Why Is the UN Going “Broke”? Understanding the Crisis and Its Impact on Africa

The United Nations, the world’s leading multilateral institution, is facing its most serious financial crisis in decades. The Secretary-General has warned that the organisation could run out of cash within months, a situation that threatens core operations and hits Africa harder than any other region. While the UN is not technically bankrupt, its cash flow problems are real, unprecedented and increasingly dangerous.

In a letter to UN ambassadors dated 28 January 2026, Secretary-General António Guterres warned that the organisation was moving towards what he described as an “imminent financial collapse”. He said the crisis had deepened because some member states had formally informed the UN that they would not pay their assessed contributions.

The letter revealed that the UN could run out of cash by July if urgent action was not taken. Guterres warned:

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“Either all member states honour their obligations to pay in full and on time, or member states must fundamentally overhaul our financial rules to prevent an imminent financial collapse.”

By the end of 2025, unpaid contributions stood at about $1.6 billion, more than double the previous year’s level. At the same time, the UN’s liquidity reserves had been almost fully exhausted, despite widespread spending cuts.

What makes the current crisis different is its scale and structure. The UN has moved beyond managing delayed payments to dealing with outright non-payment. This has left the organisation exposed and unable to plan with certainty.

The situation is worsened by what Guterres called a “Kafkaesque cycle”. Under existing rules, the UN must return unspent funds to member states as credits, even when the original contributions were never paid. UN spokesperson Farhan Haq underlined the urgency on 31 January, saying that “when it comes to paying, it’s now or never”.

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Guterres stressed: “I cannot overstate the urgency of the situation we now face.”

To slow the crisis, he proposed cutting the 2026 regular budget from about $3.7 billion to $3.45 billion, a reduction of roughly 7%, including major staffing cuts.

The crisis has been significantly accelerated by funding decisions taken by the United States, the UN’s largest contributor. On 7 January 2026, President Donald Trump signed a directive withdrawing the United States from sixty-six international organisations and cutting funding to thirty-one UN entities.

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The US administration defended the move as necessary reform. In a statement, the State Department said:

“It is no longer acceptable to be sending these institutions the blood, sweat, and treasure of the American people, with little to nothing to show for it.”

UN officials confirmed that the United States did not pay its assessed contribution to the UN regular budget in 2025. Although humanitarian funding continued, it was capped at $2 billion, far below previous levels.

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While the United States accounts for the largest share of unpaid dues, the crisis extends beyond Washington. Other traditional donors, including the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Japan, reduced aid budgets in 2025 while calling for reforms at the UN.

This reflects a wider retreat from multilateralism, driven by domestic fiscal pressures and shifting political priorities in several advanced economies. For countries that continue to pay their contributions on time, frustration is growing.

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Africa has borne the heaviest consequences of the UN’s financial crisis, particularly in peacekeeping, humanitarian assistance and development support.

Africa hosts most UN peacekeeping operations. Missions in the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan, Mali and the Central African Republic play a critical role in protecting civilians and stabilising fragile states.

UN peacekeeping chief Jean-Pierre Lacroix said missions had been instructed to identify budget cuts of up to 15%, leading to staffing reductions of about 25%. Unpaid peacekeeping contributions now stand at roughly $2.7 billion.

These cuts mean fewer patrols, reduced troop numbers and weaker civilian protection. In many areas, peacekeepers are the only barrier between communities and violence.

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Most troop-contributing countries are developing nations, many of them in Africa. Countries such as Ethiopia, Rwanda and Tanzania depend on timely UN reimbursements for deploying troops.

Guterres acknowledged that delayed payments were forcing these countries to cover peacekeeping costs themselves, placing further strain on already limited national budgets.

The humanitarian impact has been equally severe. UN agencies have been forced to prioritise only the most urgent life-saving assistance. In 2025, more than 114 million people globally faced life-threatening humanitarian needs.

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Sudan shows the scale of the crisis. Nearly 34 million people now require assistance, making it the world’s largest humanitarian emergency. Yet funding shortages have forced UN agencies to cut or delay programmes across healthcare, food aid and protection services. Similar pressures are being felt across Africa.

UN regional bodies have also been hit. The UN Economic Commission for Africa has faced budget constraints that limit its ability to provide policy advice and technical support to governments.

This comes at a time when African economies are already under strain. In 2025, average public debt across the continent reached about 63% of GDP, with interest payments absorbing close to 15% of government revenue. Around 40% of African countries remain at high risk of debt distress.

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Several member states have warned that continued delays and service cuts are eroding confidence in the UN. Proposed reforms include allowing the organisation to retain unspent funds, revising assessment scales and creating more stable revenue sources.

Guterres has launched the UN80 reform initiative to improve efficiency, but managing deep cuts while responding to global crises has stretched the Secretariat close to breaking point.

The UN’s cash crisis is not just a budgeting problem. It reflects deeper fractures in global cooperation and political commitment to multilateralism.

For Africa, the consequences are immediate and severe. Weakened peacekeeping, reduced humanitarian aid and delayed reimbursements threaten lives and undermine development gains. Resolving the crisis will require urgent payments and long-term reform to ensure the UN remains capable of serving the world’s most vulnerable populations.

Whether member states can find the political will to stabilise the organisation may define the future of global cooperation in this era.