23 April 2025
This quarterly Colonna Report provides a summary of major milestones and developments over the first quarter of 2025 in the Agency¡¯s implementation of the 50 recommendations of the Independent Review of Mechanisms and Procedures to Ensure Adherence by Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA to the Humanitarian Principle of Neutrality (¡°Colonna Report¡±). It also includes an update on funding requirements.
Progress:
One year from the Agency¡¯s receipt of the Colonna Report on 20 April 2024, Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA continues its active implementation. The 50 recommendations were translated into a High-Level Action Plan that articulates specific actions, timelines, and resource requirements for their implementation. This High-Level Action Plan, which is updated regularly, is a key management tool for Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA for the implementation process.
Additionally, since the last quarterly progress report, the implementation of several recommendations has been initiated, including:
- ACTION on recommendations 22, 24, 27, 44, 45 (screening and vetting): Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA¡¯s Human Resources Department is coordinating a range of measures aimed at strengthening human resource-based screening and discipline of staff, including: training on a new Personnel Directive about Disciplinary Measures and Procedures; preparing Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA Disciplinary Digests to reinforce management actions and increase transparency; piloting a Pre-employment Declaration Form for outside and political activities in the onboarding of international, area and complementary personnel; introducing advance use of the ClearCheck tool; and launching amendments to Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA¡¯s Code of Ethics for Daily Paid Workers, interns, and volunteers. Discussions are ongoing with external partners to explore the feasibility, including costs, of third-party support in the area of vetting to complement existing measures.
- ACTION on recommendation 25: Starting in March 2025, a tool developed by the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ¡¯s Office of Information and Communications Technology (OICT) for social media monitoring of public expressions of staff is being pilot tested;
- ACTION on recommendation 46: Discussions have been initiated with other Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ offices to explore the feasibility of outsourcing issues related to pay and pay-related benefits;
- ACTION on recommendations 3 and 47: Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA is mapping governance and staff representation models across the Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµ to inform options for the Agency.
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Next steps:
For the second quarter of 2025, Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA¡¯s on-going implementation of the Colonna Report recommendations will focus on:
- Completing all recommendations due by the end of Q2 2025 and continue the preliminary work related to recommendations that are in preparation;
- Providing the second Integrity Briefing to Member States on May 12th in Geneva;
- Monitoring and managing risks to Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA related to the Action Plan, considering developments in the external environment
Document Type: Report
Document Sources: United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA)
Subject: Accountability, Ä¢¹½ÊÓÆµRWA
Publication Date: 23/04/2025
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