TyroCity: International Organizations

History of UNICEF

International Organizations — Sun, 18 Aug 2013 05:41:42 +0000

1946: Food to Europe
After World War II, European children face famine and disease. UNICEF is created in December 1946 by the United Nations to provide food, clothing and health care to them

1953: UNICEF becomes permanent part of the UN
The UN General Assembly extends UNICEF’s mandate indefinitely. UNICEF begins a successful global campaign against yaws, a disfiguring disease affecting millions of children, and one that can be cured with penicillin.

1954: Danny Kaye
The movie star Danny Kaye becomes UNICEF’s “Ambassador at Large.” His film Assignment Children, about UNICEF’s work in Asia, is seen by more than 100 million people.

1959: Declaration of the Rights of the Child
The UN General Assembly adopts the Declaration of the Rights of the Child, which defines children’s rights to protection, education, health care, shelter and good nutrition.

1961: Education
Following more than a decade of focus on child health issues, UNICEF expands its interests to address the needs of the whole child. Thus begins an abiding concern with education, starting with support to teacher training and classroom equipment in newly independent countries.

1965: Nobel Peace Prize
UNICEF is awarded the 1965 Nobel Peace Prize “for the promotion of brotherhood among nations.”

1979: International Year of the Child
Marked by celebrations around the world, people and organizations reaffirm their commitment to children’s rights

1981: Breastfeeding Code approved
The World Health Assembly adopts the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes in order to encourage breastfeeding, and in so doing diminish the threats to infant health.

1982: Child Survival and Development Revolution
UNICEF launches a drive to save the lives of millions of children each year. The ‘revolution’ is based on four simple, low-cost techniques: growth monitoring, oral rehydration therapy, breastfeeding and immunization.

1987: Landmark UNICEF study
UNICEF’s study Adjustment with a Human Face prompts a global debate on how to protect children and women from the malign effects of the economic adjustments and reforms taken to reduce national debt in poor countries.

1989: Convention on the Rights of the Child
The Convention is adopted by the UN General Assembly. It enters into force in September 1990. It becomes the most widely- and rapidly-accepted human rights treaty in history

1990: World Summit for Children
An unprecedented summit of Heads of State and Government at the United Nations in New York City sets 10-year goals for children’s health, nutrition and education.

1996: Children and conflict
War’s effect on children receives serious attention in the Machel Report: The Impact of Armed Conflict on Children, a study supported by UNICEF

1998
United Nations Security Council debates children and conflict
The Council’s first open debate on the subject reflects the strength of international concern over the effects of war on children.

2001: Say Yes for Children campaign launched
The Global Movement for Children begins mobilizing every citizen of every nation to change the world with children. The Say Yes for Children campaign builds on this momentum, with millions of children and adults around the world pledging their support for critical actions to improve children’s lives

2002: Special Session on Children
A landmark Special Session of the UN General Assembly was convened to review progress since the World Summit for Children in 1990 and re-energize global commitment to children’s rights. It was the first such Session devoted exclusively to children and the first to include them as official delegates.

SAARC Charter

International Organizations — Sun, 18 Aug 2013 05:41:42 +0000

We, the Heads of State or Government of BANGLADESH, BHUTAN, INDIA, MALDIVES, NEPAL, PAKISTAN and SRI LANKA;

Desirous of promoting peace, stability, amity and progress in the region through strict adherence to the principles of the UNITED NATIONS CHARTER and NON-ALIGNMENT, particularly respect for the principles of sovereign equality, territorial integrity, national independence, non-use of force and non-interference in the internal affairs of other States and peaceful settlement of all disputes;
Conscious that in an increasingly interdependent world, the objectives of peace, freedom, social justice and economic prosperity are best achieved in the SOUTH ASIAN region by fostering mutual understanding, good neighbourly relations and meaningful cooperation among the Member States which are bound by ties of history and culture;
Aware of the common problems, interests and aspirations of the peoples of SOUTH ASIA and the need for joint action and enhanced cooperation within their respective political and economic systems and cultural traditions;
Convinced that regional cooperation among the countries of SOUTH ASIA is mutually beneficial, desirable and necessary for promoting the welfare and improving the quality of life of the peoples of the region;
Convinced further that economic, social and technical cooperation among the countries of SOUTH ASIA would contribute significantly to national and collective self-reliance;
Recognising that increased cooperation, contacts and exchanges among the countries of the region will contribute to the promotion of friendship and understanding among their peoples;
Recalling the DECLARATION signed by their Foreign Ministers in NEW DELHI on August 2, 1983 and noting the progress achieved in regional cooperation;
Reaffirming their determination to promote such cooperation within an institutional framework;

DO HEREBY AGREE to establish an organisation to be known as SOUTH ASIAN ASSOCIATION FOR REGIONAL COOPERATION hereinafter referred to as the ASSOCIATION, with the following objectives, principles, institutional and financial arrangements:

Objectives

The objectives of the ASSOCIATION shall be:

Article I

to promote the welfare of the peoples of SOUTH ASIA and to improve their quality of life;
to accelerate economic growth, social progress and cultural development in the region and to provide all individuals the opportunity to live in dignity and to realise their full potentials;
to promote and strengthen collective self-reliance among the countries of SOUTH ASIA; d) to contribute to mutual trust, understanding and appreciation of one another’s problems;
to promote active collaboration and mutual assistance in the economic, social, cultural, technical and scientific fields;
to strengthen cooperation with other developing countries;
to strengthen cooperation among themselves in international forums on matters of common interests; and
to cooperate with international and regional organisations with similar aims and purposes.

Article II: PRINCIPLES

Cooperation within the framework of the ASSOCIATION shall be based on respect for the principles of sovereign equality, territorial integrity, political independence, non-interference in the internal affairs of other States and mutual benefit.
Such cooperation shall not be a substitute for bilateral and multilateral cooperation but shall complement them.
Such cooperation shall not be inconsistent with bilateral and multilateral obligations.

**Article III: MEETINGS OF THE HEADS OF STATE OR GOVERNMENT

The Heads of State or Government shall meet once a year or more often as and when considered necessary by the Member States.

