Continuing Its 2024 Session, Non-Governmental Organizations Committee Recommends 8 Groups for Special Status, Defers Action on 75 Others
The Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations continued its 2024 session today, recommending eight entities for special consultative status with the Economic and Social Council and deferring action on 75 others.
The 19-member Committee vets applications submitted by non-governmental organizations (NGOs), recommending general, special or roster status based on such criteria as the applicant’s mandate, governance and financial regime. Organizations enjoying general and special status can attend Council meetings and issue statements, while those with general status can also speak during meetings and propose agenda items. Those with roster status can only attend meetings.
Action on several applications was deferred because Committee members requested further information from the candidates about issues including details of their organizations’ activities, budget, expenditures and sources of funding, or questioned discrepancies in the organizations’ applications and websites.
In the afternoon, the Committee held its customary interactive dialogue period with six previously deferred NGOs.
The Committee will meet again at 10 a.m. on Thursday, 25 January, to continue its session.
Special Consultative Status
The Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations recommended that the Economic and Social Council grant special consultative status to the following eight entities:
ONG L’Ange Gardien (Benin);
Shanghai Arbitration Commission (China);
The Belt and Road International Lawyers Association (China);
WJ Mudolo Foundation (South Africa);
Women Empowerment Association For Development In Africa (Cameroon);
Asociacion Psicoanalitica De Madrid (Spain);
Centro Intercultural de Estudios de Desiertos y Océanos A.C (Mexico); and
Foundation for a Drug-Free World (United States).
The Committee postponed consideration of the following 75 organizations:
International Human Right Organization (Pakistan) — as the representative of Pakistan asked for more information about the soft loans provided to persons with disabilities;
Islamic Relief Committee (Sri Lanka) — as the representative of Nicaragua asked for more information concerning its 2024 activities and resources earmarked for them;
Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology Deemed to be University (India) — as the representative of Pakistan asked to see the memorandum of understanding it signed with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF);
Keshava Kripa Samvardhana Samiti (India) — as the representative of Pakistan asked for information concerning the studies it conducted on minority children;
L’union marocaine des conseils et association de la société civile (Morocco) — as the representative of Algeria asked if the amount of 300,000 mentioned in its last response was in United States dollars;
Leaders club de développement des compétences de la vie (Morocco) — as the representative of Algeria posed a question about its participation in the event organized by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD);
National Agro Foundation (India) — as the representative of Pakistan sought clarification on its capacity-building activities for rural women entrepreneurs;
National Association of Palliative Care for AYUSH & Integrative Medicine (India) — as the representative of Pakistan asked for information concerning its rehabilitation activities;
National Forum for Human Rights [Yemen] (Yemen) — as the representative of Israel asked for a list of organizations from which it receives funding;
Nature Labs (India) — as the representative of India asked for clarification concerning its multiple addresses;
Non-Governmental Organization «Association Of Wives And Mothers Of Soldiers Participating In Ato» (Ukraine) — as the representative of China asked about its participation in United Nations conferences;
Organisation Tamaynut (Morocco) — as the representative of Bahrain asked for a breakdown of funding it received from other organisations, as well as the Government;
Peace Justice Humanity and Relief Foundation (India) — as the representative of India asked about its sources of funding;
People’s Participation (India) — as the representative of Pakistan sought clarification on its affiliations with government bodies;
Persatuan Cinta Gaza Malaysia (Malaysia) — as the representative of Israel asked for its updated financial statements for 2022;
Pragati Foundation (India) — as the representative of Pakistan asked about obstacles it faces in acquiring funding for the construction of a multi-specialty hospital;
Pusat Komas SDN. BHD. (Malaysia) — as the representative of China asked for a correction concerning its reference to Taiwan;
Rainbow Volunteer Club (China) — as the representative of Bahrain asked for information concerning a specific project and local organizations that participated in it;
Samajik Yuva Sangthan Sansthan (India) — as the representative of Pakistan said its response to a previous question about project-wise breakdowns was inadequate;
Samaritan Help Mission (India) — as the representative of India asked how it carries out its work without any administrative expenditures;
Sewa International (India) — as the representative of Pakistan asked for a list of its major donor-partners;
Shenzhen Foundation for International Exchange and Cooperation (China) — as the representative of the United States requested more information on its decision-making processes and funding received from the Government;
Shree Someshwar Education Trust (India) — as the representative of Pakistan sought more information concerning its activities to promote renewable energy sources;
Sichuan Haihui Poverty Alleviation Center (China) — as the representative of Nicaragua asked about its history prior to 2008;
Social and Media Studies Institute (Morocco) — as the representative of Algeria asked if its membership is national or international;
