FOREIGN OPERATIONS AND GOVERNMENT INFORMATION SUBCOMMITTEE TORBERT H. MACDONALD, Massachusetts OGDEN R. REID, New York FRANK HORTON, New York VINCENT J. AUGLIERE, Staff Administrator HAROLD F. WHITTINGTON, Professional Staff Member (II) CONTENTS De Palma, Samuel, Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs; accompanied by Walter M. Kotschnig, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of International Organization Affairs; M. Kathleen Bell, Chief, Institutional Development and Coordination Affairs Division; Richard V. Hennes, Deputy Director, Office of International Administration; and John W. McDonald, Jr., Director, Office of International Economic and Social Affairs. Moss, Hon. John E., a Representative in Congress from the State of California, and chairman, Foreign Operations and Government Informa- tion Subcommittee, opening statement. Letters, statements, etc., submitted for the record by— De Palma, Samuel, Assistant Secretary of State for International Comparative tax receipt as percentages of gross national product: Estimates of total tax receipts of all levels of government, table- Document delineating certain dollar funds of Government of Excerpt from prepared statement: Administration of UNDP Information regarding assistance to former U.S. Government Memorandum from the White House, dated January 8, 1970, to the Secretary of State, re U.S. participation in international Number and percentage of professional personnel from the United States, the U.S.S.R., the United Kingdom, and France in the Secretariats of the United Nations, the specialized agencies, IAEA, as of December 3, 1969; and international organizations employment, statistical summary as of December 31, 1969, U.S. contributions to the United Nations, specialized agencies, Appendix I.-Questions submitted to the Department of State for answering and subsequent inclusion in the record___ Appendix II.—Assistance for Economic and Social Development Available From the United Nations System, a Handbook of Criteria and Proce- Appendix III. Consensus approved by the UNDP Governing Council Appendix IV.-Report of the U.N. Joint Inspection Unit, January 1968 to Appendix V.-Report of the U.N. Joint Inspection Unit, July 1969 to June Appendix VI.-GAO Report Digest (B-168767)—Management Improve- ment Needed in U.S. Financial Participation in the United Nations' Development Program-Department of State___ Appendix VII.-GAO Report Digest (B-167598)-U.S. Financial Partici- pation in the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations- Departments of State and Agriculture... Appendix VIII.-GAO Report Digest (B-166780)-U.S. Financial Par- ticipation in the United Nations Children's Fund-Department of Appendix IX.-GAO Report Digest (B-164031 (2)-U.S. Participation in the World Health Organization-Departments of State and of Health, 52 42 218 PREFACE The Foreign Operations and Government Information Subcommittee of the House Committee on Government Operations is currently conducting what may be one of its most significant investigations. The subcommittee is examining the efficiency and economy of the U.S. Government's participation in international organizations. The magnitude of the subject is demonstrated by the fact that the Executive branch recently advocated that a larger share of U.S. foreign aid be channeled through international organizations. The subcommittee, by virtue of its jurisdiction, is not responsible for the policy issue involved in the proposal but it is greatly concerned with the possible operational implications resulting if the proposal is put into effect. For example, the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) in a series of reports to Congress has been extremely critical of the Department of State's management of U.S. participation in international organizations. GAO maintains that thus far the Department of State has not been in a position to give Congress basic assurance that the hundreds of millions of dollars contributed by the United States to United Nations organizations have been used in an effective and efficient manner and that the goals of such economic aid have been achieved. The subcommittee is conducting its investigation in order to determine if the United Nations Development System under its present structure has the capacity to effectively administer economically and efficiently the funds that have been entrusted to it by member governments. Coincidentally, the subcommittee is conducting its investigation to determine if the Department of State receives the information necessary and is presently structured to enable it to give Congress basic assurance that the contributions to the United Nations Development System are being used in an effective and efficient manner. (V) |