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Acronyms of the United Nations and its Specialized Agencies

UN
www.un.org		 United Nations
the United Nations was established on 24 October 1945 by 51 countries committed to preserving peace through international cooperation and collective security. Today, nearly every nation in the world belongs to the UN. According to the Charter, the UN has four purposes:
  1. to maintain international peace and security;
  2. to develop friendly relations among nations;
  3. to cooperate in solving international problems and in promoting respect for human rights;
  4. and to be a centre for harmonizing the actions of nations.
The United Nations is not a world government and it does not make laws. It does, however, provide the means to help resolve international conflicts and formulate policies on matters affecting all of us. There are five divisions: the General Assembly, Security Council, Economic and Social Council, Secretariat, and International Court of Justice.
CEDAW
www.un.org/womenwatch		 The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, adopted in 1979 by the UN General Assembly, is often described as an international bill of rights for women. Consisting of a preamble and 30 articles, it defines what constitutes discrimination against women and sets up an agenda for national action to end such discrimination.
CSW
www.un.org/womenwatch		 The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, adopted in 1979 by the UN General Assembly, is often described as an international bill of rights for women. Consisting of a preamble and 30 articles, it defines what constitutes discrimination against women and sets up an agenda for national action to end such discrimination.
DAW
www.un.org/womenwatch/daw		 UN Division for the Advancement of Women - Grounded in the vision of equality of the United Nations Charter, the Division advocates the improvement of the status of women of the world and the achievement of their equality with men. The Division promotes women as equal participants and beneficiaries of sustainable development, peace and security, governance and human rights. As part of its mandate, it strives to stimulate the mainstreaming of gender perspectives both within and outside the United Nations system.
ECOSOC
www.un.org/ecosoc		 United Nations Economic and Social Council – one of five principle bodies of the UN, it was established as the principal organ to coordinate economic, social, and related work of the 14 UN specialized agencies, functional commissions and five regional commissions. ECOSOC serves as the central forum for discussing international economic and social issues, and for formulating policy recommendations addressed to Member States and the United Nations system. It has 54 members, all of whom are elected by the General Assembly for a three-year term.

ECOSOC is made up of Functional Commissions (including CSW and UNPD), Regional Commissions and Specialized Agencies (including ILO, UNICEF and IMF.)
GATT
www.gatt.org		 General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade - The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) was first signed in 1947. The agreement was designed to provide an international forum that encouraged free trade between member states by regulating and reducing tariffs on traded goods and by providing a common mechanism for resolving trade disputes. GATT membership now includes more than 110 countries.
ICJ
www.icj-cij.org		 International Court of Justice - the principal judicial organ of the UN; established in June 1945 by the Charter of the United Nations and began work in April 1946. The seat of the Court is at the Peace Palace in The Hague (Netherlands).

The Court’s role is to settle, in accordance with international law, legal disputes submitted to it by States and to give advisory opinions on legal questions referred to it by authorized United Nations organs and specialized agencies.
ILO
www.ilo.org		 International Labour Organization - the UN specialized agency that seeks the promotion of social justice and internationally recognized human and labor rights. The ILO formulates international labor standards in the form of Conventions and Recommendations setting minimum standards of basic labor rights: freedom of association, the right to organize, collective bargaining, abolition of forced labor, equality of opportunity and treatment, and other standards regulating conditions across the entire spectrum of work related issues.
IMF
www.imf.org		 International Monetary Fund - is an organization of 185 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world. When a country borrows from the IMF, its government makes commitments on economic and financial policies—a requirement known as conditionality which were revised in 2002. (Note: Current US Federal Treasurer, Timothy Geithner, was the principle reviewer for this revised document.)
INSTRAW
www.un-instraw.org		 UN International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women - works towards gender equality and the empowerment of women through its Gender Awareness Information and Networking System (GAINS), an internet-based research and training environment driven by a worldwide network.
NGLS
www.un-ngls.org		 United Nations Non-governmental Liaison Service - promotes partnerships between the United Nations and non-governmental organizations by providing information, advice, expertise and support services.
OHCHR
www.ohchr.org		 Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights - the department of the United Nations Secretariat mandated to promote and protect the enjoyment and full realization, by all people, of all rights established in the Charter of the United Nations and in international human rights laws and treaties. The mandate includes preventing human rights violations, securing respect for all human rights, promoting international cooperation to protect human rights, coordinating related activities throughout the United Nations.
UNAIDS
www.unaids.org/en		 United Nations AIDS - Through a series of goals, resolutions and declarations adopted by member nations of the United Nations, the world has a set of commitments, actions and goals to stop and reverse the spread of HIV and scale up towards universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support services.
UNCHF
www.unhabitat.org		 United Nations Center for Human Settlements Programme (also known as UN-Habitat in Action) - the United Nations agency for human settlements, mandated to promote socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities with the goal of providing adequate shelter for all.
UNDP
www.undp.org		 United Nations Development Programme - the UN's global development network of 166 nations that advocates for change and connects countries to knowledge, experience and resources needed to achieve Millennium Development Goals.
UNDPI
www.undpi.org		 United Nations Environment Programme - the voice for the environment within the United Nations system. UNEP acts as a catalyst, advocate, educator and facilitator to promote the wise use and sustainable development of the global environment. To accomplish this, UNEP works with a wide range of partners, including NGOs.
UNEP
www.unep.org		 United Nations Environment Programme - the voice for the environment within the United Nations system. UNEP acts as a catalyst, advocate, educator and facilitator to promote the wise use and sustainable development of the global environment. To accomplish this, UNEP works with a wide range of partners, including NGOs.
UNESCO
www.unesco.org

