NEW YORK – Twenty-four countries pledged approximately $488 million during a Headquarters event in support of United Nations development activities primarily covering 2014. The amount represents a decline of approximately $377 million in comparison to last year’s pledges.
Opening the 2013 Pledging Conference, Navid Hanif, Director of the Office for Economic and Social Council Support and Coordination in the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, said contributions for operational activities for development of the United Nations system were $22.8 billion. The figure was about the same as in 2010 in nominal terms, but 6.9 per cent in real terms. About two-thirds of contributions in 2011 were to long-term development related activities, with the remaining one third directed toward activities with a humanitarian focus.
Outlining some recent developments, Mr. Hanif said long-term funding trends were favourable, but in the short-term, the pace had slowed. Between 1996 and 2011, total contributions to the United Nations development system more than doubled in real terms, although core and non-core funding experienced very different growth paths. Since 2006, total funding for United Nations operational activities had grown at a slower pace than total official development assistance (ODA), indicating a declining trend in the share of total ODA being channelled through the United Nations system. Contributions by developing countries amounted to $562 million in 2011, evenly divided between core and non-core resources.
