During an informal meeting of the UN General Assembly (UNGA), Member States heard a briefing on the UN80 Initiative reform process. The designated leads provided updates on the preliminary findings of the merger assessment of the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) and UN Women (work package 4) and on progress on work packages dealing with data (work package 16) and technology (work package 15).

In her opening remarks, UNGA President Annalena Baerbock said the adoption of the resolution on ‘Mandate Creation, Implementation and Review for an Efficient and Effective United Nations’ (Workstream 2) marks a move from diagnosis to delivery of a more effective and efficient UN. Baerbock highlighted the appointment of two Co-Chairs of the Ad Hoc Working Group on Mandate Implementation Review as her immediate priority as the Group is mandated to resume its work by 1 May 2026.

Under-Secretary-General for Policy Guy Ryder echoed the UNGA President’s sentiment by describing the resolution on mandate creation, implementation, and review as a critical building block translating ambition into practical action. Ryder said the Secretary-General’s forthcoming consolidated report on UN80 work packages under its three workstreams will update on progress to help Member States navigate decision making going forward. He also highlighted the importance of civil society’s inclusive and meaningful participation in the UN80 process.

Speaking about the UNFPA/UN Women merger assessment, Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed said a unified institutional framework could help amplify voices and rights of women and improve the UN’s reach while protecting mandates and ensuring continuity.

UN Under-Secretary-General and UN Women Executive Director Sima Bahous and UNFPA Executive Director Diene Keita presented the preliminary findings of the UNFPA/UN Women merger assessment. They indicated that following consultations with Member States and civil society, the assessment will be presented to the UNGA for consideration and guidance.

Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Doreen Bogdan-Martin briefed Member States on progress in achieving transformation through technology, to enable the UN system to operate more in a coherent, coordinated, and future-ready manner. Among the expected improvements, she highlighted reduced duplication and costs, increased interoperability, and accelerated operational modernization.

Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs Li Junhua provided an update on advancing a UN System Data Commons to make UN data more usable, interoperable, and future ready. Catherine Russell, UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Executive Director, outlined efforts to establish a joint programme to sustain and deepen the UN System Data Commons approach.

The UN80 briefing took place on 6 April 2026. Additional briefings are scheduled for 29 April and 28 May.

The UN80 reform initiative comprises three mutually reinforcing workstreams that seek to: achieve efficiencies and improvements (Workstream 1); review mandate implementation (Workstream 2); and introduce structural changes and programme realignments (Workstream 3). It includes 31 work packages and 86 actions. [UNGA Briefing of 6 April 2026] [UN News Story] [UN80 Initiative] [SDG Knowledge Hub Sources]