UN Financial fortune Dips, Guterres Cries Out

By Uche Mbah

The United United nations Secretary General has raised alarm that the international organization is facing a financial crisis, the worst since ten years, so much so that there are fears of the organization not meeting its recurrent expenditures. There is even a risk of salary of staff being delayed next year.

In a Reuters report monitored in Lagos, Antonio Guterres was said to be lamenting the paucity of funds in the Organisation.

“(The UN) runs the risk of depleting its liquidity reserves by the end of the month and defaulting on payments to staff and vendors”, he was quoted to have said.

Donald Trump, the US President, has been foot dragging in the funding of the organization, saying there is no reason for the US to carry the financial burden of the organization on their head.

America is the major financial backbone of the organization.

This may have accounted for the only 70 per cent of the total budget assessment for 2019, amounting to 1.99 billion dollars, being paid as at the end of September, leaving a balance of 1.3 billion dollars. Gutteres said the current figure is eight per cent lower than the 78 per cent payment recorded in the same period in 2018. This has affected the hiring of ad hoc and main staff and affected the execution of their core mandate. According to the organization spokesperson, the budget is no longer driven by planning but by “availability of fund”.

Trump decision may have been premised on the fact that member nations are defaulting in their contribution to the upkeep of international organization. The contributions have been dwindling over the years, although 129 out of the 193 Member States had now paid their regular annual dues.

“Unless more Governments pay their annual dues, our work and our reforms are at risk”, he was quoted as saying. “This is the only way to avoid a default that could risk disrupting operations globally.”