The United Nations Trust Fund for Human Security (UNTFHS)
Background
The United Nations Trust Fund for Human Security (UNTFHS) was established in March 1999.
Since its establishment, the Trust Fund has undergone several changes.
In the early years of the Fund, projects tended to focus on areas such as health, education, agriculture
and small scale infrastructure development and were largely implemented by single UN Agencies,
Funds and Programmes. Then at the United Nations Millennium Summit in 2000, the UN SecretaryGeneral called upon the international community to respond to the broad range of threats facing
people at the start of the 21st century. As a contribution to this effort, an independent Commission on
Human Security (CHS) was established. After two years of deliberation, the Commission submitted
its final report, entitled Human Security Now, to the UN Secretary General in May 2003.
Based on the recommendations of the CHS, an Advisory Board on Human Security (ABHS) was
created to promote human security and advise the Secretary General on the management of the
UNTFHS. The ABHS held its first meeting on 16 September 2003 and agreed on new priorities for
the UNTFHS. These included, among others, producing concrete and sustainable benefits to
vulnerable people and communities threatened in their survival, livelihood and dignity; using the
“protection and empowerment” framework; addressing the multi-sectoral demands of people and
communities; integrating responses by the international community; working together with national
Governments and local partners; and avoiding duplication with existing initiatives.
In 2004, the UN Secretary-General transferred the substantive management of the UNTFHS from the
Office of the UN Controller to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), and
established the Human Security Unit (HSU) in OCHA. The overall objective of the HSU is to place
human security in the mainstream of UN activities. By combining the management of the UNTFHS
with dissemination and promotion activities on human security, the HSU plays a pivotal role in
translating the notion of human security into concrete activities and highlighting the added value of
the human security approach.
Further to the activities of the ABHS, UNTFHS and the HSU, the 2005 World Summit and the
decision by the General Assembly to further define the notion of human security has been critical in
raising awareness and interest in the application of human security. Through two reports by the
Secretary-General on human security (A/64/701 of 8 March 2010 and A/66/763 of 5 April 2012),
five formal and informal debates in the General Assembly between 2008 and 2012, as well as
transparent and balanced consultations among Member States, a convergence of views on a common
understanding of human security has emerged. This consensus, as reflected in A/RES/66/290,
underscores the importance of the notion of human security and highlights the commitment of
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Member States to move forward with its application at international, regional, national and local
levels.
UNTFHS Today
Drawing input from more than twelve years of experience and over 200 projects funded globally, the
Guidelines for the UNTFHS have been revised to better reflect the principles of the human security
approach and its application. In addition, in 2009, the HSU published, Human Security in Theory
and Practice: Application of the Human Security Concept and the United Nations Trust Fund for
Human Security. The handbook provides concrete guidance for applying the human security
approach in the development, implementation and evaluation of human security projects and
programmes. Moreover, regional training workshops have been organized by the HSU since 2010.
These workshops have allowed UN Country Teams to gain a better understanding of the human
security approach and its application to complex situations of insecurities.
The Breadth of UNTFHS
Since the causes and manifestations of human insecurities vary considerably across countries and
communities, UNTFHS projects have covered a wide range of cross-cutting issues worldwide. While
not exhaustive, the following are some of the areas covered by the UNTFHS:
Transition to peace and sustainable development in fragile and conflict-affected communities.
Protecting and empowering refugees, IDPs, economic migrants and others on the move.
Responding to the multidimensional consequences of climate-related threats.
Urban violence and its impact on health, education, economic, personal and community
security.
Poverty reduction, social inclusion and community-based development in isolated areas.
Economic, environmental and social components of health-related insecurities.
UNTFHS-funded projects have:
Underscored the practical approach of human security for addressing multifaceted insecurities
in a contextually relevant and targeted manner.
Provided new perspectives for the development of interventions, particularly where existing
responses have proved insufficient.
Resulted in a deeper analysis on the causes and manifestations of complex and interconnected
threats and their impact on the survival, livelihood and dignity of local communities.
Highlighted the lack of protection and empowerment conditions that can perpetuate
insecurities.
Supported the development of mitigation and resilience-building measures that have resulted
in notable increases in the human security of the most vulnerable.
Provided examples of successful multi-stakeholder collaborations that have fortified existing
partnerships and promoted avenues for new collaborations among UN organizations,
Governments and local communities.
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