This month the United Nations released its “Annual Statistical Report,” detailing procurements from 39 organizations within the U.N. system in 2020. Together, these organizations spent the highest procurement volume to date worth $22.3 billion — up by 12.3% compared to 2019.
With $1.7 billion total spendings, the World Health Organization had the largest increase at 92.3% compared to its 2019 spending. UNICEF remained the biggest spender at $4.5 billion, or 20% of U.N.’s total procurement. The United Nations Development Programme also had a significant increase at 23.1%, for a total of $2.6 billion in spendings.
For the first time since 2011, the priority shifted to the procurement of goods — with $11.7 billion compared to the $10.6 billion spent on services. This increase was largely driven by the procurement of goods and services related to pandemic response. Overall, 38 U.N. organizations spent $2.1 billion on the COVID-19 response.