United Nations Economic and Social Council Information
The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations constitutes one of the six principal organs of the United Nations and it is responsible for the coordination of the economic, social and related work of 14 UN specialised agencies, its functional commissions and five regional commissions. ECOSOC has 54 members and holds one substantive session each year, in July, for a duration of four weeks. Since 1998, it has also held a meeting each April with finance ministers heading key committees of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The ECOSOC serves as the central forum for discussing international economic and social issues, and for formulating policy recommendations addressed to Member States and the United Nations system.[2]
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Chamber
The Economic and Social Council Chamber in the United Nations Conference Building, was a gift from Sweden. It was conceived by the Swedish architect Sven Markelius, one of the 11 architects in the international team that designed the UN Headquarters. Swedish pine wood has been used around the delegates area, and for the railings and doors.
A special feature of the room are the exposed pipes and ducts in the ceiling above the public gallery. The architect believed that anything useful could be left uncovered. The "unfinished" ceiling is commonly seen as a symbolic reminder that the economic and social work of the United Nations never finishes; there will always be something more that can be done to improve the living conditions of the world's people.[3]
President
The current president of ECOSOC is Ambassador Datuk Hamidon Ali of Malaysia. The president is elected for an one-year term and chosen among the small or middle powers represented on ECOSOC.[4]
Members
See also: List of members of the United Nations Economic and Social CouncilThe Council has 54 member states which are elected by the United Nations General Assembly for overlapping three-year terms. Seats on the Council are based on geographical representation with fourteen allocated to African States, eleven to Asian States, six to Eastern European States, ten to Latin American and Caribbean States, and thirteen to Western European and other States.
Functional commissions
- UN Commission for Social Development
- UN Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR): Disbanded 2006, replaced by the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), a subsidiary organ of the General Assembly.
- Commission on Narcotic Drugs
- Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice
- Commission on Science and Technology for Development (CSTD)
- Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD)
- UN Commission on the Status of Women (UN CSW)
- Commission on Population and Development
- UN Statistical Commission
- United Nations Forum on Forests
Regional commissions
- United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE)
- United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA)
- United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC)
- United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP)
- United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA)
Specialized agencies
The Specialized Agencies are autonomous organizations working with the United Nations and each other, inter alia through the coordinating machinery of the Economic and Social Council.
- International Labour Organization (ILO)
- Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
- United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
- World Health Organization (WHO)
- World Bank Group
- International Monetary Fund (IMF)
- International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)
- International Maritime Organization (IMO)
- International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
- Universal Postal Union (UPU)
- World Meteorological Organization (WMO)
- World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
- International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
- United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)
- United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)
- United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
- United Nations Office of Project Services (UNOPS)
- International Refugee Organization (IRO – ceased to exist in 1952)
- International Narcotics Control Board (INCB)
Other entities
- United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII)
- Sessional and Standing Committees Expert, ad hoc and related bodies
- United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF)
Consultative status
- See Consultative Status. See also Union of International Associations
Reform of the Economic and Social Council
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For historical reasons, the governance of the multilateral system is complex and fragmented. This has limited the capacity of ECOSOC to influence international policies in trade, finance and investment. Reform proposals aim to enhance the relevance and contribution of the Council. A major reform was approved by the 2005 World Summit on the basis of proposals submitted by the Secretary-General Kofi Annan. The Summit aimed to establish ECOSOC as a quality platform for high-level engagement among member states and with the international financial institutions, the private sector and civil society on emerging global trends, policies and action. Specifically, it was decided to hold biennial high-level Development Cooperation Forums at the level of national leaders by transforming the high-level segment of the Council to review trends in international development cooperation and to promote greater coherence among development activities. Furthermore, the Summit decided to hold annual ministerial-level substantive reviews to assess progress in achieving internationally agreed development goals, particularly the Millennium Development Goals. Subsequent proposals by the High-level panel Report on System-Wide Coherence in November 2006 aimed to establish a forum within ECOSOC as a counter-model to the exclusive club of the G8 and G20. The Forum was to comprise 27 heads of state (L27), corresponding to half of the ECOSOC membership, to meet annually to provide international leadership in the development area. The proposal was not approved by the General Assembly.
See also
- Copenhagen Consensus
- French Economic and Social Council; Economic and Social Committee of the European Union
- International Court of Justice
- International Hydrological Programme
- UN General Assembly
- UN Secretariat
- UN Security Council
- UN Trusteeship Council
- UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
- United Nations Interpretation Service
- United Nations System
References
- ^ [1]
- ^ http://www.un.org/en/ecosoc/about/index.shtml
- ^ UN website.
- ^ http://www.un.org/ecosoc/president/
External links
- United Nations Economic and Social Council
- United Nations Economic and Social Development page
- United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs
- Congo – Conference of UN NGO's
- Global Policy Forum – Social and Economic Policy at the UN
- United Nations – Official site
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Categories: United Nations Economic and Social Council | Development
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