Scope of the Project  

Goals: The purpose of the project is to provide an organized historic record of selected official papers of Secretary-General Kofi Annan in order to make more accessible to scholars, students, and policy makers the breadth and depth of the work of the Secretary-General.  It is important for the future benefit of the United Nations and multilateral cooperation to have a greater understanding of how this Secretary-General has managed his leadership role within the constraints and opportunities of the office. The project goals also include holding a series of seminars based on the organized papers and making the papers available for others to use for seminar discussion purposes.

The Original Documents: All original documents/papers will stay in the UN Archives Library. Only selected documents will be copied and electronically scanned for the project.  

End Products: There are several end products, any or all of which could be undertaken by the project, depending on the request of the UN.  1) a bound paper volume published by a professional publisher or university press; 2) a subject searchable CD Rom; 3) a web-based product with subject search engine; and 4) a loose leaf archival collection of the copies of the selected papers to be deposited in an archive library outside New York City. Professor Krasno, the Project’s principal director, does not intend to write a book or biography on the Secretary-General, but would be happy to facilitate the Secretary-General’s writing of his memoirs through the timely organization of the papers.  

Each end product has its own advantages and disadvantages. A bound publication would have the advantage of presenting in chronological order (with subject index at the end) the activities of the Secretary-General in a format that is easily made available to all countries and libraries irregardless of electronic capabilities. On the other hand, the CD Rom provides the capacity to search and print out only the subject areas of interest to the researcher in a fast and efficient manner.  Because the data are finite and do not need updating, there would be no need to manage or add new information. The CD Rom format is mobile and does not require internet access, something which can be in short supply in some libraries around the world.  The web-based product has the advantage of being accessible without having to order or purchase a hard copy and can be easily searched by subject.  The disadvantage of the web product is that it would not be available to those who do not have internet access. Also, someone would have to manage the web-based system indefinitely which would require permanent funding and commitment.  Finally, the loose leaf set of the selected paper copies stored in an archive library other than the UN would ensure the safety of the documents for the future.  

Papers to be Included in the Selected Set: The project is clearly concerned with the “official” records of the Secretary-General and not with his private papers. The project will comply with all United Nations rules and regulations pertaining to the use of official documents. The papers to be included fall into several categories: 1) speeches of the Secretary-General; 2) statements by the Secretary-General; 3) letters from theo Secretary-General to others, and 4) any other documents at the discretion of  the Secretary-General.  It is understood that these documents would be cleared by Secretary-General Annan or his designate and any item without this clearance would not be included.

Norms of the United Nations Archives and Records Management Section (ARMS): The organization of the Secretary-General’s papers will be in accordance with the norms established by the International Council on Archives, which are adhered to by the United Nations Archives and Records Management Section (ARMS).  The criteria for selecting documents will respect the concept of “original order” (the order in which the records were created or received) combined with “provenance” (who created or sent the records) which aims to allow the records to speak for themselves to researchers with diverse interests.

Selection Criteria: The director of the project (Jean Krasno) would conduct the selection process and, with the help of an advisory council, develop a set of criteria for selecting documents which will respect the concept of “original order.” In general, the guidelines would be to select papers that reflect the work of the “good offices” of the Secretary-General and important issues unique to the leadership and times of Kofi Annan’s two terms.  These themes would address economic, political, and social issues. Specifically, these might include, but would not be limited to, issues of sovereignty and humanitarian assistance and intervention, human rights, reduction of global poverty and other goals in the Millennium Declaration, health and eradication of HIV/AIDS, human security, the Global Compact, and UN reform, including the Brahimi Report. Use of  the “good offices” would include, for example, East Timor and efforts to resolve the issues of Cyprus, Western Sahara, Ethiopia-Eritrea, Sudan, and Iraq. Of course, this list will grow as the project develops.  I would like to enlist the help of some key persons within the Office of Secretary-General to advise me on the important subject areas to be included. These persons might include Elisabeth Lindenmayer and Edward Mortimer.

Time-line: While access to the papers would not begin until after the end of the Secretary-General’s current term in January 2007, the project would begin as soon as it is authorized by the Office of the Secretary-General. Fundraising would begin in the fall 2004 and continue through 2006. The methodology for selection and determining the indexing and search engine design will begin formulation in 2004 and continue through 2005. Selection and training of personnel including liaising with the UN Archives Library will begin in 2006 and be in full swing in the fall of 2006 so that work can begin immediately in January 2007. I estimate the project to be completed by fall 2009.  

Budget, Fundraising, and Personnel: Dr. Krasno, in connection with the City College of New York and the Colin Powell Center for Policy Studies, will raise all the funds for the project. These funds include a salary for the director, two full-time researchers, and 4-6 part-time graduate students; office costs; the purchase of any necessary equipment such as two state of the art copiers and scanners; fees for IT design; publishing costs; consultants; dissemination, and other miscellaneous expenses.

Work Location and Housing of the Project: In the initial stages of the project the work will have to take place within the UN because the original documents must not leave the UN. I suggest that perhaps there might be temporary space made available, if possible, in the Dag Hammarskjöld Library in an area where we would not disrupt the other activities of the Library. The second stage of the project would be housed at The City College of New York, and in particular, at the Colin Powell Center for Policy Studies, which has offered office and work space and other expert support for the project. Yale University will also provide expert advice on both the substantive aspects of the project and methodology for creating the database and subject search technology.  

Organizational Process:  As documents are selected, they would be scanned and copied.  The copies would then be given to an authority designated by Kofi Annan for clearance.  Once the documents are cleared, the copies could then be removed from the UN along with the scanned version.  To assist the Archives Library and eliminate duplication of effort, the electronically scanned documents could be given also to the UN. 

An Advisory Council: To assist the project, I plan to invite several experts to form an advisory council.