This comes as the agency’s top donor, the United States, reduced foreign aid spending following Donald Trump’s return to office in January 2025, prompting the UN to cut down on its humanitarian expenditures.

The UN search for funds is also coming at the time Iran and Israel are pounding each other with fears of full-scale war.

The UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) announced the revised “hyper-prioritized” appeal, which is the agency’s deepest funding cut to date.

The new target of $29 billion is a sharp reduction from the $44 billion initially requested in December.

Commenting on the difficult decisions, Tom Fletcher, OCHA chief said,

“We have been forced into a triage of human survival. All we ask is one percent of what you chose to spend last year on war. But this isn’t just an appeal for money – it’s a call for global responsibility, for human solidarity, for a commitment to end the suffering.”

According to the UN, only $5.6 billion of the original $44 billion requested has been received so far, just 13% of the initial budget.

The original plan aimed to cover more than 70 countries and assist about 190 million vulnerable people. However, with the funding cut, the agency says it will no longer be able to support as many people in need.

Fletcher added that support will now be prioritised for those in most urgent need, as the agency focuses on delivering life-saving aid where it’s most important.

During the General Assembly’s Fifth Committee meeting held on Monday, delegates proposed solutions to address the multinational organization’s financial health and urged members to pay up, warning that the crisis could threaten the UN’s ability to carry out important work.

Speaking on behalf of Liechtenstein, the Switzerland delegate highlighted the adverse effect of funding shortage and hiring freeze, warning that it could cripple the UN’s ability to carry out its mandate and undermine its credibility.

He proposed a conditional, temporary strategy that would allow the UN to keep unspent funds at the end of the year, instead of returning the funds to member states as usual—if the organization spends less than 90% of its approved budget within a fiscal year, and if the UN’s cash reserves are critically low, threatening service delivery in the following year.

The proposed solution aims to keep the organization running, especially in January when payments are often delayed.

The delegate also encouraged the use of ‘special commitment’ at the beginning of the year to address issues caused by delayed contributions. The special commitment is the UN emergency budget used to fund unexpected or urgent activities.

Norway’s delegate stated that these temporary measures are incapable of solving the financial crisis as the main underlying problem lies with Member States that delay payment or do not pay in full and called for a radical approach as he urged member states to ensure timely payments.

Speaking on behalf of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Singapore’s representative expressed concern over the financial problem that has forced the UN to operate at 83 percent of its approved budget. He said:

“The UN’s chronic liquidity problem has simply become part of the Organization’s operating assumptions. This has no doubt affected mandate delivery in some areas, especially given the uneven distribution of liquidity across the various UN departments.”

According to data presented by the Secretariat,  unpaid regular budget contributions stood at $2.4 billion as of April 30, 2025, up from $1.7 billion the previous year, while peacekeeping operations face a $2.7 billion shortfall.

Expected at the conference scheduled from June 4th – 8th, 2024, with Dr. Peter Mbah, the Executive Governor of Enugu State as the Chief Host, are stakeholders in the education sector from the 35 States and the FCT [in Nigeria], as well as foreign nationals.

The weeklong – International Model United Nations by NgEducators – loaded with activities, and hosted by the Enugu State Government, is a recreation of the United Nations proceedings, with students acting as representatives of different countries in the United Nations General Assembly.

This year’s theme is – ‘Development of Education in Developing Countries’.

Nigerian students from all states of the federation will generate Resolutions on the future of education in Nigeria during the NgEducators IMUN conference scheduled as follows:

• June 3 – Welcome Reception for delegates, at Old Government Lodge, Enugu.
• June 4 – Inaugural Ceremony at Okpara Square
• June 4 – Commissioning of the Enugu Smart Green Schools at Owo
• June 5 – Model UN Plenary Sessions at Old Govt. Lodge
• June 5 – Meeting of all Nigerian States Commissioners of Education, at Old Govt. Lodge
• June 6 – Model UN Plenary, at Old Govt. Lodge
• June 7 – Awards and Commendations at Old Govt. Lodge
• June 8 – Valedictory session and interaction with the Press, at Old Govt. Lodge.

All in Enugu!

Expected Speakers:

H.E. Kasim Shettima (GCON), Vice President, Federal Republic of Nigeria; H.E. Dr. Peter Mbah, Executive Governor of Enugu State; Prof. Tahir Mamman, Hon. Minister, Federal Ministry of Education – Nigeria; Dr. Hamid Bobboyi, Executive Secretary, UBEC; Ambassador (Dr.) Tivlumun Innocent Ahure, Global Director General of IHRC RFT and President of NgIMUN; Prof. Ndubueze Mbah, Enugu State Commissioner of Education, amongst others.

Speaking ahead of the conference, Prof. Ndubueze Mbah, the Enugu State Commissioner of Education,  said that the conference by #NgEducatorsIMUN – is in line with Dr. Peter Mbah’s vision and ambitious stride towards revolutionizing education in the State.

Recall that the Enugu State Government had announced a comprehensive initiative to construct 260 ‘Smart Green Schools’ across the state’s 260 wards.

This bold undertaking aims to revolutionize education by incorporating cutting-edge technologies into the learning environment, and using an innovative Experiential Learning pedagogy, to ensure the creation of a modernized, skilled, and future-ready workforce.

The concept of smart schools involves outfitting classrooms with digital tools such as Internet, computers, and interactive whiteboards to augment the educational experience for students and ensure that students have access to multimedia learning resources.