www.state.gov/p/io/unesco 		United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization - contributes to peace and security in the world by promoting collaboration among nations through education, science, culture and communication. Conducts studies, facilitates knowledge sharing, and develops standards. Countries also have National Commissions, and within the USA it is a part of the US State Department.
UNFPA
www.unfpa.org		 United Nations Population Fund - an international development agency that promotes the right of every woman, man and child to enjoy a life of health and equal opportunity. UNFPA supports countries in using population data for policies and programs to reduce poverty and to ensure that every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe, every young person is free of HIV/AIDS, and every girl and woman is treated with dignity and respect
UNGEI
www.unesco.org		 UN Girls Education Initiative - is a worldwide initiative designed to contribute to the elimination of gender discrimination and gender disparity in education systems through action at global, national, district and community levels. UNGEI is a division of UNESCO.
UNHCR
www.unhcr.org		 Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees - established on December 14, 1950 by the United Nations General Assembly, this agency is mandated to lead and co-ordinate international action to protect refugees and resolve refugee problems worldwide. Its primary purpose is to safeguard the rights and well-being of refugees. It strives to ensure that everyone can exercise the right to seek asylum and find safe refuge in another State, with the option to return home voluntarily, integrate locally or to resettle in a third country.
UNICEF
www.unicef.org		 United Nations Children's Fund - advocates for the protection of all children's rights. Goals among others: give children the best start in life, promote girls’ education, immunize all against common childhood diseases, all well nourished, prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS among young people, assure equality for those who are discriminated against, girls and women in particular, creating protective environments for children, and to uphold the Convention on the Rights of the Child (which the USA has not ratified.)
UNIFEM
www.unifem.org		 UN Development Fund for Women - provides financial and technical assistance to innovative programs and strategies that promote women's human rights, political participation and economic security.
UNGA or GA
www.un.org/ga		 United Nations General Assembly - one of the five principal organs of the UN; only one in which all member nations have equal representation. Its powers are to oversee the budget of the UN, appoint the non-permanent members to the Security Council, receive reports from other parts of the UN and make recommendations in the form of General Assembly Resolutions. It has also established a wide number of subsidiary organs.  It meets in regular yearly sessions which last from September to December, although it can reconvene for special and emergency special sessions.
UNITAR
www.unitar.org		 United Nations Institute for Training and Research - delivers innovative training and conduct research on knowledge systems to develop the capacity of beneficiaries.  Through partnerships with other UN institutions, academies and the private sector, it makes it possible for UNITAR to consolidate and extend its capacity to provide a global platform for knowledge transfer.
UPEACE
www.upeace.org		 University for Peace - Established as a Treaty Organization with its own Charter in an International Agreement adopted by the General Assembly. The UPEACE is to provide humanity with an international institution of higher education for peace with the aim of promoting among all human beings the spirit of understanding, tolerance and peaceful coexistence, to stimulate cooperation among peoples and to help lessen obstacles and threats to world peace and progress.
UNSC
www.un.org		 United Nations Security Council - has primary responsibility, under the UN Charter, for the maintenance of international peace and security. It is so organized as to be able to function continuously, and a representative of each of its members must be present at all times at United Nations Headquarters.

The five permanent members of the SC are the USA, the People's Republic of China, the Russian Federation, the French Republic and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Each permanent member has the power to veto any substantive resolution. Ten other members are elected by the General Assembly for two-year terms starting on 1 January, with five replaced each year. The members are chosen by regional groups and confirmed by the United Nations General Assembly.
UNU
www.unu.edu		 United Nations University - an international community of scholars, engaged in research, post-graduate training and dissemination of knowledge in furtherance of the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations. It functions under the joint sponsorship of the United Nations and UNESCO.
WB
www.worldbank.org		 World Bank – a source of financial and technical assistance to developing countries around the world. It is not a bank in the common sense, and is made up of two unique development institutions owned by 185 member countries—the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA).
WHO
www.who.int		 World Health Organization - the United Nations specialized agency for health, which seeks the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of health. Health is defined in WHO's Constitution as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. It is responsible for providing leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical support to countries and monitoring and assessing health trends.
WomenWatch
www.un.org/womenwatch/un		 WomenWatch/UN Working for Women - - is a gateway to information and resources on the promotion of gender equality throughout the United Nations system. It was created in March 1997 to provide internet space for global gender equality issues and to support implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action.
WTO
www.wto.org		 World Trade Organization - the only global international organization dealing with the rules of trade between nations. At its heart are the WTO agreements, negotiated and signed by the bulk of the world’s trading nations and ratified in their parliaments. The goal is to help producers of goods and services, exporters, and importers conduct their business.
www.osh.netnam.vn Other UN Agency Acronyms
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