Sri Sharada Institute of Indian Management Research Foundation (India) — as the representative of Pakistan asked for more information about its research programme;
Stella Maris Institute of Development Studies (India) — as the representative of Pakistan asked for more information about its tribal development programme;
Suchirindia Foundation (India) — as the representative of Pakistan asked for clarification of the group’s response to a previous question about skill development programmes in rural areas;
The Ecumenical Christian Centre Bangalore (India) — as the representative of Pakistan asked for information about its participation in United Nations conferences;
The Gulmit Educational and Social Welfare Society, Hunza Gilgit (Pakistan) — as the representative of Pakistan asked for information about the welfare services it provides for women;
The Trustees of Global Peace Mission Trust Foundation (Malaysia) — as the representative of Pakistan posed a question about activities to increase its organizational efficiency;
Transnational Anti-Organized Crime Intelligence Group Inc.(TAOC-IG) (Philippines) — as the representative of Bahrain asked for more information about its affiliation with the United Nations;
United Global Organization of Development (U-GOOD) (Pakistan) — as the representative of India asked for a clarification about the steep increase in its net income;
Voice of Youth Organization (India) — as the representative of Pakistan expressed doubt about the authenticity of its audited reports and asked to see original financial statements;
Water, Environment and Sanitation Society – WESS (Pakistan) — as the representative of India asked for a clarification about its membership;
West Papua Interest Association (Indonesia) — as the representative of China asked for its plan of work for 2024;
World Historic and Cultural Canal Cities Cooperation Organization (China) — as the representative of the United States asked how it remains a non-governmental organization despite extensive support from the Government of China;
World Internet of Things Convention (China) — as the representative of Pakistan asked for information about international events it organized;
Y S Makhdoomi Memorial Educational Trust (India) as the representative of India asked the organization to inform the Committee when its website is working, noting that the audited financial statement shows a significant amount of money spent on the website;
Youchang Consulting (China) — as the representative of Bahrain asked for clarification regarding its relationship with the Zhejiang 7 Charity Foundation;
Youth Parli of Pakistan (YPP) (Pakistan) — as the representative of India asked it to explain its disproportionate administrative expenditure;
Youth for Human Rights Pakistan (Pakistan) — as the representative of India asked for a functional website address;
Zindagi Trust (Pakistan) — as the representative of India asked for data concerning its impact on school governance and child protection policies;
de Centre Idriss El Fakhouri des Etudes et de Recherches en Sciences Juridiques Oujda (Morocco) — as the representative of China asked for a list of members of its honorary committee;
A.D.A.M. (Association d’aide aux migrants) (France) — as the representative of Algeria requested information regarding its membership dues;
Action League for Palestinians of Syria LTD (United Kingdom) — as the representative of China asked about human rights organizations with which it works, and its contributions to them;
All Survivors Project Foundation (Liechtenstein) — as the representative of China asked about the measures taken to ensure all funds are in line with its missions and values;
Association De Solidarite Bordeaux (France) — as the representative of Türkiye requested elaboration on its recruitment of international volunteers and how their work is monitored;
Association Des Juristes Specialises En Droits Etrangers (France) — as the representative of Algeria asked for details on its contribution to the Economic and Social Council and which Sustainable Development Goals it prioritizes;
Association Femmes Solidaires (AFS) (France) — as the representative of Türkiye asked if individual members can participate in policy- and decision-making, and how;
Association of Civilians and Organizations for Corporate Learning Development “Mako” (Russian Federation) — as the representative of Georgia requested further details on its participation in a side event, and called for the NGO to bring references to Georgian regions in line with UN terminology;
Association of Lawyers of Russia (Russian Federation) — as the representative of the United States asked for a list of activities or projects aimed at strengthening cooperation with foreign countries in legal education, and other organizations in those countries with which they have partnered;
Associazione Luca Coscioni per la libertà di ricerca scientifica (Italy) — as the representative of China called for the organization’s most updated financial information in order to understand that status;
Assyrian Cultural & Social Youth Association Inc. (Australia) — as the representative of Türkiye, noting the NGO rents privately owned facilities, asked it to clarify the contradiction presented by a permanent address listed in its application;
C.A.R.E Scandinavia — Citizens Against Radicalism & Extremism (Denmark) — as the representative of Israel requested clarification, given its financial statements, on how it is carrying out any activity at all, and if it has plans for 2024 and 2025;
Canadian Lutheran World Relief (Canada) — as the representative of China asked if it has a plan to have overseas personnel join its decision-making organ;
Ceasefire Centre for Civilian Rights (United Kingdom) — as the representative of Eritrea requested details on its role in providing early warning of identity-based violence, and protecting civilians in conflict areas;
