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If the country suffers serious payments imbalances related to structural problems in production, trade, or prices, the adjustment process is likely to require both a longer period of time and greater resources than normally permitted under the credit tranche facility. In such situations, the member may make use of the Extended Fund Facility, under which up to 140 per cent of its quota may be purchased beyond the first credit tranche. Depending on whether the credit tranche or the extended Fund facility is used, resources are provided through lines of credit called stand-by or extended arrangements, and normally take place over a period of one year, although the period may be extended up to three years. Drawings are repayable within three to five years under the credit tranche facility and four to ten years under the extended Fund facility.
When a member receives financial assistance under the Fund’s credit facilities, it must adopt a programme of specific measures to overcome its payments imbalance and thus provide assurance that it can repay the funds received. This aspect of Fund policies is known as conditionality. The Fund staff helps member countries design adjustment programmes having due regard to their domestic, social and political objectives, economic priorities, and general circumstances. Drawings under both the credit tranche policy and the extended Fund facility are subject to a one-time service charge of 0.5 per cent, plus a charge at an annual rate on outstanding drawings.
The Fund also makes resources available under two special purpose facilities: the compensatory and the buffer stock financing facilities. Compensatory financing is available to members facing payments difficulties resulting from temporary shortfalls in their export earnings that are due largely to conditions beyond their control, such as falling commodity prices or natural disasters, including bad weather. In 1981, this facility was broadened to provide assistance to members facing payments difficulties owing to an excess in the cost of cereal imports. Buffer stock financing, available up to 45 per cent of quota, is available to members having payments difficulties to finance their contributions to international buffer stocks that are maintained to stabilise world markets for commodities.
Structural adjustment facility
The structural adjustment facility provides loans to low-income member countries that are facing protracted balance of payments problems and that agree to undertake medium-term structural adjustment programmes.
SDRs (special drawing rights)
The SDR is an international reserve asset created by the Fund to supplement existing reserve assets. It is the unit of account of the Fund, and is also used as such by a number of international and regional organisations and in capital markets as a denominator and a unit of contract, such as in SDR-denominated deposits with commercial banks. It is the members’ declared intention, expressed in the Fund’s Articles, that the SDR shall eventually become the principal reserve asset in the international monetary system. The method of valuation of the SDR is determined by the Fund, and since January 1981, the 'basket' has consisted of the currencies of the five members with the highest value of exports of goods and services.
Technical assistance
Member countries of the Fund may make use of its technical assistance for helping to improve the management of their economies. Experts sent to member countries by the Fund advise on fiscal, monetary, and balance of payments policies, central and general banking, statistics, accounting, exchange and trade systems, and operational aspects of Fund policies.
The World Bank’s goal is to reduce poverty and improve living standards by promoting sustainable growth and investment in people. The bank provides loans, technical assistance, and policy guidance to help its developing-country members achieve this objective.
The following form part of the World Bank group:
The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (lBRD) - founded in 1944 - is the single largest provider of development loans to middle-income developing countries and a major catalyst of similar financing from other sources. While the World Bank has traditionally financed a wide variety of capital infrastructure such as roads and railways, telecommunications, and ports and power facilities, its development strategy also places an emphasis on investments that can directly affect the well-being of the masses of poor people of developing countries by making them more productive and by integrating them as active partners in the development process. It also works on a basis of partnership with non-governmental organisations, UN agencies, the business community, regional organisations, and its 179 member counties.
The Bank’'s concept of 'development' is based on targeting 'human needs' rather than relying on the 'trickle down' theory, and special emphasis is placed on sustainability, environmental protection, the increased participation of women in economic decision-making, family planning, greater transparency and open forms of government and recognition of the benefits of entrepreneurship, competitive private sector activity and a 'market friendly' approach to development. It also provides assistance for the process of economic transition undertaken in Russia, the Baltics, and the countries of East and Central Europe.