Article IV: COUNCIL OF MINISTERS

A Council of Ministers consisting of the Foreign Ministers of the Member States shall be established with the following functions:
- formulation of the policies of the ASSOCIATION;
- review of the progress of cooperation under the ASSOCIATION;
- decision on new areas of cooperation;
- establishment of additional mechanism under the ASSOCIATION as deemed necessary;
- decision on other matters of general interest to the ASSOCIATION.
The Council of Ministers shall meet twice a year. Extraordinary session of the Council may be held by agreement among the Member States.

Article V: STANDING COMMITTEE

1.The Standing Committee comprising the Foreign Secretaries shall have the following functions:

overall monitoring and coordination of programme of cooperation;
approval of projects and programmes, and the modalities of their financing;
determination of inter-sectoral priorities;
mobilisation of regional and external resources;
identification of new areas of cooperation based on appropriate studies.

The Standing Committee shall meet as often as deemed necessary.
The Standing Committee shall submit periodic reports to the Council of Ministers and make reference to it as and when necessary for decisions on policy matters.

Article VI: TECHNICAL COMMITTEES

Technical Committees comprising representatives of Member States shall be responsible for the implementation, coordination and monitoring of the programmes in their respective areas of cooperation.
They shall have the following terms of reference:
- determination of the potential and the scope of regional cooperation in agreed areas;
- formulation of programmes and preparation of projects;
- determination of financial implications of sectoral programmes;
- formulation of recommendations regarding apportionment of costs;
- implementation and coordination of sectoral programmes;
- monitoring of progress in implementation.
The Technical Committees shall submit periodic reports to the Standing Committee.
The Chairmanship of the Technical Committees shall normally rotate among Member States in alphabetical order every two years.
The Technical Committees may, inter-alia, use the following mechanisms and modalities, if and when considered necessary:
- meetings of heads of national technical agencies;
- meetings of experts in specific fields;
- contact amongst recognised centres of excellence in the region.

Article VII: ACTION COMMITTEES

The Standing Committee may set up Action Committees comprising Member States concerned with implementation of projects involving more than two but not all Member States.

Article VIII: SECRETARIAT

There shall be a Secretariat of the ASSOCIATION.

Article IX: FINANCIAL ARRANGEMENTS

1.The contribution of each Member State towards financing of the activities of the ASSOCIATION shall be voluntary.

Each Technical Committee shall make recommendations for the apportionment of costs of implementing the programmes proposed by it.
In case sufficient financial resources cannot be mobilized within the region for funding activities of the ASSOCIATION, external financing from appropriate sources may be mobilized with the approval of or by the Standing Committee.

Article X

General Provisions

Decisions at all levels shall be taken on the basis of unanimity.
Bilateral and contentious issues shall be excluded from the deliberations.

IN FAITH WHEREOF We Have Set Our Hands And Seals Hereunto. DONE In DHAKA, BANGLADESH,On This The Eighth Day Of December Of The Year One Thousand Nine Hundred Eighty Five.

Hussain Muhammad Ershad
-PRESIDENT OF THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF BANGLADESH

Jigme Singye Wangchuk
-KING OF BHUTAN

Rajiv Gandhi
-PRIME MINISTER OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDIA

Maumoon Abdul Gayoom
-PRESIDENT OF THE REBUPLIC OF MALDIVES

Birendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev
-KING OF NEPAL

Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq
-PRESIDENT OF THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF PAKISTAN

Junius Richard Jayewardene
-PRESIDENT OF DEMOCRATIC SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF SRI LANKA

What is WTO?

International Organizations — Sun, 18 Aug 2013 05:41:42 +0000

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is 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.

Location: Geneva, Switzerland
Established: 1 January 1995
Created by: Uruguay Round negotiations (1986-94)
Membership: countries on
Budget: 196 million Swiss francs for 2011
Secretariat staff: 640
Head: Pascal Lamy (Director-General)

Functions:

Administering WTO trade agreements
Forum for trade negotiations
Handling trade disputes
Monitoring national trade policies
Technical assistance and training for developing countries
Cooperation with other international organizations

The WTO was born out of negotiations, and everything the WTO does is the result of negotiations. The bulk of the WTO’s current work comes from the 1986–94 negotiations called the Uruguay Round and earlier negotiations under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). The WTO is currently the host to new negotiations, under the ‘Doha Development Agenda’ launched in 2001.

Where countries have faced trade barriers and wanted them lowered, the negotiations have helped to open markets for trade. But the WTO is not just about opening markets, and in some circumstances its rules support maintaining trade barriers — for example, to protect consumers or prevent the spread of disease.

At its heart are the WTO agreements, negotiated and signed by the bulk of the world’s trading nations. These documents provide the legal ground rules for international commerce. They are essentially contracts, binding governments to keep their trade policies within agreed limits. Although negotiated and signed by governments, the goal is to help producers of goods and services, exporters, and importers conduct their business, while allowing governments to meet social and environmental objectives.

The system’s overriding purpose is to help trade flow as freely as possible — so long as there are no undesirable side effects — because this is important for economic development and well-being. That partly means removing obstacles. It also means ensuring that individuals, companies and governments know what the trade rules are around the world, and giving them the confidence that there will be no sudden changes of policy. In other words, the rules have to be ‘transparent’ and predictable.

Trade relations often involve conflicting interests. Agreements, including those painstakingly negotiated in the WTO system, often need interpreting. The most harmonious way to settle these differences is through some neutral procedure based on an agreed legal foundation. That is the purpose behind the dispute settlement process written into the WTO agreements.

Trade without discrimination

Most-favoured-nation (MFN): treating other people equallyUnder the WTO agreements, countries cannot normally discriminate between their trading partners. Grant someone a special favour (such as a lower customs duty rate for one of their products) and you have to do the same for all other WTO members.
This principle is known as most-favoured-nation (MFN) treatment . It is so important that it is the first article of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which governs trade in goods. MFN is also a priority in the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) (Article 2) and the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) (Article 4), although in each agreement the principle is handled slightly differently. Together, those three agreements cover all three main areas of trade handled by the WTO.

