Committee on NGOs

2001 Session

17^th Meeting (AM)

TWO MORE ORGANIZATIONS RECOMMENDED FOR CONSULTATIVE STATUS BY NGO COMMITTEE

The Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) this morning recommended two organizations for consultative status with the Economic and Social Council and deferred the applications of two others.

Special consultative status was recommended for Partage avec les enfants du monde (Sharing with the Children of the World), an organization promoting human solidarity by sponsoring children through a long-term commitment.  The NGO had requested general consultative status.  The same status was also recommended for Jammu and Kashmir Council for Human Rights.

Pending further clarifications, the applications of the Non-Aligned Students and Youth Organization and the International Commission on Distance Education were deferred.

The Non-Aligned Students and Youth Organization -- a national organization based in Iraq aimed at strengthening and disseminating the aims and objectives of the United Nations and the Non-Aligned Movement, is seeking general consultative status.  Its application was deferred as the representative of the United States had additional questions about the organization's amended constitution, activities and finances, among other things.

The International Commission on Distance Education was an international organization seeking special consultative status.  It aimed at the development of distance-taught education programmes.  Answering delegates' questions, the organization's representative said the NGO could contribute to the Council in its debate on information technology.  It could also disseminate information from and to NGOs participating in the Council's functional commissions.  It worked with the Albert Schweitzer University in Geneva -- a private, on-line university -- and shared its offices.  The organization's representative also gave clarifications regarding its registration and finances.

He said his organization participated in the General Assembly of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).  Students came mainly from Spain, but the organization wanted to expand to other Spanish-speaking Latin American countries and was seeking to establish a relationship with the University of Peace in Costa Rica.  The NGO had considered expanding into Africa, for instance into Eritrea and South Africa.  There was connectivity, he said, but how to utilize it depended on resources.  The NGO hoped to disseminate good technology to the Global South free of charge or at minimal cost.

The Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations considers, among other things, applications submitted by NGOs for consultative status and their requests for reclassification.  Non-governmental, non-profit voluntary organizations can be admitted into consultative status with the Council if they meet the requirements detailed in Council resolution 1996/31, including on the organization’s activities, decision-making processes and resources.

Non-governmental organizations with consultative status are classified under the "general", "special" or "roster" categories.  Those in the general category must be "concerned with most of the activities of the Economic and Social Council and its subsidiary bodies".  The special category concerns those "which have a special competence in, and are concerned specifically with, only a few of the fields of activity covered by the Council".  The roster category relates to NGOs which "can make occasional and useful contributions to the work of the Council or its subsidiary bodies". 

Different privileges and obligations are accorded to each category.  Non-governmental organizations with general status can propose items for the Council 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’s membership consists of 19 countries.  Its current members are Algeria, Bolivia, Chile, China, Colombia, Cuba, Ethiopia, France, Germany, India, Lebanon, Pakistan, Romania, Russian Federation, Senegal, Sudan, Tunisia, Turkey and the United States. 

Other speakers this morning were the representatives of India, France, Algeria, China, Sudan, Germany, Ethiopia and Turkey.  The Chief of the NGO Section in the Secretariat, Hanifa Mezoui, provided clarifications.

The Committee on NGOs will meet again at 3 p.m. today to continue consideration of applications for consultative status and requests for re-classification deferred from the previous sessions of the Committee.

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