The Bank’s capital is subscribed by its member countries, and it finances its lending operations primarily from its own borrowing in the world capital markets. A substantial contribution to the IBRD’s resources also comes from its retained earnings and the flow of repayments on its loans. These generally have a grace period of five years and are repayable over twenty years or less. They are directed towards developing countries at more advanced stages of economic and social growth. The interest rate that the IBRD charges on its loans is calculated in accordance with a guideline related to its cost of borrowing. The IBRD’s Charter spells out certain basic rules that govern its operations. It must lend only for productive purposes, and must stimulate economic growth in the developing countries where it lends. It must pay due regard to the prospects of repayment, and each loan is made to a government or must be guaranteed by the government concerned. The use of loans cannot be restricted to purchases in any particular member country, and the IBRD’s decision to lend must be based on economic considerations.
The International Development Association (IDA), founded in 1960, assists the poorest countries by providing interest-free credits. The terms of IDA credits, which are made to governments only, are ten-year grace periods, up to fifty-year maturities, and no interest. In all some sixty countries are eligible for such loans. IDA is primarily funded by government contributions.
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), established in 1956, assists the economic development of less-developed countries by promoting growth in the private sector of their economies through loan and equity financing as well as advisory services, and helping to mobilise domestic and foreign capital for this purpose. Membership in the IBRD is a prerequisite for membership of the IFC. Legally and financially, the IFC and the IBRD are separate entities. The IFC has its own operating and legal staff, but draws upon the Bank for administrative and other services.
The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) - offers investors insurance against non-commercial risk and helps governments in developing countries to attract foreign investment.
The International Center for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) - encourages the flow of foreign investment to developing countries through arbitration and conciliation facilities.
UNITED NATIONS EDUCATIONAL SCIENTIFIC AND
CULTURAL ORGANISATION
The aims of UNESCO are concentrated on practical projects for raising educational standards throughout the world, the exchange of knowledge, and the encouragement of international cooperation in the fields of education, science and culture. It seeks to provide better living conditions through scientific research and cooperation and to improve the scope and quality of mass communication throughout the world. It has its headquarters and Secretariat in Paris, and is controlled by a General Conference of all member states meeting every two years and an Executive Board of fifty-one meeting at least three times a year. National commissions extend the sphere of UNESCO activities to include the majority of member countries, and there are branch offices in New York and Havana; regional education offices in Santiago, Bangkok, Dakar and Beirut; and regional science offices in Nairobi, Montevideo, Cairo, Delhi and Jakarta.
UNDP became a specialised agency of the UN on January 1 1986. It is an amalgam of the United Nations Special Fund and the Expanded Technical Assistance Programme providing technical advice and aid to developing countries, its funds being obtained from donations by member states. In partnership with governments it undertakes high priority, pre-investment projects; makes available experts and consultants as well as specialised equipment and contract services, and offers fellowship awards for training abroad. Assistance is given in support of projects to increase agricultural and industrial productivity, to conduct feasibility studies and to establish or expand applied research institutes and facilities for training and education, as well as to strengthen the administrative and institutional framework for development, and work in a variety of other essential fields.
The UNDP is controlled by a Governing Council composed of forty-eight members elected by ECOSOC and maintains Resident Representatives in nearly one hundred recipient countries. Its headquarters are in New York.
The UPU is responsible for the maintenance and development of postal services throughout the world. It has its headquarters in Berne and is controlled by the Universal Postal Congress composed of all member states meeting every five years and a permanent Executive Council of forty-one elected on a geographical basis by the Congress which meets annually.
The aim of the WHO is the improvement of world standards of health - principally physical, but also mental and social. In view of the extent and diversity of the problems it has to face it has established regional offices in Alexandria, Brazzaville, Copenhagen, Delhi, Manila and Washington, and committees of experts in a wide number of fields. It has its headquarters and Secretariat in Geneva and is controlled by the World Health Assembly consisting of all member states meeting annually and an Executive Board of thirty-one elected by the Assembly.
WIPO became a Specialised Agency in December 1974, and is responsible for the promotion, through cooperation among member states, of worldwide protection of Intellectual Property which the Organisation defines as inventions, trademarks, designs and copyrights. The agency is also responsible for the administration of various 'Unions' comprising groups of states which are parties to a particular Convention, e.g. the Berne Convention on Copyright. A substantial part of the activities and resources of WIPO is devoted to assistance in developing countries, particular emphasis being laid on the transfer of technology. The headquarters of the organisation are in Geneva, where an annual Conference of all member states is held to plan the next year’s activities and budget, and also where the majority of the almost daily technical meetings are held. The conference is normally a joint one with the General Assembly of those states party to the Berne or Paris 'Unions'.