It also means giving students access to emerging knowledge economies through 3-D Printing, Augmented Reality, Robotics, and Artificial Intelligence, to enable them develop competencies for future industry and innovation, as well as prepare them to solve present problems and anticipate future solutions.

In line with the vision of the Enugu Smart Green Schools, the International Model United Nations Conference holding in Enugu is likewise designed as a key initiative of ‘Our Common Agenda’ launched by UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, in September 2021.

Bringing together global, national and local education stakeholders and actors, the Conference offers an opportunity for inclusive, networked and effective global dialogue on the types of coordinated actions needed to reverse the slide on progress towards SDG 4, especially in developing countries of the world.

Participation & Registration

For more information about the NgEducators IMUN event, visit the Enugu State Ministry of Education or call 07081026341 or visit the event website, to get registered, get diplomatic credentials.

Courtesy:

• Enugu State Ministry of Education
• NgEducators IMUN
• IHRC RFT

He made this known to our correspondent in an exclusive interview on Sunday.

Similarly, the United Nation Organization (UNO), report indicated that of the 2.5 million plastic waste annually generated by Nigeria, it was able to recycle less than 12%, while the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), revealed that plastic consumption in Nigeria jumped by 116.26% percent within a period of 5 years to 1.25 million tons.

Reacting to the twin report of the United Nation Organizations  (UNO),  and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), Chidiebere said:

“The report  brought to light a very alarming fact about Nigeria’s waste management system. This is a massive problem because it means that there are huge costs involved with dealing with all this rubbish; not just financial but also hidden ones such as pollution and health hazards among others.

“In addition to being an economic burden,  these risks can have far-reaching effects on societies too, they impact climate change through things like emissions from landfill sites etcetera.”

Earlier, Jean Bakole, UNIDO’s Country representative said, Nigeria being the most populated nation in this part of the world, with the largest Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the nation’s plastic waste problem is on the increase.

Bakole said based on the increase consumption from 578,000 tonnes of plastics in 2007 to about 1,250,000 tonnes today.

Therefore, the per capital plastic consumption has grown by 5% annually from 4kg to 6.5kg. It is estimated that each citizen would  consume about 7kg of plastic per year.

Chidiebere, pegged the tripartite problem of waste management in Nigeria around; Proper education, Poor Funding and roles of waste pickers.

He noted that “the Pickers work on waste collection by waste pickers is often unrecognized because they are considered to be among the neglected few in the community. The nature of their jobs involves a lot of physical strength and poses many hazards, but still lacks any form of official recognition.

“There is no doubt that without them a lot could go wrong or be left undone especially considering this fact, despite being vital players in waste collection, awareness is not created about these people who remain invisible at that level nor supported enough”

More than a phrase, “trash-as-cash” should be seen as a change in attitude that can fundamentally alter our perspective.

‘If we think of the term recyclable in Naira signs, this can create a virtuous cycle with citizens, garbage collectors and corporations. Besides saving money by cutting waste disposal fees recycling also brings in revenue through selling reusable materials.

He also noted that,

“There is the education gap,  translating into low or zero public knowledge concerning correct handling of wastes.  He thus advised “policy makers to seek ways through which they will ensure that all citizens are well enlightened about solid management practices such as: recycling among others. Because lack thereof has been termed as second ignorance towards environmental conservation after illiteracy itself.

He charges state government to prioritize putting more money into waste management funding. “state governments need to prioritize funding for these two areas if we want them closed at all levels otherwise they will always exist like it does now since every sector needs money.

This can only happen when different tiers of government put into consideration financial matters relating with investment in infrastructure development especially those related to technology advancement within our country as well capacity building for sustainability on waste management systems generally but not limited only here.”

Over the years, the mismanagement of plastic waste by Nigerians was not only contaminating the ecosystem, but was also being released into the marine environment, thereby polluting it and threatening biodiversity and negatively impacting the blue economy. Mismanaged Plastic and ineffective waste management is also a source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

“The large-scale humanitarian and protection crisis shows no signs of abating,” said Matthias Schmale, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria. “An estimated 2.4 million people are in critical need, having been impacted by conflict, disaster, and disease, and need immediate assistance.”

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, child malnutrition is a “ticking time bomb” in Nigeria’s northeast, with the number of children suffering from acute malnutrition expected to rise to two million by 2023, up from 1.74 million last year (OCHA).

Severe acute malnutrition, which is already prevalent, is expected to more than double from 2022 to 697,000 this year.

“Women and girls are the hardest hit,” said Mr. Schmale. “Over 80 percent of people in need of humanitarian assistance across Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe states are women and children. They face increased risks of violence, abduction, rape, and abuse.”

Without immediate action, 4,000 people in Bama, Borno state, are expected to face disasters such as starvation, death, and destitution.
Without immediate action, 4,000 people in Bama, Borno state, are expected to face such disasters as starvation, death, destitution, and extremely critical acute malnutrition levels, according to OCHA.

Children, girls, women, and people with disabilities have suffered the most during the devastating 13-year-long armed conflict. They require additional attention in the form of improved access to basic health, nutrition, water, sanitation, hygiene, and learning services.

Meanwhile, two million people have been displaced due to conflict, many of them experiencing daily threats to their health and safety.

Non-state armed groups continue to stage unpredictable attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure. In addition, the recent closure of camps for internally displaced persons is leading to new vulnerabilities.

In 2022, the UN provided emergency assistance to almost 5 million people in Nigeria in response to these and other crises, including severe malnutrition in the northwest and the worst flooding Nigeria has seen in a decade.