Secretary-General (A/44/684/Add.1), inwhichhesubmit9 hiscomments onthereport ofJIU. Z.Background information onthegenesis oftheoptical discpilotproject atthe UnitedNations OfficeatGenevaisprovided insection IofthereportofJIU. Section 11ofthere~ortoutlines theproje.:t's g081sandexpectations, equipment used,results, andthepotential applications ofoptical disctechnology inthe UnitedNations. Considerations forplanning anoperational optical discsystemare discussed insectionIIIofthereport. Adiscu~sion oftheviewsandactions of thespecialized agencies concerning optical disctechnology iscontained in section IVofthereport. 3.Onthabasisofitsconclusions onthematter, JIUsubmits three recommendations inparagraph 53ofitsreport. First,JIUrecommends that"afully operational optical discsystemforstorage andretrieval ofrec~ntandfuture documentation shouldbeinstalled intheUnitedNations Secr.tariat. TheGeneral Assembly maywishtoprovide inthe1990-1991 budgetappropriate resources forsuch asystem". S.cond1y, andsubject toadoption ofitsfirstrecommendation, JIU recommends that,shouldSecretariat resources proveinsufficient, consideration shouldbegivento"thepossibility ofcontracting outtheinputting onoptical discsofallexisting UnitedNations documentation whichwillallowthe preservation oftheinstitutional memoryoftheOrganization, theready availability ofallUnitedNutions documentation, andsubstantial additional savings". Thethirdrecommendation ofJIUinvites theagencies oftheUnited Nations system, whenconsidering thepossibility ofinstalling operational systems oftheirown,toutilize theresultb ofthepilot proj~ct attheUnitedNations OfficeatGenevaandtobearinmindtheparamount needforcost-effectiveness and equipment compatibility. 4.OnthebasisofJuly1989estimates prepared byth)BudgetSection ofthe UnitedNations OfficeatGeneva, JIU,inparagraph 37ofitsreportandinthe annextheroto, estimates theprospective costofinstalling afullyoperational optical discsystemintheUnitedNations SecretariHt inthebiennium 1990-1991 at .USZ.Smillion. Withregardtothepos~ibility ofcontracting outinthebienniwm 1990-1991 theinputting ofthebacklog ofexisting documents onoptical discs, a one-time costof$US4to5million isprojected inparagraph 43ofthereport. Concomitant projections ofpotential savings infuturebienniums thatcouldresult fromtheintroduction oftheoptical discsystemarereferred toinparagraphs 39 and40ofthereport. -20-5.InanotetotheGeneral Assembly (A/44/684/Add.l), theSecretary-General submitted hiscomments ontherecommendations ofJIUconcerning theestablishment ofafullyoperational optical discsystemintheSecretariat. Whilebroadly agreeing withtherecommendations ofJIUonthesubject, theSecretary-General considers, forreasons statedinparagraphs 11and12ofthenote,thatifapproved bytheGeneral Assembly, amoremoasured development ofthesysteminvolving a phasedapproach overtwobienniums (1990-1991 and1992-1993) wouldbeappropriate. Inthisconnection, representatives oftheSecretary-General informed theAdvisory Committee thattheadoption ofsuchaphasedapproach wouldentailadditional resources totalling approximately $1.2million forthebiennium 1990-1991. as compared withthecostprojection ofJIUof$2.5million forinstalling afully operational systeminthebiennium 1990-1991. Representatives ofthe Secretary-General alsoinformed theCommittee thatshouldsuchaphasedapproach be adopted, itwouldbepossible toidentify, atthisstage,some'212,000 in resources foracquisition andreplacement ofotherequipment included under section 29(Conference andlibrary services) oftheproposed programme budgetthat couldberedeployed tofinance partoftheestimated requirement of$1.2million in thebiennium 1990-1991. However, theyexpressed theviewthatthebalance ofsome $1million wouldbeachargeagainst thecontingency fund. 6.TheAdvisory C~mmittee hasconsistently encouraged andsupported the introduction anduseoftechnological innovations whenever itcanbedemonstrated thattheirapplication canreasonably bBexpected toresultinimproved productivity, efficiency and/orsavings instaffandnon-staff costs. Inthis instance, theCommittee fullysharestheconclusion ofJIUandthe Secretary-General thatoptical disctechnology isonethatholdsgreatpromise for
**Analysis**
The text appears to be discussing the implementation of optical disc technology in the United Nations Secretariat, focusing on the costs, benefits, and feasibility of the project. The language used is technical and bureaucratic, suggesting that the text is primarily concerned with administrative and organizational issues.

**Category**
Industry, Science and Technology