Latest news with #budgetreduction
Al Arabiya
6 days ago
- Business
- Al Arabiya
UN could cut thousands of jobs under reform plans: Internal memo
The cash-strapped United Nations could slash 20 percent of jobs—or thousands of positions—in its executive arm under ongoing reform plans, according to an internal memo seen Thursday by AFP. 'The Secretary-General has set an ambitious target, to achieve a meaningful reduction (between 15 percent and 20 percent) of the regular budget for 2026, including a reduction of 20 percent of posts, for the UN Secretariat,' UN Controller Chandramouli Ramanathan wrote in a message this week to dozens of department heads. The UN's budget for 2025 totals $3.7 billion. The Secretariat, one of the main bodies tasked with carrying out the decisions of the Security Council and the General Assembly, employed about 35,000 people as of late 2023—most of them in New York, but also in Geneva, Vienna, and Nairobi. The UN 80 reform initiative launched by UN Secretary-General António Guterres in March aims to streamline operations at the world body amid budgetary constraints. Guterres recently warned of 'painful' changes ahead, including staff reductions, and did obliquely raise the specter of a 20 percent cut in staffing. The memo seen by AFP, dated May 27, asks all department heads to prepare lists of posts to eliminate by June 13, focusing on 'redundant, overlapping or non-critical functions.' 'I count on your cooperation for this collective effort whose aggressive timelines are recognized,' Ramanathan wrote. If approved by the General Assembly, which must adopt the 2026 budget, the staff cuts would go into effect on January 1, 2026 for those posts already vacant, and later for those occupied, in accordance with UN regulations. The memo says that agencies like the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), and UN Women—which are partially funded out of the UN's regular budget—would receive separate instructions. The UN has for years faced a chronic liquidity crisis because some member states do not pay their expected contributions in full, and others do not pay on time. The United States, the top contributor to the UN ordinary budget at 22 percent of the total, was $1.5 billion behind in its payments by the end of January, a UN spokesman said. And in 2024, China, the number two contributor at 20 percent, only paid its contribution in late December. Beyond the liquidity woes, some fear that funding will drop under US President Donald Trump. Several UN agencies have already been hit hard by deep cuts in US foreign aid.
Malay Mail
6 days ago
- Business
- Malay Mail
UN Secretariat faces potential 20pc job cuts in sweeping 2026 budget reform
WASHINGTON, May 30 — The cash-strapped United Nations could slash 20 percent of jobs—or thousands of positions—in its executive arm under ongoing reform plans, according to an internal memo seen Thursday by AFP. 'The Secretary-General has set an ambitious target, to achieve a meaningful reduction (between 15 per cent and 20 per cent) of the regular budget for 2026, including a reduction of 20 per cent of posts, for the UN Secretariat,' UN controller Chandramouli Ramanathan wrote in a message this week to dozens of department heads. The UN's budget for 2025 totals $3.7 billion. The Secretariat, one of the main bodies tasked with carrying out the decisions of the Security Council and the General Assembly, employed about 35,000 people as of late 2023 — most of them in New York, but also in Geneva, Vienna and Nairobi. The UN 80 reform initiative launched by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in March aims to streamline operations at the world body amid budgetary constraints. Guterres recently warned of 'painful' changes ahead, including staff reductions, and did obliquely raise the specter of a 20-percent cut in staffing. The memo seen by AFP, dated May 27, asks all department heads to prepare lists of posts to eliminate by June 13, focusing on 'redundant, overlapping or non-critical functions.' 'I count on your cooperation for this collective effort whose aggressive timelines are recognized,' Ramanathan wrote. If approved by the General Assembly, which must adopt the 2026 budget, the staff cuts would go into effect on January 1, 2026 for those posts already vacant, and later for those occupied, in accordance with UN regulations. The memo says that agencies like the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) and UN Women—which are partially funded out of the UN's regular budget—would receive separate instructions. The UN has for years faced a chronic liquidity crisis, because some member states do not pay their expected contributions in full, and others do not pay on time. The United States, the top contributor to the UN ordinary budget at 22 percent of the total, was $1.5 billion behind in its payments by the end of January, a UN spokesman said. And in 2024, China, the number two contributor at 20 percent, only paid its contribution in late December. Beyond the liquidity woes, some fear that funding will drop under US President Donald Trump. Several UN agencies have already been hit hard by deep cuts in US foreign aid. — AFP
