16/35 Composition of the staff of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights - Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

GE.11-10395 (E) 010211

Human Rights Council Fifteenth session Agenda item 2 Annual report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and reports of the Office of the High Commissioner and the Secretary-General

Composition of the staff of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights*

* The present report was submitted after the deadline in order to ensure that most recent information, up

to and including 31 December 2010, could be included.

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I. Introduction

1. The Human Rights Council, in its resolution 13/1, requested the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to submit a comprehensive and updated report to the Council at its sixteenth session, in accordance with its annual programme of work, following the structure and scope of her report and with a special focus on further measures to correct the imbalance in geographical composition of the staff of the Office. The present report provides information on the composition of the staff of the Office of the High Commissioner (OHCHR) as at 31 December 2010.

2. Chapter II of the present report includes data on staff members in regular budget posts subject to geographical distribution, as well as data on staff in temporary posts funded from general temporary assistance and extrabudgetary resources or in technical cooperation project posts, neither of which are included in the definition of posts subject to geographical distribution.

3. Chapter III contains a description of the measures for improvement taken by the High Commissioner aimed at addressing the geographical composition issues identified by the Human Rights Council in resolution 13/1, while fully observing United Nations Secretariat human resources policies, in particular, its recruitment and contractual policies.

II. Composition of the staff of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

4. The recruitment of staff members to posts subject to geographical distribution is governed by the system of desirable ranges at the Secretariat level. For that purpose, Member States are grouped into four categories: unrepresented, underrepresented, within range and overrepresented. A Member State is considered unrepresented when none of its nationals, throughout the entire Secretariat, is serving in a post subject to geographical distribution and filled in accordance with the established selection process. It is underrepresented when the number of its nationals appointed to such posts throughout the entire Secretariat is below the lower limit of the desirable range. It is within range when the number of its nationals appointed to such posts is between the upper and lower limits of the desirable range, and it is overrepresented when the number of its nationals appointed to such posts within the entire Secretariat exceeds the upper limit of the desirable range. The representation status of Member States is affected by many factors, in particular the turnover of staff and changes in the scale of assessments.

5. The official report on the composition of the Secretariat is submitted annually by the Secretary-General to the General Assembly in accordance with a number of resolutions, the most recent being resolutions 57/305, 59/266, 60/238, 61/244 and 63/250.

6. The latest report of the Secretary-General on the composition of the Secretariat (A/65/350) covers the period from 1 July 2009 to 30 June 2010. OHCHR is part of the Secretariat and the breakdown of its geographical composition has to be seen against the breakdown of the overall distribution within the Secretariat.

7. The table in annex I provides a breakdown of all OHCHR staff members in the Professional category and above who have been selected through the established recruitment process (“regular” staff) against both regular budget posts subject to geographical distribution and extrabudgetary posts, by nationality, grade and sex as at 31 December 2010.

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8. The table in annex II provides a breakdown of the following categories of additional OHCHR staff in the Professional category and above not included in the first table by nationality, grade and sex as at 31 December 2010:

(a) Staff holding appointments of less than one year;

(b) Staff charged to general temporary assistance funds;

(c) Staff employed as technical cooperation project personnel.

9. In paragraph 14, section IX, of its resolution 63/250, the General Assembly re- emphasized that the system of geographical ranges was designed to apply to countries rather than to regions or groups. The data in the present report are therefore provided by country, listed in alphabetical order.

10. As at 31 December 2010, OHCHR had a total of 476 staff in the Professional category and above, of whom 403 are considered regular staff. Of the Professional staff members, 345 work in Geneva, 15 work in the New York office, while 116 work in 43 different countries in the field.1

11. Nationals from 113 countries are represented in the Professional and above workforce. Of these 113 nationalities, 6 are underrepresented in the Secretariat,2 90 are considered within range (57 below midpoint3 and 33 above midpoint),4 while 16 nationalities are overrepresented5 in the Secretariat.

III. Results of efforts taken to achieve equitable geographical representation

12. Despite the decision of the General Assembly in its resolution 63/250 not to include references to regions in reporting on staff representation, the Commission on Human

1 Country offices, regional offices, human rights advisers and integrated offices are located in

Afghanistan, Albania, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Chile, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Fiji, Georgia, Guatemala, Guinea, Honduras, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Mauritania, Mexico, Nepal, Nicaragua, the Niger, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Qatar, the Republic of Moldova, the Russian Federation, Rwanda, Senegal, Serbia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Thailand, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Togo, Uganda and in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

2 Underrepresented at 31 October 2010: Afghanistan, Angola, Finland, Japan, Saudi Arabia, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

3 Within range, below midpoint, at 31 October 2010: Algeria, Belarus, Belgium, Benin, Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Burundi, Cambodia, China, Colombia, Congo, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Eritrea, Estonia, Gambia, Haiti, Indonesia, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Iraq, Ireland, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Lithuania, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mongolia, Nepal, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Sierra Leone, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Spain, Sri Lanka, Syrian Arab Republic, Togo, Tonga, Turkey, United States of America.