Center for Military Human Rights Korea (CMHRK) (Republic of Korea) — as the representative of Nicaragua requested details on overseas international organizations it has cooperated with and any such activities over the last three years;
Coalition pour l’abolition de la prostitution (CAP) (France) — as the representative of Nicaragua asked for further info on processes in case of an ethical problem or a violation involving a member organization, and any procedures to address non-compliance;
Common Good Foundation Inc (United States) — as the representative of China asked how it ensures the professionalism and sustainability of its research while having no full-time researchers;
Congres mondial Amazigh – CMA (France) — as the representative of Algeria invited it to provide examples of recent projects and activities;
Cooperazione Internazionale Sud Sud (Italy) — as the representative of Israel asked it to elaborate on activities planned for 2024 and 2025;
Darius El TM (United States) — as the representative of Israel requested information on its activities to “uplift fallen humanity”;
Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network (Denmark) — as the representative of Israel asked for a detailed breakdown on projects in the Middle East, with specifications for each country;
European Foundation for South Asian Studies (Netherlands) — as the representative of China requested details on its contact with any Government, and any contributions made;
FIRST.Org, Inc. (United States) — as the representative of China requested detailed information on a project titled “A New Code of Ethics for Incident Response”;
Fn-Sambandet i Norge (Norway) — as the representative of Türkiye requested it to explain how its membership organizations participate in its policy- and decision-making;
Fondazione Pangea ONLUS (Italy) — as the representative of Türkiye asked the NGO for details on its advocacy work in 2023;
Forum of European Muslim Youth and Student Organisations (Belgium) — as the representative of Israel asked it to provide further details on debt from previous mandates;
Fundació Josep Irla (Spain) — as the representative of China, citing the organization’s debt, requested it to explain if it has any plans to improve its financial structure;
Geneva Call (Switzerland) — as the representative of Pakistan asked it to explain the legal status of its “deeds of commitment” in protecting civilians in armed conflict;
Global Alumni Alliance (Russian Federation) — as the representative of the United Kingdom asked for further details on the relationship between its trustees and the Russian Federation State;
Global Detention Project (Switzerland) — as the representative of Algeria, addressing the issue of membership fees, asked how it ensures the sustainability of its activities and commitment of its members;
Hokok Coalición Internacional Contra la Impunidad (Spain) — as the representative of Bahrain asked if self-funding is on a voluntary basis, and further requested details on other sources of income and an update on its financial health; and
Humanity Diaspo (France) — as the representative of China requested clarification on its private-sector funding.
Interactive Discussion
During the Committee’s interactive question-and-answer session, a representative of Asociația Liberare (Romania) said that her organization is making efforts to ensure capacity-building and is training medical staff, emergency workers and social workers on human trafficking indicators and risk assessments. Expressing commitment to sharing the organization’s practices freely, she said she is happy to furnish more information.
The representative of China asked about the project concerning education for victims. In response, the representative highlighted a training on the referral of a victim towards specialized services, as well as justice and redress, if they choose to do so. “We are also firm believers in the social pathway which means that justice might look different for different individuals,” she said, adding that the victim is referred to services according to their individualized needs. Further, this is being done in partnership with different governmental organizations, she said, highlighting Asociația Liberare’s high rate of identification of victims.
The representative of China asked for clarifications regarding funds received from the Government of the United Kingdom, as well as the organization’s work with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). Responding, the representative said the majority of funding is received from States to which victims from Romania are most trafficked to. The funds were used for identification and capacity-building, she said. Further, the organization is championing the safety of vulnerable people, especially children, online, as a member of the UNODC ad-hoc committee that is elaborating the new information and communications technology convention.
China’s delegate followed with a question regarding a deficit in the organization’s financial statement and steps to ensure stability. Since the organization had run out of time, the representative was unable to respond.
A representative of Hope for Justice (United Kingdom) said his non-governmental organization has a vision of living in a world free from slavery, collaborating with State and non-State actors. The “despicable global business” affects the most vulnerable people in all countries. Working in Africa, Europe and North America, his organization addresses high-risk communities, identifying victims and providing restorative services to survivors. In 2023, the group reunited over 1,500 child victims with their families and reached over 100,000 people in high-risk communities. Responding to a question from 23 January on whether the international situation has a long-term effect in its ongoing financial stability, he noted that in 2023 and early 2024, there was a fall-off in a number of income streams, but that it is expected to ease. To counter it, Hope for Justice has undertaken measures in income generation and cost reduction and has worked to reduce annual spending by £3.5 million.
