refers to those extremely poor less developed countries (LDCs) with little prospect for economic growth; see least developed countries (LLDCs)
Union Latina
established - 15 May 1954; became functional 1983 aim - to project,
protect, and promote the common heritage and unifying identities of the
Latin, and Latin-influenced, world members - (37) Andorra, Angola,
Bolivia, Brazil, Cape Verde, Chile, Colombia, Cote d'Ivoire, Costa
Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, France,
Guatemala, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Honduras, Italy, Mexico, Moldova,
Monaco, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines,
Portugal, Romania, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Spain,
Timor-Leste, Uruguay, Venezuela observers - (3) Argentina, Holy See,
Order of Malta
Union of South American Nations (UNASUR - Spanish; UNASUL - Portuguese)
formerly South American Community of Nations which terminated on 16 April 2007 established - 23 May 2008 aim - to model a community after the European Union which will include a common currency, parliament, passport, and defense policy members - (12) Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, Venezuela observers - (2) Mexico, Panama
United Nations (UN)
established - 26 June 1945; effective - 24 October 1945 aim - to
maintain international peace and security and to promote cooperation
involving economic, social, cultural, and humanitarian problems
constituent organizations - the UN is composed of six principal organs
and numerous subordinate agencies and bodies as follows: 1)
Secretariat 2) General Assembly: Joint United Nations Program on
HIV/AIDS (UN-AIDS), International Research and Training Institute for
the Advancement of Women (INSTRAW), Office of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), Organization for the Prohibition
of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), Preparation Committee for the Nuclear-Test-
Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), United Nations Center for Human
Settlements (UN-Habitat), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF),
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), United
Nations Democracy Fund (UNDEF), United Nations Development Program
(UNDP), United Nations Drug Control Program (UNDCP), United Nations
Environment Program (UNEP),United Nations Fund for International
Partnerships (UNFIP), United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
(UNHCR), United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR),
United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), United
Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI),
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), United Nations Office of
Project Services (UNOPS), United Nations Relief and Works Agency for
Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), United Nations Research
Institute for Social Development (UNRISD), United Nations System Staff
College (UNSSC), United Nations University (UNU), World Food Program
(WFP) 3) Security Council: International Criminal Tribunal for the
Former Yugoslavia (ICTY), International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda
(ICTR), United Nations Compensation Commission, United Nations
Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF), African Union/United Nations
Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID), United Nations Integrated Mission
in Timor-Leste (UNMIT), United Nations Interim Administration Mission
in Kosovo (UNMIK), United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL),
United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL), United Nations Military
Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP), United Nations
Operation in Cote d'Ivoire (UNOCI), United Nations Mission for the
Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), United Nations Mission in the
Central African Republic and Chad (MINURCAT), United Nations Mission in
the Sudan (UNMIS), United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG),
United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the
Congo (MONUC), United Nations Peace-Keeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP),
United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), and United
Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) 4) Economic and Social
Council (ECOSOC): Commission for Social Development, Commission on
Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, Commission on Narcotics Drugs,
Commission on Population and Development, Commission on Science and
Technology for Development, Commission on Sustainable Development,
Commission on the Status of Women, Economic and Social Commission for
Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), Economic and Social Commission for
Western Asia (ESCWA), Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), Economic
Commission for Europe (ECE), Economic Commission for Latin America and
the Caribbean (ECLAC), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United
Nations (FAO), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), International
Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), International Center
for Secretariat of Investment Disputes (ICSID), International Civil
Aviation Organization (ICAO), International Development Association
(IDA), International Finance Corporation (IFC), International Fund for
Agricultural Development (IFAD), International Labor Organization
(ILO), International Maritime Organization (IMO), International
Monetary Fund (IMF), International Telecommunication Union (ITU),
Multilateral Investment Geographic Agency (MIGA), Statistical
Commission, United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO), United Nations Forum on Forests, United Nations
Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), Universal Postal Union
(UPU), World Health Organization (WHO), World Intellectual Property
Organization (WIPO), World Meteorological Organization (WMO), World
Tourism Organization (UNWTO), and World Trade Organization (WTO) 5)
Trusteeship Council (inactive; no trusteeships at this time) 6)
International Court of Justice (ICJ)
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)
note - acronym retained from the predecessor organization, UN International Children's Emergency Fund established - 11 December 1946 aim - to help establish child health and welfare services members - (36) selected on a rotating basis from all regions
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)