United Nations Secretariat
Encyclopedia
The United Nations Secretariat is one of the five principal organs of the United Nations
and it is headed by the United Nations Secretary-General, assisted by a staff of international civil servants worldwide. It provides studies, information, and facilities needed by United Nations
bodies for their meetings. It also carries out tasks as directed by the UN Security Council
, the UN General Assembly
, the UN Economic and Social Council
, and other U.N. bodies. The United Nations Charter
provides that the staff be chosen by application of the "highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity," with due regard for the importance of recruiting on a wide geographical basis.
The Charter provides that the staff shall not seek or receive instructions from any authority other than the UN. Each UN member country is enjoined to respect the international character of the Secretariat and not seek to influence its staff. The Secretary-General alone is responsible for staff selection.
The Secretary-General's duties include helping resolve international disputes, administering peacekeeping operations, organizing international conferences, gathering information on the implementation of Security Council decisions, and consulting with member governments regarding various initiatives. Key Secretariat offices in this area include the Office of the Coordinator of Humanitarian Affairs and the Department of Peacekeeping Operations. The Secretary-General may bring to the attention of the Security Council any matter that, in his or her opinion, may threaten international peace and security.
On 21 March 2005, Secretary-General Kofi Annan
proposed several reforms for the Secretariat. He announced his intentions to appoint a Scientific Adviser, create a peacebuilding support office, establish a cabinet
-style decision-making mechanism, and strengthen the mediation
function. He also asked the General Assembly to appropriate
funds for a one-time staff buyout; to work with him in revising budget
ary and human resources
rules; to grant the Secretary-General more managerial authority and flexibility; to strengthen the Office of Internal Oversight Services; and "to review all mandates older than five years to see whether the activities concerned are still genuinely needed or whether the resources assigned to them can be reallocated in response to new and emerging challenges".
Offices Away from Headquarters
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
and it is headed by the United Nations Secretary-General, assisted by a staff of international civil servants worldwide. It provides studies, information, and facilities needed by United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
bodies for their meetings. It also carries out tasks as directed by the UN Security Council
United Nations Security Council
The United Nations Security Council is one of the principal organs of the United Nations and is charged with the maintenance of international peace and security. Its powers, outlined in the United Nations Charter, include the establishment of peacekeeping operations, the establishment of...
, the UN General Assembly
United Nations General Assembly
For two articles dealing with membership in the General Assembly, see:* General Assembly members* General Assembly observersThe United Nations General Assembly is one of the five principal organs of the United Nations and the only one in which all member nations have equal representation...
, the UN Economic and Social Council
United Nations Economic and Social Council
The Economic and Social Council of the United Nations constitutes one of the six principal organs of the United Nations and it is responsible for the coordination of the economic, social and related work of 14 UN specialized agencies, its functional commissions and five regional commissions...
, and other U.N. bodies. The United Nations Charter
United Nations Charter
The Charter of the United Nations is the foundational treaty of the international organization called the United Nations. It was signed at the San Francisco War Memorial and Performing Arts Center in San Francisco, United States, on 26 June 1945, by 50 of the 51 original member countries...
provides that the staff be chosen by application of the "highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity," with due regard for the importance of recruiting on a wide geographical basis.
The Charter provides that the staff shall not seek or receive instructions from any authority other than the UN. Each UN member country is enjoined to respect the international character of the Secretariat and not seek to influence its staff. The Secretary-General alone is responsible for staff selection.
The Secretary-General's duties include helping resolve international disputes, administering peacekeeping operations, organizing international conferences, gathering information on the implementation of Security Council decisions, and consulting with member governments regarding various initiatives. Key Secretariat offices in this area include the Office of the Coordinator of Humanitarian Affairs and the Department of Peacekeeping Operations. The Secretary-General may bring to the attention of the Security Council any matter that, in his or her opinion, may threaten international peace and security.
On 21 March 2005, Secretary-General Kofi Annan
Kofi Annan
Kofi Atta Annan is a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the UN from 1 January 1997 to 31 December 2006...
proposed several reforms for the Secretariat. He announced his intentions to appoint a Scientific Adviser, create a peacebuilding support office, establish a cabinet
Cabinet (government)
A Cabinet is a body of high ranking government officials, typically representing the executive branch. It can also sometimes be referred to as the Council of Ministers, an Executive Council, or an Executive Committee.- Overview :...
-style decision-making mechanism, and strengthen the mediation
Mediation
Mediation, as used in law, is a form of alternative dispute resolution , a way of resolving disputes between two or more parties. A third party, the mediator, assists the parties to negotiate their own settlement...
function. He also asked the General Assembly to appropriate
Appropriation (law)
In law and government, appropriation is the act of setting apart something for its application to a particular usage, to the exclusion of all other uses....
funds for a one-time staff buyout; to work with him in revising budget
Budget
A budget is a financial plan and a list of all planned expenses and revenues. It is a plan for saving, borrowing and spending. A budget is an important concept in microeconomics, which uses a budget line to illustrate the trade-offs between two or more goods...
ary and human resources
Human resources
Human resources is a term used to describe the individuals who make up the workforce of an organization, although it is also applied in labor economics to, for example, business sectors or even whole nations...
rules; to grant the Secretary-General more managerial authority and flexibility; to strengthen the Office of Internal Oversight Services; and "to review all mandates older than five years to see whether the activities concerned are still genuinely needed or whether the resources assigned to them can be reallocated in response to new and emerging challenges".
