor, report on and evaluate the use of public financial resources in support of the Goals, such as reorganizing budgets, based on programmes and activities, and mapping and tracking budgetary contributions to each Goal;

Recognizes that building resilient institutions calls for more creative, flexible and integrated ways of working that are focused on the needs of people, as well as an adequate stock of competencies, capabilities and resources at all levels, and encourages Governments to further promote professionalization and diversity of the public sector workforce, invest in digital skills, update competency frameworks for implementation of the 2030 Agenda, address inequalities that exist within the public sector workforce, and take steps to address social inequities in the design and delivery of public services;

Also recognizes that sustainable development cannot be realized without peace and security and that peace and security will be at risk without sustainable development, reaffirms the need to build peaceful, just and inclusive societies that provide equal access to justice and that are based on respect for human rights (including the right to development), on effective rule of law and good governance at all levels and on transparent, effective and accountable institutions, and recalls that factors which give rise to violence, insecurity and injustice, such as inequality, corruption, poor governance and illicit financial and arms flows, are addressed in the 2030 Agenda;

Follow-up

Requests the Committee, at its twenty-fourth session, to be held from 7 to 11 April 2025, to examine and make recommendations on the theme of the 2025 session of the Council and the 2025 high-level political forum and to contribute to the review of the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 16, giving particular attention to the cross-cutting nature of all the Goals;

Invites the Committee to continue to advise on approaches and practices related to the institutions, policies and arrangements to promote the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals, bearing in mind that the specific contexts and situations of countries differ widely, as well as to advise on making institutions effective, accountable and inclusive;

Requests the Secretary-General to take the present resolution fully into account in the work of the Organization, inter alia, in addressing gaps in research and analysis and in responding to the capacity-development needs of Member States for building effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels in pursuit of the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals;

Also requests the Secretary-General to continue to promote and support innovation and excellence in public services for sustainable development through the United Nations Public Service Awards;

Further requests the Secretary-General to report on the implementation of and follow-up to the present resolution through the established working methods of the Committee.

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

What other versions does this mandate have?

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

What subjects does this mandate have?

What’s in this document?

New governance insights to advance the Sustainable Development Goals and eradicate poverty

Follow-up

Table of contents

Who cites this mandate in the budget?