With the plans for UN80 underway, Ambassador of Barbados to the United Nations in Geneva, Matthew Wilson unveils his thoughts for the future of the United Nations, currently facing its biggest economic crisis yet. 

The UN system is going through a deep financial and liquidity crisis due to nonpayment of assessed contributions. In your view, how can we overcome this crisis?

We first need to recognize that this is an inflection point for the UN. We then need greater accountability across the board and to be reminded of why the UN matters. This requires being better at showing transformational results to eventually regain public support.

We also need to undertake a serious diagnosis of the problems currently in the system. Why are Member States not paying their contributions? Is it because they are questioning the balance of financial contributions in the constantly shifting geopolitics and power dynamics in the global space? Is it because they are questioning the efficacy of the UN and how their contributions are being used? Is it because they believe there is limited public support for the UN? We must continue to diagnose these issues to be able to effectively pinpoint the problem. 

Only then we can look for solutions.

For smaller, more vulnerable countries who are also falling behind, is there a need to have an even deeper conversation with them to understand what the concerns are? Is it that the UN is not seen as valuable to them? Have they not benefited from it enough, have they not included the funding in their budget cycle and is there a need for more flexible payment plans?

An effective UN is inherently related to effective financing. We need to continue to work with the private sector and foundations to see how we can improve our partnership with them to support the goals of the UN, including meeting the SDGs. But primarily we are going to need a reaffirmation of the role of Member States in making the UN fit for purpose and this will take predictable financing to make this happen. 

As a response to the crisis, the Secretary-General António Guterres has suggested a reform process, UN80. Do you think that this process can resolve the problem?

There are very few people who believe that the UN does not need some sort of reform. Reform is a form of growth. It is a form of evolution and all these post-World War global structures and processes need to continue to evolve to better reflect the realities of today.

These realities include changing and shifting geopolitics and power on one hand and increasing demands and priorities on the other hand. These realities might also need to reflect and respond to concerns that some Member States and constituencies may have about the relevance of some of the work that the UN does, and whether it can be made more efficient. This will require being more results oriented and bringing the UN closer to the actual experience of the Global Citizen on the ground.

I know there has been a lot of discussion around consultation processes, around transparency, and around fairness in the current UN80 reform process, but putting all these important issues aside, I do believe that the UN needs to look at itself seriously. 

UN80 is perceived more as a cost-cutting exercise than anything else. What are your views of this?

Given the challenging global financial situation that we are in, including the decrease in official development assistance, it will naturally entail cost-cutting.

But cost-cutting has got to follow an appropriate diagnosis, and an appropriate determination of supply and demand in its most basic form. In essence, how does the UN fill that market gap where the market, the private sector and individual governments are unable to fill and respond?

But the harsh reality is that with less cash flow coming into the United Nations and with an across the board reassessment of ODA, which has, unfortunately, in some cases led to a violent decrease and pullback in support, there will have to be cost-cutting and jobs and livelihoods in the UN system will be affected.

This is just one pillar of effective reform. We have got to continue to look at mandates, at delivery methods, at the cost benefit of some of the investments and interventions that the UN and its agencies undertake, at better using technology to deliver more efficient and effective products and services.

I believe that Under-Secretary-General Guy Ryder and his team understand this. But it is challenging. It should have been a constant and evolving process, but it has clearly had to be accelerated because of external pressures and realities. That sometimes means that mistakes are made and I think we need to recognize that and to minimize dislocation as much as possible. This involves taking care of staff who will be affected and ensuring that vulnerable communities continue to be supported through the UN’s work.

Do you think that spreading headquarter functions across multiple locations is an effective solution?

On this one, I fear I don’t have enough knowledge and expertise to give a credible response to this question. I have great respect for many of the actors who are involved in these decisions, and I believe that they have correctly done their assessment for their respective organizations.

That said, one must take a very careful look at the cost benefit of some of these decisions to make sure that in the long run, we are not dislocating staff and demarcating functions with very little positive benefit around cost savings or efficiency.

Some Member States warned that the process was premature and unnecessarily rushed. Do you agree with this assertion?

Again, I don’t want to play the diplomat card and remain neutral on these issues, but I believe it is still too early to give an assessment of whether any of the actions were premature or rushed. I do know that something had to be done to respond to the external pressures and the external realities that the UN is facing.

I don’t believe that this process started this year. Even from when I was in the UN system as an employee, there were constant discussions about reform, improvements, and about having a clear sense of mandate.

Many Member States have asked for a strengthening of the security pillar of the UN. Do you have a view on how to achieve this goal?

One of the primary functions of the United Nations is peace and security. Many of us may never truly know how the work of the UN may have prevented wars, conflict, famine, greater poverty, but I truly believe that simply the existence of the UN and its agencies and its dedicated staff have done more for prevention than any of us realize.

It is difficult to tell a story of prevention. It is difficult to sell stories around ‘what ifs.’ You can’t simply have control groups and counterfactuals on matters of security, war and peace. I do believe that the UN has done incredibly impactful work in making this a safer world for us all.

With this in mind, we need to continue to invest in the security pillar, but with a more modern and expanded view of what security is. Economic security is incredibly important because that is related to job creation, entrepreneurship, and a sense of purpose, and we know that when people have economic security there is less crime, less conflict, and less war. The human rights aspect of security must also continue to be a priority for the United Nations. When people feel unprotected and vulnerable it can be a huge cause of conflict and the UN has a responsibility to protect the most vulnerable. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights must continue to be our blueprint.

We must invest in the security pillar of the UN by ensuring that we also strengthen the economic and human rights pillars and that we see inclusive trade and development as fundamental precursors to safety, peace, and security. We need to see the protection of the individual and vulnerable groups as part of our global moral responsibility. I believe in the United Nations system, but we also need to be better at galvanizing public support and of capturing the public’s imagination again. As a young boy growing up in Barbados, I saw the United Nations as MY organization, working to make the world a better, safer and more equal place for all of us to benefit. We cannot forget and forgo these fundamental values.