Some exceptions are allowed. For example, countries can set up a free trade agreement that applies only to goods traded within the group — discriminating against goods from outside. Or they can give developing countries special access to their markets. Or a country can raise barriers against products that are considered to be traded unfairly from specific countries. And in services, countries are allowed, in limited circumstances, to discriminate. But the agreements only permit these exceptions under strict conditions. In general, MFN means that every time a country lowers a trade barrier or opens up a market, it has to do so for the same goods or services from all its trading partners — whether rich or poor, weak or strong.

National treatment: Treating foreigners and locals equallyImported and locally-produced goods should be treated equally — at least after the foreign goods have entered the market. The same should apply to foreign and domestic services, and to foreign and local trademarks, copyrights and patents. This principle of “national treatment” (giving others the same treatment as one’s own nationals) is also found in all the three main WTO agreements (Article 3 ofGATT, Article 17 of GATS and Article 3 of TRIPS), although once again the principle is handled slightly differently in each of these.
National treatment only applies once a product, service or item of intellectual property has entered the market. Therefore, charging customs duty on an import is not a violation of national treatment even if locally-produced products are not charged an equivalent tax.

Freer trade: gradually, through negotiation

Lowering trade barriers is one of the most obvious means of encouraging trade. The barriers concerned include customs duties (or tariffs) and measures such as import bans or quotas that restrict quantities selectively. From time to time other issues such as red tape and exchange rate policies have also been discussed.

Since GATT’s creation in 1947-48 there have been eight rounds of trade negotiations. A ninth round, under the Doha Development Agenda, is now underway. At first these focused on lowering tariffs (customs duties) on imported goods. As a result of the negotiations, by the mid-1990s industrial countries’ tariff rates on industrial goods had fallen steadily to less than 4%.

But by the 1980s, the negotiations had expanded to cover non-tariff barriers on goods, and to the new areas such as services and intellectual property.

Opening markets can be beneficial, but it also requires adjustment. The WTO agreements allow countries to introduce changes gradually, through “progressive liberalization”. Developing countries are usually given longer to fulfil their obligations.

Predictability: through binding and transparency

Sometimes, promising not to raise a trade barrier can be as important as lowering one, because the promise gives businesses a clearer view of their future opportunities. With stability and predictability, investment is encouraged, jobs are created and consumers can fully enjoy the benefits of competition — choice and lower prices. The multilateral trading system is an attempt by governments to make the business environment stable and predictable.

The Uruguay Round increased bindings

Percentages of tariffs bound before and after the 1986-94 talks

	Before	After
Developed countries	78	99
Developing countries	21	73
Transition economies	73	98

(These are tariff lines, so percentages are not weighted according to trade volume or value)

In the WTO, when countries agree to open their markets for goods or services, they “bind” their commitments. For goods, these bindings amount to ceilings on customs tariff rates. Sometimes countries tax imports at rates that are lower than the bound rates. Frequently this is the case in developing countries. In developed countries the rates actually charged and the bound rates tend to be the same.

A country can change its bindings, but only after negotiating with its trading partners, which could mean compensating them for loss of trade. One of the achievements of the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade talks was to increase the amount of trade under binding commitments. In agriculture, 100% of products now have bound tariffs. The result of all this: a substantially higher degree of market security for traders and investors.

The system tries to improve predictability and stability in other ways as well. One way is to discourage the use of quotas and other measures used to set limits on quantities of imports — administering quotas can lead to more red-tape and accusations of unfair play. Another is to make countries’ trade rules as clear and public (“transparent”) as possible. Many WTO agreements require governments to disclose their policies and practices publicly within the country or by notifying the WTO. The regular surveillance of national trade policies through the Trade Policy Review Mechanism provides a further means of encouraging transparency both domestically and at the multilateral level.

Promoting fair competition

The WTO is sometimes described as a “free trade” institution, but that is not entirely accurate. The system does allow tariffs and, in limited circumstances, other forms of protection. More accurately, it is a system of rules dedicated to open, fair and undistorted competition.

The rules on non-discrimination — MFN and national treatment — are designed to secure fair conditions of trade. So too are those on dumping (exporting at below cost to gain market share) and subsidies. The issues are complex, and the rules try to establish what is fair or unfair, and how governments can respond, in particular by charging additional import duties calculated to compensate for damage caused by unfair trade.

Many of the other WTO agreements aim to support fair competition: in agriculture, intellectual property, services, for example. The agreement on government procurement (a “plurilateral” agreement because it is signed by only a few WTO members) extends competition rules to purchases by thousands of government entities in many countries. And so on.

Encouraging development and economic reform

The WTO system contributes to development. On the other hand, developing countries need flexibility in the time they take to implement the system’s agreements. And the agreements themselves inherit the earlier provisions of GATT that allow for special assistance and trade concessions for developing countries.

Over three quarters of WTO members are developing countries and countries in transition to market economies. During the seven and a half years of the Uruguay Round, over 60 of these countries implemented trade liberalization programmes autonomously. At the same time, developing countries and transition economies were much more active and influential in the Uruguay Round negotiations than in any previous round, and they are even more so in the current Doha Development Agenda.

At the end of the Uruguay Round, developing countries were prepared to take on most of the obligations that are required of developed countries. But the agreements did give them transition periods to adjust to the more unfamiliar and, perhaps, difficult WTO provisions — particularly so for the poorest, “least-developed” countries. A ministerial decision adopted at the end of the round says better-off countries should accelerate implementing market access commitments on goods exported by the least-developed countries, and it seeks increased technical assistance for them. More recently, developed countries have started to allow duty-free and quota-free imports for almost all products from least-developed countries. On all of this, the WTO and its members are still going through a learning process. The current Doha Development Agenda includes developing countries’ concerns about the difficulties they face in implementing the Uruguay Round agreements.

Principles of the United Nations

International Organizations — Sun, 18 Aug 2013 05:41:42 +0000

The following are the principles of United Nations.

All Member States have sovereign equality.
All Member States must obey the Charter.
Countries must try to settle their differences by peaceful means.
Countries must avoid using force or threatening to use force.
The UN may not interfere in the domestic affairs of any country.
Countries should try to assist the United Nations.

