Wednesday, May 18 2005 19:24 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

United Nations: Hit by scandals like the oil-for-food scam and sexual abuse by peacekeepers, the United Nations has unveiled reforms to prevent such incidents from recurring and to "strengthen accountability, ethical conduct and management performance" in the world body.

The reforms include protection of whistleblowers, a demand repeatedly made by the staff, uniform acceptable behaviour by peacekeepers and expansion of programme of financial disclosures by top officials.

The UN has said that it plans to implement most of the reforms in the next couple of months and is also appointing a committee to help strengthen accountability and oversight, which the Volcker panel, investigating charges of corruption in the oil-for-food programme, had identified as "weak spots".

In keeping with the reforms, a financial expert with the US State Department has been appointed to head the UN management department, the world body announced yesterday (May 17, 2005).

Chosen from a list of three, Christopher Bancroft Burnham, currently acting Under Secretary for Management of the American State Department, will take over as Under Secretary General for Management from June 1, 2005 with a mandate to implement a host of management reforms announced by the world body.

At the UN, Burnham would be responsible for "strengthening accountability, ethical conduct and management performance.