KATHMANDU: Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is proposing a 15-percent cut to the UN’s regular budget in 2026 as it struggles with chronic liquidity problems made more acute by US President Donald Trump’s policies.
A senior United Nations official said the revised budget number is $3.238 billion, and would result in the elimination of 2,681 jobs.
Guterres earlier had proposed to keep the 2026 budget at the same level as 2025 — around $3.7 billion — but worked to reduce the amount as part of his UN80 Initiative to make the organization more agile and efficient.
In letters to member states and UN personnel made public Tuesday, the UN chief announced “reductions of more than 15 percent in the regular budget level,” equivalent to about $500 million, and a 19-percent cut to the UN workforce covered by that budget.
The impact of cuts will be spread across the UN’s three pillars — peace and security, human rights and sustainable development — while programs for least-developed nations will be spared, he said.
“For some colleagues, these changes may mean relocation for themselves and their families. For others, they mean changes in functions or reporting lines. And for some, separation from service,” Guterres wrote.
The changes would include the relocation of at least 200 people from Geneva and New York to less expensive cities like Nairobi, the senior UN official said.
The proposed budget will be put to a vote in the General Assembly before the end of the year.
The UN has faced chronic liquidity problems for years because some member states don’t pay their mandatory contributions in full, and others don’t pay on time.
The United States has typically covered 22 percent of the UN’s regular budget, which pays for core organizational activities and is separate from the peacekeeping budget.
Washington was $1.5 billion in arrears on its payments at the end of January and has paid nothing since Trump’s return to the White House, according to the United Nations.
Future US contributions to the organization are uncertain. The United States has already left several UN agencies, and Congress voted in July to rescind previously approved funding.
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