As of 22 July 2021, the FEDE is an official partner of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). The special consultative status granted by ECOSOC’s Committee on NGOs will allow the FEDE to forge close ties with the world’s most important international organisation – a reference on social, economic and environmental issues. Everyone on the FEDE team is delighted at the exciting prospects this new partnership brings.
Presentation of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)
Since its founding in 1945, the United Nations (UN) has worked actively with NGOs, recognising their importance in advancing the Organisation’s ideals and supporting its work. Article 71 of the UN Charter states that the Economic and Social Council may take all necessary steps to consult NGOs on subjects falling under its competence. In 1946, the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) established a consultative status for 41 NGOs. 75 years later, in 2021, it has granted this status to nearly 5200 NGOs across the world. These partner NGOs help to strengthen connections between the UN and civil society and are active in various sectors, including education, health, the fight against poverty, human rights, gender equality, indigenous issues etc. The six main UN organs, established in 1945, are: the General Assembly (main deliberation, decision-making and representative organ of the United Nations); the Security Council (whose main responsibility is peacekeeping and national security); the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC); the United Nations Trusteeship Council; the International Court of Justice (main UN organ of justice); and the Secretariat (serves the other main UN organs by administering their policies and programmes). ECOSOC is the main organ in charge of making recommendations to Member States on economic, social, cultural, educational, public health, sustainable development-related and other associated matters. It is also in charge of implementing the UN’s internationally adopted development goals – in particular the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set out in the 2030 Agenda. It plays a central role in the activities of the United Nations system and of specialised UN agencies, particularly through its role in supervising subsidiary and consultative organs. Its role consists in examining relevant issues. It maintains close links with NGOs in its areas of competence. It is also the main UN deliberative, debating and innovation-seeking organ focusing on sustainable development. ECOSOC has 54 members, of which 18 are elected each year by the General Assembly on three-year terms. France is represented on ECOSOC until 2023, and Switzerland until 2022. Since 23 July 2020, the President of ECOSOC has been Mr Munir Akram, the Permanent Representative to the United Nations of Pakistan. ECOSOC has two headquarters – one in New York and one in Geneva. For more detailed information, take a look at ECOSOC’s website, (only available in English): https://www.un.org/ecosoc/
Special consultative status
The 19 members of ECOSOC’s Committee on NGOs can recommend two types of status for applicant NGOs. The first, general consultative status, is granted to large international NGOs whose areas of work and action cover the majority of items on the agendas of ECOSOC and its subsidiary organs. These NGOs are authorised to submit written communications and petitions to ECOSOC and to suggest items for inclusion in its agenda. The second status is special consultative status, which is granted to NGOs whose work focuses on a specific field. NGOs holding this status may submit written communications or petitions to ECOSOC. It was decided that the FEDE, in view of its expertise on educational matters, met the criteria for joining ECOSOC, and we have been granted special consultative status.
ECOSOC and NGOs
Since the adoption of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda in 2015, NGOs have played an important role as ECOSOC partners on the ground, helping the international community to implement the UN’s revolutionary agenda. The general idea is that governments, civil society, academics and the private sector should work together to advance sustainable development. Consultative status is a formal relationship between NGOs and the United Nations that enables civil society to get involved in the work of the UN. ECOSOC is the main point of entry into the UN system for NGOs, providing a formal framework for their participation in the Organisation. Accredited NGOs can take part in various events, including (but not only) regular sessions of ECOSOC and of its Functional Commissions and other subsidiary bodies. They can also attend official meetings; submit written declarations prior to sessions; deliver oral declarations; meet official government delegations, UN officials and other NGO representatives; organise and attend parallel events that take place during ECOSOC sessions; and take part in debates and interactive dialogues.
History of FEDE-ECOSOC relations since 2019
In March 2019, Claude Vivier Le Got met Lidiya Grigoreva (a UN diplomat) in Warsaw during a conference on connections between European civil society and the Council of Europe. Lidiya Grigoreva, who is Director of the NGO Liaison Unit at the Office of the Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, encouraged the FEDE’s Chairwoman to submit an application to request special consultative status at ECOSOC. Following this fruitful discussion, the FEDE compiled and submitted its application to ECOSOC at the end of May 2019. Our application was to be examined by the relevant bodies between February and July 2020. However, the global pandemic prevented UN staff from meeting to assess NGO applications. Consequently, the procedure was postponed to 2021. On 7 June 2021, the Committee on NGOs recommended that ECOSOC grant general consultative status to four NGOs, and special consultative status to 432 others. Of the five applicants for general consultative status, the following NGOs were successful: the American NGOs Institute of Noahide and The Fishermen; the Cameroonian NGO African Network for Young Peace and Sustainable Development; and the French NGO International Association of University Professors and Lecturers. Of the 855 applications received, the Committee recommended special consultative status for 432 NGOs, including the FEDE. Finally, on 21 and 22 July 2021, ECOSOC gave its decision as to the Committee’s recommendations and officially granted the FEDE special consultative status.
Prospects for the FEDE-ECOSOC partnership
Now that it has obtained special consultative status, the FEDE will have access to the meetings of numerous ECOSOC subsidiary bodies, such as: the Partnerships Forum; the Commission for Social Development; the Commission on the Status of Women; the Commission on Population and Development; the Committee on Non-Governmental Organisations; the Youth Forum (organised every year since 2012); and certain extraordinary meetings depending on the subject addressed.
Each year during the Partnerships Forum, ECOSOC and other UN bodies work together to assemble some of the most influential leaders from politics, the private sector, NGOs and civil society. Those convened discuss innovative ways in which partnerships might be used to advance international development. The Forum expands the range of people involved in ECOSOC and promotes concrete measures to help different groups to work together to achieve the 2030 Agenda. The Forum sessions of recent years have covered topics such as ‘more and better jobs for young people,’ ‘innovative solutions for sustainable development’ and ‘the contribution of partnerships to the Sustainable Development Goals’.
