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Resident Coordinator System Funding Library

01 December 2023

Blue UN flag against cloudy sky — Photo: © UN

This is a repository of information provided on the funding for the Resident Coordinator system. This includes information on the funding model, the funding provided, technical and background notes, and links to relevant Member States’ resolutions and UN reports. Detailed budget information provided to the General Assembly’s Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions and Fifth Committee with responsibilities for administrative and budgetary matters is provided below. Also included are evaluations conducted by the UN’s Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) into the functioning of the Resident Coordinator system and the annual reports of the UN Board of Auditors. The information below provides a comprehensive view of the operations of the Resident Coordinator system, including the Development Coordination Office, to guide Member State oversight.

Repositioning of the UN development system, including the RC system

General Assembly and ECOSOC Resolutions

Secretary General’s Reports on the RC system (with a focus on funding)

Proposed programme budgets including the RC system

Secretary-General’s reports to the General Assembly on proposed programme budget, including the RC system:

2018 - Revised estimates relating to the resident coordinator system under section 1, Overall policymaking, direction and coordination (A/73/424)
2019 – Proposed Programme Budget for 2020 (A/74/6 (Sect.1) (pages 99-113)
2020 – Proposed Programme Budget for 2021 (A/75/6 (Sect. 1)) (pages 141- 160)
2021 – Proposed Programme Budget for 2022 (A/76/6 (Sect.1)) (pages 167-188)
2022 – Proposed Programme Budget for 2023 (A/77/6 (sect. 1) (pages 161-178)
2023 – Proposed Programme Budget for 2024 (A/78/6 (Sect. 1) (pages 161-180)
2024 – Revised estimates relating to the resident coordinator system under section 1, Overall policymaking, direction and coordination (A/78/753)

Reports of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ) on the SG’s proposed programme budget

2018 - Revised estimates relating to the resident coordinator system under section 1, Overall policymaking, direction and coordination (A/73/579)
2019 – First Report on the Proposed Programme Budget for 2020 (A/74/7) – pages 43-48
2020 – First Report on the Proposed Programme Budget for 2021 (A/75/7) – pages 38-45
2021 – First Report on the Proposed Programme Budget for 2022 (A/76/7) – pages 42-49
2022 – First Report on the Proposed Programme Budget for 2023 (A/77/7) – pages 64-71
2023 – First Report on the Proposed Programme Budget for 2024 (A/78/7) – pages 122-134
2024 – Revised estimates relating to the resident coordinator system under section 1, Overall policymaking, direction and coordination (A/78/7/Add.46)

Reports of the Fifth Committee reviewing ACABQ Findings (Revised estimates relating to the RC system under section 1, Overall policymaking, direction and coordination)

2018 – Programme Budget for the biennium 2018-2019, Report of the Fifth Committee (A/73/686)
2019 – Programme Budget for 2020, Report of the Fifth Committee (A/74/614)
2020 – Programme Budget for 2021, Report of the Fifth Committee (A/75/682)
2021 – Programme Budget for 2022, Report of the Fifth Committee (A/76/633)
2022 – Programme Budget for 2023, Report of the Fifth Committee (A/77/672)
2023 – Programme Budget for 2024, Report of the Fifth Committee (A/78/662)

General Assembly Resolutions on the programme budget

2018 - Special subjects relating to the programme budget for the biennium 2018–2019, “ XV. Revised estimates relating to the resident coordinator system under section 1, Overall policymaking, direction and coordination” (A/Res/73/279)
2019 – Programme Budget for 2020 (A/Res/74/264 A-C)
2020 – Programme Budget for 2021 (A/Res/75/254 A-C)
2021 – Programme Budget for 2022 (A/Res/76/247)
2021 – Scale of assessments for the apportionment of the expenses of the United Nations (A/RES/76/238)
2022 – Programme Budget for 2023 (A/Res/77/264 A-C)
2023 - Programme Budget for 2024 (A/RES/78/254 A–C)
2024 - Programme Budget for 2025 (A/RES/79/258)

Financial Reports and Audited Statements - covering development reform, including the RC system

Board of Auditor’s Reports

2018 – Financial Reports and Audited Statements for the year ended 31 December 2018 and Report of the Board of Auditors (A/74/5 Vol. 1) – pages 20-21
2019 – Financial Reports and Audited Statements for the year ended 31 December 2019 and Report of the Board of Auditors (A/75/5 Vol. 1) – pages 83-104
2020 – Financial report and audited financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2020 and Report of the Board of Auditors (A/76/5 Vol. 1) – pages 92-101
2021 – Financial report and audited financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2021 and Report of the Board of Auditors (A/77/5 Vol.1) – pages 89-94
2022 – Financial report and audited financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2022 and Report of the Board of Auditors (A/78/5 Vol. 1) – pages 95-101
2023 – Financial report and audited financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2023 and Report of the Board of Auditors (A/79/5 Vol. 1) – pages 80-84

DCO Response to the Board of Auditor’s Reports

Secretary-General's report on the implementation of the recommendations of the Board of Auditors contained in its report for the year ended 31 December 2019 on the United Nations (A/75/339) - pages 30-37/100
Secretary-General's report on the implementation of the recommendations of the Board of Auditors contained in its report for the year ended 31 December 2020 on the United Nations (A/76/307) - pages 27/34-40/85/107-111
Secretary-General's report on the implementation of the recommendations of the Board of Auditors contained in its report for the year ended 31 December 2021 on the United Nations (A/77/322) - pages 17-19/26-28/73-75/94-99
Secretary-General's report on the implementation of the recommendations of the Board of Auditors contained in its report for the year ended 31 December 2022 on the United Nations (A/78/333) - pages 27-30/52-53/61-65/85-87

Materials provided during Technical Briefings and Informal Plenary Consultations on RC system Funding

Projected assessed contributions – March 2024
Responses to Member States’ questions raised during the second DSG’s informal consultations with Member States – December 2023
Impact of the RC Funding Shortfall – November 2023
RC System Staffing – November 2023
Efficiency Gains Briefing – November 2023
Governance and Oversight Arrangements for the Resident Coordinator System – November 2023
Technical Note on RC Funding – April 2018
Explanatory Note on the reinvigorated RC System – February 2018

OIOS evaluations of the RC system

Evaluation of the Development Coordination Office: contribution of the Resident Coordinator System to country-level programme coherence (E/AC.51/2022/2) – March 2022
Evaluation of the Development Coordination Office regional support (E/AC.51/2023/2) – January 2023
Audit of operational transition arrangements for the United Nations Resident Coordinator System (2022/094) – January 2023
Evaluation of Resident Coordinator system support to enabling coherent United Nations policy advice (IED-23-019) – December 2023
Evaluation of Resident Coordinator systems in complex settings (2024_ied_24_029) - December 2024

In 2018, the General Assembly decided to create an interdependent, impartial and empowered coordination function based on the Secretary-General’s recommendations and agreed to review its functioning and finding arrangement three years later. In 2021, the Secretary-General presented his review of the RC system, including the funding model, to the General Assembly. This report included the results achieved by the reinvigorated RC system and a recommendation that, in order to ensure adequate, predictable and sustainable funding for the RC system, a funding model would have to include assessed contributions. At that time, Member States have maintained the funding model agreed in 2018, but committed to providing “sufficient funding on the RC system on an annual basis”. The RC system has never been fully funded and perennially carried a shortfall of an average of $70 million since inception.