The WMO seeks to maintain and improve international cooperation and coordination in the field of meteorological services, in particular the exchange and standardisation of weather data and the establishment of a worldwide network of meteorological stations. It encourages research and training in meteorology, and furthers the study of the application of meteorology to shipping, water usage, agriculture, and other human activities. It has its headquarters and Secretariat in Geneva and is controlled by the World Meteorological Congress composed of the heads of the meteorological services of member states meeting every four years and an Executive Committee of twenty-nine meeting annually.
As the United Nations has developed, the General Assembly has found it necessary to establish several new organisations in order to fulfil its obligations satisfactorily. All vary considerably in scope and constitution, but all depend ultimately on the General Assembly.
HUMAN RIGHTS
International intervention in support of human rights has existed for a very long time and in a wide variety of forms. It received a major impetus with the adoption of the Covenant of the League of Nations and the subsequent establishment of the International Labour Organisation in 1919, but human rights in the widest sense became a definitive factor in international relations with the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the General Assembly on 10 December 1948. The Assembly called upon all member countries to publicise the text and 'to cause it to be disseminated, displayed, read and expounded principally in schools and other educational institutions, without distinction based on the political status of countries or territories'.
On the basis of the Declaration, two international instruments have been drawn up:
· the International Convention on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights which came into effect on 3 January 1976 and which has been ratified or acceded to by eight-four states; and
· the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Optional Protocol which came into force on 23 March 1976. Eighty-one states have ratified or acceded to the Covenant, and thirty-four have ratified or acceded to the Optional Protocol.
It is the responsibility of the Economic and Social Council, in terms of article 62 of the Charter, to 'make recommendations for the purpose of promoting respect for, and observance of, human rights and fundamental freedoms for all', and such matters are normally dealt with by the Council’s Second (Social) Committee. The Council has also established the Commission on Human Rights and the Commission on the Status of Women.
The Commission on Human Rights meets annually for a period of approximately six weeks and may concern itself with any matter relating to human rights. It is composed of representatives of forty-three member states, and its subsidiary bodies include the Sub-Commission on the Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities, and various working parties.
The Commission on the Status of Women is composed of representatives of thirty-two member states of the United Nations and meets twice a year for periods of three weeks. Its main task is to prepare draft resolutions and decisions for consideration by the Economic and Social Council, and on 18 December 1979 the General Assembly adopted the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women which entered into force on 3 September 1981. This establishes, inter alia, a twenty-three-member Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women which reports annually to the General Assembly.
The Human Rights Committee was established in 1977 under the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in order to monitor the progress of member states in the implementation of human rights. It consists of eighteen members of high moral character and recognised competence in the field of human rights, elected by states which are party to the Convention from among their nationals and who act in a personal capacity for a four-year term. The Committee may receive complaints from states and also, in respect of those states signatories of the Optional Protocol, from individuals. It normally holds three sessions annually, and reports to the General Assembly.
The task of enforcing human rights under the direction of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights is constantly to the forefront of United Nations activities, and in addition to the formal framework established under the Charter, the General Assembly and its specialised agencies have from time to time agreed Declarations and resolutions on pressing issues such as Apartheid and all forms of racial discrimination, Victims of Torture and Migrant Workers, as well as on situations arising in specific countries.
The ILC was set up by resolution of the UN General Assembly in November 1947. The body consists of thirty-four distinguished international lawyers, who are elected by the General Assembly for a five-year period of office, and exists to encourage 'the progressive development of international law and its codification'. The members of the Commission are not government representatives but are elected on a personal basis and sit in their personal capacity as experts. The ILC conducts its sessions in Geneva.
INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH AND TRAINING
INSTITUTE FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF WOMEN
INSTRAW was established by the General Assembly in 1985 and seeks to stimulate and assist, through research, training and the collection and exchange of information, the efforts of inter-governmental, governmental and non-governmental organisations aimed at the advancement of women in development both as participants and beneficiaries. The Institute is funded by voluntary contributions and is situated in Santa Domingo, Dominican Republic.
