Remarks by the President of the General Assembly
H.E. Annalena Baerbock
at an informal meeting of the plenary?
to hear a briefing on the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ 80 Initiative
Monday, 27 February 2026 at 10 AM
Trusteeship Council Chamber
(As Delivered )
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,
It is my pleasure to join you for the second in a series of monthly briefings of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ80 Initiative.
Before turning to the topic of our briefing today, I would like to briefly highlight three areas of positive momentum.
First, the Informal Ad Hoc Working Group on mandate review continues to advance in earnest, and I welcome the constructive engagement of all delegations.
I encourage Member States to sustain this level of ambition and engagement, with a view to meeting the agreed timeline at the end of March.
Second, I thank the Secretariat for publishing the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ80 dashboard to enhance transparency and accessibility of information.
This is a valuable tool for Member States, as we discussed together, to follow developments across the workstreams, particularly between our regular briefings, and I encourage all delegations to make full use of it.
And third, the meetings of the Executive Boards over the past few weeks have revealed broad political support for the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ80 Initiative.
And again, thanks, I think this is really due to the engagements we have had here in the last months that also now in capitals, in ministries, and in this regard then in the boards, there is a new drive for implementing all the different reform steps.
Delegations have been clear¡ªreform efforts must not be an end in themselves.
They must translate into tangible improvements on the ground without sacrificing this organisation¡¯s ability to deliver on its mandates and to deliver for the people.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Today, we will hear from:
- Guy Ryder, Under-Secretary-General for Policy, who will provide a general update on the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ80 Initiative as we have done before.
- Also from Mr. Tom Fletcher, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator (OCHA) who will brief us remotely on the New Humanitarian Compact and will be complemented by Ms.?Catherine Russell, Executive Director of Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵICEF, and Amy Pope, Director-General of IOM, joining in person, thank you very much for being here today with us; and Mr. Barham Salih, High Commissioner for Refugees, and Mr. Matthew Hollingworth, Assistant Executive Director of the World Food Programme, joining virtually.
- We will also be joined virtually by Mr. Tshilidzi Marwala, Rector, United Nations University: Training & Research and Ms. Michelle Gyles-McDonnough, Executive Director, United Nations Institute for Training and Research (Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵITAR), who will both brief on training and research.
I would like to thank the Secretariat for circulating the pre-briefing materials ahead of time, again something we discussed last time so thank you very much that we follow up on all discussions in detail and I hope all delegations have had an opportunity to look through them, because you asked for them in advanced.
As the Secretary-General¡¯s report emphasized, humanitarian action is stretched to a breaking point: conflicts are multiplying; disasters are intensifying; humanitarian workers are under attack; and respect for international humanitarian law is eroding.
Given this context, it is more critical than ever to deliver better for those in crisis contexts.
In this regard, the vision of the New Humanitarian Compact¡ªaimed at delivering more effectively, more rapidly, and with increased accountability¡ªnecessitates our careful consideration.
Furthermore, training and research are central to the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ¡¯s work in building knowledge, capacity, and evidence for informed decision-making.
Therefore, it is of utmost importance to ensure coordination and non-duplication of these efforts across the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ system to produce high-quality, accessible insights that strengthen the impact of our work.
Excellencies,
Distinguished delegates,
Unfortunately, since I last addressed you, the liquidity crisis is not as positive as the reform process.
We are facing a situation we have hardly faced before.
This only adds more urgency to what I shared with the General Assembly in my priorities speech last month, which is that reform will have no meaning at all if this institution has no funds to function.
I therefore call on every Member State¡ªas the SG did and as I have in my recent travels and engagements, whether in Geneva, with capitals, or with regional groups¡ªto pay your dues in full, and for those of you who haven¡¯t paid yet¡ªon time.
At the same time, we must also address the structural flaw in the current financial rules that requires the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ to return ¡°unspent¡± funds that were never collected, creating a self-defeating and unsustainable cycle.
I therefore count on you to stand up, to make the difficult but necessary decisions, to find compromise, and to make an efficient and effective United Nations a reality for all the people it serves.
Especially in these times, this is the most noble thing we can do.
Watch