As noted above, the United States was the number one supplier to the United Nations in 2019, supplying approximately 9 per cent of total UN procurement ($1.74 billion) in goods and services. The largest area of procurement was in pharmaceuticals, contraceptives, and vaccines. Historically, U.S. companies have provided more services than goods, a split that is attributed to the fact that U.S. companies provide a large volume of local real-estate related services in connection with the UN’s headquarter location in New York City.
The UN procures goods and services in twelve key sectors: health, transport, consultancy, administration and operations, construction and engineering, food and farming, humanitarian aid, peace and security, climate action, energy, education, and clean water and sanitation. The following table shows the distribution of UN procurement across these largest categories of goods and services.
2019 United Nations Procurement by Category
|
Sectors of Goods and Services |
Total 2019 Procurement (in $ millions) |
% of Total |
|
Pharmaceuticals, contraceptives, vaccines |
3,239.3 |
16.3% |
|
transportation, storage, mail services |
2,653.6 |
13.3% |
|
food and beverage products |
2,070.4 |
10.4% |
|
management and administrative services |
1,782.3 |
9.0% |
|
building and maintenance services |
1,370.2 |
6.9% |
|
engineering and research services |
1,086.5 |
5.5% |
|
medical equipment |
740.5 |
3.7% |
|
fuels and lubricants, etc |
599.5 |
3.0% |
|
Travel, food, and lodging |
572.0 |
2.9% |
|
financial and insurance services |
557.8 |
2.9% |
|
Top 10 total |
14,672.1 |
73.8% |
|
un Total |
19,892.6 |
- |
Source: 2019 Annual Statistical Report on United Nations
https://www.ungm.org/Shared/KnowledgeCenter/Pages/asr_report
Pharmaceuticals, Contraceptives, and Vaccines is the largest sector with over a 16 percent share of procurement, and includes pharmaceuticals, contraceptives, vaccines, as well as medical equipment and healthcare services. The Management and Administrative Services category represents 9 percent of the total procurement and includes purchases of goods and services directly procured in relation to ongoing programs and projects, or for administrative services or operations support to UN activities. Both Health and Consultancy, Administration and Operations are key to the UN’s ability to fulfill its core peacekeeping and global humanitarian missions. Consequently, continued spending in these areas is expected.
In 2019, four other sectors had a share of roughly 45 percent of the UN’s procurement volume, namely transport, storage, and mail services (transport services such as air charter, and purchases of motor vehicles), food and beverage products, building and maintenance services, and engineering and research services.
For additional information about the breakdown of each sector, please see the section of this report on “Leading Sectors for US Exporters & Investments.”