NNA - Below is United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’s press encounter on the UN80 Initiative: "Our world is facing challenges on every front.
Since the United Nations reflects that world in all its aspects, we feel it in all our work.
These are times of intense uncertainty and unpredictability.
And yet certain truths have [never] been more clear:
The United Nations has never been more needed.
Our values have never been more relevant.
And the needs have never been greater.
At the same time, we know the more the UN does together to address big challenges around the world, the less the burden on individual countries to do it alone.
The United Nations stands out as the essential one-of-a-kind meeting ground to advance peace, sustainable development and human rights.
But resources are shrinking across the board – and they have been for a long time.
For example, for at least the past seven years, the United Nations has faced a liquidity crisis because not all Member States pay in full, and many also do not pay on time.
From day one of my mandate, we embarked on an ambitious reform agenda to strengthen how we work and deliver.
To be more effective and cost-effective.
To simplify procedures and decentralize decisions.
To enhance transparency and accountability.
To shift capacities to areas such as data and digital.
And, significantly, the Pact for the Future and UN 2.0 are exactly about updating the UN for the 21st century.
These efforts are not ends in themselves.
They are about better serving people whose very lives depend on us.
They are about hardworking taxpayers around the world who underwrite everything we do.
And they are about ensuring the right conditions for everyone serving under the UN flag as they undertake their critical work.
For all these reasons, it is essential that an organizational system as complex and crucial as the United Nations – subjects itself to rigorous and regular scrutiny to assess its fitness for purpose in carrying out its goals efficiently.
And this 80th anniversary year of the United Nations is a prime moment to expand all our efforts, recognizing the need for even greater urgency and ambition.
That is why I have informed yesterday UN Member States that I am officially launching what we call the UN80 Initiative.
I have appointed a dedicated internal Task Force led by Under-Secretary-General Guy Ryder – and composed of principals representing the entire UN system.
The objective will be to present to Member States proposals in three areas:
First, rapidly identifying efficiencies and improvements in the way we work.
Second, thoroughly reviewing the implementation of all mandates given to us by Member States, which have significantly increased in recent years.
Third, a strategic review of deeper, more structural changes and programme realignment in the UN System.
Under the leadership of the President of the General Assembly, I will consult closely and regularly with all Member States on the progress made, seeking guidance on the way forward and presenting concrete decisions for discussion and decision-making when appropriate.
My objective is to move as soon as possible in areas where I have the authority – and to urge Member States to consider the many decisions that rest with them.
This goes far beyond the technical. Budgets at the United Nations are not just numbers on a balance sheet – they are a matter of life and death for millions around the world.
We must ensure value for money while advancing shared values.
The need is great and the goal is clear: an even stronger and more effective United Nations that delivers for people and is tuned to the 21st century.
And I thank you."
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Q: Secretary-General, on Ukraine – Ukraine has agreed in principle to the US proposal for a 30-day ceasefire. What’s your message to Russia at this time? And can we also get your reaction to the growing global trade war?
SG: First of all, in relation to the ceasefire, we of course will welcome a ceasefire in Ukraine. Too many people have died. A ceasefire is indeed a positive thing, and we hope that it will materialize. And we hope that it will pave the way for peace, a just peace. And you know what are the parameters that we consider relevant for a just peace: the Charter, international law and the resolutions of the General Assembly.
Q: And on the trade war?
SG: I think we live in a global economy. Everything is interlinked. And obviously, one of the great advantages of having a situation of free trade is to create the conditions for all countries to benefit. When we enter into a trade war, I believe all will lose.
Q: Secretary-General, good morning. Is this UN80 initiative a UN version of DOGE, the Department of Government Efficiency we are seeing in Washington? Do you anticipate significant UN staff cuts?
SG: First of all, nothing to do with that kind of initiative. We are talking about completely different processes, methodologies and objectives. This is a continuation and an intensification of work that we have always been doing. I’ll give you just an example: We have been investing in Nairobi, creating the conditions for Nairobi to receive services that are now in more expensive locations. And UNICEF will be transferring soon some of the functions to Nairobi. And UNFPA will be essentially moving to Nairobi. And I can give you many other examples of things that are being done and correspond to the idea that we must be effective and cost-effective.
Now, the recent cuts that were made in relation to humanitarian aid and development cooperation – and not only by the United States, there were other cuts by other countries, even if in a smaller dimension – naturally have led to the need by the agencies that deliver those services to reduce staff, to shrink their dimension and to eliminate many activities. But again, this is not a problem for the United Nations. I mean, agencies are resilient and so, when necessary, they adjust to the circumstances. And indeed, thousands of staff have been laid off by several agencies. But the problem is not for the UN; the UN is resilient. The UN can adapt itself to the circumstances. The problem is for the people – I mean, if more people will die with HIV/AIDS or malaria or with TB. If [the cutoff of] humanitarian aid to fragile communities will make their life even more difficult and will have dramatic consequences, not only from a life-saving perspective but from the perspective of the most basic forms of well-being, that is something we cannot correct. We can adapt the UN, consolidate the UN, make the UN more effective and more cost-effective. What we cannot do is solve the problems of the people that we no longer are able to assist, for lack of resources.
Q: Secretary-General, to quote you: The United Nations has faced a liquidity crisis because not all Member States pay in full and many do not also pay on time. What is your message to these bad offenders against the United Nations? And you’re welcome to name and shame a few.
SG: Pay in full and pay on time. Thank you very much.
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