United Nations NGO Status
Thirty-Two Non-Governmental Organizations Approved for Association With
Department of Public Information
NEW YORK, 25 January 2001 (UN Headquarters) -- On 17 January 2001, the
Department of Public Information (DPI) Committee on Non-Governmental
Organizations (NGOs) selected 32 applicants from 13 countries for association
with the Department, which brings the number of NGOs associated with DPI to
1,672. The Department also decided to terminate the association of one
organization that consistently violated the terms of association.
The newly associated organizations include one from Africa, nine from Asia and
the Pacific, seven from
Europe, one from the
Middle East, one
from Latin America, and 13 from North America. These organizations work on a
wide range of issues, including human rights, education, children, youth, women,
ageing, economic and social development, sustainable development and
environment, labour, health care, humanitarian relief, peacekeeping, disarmament
and law.
All the organizations conform to the principles of the United Nations Charter,
operate solely on a not-for-profit basis and demonstrate a long-standing
involvement with United Nations issues. In addition, they have well-developed
information programmes to reach large or specialized audiences and have
demonstrated the commitment and means to disseminate information about the
United Nations. This information dissemination capacity is a unique criterion
for association with DPI.
Among the newly associated NGOs, 21 are from developed countries (12 from the
United States, two each from France and Italy and one each from Australia,
Canada, Iceland, Japan and Spain), 10 from developing countries (seven from
Pakistan and one each from Iran, Madagascar and Mexico) and one from a country
with economy in transition (Russian Federation).
North America: Applied Research Center (USA); Association Francophone
Internationale des Directeurs d’Etablissements Scolaires (AFIDES) (Canada);
Center on International Cooperation (USA); Dayton Peace Accords Project (USA);
ECPAT-USA (End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and Trafficking of Children
for Sexual Purposes) (USA); International Child Art Foundation (USA); New York
Metropolitan Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolence (USA); Sister Fund
(USA); South Bronx Mental Health Council (USA); State of the World Forum (USA);
United Religions Initiative (USA); Women’s Bar Association of the State of New
York (USA);
Zeta Phi Beta Sorority
(USA).
What is an
NGO?
A
non-governmental organization (NGO) is a not-for-profit, voluntary citizens’
group, which is organized on a local, national or international level to
address issues in support of the public good. Task-oriented and made up of
people with a common interest, NGOs perform a variety of services and
humanitarian functions, bring citizens’ concerns to Governments, monitor
policy and programme implementation, and encourage participation of civil
society stakeholders at the community level. They provide analysis and
expertise, serve as early warning mechanisms and help monitor and implement
international agreements. Some are organized around specific issues, such as
human rights, the environment or health. Their relationship with offices and
agencies of the United Nations (UN) system differs depending on their goals,
their venue and their mandate.
About 1,400 NGOs with strong information programmes on issues of concern to
the UN are associated with the Department of Public Information (DPI),
giving the UN valuable links to people around the world. DPI helps these
NGOs gain access to and disseminate information about the issues in which
the United Nations is involved so that the public can better understand the
aims and objectives of the world Organization and support its work.
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