REVIEWING APPLICATIONS FOR CONSULTATIVE STATUS WITH ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL, NGO COMMITTEE ENDORSES CLAIMS OF FIVE NEW GROUPS

Press Release
NGO/344

REVIEWING APPLICATIONS FOR CONSULTATIVE STATUS WITH ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL, NGO COMMITTEE ENDORSES CLAIMS OF FIVE NEW GROUPS

The Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations this morning recommended that five groups be granted special consultative status with the Economic and Social Council, and deferred recommendations on another five.

In order to forge mutually beneficial relations between the Council and civil groups, the Committee's 19 members review and make recommendations on non- governmental organizations' applications for consultative status with either general, special or roster classification. Each of these carries with it distinct responsibilities and privileges. The Committee's recommendations are transmitted to the Council, which takes its final decision as a whole.

Non-governmental organizations with general status can propose items for the Council's agenda, attend and speak at meetings and circulate statements. Those with special status can attend meetings and circulate statements, while those on the roster can only attend meetings. Organizations with general and special status must report every four years on their activities in support of the United Nations.

The Committee recommended granting special consultative status to the following groups: AIDS Information Switzerland; Asia-Japan Women's Resource Centre; Asian Women in Cooperative Development Forum (AWCF); American Psychological Association; and the Climate Institute.

The Committee decided to defer granting consultative status to the following groups: Alan Guttmacher Institute; Argentina Association of International Law; Amitié sans frontières internationales; Centre for Policy Alternatives; and the Global Crop Protection Federation (GCPF).

Decisions were left pending until the Committee received further clarifications from those groups on issues such as sources of funding, composition of membership and precise nature of activities. Also, one organization had not completed the mandatory two years of existence required for the granting of consultative status.

The representatives of Chile, Tunisia, United States, India, Algeria, Colombia, Pakistan, Turkey, Bolivia, Sudan, France, Germany, Ethiopia and Cuba spoke this morning. In addition, the Committee received clarifications from a representative of the American Psychological Association.

The Committee will meet again at 3 p.m. today to continue reviewing new applications for consultative status.