CANZ STATEMENT: BRIEFING ON SECRETARY-GENERAL’S UN80 INITIATIVE
Statement by H.E. James Larsen, Permanent Representative of Australia to the United Nations
24 June 2025
Thank you, I have the privilege to speak on behalf of CANZ – Canada, New Zealand and my own country, Australia.
Thank you particularly to Under-Secretary-General Ryder for providing such a useful update on progress of the UN80 Initiative and the data underpinning your efforts. We emphasise the importance of ongoing transparency throughout this process.
It is critical for Member States to know where funding and personnel cuts have already been made by the Secretariat and by UN agencies and field offices. For reform to succeed, engagement across the full UN membership is essential.
We wonder whether focal points for Member States could be appointed within the Office of the President of the General Assembly to facilitate information-sharing and ensure that this remains a Member State-driven process, working in concert with the Secretariat.
We recognise that mandate review should ultimately be led by Member States, overseen by the President of the General Assembly, and actively supported by the Secretariat including through the provision of information on the financial implications of mandate delivery and today’s information was a valuable start. The goal must be to produce a smaller number of more focused and effective mandates.
In looking for opportunities to consolidate duplicative or overlapping mandates, we should focus on performing mandated functions efficiently and effectively, rather than preserving specific entities or formations. We appreciate Under-Secretary-General Ryder’s efforts to provide transparency and support informed dialogue on mandate coherence and implementation through the development of the online UN Mandate Source Registry.
Broadly, holistic management and strategic oversight of the UN80 Initiative is necessary for success. We ask the Secretariat to consolidate its oversight across the breadth of reforms currently underway system wide, including within the Specialised Agencies.
We are concerned that significant cuts to essential functions and services in the field receive little visibility. Reform efforts should be designed to ensure more effective on-the-ground delivery, not less. No one, particularly the most vulnerable, can be left behind.
We also encourage the Secretariat to implement existing reform efforts, including the One UN model. This model must move beyond co-location. It should be based upon one leader (the Resident Coordinator), one UN program (based on country or regional priorities), one budgetary framework (instead of multiple, fragmented funding streams) and one office with common premises and services.
CANZ fully recognises the importance of Member State accountability. We seek bolder proposals to revise the financial rules and regulations. The UN80 Initiative cannot result in real, lasting change without Member States, as the custodians of the UN, taking responsibility of this core duty. We need greater transparency surrounding the financial state of the UN.
We welcome the Secretary-General’s focus and ambition in launching this initiative to deal with the fundamental challenges facing the UN. UN80 must preserve UN functions and services for which the world has no substitute—in global commons, setting norms and rules, settling and preventing disputes, and transborder services that underpin the modern world.
Finally, CANZ supports your work to achieve sustainable reform that ensures a UN structured for efficient and effective implementation of mandates for peace and security, development and human rights. Together, we can shape a more effective, transparent, and accountable UN for generations to come.