4 Within range, above midpoint, at 31 October 2010: Albania, Armenia, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Canada, Côte d’Ivoire, Croatia, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, France, Germany, Ghana, Guatemala, Guyana, India, Jordan, Malawi, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, Nigeria, Pakistan, Senegal, Serbia, Singapore, Sudan, Switzerland, Thailand, Tunisia, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of).

5 Overrepresented at 31 October 2010: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bulgaria, Cameroon, Chile, Ethiopia, Italy, Kenya, Lebanon, Philippines, Russian Federation, South Africa, Sweden, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda.

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Rights, the Human Rights Council and the Joint Inspection Unit have made use of the concept of geographical diversity by regional grouping when assessing the composition of the staff of OHCHR.6 This difference in approach, terminology and methodology from those described in the report of the Secretary-General on the composition of the Secretariat (A/65/350) has made comparison of data problematic. While being bound by the resolution of the General Assembly on this matter, the High Commissioner has, in order to facilitate a consistent and coherent discussion in the present report, continued to make occasional reference to the regional methodology used by the Human Rights Council and the Joint Inspection Unit in the analysis of the geographical diversity of OHCHR.

13. Improving the geographical diversity of OHCHR staff remains one of the High Commissioner’s priorities. In line with that objective, OHCHR has continued to vigorously implement the High Commissioner’s procedures and framework for improving geographical diversity, in full compliance with Secretariat human resources policies, which were explained in detail to the Commission on Human Rights in February 2006 (E/CN.4/2006/103).

14. The impact of the implementation of the above-mentioned procedures can be seen clearly in the overall geographical diversity of OHCHR. An analysis of the data contained in the table below, using the methodology employed by the Joint Inspection Unit, shows a steady, continuous and significant increase in the percentage of OHCHR staff from regions identified as requiring better representation within OHCHR over the past four years.

Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights by region

OHCHR all

31 December 2006 31 December 2007 31 December 2008 31 December 2009 31 December 2010

Region No. Per cent No. Per cent No. Per cent No. Per cent No. Per cent

Africa 44 11.1 55 13.1 64 13.9 65 13.8 69 14.5

Asia 47 11.9 53 12.6 61 13.3 64 13.6 75 15.8

Latin America and Caribbean 38 9.6 50 11.9 53 11.5 62 13.2 65 13.7

Eastern Europe 13 3.3 20 4.8 23 5.0 27 5.7 33 6.9

Western Europe and other 253 64.1 241 57.5 259 56.3 253 53.7 234 49.1

Total 395 100 419 100 460 100 471 100 476 100

17. OHCHR remains committed to implementing the High Commissioner’s procedures and framework for improving geographical diversity (E/CN.4/2006/103), which has proven effective to date. Current measures have included expanding the pool of qualified candidates from the widest possible range of countries and backgrounds, and developing closer collaboration in recruitment and outreach activities with United Nations country teams, OHCHR field offices, Permanent Missions in Geneva, other United Nations entities and local partners in the field. It is therefore anticipated that the positive geographical trend will continue during the current biennium.

18. While seeking to improve further its geographical distribution, OHCHR will continue to pay special attention to the issue of balance between female and male staff

6 A/59/65-E/2004/48 and Add.1, A/61/115 and Add.1, A/62/845 and Add.1, and A/64/94 and Add.1.

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members at all levels, an area in which determination and concerted effort have already brought success. As at 31 December 2010, women accounted for 52.9 per cent of regular OHCHR staff and 50.7 per cent of temporary staff at the Professional level, equivalent to an overall percentage of 52.5 per cent.

19. Similarly, OHCHR will continue its commitment to meeting the goals and obligations placed upon it under the system of desirable ranges mandated by the General Assembly. This is reflected in the departmental target relating to the recruitment of nationals from unrepresented and underrepresented Member States established in the Secretariat human resources action plan and in the High Commissioner’s Compact. At the end of 2010, the percentage of recruitments from unrepresented and underrepresented Member States compared with all geographical recruitments in OHCHR was 46.2, more than double the Secretariat target of 20 per cent for such recruitments. The 2010 National Competitive Recruitment Examination, which included the human rights occupational group, should yield another group of excellent candidates from unrepresented and underrepresented Member States from which OHCHR will be able to recruit.

