Ministry of Foreign Affairs Department for Development Policy and Global Cooperation File no.: 119.D.16-2 External Grant Committee Meeting 8 April 2014 Agenda Item no.: 2 1. Title: Establishment of UNHCR in Copenhagen. 2. Partners: UNHCR 3. Amount: 41.25 million DKK 4. Duration: 2014-2015 5. Presentation to the Programme Committee: N/A 6. Previous Grants: No previous support has been provided for the establishment of UNHCR in Copenhagen. Denmark has provided 320.5 million DKK for UNHCR in 2014, of which 160 million DKK is a core contribution. 7. Strategies and policy priorities: The contribution supports Denmark’s humanitarian efforts to protect the most vulnerable, including refugees and internally displaced people. The contribution also supports the aim of attracting United Nations organisations to Copenhagen. 8. Danish National Budget 06.36.01.14 account code: 9. Desk officer: Martin Ellehøj 10. Head of Department: Nathalia Feinberg 11. Summary: UNHCR is the UN organisation for protecting refugees and resolving refugee problems worldwide. The purpose of the grant is to support the move between 75 and 125 positions from UNHCR’s Private Sector Fundraising team and other parts of the Division of External Relations from London, Rome and other UNHCR offices to the UN City in Copenhagen. Thus, the grant will improve the organisational effectiveness of UNHCR, thereby freeing up resources for refugees in need. It will also strengthen the partnership between Denmark and the UNHCR. And it will lead to the establishment of between 75 and 125 new jobs in Denmark. The cost related to per job moved to or created in Copenhagen is up to USD 100,000. The present grant covers up to 75 jobs corresponding to a maximum cost of DKK 41,250,000. However it might be possible to move up to 125 jobs with a total cost up to 68,750,000 DKK. In such a case it will be necessary to increase the present grant 2 with further up to DKK 27,500,000 (implying that the total grant will amount up to DKK 68,750,000). 3 Objective and problem formulation: The objective of the proposal is to contribute to the organisational effectiveness of UNHCR. The grant will strengthen the work of UNHCR’s Private Sector Fundraising team and other parts of the Division of External Relations through relocation to the UN City in Copenhagen. The Finance Act for 2014 includes a budget of 25,000,000 DKK for attracting new UN organizations to the UN City as part of the Government’s strategy for New Multilateralism. The present grant is a part of this strategy. The location of the Private Sector Fundraising team in the UN City in Copenhagen will benefit both UNHCR and Denmark: UNHCR will benefit through lower costs for the Private Sector Fundraising team. The Danish government offers free accommodation. Running costs – which are covered by UNHCR – to administration, security etc. are expected to be relatively low due to the efficiencies gained through cohabitation with the other UN agencies and due to the energy efficiency of the UN City itself. In order for the Private Sector Fundraising team to carry out its function as efficiently as possible, a strong set-up is needed in terms of support functions. The UN City can provide this enabling environment for UNHCR. Denmark will benefit through the consolidation of the presence of UN organizations in the UN City and the establishment of up to 125 new jobs in Copenhagen. The presence in Copenhagen of UNHCR’s Division of External Relations will further improve the close partnership between UNHCR and Denmark. Relations between Denmark and UNHCR are very strong and are based on a new Strategic Partnership Agreement with annual contributions from Denmark around 320,5 million DKK (half of which is core funding). In 2013, Denmark was the 8th largest bilateral donor to UNHCR (the 5th largest in relation to core funding). The presence of UNHCR in Copenhagen will support the objectives of Denmark’s cooperation with UNHCR as described in the Strategy for Denmark’s Cooperation with United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) 2014-2016 of February 2014. Resource efficiency: The grant covers the costs of relocating approximately 75 UNHCR jobs from London, Rome and other UNHCR offices to Copenhagen, equivalent to 100,000 USD (550,000 DKK) per job moved to or created in Copenhagen. UNHCR has indicated that up to 125 positions may be moved to Copenhagen, with a total cost of up to 68,750,000 DKK. Some staff members are expected to move to Copenhagen together with their positions, but most jobs are expected to be filled by recruitment in Denmark. The grant covers one-off expenses such as office equipment, recruitment, training, process optimisation and contractual obligations relating to e.g. lay-offs and earlier release of current offices in London and provisional arrangements for transitional office space. The funds will be allocated on the basis of actual costs. 