United Nations

What are the organs of the United Nations? What is the history of the UN? What are its additional committees? What are the funds, programs, and specialized agencies of the UN? Read further to know more.

United Nations (UN) was established in 1945. There are currently 193 Member States in it. Its many organs and specialised agencies carry out its mission and operate by the goals and tenets stated in its founding Charter.

Duties of the United Nations include upholding international law, preserving world peace and security, defending human rights, providing humanitarian relief, and advancing sustainable development.

The UN Foundation’s history

UN has a very long history for its origin.

• The League of Nations, which was founded in 1919 as part of the Treaty of Versailles “to promote international cooperation and to achieve peace and security,” was the institution that predated the United Nations. It was developed in the context of the First World War.
• The Treaty of Versailles also established the International Labor Organization (ILO) in 1919 as a League affiliate organisation.
• The Atlantic Charter (1941): Following the failure of the League of Nations and the outbreak of World War Two, there was an urgent need for a new organisation to promote international peace. The Atlantic Charter was a Joint Declaration released in 1941 by two leaders: American President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. President Roosevelt first used the term “United Nations” to refer to the countries that were joined against Germany, Japan, and Italy. On January 1, 1942, 26 countries signed the Declaration in Washington, DC, emphasizing their commitment to the objectives of the Atlantic Charter.
• Dumbarton Oaks Proposal (1944-1945): The ideas of the United Nations were established at a meeting convened at Dumbarton Oaks for the foundation of the organisation. On October 7, 1944, the Big Four (China, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, and the United States) made a recommendation to all UN governments regarding the structure of the world organisation. Yet, there was still a dispute on the issue of the Security Council vote.
• To that end, Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin met at Yalta and declared the subject resolved on February 11, 1945, summoning the San Francisco Conference.
• The leaders assembled at the San Francisco Conference (United Nations Conference on International Organization) on April 25, 1945, to determine the ultimate framework of the United Nations Charter.
• The actual UN Charter was ratified on October 24, 1945, by the five permanent members and other signing nations.

Components of the UN

The primary UN bodies are

• the General Assembly,
• the Security Council,
• the Economic and Social Council,
• the Trusteeship Council,
• the International Court of Justice,
• and the UN Secretariat.

When the UN was constituted in 1945, all six were established. Let us discuss all these in detail.

General Assembly

The primary decision-making, policy-making, and representative body of the UN is the General Assembly.

• At the General Assembly, which is the only UN body with universal representation, there are representatives from each of the 193 UN Member States.
• The whole UN membership gathers in New York’s General Assembly Hall each September for the annual General Assembly session and general debate, to which many heads of state are invited and participate.
• A two-thirds majority of the General Assembly is necessary to decide on crucial issues like budgetary matters, admission of new members, and questions of peace and security.
• Some decisions are made by a simple majority.
• Each year, the General Assembly elects a president to hold office for a term of one year.
• Six main committees: The First Committee (Disarmament and International Security), the Second Committee (Economic and Financial), the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian, and Cultural), the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization), the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary), and the Sixth Committee can all prepare resolution draughts for the General Assembly (Legal).
• On each Main Committee and any other body that may be created and on which all Member States have the right to be represented, each Member State may be represented by one person.
• These committees may also be given advisers, technical advisers, experts, or other people with comparable authority by the member states.

Additional Committees

• The General Committee: It meets occasionally during each session to assess the accomplishments of the General Assembly and its committees and to suggest ways to accelerate those accomplishments. It is made up of the Chairmen of the six Major Committees, the President of the General Assembly, and the 21 Vice Presidents of the Assembly. Vice-Presidents include the Security Council’s five permanent members.
• Disciplinary Committee: Its duties include vetting the credentials of Member State delegates and reporting to the General Assembly.

Security Council

Per the UN Charter, it is in charge of maintaining global peace and security.

