Monitoring Policy Making at the United Nations |
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Institutions and Processes of
Social and Economic Policy Making at the UN
The Economic and Social Council
at the UN Headquarters in New York
Picture Credit:United NationsThe United Nations works on a wide range of social and economic policy issues. Within the UN, the 54-member Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is the primary intergovernmental organ working on these issues, but it has neither the clout nor the prestige of its smaller twin, the Security Council. ECOSOC has fifteen functional and regional commissions - intergovernmental bodies that are sometimes brilliantly innovative and sometimes hopelessly mundane. At the UN Secretariat's Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), hundreds of professional staff prepare conferences, carry out research and write policy documents in support of UN initiatives. Beyond the UN proper, there are a number of Specialized Agencies, Funds and Programmes, many of which work on social and economic issues. Some of the leading organizations are the World Health Organization (WHO), the Children's Fund (UNICEF), the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the Development Programme (UNDP). Only very loosely-related to the UN are the Washington-based Bretton Woods Institutions -- the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. More conservative and more directly under the influence of rich governments, these institutions are often seen as the black sheep of the UN family. However, because they suit the policy needs of the US and other rich countries, they prove consistently more powerful than the UN agencies. Increasingly, UN system agencies work together with the Bretton Woods Institutions on conservative common programs known as "policy congruence."
Also See GPF's Pages on:
Social and Economic Policy at the UN
Overview | UN Organs | UN Programmes & Funds | UN Specialized Agencies | Other UN Entities | Research Institutes
Overview
Organizational Chart of the UN System
This organizational chart of the UN system summarizes the diversity of the UN family. It illustrates the relations between and within its different organs.
An analytical essay published by Global Policy Forum's Executive Director James A. Paul.
The UN in Brief: What the UN Does for Development
An overview of the work of UN agencies, programmes and funds involved in social and economic policy making.
UN Organs
Economic and Social Council
United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)
Article 7 of the UN Charter states that ECOSOC is a principal organ of the UN Charter, and is the most important organ dealing with social and economic policy at the UN. ECOSOC has 54 members and coordinates the social and economic policy work of the UN Secretariat, its Specialized Agencies and receives reports from the UN Programmes and Funds. But the Charter places ECOSOC - unlike the Security Council - under the authority of the General Assembly, allowing the body only to issue policy recommendations to the UN system and member states, but not to make key decisions. ECOSOC consults with academics, business sector representatives and more than 2,100 registered non-governmental organizations.Members of ECOSOC
This table shows the composition of the Economic and Social Council's 54 members since 1997. Seats are allocated based on geographical representation: 14 to African states, 11 to Asian states, 6 to Eastern European states, 10 to Latin American and Caribbean States, and 13 to Western European and other States.Subsidiary Bodies of ECOSOC
ECOSOC has established 15 Commissions working in the economic and social fields to perform its many functions, ranging from human rights issues to educational advancement. These include ten Functional Commissions, which meet in yearly sessions, and five Regional Commissions established to foster a stronger link between these regions and the UN system.Functional Commissions of ECOSOC
Statistical Commission
Commission on Population and Development
Commission for Social Development
Commission on Human Rights
Commission on the Status of Women
Commission on Narcotic Drugs
Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice
Commission on Science and Technology for Development
Commission on Sustainable Development
United Nations Forum on Forests
Regional Commissions of ECOSOC
Economic Commission for Africa (ECA)
Economic Commission for Europe (ECE)
Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC)
Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP)
Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA).
UN Secretariat
Picture Credit: UN DESA Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA)
DESA works in close interaction with ECOSOC in developing "sustainable" approaches to economic, social, environmental, and gender related issues for UN member states. Its numerous divisions and offices, include the Development Policy and Planning Office, the Financing for Development Office, the Division for Economic and Social Council Support and Coordination, the Division for Sustainable Development, the Division for the Advancement of Women, and the Division for Social Policy and Development.Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
OCHA mobilizes and coordinates "humanitarian" action that alleviates human suffering caused by natural disasters and conflict, and advocates the rights of people in need. An important component of OCHA's work is to gather, analyse and disseminate information from the field to key stakeholders, on a 24-hour basis. The tools used to collect and share information include Relief Web, and the Integrated Regional Information Network.
UN programmes and funds work under the authority of the General Assembly and to a lesser degree, ECOSOC, to carry out the UN's economic and social mandate. UN Programmes and Funds
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)
Established in 1964, UNCTAD works for the development-friendly integration of poor countries into the world economy. UNCTAD is the focal point within the UN for all matters related to foreign direct investment and transnational corporations. Whereas the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the World Trade Organization represents the interests of the rich in international economic policy, UNCTAD traditionally represents Southern perspectives. But, once a stronger forum for advancement of views and ideas challenging established world economic structures, UNCTAD seems to have lost some of its progressive edge, as the WTO and the Bretton Woods Institutions have been working to impose their neoliberal agendas upon it. See UNCTAD's official site.United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
UNEP works towards greater coordinated action and consideration for alleviating the problems of the natural environment's already-stretched carrying capacity. UNEP provides information and resources to governments and communities, guiding them on how to sustainably manage their resources.
