Executive Coordinator presents UNV 2025 results to the Executive Board

Mr. Chair,

Distinguished delegates,

This is the fifth time I have the privilege of presenting the annual report of UNV to the Executive Board.

First time when I was presenting in 2021, I was given 20 minutes to allow more time for dialogue among the Member States. The following year, it became 15 minutes, then 10, and now I have only five. I look forward to the challenge the board will set for me next year.

Fortunately, my task is easier because we had a very fruitful and informal meeting of the Executive Board on this agenda item, distinguished delegates, last month. So today I will focus on a few key results and share a couple of reflections.

Last year, 17,000 UN Volunteers have supported the delivery of the United Nations mandates around the world—this is the highest level of volunteer engagement that the United Nations system has seen in its history. In fact, last year, we mobilized as many volunteers as we used to mobilize in two years at the beginning of this decade.

UN Volunteers came from 182 nationalities, ranging in age from 18 to 80. We maintained gender parity, we advanced disability inclusion, we integrated volunteerism into the UNSDCFs, and we laid the very important foundations for the International Volunteer Year in 2026.

Mr. Chair, Distinguished delegates,

As we were finalizing the report, I asked myself three questions.

First: are UNV’s achievements as good as the report suggests?

Yes and no.

Yes, because every result in the report in front of you is accurate and has been verified.

But also no, because reports tend to naturally focus on the achievements rather than the struggles. The reality of 2025 was far more demanding. Across the UN system, the teams were working with the funding cuts, facing operational challenges and the security constraints. At times, we had to deploy volunteers for the crisis response, as Administrator De Croo acknowledged this morning, but at times we had to deploy them quickly for crisis response, only to evacuate in a couple of weeks because the situation had changed on the ground. So every day brought us a resilience test. 

My second question was: how did UNV contribute to the UN80 initiative?

Our greatest contribution was—and remains—the power of demonstration.

For you, Member States seeking greater coherence and efficiency, UNV offers a practical example of a global shared service that works. In 2025, we partnered with 59 UN entities, demonstrating that common services can deliver results, generate efficiencies, and achieve scale.

Since UNV’s motto is “Inspiration in Action,” we hope that our experience may inspire further progress in this area.

And my third question was: Do past results guarantee future success?

No.

We cannot afford to rest on the laurels.

The UN system is facing even more financial pressures, operational risks, and security challenges. Yet the carefully calibrated priorities of our Strategic Framework, the trust of our UN partners, your continued guidance and the momentum generated by the International Volunteer Year give us confidence that—if I may borrow the Security Council language—UNV shall remain seized of its mandate.

Not every year will bring achievements as historic as 2025. But every year, distinguished delegates—and every day—Member States can count on a mission-driven and professional, global but at the same time very local United Nations Volunteers.

Mr. Chair,

I am still on my 5th minute and I would like to conclude with a short video about our mission.

If the pages of our report are about the trees, the video is the forest behind them.

I thank you.

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Please read the 2025 Annual Report of the Administrator here.

Please click below to see the UNV video shown to the Board following the Executive Coordinator's remarks.