• Five permanent members—China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States—as well as ten non-permanent members who were chosen for two-year terms by the General Assembly on a regional basis, make up the Security Council’s fifteen members.
• With the expiration of the terms of Estonia, Niger, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Tunisia, and Vietnam, the UNSC gained five new non-permanent members in January 2022 (Albania, Brazil, Gabon, Ghana, and the United Arab Emirates).
• While Brazil is taking its eleventh turn, Albania is joining for the first time. The UAE has been on the council once, whereas Gabon and Ghana have each served there three times.
• India joined the UNSC as a non-permanent member in 2021 and will serve on the body for the next eight years, from 2021 to 2022.
• The term “veto power” refers to the permanent member’s ability to veto (reject) any Security Council resolution.
• The five states’ absolute veto power has been viewed as the UN’s least democratic feature.
• According to critics, the primary reason for the international delay in war crimes and crimes against humanity is the veto power.
• The United States, however, resisted joining the UN in 1945 unless it was granted a veto.
• The League of Nations was ineffective in part because the United States was not a member.

Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)

It serves as the main organisation for coordination, policy evaluation, policy discourse, and recommendations on issues relating to the economy, society, and the environment. It also oversees the execution of internationally recognized development objectives.

• The General Assembly chose its 54 members for consecutive three-year mandates.
• It serves as the main forum for reflection, discussion, and creative thinking on sustainable development at the UN.
• The work of ECOSOC is organized around a yearly subject that has global significance for sustainable development. This guarantees focused attention among the diverse partners of ECOSOC and across the UN development system.
• It receives reports from nine UN funds and programs, organizes the activities of the 14 UN specialized agencies, ten functional commissions, and five regional commissioners, and makes policy recommendations to the UN system and the Member States.

Trusteeship Council

Under Chapter XIII of the UN Charter, it was created in 1945.

• Trust territories are non-self-governing areas that have been placed under administrative control by the United Nations Trusteeship Council.
• A League of Nations mandate, or the legal documents containing the internationally agreed-upon terms for managing the region on behalf of the League of Nations, was the legal status for some territories that were passed from one country’s control to another after World War I.
• After the League of Nations ceased to exist in 1946, United Nations trust territories took over as the new owners of the remaining League of Nations mandates.
• It had to oversee the administration of 11 Trust Territories by seven Member States from a global perspective and make sure that the necessary steps were made to get the Territories ready for self-rule and independence.
• All Trust Territories had achieved independence or self-government by 1994. On November 1st, 1994, the Trusteeship Council ceased operations.

Also read: UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)- Clear IAS

International Court of Justice (ICJ)

The main court of the United Nations is the International Court of Justice. The United Nations Charter established it in June 1945, and it officially got going in April 1946. The Permanent Court of International Justice (PCIJ), which was founded by the League of Nations in 1920, was replaced by the ICJ.

Secretariat

• The General Assembly appointed the Secretary-General for a five-year term that is renewable to serve as the Organization’s leading administrative official.
• Antonio Guterres has also been named as the ninth UN Secretary-General (UNSG) for a second term commencing on January 1, 2022, and ending on December 31, 2026, by the UNGA.
• Internationally and locally recruited UN employees serve in duty stations and on peacekeeping missions throughout the world.

Funds and Programs of the UN

The United Nations system, sometimes known as the “UN family,” is made up of the UN itself (which consists of six main institutions) and several connected programs, funds, and specialized agencies, each of which has its membership, management structure, and financial resources.

UNICEF

• The United Nations General Assembly established the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), formerly known as the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund, in 1946 to give food and medical treatment to children and mothers in nations devastated by World War II.
• The mission of UNICEF was expanded in 1950 to include meeting the long-term requirements of children and women worldwide in developing nations.
• The terms “international” and “emergency” were removed from the organization’s name in 1953 when it officially joined the United Nations System, but the abbreviation “UNICEF” was kept.
• Executive Committee A 36-member board develops policies, endorses initiatives, and supervises operational and financial strategies. The members are chosen by the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations, often for terms of three years.
• Governments and private contributors both contribute to UNICEF.
• The principal point of distribution for such necessities as vaccines, antiretroviral drugs for children and women with HIV, nutritional supplements, emergency shelters, family reunions, and educational supplies is UNICEF’s Supply Division, which is situated in Copenhagen (Denmark).

