The duties carried out by the Secretariat are as varied as the problems dealt with by Member States of the United Nations. These range from administering peacekeeping operations to mediating international disputes, from surveying economic and social trends, to engaging issues of human rights and sustainable development. Secretariat staff also inform the world's communications media about the work of the United Nations, and organize and manage international conferences on issues of worldwide concern. This report, covering both financial and programme information for the year 2005, is a first step towards the goal of improving, both in quality and content, the mechanisms by which the Secretariat reports to the Member States. Publishing Agency: United Nations (UN).