UN counter-terrorism task force needs sustainable funding – Assembly chief

The United Nations task force charged with coordinating the world body’s counter-terrorism efforts needs guaranteed and sustainable funding, rather than the current voluntary model, so that it can carry out its work, General Assembly President Srgjan Kerim told a briefing at UN Headquarters today.

Addressing an informal briefing of Member States by the Secretary-General’s Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force, Mr. Kerim said the group – established three years ago – has already played an important role in identifying where the UN can assist in global efforts against terrorism.

But the task force has no standing resources of its own and has to attract funds on a voluntary basis, the Assembly President said.

“I commend the governments for providing funding for various working groups, but it is also important to ensure a stable and sustainable central support for the task force,” he said. “Indeed, there is a need to complete the institutionalization of the task force, as supported by the General Assembly when it adopted the Strategy [in September 2006].”

Robert Orr, Assistant Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Strategic Planning and chair of the task force, told the briefing that the voluntary funding model “has significantly slowed the pace” of the work of the task force.

“We have needed to collect, process and transfer funds to set the working groups on their feet financially, to help them bring on relevant experts, and to get them what they need administratively from the UN system,” he said. “And we have been doing so with a skeletal staff run out of my office.”

On 4 September, the General Assembly will meet in plenary session to review the implementation of the strategy so far.