Statement by Dr. Natalia Kanem Executive Director, UNFPA at the Second Regular Session of the Executive Board of UNDP, UNFPA and UNOPS

Mr. President,
Distinguished Members of the Executive Board,
Dear colleagues, dear friends,

I greet you in peace. Today and every day, peace must be our North Star.

I am pleased to be here with you for this Second Regular Session of the Executive Board. I thank the President and the rest of the Bureau for their support and guidance in preparing for this session and throughout the year. 

In just a few weeks, world leaders will convene here in New York at the Summit of the Future. The aim – to forge a new international consensus on how to deliver on our global goals for sustainable development, tackle emerging threats, and ensure a multilateral system fit to address current and future challenges.

UNFPA celebrations of ICPD30 this year have likewise been focused on building the future we want for women and girls in all their diversities. 

We held meetings with parliamentarians in Norway. Young feminists exchanged lessons with those in attendance in Cairo in 1994. For the first time, a commemoration of ICPD took place in Washington, D.C, organized by the White House and the U.S. Department of Health and Social Services.

And how prescient were we in selecting the themes for our three ICPD30 Global Dialogues? 

Young people are a force to be reckoned with – 1.9 billion strong. They are ready for change and ready to lead. This was crystal clear at the youth dialogue in Benin. 

Demographic trends – whether population growth, ageing, migration or other challenges – are top of mind for governments today. And they were at the top of the agenda in Bangladesh, where policymakers, demographers and others discussed the actions and investments needed to build demographic resilience so that individuals, communities and countries thrive.

Technology is transforming our world. It has the power to expand access to opportunity, particularly for women and girls. It also poses challenges. How do we ensure that the benefits of technology are shared equitably? What tools and regulations do we need to put in place to harness technology’s power while minimizing harm, such as digital violence? I was pleased to see so many of you join us at the technology dialogue here in New York for discussion of these vitally important issues.  

As the end of our ICPD30 review process draws near, UNFPA remains laser focused on the future of every 10-year-old girl today. This means rallying new allies and partners, harnessing innovation, exploring new forms of financing and embracing the power of technology to advance rights and choices for everyone.

We are committed to ensuring that every girl grows up in a world with universal access to sexual and reproductive health and rights, where anyone who wants modern contraception can get it; where no one dies giving life; and where violence against women and girls, in all its horrific forms and in all spheres, is finally a thing of the past.

Ismène, a hotline operator at a UNFPA-supported women’s centre in Haiti, sums up perfectly the future we want and our commitment to achieving it: “I want to see zero kidnappings, zero men beating women, zero victims of violence, zero psychological harm. In the meantime, we’ll continue to do what we do: We’ll keep fighting, keep working.”

That future is in our hands, and UNFPA will keep fighting, we will keep working until we get there. 

That is also why UNFPA is transforming itself to make sure that we are continually positioned to deliver in a constantly changing and evolving world. 

One example is our HQ optimization process. I’m pleased to report that our new integrated Programme Division and new Division for External Relations are now operational. 

The new Programme Division breaks down internal silos and includes enhanced knowledge management, normative, data, foresight and analytics capacities. 

This will strengthen our ability to deliver holistic solutions to emerging challenges and to seize opportunities.

The integration of programme and technical functions and the closer proximity of the new Programme Division to the communities we serve will enhance the support country and regional offices receive and allow them to more effectively perform their normative roles. 

The phased move to Nairobi will begin in the spring of 2025, allowing the Programme Division time to solidify and refine the functional integration and cohesion of the Division. 

The new Division for External Relations, formerly the Division for Communications and Strategic Partnerships, now comprises the renamed United Nations and Intergovernmental Affairs Branch, along with the Geneva and Addis Ababa Representation Offices.

These changes enhance UNFPA’s ability to engage in intergovernmental and interagency processes in New York and globally.

Another important investment is our ongoing work to strengthen UNFPA’s supply chain function. 

Accelerating towards the UNFPA three zeros requires access to contraceptives, including condoms, to end the unmet need for family planning and prevent HIV transmission. It requires access to quality maternal health medicines to prevent maternal deaths; and it requires access to post-rape kits, menstrual hygiene supplies, and dignity kits to support UNFPA’s gender-based violence programming and uphold the health and dignity of women and girls in all settings, including humanitarian settings. 

When governments and partners look to UNFPA, they should see holistic, efficient end-to-end supply chain functions. The UNFPA Supply Chain Management Unit realignment was recently concluded. We now have supply chain specialists in our regional offices, closer to the countries served. This will strengthen UNFPA programmatic work, particularly in humanitarian settings through a dedicated procurement team.

