COURIER ONLINE

THE STANLEY FOUNDATION

Download the full report as an Adobe Acrobat PDF:
United Nations and Civil Society: The Role of NGOs
(Adobe Acrobat Reader required.)

Visit the Common Ground Web site for the transcript and audio of the radio program:

FREE downloads:
  Acrobat Reader
  RealPlayer

Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), ranging from Amnesty International to the Red Cross to any number of religious organizations, have long played a role providing key data and analysis to the United Nations and in implementing UN goals in the field. But over the last decade NGOs have become more involved than ever in global policymaking. This has provoked controversy as NGOs demand greater access to the decision-making processes—a scenario feared by some UN member states.

Earlier this year a group of UN ambassadors, scholars, and NGO representatives met to discuss "The United Nations and Civil Society: The Role of NGOs." The dialogue was the thirtieth annual United Nations Issues Conference hosted by the Stanley Foundation.

The report issued from the conference strongly affirmed the mutual benefits of constructive and sustainable partnerships between NGOs and the various UN bodies. Conference participants suggested several ways to facilitate the UN-NGO relationship without undermining member states' authority or burdening the United Nations. These include:

• Extending the ECOSOC rules and accreditation processes to the UN General Assembly and its subsidiary bodies, including working groups.

• Revising accreditation procedures to make them more objective, transparent, nonpolitical, prompt, and efficient.

• Allowing NGOs access to all meetings which are open to all member states.

• Strengthening mechanisms for increased access to information for member states, as well as NGOs. This includes upgrading the UN Optical Disc System making it more accessible to all; it also includes expanding and upgrading the UN Web site.

• Revising technical means to better facilitate formal and informal interaction between the United Nations and NGOs at Headquarters.

• Encouraging leadership in the Secretariat, NGOs, and member states to foster effective partnerships between the United Nations and NGOs.

• Shifting the United Nations' mind-set to one that fosters openness and transparency and that recognizes and efficiently utilizes the resources and skills resident in the new global civil society.