The representative of Cuba asked him to clarify the percentage and sources of funds from the private sector.
The representative responded that a majority is from individuals and small organizations including religious ones, without any set conditions or allocations. The ratio between individual and public is about 50-50, with public funding allocated to specific programmes.
The representative of Cuba requested further details including funding data on the private sector, not individuals.
Next, a representative of the US Institute of Diplomacy and Human Rights (United States) addressed the Committee, describing the trainings the group offers in human rights advocacy. Stressing that human rights is essential to sustainable development, she said her organization calls itself international because most of its trainings are international. Illustrating that, she referred to a training on human rights and disability conducted in Türkiye and another one in Ukraine. The organization has 41 regional directors and 20 of them are international, including from the Philippines, Congo, Togo and Poland. “We have a lot of rules [about human rights] but the people who apply the rules never understood” them, she said, stressing that it is crucial to go back to the basics.
The representative of Cuba asked for clarification regarding its membership dues, to which the representative of the organization said membership dues are not obligatory. But when a client pays for a human rights training, that money is used to fund scholarship and fund activities. China’s delegate asked a follow-up question regarding the organization’s income and work. In response, the representative talked about the different kinds of non-profit statuses in the United States. Cuba’s delegate asked for detailed information in writing about how it obtains its funds.
Next, a representative of Human Social Care Foundation (India) said his organization had already submitted documentary evidence regarding the anti-drugs march it conducted. Noting that women and girls are often targeted, he highlighted the example of a 4-year-old girl in Mahim, Mumbai, India, who was addicted to drugs. His organization works to raise awareness about this problem, he said, adding that hundreds of children, women and social activists participated in the march, as a result of which police took action. Details of the march are available on the organization’s website as well, he said.
The representative of China then asked why the organization regards itself as international, but its decision-making body includes only local members, and if it plans to recruit more members from abroad to increase its geographical representation.
The representative responded that international membership is solely to upgrade the NGO’s knowledge and improve performance.
The representative of Pakistan, citing meagre income compared to aims and purposes, asked him to explain how it plans to broaden its sources.
The representative responded that at the time of the application it had no tax certificate and could not solicit financing from donors, but that certificate has since been approved by the Ministry of Finance.
The representative of India noted the NGO’s application provided comprehensive information and answered questions, voicing hope that it will be granted consultative status as soon as possible.
The representative of Pakistan further requested examples of legal efforts undertaken towards its goals.
The representative answered that during the COVID-19 pandemic, his organization filed a petition in Mumbai to help people pay school fees.
The representative of Pakistan then asked him to share the NGO’s planned activities for 2024.
Next, a representative of Sewa International (India), registered in 1997, noted that the NGO focuses on the core principle that “service is the supreme duty” and endeavours to effect enduring solutions to underlying socioeconomic challenges, encompassing disaster rescue, relief and rehabilitation, fostering community resilience through an active volunteer base. It works in areas including health care, community-based livelihood and disaster management and in the fiscal year 2022-2023, had 30 projects funded by $2.3 million, benefiting over 316,000 individuals. In its history, 1.5 million volunteers have addressed more than 50 disasters, aiding 5 million people. Responding to a previous question, he said that in the financial year 2022-2023, the NGO received $2.175 million from major donor partners, offering a breakdown of their individual contributions.
The representative of India cited its comprehensive application, voicing hope that it will be considered positively by the Committee.
The representative of China noted the NGO had withdrawn a website page naming Hong Kong, commending its responsibility towards using UN terminology. He asked why the website mentioned 40 chapters across the United States, despite it being a national organization.
The representative then noted that those organizations are registered in their respective countries but share the NGO’s belief in service before self.
The representative of Pakistan asked him to shed light on initiatives, especially regarding self-help groups.
The representative cited two key initiatives involving training and agriculture.
Next, a representative of Transnational Anti-Organized Crime Intelligence Group Inc.(TAOC-IG) (Philippines) recalled the lengthy history of the organization and its vision to grow a portfolio of intelligence networks, work hand in hand with law enforcement of the Philippines, and combat terrorism and transnational organized crime. He cited accomplishments including a case filed against Government officials, a major cocaine seizure and a humanitarian mission, noting the organization’s love of its country and people.
The representative of Bahrain, citing a change on the NGO’s website, asked him to clarify his UN accreditations and if he cooperates otherwise with the United Nations.
The representative responded that the website had been hacked.
The representative of Bahrain then asked if the group receives donations from individuals or also from organizations.