The Report of the Secretary-General on the Work of the Organization 2023

The Report of the Secretary-General on the Work of the Organization 2023 provides an account of the progress the United Nations has made over the past year[1] delivering on the eight long-term key priority areas established by the UN General Assembly each biennium. It indicates the major areas of activity of the UN work and outlines future priorities. During the year marked by increasingly complex crises around the world, the United Nations was determined to:

• Promote peace - 53 peacekeeping operations, special political missions and support offices were deployed to prevent conflict and support peacebuilding
• Save lives and livelihoods – the UN helped mobilize a record $30 billion to assist 216 million people caught in humanitarian crises
• Rescue the Sustainable Development Goals – the UN Resident Coordinators supported partners in 162 countries and territories to help accelerate the 2030 Agenda
• Promote human rights – the UN advocacy helped establish an international independent expert mechanism to advance racial justice and equality in law enforcement
• Reach gender equality – the UN were on track to achieve overall gender parity in the UN and we are committed to the empowerment of women and girls everywhere
• Protect our oceans – the UN helped facilitate the historic “Treaty of the High Seas” on marine biodiversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction
• Build a United Nations 2.0 - we were enhancing our expertise in data, digital, innovation, strategic foresight, and behavioural science to better assist Member States in the 21st Century
• Address the triple planetary crisis: climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss – the UN helped get agreement on a historic loss and damage fund, we began negotiating a new legally binding agreement to end plastic pollution, we supported the adoption of a global biodiversity framework, and 161 countries voted on the human right to a clean and healthy environment
• Build a more inclusive multilateralism – the UN worked with Member States to advance Our Common Agenda and create a better future of international cooperation
• Promote disarmament – the UN convened the historic First Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons
• Help combat drugs, crime, and terrorism - we organised the first-ever United Nations Global Congress of Victims of Terrorism
• Transform education – Our Transforming Education Summit brought Member States together to recover ground lost during the pandemic and unlock the potential of technology for girls’ education

This report was issued in response to Article 98 of the Charter of the United Nations, which mandates the Secretary-General to provide an annual report to the General Assembly on the work of the Organization.

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[1] In line with the regular budget of the United Nations Secretariat, the reporting period is from 1 January to 31 December 2022. Given the peacekeeping budget period from 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023, and the presentation of the report to the General Assembly in September, a few key highlights from the first months of 2023 are also included.

To Read the full Report