UNICEF’s Recent Initiatives:

1. Children’s Climate Risk Index
2. First Global Report on Assistive Technology (GReAT).

UNFPA

• The United Nations Agency for Sexual and Reproductive Health is the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), formerly known as the United Nations Fund for Population Activities.
• Its mandate is set by the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).
• The Sustainable Development Goals for Health (SDG3), education (SDG4), and gender equality are all directly addressed by UNFPA (SDG5)
• A future where every pregnancy is desired, “every childbirth is safe,” and every young person’s potential is realized is its stated goal.
• In 2018, UNFPA started working towards three transformative goals that promise to alter the world for every man, woman, and child: ending unmet family planning needs; ending maternal deaths that can be prevented; putting an end to destructive behaviors and gender-based violence.

UNFPA Publication: State of World Population Report

UNDP

The global development network of the UN is known as the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

• The United Nations General Assembly founded UNDP in 1965.
• With an expanding focus on aiding the least developed nations, it offers developing countries expert advice, training, and grant support.
• Representatives from 36 different nations serve on the UNDP Executive Board rotationally.
• It is exclusively supported by voluntary payments from its member countries.
• The United Nations Sustainable Development Group (UNSDG), a network of 165 nations that brings together the 40 UN funds, programs, specialized agencies, and other organizations striving to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, places a prominent focus on UNDP.

UNDP Publication:  Human Development Index

UNEP

A worldwide environmental authority, the United Nations Environment Programme (UN Environment) encourages the consistent application of the environmental dimension of sustainable development within the framework of the United Nations.

Following the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment (Stockholm Conference) in June 1972, it was established by the UN General Assembly. To evaluate climate change based on the most recent scientific findings, UNEP and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) founded the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 1988.

The UNEP has been instrumental in the creation of global environmental agreements ever since its founding (MEAs). UNEP now hosts the secretariats for the following nine MEAs:

• Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)
• Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)
• Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS)
• Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer
• Minamata Convention on Mercury
• Basel Convention on the Control of Trans-boundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal
• Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants
• Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade

Headquarters: Nairobi, Kenya

Publications

1. ‘Making Peace with Nature’ report
2. Emission Gap Report
3. Adaptation Gap Report
4. Global Environment Outlook
5. Frontiers
6. Invest in Healthy Planet
7. Major Campaigns:
8. Beat Pollution
9. UN75
10. World Environment Day
11. Wild for Life.

United Nations Environment Assembly

• The UN Environment Program is overseen by the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA).
• It is the highest-level environmental decision-making body in the world.
• It meets every two years to establish priorities for international environmental legislation and formulate global environmental strategies.
• During the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, popularly known as RIO+20, it was established in June 2012.

UN-Habitat

The United Nations program striving towards a better urban future is called United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat).

• Its goal is to advance the development of human settlements in a way that is socially and environmentally responsible and to ensure that everyone has access to an appropriate shelter.
• As a result of the First UN Conference on Human Settlements and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat I), which took place in 1976 in Vancouver, Canada, it was created in 1978.
• The Habitat Agenda’s dual objectives were established at the 1996 Istanbul, Turkey-hosted Habitat II conference; adequate housing for everyone and the creation of environmentally friendly human settlements on an urbanising planet.
• Habitat III, the third United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development, took place in Quito, Ecuador, in 2016. It provided more information on SDG Goal 11: “Make cities and human settlements inclusive, secure, resilient, and sustainable.”
• The headquarters of UN-Habitat is located at the United Nations Headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya.
• The UN-Habitat recently highlighted problems with Jaipur city, including multi-hazard vulnerabilities, poor mobility, and a Green-Blue economy, and has developed a strategy to improve sustainability in the city.

WFP

The World Food Programme (WFP) is the top humanitarian organization, saving and transforming lives while providing food aid in times of need and collaborating with local communities to promote nutrition and foster resilience.

• The FAO (Food and Agricultural Organization) and the United Nations General Assembly created the World Food Program in 1963.
• The report is the Global Network Against Food Crises’s signature work (GNAFC). This is made possible by the Food Security Information Network (FSIN), a worldwide project co-sponsored by the FAO, WFP, and the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
• India and the WFP inked a contract in February 2022 for the distribution of 50,000 MT of wheat that India agreed to supply to Afghanistan as humanitarian aid.

