By Thalif Deen
UNITED NATIONS, May 7 2025 – The UN’s proposed plans for restructuring the world body, currently under discussion at the highest echelons of the Secretariat, have provoked a protest from the UN Staff Union (UNSU) in New York which claims it is being left out of the ongoing negotiations.
The proposed restructuring–including staff cutbacks, the elimination of redundant departments and the merging of several UN agencies under one roof– is expected to be an integral part of Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ highly-ambitious UN80 project.
In a memo to staffers on International Labour Day May 1, UNSU President Narda Cupidore says: “We stand in solidarity with all our colleagues globally; and we see you and support you in Geneva at your gathering on the Place des Nations in Geneva to denounce the austerity measures affecting the entire United Nations system”.
“UN80 Initiative from the looks of what we are seeing from the media will have far-reaching implications of this initiative—particularly in terms of job functions, relocations, and potential abolishment of posts.”
Staff Representatives and, by extension, staff at large, she pointed out, were not consulted or involved in shaping the direction of this process.
“This exclusion is not only disheartening, but it also runs counter to the principles of participatory decision-making and the commitments made under the Staff-Management Committee framework”.
Staff have consistently shown resilience, commitment, and adaptability in the face of repeated structural changes, all while continuing to uphold the values and mandates of the Organization.
“It is appalling that once again, those who will be most affected by such measures are the last to be informed and the least involved in contributing to the process”.
Asked for a response, UN Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told IPS: “We fully understand that the current situation is a cause of concern, and anxiety, for many of our staff.”
“It is important to note that we are in the initial phase of formulating positions and proposals. Consultations have taken place, and they will continue to do so, as the insights of staff are valued and will be carefully considered.”
At the global town hall meeting in March 2025, the Secretary-General emphasized that the UN80 Initiative is a management-led effort. However, he of course committed to consulting with staff representatives through the Staff-Management Committee (SMC) on decisions impacting the staff.
In April, during the annual meeting of the SMC, management briefed the staff representatives on the UN80 Initiative. Also in April, a dedicated UN80 Initiative page was created on iSeek, inviting staff at large to submit ideas via a suggestion box. The responsive was impressive as over 1,400 suggestions have been received. Management will review all of the suggestions, said Dujarric.
A dedicated extraordinary SMC meeting will be held in June to further amplify consultation with staff representatives on the UN80 Initiative, he assured.
Ian Richards, an economist at the Geneva-based UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and former President of the Coordinating Committee of International Staff Unions and Associations (CCISUA), told IPS: “Yes, two things. One is that there hasn’t been consultation on the direction of these reforms. The only offer so far has been to propose that there be consultation once all is decided, which isn’t consultation. The suggestion box is also a way to justify certain changes post facto by pointing out that one or other staff member may have also made that suggestion.”
Second, he pointed out, the proposals being circulated and leaked seem somewhat random and done from a position of panic rather than coherent reflection on how the UN can better play to its strengths and better impact people every day.
Some sections of the document appear to have been written by AI and the main thrust included merging the IMF into the UN. How can this be serious? asked Richards.
In analyzing the crisis further, the UNSU said what is even worse, is finding all this news, developments, memos mentioning detailed relocations of jobs, directly from the press and articles in different social media platforms.
“We call upon our Secretary General and senior leadership to reaffirm its commitment to transparency, collaboration, and respect for staff voices.
“As we move forward, we will continue to advocate for our inclusion in all decisions that impact our roles, livelihoods, and futures. Now more than ever, it is essential that we remain united, informed, and engaged,” said Cupidore.
Meanwhile, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the UN’s humanitarian agency, is facing significant budget cuts due to a funding gap, primarily stemming from a reduction in US funding. This has led to plans for a 20% reduction in staff and a scaled-back presence in several countries, according to OCHA.
Besides OCHA, the budget cuts have also impacted on the World Food Program (WFP), UNICEF and the UN High Commission for Refugees, who are either closing offices, reducing staff or ending programs due to a sharp decrease in US funding
According to one published report last week, the three Rome-based food agencies, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and the World Food Program (WFP), are likely to be merged into a single UN agency.
In the health sector, one possible move would be to dissolve UNAIDS and absorb it within the World Health Organization (WHO).
The same restructuring could be a reality with the merger of three agencies that address refugees and migration: the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).
Asked about the impact of new US budget cutbacks, UN Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq told reporters May 6: “We’re not going to speculate on the new US budget and what it’s going to be, because, as you know, the shape of that budget changes over the course of the year as a process of the dialogue between, in particular, the executive and legislative branches of the US system.”
“And so, we’ll continue to follow, as that happens. But from our standpoint, we are taking steps to identify making how to make the UN more efficient and more effective while working with the sort of constraints in terms of budget and in terms of liquidity that we’ve been facing.”
So, we’re certainly continuing to work on those sorts of measures, said Haq.
Meanwhile, the Chief Executives Board the Secretary-General is meeting with in Copenhagen will discuss the UN 80 initiative, “and we’re taking steps along those lines to deal with how we can make more efficiencies within current arrangements, how we can deal with the mandates that we receive from Member States – to implement the ones that can be done while removing a certain amount of duplication in the work that we do – and of course, how we’ll pursue down the line any structural changes and programme realignment that will be needed.”
“Those will be designed to make us more efficient, but they will also help deal with the prospect of less money coming in, which is something that, to be honest, we’ve been getting more and more used to in the last years, regardless of what’s happening in the US right now,” declared Haq.
In introducing UN80 last month, Guterres said the United Nations stands out as the essential one-of-a-kind meeting ground to advance peace, sustainable development and human rights.
But resources are shrinking across the board – and they have been for a long time. For example, for at least the past seven years, the United Nations has faced a liquidity crisis because not all Member States pay in full, and many also do not pay on time.
“From day one of my mandate, we embarked on an ambitious reform agenda to strengthen how we work and deliver. To be more effective and cost-effective. To simplify procedures and decentralize decisions. To enhance transparency and accountability. To shift capacities to areas such as data and digital.”
And this 80th anniversary year of the United Nations, Guterres said, “is a prime moment to expand all our efforts, recognizing the need for even greater urgency and ambition”.
“That is why I have informed UN Member States that I am officially launching what we call the UN80 Initiative. I have appointed a dedicated internal Task Force led by Under-Secretary-General Guy Ryder – and composed of principals representing the entire UN system,” he said.
The objective will be to present to Member States proposals in three areas:
First, rapidly identifying efficiencies and improvements in the way we work. Second, thoroughly reviewing the implementation of all mandates given to us by Member States, which have significantly increased in recent years.
Third, a strategic review of deeper, more structural changes and programme realignment in the UN System, declared Guterres.
IPS UN Bureau Report
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