AUSTRALIAN INTERVENTION
AGENDA ITEM 3: Engagement with UN80 Initiative
Statement by H.E. Mr. James Larsen, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Australia to the United Nations
2 February 2026
Thank you very much indeed President and thank you to all the briefers this morning. It has been a very useful conversation across the board and really value the time and engagement.
It’s obvious to say 2026 will be a critical year in setting the multilateral system on a sustainable path and Australia strongly supports system-wide reform which enhances the United Nations capacity to advance sustainable development.
It is of central importance UN reforms protect the ability of the Organisation to promote human rights, gender equality, sexual and reproductive health and rights, and disability equity.
First, Australia believes reform should be pragmatic, clear-eyed, results-oriented, and aimed at improving lives to support a more coherent and integrated approach. And I very much welcome today’s conversation about being outcomes focussed, and the discussion we’ve had about experts on demand. I think that all very much takes us in the right direction. It will be essential, I think, for Member States to receive timely assessments of the proposed mergers between UNOPS and UNDP, and UNFPA and UN Women, and Australia strongly encourages candid and regular communications on these proposals.
Critically, the core mandates of these entities should not be reopened, and that’s a point that’s been made by a number of us this morning.
The Executive Boards must be kept closely engaged and we would like to see a clear legal and governance roadmap, and timeline for considering the proposed mergers.
Second, Australia seeks a more coherent UN presence at country level.
The Resident Coordinator system offers the best prospect for a well-coordinated system, however, as we all know, long agreed reforms have not been fully realised, and we encourage this to be at the top of our agenda.
Australia wants a system which operates with reduced administrative burdens, better use of shared expertise, simplified back office and shared service models, and potentially fewer strategic and planning documents at regional and country levels.
Finally, we reaffirm the central importance of the United Nations in delivering support to Small Island Developing States, including in the Pacific.
These environments carry unique challenges but are ones where UN support can make a profound difference and we stand ready to work with agencies to refine models.
I have a couple of seconds to ask a question which is: How can Member States best support agencies as we travel through this reform process, and finally how can agencies further engage to reinforce the Resident Coordinator system?