WFP Initiatives:

• Share the Meal
• Global Report on Food Crisis

UN Specialized Agencies

The United Nations specialized agencies are independent businesses that collaborate with the UN. Via negotiations, all were brought into a relationship with the UN. Some were around before the First World War. Some of them had ties to the League of Nations. The UN and other entities were both virtually simultaneously founded. To address new demands, the UN formed others.

The UN Charter permits the establishment of specialized agencies in Articles 57 and 63.

FAO

• The Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) was established in 1945 at the first meeting of the newly formed United Nations in Quebec City, Canada.
• The FAO is a specialized agency of the UN that directs global initiatives to end hunger.
• The FAO is a source of expertise and information that aids transitioning developing nations in modernizing and improving their methods for farming, forestry, and fishing to ensure everyone has access to a healthy diet and food security.

ICAO

• The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) was founded in 1944 as a specialized UN agency per the Chicago Agreement. It oversees the governance and management of the Convention on International Civil Aviation (Chicago Convention).
• To promote the planning and development of international air transport and to assure its safe and orderly expansion, it offers the principles and methods of international air navigation.

IFAD

• As one of the main consequences of the 1974 World Food Conference, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) was founded as a global financial institution in 1977 by a resolution of the United Nations General Assembly.
• The early 1970s food crisis, which saw widespread starvation and malnutrition brought on by worldwide food shortages, mainly in the Sahelian countries of Africa, prompted the United Nations to host this conference.
• It was realized that poverty-related structural issues were more to blame for food insecurity and famine than actual shortcomings in food production.

ILO

By establishing global labor standards, the International Labour Organization (ILO), a United Nations organisation, aims to enhance social fairness and encourage decent employment.

• It establishes worldwide labor standards, advocates for workers’ rights, promotes fair job opportunities, strengthens social protection, and promotes dialogue on workplace-related topics.
• It was established in 1919 as a League of Nations institution as a result of the Treaty of Versailles, which put an end to World War One.
• In less than two years, 9 International Labor Conventions and 10 Recommendations addressing minimum age, night work for minors in the workplace, maternity protection, and hours of labor in industry were accepted (by 1922).
• By ratifying the United Nations accord, the ILO became the first specialized agency of the UN in 1946.
• In 1969, the Organization celebrated its 50th year and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for its efforts to promote fair labor practices.
• By firmly defending the Solidarnosc Union’s validity by the 1957-ratified Convention No. 87 on the freedom of association, the ILO significantly contributed to Poland’s independence from dictatorship in 1980.
• It emphasized that the future of work is not predetermined and that society must fight to ensure that everyone has access to decent employment. To commemorate its centennial in 2019, the ILO launched an effort that included the creation of the Global Commission on the Future of Work.
• Its task is to do a thorough analysis of how work will develop in the future that may serve as the analytical foundation for delivering social justice in the twenty-first century.

IMF

• Following the end of World War II, the UN Monetary and Financial Conference, often known as the Bretton Woods Conference, was held in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, to control the global monetary and financial system.
• In 1945, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) was established as a result.

World Bank

After World War II, the UN Monetary and Financial Conference, often known as the Bretton Woods Conference, was conducted to establish rules for the global monetary and financial system. It led to the establishment of IBRD in 1945. The World Bank’s founding organisation is IBRD.

IMO

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is a specialized organisation of the United Nations tasked with ensuring ship security and safety as well as mitigating ship-related marine and atmospheric pollution.

ITU

• Information and communication technology (ICT)-related matters are handled by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a specialized UN agency (ICT). Of all the UN’s specialized agencies, it is the oldest.
• It was situated in Geneva, Switzerland, and was founded in 1865. It operates on the tenet of global collaboration between nations (Member States) and businesses (Sector Members, Associates, and Academia).
• ITU is the foremost international platform where parties come to agreements on a variety of problems influencing the future course of the ICT sector.
• It allocates radio airwaves and satellite orbits on a global scale, creates the technical standards that guarantee networks and technologies function together without interruption and seeks to increase access to ICTs for underprivileged areas around the world.

UNESCO

• To create enduring peace, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) was established in 1945 with the mission of fostering “the intellectual and moral solidarity of mankind.” It can be found in Paris (France).
• In this vein, UNESCO creates educational resources to aid individuals in leading hate- and intolerance-free lives as global citizens.
• UNESCO strengthens ties between nations by supporting cultural heritage and the equal dignity of all cultures.
• The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) supports industrial growth for eradicating poverty, fostering inclusive globalization, and preserving the environment.