Of the special committees and commissions set up by the General Assembly from time to time for specific purposes those listed above have acquired a permanent or semi-permanent nature; others, equally dependent on the General Assembly, have not become institutionalised to the same extent. In addition to those with a purely organisational or administrative function they deal with peace-keeping and security, political matters, decolonisation and questions relating to trusteeship, legal, scientific, and educational matters; they include:
Commission for the Unification and Rehabilitation of Korea
Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space
Conciliation Commission for Palestine
Scientific Committee on the Effects of Radiation
Working Group on Direct Broadcasting Satellites
United Nations University (Tokyo)
World Food Council
UN CONFERENCE ON DISARMAMENT AND THE
DISARMAMENT COMMISSION
The Conference on Disarmament stems from an agreement by the USA, then the USSR, France and the UK in 1959 to set up a Ten Nation Committee on Disarmament to include representatives of their four countries together with Bulgaria, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Italy, Poland and Romania. In 1961 it was expanded into an Eighteen Nation Disarmament Committee, and again in 1969 to twenty-six members, when it was renamed the Conference of the Committee on Disarmament (CCD). At the first UN Special Session on Disarmament (UNSSD) in 1978 it was increased to forty members, and its name was changed back to the Committee on Disarmament (CD). Its name was changed again to the Conference on Disarmament in 1984. The Conference meets twice a year, from February to April and from June to August, in Geneva. It is the only multilateral negotiating body of the international community as a whole in the field of disarmament.
The UN Disarmament Commission (UNDC), in contrast, is a deliberative body. It was first formed under the Security Council in 1952 with a membership of eleven states, subsequently increased to twenty- five in 1957 and then a year later it was increased to comprise all members of the UN. The UNDC did not meet from 1965 until 1979, but following its revival by the first Special Session on Disarmament substantive sessions of the UNDC are held once a year in New York.
UNICEF provides aid and welfare to children throughout the world. It assists specific projects in the fields of health, nutrition, family and child welfare, education and vocational training; provides basic equipment for maternal and child health centres, and training and stipends for their staff; helps campaigns against endemic diseases; encourages increased production and consumption of protective foods; provides aid for basic social services for children in developing countries, and emergency help to children who are victims of floods, earthquake, drought or other disasters. It comes under the aegis of ECOSOC and obtains its funds in the form of donations from governments and private sources. The Executive Director is appointed by the UN Secretary-General in consultation with the Board of thirty-one members which meets annually to determine policy. The Fund is based in the UN Secretariat in New York, with regional officers in Abidjan, Bangkok, Bogota, Copenhagen, Kathmandu, Sydney and Tokyo.
UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE ON TRADE
AND DEVELOPMENT
UNCTAD originally met in 1964 as a Conference convened by the General Assembly in order to help restructure the traditional patterns of international trade in the interests of developing countries. It became institutionalised as an organ of the General Assembly, and reports to the General Assembly through the Economic and Social Council. Its purpose is to obtain fair and stable prices for primary commodities, to facilitate trade and development, and in particular to enable developing countries to gain access to the markets of developed countries. It has its headquarters and Secretariat in Geneva, and is controlled by a Conference of its members meeting every four years and a Trade and Development Board consisting of 124 members elected by the Conference and meeting annually. It has seven main Committees: Shipping; Manufactures; Commodities; Invisibles and Financing related to Trade; Economic Cooperation among Developing Countries; Transfer of Technology and the special Committee on Preferences; also various subcommittees, working parties and ad hoc committees of experts. Among the major achievements of UNCTAD are the Generalised System of Preferences and the concept of solidarity and cooperation among developing countries.
The UNEP was established as a result of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment held in Stockholm in 1973. Its major purpose is to encourage and coordinate policies for the reduction of pollution in its various forms, and to carry out research and relevant studies. Its headquarters and Secretariat are in Nairobi, with regional offices in Bahrein, Bangkok, Cairo, Geneva, Mexico City and New York.