UN Needs $900Mln In Next 3 Months Amid Record-Level Budget Deficit - Controller

UNITED NATIONS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 12th October, 2019) The United Nations needs $900 million over the next three months And half of that amount is needed to fulfill contractual obligations to pay employees, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Program Planning, Finance and Budget Chandramouli Ramanathan told reporters on Friday.

"We have about 900 million Dollars that we need over the next three months," Ramanathan said. "We need a minimum of about 450 million [dollars] for the people who are already on board, for whom we are contractually obligated to pay."

Ramanathan noted that the budget assessment for year 2019 was $2.85 billion, but the United Nations collected only a portion of that sum leading to a record-level deficit whereby the gap stands at $1.38 billion.

On Tuesday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned member states that the organization might run out of money to pay for salaries and peacekeeping operations by the end of October as a result of the record-level cash deficit.

The following day, Guterres informed in a letter all UN department heads and member states about the measures the organization will undertake in light of the dire financial situation.

According to the letter obtained by Sputnik, the UN headquarters in New York will experience significant delays in the issuance of Security Council, General Assembly and First Committee verbatim records. The letter also said that payments for costs covering member state communications as well as all treaties and publications will be placed on hold.

The letter also said that air conditioning and heating in the UN headquarters building will be reduced, catering services will work during limited hours, no new furniture will be supplied, some escalators will be shut down, and only critical renovation and electrical work on the premises will be conducted.

Guterres acknowledged the measures will obstruct the United Nations' work, but called on staff to assist in seeking the continuation of the UN operations despite the existing financial problems.