51st Session of the High Level Committee on Management
Report of the 51st session of the High-level Committee on Management 13-14 April 2026, United Nations Information and Communications Technology Facility (UNICTF), Valencia
The 51st session of the High-level Committee on Management (HLCM) was held on 13-14 April 2026 at the United Nations Information and Communications Technology Facility, in Valencia.
Representatives from across the UN system’s organizations, the Vice-Chair of the International Civil Service Commission (ICSC), and the Staff Federations, as observers, participated in the two-day session to foster common approaches on a variety of management matters concerning the UN system.
The first day of the two-day session was dedicated to a strategic discussion under the theme “Confronting Structural Constraints and Strategic Choices: Transforming the United Nations System for Resilience and Long-Term Effectiveness,” followed by substantive agenda items on the ICSC compensation review, disability inclusion, and the proposed United Nations Learning Engine. The second day comprised a joint session with UNSDG’s Business Innovation Group on Work Package 14 of the UN80 reform agenda, the Unified Services Roadmap.
The first day opened with three evidence-based presentations setting the scene. The HLCM Finance and Budget Network reported that total UN system revenue is projected to decline by approximately 21 per cent between 2024 and 2027, with the sharpest contractions in humanitarian assistance and peace operations. The HLCM Human Resources Network shared preliminary findings from a system-wide workforce assessment, which revealed a workforce contraction of roughly 12 per cent across the United Nations system between 2024 and 2025, driven largely by budget cuts and unevenly distributed across organizations and contract types. Findings from a High-Level Committee on Programmes (HLCP) survey on programmatic shifts showed that 74 per cent of responding organizations anticipated programmatic changes in 2026, up from 63 per cent in 2025. Entities reported narrowing their focus to core mandates, reducing country footprints, and scaling back cross-cutting work, while also identifying opportunities for greater collaboration across the system.
Working in breakout groups, the Committee discussed donor expectations and funding conditionalities, innovative financing, organizational restructuring and workforce rebalancing, and people, performance, and purpose. The afternoon leadership debate, which opened with keynote remarks by Lord Mark Malloch-Brown, former United Nations Deputy Secretary-General, converged on the perceived trust deficit with Member States, the need to elevate system-level results reporting, and the imperative of moving from diagnosis to collective strategic action. The Committee agreed on a set of actions, including direct collective efforts to strengthen system-level results reporting, commissioning a system-wide assessment of innovative financing options, establishing mandate-sensitive working groups on innovative financing, developing common principles to guide the use of staff and non-staff personnel, and exploring inter-agency talent pipelines and mobility options.
The Committee was briefed on the final phase of the International Civil Service Commission’s comprehensive review of the United Nations system compensation package, reaffirming its commitment to maintaining the Organization’s attractiveness as an employer while engaging constructively in evidence-based discussions on reform. The Committee approved the revised United Nations Disability Inclusion Strategy (UNDIS 2.0) for transmission to the Chief Executives Board (CEB) for endorsement. A briefing was also received on the proposed merger of the United Nations System Staff College and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research to create a future United Nations Learning Engine under UN80 Work Package 17. The Committee expressed its expectation to review the formal merger proposal before it is presented to the governing boards of both institutions.
Among the information items, the Committee took note of the United Nations Executive Group to Prevent and Respond to Sexual Harassment’s 2026–2027 workplan; noted progress in implementing the recommendations of the International Computing Centre review; approved the statutes establishing the United Nations System Insurance Forum as a voluntary, system-wide operational platform; noted progress on the establishment of the United Nations Occupational Health and Safety Coordination Mechanism; received an update on implementation of the recommendations of the United Nations Security Management System review; and approved the Terms of Reference of the Advisory Group on Security.
The second day’s joint session with UNSDG’s Business Innovation Group recognized the Unified Services Roadmap, established under UN80 Work Package 14, as the integrated framework for operational efficiency in services, covering six service areas under a dual model of selective consolidation and a marketplace approach. The session also included an acceleration dialogue on far-reaching efficiency initiatives and global shared services, as well as a dedicated discussion on coordinated supply chain reform. Participants agreed that the HLCM Supply Chain Network should serve as the primary system-wide coordination mechanism in this area of work, incorporating lessons learned from the humanitarian supply chain pilots under UN80 Work Package
