in document A/39/453 provided factual, objective yardsticks against which Member States might evaluate their own commitment to and efforts for a balanced proportion of women in the Secretariat. Finally, to avoid the risk of a possible brain drain, priority States should be encouraged to experiment with secondments or fixed-term contracts as a viable interim solution, provided that the balance and independence of the Secretariat, based on a meaningful number of core permanent staff, were respected. I ... A/C.5/39/SR.26 English Page 3 (Mr. Hepburn, Bahamas) 4. Turning to the various internal constraints on the recruitment of nationals from priority groups, his delegation believed that co-operation between the Office of Personnel Services (OPS) and substantive departments might be improved by establishing a more formal recruitment link in which the access of those departments to potential qualified candidates was maximized and use was made of their specific competence to evaluate potential recruits. That could be done by monitoring their contacts, through field offices and/or missions, with individuals and bodies in the public, professional and private sectors of Member States, particularly "priority" or "special treatment" States. Potential suitable candidates would then be reported on systematically to OPS for follow-up interviews, missions and inclusion in the computerized roster. 5. Lack of co-ordination and co-operation between OPS and substantive departments was particularly marked in the case of the recruitment and promotion of women. It was clear from the various reports under consideration that the Secretary-General had fulfilled only a statistical reporting function in response to General Assembly resolution 37/235 B and had not taken the specific action requested of him in that resolution. For instance, the action described in paragraph 16 of document A/39/453 could not be considered an adequate response to paragraph 1 of the resolution and no "concrete action• had been taken in response to the second part 
**Analysis**
The text appears to be discussing the United Nations' efforts to increase the representation of women in its Secretariat, including the recruitment and promotion of women from priority countries. It highlights the need for better coordination between the Office of Personnel Services and substantive departments, and suggests solutions such as secondments and fixed-term contracts to address the brain drain. The text also mentions the lack of concrete action taken by the Secretary-General in response to a General Assembly resolution.

**Category**
Employment, Humanitarian aid and relief