Good Practices and Innovations in Public Governance 2003-2011

Good Practices and InnovATIONS in Public Governance
8. What are the Main Steps of the UNPSA Application Process?
The process of the United Nations Public Service Awards starts with the announcement
of the competition and call for nominations. Then it continues with
receipt of the nominations, analysis of the nomination documents, pre-selection
assessment of the nominations, selection of the winners, verification and announcement
of the winners. The process ends with the celebration of United Nations
Public Service Day and the Awards ceremony. The application process consists
of two stages.
• Step 1: An application form has to be completed online in one of the six official
United Nations languages (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian or
Spanish). The deadline for application is 31 December of each year (please
check UNPAN portal for deadlines updates).
• Step 2: Upon receipt of the applications, DPADM pre-selects nominations.
Pre-selected candidates are asked to submit additional information such as
letters of reference, supporting documents (e.g., evaluation and audit reports,
results of client surveys), etc. DPADM then shortlists candidates on
the basis of the documents provided. The short-listed are subsequently considered
by the United Nations Committee of Experts in Public Administration
(www.unpan.org/cepa.asp). After due consideration, the Committee
advises the United Nations Secretary-General concerning the winners of
the Awards.
The Committee of Experts on Public Administration (CEPA) is a subsidiary
body of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). The Committee, which
was established by ECOSOC in its resolution 2001/45, comprises twenty-four
experts appointed for four years who serve in their personal capacity. The
experts are nominated by the United Nations Secretary-General, in consultation
with Member States, and approved by the Economic and Social Council
(www.unpan.org/cepa.asp).
• A process of verification and validation is implemented to ascertain
congruence between the documents submitted and what happens on
the ground.
• The CEPA submits its recommendations concerning the winning cases
to the United Nations Secretary-General for declaration of the winners.
• The winners of the awards are officially announced.
• Reviewers assess each nomination according to an evaluation form
designed for each category of the Award. This form features a certain
number of questions, and a mark is given for each question.
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