Abuse of authority is the improper use of a position of influence, power or authority by UNDP personnel against UNDP or external personnel or a group thereof. This includes situations when the person in question uses their influence, power or authority to arbitrarily influence the career or employment conditions (including, but not limited to, appointment, assignment, contract renewal, performance evaluation or promotion) of other UNDP or external personnel. Abuse of authority can include a one-time incident or a series of incidents. It may also consist of conduct that creates a hostile or offensive work environment, which includes, but is not limited to, the use of intimidation, threats, blackmail or coercion.
Components or systems described as accepted or supported are not primary options, but are considered fully in line with UNDP ICT standards. Accepted or supported components are not mandatory.
The AAA report is designed to provide Country Offices with a tool to analyze balance sheet accounts. The report gives details of all transactions from various modules for a given account and Operating Unit (OU) for a chosen period. The report selects activities from source systems (AP, AR, GL, etc.) within a fiscal year based on the posting date of the journal tied to the activity. The report can be run for the OU, specified on the run control. Country offices should run generally for one OU only. Upon select account 16005, this report provides all movements in the account by Operating Unit/ Project and or Fund for a specific accounting period.
Accountability is the obligation to (i) demonstrate that work has been conducted in accordance with agreed rules and standards and (ii) report fairly and accurately on performance results vis-à-vis mandated roles and/or plans.
An Accounts Payable invoice must be fully processed in order to be correctly recorded in Projects and the General Ledger (GL). An invoice needs to be fund reserved in order for it to record in budget control.An Accounts Payable (AP) voucher records a liability due to a vendor and expense against a given Chart of Account.
Ad-hoc services may be required or requested in certain circumstances, for instance the provision of legal advice or representation on an agreement or case,1 enhanced local security services for movement of cash in countries without banking facilities, or other services such as advisory support. Ad-hoc services are not included in the UPL and should be managed based on a Local Price List (LPL) or other locally negotiated prices using transparent, prevailing market rates or on the existing guiding costing methodology (Annex 1) and set out in a local price list and agreed locally between the parties.
Adjusted Risk Rating is defined as the Overall Risk Assessment derived from the Micro Assessment adjusted for other available information including: results of the Macro Assessment; past experience with the Partner, prior capacity assessments and micro assessments by other agencies.
Encompasses critical systems of internal control that complement and ensure the proper functioning of checks and balance, including financial ones. These include international civil service standards and incentives, ethics codes, criminal penalties, and administrative review.
Administrative leave is an exceptional status provided for by Staff Rule 10.4 in which a staff member may be suspended from performing his or her functions. A staff member may be placed on administrative leave, subject to conditions specified by the Administrator, at any time from the receipt of an allegation of misconduct and prior to the initiation of an investigation, through the course of an investigation until the completion of disciplinary proceedings as appropriate. Administrative leave can be with pay (ALWP), with partial pay or without pay (ALWOP).
Advance payments received by a staff member from the Organization that are authorized under the UN Staff Regulations and Staff Rules and relevant policies;
An Agency for which the Vendor Review Committee (VRC) has determined that Proscribed Practices took place in respect of one or more of its procurement activities.
Agency implementation is one of the four modalities available to UNDP for the implementation of projects and programmes. A UN agency may be either an Implementing Partner (accountable for the delivery of overall results in a programme or project) or a Responsible Party (accountable for delivery of elements of a programme or project).
Assigned UNDP individuals, acting as liaison with UNDSS CATSU and are responsible for responding to questions relating to air travel safety in accordance with the UNSMS Commercial Air Travel Safety Policy and these guidelines. Based on available information, ATSFPs prepare an analysis and provide a recommendation to UNDP units on the use of airlines not on UNDP booking list.
A financial authorization issued by the Administrator to an official or to a unit to incur commitments for specific purposes relating to the institutional budget and within specified limits, during a definite period;
Amortization is the systematic allocation of the amortizable amount of an Intangible Asset over its useful life. Amortization expenses the cost of the asset in equal instalments (Straight line method of amortization) over the life of the asset, rather than when the asset is paid. Amortization is the systematic allocation of the amortizable amount of an Intangible Asset over its useful life. Amortization expenses the cost of the asset in equal instalments (Straight line method of amortization) over the life of the asset, rather than when the asset is paid for. Amortizable amount is the cost of an asset, or other amount substituted for cost, less its residual value and Residual value of an asset is the estimated amount that would currently be obtained from disposal of the asset, after deducting the estimated costs of disposal, if the asset were already of the age and in the condition expected at the end of its useful life. In UNDP all intangibles will have a zero residual life.