International Organizations

International Organizations — Sun, 18 Aug 2013 05:41:42 +0000

The League of Nations

The United Nations

The U.N.O. and the League of Nations

The Commonwealth of Nations - Commonwealth and its relevance today

The International Court of Justice

UNESCO

ILO

IMF

World Bank

Introduction to International Financial Institute

ICAO

UNICEF

WHO

Description of WHO

UNDP

About UNDP

ASEAN

SAARC

WTO

Introduction to ASEAN

International Organizations — Sun, 18 Aug 2013 05:41:42 +0000

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, was established on 8 August 1967 in Bangkok, Thailand, with the signing of the ASEAN Declaration (Bangkok Declaration) by the Founding Fathers of ASEAN, namely Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.

Brunei Darussalam then joined on 7 January 1984, Viet Nam on 28 July 1995, Lao PDR and Myanmar on 23 July 1997, and Cambodia on 30 April 1999, making up what is today the ten Member States of ASEAN.

Aims and Purposes

As set out in the ASEAN Declaration, the aims and purposes of ASEAN are:

To accelerate the economic growth, social progress and cultural development in the region through joint endeavours in the spirit of equality and partnership in order to strengthen the foundation for a prosperous and peaceful community of Southeast Asian Nations;
To promote regional peace and stability through abiding respect for justice and the rule of law in the relationship among countries of the region and adherence to the principles of the United Nations Charter;
To promote active collaboration and mutual assistance on matters of common interest in the economic, social, cultural, technical, scientific and administrative fields;
To provide assistance to each other in the form of training and research facilities in the educational, professional, technical and administrative spheres;
To collaborate more effectively for the greater utilisation of their agriculture and industries, the expansion of their trade, including the study of the problems of international commodity trade, the improvement of their transportation and communications facilities and the raising of the living standards of their peoples;
To promote Southeast Asian studies; and
To maintain close and beneficial cooperation with existing international and regional organizations with similar aims and purposes, and explore all avenues for even closer cooperation among themselves.

Fundamental Principles

In their relations with one another, the ASEAN Member States have adopted the following fundamental principles, as contained in the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC) of 1976:

Mutual respect for the independence, sovereignty, equality, territorial integrity, and national identity of all nations;
The right of every State to lead its national existence free from external interference, subversion or coercion;
Non-interference in the internal affairs of one another;
Settlement of differences or disputes by peaceful manner;
Renunciation of the threat or use of force; and
Effective cooperation among themselves.

ASEAN Community

The ASEAN Vision 2020, adopted by the ASEAN Leaders on the 30th Anniversary of ASEAN, agreed on a shared vision of ASEAN as a concert of Southeast Asian nations, outward looking, living in peace, stability and prosperity, bonded together in partnership in dynamic development and in a community of caring societies.

At the 9th ASEAN Summit in 2003, the ASEAN Leaders resolved that an ASEAN Community shall be established.

At the 12th ASEAN Summit in January 2007, the Leaders affirmed their strong commitment to accelerate the establishment of an ASEAN Community by 2015 and signed the Cebu Declaration on the Acceleration of the Establishment of an ASEAN Community by 2015.

The ASEAN Community is comprised of three pillars, namely the ASEAN Political-Security Community, ASEAN Economic Community and ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community. Each pillar has its own Blueprint, and, together with the Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI) Strategic Framework and IAI Work Plan Phase II (2009-2015), they form the Roadmap for and ASEAN Community 2009-2015.

ASEAN Charter

The ASEAN Charter serves as a firm foundation in achieving the ASEAN Community by providing legal status and institutional framework for ASEAN. It also codifies ASEAN norms, rules and values; sets clear targets for ASEAN; and presents accountability and compliance.

The ASEAN Charter entered into force on 15 December 2008. A gathering of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers was held at the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta to mark this very historic occasion for ASEAN.

With the entry into force of the ASEAN Charter, ASEAN will henceforth operate under a new legal framework and establish a number of new organs to boost its community-building process.

In effect, the ASEAN Charter has become a legally binding agreement among the 10 ASEAN Member States.

ASEAN Motto

The motto of ASEAN is “One Vision, One Identity, One Community”.

Introduction to SAARC

International Organizations — Sun, 18 Aug 2013 05:41:42 +0000

In the late 1970’s, president Ziaur Rahman, proposed the creation of trade bloc consisting of South Asian countries. The Bangladeshi proposal was accepted by India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka during meeting held in Colombo in 1981. In August 1983, the leaders adopted the Declaration on South Asian Regional Cooperation during a summit which was held in New Delhi

The heads of Seven South Asian Countries of SAARC (Bangladeshi, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka) signed the charter to establish the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) on December 8th, 1985.

Afghanistan joined SAARC as a Member at the Fourteenth SAARC Summit, Delhi, April 2007.

SAARC is unique concept of regional cooperation. with very distinct geographical, cultural, environmental diversity, the SAARC member states compress of the worlds highest mountains, land locked mountains terrains to deltaic low line flood – prone areas and one of the smallest low line island nation in the world.

With the world’s most populous country, SAARC is home to nearly 1.5billion people or about 22% of world’s population

SAARC Secretariat

The SAARC secretariat was established in Kathmandu on 16th January 1987. It’s role is to coordinate and monitor the implementation of SAARC activities, service the meetings of the association and serve as the channel of communication between SAARC and the international organization

The secretariat comprises the Secretary General, Eight Directors and the general service staffs.

On the SAARC Charter Day all member states hold celebration rise public awareness of the commitment of governments to the SAARC process and to highlight some of the principal activities and the work of the association. Statements are issued by the Member States and the Secretary General to commemorate SAARC Charter Day.

SAARC Conventions

SAARC Convention on Combating and Prevention of Trafficking in Women and Children for Prostitution

Convention on Promotion of Welfare of Children

Convention on Mutual Assistance on Criminal Matters, July 2008

SAARC Conventionon Narcotics Drugs

SAARC Regional Convention on Suppression of Terrorism

Additional Protocol on Terrorism, Jan 2004

Agreements

Agreement for establishment of SAARC Arbitration Council
Final Agreement on Avoidance of Double Taxation
Final Agreement on Customs Matters
CHARTER OF SDF 31 July 2008
Agreement on establishing the SAARC food bank
Agreement on south Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA)
Agreement on the Establishment of South Asian Regional Standards Organisation (SARSO)
Agreement on Avoidance of Double Taxation

SAARC Summit

The Charter (Article III) provides that the Heads of State or Government “shall meet once a year or more often as and when considered necessary by the Member States”.