WHO

The World Health Organization (WHO) is the UN’s designated health organisation.

• The company’s headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland, and it was founded in 1948.
• It collaborates with its Member States through the Ministries of Health, an intergovernmental body.
• The World Health Organization (WHO) is in charge of providing leadership on issues relating to global health, setting norms and standards, establishing health research priorities, providing evidence-based policy options, providing technical assistance to nations, and monitoring and analyzing health trends.

UNCTAD

UNCTAD aids developing nations in making more equitable and efficient use of the advantages of a globalized economy. Technology, finance, commerce, and investment may all be used as engines for equitable and sustainable growth.

UNODC

• In the struggle against illegal drugs and transnational crime, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is a leader on a worldwide scale.
• It was created in 1997 as a result of the merger of the Center for International Crime Prevention and the United Nations Drug Control Program.
• The mission of UNODC is to support Member States in their fights against terrorism, crime, and illicit substances.

UNHCR

• After the Second World War, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) was established in 1950 to assist the millions of Europeans who had fled or lost their homes.
• UNHCR received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1954 for its innovative efforts in Europe.
• The UNHCR has assisted with significant refugee crises in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia during the beginning of the twenty-first century.
• It also increased its involvement in aiding stateless persons and used its skills to assist many people who have been internally displaced by conflict.

ESCAP

• With its main office in Bangkok (Thailand) since 1947, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) is the UN’s regional center for economic and social development.
• By its convening power, economic and social research, normative standard-setting, and technical assistance, it addresses the region’s development needs and goals.

UN’s Global Contribution

The dimensions of the contributions of the UN to the world are very big.

Peace and Security

• Sustaining Peace and Security: Throughout the past 60 years, the United Nations has been able to restore calm, enabling many countries to recover from violence. This has been accomplished by dispatching peacekeeping and observer teams to the world’s troubled regions.
• Stopping Nuclear Proliferation: The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been the world’s nuclear inspector for more than 50 years. IAEA experts check to make sure that nuclear material under safeguards is solely used for peaceful purposes. More than 180 States currently have safeguards agreements with the Agency.
• Supporting Disarmament: The 190 States that have ratified the Chemical Weapons Convention from 1997, 162 States that have ratified the Mine-Ban Convention from 1997, and 69 States that have approved the Arms Trade Treaty from 2014 provide the legal foundation of disarmament efforts.
• UN peacekeepers frequently work to put warring parties’ disarmament agreements into effect at the local level.
• Stopping genocide The first-ever convention to combat genocide—acts done to eradicate a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group—was established by the United Nations.
• 146 countries have ratified the 1948 Genocide Convention, which vowed to prevent and punish acts of genocide both in war and peace. Potential genocide criminals have been warned that such crimes will no longer be permitted by the UN tribunals for Yugoslavia and Rwanda, as well as courts supported by the UN in Cambodia.
• Resolving Conflict Together: The Uniting for Peace Resolution, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1950, is known as Resolution 377(V).
• The most crucial aspect of the resolution is section A, which declares that the General Assembly must take action when the Security Council fails to fulfill its principal duty of maintaining international peace and security due to a lack of agreement among the permanent members.
• To avoid more Soviet vetoes during the Korean War, the United States proposed the Uniting for Peace resolution in October 1950.

Economic Development

Fostering development The Millennium Development Goals have served as a framework for raising living standards, human capabilities, and potential worldwide since 2000.

