Non-governmental Organizations
(NGO’s)
• Organization that operates independently
from any form of government
• The term originated from the UN
• NGOs are non-profit
• Focus on human rights, environmental, or
development work.
What is the UN?
• 51 countries started it
in 1945
• Today 193 countries
are members, which
includes almost every
recognized country in
the world
What does it do?
• Every nation that joins
must accept the UN
charter, which
outlines basic
behaviors for states.
• The UN does not
make or enforce laws.
So, who is in the UN?
• Although it started with just 51
countries, the UN now has 193
members, representing nearly every
country on the planet.
Exceptions include:
• The Vatican, which chooses to have
an observer role only.
• Kosovo
• Taiwan
• Antarctica is an international zone
and is not represented.
What are the UN’s four goals?
• Maintain world peace
• Develop friendly
relations between
states
• To cooperate in
solving international
problems
• To harmonize the
actions of all states
How is it organized?
• The UN has five major
sections:
– 1 – The security council
– 2 – The general assembly
– 3 – The economic and
social council
– 4 – The secretariat
– 5 – The International Court
of Justice.
• The first 4 are located in
New York, the fifth is in
The Hague.
What is the security council?
• The security council is
made up of 15 countries
who are responsible for
keeping world peace.
• 5 countries are
permanent members
(America, Russia, China,
France and the UK) and
the other 10 are made up
of countries picked from
each region of the planet,
who each serve for a two
year term.
What is the General Assembly?
• The General
assembly is where
every country in the
world has a chance to
make statements and
observations about
world affairs, and vote
on various UN issues.
What is the Secretariat?
• The secretariat does
the “paper work” for
the UN, including
researching issues
and compiling data,
tracking the success
or failure of UN
programs, and
organizing
conferences and
training.
What does the Economic and
Social council do?
• They organize nonpolitical and nonmilitary UN programs
like the UN
International
Children’s Fund
(UNICEF) and water
treatment programs.
What is the International Court of
Justice?
• The ICJ regulates
disputes concerning
human issues that are
not related to just one
country (humanitarian
law and war crimes)
as well as
international disputes
about things like
borders and pollution.
• It is based in The
Hague – South
Holland, Netherlands
Millennium Development Goals
• 8 international development goals established
by the UN in 2000.
• All 193 members of the UN signed the United
Nations Declaration in agreement with the
common desire to achieve the 8 goals by 2015.
• The World Bank, IMF and the African
Development Bank also agreed to cancel $50
billion debt through funding from the member
states.
Millennium Development Goals
• Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger
• Achieve Universal Primary Education
• Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women
• Reduce Child Mortality
• Improve Maternal Health
• Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Other Diseases
• Ensure Environmental Sustainability
• Develop a Global Partnership for Development
Millennium Development Goals
• Canceled an additional $40–55 billion debt
owed by LDC countries to allow them to rechannel money to social programs for
improving health and education and for
alleviating poverty.
• The 2010 MDG Summit concluded with the
adoption of:
– Keeping the Promise: United to Achieve the
Millennium Development Goals
• Pledged over $40 billion in resources over
the next five years.
Millennium Development Goals
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3l4CL
vOQ0Y
Canadian International
Development Agency (CIDA)
• Engage in policy development in
Canada and internationally, enabling
Canada's effort to realize its
development objectives.
CIDA
• Three priority themes are part of that
agenda and guide CIDA's work:
• Increasing Food Security
• Securing the future of children and
youth
• Stimulating sustainable economic
growth
CIDA Locations
Americas:
Bolivia |
Caribbean Regional Program |
Colombia |
Haiti |
Honduras |
Peru
Asia:
Afghanistan |
Bangladesh |
Indonesia |
Pakistan |
Vietnam
Eastern Europe:
Ukraine
North Africa and Middle East:
West Bank and Gaza
Sub-Saharan Africa:
Ethiopia |
Ghana |
Mali |
Mozambique |
Senegal |
Sudan and South Sudan |
Tanzania
CIDA in Action
• http://www.acdi-cida.gc.ca/acdi-cida/ACDICIDA.nsf/eng/HEL-31484138-GW4
UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR)
• UNHCR is an agency who is mandated to
lead and co-ordinate international action to
protect refugees and resolve refugee
problems worldwide.
UNHCR
• 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. It
also has a mandate to help stateless
people
UNCHR
• The number of refugees of concern to UNHCR
stood at 10.5 million at the beginning of 2011,
down slightly from a year earlier.
• UNHCR seeks to reduce situations by
encouraging states to create conditions which
allow for the protection of human rights and the
peaceful resolution of disputes.
• The UNCHR pays particular attention to the
needs of children and seeks to promote the
equal rights of women and girls.
UNCHR
• http://unhcr.org/v-5074149b6
Amnesty International
Purpose: to defend human rights. They
believe that human rights abuses
anywhere are the concern of people
everywhere
• Amnesty International is:
– independent of any government, political
ideology, economic interest or religion
– financially autonomous, due to donations from
individual members and supporters
Amnesty International Goals
•
•
•
•
defend freedom of expression
protect women’s rights
abolish the death penalty
demand justice for crimes against
humanity
• demand corporate accountability where
companies have abused people’s rights
OXFAM
• Oxfam is an international confederation of
17 organizations networked together in 92
countries, as part of a global movement for
change, to build a future free from the
injustice of poverty
• Focus on Advocacy, Emergency Work,
Campaigning and Policy Development
OXFAM
• http://youtu.be/LaqXW__-RLA