IV. Conclusion

20. The implementation and results to date of the High Commissioner’s procedures and framework to improve geographical diversity reflect the priority that the High Commissioner continues to give to this issue. Noticeable and sustained progress has been achieved in increasing the geographical diversity of the staff through these measures. OHCHR remains attentive to the need to maintain the emphasis on the broadest possible geographical diversity of its staff, and will continue its efforts in this regard.

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Annex I

[English only]

Regular staff of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Professional and higher categories, by nationality, grade and sex (as at 31 December 2010)

Total staff USG ASG D-2 D-1 P-5 P-4 P-3 P-2 P-1

Country of nationality All F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F

Albania 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - -

Algeria 3 2 - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - 2 - - - -

Angola 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - - -

Argentina 8 3 - - - - - - - - - 2 2 - 3 1 - - - -

Armenia 2 1 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 1 - - - - -

Australia 9 3 - - - - - - - 1 2 1 2 - 2 1 - - - -

Austria 5 2 - - - - - - - - 1 - - - 2 2 - - - -

Bahamas 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - -

Belarus 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - -

Belgium 6 4 - - - - - - - - - - 1 4 1 - - - - -

Benin 4 0 - - - - - - - 2 - - - - 2 - - - - - Bolivia (Plurinational State of) 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - - -

Botswana 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - -

Brazil 3 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - 2 1 - - - -

Bulgaria 6 3 - - - - - - - - 2 - 1 - - 3 - - - -

Burundi 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - -

Cambodia 1 1 - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - - - -

Cameroon 4 1 - - - - - - - - - - 2 - 1 1 - - - -

Canada 15 7 - - - - - 1 - - 4 1 3 1 1 4 - - - -

Chile 2 1 - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - 1 - - - -

China 5 4 - - - - - - - - - - 1 2 - 1 - 1 - -

Colombia 3 2 - - - - - - - - - - 1 2 - - - - - -

Congo 2 2 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - 1 - -

Costa Rica 2 0 - - - - - - - - 1 - - - 1 - - - - -

Côte d'Ivoire 2 0 - - - - - - - - - - 1 - 1 - - - - -

Croatia 3 1 - - 1 - - - - - - - - 1 1 - - - - -

Cyprus 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - -

Czech Republic 4 3 - - - - - - - - 1 - - 1 - 1 - 1 - -

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Total staff USG ASG D-2 D-1 P-5 P-4 P-3 P-2 P-1

Country of nationality All F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F

Democratic Republic of the Congo 3 1 - - - - - - - - - - 2 - - 1 - - - -

Denmark 6 3 - - - - - - - - - - 3 2 - 1 - - - -

Ecuador 2 1 - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - 1 - - - -

Egypt 1 0 - - - - - - 1 - - - - - - - - - - -

Eritrea 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - -

Estonia 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - -

Finland 3 1 - - - - - - - - 1 1 1 - - - - - - -

France 25 14 - - - - - - 1 - 1 1 6 3 3 10 - - - -

Gambia 1 0 - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - - - - -

Germany 21 10 - - - - - - 1 - 1 2 4 5 4 3 1 - - -

Ghana 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - -

Guatemala 3 2 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - 1 1 - -

Guyana 2 1 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 1 - - - - -

Haiti 2 2 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - 1 - - - -

India 7 3 - - - - - - - - 1 - 1 2 2 1 - - - -

Indonesia 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - - Iran (Islamic Republic of) 3 3 - - - - - - - - - - - 2 - - - 1 - -

Iraq 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - -

Ireland 3 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - 2 1 - - - -

Italy 25 13 - - - - - - 1 - 4 2 2 10 4 1 1 - - -

Japan 11 7 - - - - - - - - 1 - 2 1 1 4 - 2 - -

Jordan 4 3 - - - - - - - 1 - - 1 2 - - - - - -

Kazakhstan 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - -

Kenya 4 3 - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - 3 - - - -

Kyrgyzstan 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - -

Lebanon 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - -

Lithuania 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - -

Madagascar 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - -

Malawi 2 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 1 - -

Malaysia 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - -

Maldives 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - - -

Mali 4 1 - - - - - - - - 1 - 1 1 1 - - - - -

Malta 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - -

Mauritania 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - -

Mauritius 2 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - 1 - -

Mexico 9 6 - - - - - - - - - - 1 - 2 3 - 3 - -

Mongolia 3 1 - - - - - - - - - - 1 1 1 - - - - -

Morocco 2 2 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - 1 - -

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Total staff USG ASG D-2 D-1 P-5 P-4 P-3 P-2 P-1

Country of nationality All F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F

Nepal 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - -

Netherlands 5 2 - - - - - - - - 1 1 - - 1 - 1 1 - -

New Zealand 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - -

Nigeria 3 1 - - - - - - - - 1 1 - - 1 - - - - -

Norway 3 3 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2 - 1 - -

Panama 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - -

Paraguay 2 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - 2 - - - - -

Peru 6 2 - - - - - - - - 2 1 2 - - 1 - - - -

Philippines 3 2 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 1 1 - - - -