• More than 4,800 initiatives are supported by the UN Development Programme (UNDP) to combat crises, promote good governance, and protect the environment.
• The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) focuses largely on child safety, immunization, girls’ education, and humanitarian help while working in more than 150 nations.
• Making the most of their trading prospects is something that the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) assists developing nations with.
• The World Bank has funded more than 12,000 projects in more than 170 countries since 1947 and lends and gives money to developing nations.
• Reduce Rural Poverty: Very impoverished rural residents can apply for grants and low-interest loans from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
• Emphasizing African Development The United Nations continues to place a strong priority on Africa. The largest portion of any region in the world—36%—of UN system development spending goes to the continent.
• Battling Hunger: The UN’s Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) is in charge of all international initiatives to end hunger. FAO also assists developing nations to modernize and enhance their methods for farming, forestry, and fishing in a way that protects natural resources and enhances nutrition.
• Commitment to Children’s Support: UNICEF has pioneered the provision of vaccines and other supplies that children caught in armed conflict urgently require. In almost all nations, the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child has been enacted into law.
• Tourism: The World Tourism Organization is the UN organisation in charge of promoting ethical, environmentally friendly, and easily accessible travel.
• To enhance tourism’s positive effects while reducing its negative effects, it has developed a global code of ethics for the industry.
• Global Think Tank: The United Nations is a leader in research that looks for answers to challenges that affect the entire world.
• The UN Population Division conducts extensive research on population patterns around the world and provides up-to-date demographic projections and estimations.
• The hub of the global statistical system is the UN Statistics Division, which compiles and disseminates information on the world’s economy, demographics, society, gender, environment, and energy.
• The Human Development Report, published annually by the United Nations Development Programme, offers unbiased, empirically supported analysis of important development trends, concerns, and policies, including the ground-breaking Human Development Index.
• The Global Economic and Social Survey of the United Nations, the World Development Report of the World Bank, the World Economic Outlook of the International Monetary Fund, and other studies assist decision-makers in making well-informed choices.

Social development

• Preservation of Historic, Cultural, Architectural, and Natural Sites: UNESCO has assisted 137 nations in protecting historic, cultural, and natural sites, as well as ancient monuments.
• To protect cultural assets, cultural diversity, and exceptional natural and cultural places, it has negotiated international accords. More than a thousand of these locations have been named World Heritage Sites due to their remarkable universal importance.
• Leading on international issues: The first environmental UN conference, held in Stockholm in 1972, played a key role in educating the public about the threats to our planet and spurring governments to take action.
• The first world conference on women, held in Mexico City in 1985, raised awareness of women’s rights, equality, and advancement.
• Other significant occasions include the first World Population Conference (Bucharest, 1974), the first international conference on human rights (Teheran, 1968), and the first World Climate Conference (Geneva, 1979).
• These gatherings brought together experts, decision-makers, and activists from all over the world, inspiring continued international action.
• Consistent follow-up sessions have aided in keeping the momentum going.
• Rights of People: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1948.
• Many legally binding agreements on political, civil, economic, social, and cultural rights have been made possible because to it.
• Cases of torture, disappearances, arbitrary detention, and other breaches have received international attention from UN human rights authorities.
• Promoting Democracy: The UN works to enhance and advance democratic institutions and behaviors all around the world, notably through assisting citizens in numerous nations to take part in free and fair elections.
• In the 1990s, the UN arranged or monitored historic elections in Timor-Leste, South Africa, El Salvador, Cambodia, and El Salvador.
• Recent elections in Afghanistan, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iraq, Nepal, Sierra Leone, and Sudan all benefited greatly from UN help.
• South African Apartheid’s abolition: The United Nations played a significant role in ending the apartheid system by enforcing regulations such as an arms embargo and a rule on segregated sporting events.
• Promoting Women’s Rights:189 nations have ratified the UN Convention from 1979 on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, which has contributed to the global advancement of women’s rights.

Environment

Climate change is an international issue that requires an international response. Every five to six years, the 2,000 leading climate change scientists who make up the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) release thorough scientific assessments.

• The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Meteorological Organization sponsored the establishment of the IPCC in 1988 to evaluate “the scientific, technical and socioeconomic knowledge necessary for the understanding of the danger of human-induced climate change.
• UN members can negotiate agreements to limit emissions that contribute to climate change and support nations in their efforts to adapt to its impacts based on the UNFCCC, which serves as a foundation for international negotiations. (UNFCCC-1992 is a global environmental agreement that was adopted and made available for signing during the Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit in 1992.)
• The Global Environment Facility, a grouping of ten UN organizations, provides funding for projects in developing nations.
• Keeping the Ozone Layer Safe: The UNEP and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) have been crucial in drawing attention to the harm done to the ozone layer of the earth.
• The Vienna Convention for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer (1985) established the basis required to develop legislative measures for global decreases in chlorofluorocarbon production. The Montreal Protocol was built based on convention.
• To safeguard the ozone layer of the earth by banning the use of ozone-depleting substances (ODS), such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and halons, the world has ratified the Montreal Protocol (1987).
• A Kigali amendment (to the Montreal Protocol) was agreed upon in 2016 to gradually reduce hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) production and use around the world.
• Toxic chemical prohibition: Some of the most hazardous chemicals ever produced are being phased out of the world as part of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants-2001.

