WHO FORMED THE UNO ?
On 1 January 1942, Churchill, Roosevelt, Maxim Litvinov of the USSR, and T. V. Soong
of China signed a short document. This document later became known as the
Declaration by the United Nations. The next day, representatives of 22 other nations
added their signatures. The governments that signed this declaration pledged to
accept the Atlantic Charter. They also agreed not to negotiate a separate peace with
any of the Axis powers.
The name United Nations originated with President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1941,
when he described the countries fighting against the Axis Powers (Germany, Italy and
Japan) in World War II. The name was first used officially on January 1, 1942, when 26
states joined in the Declaration by the United Nations, pledging to continue their joint war
effort and not to make peace separately.
As World War II was about to end in 1945, nations were in ruins, and the world wanted
peace. Representatives of 50 countries gathered at the United Nations Conference on
International Organization in San Francisco, California from 25 April to 26 June 1945. For
the next two months, they proceeded to draft and then sign the UN Charter, which
created a new international organization, the United Nations, which, it was hoped, would
prevent another world war like the one they had just lived through.
Four months after the San Francisco Conference ended, the United Nations officially
began, on 24 October 1945, when it came into existence after its Charter had been
ratified by China, France, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, the United States and by
a majority of other signatories.
PRINCIPLES AND OBJECTIVES
The core principles and objectives of the United Nations Organization are:
● The primary goals of the United Nations Organization (UNO) are to maintain global
peace and security, to promote the well-being of the world’s peoples, and to
achieve these goals via international and friendly collaboration.
● The United Nations Organization promotes worldwide cooperation in
economically, socially, and cultural development.
● The UNO objective includes acknowledging all the fundamental human rights of
the people.
● The UN also aims to foster good ties between governments based on the ideals of
equal rights and self-determination.
● And to serve as a commonplace of the center for coordinating these national
initiatives toward common goals.
DIFFERENT ORGANIZATIONS
To fulfill the initiatives the United Nations Organization has six main principles that work
for the goal of world peace and security. Each organ has its own set of purposes and works
toward cooperation in United Nations activities.
● Security Council: The core responsibility of this body is sustaining international
peace and security. The Security Council of the United Nations Organization
(UNO) is responsible for deciding when and where a United Nations peace-related
mission should be conducted.
● General Assembly: The General Assembly’s role is to study, debate, and make
recommendations on issues of global security and peace, such as development,
human rights, international law, and the peaceful resolution of international
conflicts.
● Economics and Social Council: The council was established to serve as the UN’s
premier platform for addressing global economic and social issues. The work of the
Economics and Social Council includes resolutions, conducting research, making
meaningful suggestions, and drafting treaties for the General Assembly’s
consideration.
● UN Secretariat: The Secretariat is in charge of carrying out the legislative and
administrative work of the UN as instructed by the Security Council, General
Assembly, and other entities.
● Trusteeship Council: The Trusteeship council’s mission is to oversee and facilitate
the transition to independence and self-governance of the Axis Powers’ colonies
from World War Two and the League of Nations’ designated areas. It was
decommissioned on November 1, 1994, in conjunction with the independence of
Palau, the last surviving United Nations Organization (UNO) trustee territory.
● International Court of Justice: It is the primary judicial body of the United Nations
(UNO). It has two primary functions. Firstly, to decide on legal issues presented by
States in line with international law. And to provide legal advice on matters
presented to it by authorized UN bodies and specialized organizations.
DIFFERENT CHAIRPERSONS
António Guterres is the current Secretary-General of the United Nations.
He is the ninth Secretary-General, his term began 1 January 2017.
The list of Secretaries-General, with the date of their term in office, is:
1. Gladwyn Jebb, from the United Kingdom, 24 October 1945 - 1 February 1946.
2. Trygve Lie, from Norway, 1946-1952
3. Dag Hammarskjöld, from Sweden, 1953-1961
4. U Thant, from Burma (now Myanmar), 1961-1971
5. Kurt Waldheim, from Austria, 1972-1981
6. Javier Perez de Cuellar, from Peru, 1982-1991
7. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, from Egypt, 1992-1996
8. Kofi A. Annan, from Ghana, 1997-2006
9. Ban Ki-moon, from Republic of Korea, 2007-2016
10. António Guterres, from Portugal, 2017-present
DIFFERENT AGENCIES
FAO
Headquarters: Rome, Italy
The Food and Agriculture Organization leads international efforts to fight hunger.
It is both a forum for negotiating agreements between developing and developed
countries and a source of technical knowledge and information to aid development.
ICAO
Headquarters: Montreal, Canada
The International Civil Aviation Organization develops standards for global air
transport and assists its 192 Member States in sharing the world’s skies to their
socio-economic benefit.
IFAD
Headquarters: Rome, Italy
The International Fund for Agricultural Development, since it was created in 1977,
has focused exclusively on rural poverty reduction, working with poor rural
populations in developing countries to eliminate poverty, hunger and malnutrition;
raise their productivity and incomes; and improve the quality of their lives.
ILO
Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland
The International Labor Organization promotes international labor rights by
formulating international standards on the freedom to associate, collective
bargaining, the abolition of forced labor, and equality of opportunity and
treatment.
IMF
Headquarters: Washington, DC, USA
The International Monetary Fund fosters economic growth and employment by
providing temporary financial assistance to countries to help ease balance of
payments adjustment and technical assistance. The IMF currently has $28 billion in
outstanding loans to 74 nations.
IMO
Headquarters: London, United Kingdom
The International Maritime Organization has created a comprehensive shipping
regulatory framework, addressing safety and environmental concerns, legal
matters, technical cooperation, security, and efficiency.
ITU
Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland
The International Telecommunication Union is the United Nations specialized
agency for information and communication technologies. It is committed to
connecting all the world's people – wherever they live and whatever their means.
Through our work, we protect and support everyone's fundamental right to
communicate
UNESCO
Headquarters: Paris, France
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization focuses on
everything from teacher training to helping improve education worldwide to
protecting important historical and cultural sites around the world.
UNIDO
Headquarters: Vienna, Austria
The United Nations Industrial Development Organization is the specialized agency
of the United Nations that promotes industrial development for poverty reduction,
inclusive globalization and environmental sustainability.
UN TOURISM
Headquarters: Madrid, Spain
The World Tourism Organization is the United Nations agency responsible for the
promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism.
UPU
Headquarters: Bern, Switzerland
The Universal Postal Union is the primary forum for cooperation between postal
sector players. It helps to ensure a truly universal network of up-to-date products
and services.
WHO
Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland
The World Health Organization is the directing and coordinating authority on
international health within the United Nations system. The objective of WHO is
the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of health. Health, as
defined in the WHO Constitution, is a state of complete physical, mental and social
well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.
WIPO
Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland
The World Intellectual Property Organization protects intellectual property
throughout the world through 23 international treaties.
WMO
Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland
The World Meteorological Organization facilitates the free international exchange
of meteorological data and information and the furtherance of its use in aviation,
shipping, security, and agriculture, among other things.
WORLD BANK
Headquarters: Washington, DC, USA
The World Bank focuses on poverty reduction and the improvement of living
standards worldwide by providing low-interest loans, interest-free credit, and
grants to developing countries for education, health, infrastructure, and
communications, among other things. The World Bank works in over 100
countries.
● International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD)
● International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID)*
● International Development Association (IDA)
● International Finance Corporation (IFC)
● Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA)*
* International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) and
Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) are not specialized agencies in
accordance with Articles 57 and 63 of the Charter, but are part of the World Bank
Group.