Fox News
7 days ago
- Business
- Fox News
Pentagon eyes 50% reduction in permanent changes of station as military families brace for moving high season
Just ahead of summer, the high season when military families are packing up for another round of having to relocate, known as permanent change of station (PCS) moves, the Pentagon is now signaling a dramatic shift in policy that could reshape military life for years to come. The Department of Defense (DoD) recently released a memo ordering all military branches to update their PCS policies in an effort to slash relocation spending by half by fiscal year 2030. The May 22 memo directs each service to focus on cutting discretionary travel for operational, rotational and training assignments. "At approximately $5 billion annually, PCS moves are a significant expense," the memo reads. "Lower-priority PCS moves should be reduced for Service members and their families seeking greater geographic stability." The directive mandates a staged budget reduction: 10% by FY 2027, 30% by FY 2028, 40% by FY 2029, and 50% by FY 2030, based on FY 2026 figures adjusted for inflation. Services have 120 days from the memo's signing to submit implementation plans, including career model revisions that support long-term geographic stability. In a briefing with reporters, Acting Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Tim Dill confirmed that the target is ambitious, but not final. "We want them to come back and tell us if that seems like the right number for them," Dill said. "If they come back and say, well, this specific course of action could be harmful, then we don't want to accomplish it." While the effort is framed as a cost-saving measure, the move comes as pressure mounts over quality-of-life issues facing military families. According to the 2024 active duty spouse survey, 32% of military spouses favor leaving the military altogether, a historic high for the biennial survey. Only 48% report being satisfied with military life, the lowest level in nearly two decades. PCS moves are at the center of that discontent. "We just reviewed the results of the 2024 active duty spouse survey, and we hear from them frequently about all of the concerns that are typically associated with PCS moves," Dill said. "It's clear that it's time for the [DoD] to look at reducing the frequency of those moves, especially if we want to maintain the momentum that we have today both in recruiting and the retention of service members." Dill stressed the wide-ranging disruption PCS causes: "Families have to go find a home, they need new arrangements for their children… and they're displaced from the community of support that they've developed over the years in their previous duty station." He emphasized that the new PCS guidance is not about shifting hardship from families to single troops. "PCS moves affect everyone," he said. "We just think we need to take the moves away from the families and put it on someone else — it's for everyone." Still, Dill acknowledged that family experience weighs heavily on whether service members choose to reenlist: "If your family is not supportive of the service member staying in service, that's a very high predictor of whether or not the service member will decide to stay. We want them to stay." The Pentagon estimates roughly 80% of PCS moves are discretionary. "What we're directing the departments to do is purely to examine potential reductions in things that would be defined as discretionary," Dill said. "If they see [a move] as mandatory for mission needs, we're not even asking them to come back with a plan to reduce it." In a statement, Chief Pentagon Spokesperson and Senior Advisor Sean Parnell clarified that this initiative is separate from a broader PCS Task Force established to improve the efficiency of current moves. "This initiative focuses on reducing the costs of PCS and is distinct from the Secretary's direction to establish the PCS Task Force, which is focused on the timely and efficient execution of PCS moves," Parnell said. The PCS overhaul isn't happening in a vacuum. It comes on the heels of a series of other cost-efficiency pushes at the DoD. In a statement issued May 23, Parnell confirmed that the department would be ending its much-criticized "What You Did Last Week" initiative, requiring civilian employees to report weekly accomplishments. First launched in February 2025 under Secretary of Defense guidance, the program was intended to "foster accountability." Parnell said the program would officially conclude May 28, and employees were asked in their final submissions to offer "one concrete idea to enhance efficiency or root out waste."