International Law

• War Crimes Prosecution under International Law: The UN tribunals established for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda have contributed to the expansion of international criminal and humanitarian law addressing genocide and other violations of international law by trying and convicting war criminals.
• If national authorities are unwilling or unable to investigate and punish anyone accused of the most serious international crimes—genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes—the International Criminal Court is an independent, permanent court that does so.
• Aiding in the Settlement of Serious Foreign Conflicts: The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has contributed to the resolution of international conflicts involving, among other things, territorial disputes, maritime boundaries, diplomatic relations, State responsibility, the treatment of aliens, and the use of force by issuing judgments and advisory opinions.
• Order and Stability in the Seas of the World: All operations in the oceans and seas are governed by the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, which has obtained almost universal support.
• Fighting International Crime: The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) collaborates with nations and organizations to fight transnational organized crime by supplying legal and technical support in the fight against corruption, money laundering, drug trafficking, and migrant smuggling, as well as by bolstering criminal justice systems.
• It has been instrumental in negotiating and putting into effect important international Treaties like the 2003 and 2005 UN Conventions against Transnational Organized Crime and Corruption.
• The Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961 (amended in 1972), the Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971, and the United Nations Convention against Illicit Trade in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances of 1988 all aim to restrict the supply and demand for illicit narcotics.
• To ensure that all nations can make use of the advantages of an efficient intellectual property system, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) advocates the protection of intellectual property rights.

Health

• Supporting Reproductive and Maternal Health: Through voluntary family planning programs, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) advocates for the freedom of individuals to choose the number and spacing of their children.
• The United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) oversees international efforts to combat the disease, which affects about 35 million people worldwide.
• Poliomyelitis has been eradicated worldwide except for three nations: Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Pakistan, thanks to the Global Polio Eradication Initiative.
• Smallpox eradication: After a 13-year campaign, the World Health Organization (WHO) proclaimed smallpox officially extinct on Earth in 1980.
• Fighting Tropical Diseases: African Project for Onchocerciasis is a WHO program for combating tropical diseases. Control low rates of river blindness (onchocerciasis) while making 25 million hectares of fertile land available for agriculture in ten countries in West Africa.
• The eradication of the guinea worm illness is near. Sleeping sickness and schistosomiasis are now under control.
• Putting a stop to epidemic emergenceEbola, meningitis, yellow fever, cholera, and influenza, including avian influenza, are some of the more well-known diseases for which WHO is in charge of the global response.

Humanitarian Affairs

• Helping refugees The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees has provided relief to refugees fleeing war, persecution, and other forms of violence (UNHCR).
• If the situation calls for it, UNHCR works to assist refugees in returning to their home countries, integrating into their host countries, or finding new homes in other nations.
• The UN provides food, shelter, medical care, educational opportunities, and assistance with repatriation to refugees, asylum seekers, and internally displaced people, who are primarily women and children.
• Reduced Impact of Natural Disasters: The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has assisted in protecting millions of people from the catastrophic impacts of both natural and man-made disasters.
• With the help of its early warning system, which is made up of thousands of surface monitors as well as satellites, it has been possible to predict weather-related disasters more accurately, as well as the dispersal of oil spills, chemical leaks, and nuclear leaks, as well as the occurrence of long-term droughts.
• Giving Food to the Neediest: The World Food Programme (WFP) works with communities to enhance nutrition and build resilience while battling hunger on a global scale.

Conclusion

Although having many flaws, the UN has played a significant part in fostering a more civil, peaceful, and secure human civilization now than it was during the Second World War.
The United Nations has a huge responsibility to humanity as the largest democratic organization in the world, helping to promote democratic societies, develop the economies of those living in extreme poverty, and protect the Earth’s ecosystem in light of climate change.

Article Written By: Atheena Fathima Riyas