EU Statement on Agenda item 5: The Agency’s Draft Budget Update for 2027

Chair,
I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union and its Member States. Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, Republic of Moldova, Serbia, and Ukraine align themselves with this statement.
We thank the Secretariat for preparing the Agency's Draft Budget Update for 2027 (GOV/2026/1). Let me begin by mentioning several crosscutting points: We appreciate the transparent budgetary process and the Secretariat’s commitment to the continued implementation of a results-based approach to budget management and of cross-departmental cooperation and coordination. We support the use by the Agency of the latest technological developments, including Artificial Intelligence, for more efficient administrative and business processes. We continue to attach great importance to gender equality and mainstreaming in all activities.
As regards the budget, the EU and its Member States remain committed to ensuring a sufficiently and sustainably resourced, effective and efficient IAEA, able to implement its crucial mandate. We underline the importance of the Agency’s work on nuclear safety, security and safeguards. With respect to its safeguards agreements, the Agency has legal obligations to fulfil and must be resourced to meet them, which will likely require increased funding given the continued increase in the amount of nuclear material and facilities under IAEA safeguards. Moreover, we note again that the Agency’s activities to promote nuclear security continue to be overly reliant on extra-budgetary funding.
We also underline the importance of the Agency’s efforts to promote the peaceful uses of nuclear technology and the attainment of the SDGs through effective and needs-based Technical Cooperation, drawing on the expertise and activities of all Major Programmes.
In the light of our strong support for all these core aspects of the Agency’s work, we remain concerned about the prospective impact on the implementation of its mandate of consecutive Zero Nominal Growth budgets with cumulative effects. These entail real cuts to the funds available and will not be sustainable over time without affecting
programmatic work. Nonetheless, in the spirit of consensus, we are prepared to support the draft Budget Update as it stands to demonstrate our commitment in practice.
We support, at the same time, continuous efforts to identify further savings and efficiencies to offset growing demand for Agency services without compromising the achievement of the mandated tasks. As far as staff benefits are concerned, we support IAEA alignment with any changes adopted in the framework of the International Civil Service Commission. It remains important that the Agency be able to recruit and retain staff of the highest standards of competence, efficiency and integrity.

Chair,
Turning to the proposal relating to an increase in the level of the Working Capital Fund (WCF), we recognise the risks entailed by the current situation. This is demonstrated by repeated low liquidity levels due to outstanding and delayed payments to the Regular Budget. Therefore, EU Member States agree to honour a common good practice and support the proposal of the Secretariat to increase the WCF to a level corresponding to one-twelfth of the Regular Budget in a way that corresponds to the financial regulations of the Agency. We are ready to participate constructively in the discussions on the modalities in 2027 and hope that a consensus agreement can be reached in this regard. Let me also take this opportunity to urge all Member States to pay their contributions in full and on time and to settle any arrears at the earliest.

Chair,
Finally, as regards the issue of funding the After Service Health Insurance (ASHI), we take note of the most recent update (GOV/INF/2065/3) and in particular of the Agency’s decision to significantly extend cost containment measures which will curb the growth of the ASHI liability, which was set to increase significantly. We hope that this will not negatively impact the IAEA’s staff recruitment and retention capacity. We look forward to receiving the Secretariat’s proposals for a future funding mechanism for ASHI in due course.

Thank you, Chair.