UN member states agree to trial change in financial rules to avoid returning unreceived funds

An agency official told attendees that the General Assembly has approved a trial change to UN financial rules to prevent the organization from returning funds it had never actually received.

The official explained that "member states do not always pay their assessed contributions in full and on time," and that the UN had been required to return unspent funds even when those funds had not arrived because of unpaid contributions. He said this created a "Kafkaesque cycle" in which the organization was asked to give back cash that did not exist.

Under the new trial methodology, "unspent funds will be returned only when they are backed by cash," the official said. He said the reform, which he has advocated for nearly a decade, will allow more responsible resource management, protect continuity of operations, and better support mandates including peacekeeping.

The official thanked member states for taking the action, saying it "will greatly benefit the incoming administration, and contribute to the financial stability of the United Nations in the coming years." He then moved on to introduce the independent scientific panel on AI.