Annual leave is granted by UNDP to provide staff members with periods of time off from work at full pay for personal reasons and for purposes of health, rest and recreation. Subject to the exigencies of service, staff members are expected to exercise their leave within the period in which it is earned.
In line with the UN Staff Regulations and Rules, an annual performance review (referred to in Paragraph 11) will take place to evaluate the performance of the staff members during the year, confirm the achievement of agreed goals and other performance expectations, demonstrated.
The annual planning process starts with the preparation of an Annual Business Plan, which establishes corporate annual priorities to achieve results established in the Strategic Plan. Annual Business Plan priorities cascade throughout the organization through integrated workplans.
The Application Development Lifecycle (ADL) typically encompasses a six-step process starting with analysis, then wireframing before moving into design and development followed by deployment and maintenance.
A subdivision of the appropriations for which a specific amount is shown in the appropriate decision and within which the Administrator is authorized to make transfers without prior approval;
The total amount approved by the Executive Board for specified purposes for the current institutional budget against which commitments may be incurred for those purposes up to the amounts so approved. The appropriations are divided into “appropriations lines”, for each of which a specific amount is shown in the appropriate decision adopted for each budget period by the Executive Board and within which the Administrator is authorized to make transfers without prior approval.
Deals with the preservation and maintenance of non-current records on a temporary or permanent/indefinite basis in accordance with an established retention schedule. The public record of UNDP should be electronic whenever possible, and should be stored in UNDP official systems.
Area Security Coordinators (ASC) are staff members appointed in writing by the DO, in consultation with the SMT, in areas of larger countries which are separated from the capital in terms of both distance and exposure, in order to coordinate and control security arrangements applicable to all personnel, premises and assets in their area of responsibility. ASCs are accountable to the DO for their security-related responsibilities, in accordance with their respective letters of appointment. ASCs may be UNDP staff members.
Is the process of collecting, preserving and securing basic evidence, and the evaluation of this evidence to determine whether an investigation into reported allegations of wrongdoing is warranted
In the HACT framework, these refer to planned activities used to determine whether funds transferred to implementing partners were used for their intended purpose and in accordance with the annual work plan.
The role of the Audit and Evaluation Advisory Committee (AEAC) as an independent body is to assist the Administrator in fulfilling responsibilities regarding oversight, financial management and reporting; internal audit and investigation, external audit; risk management; the evaluation and ethics functions, and systems of internal control and accountability. The primary role of the Committee is to advise the Administrator, taking into consideration the Financial and Staff Regulations and Rules as well as policies and procedures applicable to UNDP (including UNV) and its operating environment, as well as one of its affiliates, the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF). The AEAC makes recommendations to the Administrator, including on the strategy and workplans of the independent offices as well as on the appointment, performance evaluation, extension and dismissal of the heads of those offices.
Authenticity. An electronic signature is considered to be authentic if it can be proved that the electronic signature was not modified, altered or otherwise compromised after it was placed. The authenticity of an electronic signature is established by the following parameters: i. Association of the electronic signature with a signatory; ii. Indication of the date and time of the electronic signature.
“Authority” refers to the power or decision making rights of an individual by virtue of his/her appointment and/or as appropriately delegated to him/her.
Any authorized user of UNDP ICT resources. May be a staff member, contract holder, intern, UN Volunteer, a member of another UN agency using UNDP ICT resources or other any other third party using UNDP ICT resources.
A centralized process that auto-matches Quantum transactions against the bank statements loaded into Quantum via Treasury Management System (TMS) payment hub.
Azure DevOps collaboration tools includes customizable team dashboards with configurable widgets to share information, progress, and trends, built-in wikis for sharing information, and configurable notifications.
The Bank Reconciliation process enables the verification of entries on the bank statement by reconciling that information with external transactions and also system generated transactions in Payables, Receivables, Payroll and General Ledger. During the bank reconciliation process external transactions can be created for bank originated entries such as bank charges and interest.
Bank of America interface (BOA) applies if the disbursing bank account is part of the interface. BOA files are payment file formats generated only for bank accounts that are part of the Bank of America interface. These payment files are processed by the system and automatically transmitted to Bank of America. BOA, in turn, routes these payment instructions to the disbursing banks.
The Cash to General Ledger Reconciliation Report compares the GL cash account balance against the bank account balance. It displays the unreconciled GL cash account journal entries and unreconciled bank statement lines that help identify the discrepancies between the balances. This is done based on the specified range of periods.