The realignment also expands third-party procurement service options. This is critical for countries transitioning from dependence on donations to domestic financing of procurement and taking steps towards local, reliable and quality manufacturing.  

A new supply chain management strategy will provide clear direction and prioritization to support the UNFPA Strategic Plan now and in the future.  

Mr. President, 

With your support, we have much to be proud of around the world:

Currently, 28 UNFPA-supported mobile reproductive health units are making contraception and other services accessible across Ukraine. 

In Mozambique, we have reached nearly 400,000 women and adolescents with safe and effective sexual and reproductive health products and services. 

A more focused, localized approach is helping increase efficiencies in supply delivery, particularly in countries facing protracted emergencies – from Afghanistan to Yemen and beyond. 

Mr. President, Distinguished Board Members,

We understand that investments in UNFPA by Member States and partners reflect trust. We work hard every day to continue to earn that trust. 

Over the past seven years, UNFPA’s consistent investment in the oversight functions, including investigations, has demonstrated our unwavering commitment to upholding the highest standards of accountability, transparency and integrity across all our programmes and operations. It also demonstrates our firm commitment to zero tolerance for any form of wrongdoing by any staff member, no matter their grade. 

Aligned with our values and mission, UNFPA reacts to any allegation of improper behaviour by any staff member. We take such allegations extremely seriously, as we continue to enhance our organizational integrity, ethical awareness and oversight.

Just this month, the UNFPA Oversight Monitoring and Compliance Committee revised its scope of work to, among other things, help ensure implementation of the recommendations from centralized evaluations.  We also continue to strengthen our enterprise risk management framework and look forward to briefing the Board on this work in January. 

A strong evaluation function remains a top priority for UNFPA. Evidence-based decision-making is vital for accelerating progress on the three transformative results and enhancing organizational learning and accountability. The formative evaluation of the current Strategic Plan, which the Board will discuss in January, is being finalized and is already informing our thinking for our next Strategic Plan.

UNFPA also welcomes the ongoing discussions on the governance and oversight functions of the Executive Board. We stand ready to support as needed to ensure the Board is as effective as possible.

Mr. President, 

Building the future we want also means building the workplace and culture we want, where staff in all their diversity feel included, empowered, heard, and encouraged to speak up. 

Last month UNFPA launched its first-ever Strategy on Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse and Sexual Harassment. This two-year strategy sets out concrete actions to prevent sexual misconduct, support survivors, and hold perpetrators to account. My expectation is that with a dedicated professional team now in place, the ethos of safety, respect and accountability will permeate every business unit, every office, every vendor relationship and partnership. 

As defenders of human rights, we have an obligation to root out all forms of abuse, to be champions of protection and to be accountable to affected populations. This remains of the utmost priority for me and the entire UNFPA leadership team and is in line with the zero-tolerance policy I have pursued with vigour since the day I arrived.

In building the future we want, we also need to understand how to adapt to the world around us and embrace technology while minimizing its risks to women and girls.

At UNFPA, we champion technology as a force for good. 

Cutting-edge technology developed with UNFPA support connects women and girls with counsellors, gynecologists and mental health practitioners. Apps put evidence-based information about pregnancy and birth in the palm of a midwife’s hand. Technology connects victims of gender-based violence with services and links families when disasters strike.

Technology can save lives and promote dialogue. It’s part of the public conversation. However, in the wrong hands, technology can also inflict real harm. 

The stories we hear from schoolgirls and young women attest to the pain caused by technology-facilitated gender-based violence – whether image-based abuse, doxing, cyberstalking, bullying, racism, hate speech, or other heinous acts. 

Female leaders and activists are routinely subjected to targeted disinformation and online abuse. Many of those attacked have chosen to leave public life, which is not a solution any society should accept. 

That is why UNFPA has been at the forefront of the movement to end digital violence and ensure that technology is safe, ethical and addresses the needs of women and girls.

I am all too familiar with what misinformation can do and the impact it can have on individuals and on UNFPA as a whole. 

Every woman and girl – indeed every one of us – has the right to enjoy safety in all spaces. We cannot continue to allow women and girls to be targeted, harassed, and chased from the public sphere. This is an individual tragedy and a collective loss for their societies. It is online violence, and violence in all forms must end. 

Still, there are rays of hope in our quest to end gender-based violence. One recent victory – the upholding of the ban on female genital mutilation in the Gambia. This is something to celebrate. It’s also a reminder that we must not fall into complacency.

