Comprehensive Review of the UN Pension scheme : Shared by Doreen Lobo

The following letter from the President of FAFICS was sent to members of AFICS.  Note that the full letter follows the summary below. 

UN General Assembly Requests Comprehensive Review of UN Pension Scheme

Author: Jerry Barton, FAFICS President

Publication: FAFICS (Federation of Associations of Former International Civil Servants)

Date: 26 January 2026

Summary:

The UN General Assembly, as part of its approval of the Pension Fund's budget on 31 December 2025, invited the Pension Board to conduct a comprehensive review of the entire UN pension scheme.

The review will assess options including defined contribution and hybrid schemes, as well as adjustments within the existing scheme that would lower contributions while maintaining sustainability and respecting accrued pension rights. 

The Pension Board must provide a report outlining options by the Assembly's 83rd session in 2028, with a progress report due earlier. The Board will begin defining the work at its session in late February, likely creating a Plan Review Group. 

Several Member States facing budgetary challenges have reduced public pension costs and view the UNJSPF compensation package as generous, leading to diminishing political will to support current costs. 

The General Assembly resolution explicitly states respect for accrued pension rights, providing protection for current beneficiaries. 

FAFICS representatives will be directly involved in developing options through their participation on the Pension Board. The review may also be incorporated into the comprehensive review of UN compensation packages currently being conducted by the International Civil Service Commission, scheduled for completion in 2026.

Quotes:

"to review the pension scheme holistically, including the Pension Adjustment System, and to assess options for pension scheme designs, such as defined contribution and hybrid schemes as well as adjustments within the existing scheme, that lower contributions, maintain the sustainability and long term viability of the Pension Fund and respect accrued pension rights"

"There appears to be diminishing political will to support what some Member States perceive to be a generous compensation package."

"The General Assembly statement of respect for accrued pension rights provides a strong backing for those of us already in receipt of benefits from the UNJSPF. There should be no change in current benefit calculations before a final report is accepted by the General Assembly."

"A bedrock principle of that system is respect for acquired rights of participants and beneficiaries."

26 January 2026

Implications of the General Assembly resolution regarding the Pension Scheme Dear FAFICS Member Associations, colleagues,

First, let me wish you all a healthy, active, and peaceful 2026.

Since it has received much attention, you probably know that, as part of its approval of the Pension Fund’s budget on 31 December 2025, the General Assembly included in its resolution an invitation to the Pension Board to undertake a review of the entire pension scheme. Specifically, the Board is invited (read “requested”),

“to review the pension scheme holistically, including the Pension Adjustment System, and to assess options for pension scheme designs, such as defined contribution and hybrid schemes as well as adjustments within the existing scheme, that lower contributions,

maintain the sustainability and long term viability of the Pension Fund and respect accrued pension rights, and requests the Pension Board to provide to the General Assembly, at its 83rd session, a report outlining such options, and to update the General Assembly on progress in its next annual report.”

Several Member States are facing budgetary challenges and have taken measures in recent years to reduce public pension costs. Thus, the Assembly considers that it is appropriate to look at the cost of the UNJSPF. There appears to be diminishing political will to support what some Member States perceive to be a generous compensation package. The UNJSPF has published a summary of its approach to this resolution and work priorities for 20261.

Who will perform this review?

The lead body will be the UNJSPF Pension Board. As you know, the Pension Board consists of representatives from governing bodies, organisations, staff, and FAFICS. We, therefore, will be directly involved in the development of options, and we have representatives and delegates who have decades of experience and skill, and who have participated in other reviews of the pension plan. I, and all of my colleagues, take this GA request seriously and will work diligently to ensure accrued pension rights and the long-term viability and sustainability of the Pension Fund. When we work as part of the Pension Board, we pledge to “act with prudence, reasonable care, skill, competence, and diligence, in good faith and in the best interest of the Fund and its sustainability, and of the Fund’s participants and beneficiaries”2, and that is precisely what we intend to do. In light of the ongoing challenges in the United Nations and in the interest of the long-term solvency and security of the Fund, we feel that it is timely to investigate the concerns of the General Assembly.

The GA mandated a result by 2028 (i.e. its 83rd session) and a progress report. The Pension Board will start defining the work at its session at the end of February. We assume that a Plan Review Group will be created, and I have started discussing the FAFICS representatives for that group. We also assume that some outside expertise will be necessary, including the results of the ongoing Assets and Liability Management (ALM) study. Such a study happens every four years at a minimum and the current one will report to the Pension Board next year. The ALM study team is already assessing various economic and demographic scenarios resulting from the UN’s reform initiatives and downsizing. Input from the external Committee of Actuaries and various Pension Board Committees will be necessary as well, in our opinion.

Additionally, as pension benefits are an element of the overall compensation package for staff of UN System organizations, the Assembly’s request to review the pension scheme may also be included in the comprehensive review of the UN compensation package that was initiated in 2022 by the International Civil Service Commission and which is currently scheduled to be completed at this year’s ICSC session. Moreover, the Chief Executives Board (CEB) of the UN System may also wish to consider the matter.

What will happen to my Pension Benefits?

The General Assembly statement of respect for accrued pension rights provides a strong backing for those of us already in receipt of benefits from the UNJSPF. There should be no change in current benefit calculations before a final report is accepted by the General Assembly.

The Pension Fund operates as a rules-based system that calculates benefits according to its regulations and administrative rules, subject to review and enforcement by the Pension Board’s Standing Committee and the UN Appeals Tribunal. A bedrock principle of that system is respect for acquired rights of participants and beneficiaries. Any future change to the system, if approved by the General Assembly, could only change but not necessarily eliminate some aspects of the pension adjustment calculation for existing beneficiaries. The FAFICS delegation will assiduously monitor the possibilities and legal implications of any such potential changes.

As stated in the General Assembly Resolution, one of the options is that new staff be covered by a different set of rules. I will keep you updated when and as appropriate. Please share this letter with your members and assure them that we are working on their behalf.

This letter has been developed with significant thought and work by members of the FAFICS Delegation to the Pension Board, especially Suzanne Bishopric. The facts are from her. Any mistakes are mine.

Collegial Regards

Jerry Barton, FAFICS President