The core governing principle in UNDP's procurement is to obtain the bet value for money. Best value for money should not be equated with the lowest price. It requires an integrated assessment of technical, organizational and pricing factors in light of their relative importance (i.e., reliability, quality, experience, reputation, past performance, cost/fee and reasonableness). Parameters can also include social, environmental and other strategic objectives defined in the procurement plan.
The Bi-annual Reassignment Exercise is a corporate mechanism for making staffing decisions, matching pre-qualified candidates with posts, so as to advance UNDP's talent needs and other organizational priorities.
Supports the unit or country office audit focal point for audit observations that require interpretation or clarifications from central bureau policy focal points, BMS Divisions etc. Supports the offices being audited with preparation of documentation prior to the audit.
Changes to a project budget affecting the outputs, completion date or total estimated project costs require a formal budget revision that is agreed by the signatories of the original project document, and may need the approval of the donor, UN pooled fund steering committee or vertical fund, if relevant. The UNDP programme manager alone may sign the revision provided the other signatories have no objection. This procedure may be applied, for example, when the purpose of the revision is only to re-phase activities among years.
Each office/unit must prepare and maintain a Business Continuity Plan (BCP), to ensure that the organization can carry out its functions, so far as is reasonably practicable, when faced with an emergency. The BCP must be reviewed annually. The BCP covers all UNDP-administered personnel, business functions at all levels, including those that have been subcontracted to external contractors and suppliers, where the overall legal responsibility remains with UNDP. The BCP does not cover third party resilience; however, subcontractors should be asked to provide evidence that they have considered potential resilience issues. Project offices are also encouraged to apply the principles of BCM. 16. The BCP follows International Best practices, ISO 22301 (Societal Security – Guidelines for Incident Preparedness and Operations Continuity Management).
The Business Impact Analysis (BIA) is conducted by each country office or bureau unit, and coordinated by the office of the Business Continuity Focal Point. They may request technical assistance from the Directorate, Bureau for Management Services (BMS). The BIA includes: a. Identification of the critical business functions, b. Assessment of the impacts from identified risks that may disrupt critical business functions; c. Specification of setting recovery times in the event of disruptions; d. Defining recovery strategies for critical business functions, including the allocation of appropriate resources.
The “Buyer” role refers to staff members who conduct procurement (including procurement of Individual Contractors) and/or arrange travel (if located outside of HQ). Buyers exercise their procurement role on behalf of project managers and other clients.
Rank-in-post is a system by which staff are graded and paid for their expected contribution. Rank-in-post means that a serving staff member who is competitively selected for a post classified and budgeted at a higher level, for an expected period of one year or longer, is automatically promoted to that higher level immediately upon assumption of the higher level duties. There are no qualifying periods and no seniority requirements and no promotion bodies to recommend approval. Only candidates meeting the pre-defined requirements for a post as per the job description can be selected. Rank-in-post is based on standardized classification of jobs and transparent recruitment and selection processes, with oversight exercised by the relevant Compliance Review Bodies i.e. Compliance Review Board (CRB) or Compliance Review Panel (CRP) . Hiring units will be responsible for strictly complying with the corporate procedures on classification, recruitment, reassignment and selection, to ensure that only candidates with “the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity” as required by the Charter of the United Nations and who possess the right skills, experience and competencies required for the properly classified and budgeted posts are selected.
DAP can be used on all means of transport. The seller clears the goods for export when the goods are placed at the disposal of the buyer on the arriving means of transport and the goods are ready for unloading at the named place of the destination. All risks to that point are for the account of the seller. The Buyer must pay costs of unloading and import formalities.The Receipt date is the date when the goods have arrived at the specified place, whether they are unloaded from the forwarder’s truck, vessel or other means of transport. This is the date at which the ownership for the goods procured is transferred to UNDP.
The FOB is commonly used in the sale of bulk commodity cargo such as oil, grains and ore. In FOB, the seller clears the goods for export and is responsible for the costs and risks of delivering the goods on the ship at the named port. Carriage to be arranged by the buyer. Buyer pays for the cost of pre-shipment inspection, except if the inspections are required by the country of export. The Buyer pays all costs associated with securing documentation originating in the country of export as required for import. The Receipt date is the date when the goods are placed on board the vessel, because on that date the risk is transferred from the supplier to UNDP
Components or systems described as recommended are considered as the primary options when designing or specifying a new system. Not complying with recommended options, while complying with accepted or supported options is not considered as non-compliance.
Reconciliation is the accounting process used to compare at least two sets of records to ensure the figures are in agreement and are accurate. Given that the Intangible Assets data will be initiated in one module and ultimately recorded in the Quantum Asset Module as well as the General Ledger Account, there will be a need to reconcile the data and information in the three modules.
