UN80 Aims to Make UN ‘Fit-for-Purpose’ Amid Budget Crisis

Launched in March, the UN80 Initiative seeks to boost efficiency, review mandates, and realign programmes, complementing the Pact for the Future to help the UN become more agile and outcome-focused.

With the ink hardly dry on the Pact for the Future outcome for modernising global governance from last September’s Summit of the Future, the United Nations’ long-standing financial crisis has now evolved into an extreme liquidity crisis.

Exacerbated by multiple factors — rising populist political forces in traditional international organisations and donor countries, pressure to expand military budgets in response to heightened geopolitical tensions, the emergence of non-military security threats involving the environment and new technologies, and renewed frustrations over perceived bloated and dysfunctional bureaucracies — there are no quick fixes.

Ongoing deliberations in New York and Geneva suggest that major humanitarian agencies, including the World Food Programme, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, and the International Organization for Migration, could face annual budget shortfalls as high as 30–40%. The UN Secretariat may also need to cut at least 20% of its staff, alongside other immediate cost-saving measures.

Internal UN modelling warns that without budget cuts, the year-end cash deficit could leave the Secretariat unable to pay salaries and suppliers by September 2025. A February letter from the Secretary-General also cautioned that the UN’s peacekeeping budget may run dry by mid-year.

A June briefing projected that in 2025 alone, UN resources could shrink by up to 30% compared to 2023 — directly impacting an estimated 30 to 60 million lives.

In response, UN Secretary-General António Guterres and his colleagues have chosen to shape a constructive course despite severe budget cuts by major Member States, including the United States and China. The UN80 Initiative, launched on 12 March 2025, seeks to:

Rapidly identify efficiencies and improvements in UN operations.

Review all mandates given to the UN by Member States.

Conduct a strategic review of structural changes and programme realignments.

On 1 August, the Secretary-General presented to the General Assembly the “Report of the Mandate Implementation Review,” recommending, among other measures, digital mandate registries to prevent overlaps and clearer, better-resourced mandates.

The UN80 Initiative complements the Pact for the Future’s 56 actions by reducing overlap within the UN’s 140 entities, streamlining structures, and relocating resources where they are most needed. Planned reforms may include merging entities, realigning programmes, and consolidating operations.

Ultimately, the combined UN80 Initiative and Pact for the Future aim to make the UN more agile, cost-effective, and impactful — “fit-for-purpose” to address 21st-century challenges with fewer resources.