Pushback against women’s rights, reproductive rights, LGBTQI+ rights and pushback against the ICPD mandate is wrong. The criminalization of health care is wrong. It should not continue.  

And all of this is occurring as worsening inequalities, crises, debt burdens and economic challenges add to the numbers of people being left behind – something that we will discuss at our session this afternoon on “Addressing inequalities to achieve the ICPD Programme of Action”.

How can we accelerate progress if we don’t advocate boldly, vocally, visibly? This means engaging with communities, including men and boys, and working with grassroots organizations; traditional, political, and religious leaders; and health workers. Thanks to such efforts, last year more than 160,000 girls were saved from female genital mutilation, and more than 66 million individuals were reached through mass media messaging on its harms.

Mr. President, Distinguished Board Members,

I’ve spoken about our commitment to fostering an ethical, respectful culture at UNFPA, and I am pleased to welcome the new UNFPA Ethics Advisor, Ms. Myriam Baele, to her first Board session. Myriam brings a wealth of UN experience and deep commitment to promoting ethical standards and integrity.

I am also pleased to announce the appointment of Ms. Iva Goricnik Christian as Comptroller and Director of the Division of Management Services, a role in which she has been acting since November. For nearly two decades, Iva has kept her nose to the grindstone to assure that UNFPA's financial resources are utilized effectively and efficiently, and I very much look forward to her continuing contributions.

Mr. President, 

UNFPA achieves results. As we reported in detail during the June session, results are only possible with the support of our partners from the public, private and philanthropic sectors. I thank them for the confidence they place in us and for their commitment to the communities we serve. And I thank our dedicated personnel working hand in hand to deliver for the women, girls and young people in those communities.

With this support, again in 2023 UNFPA surpassed the $1 billion funding mark for the seventh year in a row. More than $1.4 billion in total funding – that’s a sign of continued trust in UNFPA that propels us to do our utmost to save and better the lives of women and girls. 

It is fair to note that core funding did decline in 2023, falling to 27 percent of total resources, below the Funding Compact target. 

After a 30 percent decline in contributions to thematic funds in 2023, fortunately UNFPA is showing a strong pipeline in 2024. We have ramped up our friend-raising and fundraising, and we are seeing the rewards. Last year Melinda Gates announced a tremendous long-term commitment from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation of up to $100 million to the UNFPA Supplies Partnership. And how fortunate that the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation announced its intention to provide $50 million towards commodity financing. 

The lifesaving investments made by the UNFPA Supplies Partnership fuel our work to end unmet need for family planning and achieve all our three zeros. It is gratifying to see so many partner countries committing to increase domestic budget allocations for contraceptives, and we urge all Member States to support this partnership.

UNFPA engages actively and constructively with our partners, including in UN country teams. Contributions from United Nations pooled funds and other UN entities remain our single largest source of donor funds and have increased considerably at the country level.   

Funding from international financial institutions and the private sector also grew in 2023. 

Three decades ago at the International Conference on Population and Development, who could have envisioned the scale and complexity of humanitarian crises today? Needs have grown exponentially, and we are scrambling to keep up. 

Humanitarian funding to UNFPA rose 20 percent in 2023, accounting for 43% of non-core funding. Yet, as of the end of June, UNFPA’s 2024 global humanitarian appeal for $1.2 billion dollars was only 18 percent funded.

I want to thank the partners that contributed to the Humanitarian Thematic Fund – critical, flexible funding that enables us to adapt rapidly to evolving needs and environments. 

As we plan for the next Strategic Plan cycle, 2026-2029, we are deeply concerned about the future of core funding. Flexible funding is the lifeblood of all our programmes to support governments in achieving the SDGs and the three zeros, and we encourage all Member States to make a commitment to core resources. 

Investments in sexual and reproductive health and rights have significant and measurable benefits and remain a “best buy” for sustainable development.

With the decline in core contributions to all agencies, cost recovery is increasingly important, and UNFPA looks forward to the Board’s approval of the revised cost recovery policy.

We are pleased with Member States support of the Funding Compact 2.0, and we stand ready to engage further with our UN partners and Member States in taking this forward, including during our Structured Funding Dialogue session on Wednesday.

Mr. President, Members of the Executive Board,

Let’s face the facts. UNFPA confronts formidable challenges and ever-increasing need, at a time when competing interests strain official development assistance, weaken the social compact and rattle the foundations of the multilateral system. 

With growing and now in many cases seemingly intractable conflicts, communities across the globe are left in ruins. Even more alarming, we witness an increased willingness to wage war on and over women’s bodies. 

