-----Original Message-----

From:  Alan Prien, President FFOA

> 
> Communiqué from the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Board*
> 
> At the conclusion of the 63rd UN Joint Staff Pension Board meeting 
> that took place at the IAEA Headquarters in Vienna, Austria from the 
> 14 - 22 July 2016; following seven days of presentations, 
> considerations and debates the Board drafted the following statement for immediate release.
> 
> Vienna, Austria: 22 July 2016 - The United Nations Joint Staff Pension 
> Fund is in a sound financial position and has a positive actuarial 
> status as confirmed by the Consulting Actuary and Committee of 
> Actuaries. As at 21 July 2016 the assets of the Fund were valued at 
> US$ 54.2 billion. The members of the Board want to reassure the 
> participants, the retirees and the beneficiaries that the Fund is able 
> to meet its pension and benefit payment obligations over the long term.
> 
> The Fund's investments adhere to the criteria of Safety, Liquidity, 
> Convertibility, and Profitability as established by the UN General 
> Assembly, and the long-term rate of return investment objective of the 
> Fund is 3.5%. This criteria and rate ensure that the Fund is invested 
> conservatively.
> 
> The Board recognized the adverse impact that the delayed payment of 
> pension benefits is having on some new retirees. Aware of the multiple 
> causes for these delays, the Board addressed the responsibility of the 
> Fund, and supported measures introduced by the Fund to improve 
> caseload processing and welcomed initiatives to strengthen client services and communications.
> The Board also took extraordinary measures, approving additional 
> temporary resources and accepting that the Fund look into making 
> provisional payments. The Board will continue to provide support to 
> the management of the Fund and will inform stakeholders of 
> developments as these delays are resolved.
> 
> The Board welcomed the establishment of the Fund's own financial rules 
> along with the updated investment policy (which includes strategic 
> asset allocation). In addition, the Board considered a range of 
> matters related to the Fund's administration, investments, and oversight.
> 
> The Board recognizes and supports the efforts and dedication of the 
> Fund's management and staff who fulfil, on a daily basis, a complex 
> mandate, serving over 126,000 participants and some 71,000 retirees 
> and beneficiaries.
> 
> The Board is confident that the Fund is safe and that the Fund's 
> future is secure. The Board will meet again in July 2017.
> 
> * The United Nations Joint Staff Pension Board administers the Fund 
> and is composed of three constituent groups representing Participants, 
> Governing Bodies and the Executive Heads with participation of 
> representatives of the Federation of Associations of Former 
> International Civil Servants and observers. There are numerous checks 
> and balances built into the governance of the Fund, including audits 
> by internal and external auditors and the Board's Audit Committee.
> 

########################################################################

To unsubscribe from the FFOA2engITALY-L list, click the following link:
https://listserv.fao.org/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=FFOA2engITALY-L&A=1