Mr. Chair,

1. I have the honor to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China at the closing the first resumed part of the seventy-sixth session of the Fifth Committee of the General Assembly.

2. The Group would like to express its appreciation for you Mr. Chairman, members of your Bureau, and all facilitators for your continued engagement in guiding the work of the Committee.

3. We also wish to recognize the hard work and efforts of representatives of the Secretariat for the fifth committee in support our work and proceedings this session.

Mr. Chair,

4. We are pleased to have reached consensus on some of the agenda items this session. Our Group appreciates the efforts made by all negotiators towards finalizing agreements on agenda items relating to organizational resilience management and the Joint Inspection Unit. However, we have a long way ahead and our inability to conclude some of the other agenda items is a matter of concern for our group.

5. The G77&China regrets the inability to reach an agreement under the agenda item relating to Human Resources Management. Our Group strived hard to reach consensus by moving significantly from long standing traditional positions in the true spirit of compromise, keeping in view the collective benefits we all stood to gain from a resolution on this important matter. Despite our best efforts, however, yet once again we are left without a successful outcome of this agenda item.

6. This does not mean that our efforts to achieve what we had set out for were not without its silver lining. While divergences remained, there were many areas of convergences, and our Group hopes that they will form the basis of our discussions in future discourse.

Mr. Chair,

7. We look forward to the next year to continue to work in an inclusive manner in order to finally achieve a satisfactory conclusion of this agenda item, and in particular to ensure that action-oriented policies towards achieving equitable geographical representation in the UN Secretariat, including by addressing concerns in the system of desirable ranges to make it reflect the true purpose that it purports to address.

Mr. Chair,

8. It has been two years since we first entered into virtual negotiations due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We have adapted and managed to accomplish agreements under these virtual methods of conducting the business of this Committee. However, we have witnessed that truly successful outcomes on many agenda items that come before this Committee have eluded us, and that in person contact with vital face to face communication between delegations is necessary when attempting to achieve delicate balances.

Mr. Chair,

9. Despite these setbacks, the Group of 77 and China remains committed to the work of this Committee in helping this Organization deliver on its mandates. We stand ready to engage with all delegations in an inclusive, transparent and effective manner.

I thank you Mr. Chair