The Chair then introduced a draft decision on the appointment of a Chief Officer pursuant to Decision 38/80 of the Executive Committee, which summarized the issues involved. Following a discussion, the Executive Committee decided:
(a) To take note with appreciation of the report of the Chair of the Executive Committee on his visit to United Nations Headquarters, undertaken at the request of the Executive Committee (Decision 38/80);
(b) To endorse the understandings reached by the Chair and United Nations Headquarters officials with respect to the terms of reference of the Chief Officer, process of recruitment, nomination and appointment of the Chief Officer and further extension of the term of office of the current incumbent, Dr. El‑Arini, beyond 31 August 2003;
(c) To note that the United Nations Office of Human Resources Management had issued a vacancy announcement for the Chief Officer’s post on 10 March 2003, with the deadline for applications set at 9 May 2003;
(d) To amend the education qualification therein as follows:
“Advanced university degree (preferably Ph.D.) in economics, business administration, finance, public administration or any other equivalent field.”
(e) To request the United Nations Secretariat to reissue the amended announcement immediately;
(f) To apply mutatis mutandis the procedure employed in 1990 (See UNEP/OzL.Pro.ExCom.1/2, paragraph 15, and UNEP/OzL.Pro/ExCom/2/5/Rev.1, paragraph 13) for the recruitment, nomination and appointment of the Chief Officer;
(g) That a recruitment committee headed by Japan (Chair) and composed of representatives of Bolivia, Burundi, France, India, and the United States of America might review all applications, interview leading candidates and make a recommendation to the 40th meeting of the Executive Committee, it being understood that:
(i) The recruitment committee was authorized to meet early in June 2003 to establish a short list and, if necessary, to meet once more or hold a teleconference early in July 2003;
(ii) The recruitment committee was also authorized to invite the Executive Secretary of the Ozone Secretariat to attend as an observer;
(iii) A representative of the UNEP Secretariat, accompanied by supporting staff, would assist the recruitment committee technically and administratively throughout the process of selecting the candidates and would provide a briefing on the use of the established interviewing method within the United Nations;
(h) To nominate the Chief Officer for appointment by the Secretary-General at its 40th meeting;
(i) To request the Secretary-General and the Executive Director of UNEP to expedite the timely appointment of the Chief Officer in order to ensure continuity of the work of the Multilateral Fund.