THE NETWORK FOR WHO COLLABORATING CENTRES
AND CENTRES OF EXPERTISE
|
There
are many institutes specializing in health or health-related fields in The
Royal Thai Government has also explicitly expressed its intent to make Section
1: This Charter shall come
into force as from the day following the date of its adoption by the
Executive Board. Section
2: In this Charter : “WHO
Collaborating Centre” means a national institution designated by the
Director-General of the World Health Organization to form part of an
international collaborative network carrying out activities in support of
WHO’s mandate for international health work and its programme
priorties.
An entire institution, or a department or laboratory within an
institution, or a group of facilities for reference, research or training
belonging to different institutions, may be designated as a “WHO
Collaborating Centre”. When a WHO
collaborating centre comprises several departments or institutions, only one
of one of these acts for that centre in relation to WHO. “Centre
of Expertise” means and institution that possesses at least one expertise
area out of all WHO’s areas of work. The Centre of Expertise must be well
recognized in its scientific and technical standing at the national or
regional or international level, and its ability to strengthen national and
regional capacity for health development. The Centre of Expertise should have
the capacity and -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Charter
of the Network for WHO CCs & CEs, 14 May
2004
Page 1 of 8 the
institutional stability to develop relationships with other institutions
through collaborative activities and networking. They should be willing and prepared to
use their own resources to implement such activities. Any
WHO CC whose term has expired and / or is in the process of applying for
re-designation may be regarded as “a Centre of Expertise”. “Sub-network”
means a group of WHO CCs / CEs whose expertise is
closely related to each other, under each major group of WHO Areas of Work;
one WHO CC / CE may be a member of more than one sub-network. “Area
of Work (AoW)” means a WHO Area of Work as shown in
the WHO Preparation of Country Detailed Work Plans (2004-2005), or according
to the latest version of such or other relevant documents issued by WHO. CHAPTER I GOAL AND
OBJECTIVES Section
3: The goal and objectives of
the Network are: Goal: To
promote the international use of Thai expertise through establishing close
linkages with international agencies and networks, to which information
concerning Thai institutes and their expertise will be disseminated. Objectives: 1. To promote scientific and technical
collaboration among professionals of member institutes. 2. To promote capacity building
among member institutes through sharing, cooperating and coordinating
expertise and technical resources, and to become a WHO CC, if they desire. 3. To develop strategies and
methods for the development and management of WHO Country Programme. 4. To advice WHO on various
matters related to Technical Cooperation among Countries (TCC). Section 4:
There shall be a Secretariat office located at a selected institution, as determined by the Executive
Board. The Secretariat office is
assigned for a four-year term, which may be renewable. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Charter of the Network for WHO CCs & CEs,
14 May 2004
Page 2 of 8 CHAPTER II MEMBER AND
MEMBERSHIP Section
5: All WHO CCs are Members of
the Network. Any other internationally recognized Centre of Expertise located in
In
the initial stage, the Network membership includes approximately 70 institutions participating in the WHO
CCs / CEs meetings in 2002-2004. Section
6: Membership application can
be made through the Secretariat
and shall be approved by the executive Board, according to a set of
predetermined criteria. Section
7: Any organization not
mentioned in Section 6 that are committed to the objectives of the Network can apply
or be invited to become and Honorary Member. Section
8: All members can participate in the activities organized by the Network.
Only Full members are entitled to serve on the Executive Board as
prescribed in Section 11 (1) and (2). Section
9: Membership is free of
charge, except that the General Assembly
decides otherwise. Section
9: Membership may be
terminated by: (1)
submission of a letter of resignation to the Executive Board,
through ; or (2)
a majority vote of the General Assembly. CHAPTER III ORGANS
Section 10: There are three principal organs of
the Network: (1) An
executive Board (EB); (2) A
Secretariat; and (3) A
General Assembly Section 11: The Executive Board shall consist of: (1) Member
ex officio, viz., the WHO country representative, one ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Charter of the Network for WHO CCs & CEs,
14 May 2004
Page 3 of 8 representative of the Department of
Technical and Economic Co-operation, one representative of the Ministry of
Public Health, and the Director or Dean of the Institute that houses the
Secretariat office. (2) Six qualified members from six major
groups of Areas of Work as elected (one
for each AoW) by the Sub-networks. (3) Up to five qualified members who will
be invited by the Board members of (1) and
(2). Such qualified persons
should be from the Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of
Foreign Affairs and / or other organizations deemed appropriate for the
Network functioning. Section 12: The Executive Board shall elect among
its members a Chairperson and a Vice Chairperson.
