Young Power in Social Action (www.ypsa.org) as a National voluntary, nonprofit, social development organization has been recommended to approve for the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) special consultative status during the meeting of UN Committee on NGO’s in New York , USA on 23 May 2013.
The UN Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations continued vetting the dozens of applications before it, recommending special consultative status with the Economic and Social Council for YPSA. The 19-member Committee recommends that the Council grant special consultative status, in accordance with such criteria as the applicant’s mandate, governance and financial regime.
Introduction to ECOSOC Consultative Status
The first venue by which non-governmental organizations took a role in formal UN deliberations was through the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). 41 NGOs were granted consultative status by the council in 1946; by 1992 more that 700 NGOs had attained consultative status and the number has been steadily increasing ever since to 3,735 organizations today.
Article 71 of the UN Charter opened the door providing for suitable arrangements for consultation with non-governmental organizations. The consultative relationship with ECOSOC is governed today by ECOSOC resolution 1996/31, which outlines the eligibility requirements for consultative status, rights and obligations of NGOs in consultative status, procedures for the withdrawal or suspension of consultative status, the role and functions of the ECOSOC Committee on NGOs, and the responsibilities of the UN Secretariat in supporting the consultative relationship.
Consultative status is granted by ECOSOC upon recommendation of the ECOSOC Committee on NGOs, which is comprised of 19 Member States.
ECOSOC & United Nations:
The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) constitutes one of the principal organs of the United Nations. It is responsible for coordinating the economic, social and related work of 14 UN specialized agencies, their functional commissions and five regional commissions. ECOSOC has 54 members; it holds a four-week session each year in July. Since 1998, it has also held a meeting each April with finance ministers heading key committees of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The ECOSOC serves as the central forum for discussing international economic and social issues, and for formulating policy recommendations addressed to member states and the United Nations system. A number of non-governmental organizations are granted Consultative Status to the Council.
