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UNA-Canada Fact Sheets > Public Participation, NGOs and the UN

The United Nations Charter begins with the words "We the peoples...," implying that the UN draws its authority from, and acts on behalf of, individual citizens of the world. In fact, its decision-making bodies are all predicated upon deliberations and decisions taken by representatives of the governments of Member States. The process through which representatives of non-governmental bodies gained access to the deliberations, and then to the decision-making processes, occurred incrementally during the first half century of the UN’s life. Nonetheless, there has been significant progress, especially in recent years.

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are the primary vehicle through which the broader society has gained access to UN bodies. NGOs represent virtually all facets of what is broadly referred to as "civil society"—everything from professional groups, business interests, youth, and community activists concerned with such areas as the environment, health, development, and human rights. As they have brought their concerns and demands to the UN, they have forced the world body to open its procedures. This has enabled NGOs to proceed to help shape the directions of programmes and priorities.

While formal voting structures are still reserved for members’ governments, an extensive process that permits NGO consultation has evolved. What began as a relatively small number of internationally based NGOs gaining consultative status with the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) has expanded exponentially in the last decade. On May 23, 1968, under resolution 1296, ECOSOC established procedures that extended observer participation to NGOs which could meet fairly stringent criteria. The actual degree of participation, however, was extremely limited. Largely as a result of dramatically increased NGO participation in the major international conferences of the last decade, and of demands to have that kind of participatory involvement extended to ongoing UN activities, ECOSOC’s rules were significantly liberalized in 1996.

Many diverse NGOs can now seek consultative status with the Council and its subsidiary bodies. For instance, national level NGOs, even those which form part of umbrella groups, are now eligible. Expertise has become a more important determinant, allowing a wider range of NGOs to seek consultative status.

It is worth noting some of the milestones that have marked the evolution of NGOs participation in the UN. In part, it has been a process of opening the doors to formal recognition of NGOs. It has also been a recognition of the sources of expertise the UN must draw on in order to deliver its programmes successfully.

  • NGOs played an important role in drafting international guidelines and standards for infant formula for use by the World Health Organization.
  • The UN Human Rights Commission has asked NGOs to monitor the adherence of their respective governments to international standards and report to the Commission.
  • Non-governmental organizations played a major role in preparations for the UN Conference on Environment and Development held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 1992. Thousands of NGOs from around the world participated in the official conference, as well as in a parallel conference which generated extensive international media attention and significantly influenced the proceedings of the official conference. This was the first conference at which national NGOs were granted equal observer status.
  • In 1994, Government and NGO delegates from 180 countries met in Cairo to discuss world population issues. NGO representation resulted in an invigorated conference and the discussion of the role of women in solving population issues.
  • In the March 1995 World Summit on Social Development in Copenhagen, NGOs participated in discussing poverty, unemployment, and social integration. A strong contingent of Canadian NGO representatives were actively involved in the Conference.
  • NGOs were heavily represented at both the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing (September 1995) and the Habitat II Conference in Istanbul (in June 1996).
  • Canadian NGOs led NGO participation in the international commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the Food and Agriculture Organization, held in Quebec City in October 1995. NGOs debated a new vision of the future of food and agricultural development, and pushed for more influence and recognition at UN meetings. That pressure continued at the 1996 World Food Summit in Rome.
  • In what may be a landmark action, the Security Council was formally briefed on the situation in the Great Lakes Region of Africa in, February 1997, by representatives of three international NGOs, as they knew it from their own operations.

While NGOs have been making direct inroads into the operating processes of the UN system, they have also often been actively involved in crafting the positions adopted by government delegations. The Canadian Government, for example, now regularly consults with civil society representatives prior to major UN conferences and sessions of the various consultative Commissions. The government routinely includes non-governmental representatives in formal government delegations to these sessions, and briefs other NGO representatives who are attending the meetings during the course of the discussions.

The United Nations Association in Canada (UNA-Canada) has played an active role in the expanding participation of Canadian NGOs in UN affairs. Individual members have attended most of the major UN conferences as accredited observers. In addition, it has either coordinated, housed, and/or been a member of the coordinating committees for the NGO consultative process. It has also been a focal point for public access to information about such events. UNA-Canada, along with many other national NGOs, has taken advantage of the new ECOSOC regulations and obtained its own observer status.