4 Challenges and underlying reflections: It is not possible beforehand to determine the actual costs of moving jobs to Copenhagen. Actual costs may be smaller than the grant. Furthermore, UNHCR anticipates an estimated growth up to 125 jobs in the next 2-3 years. The grant is based on the maximum costs of moving 75 jobs to Copenhagen. If more than 75 jobs is moved to Copenhagen in 2014-15, costs up to 100,000 USD (550,000 DKK) may be covered up to a maximum of 68,750,000 DKK, equivalent to 125 jobs moved to or created in Copenhagen As only 25,000,000 DKK is reserved on the Finance Act 2014 for this purpose, the grant of 41,250,000 DKK is conditional on the approval by the Minister for Trade and Development of Framework Adjustment I. Project description: UNHCR wants to move its Private Sector Fundraising team and other parts of the Division of External Relations to the UN City in Copenhagen. The Private Sector Fundraising team is located in London and Rome and is dedicated to attracting private donors to UNHCR. In 2012, private donors contributed more than 130 million USD to UNHCR, and the growth in private sector donations has been steadily growing during the past years. Expanding support from the private sector is an important part of UNHCR’s Fundraising Strategy, and private donations are expected to further increase during the years to come, which is why an increase in staff in Copenhagen is expected to increase from 75 in 2014 to 125 within the next 2 to 3 years. The Private Sector Fundraising team is expected to benefit from the synergies made possible by the co-location with the 8 UN agencies already present in the UN City (UNOPS, WHO, UNDP, UNICEF, UNEP, UN Women, UNFPA and WFP). The presence of UNHCR also benefits the other agencies in the UN City, and the agencies have welcomed the proposed move of UNHCR. The addition to the UN family in Copenhagen will further support the underlying idea of the UN City to enable the UN agencies to Deliver as One (One UN). The Danish government offers free accommodation to the UN organisations in Copenhagen. In addition to this, and with a reservation for final approval by the Grant Committee, the Danish government has offered to contribute to the move of UNHCR staff by paying one-off expenses covering inter alia moving costs for staff moved to Copenhagen, costs related to recruitment of new staff in Denmark, costs relating to training of relocated and newly recruited staff as well as certain costs related to getting established in the new offices, including office furniture and equipment. The one-off payment will be allocated on actual costs within a framework of up to 100.000 USD (equivalent to 550.000 DKK) per job moved to or created in Copenhagen. This amount is based on an assessment of the expected costs related to relocating to Copenhagen, based on past experience, and is equivalent to the support previously provided to the relocation of other UN organizations to the UN City (UNFPA and UNDP in 1999-2002 and 2004-05, UNOPS in 2006, and UN Women in 2013. 5 The offer is in line with the Government’s decision from 2007 to establish a UN City in Copenhagen and to attract new organizations to Copenhagen. There are presently 8 UN agencies located in Copenhagen with a total of approx. 1250 staff. The UN City is built for up to 1700 staff. It is in the common interest of Denmark and the UN to use this capacity to the largest extent possible. Denmark is making office space in Copenhagen available for UN organizations to enhance the efficiency of the organizations and to create an environment in which the UN can deliver its best and deliver as one. The funding of relocation costs makes it possible for more UN organizations to benefit from this – and it is costs that would otherwise have to be covered by the organizations’ core budgets. Danish funding thus makes it possible for UNHCR to use the resources for the benefit of refugees and other vulnerable groups in the areas affected by conflict and instability. The UN City also provides unique opportunities for Denmark. The presence of UN organisations in Copenhagen involves a number of advantages, not least in terms of heightening the Danish profile at the UN and significantly increasing the visibility of the UN in Denmark. The UN City helps raise awareness of the possibilities of the UN and the understanding among Danish citizens of the UN's central position in Danish Foreign policy.