Projects & programmes: Financial sector reform
Comprehensive review of governance and oversight for the UN
– funds, programmes & specialised agencies
Approach
Following an international bidding process, PwC teams of governance, risk management and internal audit professionals from New York, Geneva and other key UN locations conducted a UN system-wide gap analysis of governance structures and processes, employing best practices drawn from the private and public sectors. These teams, along with their UN counterparts, then selected five UN agencies and carried out an in-depth review of the effectiveness and costs of the G&O systems. In the end, the teams reviewed the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services and made a series of recommendations for strengthening its future effectiveness.
Outcomes
PwC's final report was endorsed by the independent steering committee and issued to the Secretary General and the executive heads. Recommendations included:
- Establishing independent audit committees;
- Strengthening oversight systems and tightening Results-Based-Management techniques; and
- Introducing new risk management and internal control frameworks.
The report also provided the UN with a "Code of Governance" based on globally researched best practices.