However, the Summit has generally been convened at an interval of one and half year or so. The next i.e. Sixteenth Summit of the Heads of State or Government would be held at Thimphu on 28-29 April 2010.

Summit Declarations provide directives and mandate for regional co-operation. Following are the past Summit Declarations:

First SAARC Summit, Dhaka, 1985
Second SAARC Summit, Bangalore, 1986
Third SAARC Summit, Kathmandu, 1987
Fourth Summit, Islambad, 1988
Fifth SAARC Summit, Male’, 1990
Sixth SAARC Summit, Colombo, 1991
Seventh SAARC Summit. Dhaka, 1993
Eighth SAARC Summit, New Delhi 1995
Ninth SAARC Summit, Male’, 1997
Tenth SAARC Summit, Colombo, 1998
Eleventh SAARC Summit, Kathmandu, 2002
Twelfth SAARC Summit, Islamabad, 2004
Thirteenth SAARC Summit, Dhaka, 2005
Fourteenth SAARC Summit, New Delhi, 2007
Fifteenth SAARC Summit, Colombo, 2008
Sixteenth SAARC Summit, Thimphu, 2010

Ministerial Declarations

Ministerial Declaration on Global Economic Crisis
Colombo Statement on Children of South Asia
Declaration on Cooperation in Combating Terrorism
Islamabad Declaration on Health, 2005
Colombo Declaration on a Common Environment Programe
Common Position on Climate Change, Nov. 1998
Rawalpindi Resolution on Children of South Asia, Aug. 1996
New Delhi Declaration of Environment Ministers, Apr, 1997
Declaration of Commerce Ministers, May 1998

The Secretariat of the United Nations

International Organizations — Sun, 18 Aug 2013 05:41:42 +0000

An international staff working in duty stations around the world -carries out the diverse day-to-day work of the Organization.

Functions:

To service the other principal organs of the United Nations.
To administers the programs and policies laid down by other bodies of the Union.
To inform the world’s communications media about the work of the United Nations.
To organize international conferences on issues of worldwide concern.
To interpret speeches and translate documents into the Organization’s official languages
administering peacekeeping operations
mediating international disputes
surveying economic and social trends and problems
preparing studies on human rights and sustainable development

Functions of the Secretary General:

To be the chief administrative officer of the organization
To act as secretary to all major delegate bodies of the UN
To perform functions assigned by the GA and three Councils
To make an annual report to the GA on the work of the organization
To appoint the secretary staff

Powers of the Secretary General:

Can bring to the Security Council any matter that might threaten world peace
Has the authority to serve as a neutral mediator in international conflicts and to bring hostile parties together to negotiate
Works to build consensus among the five permanent members of the Security Council

UNICEF in Nepal

International Organizations — Sun, 18 Aug 2013 05:41:42 +0000

The 2008-2010 programme is focussed on the poorest and most excluded, including children and young people impacted by the conflict. It stresses women’s and young people’s participation and seeks to assist local communities to better manage their development needs – and importantly to strengthen the relationship between community and government. At the policy level, UNICEF works to develop appropriate legislation and policies for children, with the government. The programme is also prepared for emergency response given Nepal’s particular susceptibility to natural disasters.

The full three year programme is budgeted at USD 68,214,000, of which USD 20,214,000 has been allocated internally. USD 48,000,000 is required to be raised from donors over the three year period. This document outlines the seven programme areas of UNICEF’s work in Nepal, indicating budget requirements for every project in the 2008 – 2010 programme.

DACAW
The Decentralised Action for Children and Women (DACAW) approach is UNICEF’s primary vehicle for directing a range of interventions to rural communities across Nepal. It aims to strengthen the capacity of individuals and communities; improve the delivery of necessary services; ensure local government plans and implements effective programmes; and support policies for decentralisation in favour of children and women. UNICEF’s sectoral programmes are channelled through DACAW in 23 of 75 districts in Nepal.

Child Protection
UNICEF’s Child Protection programme aims to strengthen the capacity of the Government and civil society to protect children against violence, exploitation and abuse and seeks to support the building of protective systems covering all types of child rights violations.

Education
The Education programme aims to improve access to quality learning opportunities for all children, and enable girls and disadvantaged children to complete a basic education cycle and graduate to lower secondary level.

Health and Nutrition
The Health and Nutrition programme aims to improve access to quality health interventions and improved services for maternal, newborn and children’s health.

HIV/AIDS
The HIV/AIDS programme aims to reduce new HIV infections among young people and to provide access to preventive services for AIDS treatment, care and support for children, pregnant women and adolescents.

WASH
The water, sanitation and hygiene programme aims to increase access to sustainable and safe drinking water, sanitation facilities, and improved hygiene practices in schools and communities, thus contributing to a reduction of related diseases.

Social Policy
The social policy programme supports the government in the development of policies, legislation and budgets that advance women’s and children’s rights, especially among the most marginalised groups. This programme also covers external relations work and monitoring of the situation of children and women in Nepal, and evaluation of programmatic response effectiveness.

History of UNICEF in Nepal

UNICEF celebrated 40 years of work in Nepal in 2008 and has participated in many of the development strides the country has taken in that time from basic services in the 60s, immunisations in the 70s, early childhood rights, education and protection in the 80s, empowering communities to monitor and advocate for their own health and education needs in the 90s, and an emphasis on protection during the conflict in the 2000s.

The 2008-2010 programme is focussed on the poorest and most excluded, including young people impacted by the conflict. It stresses women’s and young people’s participation and seeks to assist local communities to better manage their development needs – and importantly to strengthen the relationship between community and government. The programme works in the Child Protection, Education, Health, HIV/AIDS, Water and Sanitation, and Social Policy Sectors. Programmes are delivered both nationally and through UNICEF’s Decentralised Action for Children and Women approach (DACAW).

At the policy level, UNICEF works to develop appropriate legislation and policies for children with the government. The programme is also prepared for emergency response given Nepal’s particular susceptibility to natural disasters.

Works of UNICEF

Decentralised Action for Children and Women

The Decentralised Action for Children and Women (DACAW) approach is UNICEF’s primary vehicle for directing a range of interventions to rural communities across Nepal.