Section
13: The Executive Board shall
appoint a Secretary-General (SG) who will serve as the secretary of the
Executive Board. The secretary is
not a voting member of the Executive Board. Section
14: The term of office of the
Executive Board is four years. A
qualified Executive Board member who has served the full term may re-appointed, but may not serve more than two consecutive
terms. Section
15: At the expiration of the
term, if the new qualified Executive Board members have not yet been appointed,
the qualified members who will vacate the office at the expiration of the
term shall remain in office to continue performing the work until newly
appointed qualified members take office. Section 16: The Executive Board shall have the powers
and duties to control and supervise the operation of the Network for the
attainment of the objectives prescribed in CHAPTER I. Such powers include: (1) Determining administrative policies
and approve an action plan for the Network; (2) Proposing an annual action and
financial plan of the Network as well as an annual budget for the Secretariat
office to the General Assembly for approval; (3) Prescribing criteria and procedures
for the selection of the Secretariat and the Secretary-General; (4) Raising funds; (5) Prescribing rules for finance and
audit procedures; and (6) Appointing
qualified persons as advisors or an advisory committee. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Charter of the Network for WHO CCs & CEs,
14 May 2004
Page 4 of 8 Section
17: At a meeting of the
Executive Board, if the Chairperson is not present or is unable to perform
duties, the Vice Chairperson shall preside over the meeting. If the Vice Chairperson is not present
or is unable to perform duties, the members present shall elect one amongst
themselves to preside over the meeting. Section
18: At a Board meeting, the
presence of one half of the total number of members is required to constitute
a quorum. The decisions shall be
by a majority vote. In
the case of an equality of votes, the presiding Chairperson shall have and
additional vote as a casting vote. Section
19: The policy and functions
of the Network, guided by the Executive Board, shall be implemented by the
Secretary-General who is appointed by the Executive Board. The Secretary-General is head of the Secretariat. Section
20: The Secretary-General must have the following qualifications: (1) being
a well-known person nationally and internationally in technical services; (2) being
a person with a good command of communication and negotiation skills,
knowledge and experiences suitable to the affairs of the Network. Section 21: The
Secretary-General shall hold office for a term of four years, and may be
re-appointed, subjected to performance evaluation by the Executive Board. Section 22: The Secretariat shall have the
following powers and duties: (1) to
promote close communication among member institutions; (2) to
support regular professional and technical development and capacity building exercises and exchanges; (3) to
foster closer linkages with international agencies; (4) to
ensure the availability of adequate funds for the network to function properly; (5) to
help create sufficient incentives for member institutions to collaborate and coordinate effectively; -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------TOP Charter of the Network for WHO CCs & CEs,
14 May 2004
Page 5 of 8 (6) to
promote the international use of Thai expertise, through the collection and dissemination
of information concerning Thai institutions and their experts / specialists. Section 23: In
order to operate the Network effectively, the Executive Board shall set
up criteria and a mechanism for the selection and hiring / appointment of members
of Secretariat staff who will work under the supervision of the
Secretary-General toward the achievement of the Network objectives. Section 24: The office of the Secretariat shall be
located in one of the institutes that is a
member of the Network, hereinafter referred to as the Host Institute. Section
25: The Host Institute shall
employ staff of the Secretariat according to the criteria set by the
Executive Board. Section
26: The General Assembly: (1) Shall
consist of a number of the Network members, and shall be the body that receives
the reports of the business of the Network. It shall consider whether such reports
adequately meet the objectives of the Network. (2) Shall
be chaired by the Chairperson of the Executive Board with the Secretary-General as the Secretary of the
General Assembly. (3) Will
meet at least once a year. Notice
of the meeting and the agenda shall be sent to all
members at least 30 days in advance of the General Assembly. The proceedings of each meeting shall
be prepared by the Secretariat and distributed to all members. Section 27: The General Assembly has the following
powers and duties: (1) Endorsement
the appointment of the Executive Board; (2) Endorsement
of policies set by the Executive Board; (3) Approval
of an annual work plan and budget. Section 28: At a
meeting of the General Assembly, the presence of at least one half of the
total number of the members is required to constitute a quorum. Section 29: The
decision of the General Assembly shall be made by a majority vote, except as
indicated otherwise. In the case of an equality of votes, the presiding
Chairperson shall have an additional vote
as a casting vote. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Charter of the Network for WHO CCs & CEs,
14 May 2004
Page 6 of 8 CHAPTER IV FINANCING AND AUDITING Section
30: A Fiscal Year begins on 1
January and ends on 31 December of each year. Section
31: The Secretary-General
shall propose an annual budget for consideration by the Executive Board and
for approval by the General Assembly. Section
32: Financial resources will
be initially contributed by WHO Thailand for 2004-2005. The support for 2006-2007 and beyond
from WHO will be subject to the availability of funds. Section
33. Other resources can be
raised by the Secretariat according to the principles as agreed to by the
Executive Board. Section
34: In the initial stage, the
financial rules of the Host Institution shall apply to the extent that such
rules are not in conflict with the WHO rules. The WHO Thailand spreadsheet / ledger
format will be used. At
a later stage, with or without WHO funding support, the Network shall
establish its own financial rules.
However, in certain circumstances the rules of the funding agencies
may have to be followed. CHAPTER V AMENDMENT AND DISSOLUTION Section
35: Any amendment to the
Charter shall be submitted by at least 10 Members to the Executive Board, and
approved by a majority vote of the General Assembly. Section
36: The Network can be
dissolved by the decision of a two-thirds vote of the General Assembly. Upon dissolution, the remaining funds
and assets will be re turned to the original funding agencies as per grant
agreements (if any); if there is no such requirements, the remaining funds /
assets shall be given to charitable organizations in Thailand. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Charter of the Network for WHO CCs & CEs,
14 May 2004
Page 7 of 8 CHAPTER VI TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS Section
37: The Interim Executive
Board as assigned and agreed to at the Section
38: An election of the new
Executive Board shall be done at the next annual general Assembly in early
2005. Section
39: This Charter was adopted
by the interim Executive Board at its Section
40: The Executive Board shall
consider and arrange for a formal registration of the Network with the
relevant Thai authorities after 3 to 4 years of the Network operations. Section
41: An initial appointment of
the secretary-General and Secretariat staff for the first 4-year period shall
be made by WHO Thailand. Some
time before the end for that period, the Executive Board shall establish a
procedure for selection and recruitment of the Secretary-General for the next
time. - - - - - - - -
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TOP Charter of the Network for WHO CCs & CEs,
14 May 2004
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