TNAG-1294-FCO40-1649-Visits-by-members-of-the-Office-of-the-Unofficial-Members-of-1984 — Page 59

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the Agreement for the mmission for Asia, the

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Commentary on New Article :!

ablishment of a Regional Animal Production and Health

East and the South-West Pacific.

26. The New Article IV i designed to replace paragraph 5 of the present Article II and is based on the correspondig provision of other similar agreements. The first sentence of paragraph 5 is now to found in paragraph 2 of New Article IV with a slight drafting amendment. Thus, the wor delegates" has been replaced by "representatives" in order to make it clearer that the enses of any alternates or advisers who accompanied a delegate were also borne by the Co.. acting Government concerned.

27. The second and thiri by paragraph 1 of New Arti under paragraph 5 of Arti. Commission which "shall :. paragraph 5 stipulates tha determined and paid by the

28.

Once the Commission

entences of the present paragraph 5 of Article II are covered @ IV.

In this connexion it should be noted that at present, II, the Director-General provides the secretariat of the

only during the sessions of the Commission". In addition, "The expenses of the secretariat of the Commission shall be rganization".

as its own financial resources, it may wish part of its contributions to be used to finance the posts of staff who would form part of its secretariat and who would serve the Commission during the intervals between sessions as well as during sessions. At the same time, the Organization can only bear the Commission's secretariat costs out of its Regular Budget to the extent that the necessary provision therefor is included in the biennial budget approved by the FAO Conference. Accordingly, paragraph 1 of New Article IV has been drafted in such a way as to allow for funding of the secretariat out of both the Commission's budget and the FAO Regular Budget. In this connexion it should be noted that the possibility of meeting secretariat expenses out of Members' contributions in no way signifies that the support for the Commission's activities currently borne by the FAO Regular Budget would automatically cease.

Commentary on paragraph 1 of New Article II

29.

Paragraph 1 of Article II describes the principal functions of the Commission and is the most suitable place for the new sub-paragraph (d). This sub-paragraph is required under the principles set forth in paragraph 33(c)(i) of Part R of the FAO Basic Texts which lays down that appropriate provisions shall be inserted in the text of conventions and agreements establishing Article XIV bodies, to the effect that:

The

"(i) all cooperative projects and autonomous budgets and programmes shall be submitted to the Council or the Conference of the Organization prior to implementation."

rationale of this provision is that since Article XIV bodies are semi-autonomous bodies established within the framework of FAO, the latter's governing bodies retain a certain degree of responsibility, in the ways provided for in the Basic Texts, for ensuring that the policies and activities of Article XIV bodies are consistent with those of FAO itself and with their con ituent instruments.

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30.

In practice the programmes of work and the budgets of Article XIV bodies are submitted to the Finance Committed the competent standing committee of the Council which only refers them to the Counc if it finds that they raise important questions of principle.

Commentary on paragraph 2 of Article II

31.

The addition to the above provision appears in other similar agreements and introduces a sanction in the event that a Member of the Commission should fail to pay its contributions in an amount equalling or exceeding the amount due from it for the two preceding financial years. A further sanction is provided in the last sentence of the proposed new paragraph 4

of Article XII.

Commentary on paragraph 4 of Article XII

32. If the Commission is to have its own budget, it would be appropriate to include a provision in the Agreement regarding the distribution of any balance of funds if the Agreement is terminated and, hence, the Commission ceases to exist. The new paragraph 4