EU Statement – UN General Assembly: Report of the Secretary-General on the UN80 Initiative
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Madam President, Mr Secretary-General, distinguished colleagues,
I deliver this statement on behalf of the EU and its member states.
The candidate countries Türkiye*, North Macedonia*, Montenegro*, Serbia*, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, Bosnia and Herzegovina* and Georgia, as well as Armenia, Andorra, Monaco and San Marino align themselves with this statement.
We extend our gratitude to the President for gathering us here today, as well as to the Secretary-General and the UN80 Task Force, for presenting the first progress report on Workstream 3 and today’s informative briefing on the UN80 Initiative.
The European Union recognises the urgency of advancing on all three work strands of UN80, including the UN80 structural reform and streamlining of UN functions. We commend the SG’s leadership in launching and piloting this initiative – a response to the reality that, if we do not proactively, collectively, and positively work to improve the UN, external circumstance will dictate changes for us. Your continued leadership is paramount.
We reaffirm our commitment to work hand-in-hand with all delegations, to ensure we jointly maximise effectiveness and impact in the UN and across all its entities. Efficient and effective country level delivery with a special emphasis on localisation must be at the heart of all reform efforts. The report confirms clear opportunities to strengthen the UN’s coherence, efficiency and accountability - objectives we endorse for the proposed structural reforms and programme realignment.
Allow me to elaborate:
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The UN system developed organically over eight decades, now comprising too many overlapping and fragmented entities.
To reinforce coherence, we support efforts designed to:
- consolidate the UN Secretariat and wider system entities across the 3 pillars of the UN, with a view to coherent and streamlined engagement by the UN, including at the country level – where the Resident Coordinator system plays a key role;
- refocus activity around core tasks;
- advance a clear division of responsibilities regarding both normative and operational functions between entities, and at the same time strengthen coordination and decrease competition;
- fully integrate normative mandates on human rights and gender equality across all pillars;
- and centralise knowledge management and support for intergovernmental processes.
2. To further increase efficiency and impact, the EU supports the Secretariat efforts to shift towards shared operational support services, such as global shared services, and cross-pillar approaches at the global, regional and country levels. In addition, the EU encourages further efforts to modernize staffing compensation packages.
We also welcome proposals to establish more coherent and unified structures for networked multi-dimensional operations, which will reinforce accountability and the rule of law; and the unlocking of system-wide expertise in sustainable development to ensure we put the SDGs and the Paris Agreement, which must remain our compass, back on track.
The timely overview in the Report of humanitarian engagement, with crises multiplying and systems stretched, is welcome and we look forward to engaging in the areas of action outlined.
We look forward also to receiving more detail on the proposed Human Rights Group and its work as the UN must continue to uphold and defend human rights. We expect the UN to emerge stronger, more agile and capable of delivering across all three pillars on an equal basis.
3. Finally, to strengthen accountability, the UN has to further develop system-wide accountability instruments for measuring, monitoring and reporting on collective results. As the biggest collective donor to the UN, the EU and its Member States – that always make efforts to fulfil this duty by paying contributions in full, on time and without conditions – welcome any step toward increased transparency and predictability, including the progressive harmonisation of indirect and programme support costs.
For our part, we will continue to engage in harmonised funding mechanisms, building on the Funding Compact, addressing fragmentation, and ensuring that predictable and timely funding is availed to the UN by all, including though the UN regular budget.
Madam President, Mr Secretary-General, distinguished colleagues,
The proposals in the report are initial steps, but more information is needed. All mergers and proposals should be accompanied by an impact assessment to enable member states to make informed decisions. We also await a road map with clear deadlines for the proposals in the report.
However, the current proposals do not yet fully meet the scale of today’s challenges.
We therefore welcome the Report’s announcement that this constitutes a first phase in a series of possible mergers, consolidations and realignments that could open a path toward greater joint impact at scale. The EU and its Member States stand ready to, together with other Member States, work with the Secretary-General and the to develop additional proposals and set out clear timelines and transparent processes to that end.
Ultimately, success lies in our collective commitment and cooperation. The EU looks forward to collaborating across regional groups and with others, confident that only united action will enable the United Nations to overcome today’s unprecedented challenges.
Despite the current challenges let us remember that in the last 80 years this indispensable Organization has already successfully overcome other demanding periods and that it is precisely during difficult times that the most crucial solutions occur.
The United Nations can always count on the support of the European Union and its Member States and our unwavering commitment to multilateralism – it is because of this commitment that we believe in the urgency to modernise and improve the system.
Thank you.
North Macedonia*, Montenegro*, Serbia*, Bosnia and Herzegovina* continue to be part of the Stablisation and Association Process.