The rapidly escalating impact of the climate crisis is undeniable. Among other effects, heat stress can put the health of pregnant women and their babies at risk, increasing the chance of preterm birth and stillbirth. At COP29 in Azerbaijan, UNFPA will continue to sound the alarm on the disproportionate price women and girls pay in the face of climate change.

And at the Third Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries in Botswana in December, UNFPA will reaffirm our solidarity with least developed and landlocked developing countries to advance the ICPD agenda, just as we did with small island developing states at the SIDS4 Conference in May.

Last year was the deadliest on record for humanitarian workers. Earlier this month on World Humanitarian Day, UNFPA stood with our IASC partners in urging Member States to protect aid workers and end attacks on all civilians and the infrastructure upon which they depend, in keeping with their obligations under international humanitarian law. 

As the war in Gaza approaches its eleventh month, nearly all of the population faces crisis levels of hunger, including an estimated 49,000 pregnant women. The healthcare sector is in ruins. Doctors report increasing numbers of preterm and low-birth-weight babies, and there are reports of emergency deliveries in tents with no medical support. UNFPA continues to provide lifesaving sexual and reproductive health and gender-based violence services, supporting 15 mobile medical points and operationalizing four mobile clinics and two maternal health units. 

We have also scaled up in southern Lebanon and are prepositioning supplies.

Across Sudan, an estimated 1.2 million pregnant and breastfeeding women face acute malnutrition. The devastating conflict there has also heightened the risk of gender-based violence, and over 3.5 million women and girls of reproductive age need health services.  UNFPA is expanding sexual and reproductive health and gender-based violence services in famine-affected areas and scaling up our operational presence through the establishment of two new hubs, for a total of five, supporting programme interventions across the country. 

In Haiti, despite limited humanitarian access, UNFPA aims to reach 680,000 people with sexual and reproductive health services this year and 300,000 with gender-based violence prevention and response services. 

In Myanmar, last year UNFPA reached 770,000 people in need, thanks to our network of 23 implementing partners. 

UNFPA is walking the talk on localization. That’s part of our commitment to accountability to affected populations. Already there has been a notable increase in the number of women-led organizations coordinating alongside UNFPA, invited as part of our Gender-based Violence Area of Responsibility. 

I thank our committed, courageous humanitarian staff working diligently to ensure that the rights and protection of women and girls and other marginalized groups are at the center of every humanitarian response.

Mr. President,

When we hear that people are hard to reach, it usually means we aren’t trying hard enough. Fortunately, this is beginning to change.

In Colombia, for example, UNFPA supports a community-based midwifery programme – Partera Vital – that equips Afro-Colombian and indigenous birth attendants with modern skills and tools to deliver their services and make referrals for emergency care. In 2022, the programme cut maternal deaths to zero in these communities. Birth attendants also receive a mobile app that allows them to register births – a major step forward in the march for recognition.

Shirley Maturana Obregón, whose baby was born with the assistance of a traditional partera and today is a partera herself, describes her vocation this way: “We are there, making women’s dreams come true.”

That is UNFPA’s aim, too, for every woman and girl.

In this regard, I close by recognizing the Governments of Colombia and Brazil for their co-sponsorship of General Assembly resolution A/78/L.96, which proclaimed 25 July as ‘International Day of Women and Girls of African Descent’. For women and girls who suffer health disparities and other effects of structural racism and discrimination, this day represents another important step towards justice and recognition.

Excellencies,
 
I now turn the floor over to Dr. Sennen Hounton, Regional Director for West and Central Africa, who will share highlights of some of UNFPA’s activities in the region.
 
[Sennen speaks for 4 minutes]

Thank you, Sennen.

Mr. President, Distinguished Members of the Executive Board,

The journalist and Nobel Laureate Maria Ressa writes: “The world we once knew is decimated. Now we have to decide what we want to create.” 

At UNFPA, we want to create a future in which everyone is able to live life “in larger freedom”, as promised in the UN Charter.

Reproductive freedom; freedom from violence and fear; from prejudice and discrimination; freedom from hunger, from inequality, from polarization and strife.

Freedom to make decisions about one’s own body; to choose whether or when to have children; freedom to love whomever one chooses; freedom to learn and to innovate. 

That’s the future we imagine for every girl, and that future is ours to create.

UNFPA looks forward to continuing to walk the path of progress together with you in building that future, including through the Pact for the Future, the Declaration on Future Generations, and the Global Digital Compact. 

I look forward to our discussion.

Thank you.