Delegates Stress Essential Role of UN Resident Coordinator System in Meeting Global Development Needs, as Fifth Committee Reviews Proposed Changes to Funding Model
Delegates in the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today emphasized the vital role of the United Nations resident coordinator system in meeting development needs around the world, but disagreed on how best to ensure it is adequately paid for as they reviewed the Secretary-General’s proposed 2024 funding arrangements.
Resident coordinators — the highest-ranking representatives of the Organization’s development system at the country level — lead UN country teams and facilitate support to Member States in implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. At present, the Organization has 130 resident coordinators servicing 162 countries and territories.
“Adequate, predictable and sustainable funding of the resident coordinator system is an absolute priority of the Secretary-General,” said Catherine Pollard, Under-Secretary-General for Management Strategy, Policy and Compliance, as she introduced his report on revised estimates relating to the 2024 proposed programme budget concerning the resident coordinator system, which falls under section 1, Overall policymaking, direction and coordination, and section 29B, Department of Operational Support (document A/78/753).
The “hybrid funding model” — put in place by General Assembly resolution 72/279 — comprises three funding streams: voluntary contributions, a doubling of the already existing cost-sharing contributions for United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and a new 1 per cent coordination levy on tightly earmarked contributions. This model, she said, has led to a persistent shortfall in voluntary contributions, hampering the ability of the resident coordinator system to deliver its mandates fully.
“Faced by a stark choice of deciding which countries would receive reduced support, the Secretary-General is seeking your support to provide sustainable funding for the resident coordinator system through assessed contributions from the regular budget,” she said, adding that the report outlines the post and non-post resources that are proposed to be converted from the voluntary contributions funding stream of the hybrid funding model to assessed funding under the regular budget.
Also proposed, she noted, is a change in the budget structure that would include the establishment of a separate budget part and section for the resident coordinator system. This would include the conversion of 801 posts and the additional appropriation of $145.2 million (net of staff assessment) under the 2024 programme budget. The Secretary-General is also recommending the maintenance of the other two streams of funding: $77.5 million from the cost-sharing arrangement and $50 million from the coordination levy. Noting that 52 countries were impacted directly by recruitment freezes resulting in lost development opportunities, she said that with the Sustainable Development Goals so far off track, it is vital to ensure support for the resident coordinator system.
The Fifth Committee then heard from Abdallah Bachar Bong, Chair of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), who introduced its related report (document A/78/7/Add.46), noting that according to the proposed timeline, Member States would be assessed twice in January 2025, each time for $145.21 million, for a total of $290.423 million (before recosting). The assessments will be impacted by subsequent recosting, he said, and that information must be provided to the Assembly. He also highlighted the need for stronger efforts to secure the participation of more entities in the United Nations Sustainable Development Group cost-sharing arrangement.
He also pointed out that efficiency gains and the sharing of resources, such as back offices and premises with United Nations entities, and further co-locations of United Nations information centres with the resident coordinator system, could play an important role in reducing the funding gap through cost savings. Regarding the proposed conversion of 801 posts, the Assembly should ask the Secretary-General to develop clear criteria for the conversion of extrabudgetary posts to regular budget posts. The proposed conversions of national Professional Officer posts should be increased and more entry-level posts at the P-2 and P-3 levels should be established while decreasing the proposed conversions of higher-level posts, he said.
When the floor opened for discussion, delegates stressed the pivotal role of the resident coordinator system, especially as the deadline for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development draws closer, but differed on how to split the responsibility to ensure the system’s funding. Many delegates regretted the lack of time for analysing the Secretary-General’s proposal thoroughly — the Fifth Committee will conclude the first part of its resumed seventy-eighth session on 28 March — while several representatives called for a larger discussion into why development financing is lagging.
The representative of Ethiopia, who spoke on behalf of the African Group, noted that the resident coordinator system has a considerable footprint in her continent. Expressing support for the financing of the system from the regular budget, she pointed out that such an arrangement also gives the Assembly its rightful monitoring role through the Fifth Committee. Also urging developed countries to meet their commitments to provide adequate financial support to the Organization’s development agenda, she called on them to enhance voluntary contributions.
Uganda’s delegate, who spoke on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, also highlighted the positive impact of the resident coordinator system and the negative impact of its continued funding shortfall. Noting that the Secretary-General’s proposal was introduced three days before the closure of the work of the Fifth Committee, he said his Group did not have the time to analyse the proposal fully. It will follow the status of equitable geographical representation, including at the level of resident coordinators and other staff in the system, he added, underscoring that developed countries have an obligation to assist developing countries in meeting their development objectives.
