UN reform plan debuts in Vietnam

UN agencies are involved in development projects in Vietnam

The United Nations has unveiled a plan it says could combat waste and free up resources and millions of dollars for development operations.

It will pilot a system in Vietnam whereby all UN operations are run by a single head and under one budget.

At the moment, up to 25 UN different agencies can be working separately in a single country, leading to duplication and waste.

If the Vietnamese project is a success, the system will be copied elsewhere.

"We have to make it work in a country to show people that there are real benefits and take some cuts and hits ourselves," said United Nations Development Group chair Kemal Dervis in the Vietnamese capital, Hanoi.

Internal battles

The UN's operations in Vietnam are spread over 11 agencies housed in 10 different buildings in Hanoi.

"Next year we will have a harmonised management under the 'One UN Initiative' and there will be lessons drawn for application in other countries," Vietnam's vice minister of planning and investment Cao Viet Sinh said.

In the first instance six or seven agencies - including the UN Development Programme and the children's fund Unicef - will be united.

However, UN staff expect there to be difficulties along the way as entrenched interests fight to preserve their independence, reports the BBC's Bill Hayton in Hanoi.

Later this month, the UN is expected to announce six other countries where the shake-up will be instituted.