5 Steps to get a job in the United Nations

The United Nations System - All UN agencies 2024

The United Nations System is a complex network of entities and specialized agencies, each with its unique mandate and focus area, working together towards peace, security, development, and human rights globally. Below is a list of key UN agencies, along with brief descriptions of their primary functions and goals.

1. United Nations (UN)

The main body responsible for international peace and security, developing friendly relations among nations, achieving international cooperation, and being a center for harmonizing actions of nations.

2. United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)

Focuses on providing humanitarian and developmental aid to children worldwide, ensuring every child has the opportunity to learn, grow, and thrive.

3. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)

Aims to build peace through international cooperation in education, sciences, and culture, promoting universal respect for justice, the rule of law, and human rights.

4. World Health Organization (WHO)

Directs and coordinates international health within the United Nations system, focusing on universal healthcare, monitoring public health risks, and coordinating responses to health emergencies.

𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝗮 𝗝𝗼𝗯 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗨𝗡! 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗡𝗘𝗪 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗿𝘂𝗶𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗚𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗨𝗡 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗨𝗡𝗛𝗖𝗥, 𝗪𝗙𝗣, 𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗖𝗘𝗙, 𝗨𝗡𝗗𝗦𝗦, 𝗨𝗡𝗙𝗣𝗔, 𝗜𝗢𝗠 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀!

5. United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

Works in nearly 170 countries and territories, helping to achieve the eradication of poverty, and the reduction of inequalities and exclusion, while helping nations develop policies, leadership skills, partnering abilities, institutional capabilities, and build resilience to sustain development results.

6. United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)

Leads the UN's environmental activities and assists countries in implementing environmentally sound policies and practices.

7. World Food Programme (WFP)

The food-assistance branch of the United Nations, working to combat hunger, improve nutrition, and achieve food security.

8. International Labour Organization (ILO)

Dedicated to promoting social justice and internationally recognized human and labor rights, pursuing its founding mission that social justice is essential to universal and lasting peace.

9. International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Works to secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world.

10. World Bank Group

Consists of five institutions focused on providing financial and technical assistance to developing countries for development programs (e.g., bridges, roads, education, health) that are expected to improve the economic prospects and quality of life for people in those countries.

11. United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)

Protects refugees, forcibly displaced communities, and stateless people, and assists in their voluntary repatriation, local integration, or resettlement to a third country.

12. United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)

The leading UN agency for delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe, and every young person's potential is fulfilled.

13. United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA)

Provides assistance and protection for some 5.7 million Palestine refugees to help them achieve their full potential in human development.

14. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)

Leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition and food security.

15. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)

Promotes the peaceful use of nuclear energy and inhibits its use for any military purpose, including nuclear weapons.

16. World Trade Organization (WTO)

Deals with the global rules of trade between nations, ensuring that trade flows as smoothly, predictably, and freely as possible.

17. International Maritime Organization (IMO)

Focuses on the safety and security of shipping and the prevention of marine and atmospheric pollution by ships.

18. International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)

Works to foster the planning and development of international air transport to ensure safe and orderly growth.

19. United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)

Promotes industrial development for poverty reduction, inclusive globalization, and environmental sustainability.

20. World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

A global forum for intellectual property services, policy, information, and cooperation, aiming to lead the development of a balanced and effective international IP system.

This list encompasses the core agencies within the United Nations system, each playing a vital role in addressing global challenges and working towards a better world for all.

Specialized Agencies

Universal Postal Union (UPU): Promotes and coordinates international postal services.
International Telecommunication Union (ITU): Facilitates international connectivity in communications networks.
World Meteorological Organization (WMO): Provides world leadership and expertise in international cooperation in the delivery and use of high-quality, authoritative weather, climate, hydrological, and related environmental services by its members, for the improvement of the well-being of societies of all nations.
International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD): Works to address poverty and hunger in rural areas of developing countries.

Related Organizations

International Organization for Migration (IOM): Promotes humane and orderly migration for the benefit of all.
Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW): Implements the Chemical Weapons Convention worldwide to eliminate chemical weapons.
Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO): Promotes the ban on nuclear tests by all countries.
International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS): An independent judicial body established to adjudicate disputes arising out of the interpretation and application of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Funds and Programs

United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD): Aims to integrate developing countries more equitably into the world economy.
United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat): Works for a better urban future by promoting socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities.
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC): Aims to combat drugs, crime, and terrorism worldwide.
United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD): Conducts research on the social dimensions of contemporary development issues.

Other Entities

United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS): Provides infrastructure, procurement, and project management services to help build the capacity of developing countries.
United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA): Mobilizes and coordinates humanitarian efforts to ensure crises-affected people receive the assistance they need.
United Nations System Chief Executives Board for Coordination (CEB): Enhances UN system-wide coordination and cooperation on substantive and management issues.
United Nations Peacekeeping: Helps countries navigate the difficult path from conflict to peace by deploying peacekeepers to assist in conflict resolution, peacebuilding, and political stability efforts.

