What does the United Nations represent for Belgium, one of its founding members, and what does Belgium mean for the UN? At a time when international cooperation faces growing budget pressures, it’s worth revisiting some key facts and figures to reflect on this historic partnership.
Belgium, fifth largest supplier to the United Nations
It’s a little-known fact, but one that deserves to be highlighted: Belgium is the world’s fifth-largest supplier to the United Nations, after the United States, Denmark, the United Arab Emirates, and Switzerland. Belgium is ahead of its neighbours, with France ranked 9th, the Netherlands 14th and Germany 19th, according to statistics from the UN Procurement Portal (2023).
Most of the UN’s purchases in Belgium are destined for UNICEF, an agency that supplies over 45% of the world’s children with vaccines, saving 3 million lives every year.
In 2023, 1,621 Belgian companies received $871.3 million in contracts from the United Nations, representing 3.5% of the worldwide total awarded that year. This amount is almost four times greater than Belgium’s humanitarian aid.
The pharmaceutical sector is the most concerned ($701.7 million), followed by transport and storage ($30.2 million), and then food and beverages ($26.9 million), according to data from the United Nations Global Marketplace (UNGM).
Belgium’s contribution to the UN general budget
Belgium’s contribution amounts to 0.773% of the UN’s total general budget, or around $3.8 billion a year. These expenses, which correspond to the mandatory contribution of all member states, are borne by the Federal Public Service for Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation.
At the same time, as part of its voluntary contributions to the UN, its specialized organizations, agencies, funds, and programs, Belgium has contributed approximately € 100 million in recent years, according to the Belgian Permanent Representation to the UN.
Humanitarian aid, a pillar of international cooperation
In 2024, Belgium allocated $231.3 million for humanitarian aid, including $122.5 million to UN agencies, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
The primary beneficiaries of Belgian aid in 2024 were the Palestine Refugee Agency (UNRWA, 52.5 million), the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR, 25 million), the World Food Program (WFP, 17.3 million) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO, 10.9 million).
International cooperation, dear to the hearts of Belgians
As the Federal Public Service for Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation reported for the previous year, “in 2023, our country paid out 218 million euros in humanitarian aid, an absolute record. As of 2022, a significant proportion of the funds were allocated to the Middle East, the Great Lakes region, the Sahel and Ukraine. Worldwide needs remain very substantial. In April 2024, the United Nations estimated that 292.4 million people required humanitarian aid and protection.
According to the Baromètre de la solidarité internationale 2024 (International Solidarity Barometer 2024) published by the CNCD 11.11.11. association and Le Vif newspaper, “one in two Belgians is in favour of increasing development aid and regularising the situation of undocumented immigrants“.
The poll also reveals that “two out of three Belgians want to get out of fossil fuels and integrate mirror measures into trade agreements, (…) and that three out of four Belgians are also calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.”
Belgium and peacekeeping
The history of Belgian participation in peacekeeping operations is a special one, partly due to the trauma of the death of 10 Belgian peacekeepers in Rwanda on 7 April, 1994, the first day of the genocide against the Tutsis. Today, only one Belgian national is currently working in peacekeeping.
Belgium’s Permanent Representation to the UN explains that “our first intervention was in Kashmir (1949), followed by a major operation in Korea (1950). Over the following decades, Belgium did not participate in any peacekeeping operations until the operations in Somalia (UNOSOM), the former Yugoslavia (UNPROFOR/UNTAES), and Rwanda (UNAMIR) in the 1990s.
During the latter operation, ten Belgian peacekeepers were killed, leading to a temporary suspension of Belgium’s participation in peacekeeping operations. In recent years, the Belgian army has deployed peacekeepers in Sudan (UNMIS), Lebanon (UNIFIL), the Middle East (UNTSO), the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO) and Mali (MINUSMA).
Soldiers have also been sent as part of UN-mandated coalitions, such as ISAF in Afghanistan. When participating in peacekeeping missions, Belgium emphasises excellence. The limited size of our armed forces does not allow us to send large contingents to the four corners of the world.”
Belgium in the UN system
In 2023, the UN workforce comprised 780 Belgian nationals (0.6% of the total) spread across various entities and countries. Additionally, 400 UN international civil servants are based on Belgian territory, representing a portion of the 33,900 UN staff members active in Europe, which accounts for 25% of the total, making it the second continent with the most UN staff after Africa.
They are mainly based in Brussels, where they represent over 30 UN agencies and entities working in liaison with the Belgian authorities and European institutions.
Belgium also boasts 16 UNESCO World Heritage sites, including the medieval historic core of Ghent, the Palais de Justice in Brussels, and the university buildings in Leuven. The splendid Forêt de Soignes is Belgium’s only UNESCO World Heritage site. A UN hiking trail was inaugurated here in October 2024.
The local work of UN agencies in Brussels
Many of the agencies active in Brussels contribute to national issues. The IOM has published a detailed report on migrant remittances in Belgium, which exceeds 7 billion euros annually.
The UNHCR has worked effectively with the country’s authorities to welcome 66,332 refugees and 695 asylum seekers from Ukraine in 2023, who arrived after the start of the Russian invasion of their country in 2022.
UNEP also participates in numerous Belgian initiatives, including World Environment Day. Notably, the famous Manneken Pis statue was dressed in orange for UN Women’s “Orange the World“ campaign against violence against women.
“Interesting details“ about Belgium and the UN
In post since January 2025, Belgium’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Sophie De Smedt, heads a team of 17. On the website of the Belgian delegation to the UN, a few “interesting details“ are highlighted on Belgian personalities linked to the UN:
“Former Belgian Prime Minister Paul-Henri Spaak was the first President of the General Assembly, in 1946.
Belgian architect Gaston Brunfaut was part of the architectural team that designed the United Nations headquarters in New York (alongside other architects such as Le Corbusier and Oskar Niemeyer).
Queen Mathilde of Belgium is an official advocate of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), appointed by the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
The Smurfs (yes, they’re Belgian!) are also committed to the SDGs, as the blue cartoon characters are frequently used to explain these global goals to people all over the world, including children.”