India asks UN to allocate more for responding to emergencies

India has underlined the need for the UN to allocate more resources for responding to emergencies like Ebola and other humanitarian and natural disasters as the world body adopted a budget of USD 5.4 billion to carry out its vital work during the 2016-2017.

Expressing satisfaction over the passage of the budget, India's Ambassador to the UN Ambassador Asoke Mukerji reiterated that adequate resources should be allocated for fulfilling the mandate generated by the collective membership and that resources for programmatic and substantial component should overweigh resources allocated for posts.

"We are also of the view that UN should allocate and respond to emergencies like Ebola which we had done last year and also humanitarian and natural disasters," he said in his remarks at a plenary meeting of the General Assembly after the adoption of the UN budget here on December 23.

Retiring this month, Mukerji will be succeeded by former External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin in January 2016.

He reiterated the need for the world body to speed up the long-pending UN Security Council reform process.

"As I take leave from New York I wish to bid the UN good luck. I hope that the organisation will keep up with the times and always be fit for the purpose, in implementing all the negotiations concluded this year as well as the decision of 2005 on the much delayed reform of the Security Council," Mukerji said.

The budget for the 2016-2017 biennium is slightly lower than the USD 5.83 billion final appropriations for 2014-2015.

Ban said the approved budget reflects the difficult global financial reality the world has faced for a number of years.

"Funding continues to shrink – while demands on the United Nations grow. Through it all, we are doing everything possible to fulfil the mandates you give us," he told the 193-member General Assembly, which wrapped up its work for the main part of its 70th session by taking action on a number of texts recommended by the Fifth Committee, which focuses on administrative and budgetary issues.

Ban said that the Assembly has "wisely" decided to add resources to strengthen the very important pillar of development, commending its decision to support the follow-up and review of the world body's efforts to reach the Sustainable Development Goals and carry out the financing for development agenda.