Child Protection

Building an environment that protects children against violence, exploitation and abuse

Child Protection Systems
Children Affected by Armed Conflict
Legislation and Policies for Child Protection

Education
Quality primary education for all children in Nepal

Early Childhood Development
Formal Primary Education
Non-formal Primary Education
Peace and Emergency Education

Health and Nutrition
For improved survival, growth and development of children and women

Child Survival
Maternal Health
Nutrition
National Health Sector Support

HIV and AIDS
Reducing the spread

PMTCT
Paediatric HIV and AIDS Treatment
Adolescent HIV and AIDS Prevention
Protection and Care for Children Affected by HIV and AIDS

Water, Sanitation and Hygiene

Clean water and sanitation saves lives

Quality Water Supply
Environmental Sanitation and Hygiene
National District Level Sector Support

Social Policy

UNICEF supports the Government in development of policies, legislation and budgets that advance women’s and children’s rights, especially among the most marginalized groups.

Emergencies

UNICEF supports the government and key partners to enhance knowledge and skills necessary to meet the immediate needs of children affected by humanitarian emergencies and natural disasters.

Communication for Development

UNICEF promotes positive individual behavior and social change that is an integral part of development programmes, policy advocacy and humanitarian work.

Introduction to ILO

International Organizations — Sun, 18 Aug 2013 05:41:42 +0000

Who we are
ILO Tripartite constituents

The International Labour Organization (ILO) is the only tripartite U.N. agency with government, employer, and worker representatives. This tripartite structure makes the ILO a unique forum in which the governments and the social partners of the economy of its 183 Member States can freely and openly debate and elaborate labour standards and policies.

International Labour Office
The International Labour Office is the permanent secretariat of the International Labour Organization. It is the focal point for International Labour Organization’s overall activities, which it prepares under the scrutiny of the Governing Body and under the leadership of the Director-General.

The Office employs some 2,700 officials from over 150 nations at its headquarters in Geneva, and in around 40 field offices around the world. Among these officials, 900 work in technical cooperation programmes and projects.

The Office also contains a research and documentation centre.

ILO Director-General
A new Director-General is elected every five years by the Governing Body. Subject to the instructions of the Governing Body, the Director-General is responsible for the efficient conduct of the International Labour Office and other duties as may be assigned.

The current Director General, Mr. Juan Somavia was elected to serve as the ninth Director-General of the ILO by the Governing Body on 23 March 1998. His term of office began on 4 March 1999, when he became the first representative from the Southern hemisphere to head the Organization. Mr. Somavia was re-elected for a second five-year term in March 2003 and for a third term on 18 November 2008.

ILO Administrative Tribunal
The Tribunal examines employment-related complaints from officials of the International Labour Office and of the other international organizations that have recognized its jurisdiction.

The Administrative Tribunal of the International Labour Organization is the heir of the Administrative Tribunal of the League of Nations, which was competent from 1927 to 1946 to hear complaints against the Secretariat of the League of Nations and against the International Labour Office. Since 1947 the Tribunal has heard complaints from serving and former officials of the International Labour Office and of the other international organizations that have recognized its jurisdiction. It is currently open to approximately 46,000 international civil servants who are serving or former officials of some sixty organizations.

The Tribunal is composed of seven judges who must be of different nationalities, as was the case for the Administrative Tribunal of the League of Nations. They are appointed by the International Labour Conference on a recommendation of the Governing Body of the International Labour Office for a renewable period of 3 years.

The Tribunal meets twice a year, in spring and autumn, for a period of 3 weeks, at the headquarters of the ILO in Geneva. At each session it delivers approximately fifty judgments.

The Tribunal is serviced by a Registry, comprising a Registrar and a small team of legal officers. The Registry’s secretariat receives the documents submitted in the course of the proceedings and replies to requests for information.

ILO Centres and Institutes
The ILO is a major resource centre for information, analysis and guidance on the world of work. Research accompanies and reinforces all of the Organization’s standard-setting and technical cooperation activities and the ILO is universally regarded as an authoritative source of knowledge on the world of work. Its institutes and Centres are specialized departments of the Organization which provide specialized support for ILO’s offices and constituents.

International Institute for Labour Studies
The ILO International Institute for Labour Studies in Geneva promotes policy research and public discussion on emerging issues of concern to the ILO and its constituents – labour, business and government.

The organizing theme of the Institute’s programmes is the notion of “decent work”. The Institute’s programmes seek to contribute to the development of the analytical and empirical foundations of decent work and a broader understanding of the policy instruments necessary to implement it in practice.

The Institute provides:

International research programmes and networks linking academics with business, labour, and government practitioners, to explore emerging policy issues of potential relevance for the ILO and contribute to policy formulation.
Educational programmes to assist trade unions, employers’ organizations and labour administrations in developing their institutional capacities for research, analysis, and policy formulation in the economic and social fields.

The Institute’s means of action include research, workshops and seminars, internship programmes, a visiting scholar programme and publications. The Institute’s programmes draw upon the ILO’s operational experience, its field structure and its unique global databases on development policy and social legislation in over 170 countries.

International Training Centre of the ILO
As skilled human resources are central to the pursuit of decent work, in 1965, the ILO established its training arm in Turin, Italy, to assist countries in their social and economic development through training. Working in close partnership with regional and national training institutions, the Centre contributes to disseminating the ILO’s principles and policies, and to strengthening the capacity of national institutions to implement relevant programmes, in line with its strategic objectives.

It offers training/learning opportunities and related services to decision makers, managers, practitioners and trainers from governments, workers’ organizations, employers’ organizations and their partner institutions. It has partnerships with regional and national training institutions and its services are available to the United Nations system as a whole, including ILO staff.

To date, over 90,000 women and men from 170 nations have benefited from its services since it opened in 1965. The annual number of activities exceeds 300 standard courses, customized learning events, comprehensive training projects, advisory services, and training material design and production. Around half the activities take place on-campus and the rest in the field. Besides group training, the Centre organizes, on request, learning programmes for individuals who are placed in public and private institutions and organizations. Increasingly, it uses information technology, including the Internet, to offer distance learning and tutoring services.