Secretariat Departments and Offices

Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs (DPPA): Provides the Secretary-General with support on peace and security issues.
Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA): Works to promote sustainable development worldwide.
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): Promotes and protects all human rights and freedoms.
United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA): Promotes nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation.

This expanded list includes a broader range of entities within the UN system, showcasing the diverse scope of the organization's efforts to address global challenges across multiple fronts. Each entity plays a critical role in advancing the goals and values of the United Nations, contributing to a more peaceful, prosperous, and sustainable world.

Funds and Programs (continued)

United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA): Serves as the governing body of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and is the world's highest-level decision-making body on the environment.
United Nations Democracy Fund (UNDEF): Supports projects that strengthen the voice of civil society, promote human rights, and encourage the participation of all groups in democratic processes.
United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF): Provides microfinance and investment capital to the world's 48 least developed countries (LDCs).
United Nations Volunteers (UNV) program: Contributes to peace and development through volunteerism worldwide.

Research and Training Institutes

United Nations University (UNU): Contributes, through research and education, to efforts to resolve the pressing global problems that are the concern of the United Nations and its member states.
United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR): Provides training and capacity development activities to assist mainly developing countries.
United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI): Supports countries worldwide in preventing crime and facilitating criminal justice.
United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR): Independently generates ideas and promotes action on disarmament and security.

Other Significant Entities

United Nations System Staff College (UNSSC): Provides learning and training programs to staff of the United Nations system across the globe.
Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS): Leads and inspires the world in achieving universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care, and support.
United Nations Office for Partnerships (UNOP): Serves as a gateway for partnership opportunities with the UN family.
United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA): Works to promote international cooperation in the peaceful use and exploration of outer space.
United Nations Office on Genocide Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect: Aims to advance national and international efforts to protect populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing, and crimes against humanity.
United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC): Aims to promote, coordinate, and support South-South and triangular cooperation globally and within the United Nations system.
United Nations Global Compact: Encourages businesses worldwide to adopt sustainable and socially responsible policies, and to report on their implementation.

Commissions, Committees, and Boards

United Nations Statistical Commission: Oversees the work of the UN Statistics Division and sets statistical standards and norms.
Commission on the Status of Women (CSW): Dedicated to promoting gender equality and the empowerment of women.
United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL): Works to harmonize and modernize international trade law.
United Nations Dispute Tribunal (UNDT) and United Nations Appeals Tribunal (UNAT): Form the core of the internal justice system in the UN, handling disputes and appeals filed by UN staff members.

Regional Commissions

Economic Commission for Africa (ECA)
Economic Commission for Europe (ECE)
Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC)
Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP)
Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA)

Notes:

1 Members of the United Nations System Chief Executives Board for Coordination (CEB).

2 UN Office for Partnerships (UNOP) is the UN’s focal point vis-a-vis the United Nations Foundation, Inc.

3 IAEA and OPCW report to the Security Council and the General Assembly (GA).

4 WTO has no reporting obligation to the GA, but contributes on an ad hoc basis to GA and Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) work on, inter alia, finance and development issues.

5 Specialized agencies are autonomous organizations whose work is coordinated through ECOSOC (intergovernmental level) and CEB (intersecretariat level).

6 The Trusteeship Council suspended operation on 1 November 1994, as on 1 October 1994 Palau, the last United Nations Trust Territory, became independent.

7 International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) and Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) are not specialized agencies in accordance with Articles 57 and 63 of the Charter, but are part of the World Bank Group.

8 The secretariats of these organs are part of the UN Secretariat.

9 The Secretariat also includes the following offices: The Ethics Office, United Nations Ombudsman and Mediation Services, Office of Administration of Justice and the Office on Sport for Development and Peace

𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝗮 𝗝𝗼𝗯 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗨𝗡 ! 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗡𝗘𝗪 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗿𝘂𝗶𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗚𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗨𝗡 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗨𝗡𝗛𝗖𝗥, 𝗪𝗙𝗣, 𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗖𝗘𝗙, 𝗨𝗡𝗗𝗦𝗦, 𝗨𝗡𝗙𝗣𝗔, 𝗜𝗢𝗠 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀!

These commissions focus on promoting economic and social development in their respective regions through cooperation and integration.

This continuation provides a more comprehensive view of the extensive network that comprises the United Nations system. Each entity, with its unique mandate and focus area, plays a crucial role in the collective effort to address a wide range of global challenges, from promoting peace and security to fostering economic growth, advancing human rights, and ensuring environmental sustainability.

Diagrama of UN system - UN system