New York, Dec. 2 (BNA): António Guterres, United Nations Secretary-General said that the organisation is facing its most fragile cash position in years, noting that the value of outstanding dues is close to $1.6 billion.

He told the Fifth Committee of the United Nations General Assembly’s main budget committee that chronic late payments are hampering the world body’s ability to function.

According to the UN News Website, by the end of 2024, the outstanding dues were $760 million in unpaid assessments, and they have yet to receive $877 million in contributions due for 2025 – bringing total arrears to around $1.586 billion.

The Secretary General’s warning comes as delegations consider revised estimates for the UN’s 2026 regular budget, which already reflect deep structural cuts under the UN80 reform initiative – a system-wide efficiency drive aimed at modernising operations and lowering costs.

Under the revised proposal, the UN’s regular budget for 2026 would stand at $3.238 billion, a reduction of $577 million – or 15.1 percent – compared with 2025. Some 2,681 posts would be cut, an 18.8 percent reduction from current levels.

Special political missions would also face cuts of more than 21 percent compared with 2025 levels, largely due to mission closures and streamlined staffing.

As part of the savings drive, the UN plans to consolidate payroll processing into a single global team across three duty stations and create shared administrative hubs starting in New York and Bangkok.

The Secretariat is also reviewing functions that can be moved to lower-cost locations and the plan includes one-time separation and relocation costs of $5.4 million, as voluntary exit programmes are used to limit involuntary job losses.

N.B, N.N, S.E