Course calendar for the International Training Centre, Turin
The Inter-American Centre for Knowledge Development in Vocational Training (OIT/CINTERFOR)

The Inter-American Centre for Knowledge Development in Vocational Training (ILO/Cinterfor) is a technical service of the ILO, with the mission of the development of a permanent learning and horizontal cooperation community among the national organizations in charge of vocational training. It works as the core of a system integrated by vocational training-related institutions and organisations belonging to ILO Member States in the world.

International Occupational Safety and Health Information Centre (CIS)

CIS is the knowledge management arm of SafeWork of the International Labour Organization (ILO). Its goal is to ensure that workers and everyone concerned with their protection have access to the facts they need to prevent occupational injuries and diseases. The network of CIS Centres contributes to the exchange of information among persons responsible for the establishment and implementation of national policies and programmes.

CIS continuously monitors world literature on occupational safety and health through its contacts with publishers and with about 150 centres at the national and regional level around the world. In addition to covering up-to-date OSH literature, CIS also provides a basic reference service to its worldwide users by delivering information on conferences and educational opportunities in the OSH field, as well as in maintaining directories of various kinds.

CIS was founded in 1959 as a joint endeavour of the ILO, the International Social Security Association (ISSA), the European Coal and Steel Community (one of the predecessors of the European Union) and occupational safety and health institutions in 11 European countries. Very quickly, the CIS network of centres expanded to include members from other continents, and by now it has grown to cover 110 countries all over the world.

Mission and objectives

The primary goal of the ILO today is to promote opportunities for women and men to obtain decent and productive work, in conditions of freedom, equity, security and human dignity.” - Juan Somavia, ILO Director-General

The International Labour Organization (ILO) is devoted to promoting social justice and internationally recognized human and labour rights, pursuing its founding mission that labour peace is essential to prosperity. Today, the ILO helps advance the creation of decent work and the economic and working conditions that give working people and business people a stake in lasting peace, prosperity and progress. Its tripartite structure provides a unique platform for promoting decent work for all women and men. Its main aims are to promote rights at work, encourage decent employment opportunities, enhance social protection and strengthen dialogue on work-related issues.

The ILO has four strategic objectives

Promote and realize standards and fundamental principles and rights at work
Create greater opportunities for women and men to decent employment and income
Enhance the coverage and effectiveness of social protection for all
Strengthen tripartism and social dialogue

In support of its goals, the ILO offers unmatched expertise and knowledge about the world of work, acquired over more than 90 years of responding to the needs of people everywhere for decent work, livelihoods and dignity. It serves its tripartite constituents – and society as a whole – in a variety of ways, including:

Formulation of international policies and programmes to promote basic human rights, improve working and living conditions, and enhance employment opportunities
Creation of international labour standards backed by a unique system to supervise their application
An extensive programme of international technical cooperation formulated and implemented in an active partnership with constituents, to help countries put these policies into practice in an effective manner
Training, education and research activities to help advance all of these efforts

Decent work agenda

Promoting Decent work for all

Work is central to people’s well-being. In addition to providing income, work can pave the way for broader social and economic advancement, strengthening individuals, their families and communities. Such progress, however, hinges on work that is decent. Decent work sums up the aspirations of people in their working lives.

The ILO has developed an agenda for the community of work. It provides support through integrated Decent Work Country Programmes developed in coordination with its constituents. Putting the Decent Work Agenda into practice is achieved through the implementation of the ILO’s four strategic objectives, with gender equality as a crosscutting objective:

Creating Jobs – an economy that generates opportunities for investment, entrepreneurship, skills development, job creation and sustainable livelihoods.
Guaranteeing rights at work – to obtain recognition and respect for the rights of workers. All workers, and in particular disadvantaged or poor workers, need representation, participation, and laws that work for their interests.
Extending social protection – to promote both inclusion and productivity by ensuring that women and men enjoy working conditions that are safe, allow adequate free time and rest, take into account family and social values, provide for adequate compensation in case of lost or reduced income and permit access to adequate healthcare.
Promoting social dialogue – Involving strong and independent workers’ and employers’ organizations is central to increasing productivity, avoiding disputes at work, and building cohesive societies.

An ILO concept, an international consensus
The Decent Work concept was formulated by the ILO’s constituents – governments and employers and workers – as a means to identify the Organization’s major priorities. It is based on the understanding that work is a source of personal dignity, family stability, peace in the community, democracies that deliver for people, and economic growth that expands opportunities for productive jobs and enterprise development.

Decent Work reflects priorities on the social, economic and political agenda of countries and the international system. In a relatively short time this concept has forged an international consensus among governments, employers, workers and civil society that productive employment and Decent Work are key elements to achieving a fair globalization, reducing poverty and achieving equitable, inclusive, and sustainable development.

Making Decent Work a global goal and a national reality

The overall goal of Decent Work is to effect positive change in people’s lives at the national and local levels. The ILO provides support through integrated Decent Work Country Programmes developed in coordination with ILO constituents. They define the priorities and the targets within national development frameworks and aim to tackle major Decent Work deficits through efficient programmes that embrace each of the strategic objectives.

The ILO operates with other partners within and beyond the UN family to provide in-depth expertise and key policy instruments for the design and implementation of these programmes. It also provides support for building the institutions needed to carry them forward and for measuring progress. The balance within these programmes differs from country to country, reflecting their needs, resources and priorities.

Progress also requires action at the global level. The Decent Work agenda offers a basis for a more just and sustainable framework for global development. The ILO works to develop “decent work”-oriented approaches to economic and social policy in partnership with the principal institutions and actors of the multilateral system and the global economy.

Membership of the United Nations

International Organizations — Sun, 18 Aug 2013 05:41:42 +0000

Article 4, UN Charter

Substantive requirements

state
Peace loving
accept obligations, able & willing

Procedural requirements

SC recommends
GA takes a decision

The procedure for Membership is briefly as follows:

The State submits an application to the Secretary-General and a letter formally stating that it accepts the obligations under the Charter.
The Security Council considers the application. Any recommendation for admission must receive the affirmative votes of 9 of the 15 members of the Council, provided that none of its five permanent members — China, France, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America — have voted against the application.
If the Council recommends admission, the recommendation is presented to the General Assembly for consideration. A two-thirds majority vote is necessary in the Assembly for admission of a new State.
Membership becomes effective the date the resolution for admission is adopted.

