An intergovernmental organization, the United Nations aims to maintain international peace and security while facilitating international cooperation and promoting human rights, sustainable development, and humanitarian assistance.
Mission and Purpose
Headquartered in New York, the United Nation was conceived with the overarching goal of international peace and cooperation in mind. Guided by the principles in its founding Charter, its primary objectives today include maintaining peace and security; protecting human rights; delivering humanitarian aid; promoting sustainable development; and upholding international law.[1]
Origins and Development
The UN was established after World War II in order to prevent future wars, thereby replacing the ineffective League of Nations, founded after WWI, also with the aim of international peace.
Organizational Structure, Membership, and Funding
The United Nations comprises 193 member states.[2] Since its conception in 1945, it has consisted of six primary organs:
- the General Assembly;
- the Security Council;
- the Economic and Social Council;
- the Trusteeship Council;
- the International Court of Justice; and
- the UN Secretariat. [3]
The General Assembly represents the "main deliberative, policymaking and representative organ."[3] The UN's Chief Administrative Officer is the Secretary-General, who is part of the Secretariat body of the UN.[2]
The international organization is financed by voluntary contributions from its members states, who contribute according to their relative capacity to do so.
Specializations, Methods and Tools
Major Projects and Events
Analysis and Lessons Learned
Publications
See Also
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
2016 Special Session of the United Nations General Assembly on the World Drug Problem (UNGASS)
References
[1] United Nations (2020). What We Do. https://www.un.org/en/sections/what-we-do/
[2] United Nations. Overview. https://www.un.org/en/sections/about-un/overview/index.html
[3] United Nations. Main Organs. https://www.un.org/en/sections/about-un/main-organs/index.html