Records comprise any information, regardless of physical form or characteristics, which originate from, or are received by, UNDP within the framework of its official activities.
An overpayment that creates a debt to the Organization on the part of the staff member will normally be recovered immediately by means of deductions from salaries, wages, and other emoluments payable under the UN Staff Regulations and UN Staff Rules. However, the HR Specialist or the Resident Representative, as the case may be, may agree with the staff member who has received overpayments on: a) Alternative means of repaying the amount due, such as payment by bank transfer, bank cheque or personal cheque from the staff member; or b) Recovery in monthly instalments subject to the contract expiry date of the staff member; or c) Other methods of recovery at the disposal of the Organization.
The resources of UNDP that are comingled and untied. These will include voluntary
contributions, contributions from other governmental, intergovernmental or nongovernmental sources and related interest earnings and miscellaneous revenue.
The designated process in a particular case, through which a Vendor that has been Sanctioned regains its eligibility status and the particular entry related to a specific case is updated on UNDP and the UNGM Ineligibility Lists. This only affects Sanctions issued by UNDP, and not any sanction that may be issued at any given time by another Agency.
The purpose of the rental subsidy scheme is to facilitate the settlement of new staff members and to encourage mobility within the UN Common System. It subsidizes the rental costs of eligible staff members whose rental accommodations are of a reasonable standard but cost significantly more than the average for the duty station. There are two different types of rental subsidy: one for staff members serving in Europe and North America and another for staff members serving outside Europe and North America.
A repatriation grant is paid to internationally recruited staff members upon separation from service as compensation for being stationed away from the home country at the Organization's initiative for a period exceeding 5 years, in order to contribute to the extraordinary one-time expense of relocation and reinstallation.
Reporting is an important accountability function. It draws on data and analysis collected through monitoring and communicates updates on results, risks, quality, learning and operational performance to oversight mechanisms, funding partners and other stakeholders. Reporting is a key input to decision-making at all levels as it provides information required to adjust programming to ensure results are achieved. To this end, reports must capture lessons learned on what worked and what didn’t work and explain how data and learning were used to adjust course or inform other interventions.
The Assistant Administrator and Director of the Bureau of Management authorizes the establishment of a reasonable representation allowance for certain UNDP staff who have extensive outside representation functions. Representation allowances are provided following appropriate authorization directly into the salary of the staff member concerned because these staff members often incur considerable miscellaneous personal expenses in connection with their representational responsibilities (e.g. ad-hoc refreshments, tea, coffee, transportation, gratuities, greeting cards, flowers and other symbolic gifts to hosts, local phone calls etc.).
Media and public attention and visibility, Member States expectations, donor expectations, perception of UNDP’s role by the public, national stakeholders and partners.
A request for information is a cost-effective method to continually update a UNDP office’s vendor database and to deepen understanding of markets and existing technologies. Written communications by the vendor provide the company profile, and information about products, services, resources, qualifications and experience.
The Request for Proposals consisting of instructions and references prepared by UNDP for purposes of selecting the best service provider to perform the services described in the Terms of Reference.
A request for quotation is used to procure readily available goods, services or works, or any combination thereof. A written request with a clearly described requirement is sent to a vendor, soliciting a written price quotation. A request for quotation is mandatory for contract values ranging from US $5,000 ($10,000 if approved by the Bureau) to US $200,000. Beyond this amount, requests for proposals or invitations to bid must be used.
a) MAY – This word, or the adjective "OPTIONAL", mean that an item is truly optional.
b) MUST – This word, or the terms "REQUIRED" or "SHOULD", mean that the definition is an absolute requirement of the standard.
c) MUST NOT – This phrase, or the phrase "SHALL NOT", mean that the definition is an absolute prohibition of the standard.
d) SHOULD – This word, or the adjective "RECOMMENDED", mean that there may exist valid reasons in particular circumstances to ignore a particular item, but the full implications should be understood and carefully weighed before choosing a different course.
e) SHOULD NOT – This phrase, or the phrase "NOT RECOMMENDED" mean that there may exist valid reasons in particular circumstances when the particular behavior is acceptable or even useful, but the full implications should be understood and the case carefully weighed before implementing any behavior described with this label.
Any organization that is legally constituted and duly registered may become a responsible party for a UNDP project where UNDP is the implementing partner or providing country office support to the implementing partner (and that support involves contracting a responsible party for certain activities). This includes government agencies, intergovernmental organizations, private firms, other UN agencies, or civil society organizations, including non-governmental organizations, advocacy groups, state-owned enterprises and academia.