エスカレーターや冷水器もオフ…資金難の国連、省コストに奔走

【国連本部ＡＦＰ＝時事】エスカレーターは停止し、暖房は低めの温度に設定、外交官向けのバーも早々に午後5時には閉店──ここ10年で最悪の予算不足に陥っている国連は先週、資金難対策として一連の措置を発表した。（写真は資料写真）
　国連の管理部門を統括するキャサリン・ポラード氏は、「他にどうしようもない」とコメント。今は３万７０００人の職員に次の給料を支払うことが、最優先事項となっている。
　ＡＦＰは、アントニオ・グテレス事務総長が職員に宛てた書簡の写しを入手。この中でグテレス氏は、出張や祝宴の削減、新規採用の制限、文書や報告書、翻訳の削減、ひいては冷水器の使用停止まで、予定されているさまざまなコスト削減策を説明した。
　国連は今年、運営費が１４億ドル（約１５００億円）不足していると発表。約６０か国の分担金の納付が遅れていることをその理由に挙げている。
　この不足分の９割を占めるのが、米国とブラジル、アルゼンチン、メキシコ、イラン、イスラエル、ベネズエラの７か国で、中でも米国の納付遅延分は１０億ドル（約１０００億円）を超えている。
　国連は常に資金難に直面しているが、近年その規模は大きくなり、年度の早い段階で表面化し、長期化している。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2019/10/15-08:55）

Stalled escalators, the heating turned down, even the diplomats' bar closing early at 5pm: already the UN budget crunch, one of the worst in a decade, is making itself felt in a series of measures announced by the world body on Friday.
We really have no choice, said Catherine Pollard, a top official in the UN's management department. The main priority now is ensuring the next paycheck for the UN's 37,000 employees.
In a letter to staff, a copy of which was seen by AFP, Secretary General Antonio Guterres laid out the looming cutbacks he said would mean fewer flights and receptions, limits on hiring, fewer documents, reports and translations and even an end to water coolers.
Guterres called the crunch the worst cash crisis facing the United Nations in nearly a decade.
He warned the organization runs the risk of depleting its liquidity reserves by the end of the month and defaulting on payments to staff and vendors.
The UN announced a $1.4 billion shortfall on its operating budget this year, blaming the funding gap on around 60 states that had been late paying their dues.
Of those, just seven countries made up 90 percent of the deficit: the United States, whose outstanding payments top a billion dollars, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Iran, Israel and Venezuela.
- 'The poor cop it' -
Contributions to cover peacekeeping operations -- which come out of separate pot -- have also suffered from tardy payment. In 2019, France for example owes another $103 million.
For the peacekeeping budget, the US owes another $2.3 billion, according to UN documents. As a consequence, the UN is deferring payments to countries that have contributed troops, with some of the outstanding bills, such as Bangladesh, reaching huge sums.
When the rich refuse to pay, it's the poor who cop it, said one UN official, asking not to be named.
The UN has always faced budget struggles, but these days they are getting bigger, surfacing earlier and lasting for longer, the UN said.
The UN budget runs according to the calendar year, while the US fiscal year is from October 1 to September 30, and the UN hopes Congress will free up the funds by the end of the year.
The UN budgetary rules do not include any penalty or interest on late payments.