Picture Credit: UNDP United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
As the UN's global development network, UNDP largely works to raise the living standards of people around the world. UNDP, which operates in 166 countries, provides communities with knowledge, experience and resources, and works with community members in developing their own solutions to national, and local development challenges.United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM)
UNIFEM is the women's fund at the UN that provides financial and technical support to programmes centering on women's human rights; political participation; governance, peace, and security; and women's economic security. Created in 1976, UNIFEM now works in over 100 countries with 14 Regional Programme Directors.UN-Habitat: United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UNHSP)
UN-Habitat is mandated by the UN General Assembly to promote socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities with the goal of providing adequate shelter for all. UN-Habitat has 154 technical programmes and projects in 61 poor countries, focusing on providing shelter for all, improving urban governance, reducing urban poverty, improving people's living environment, managing disaster mitigation, and post-conflict rehabilitation. UN-Habitat's two major worldwide campaigns are the Global Campaign on Urban Governance, and the Global Campaign for Secure Tenure.United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
UNFPA is the world's largest international source of funding for population and reproductive health programmes. Since its inception in 1969, UNFPA has provided almost $6 billion in assistance to poor countries, working closely with governments and NGOs in over 140 countries. UNFPA provides programmes that help combat violence against women, and assist with family planning so as to avoid unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections such as HIV/AIDS.United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)
UNICEF, the only UN organization dedicated exclusively to children, advocates for the protection of children's rights to help them meet their basic needs and expand their opportunities to reach their full potential. UNICEF works on providing basic education for all children, reaching them with life-saving vaccines, building a protective environment for them, preventing parent-to-child HIV transmission, and supporting children orphaned by HIV/AIDS.
Picture Credit: UNHCR Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
UNHCR is a principal humanitarian agency that provides the world's uprooted people with basic necessities such as shelter, food, water and medicine. UNHCR also assists with long term solutions for displaced people, including their voluntary return back to their homeland or beginning afresh in new countries. In more than five decades, the agency has helped an estimated 50 million people to restart their lives.World Food Programme (WFP)
Set-up in 1963, WFP is the UN frontline agency in the fight against global hunger, working in 82 countries. The WFP is the largest multilateral food-aid organization in the world, responsible for handling over 3 million metric tons of food aid annually. Still, as donor governments consistently fail to provide enough resources, the WFP is often forced to cut food rations, leaving people to starve.Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF)
Launched by Secretary General Kofi Annan on March 9 of 2006, the CERF aims to deliver rapid response to humanitarian crises. Administered by the UN Undersecretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, the Fund initially targets funding of US$450 million, mainly provided by governments around the world. See CERF's official site.
As laid out in Article 57 of the UN Charter, specialized agencies are autonomous bodies working "in economic, social, cultural, educational, health, and related fields." They work with the UN and each other through the coordinating machinery of ECOSOC, where they have observer status. UN Specialized Agencies
Picture Credit: UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
Created to build lasting world peace, today UNESCO deploys its action in the fields of Education, Natural Sciences, Social and Human Sciences, Culture, Communication and Information. UNESCO is also actively working on the Millennium Development Goals, including halving the proportion of people living in extreme poverty, and achieving universal primary education in all countries by 2015.International Labor Organization (ILO)
Founded in 1919 as part of the League of Nations, the ILO is the oldest specialized agency of the UN. Its fundamental conventions - the abolition of child labor, the abolition of forced and compulsory labor, the freedom of association and collective bargaining, and the elimination of discrimination in employment and occupation - have resulted in internationally-recognized labor standards. However, unfortunately these are not always followed.Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
FAO aims to raise both living standards and conditions of rural populations, largely through its poverty alleviation and hunger relief programmes. FAO closely cooperates with the World Food Programme and the International Fund for Agricultural Development.
Picture Credit: IFAD International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
Established as an international financial institution in 1977, as one of the major outcomes of the 1974 World Food Conference, IFAD funds programmes that aim to economically advance the rural poor, alleviate rural poverty and improve nutrition in these communities.World Health Organization (WHO)
As the UNs specialized agency for health, the WHO was established in April 1948. WHO's objective, as set out in its Constitution, is the attainment by all people, the highest possible level of health, defined as complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.The World Bank
The "World Bank," established in 1946, is the name that is used for the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA). The Bank lends and grants money to poor countries for development purposes. For more than twenty years, the Bank has imposed stringent conditions, known as “Structural Adjustment Programs,” on recipient countries, forcing them to adopt reforms such as deregulation of capital markets, privatization of state companies, and downsizing of public programs for social welfare. Privatization of water supplies, fees for public schools and hospitals, and privatization of public pensions are among the most controversial Bank reforms. The Washington-based International Finance Corporation is the Bank’s private-sector arm dedicated to the spread of private enterprise across the world. While the Bank insists that “fighting poverty” is its first priority, many critics instead believe that it is responsible for rising poverty, largely related to its cosy relationship with Wall Street and the US Treasury Department. See the World Bank's official site.International Monetary Fund (IMF)
The Washington-based IMF is a multilateral institution that lends money to governments to stabilize currencies and maintain order in international financial markets. For many decades, the IMF has imposed stringent loan conditions that often lead to worsening conditions for the majority of citizens in the affected countries. The IMF's rigid orthodoxy and high-handed approach to poor countries, particularly in Latin America and Asia, has caused widespread criticism. As in the World Bank, the voting power of member states is weighted according to its shareholding. See the IMF's official site.
Other UN Entities
Office of the United Nations High Commisioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
The UN vision is of a world where human rights for all are fully respected and enjoyed in conditions of global peace. OHCHR constantly works on encouraging the world community, member states, and governments to uphold universally-agreed human rights standards, and alert them to the daily reality that these standards are too often ignored or unfulfilled. OHCHR also sees its role as being a voice for the victims of human rights violations everywhere.Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS)
UNAIDS is the main advocate for global action on the HIV/AIDS epidemic. UNAIDS works to prevent the transmission of HIV, provide care and support to its sufferers, reduce the vulnerability of individuals and communities to HIV/AIDS, and alleviate its impact.
Research Institutes
United Nations Research Institute for Social Development
UNRISD is an autonomous UN agency that researches the social dimensions of problems affecting development. UNRISD provides governments, development agencies, grass-roots organizations and scholars with a better understanding of how development policies and processes of economic, social and environmental changes affect different social groups.
