World Job and Food Bank -- Paperless Committee Project

WJFB / UN Paperless Committee Project

In December 2003, we offered to donate a sum of USD $75,000 for the Paperless Committee” to the Non-Governmental Organizational (NGO) section of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) of the United Nations.

The committee before the project was implemented.

The “Paperless Committee,” is an electronic meeting system that was designed to increase the efficiency of the Committee on NGOs. It allows the delegates to view the documentation in all six languages of the UN; to have continuous document updates from the Chair and the Secretariat, wireless connectivity, and electronic vote counting. In the last stage of the “Paperless Committee,” the documents were also accessible for the delegates to view via the Internet days before the Committee on NGOs started. The “Paperless Committee” was the first attempt of its kind at the inter-governmental level.

The committee after the project was implemented.

In May 2003, we attended a Regular Session of the Committee of NGOs. It was at that time that NGO Section first launched its Paperless Project. There was a loan of twenty-five laptops from Hewlett Packard (HP). Instead of using piles of binders of paper information, the Committee members used computers to access of all information for the meetings. We have seen the results of the efficiency of meetings at this session. WJFB firmly supported this project. When HP’s loan terminated, we donated the funds (USD $75,000) to have the project continue. The funds were used for the purchase of sophisticated computer equipment, including thirty laptops, a server, and other equipment. Funds were also used for professionals to install the equipment for the project, to ensure the success of the “Paperless Committee” for future sessions of the Committee on NGOs.

Before the advent of the “Paperless Committee,” the documentation for one session of the Committee on NGOs required between 40,000 to 80,000 pages of paper, which were distributed to the delegates in numerous cumbersome binders. Mihaela Blajan, the Chairperson of the Committee on NGOs when the “Paperless Committee” was launched, accurately predicted the outcome of the “Paperless Committee,” as she said it would “greatly facilitate [the] work for the future since this is a committee that depends on voluminous documentation.” The successful implementation of the “Paperless Committee” saved 40,000 to 80,000 pages of paper for each committee session and increase the efficiency of the meetings and thus reduce the number of meetings. In monetary terms, it would save $632,616 for 2004-2005.

The UN accepted our donation in February of 2004 and completed the project in May. It was termed “revolutionary” by Mr. Rosenthal, Ambassador to ECOSOC, who said it would “make it possible ... to look into the future to a profound and much more effective working method.” The innovation of the “Paperless Committee,” as well as the ease and efficiency with which it handled the processes of the Committee on NGOs, made it an instant success. The Committee recommended to the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) to decide that the electronic system become, on a trial basis for one year, a normal mode of operation.

UN expressed their sincere thanks to WJFB’s support to this project and said “The time and money saved as a result of the implementation of the “Paperless Committee” are only two of the numerous reasons for its success. And, although there were many contributing factors to the “Paperless Committee’s” success, the single most important factor was the equipment. Without the WJFB’s donation of the equipment, it would not have been possible for the “Paperless Committee” to become the normal mode of operation for the Committee on NGOs. The NGO section of DESA was greatly indebted to the WJFB and specially thanked Joseph Edison, the CEO of WJFB.