NEW YORK, 23 December 2015 (UN News Service): UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon applauded Member States on Wednesday night for adopting a budget of 5.4 billion US dollar (ca. 37,5 milliarder DKR) for the United Nations to carry out its work during the 2016-2017 biennium.
Mr. Ban noted that delegates have worked through the night and reached agreement earlier than in past years.
Mr. Ban applauded the consensus decisions taken on the revised scale of assessments for Member States for sharing the costs of the regular budget and peacekeeping operations, which is reviewed every three years, as well as the approval of a mobility framework for UN staff.
“Funding continues to shrink – while demands on the United Nations grow. Through it all, we are doing everything possible to fulfil the mandates you give us”, he noted.
The President of the General Assembly, Mogens Lykketoft, said he was very satisfied that the negotiations on the budget and other administrative items were concluded in such good spirit.
“With the adoption of the UN budget and the conclusion of the work of the Fifth Committee we come to the end of what has been a remarkable year for multilateralism,” he added.
Mr. Ban went on to say that the Assembly has “wisely” decided to add resources to strengthen the very important pillar of development, commending its decision to support the follow-up and review of the world body’s efforts to reach the Sustainable Development Goals (dagsorden 2030) and carry out the financing for development agenda.
The Assembly decided to reduce resources under Public Information and Common Support Services even more than the efficiencies he identified, the Secretary-General pointed out.
“This presents some challenges, especially at this critical juncture. We are carrying out the important initiatives the Assembly has approved, including Umoja, mobility and the development of the Global Service Delivery Model,” he said.
“Nevertheless, we remain committed to exert our best efforts to deliver on these transformational initiatives and all other mandates you have given us.”