Origin and History of ILO

International Organizations — Sun, 18 Aug 2013 05:41:42 +0000

The ILO was created in 1919, as part of the Treaty of Versailles that ended World War I, to reflect the belief that universal and lasting peace can be accomplished only if it is based on social justice.

The Constitution was drafted between January and April, 1919, by the Labour Commission set up by the Peace Conference, which first met in Paris and then in Versailles. The Commission, chaired by Samuel Gompers, head of the American Federation of Labour (AFL) in the United States, was composed of representatives from nine countries: Belgium, Cuba, Czechoslovakia, France, Italy, Japan, Poland, the United Kingdom and the United States. It resulted in a tripartite organization, the only one of its kind bringing together representatives of governments, employers and workers in its executive bodies.

The Constitution contained ideas tested within the International Association for Labour Legislation, founded in Basel in 1901. Advocacy for an international organization dealing with labour issues began in the nineteenth century, led by two industrialists, Robert Owen (1771-1853) of Wales and Daniel Legrand (1783-1859) of France.

The driving forces for ILO’s creation arose from security, humanitarian, political and economic considerations. Summarizing them, the ILO Constitution’s Preamble says the High Contracting Parties were ‘moved by sentiments of justice and humanity as well as by the desire to secure the permanent peace of the world…’
There was keen appreciation of the importance of social justice in securing peace, against a background of exploitation of workers in the industrializing nations of that time. There was also increasing understanding of the world’s economic interdependence and the need for cooperation to obtain similarity of working conditions in countries competing for markets. Reflecting these ideas, the Preamble states:

Whereas universal and lasting peace can be established only if it is based upon social justice;
And whereas conditions of labour exist involving such injustice hardship and privation to large numbers of people as to produce unrest so great that the peace and harmony of the world are imperilled; and an improvement of those conditions is urgently required;
Whereas also the failure of any nation to adopt humane conditions of labour is an obstacle in the way of other nations which desire to improve the conditions in their own countries.

The areas of improvement listed in the Preamble remain relevant today, for example:

Regulation of the hours of work including the establishment of a maximum working day and week;
Regulation of labour supply, prevention of unemployment and provision of an adequate living wage;
Protection of the worker against sickness, disease and injury arising out of his employment;
Protection of children, young persons and women;
Provision for old age and injury, protection of the interests of workers when employed in countries other than their own;
Recognition of the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value;
Recognition of the principle of freedom of association;
Organization of vocational and technical education, and other measures.

Early days
Working for social justice is our assessment of the past and our mandate for the future.”

Juan Somavia, Director-General

The ILO has made signal contributions to the world of work from its early days. The first International Labour Conference held in Washington in October 1919 adopted six International Labour Conventions, which dealt with hours of work in industry, unemployment, maternity protection, night work for women, minimum age and night work for young persons in industry.

The ILO was located in Geneva in the summer of 1920 with France’s Albert Thomas as the first Director of the International Labour Office, which is the Organization’s permanent Secretariat. Under his strong impetus, 16 International Labour Conventions and 18 Recommendations were adopted in less than two years.

This early zeal was quickly toned down because some governments felt there were too many Conventions, the budget too high and the reports too critical. Yet, the International Court of Justice, under pressure from the Government of France, declared that the ILO’s domain extended also to international regulation of conditions of work in the agricultural sector.

A Committee of Experts was set up in 1926 as a supervisory system on the application of ILO standards. The Committee, which exists today, is composed of independent jurists responsible for examining government reports and presenting its own report each year to the Conference.

Depression and War
The Great Depression with its resulting massive unemployment soon confronted Britain’s Harold Butler, who succeeded Albert Thomas in 1932. Realizing that handling labour issues also requires international cooperation, the United States became a Member of the ILO in 1934 although it continued to stay out of the League of Nations.

American John Winant took over in 1939 just as the Second World War became imminent. He moved the ILO’s headquarters temporarily to Montreal, Canada, in May 1940 for reasons of safety but left in 1941 when he was named US Ambassador to Britain.

His successor, Ireland’s Edward Phelan, had helped to write the 1919 Constitution and played an important role once again during the Philadelphia meeting of the International Labour Conference, in the midst of the Second World War, attended by representatives of governments, employers and workers from 41 countries. The delegates adopted the Declaration of Philadelphia, annexed to the Constitution, still constitutes the Charter of the aims and objectives of the ILO. In 1946, the ILO became a specialized agency of the newly formed United Nations. And, in 1948, still during the period of Phelan’s leadership, the International Labour Conference adopted Convention No. 87 on freedom of association and the right to organize.

The Post-War Years
America’s David Morse was Director General from 1948-1970 when the number of Member States doubled, the Organization took on its universal character, industrialized countries became a minority among developing countries, the budget grew five-fold and the number of officials quadrupled. The ILO established the Geneva-based International Institute for Labour Studies in 1960 and the International Training Centre in Turin in 1965. The Organization won the Nobel Peace Prize on its 50th anniversary in 1969.
Under Britain’s Wilfred Jenks, Director-General from 1970-73, the ILO made advanced further in the development of standards and mechanisms for supervising their application, particularly the promotion of freedom of association and the right to organize.
His successor Francis Blanchard of France, expanded ILO’s technical cooperation with developing countries and averted damage to the Organization, despite the loss of one quarter of its budget following US withdrawal from 1977-1980. The ILO also played a major role in the emancipation of Poland from dictatorship, by giving its full support to the legitimacy of the Solidarnosc Union based on respect for Convention No. 87 on freedom of association, which Poland had ratified in 1957.

Belgium’s Michel Hansenne succeeded him in 1989 and guided the ILO into the post-Cold War period, emphasizing the importance of placing social justice at the heart of international economic and social policies. He also set the ILO on a course of decentralization of activities and resources away from the Geneva headquarters.

On 4 March 1999, Juan Somavia of Chile took over as Director General. He emphasizes the importance of making decent work a strategic international goal and promoting a fair globalization. He also underlines work as an instrument of poverty alleviation and ILO’s role in helping to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, including cutting world poverty in half by 2015.