Committee on NGOs

17^th Meetings (PM)

Adopting Final Report, Committee on NGOs Suspends 2011 Regular Session

 

The Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations resumed its work this afternoon to adopt the final report on the work of its 2011 regular session, which ran at Headquarters from 31 January to 9 February.

Introducing the report (document E/2011/32 (Part 1)), Marghoob Saleem Butt ( Pakistan), the Committee’s Rapporteur, said that the document was a product of many bilateral and multilateral consultations.  He thanked delegates for their efforts in the consultations leading to the report.

The Committee then adopted the report by consensus.

Following the action, the representative of Senegal, speaking on behalf of the African members of the Committee, thanked delegates for their work during the session.  While the computerized “paperless” system had had some “teething problems” along the way, he said, his delegation was happy that the Committee had granted consultative status for 107 non-governmental organizations this year, versus 77 last year.  Non-governmental organizations had become the main vectors in areas such as good governance, the promotion of human rights and others, he said, congratulating the organizations that had been granted status.  He hoped such status would help them engage actively with the Economic and Social Council in the coming year.

The representative of Belgium said that, despite the high number of organizations that had been granted consultative status, quality was more important than quantity, and there had been many delays in the work of the Committee’s work.

Next, the representative of the United States echoed the expressions of thanks to the delegates and the Secretariat for their hard work.  Nonetheless, she said, the United States was looking forward to the upcoming session in May, when it hoped that the Committee would “take a stand” and accredit some civil society groups that had been waiting a very long time — even years — to become accredited.

Regarding the Committee’s working methods, Andrei Abramov, Chair of the NGO Branch of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, informed the Committee that he had learned that the paperless system currently in use by the Committee needed to be “redesigned completely”.  The project would take approximately three to four months, he said, and would not be ready by the Committee’s next session in May.

Committee Chair, Aydan Karamanoğlu, of Turkey, then explained that the paperless system would still be available for use by delegates until the start of the May session, and that a paper-based system would be used during the session itself.

The representative of Burundi asked an additional question related to the Committee’s paperless system.  The session was then suspended.

The 19-member Committee, created by the Economic and Social Council in 1946, recommends to the Council general, special or roster status, in accordance with such criteria as the civil society applicant’s mandate, governance and financial regime.  Organizations enjoying general and special status can attend the Council’s meetings and circulate statements, while those with general status can, in addition, address meetings and propose agenda items.  Roster-status NGOs can only attend meetings.

The Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations will meet again at a time and date to be announced.

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For information media • not an official record