Organization
- Executive Office of the Secretary-General
- United Nations Office of Internal Oversight ServicesUnited Nations Office of Internal Oversight ServicesThe United Nations Office of Internal Oversight Services is a United Nations organ whose primary purpose is to perform world-wide audit, investigation, inspection, programme monitoring, evaluation and consulting services to the United Nations Secretariat and the rest of the United Nations...
(OIOS) - United Nations Office of Legal AffairsUnited Nations Office of Legal AffairsThe United Nations Office of Legal Affairs is a United Nations agency, established in 1946, that performs several key functions in the area of international law....
(OLA) - United Nations Office for Disarmament AffairsUnited Nations Office for Disarmament AffairsThe UN Office for Disarmament Affairs is a department of the United Nations Secretariat established in January 1998 as the Department for Disarmament Affairs as part of the United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan's plan to reform the UN as presented in his report to the General Assembly in...
(ODA) - United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
- United Nations Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human RightsOffice of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human RightsThe Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights is a United Nations agency that works to promote and protect the human rights that are guaranteed under international law and stipulated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948...
(OHCHR) - United Nations High Commissioner for RefugeesUnited Nations High Commissioner for RefugeesThe Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees , also known as The UN Refugee Agency is a United Nations agency mandated to protect and support refugees at the request of a government or the UN itself and assists in their voluntary repatriation, local integration or resettlement to...
(UNHCR) - United Nations Office on Drugs and CrimeUnited Nations Office on Drugs and CrimeThe United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime is a United Nations agency that was established in 1997 as the Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention by combining the United Nations International Drug Control Program and the Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Division in the United Nations...
(ODC) - United Nations Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States (OHRLLS)
- United Nations Department of Political AffairsUnited Nations Department of Political AffairsThe United Nations Department of Political Affairs is a department of the Secretariat of the United Nations with responsibility for monitoring and assessing global political developments and advising and assisting the United Nations Secretary General and his envoys in the peaceful prevention and...
(DPA) - United Nations Department of Management (DM)
- United Nations Department of Peacekeeping OperationsDepartment of Peacekeeping OperationsThe Department of Peacekeeping Operations is a department of the United Nations which is charged with the planning, preparation, management and direction of UN peacekeeping operations.-History of the DPKO:...
(DPKO) - United Nations Department of Field Support (DFS)
- United Nations Department of Economic and Social AffairsUnited Nations Department of Economic and Social AffairsThe United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs is part of the United Nations Secretariat and is responsible for the follow-up to the major United Nations Summits and Conferences, as well as services to the United Nations Economic and Social Council and the Second and Third Committees...
(DESA) - United Nations Department of General Assembly and Conference Management (DGACM)
- United Nations Department of Public InformationUnited Nations Department of Public InformationThe United Nations Department of Public Information helps non-governmental organizations gain access to and disseminate information about United Nations issues so the public can better understand the aims and objectives of the organizations...
(DPI) - United Nations Department of Safety and SecurityDepartment for Safety and SecurityThe Department for Safety and Security is a department of the United Nations, dealing with the security and safety of its staff worldwide. It reports directly to the Secretary-General. Amongst other things, the Department responds to emergency situations and decides on security phases and...
(DSS)
Offices Away from Headquarters
- United Nations Office at GenevaUnited Nations Office at GenevaThe United Nations Office at Geneva is the second-largest of the four major office sites of the United Nations...
(UNOG) - United Nations Office at ViennaUnited Nations Office at ViennaThe United Nations Office in Vienna is one of the four major UN office sites where several different UN agencies have a joint presence. The office complex is located in Vienna, the capital of Austria, and is part of the Vienna International Centre, a cluster of several major international...
(UNOV) - United Nations Office at NairobiUnited Nations Office at NairobiThe United Nations Office at Nairobi is one of the four major UN office sites where several different UN agencies have a joint presence. The office complex is located in Nairobi, Kenya...
(UNON)
Secretaries-General
See also
- Dag Hammarskjöld LibraryDag Hammarskjöld LibraryThe Dag Hammarskjöld Library is part of the United Nations headquarters and is connected to the Secretariat and conference buildings through ground level and underground corridors. It is named after Dag Hammarskjöld, the second Secretary-General of the United Nations.The Library has specialized in...
- International Court of JusticeInternational Court of JusticeThe International Court of Justice is the primary judicial organ of the United Nations. It is based in the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands...
- The Four Nations Initiative on reform of governance and management issues in the UN SecretariatFour Nations InitiativeThe Four Nations Initiative, also known by the acronym 4NI, is a cooperation project started in 2005 as an initiative by Chile, South Africa, Sweden and Thailand...
- UN Economic and Social Council
- UN General Assembly
- UN Headquarters
- UN Security Council
- UN Trusteeship Council
- United Nations Interpretation ServiceUnited Nations Interpretation ServiceThe United Nations Interpretation Service is a part of the Meetings and Publishing Division of the UN's Department for General Assembly and Conference Management...
External links
- UN Secretariat
- Kofi Annan: strengthening the United Nations, in larger freedom, 21 March 2005.
- United States Department of State – UN Division
- The Four Nations Initiative