Also stressing the need for more time, Singapore’s representative, who spoke for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), said the presentation of the report in the form of revised estimates for the 2024 programme budget could cause an artificial time constraint on the Fifth Committee. The proposal to convert over 800 posts from extrabudgetary to regular budget funding, she emphasized, is “by any standard high, if not unprecedented”. Asking for more information on how each of these posts are core to the resident coordinator system, and whether some functions could be streamlined, she also stated the importance of diversity. While over 55 per cent of resident coordinators currently come from developing countries, there is room for improvement, given that developing countries account for almost 70 per cent of UN Member States, she said, highlighting the disparity at the P-3 level and above.
The delegate of Argentina, also speaking for Brazil and Uruguay, called for an inclusive, transparent discussion, given that the decision could create an additional burden, especially for developing countries in difficult circumstances. Stressing the need for “a bottom-up approach”, he cautioned against ruling out other options from the outset. Drawing attention to the bigger picture of financing international cooperation for development, he noted that the shortfall in voluntary contributions to the resident coordinator system is part of a general trend in reduced official development assistance (ODA). Recalling the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, he stressed the historic commitment of developed countries to the development pillar.
Norway’s delegate — while noting her country’s substantive voluntary contributions to the resident coordinator fund — said a system mandated by Member States, covering a core function and achieving good results should be funded by assessed contributions. “By continuing to underfund the mandates we as Member States have given the UN, we are not doing ourselves any favours,” she said. While assessed contributions is the right step, “there are still questions that need to be answered”, and it may be necessary to defer the item until the second resumed session, she said. The speaker for Japan, which has provided over $26 million to the system since 2019, said it is important to ensure accountability to tax-payers and consider these big budget items from the overall perspective of “how much we are actually funding from both assessed and voluntary contributions”.
Expressing strong reservations, China’s delegate said it is necessary to release the full potential of the current funding system through a custom-made arrangement. It is not as simple as just converting the funding stream to the regular budget, he said, adding that this one-size-fits-all approach is unfair to developing countries. Any reform to the funding of the system must not shift the historic responsibility of developed countries to support the United Nations development system, he emphasized.
Mexico’s delegate noted that the Secretary-General’s proposal will mean a substantial change to the budget structure. It would have been better to offer different options to address the funding shortfall, he said, also regretting the lack of time for serious consultations on this important topic. The representatives of Algeria and Nigeria, both beneficiaries of the resident coordinator system, noted its pivotal role on their continent, from capacity building to gender equality, and called on developed countries to assist developing countries achieve their development goals and ensure that the system is adequately funded.
However, the speakers for Angola and Sierra Leone, also beneficiaries of the system, expressed clear support for financing it from the regular budget, adding that it will allow the system the flexibility it needs to meet development needs. “Voluntary funding did not and will not ensure predictable funding,” Morocco’s delegate said, expressing support for the Secretary-General’s proposal. Also voicing support was the representative of the United Kingdom, who stressed the need for “fair and balanced collective support” for the system.
“It is clear that the amounts involved are significant,” said Switzerland’s delegate, who also spoke for Liechtenstein, but “it’s a good investment”, she added. Expressing support for the hybrid funding model, she welcomed the Secretary-General’s approach and called for clarification on governance and oversight issues. The representative of the Philippines also stressed the need for effective oversight mechanisms to underpin the proposed financing and called for more detailed information on this matter.
The Committee then turned to the Secretary-General’s statement on programme budget implications of draft decision A/78/L.46 concerning the Ad Hoc Committee to Elaborate a Comprehensive International Convention on Countering the Use of Information and Communications Technologies for Criminal Purposes (document A/C.5/78/31).
Introducing that document, Chandramouli Ramanathan, UN Controller and Assistant Secretary-General in the Office of Programme Planning, Finance and Budget, said the Ad Hoc Committee’s concluding session took place from 29 January to 9 February. While it achieved significant progress, he said, it was not able to reach agreement on a final text of the draft convention, and per “L.46”, it shall hold a reconvened concluding session of up to 10 days in New York at the soonest. An additional appropriation of $818,500 for the 2024 programme budget, plus staff assessment of $87,600, would be required to implement that draft decision, he said.
Introducing ACABQ’s related report (document A/78/7/Addendum 47), its Chair, Mr. Bong, noted that the total additional resource requirements (before recosting) for 2024 amount to $906,100. He noted that provisions have been made in the proposed programme budget for 2024 for the implementation of the draft decision and that, at this stage, it is not possible to identify activities that could be terminated, deferred, curtailed or modified during 2024.
The Fifth Committee also took note of the retirement of Jan Huisman, Director of the Programme Planning and Budget Division, and expressed gratitude to him for his support over the years.