The Minister for Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares, signed a host country agreement with UNDP on 16 July 2026 that will bring 100 of the organization's employees to Madrid.
Madrid will be home to one of the two European offices that UNDP has chosen for relocation of a portion of the personnel from its head offices in New York.
The decision represents an acknowledgement of Spain's firm commitment to development cooperation and multilateralism.
Key points of the relocation:
- Around 400 UNDP posts will be transferred to two European offices.
- Madrid will be home to roughly a quarter of those posts, hosting around 100 employees.
- Bonn (Germany) will host the rest of the relocated posts.
- The global headquarters of the organization will remain in New York.
An organization with a global presence
Although approximately 7% of its personnel are based in New York, UNDP is active in around 170 different countries and territories.
The organization has a workforce of 22,000 people, of whom 19,000 work in a decentralized manner from different locations around the world.
The selection of Madrid as host for one of the European offices as part of the relocation process will build on the existing presence of international organizations in Spain and strengthen Spain's commitment to international cooperation and the multilateral system.