Portugal 3 2 - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - 2 - - - -

Republic of Korea 6 5 - - - 1 - - - - - 1 - - 1 3 - - - -

Republic of Moldova 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - -

Russian Federation 3 1 - - - - - - - - 1 - 1 - - - - 1 - -

Saudi Arabia 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - -

Senegal 3 0 - - - - 1 - - - 1 - - - 1 - - - - -

Serbia 3 2 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 1 1 - - - -

Sierra Leone 1 1 - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - - - -

Singapore 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - -

Slovenia 3 3 - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - 2 - -

Solomon Islands 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - -

South Africa 4 2 - 1 - - - - - - - - 2 - - 1 - - - -

Spain 20 11 - - - - - - - - - 3 5 2 4 6 - - - -

Sudan 2 0 - - - - - - - - 1 - - - 1 - - - - -

Sweden 5 4 - - - - 1 - - - - - - 3 - 1 - - - -

Switzerland 12 9 - - - - - - - - - - 1 2 2 6 - 1 - -

Syrian Arab Republic 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - -

Thailand 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - -

Togo 2 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - 2 - - - - -

Tonga 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - -

Trinidad and Tobago 2 1 - - - - - - - 1 1 - - - - - - - - -

Tunisia 2 1 - - - - - - - - 1 - - 1 - - - - - -

Turkey 3 3 - - - - - - - - - - - 2 - - - 1 - -

Uganda 2 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 1 - - - - United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 13 8 - - - - - - 1 - 2 2 1 3 1 3 - - - - United States of America 15 6 - - - - - - 2 - 3 2 3 2 - 2 1 - - -

Uruguay 3 1 - - - - - - - - - - 1 - 1 1 - - - -

Uzbekistan 4 2 - - - - - - - - - - - - 2 2 - - - -

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Total staff USG ASG D-2 D-1 P-5 P-4 P-3 P-2 P-1

Country of nationality All F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F

Subtotal 402 213 0 1 1 1 2 1 7 3 39 24 62 68 66 93 12 22 0 0

Other

Palestinian 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - -

Subtotal 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - -

Total 403 213 0 1 1 1 2 1 7 3 39 24 62 68 67 93 12 22 0 0

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Annex II

[English only]

Non-regular staff of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Professional and higher categories, by nationality, grade and sex (as at 31 December 2010)

To ta

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af f

U SG

AS G

D -2

/L -7

D -1

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P- 5/

L- 5

P- 4/

L- 4

P- 3/

L- 3

P- 2/

L- 2

P- 1/

L- 1

Country of nationality All F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F

Afghanistan 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - -

Argentina 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1

Australia 2 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 1 - - - -

Bangladesh 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - - - Bosnia and Herzegovina 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - -

Brazil 4 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - 3 - - - - 1

Bulgaria 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - -

Cambodia 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - -

Cameroon 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - -

Canada 2 2 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - 1 - -

Colombia 2 2 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2 - - - - Democratic Republic of the Congo 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - -

Ecuador 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - -

El Salvador 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - -

Ethiopia 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - -

France 5 4 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 3 - 1 - -

Germany 2 2 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2 - - - -

Ghana 2 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - 2 - - - - -

Haiti 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - -

Italy 2 1 - - - - - - - - - - 1 1 - - - - - -

Kyrgyzstan 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - -

Liberia 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - -

Malaysia 2 2 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - 1 - -

Mauritania 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - - -

Pakistan 2 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - 1 - -

Peru 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - -

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To ta

l st

af f

U SG

AS G

D -2

/L -7

D -1

/L -6

P- 5/

L- 5

P- 4/

L- 4

P- 3/

L- 3

P- 2/

L- 2

P- 1/

L- 1

Country of nationality All F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F M F

Portugal 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - - -

Republic of Moldova 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - -

Russian Federation 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - - -

Sierra Leone 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - -

Singapore 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - -

Spain 2 2 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2 - - - -

Sri Lanka 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - -

Sweden 3 1 - - - - - - - - - - 1 - 1 1 - - - -

Switzerland 4 4 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2 - 2 - -

Togo 1 0 - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - - - - - United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 6 1 - - - - - - - - - - 3 1 1 - - - 1 - United States of America 6 2 - - - - - - - - - - 1 1 3 - - 1 - -

Uruguay 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - - - -

Uzbekistan 1 1 - - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - -

Subtotal 72 37 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 11 7 17 18 5 10 1 2

Other

Palestinian 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - -

Subtotal 1 0 - - - - - - - - - - - - 1 - - - - -

Total 73 37 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 11 7 18 18 5 10 1 2