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About OECD. OECD Home › About the OECD Our mission The mission of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is to promote policies that will improve the economic and social well-being of people around the world. The OECD provides a forum in which governments can work together to share experiences and seek solutions to common problems. We work with governments to understand what drives economic, social and environmental change. We measure productivity and global flows of trade and investment. We analyse and compare data to predict future trends. We look, too, at issues that directly affect the lives of ordinary people, like how much they pay in taxes and social security, and how much leisure time they can take. Drawing on facts and real-life experience, we recommend policies designed to make the lives of ordinary people better. OECD at 50 and beyond As the OECD turns 50, we are focusing on helping governments in our member countries and elsewhere in four main areas:

Australia:Country Web Pages. 44442412.pdf (application/pdf Object) UN - United Nations. Millennium Development Goals. The Millennium Development Goals are a UN initiative. The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are eight international development goals that were established following the Millennium Summit of the United Nations in 2000, following the adoption of the United Nations Millennium Declaration.

All 189 United Nations member states at the time (there are 193 currently) and at least 23 international organizations committed to help achieve the Millennium Development Goals by 2015, the goals follow: Each goal has specific targets and dates for achieving those targets. To accelerate progress, the G8 Finance Ministers agreed in June 2005 to provide enough funds to the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the African Development Bank (AfDB) to cancel $40 to $55 billion in debt owed by members of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) to allow them to redirect resources to programs for improving health and education and for alleviating poverty.

Background[edit] Precursors[edit] Human Development Reports (HDR) – United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) United Nations. The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization established on 24 October 1945 to promote international co-operation. A replacement for the ineffective League of Nations, the organization was created following the Second World War to prevent another such conflict.

At its founding, the UN had 51 member states; there are now 193. The UN Headquarters is situated in Manhattan, New York City and enjoys extraterritoriality. Further main offices are situated in Geneva, Nairobi and Vienna. The organization is financed by assessed and voluntary contributions from its member states. During the Second World War, US President Franklin D. The organization won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2001, and a number of its officers and agencies have also been awarded the prize. History Background and creation Cold War era Dag Hammarskjöld was a particularly active Secretary-General from 1953 until his death in 1961. Post-Cold War Structure Principal organs of the United Nations[52] General Assembly. Kofi Annan's final speech. Kofi Annan has delivered his final speech as United Nations Secretary General at the Truman Presidential Museum and Library in Independence, Missouri.

The following is the text of the speech; subheadings inserted by the BBC. Thank you, Senator [Hagel] for that wonderful introduction. It is a great honour to be introduced by such a distinguished legislator. And thanks to you, Mr Devine, and all your staff, and to the wonderful UNA chapter of Kansas City, for all you have done to make this occasion possible. What a pleasure, and a privilege, to be here in Missouri. I arrived there straight from Africa - and I can tell you, Minnesota soon taught me the value of a thick overcoat, a warm scarf and even ear-muffs! When you leave one home for another, there are always lessons to be learnt. Today I want to talk particularly about five lessons I have learnt in the last 10 years, during which I have had the difficult but exhilarating role of Secretary General. Collective responsibility The rule of law. FAO. Food and Agriculture Organization. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO; French: Organisation des Nations unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture, Italian: Organizzazione delle Nazioni Unite per l'Alimentazione e l'Agricoltura) is an agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger.

Serving both developed and developing countries, FAO acts as a neutral forum where all nations meet as equals to negotiate agreements and debate policy. FAO is also a source of knowledge and information, and helps developing countries and countries in transition modernize and improve agriculture, forestry and fisheries practices, ensuring good nutrition and food security for all. Its Latin motto, fiat panis, translates as "let there be bread". As of 8 August 2013[update], FAO has 194 member states, along with the European Union (a "member organization"), and the Faroe Islands and Tokelau, which are associate members.[1] History[edit] Structure and finance[edit] Budget[edit] Food[edit] FAOSTAT. World Bank. World Bank. The World Bank is a United Nations international financial institution that provides loans[3] to developing countries for capital programs.

The World Bank is a component of the World Bank Group, and a member of the United Nations Development Group. Composition[edit] World Bank[edit] The World Bank is composed of two institutions: World Bank Group[edit] The World Bank should not be confused with the United Nations World Bank Group, a member of the United Nations Economic and Social Council, and a family of five international organizations that make leveraged loans to poor countries which is comprised of the:[6] History[edit] The World Bank was created at the 1944 Bretton Woods Conference, along with three other institutions, including the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Although many countries were represented at the Bretton Woods Conference, the United States and United Kingdom were the most powerful in attendance and dominated the negotiations.[8]:52–54 1944–1968[edit] 1968–1980[edit] Data | The World Bank. International Monetary Fund Home Page. About the IMF. International Monetary Fund. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is an international organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., of "188 countries working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world. "[1] Formed in 1944 at the Bretton Woods Conference, it came into formal existence in 1945 with 29 member countries and the goal of reconstructing the international payment system.

Countries contribute funds to a pool through a quota system from which countries experiencing balance of payments difficulties can borrow money. As of 2010[update], the fund had XDR476.8 billion, about US$755.7 billion at then-current exchange rates.[4] Functions[edit] The IMF's role was fundamentally altered by the floating exchange rates post-1971. Surveillance of the global economy[edit] IMF Data Dissemination Systems participants: IMF member using SDDS IMF member using GDDS Benefits[edit] Intergovernmental organization. An intergovernmental organization (or international governmental organization; IGO) is an organization composed primarily of sovereign states (referred to as member states), or of other intergovernmental organizations. Intergovernmental organizations are often called international organizations, although that term may also include international nongovernmental organization such as international nonprofit organizations or multinational corporations.

Intergovernmental organizations are an important aspect of public international law. IGOs are established by treaty that acts as a charter creating the group. Treaties are formed when lawful representatives (governments) of several states go through a ratification process, providing the IGO with an international legal personality. Intergovernmental organizations in a legal sense should be distinguished from simple groupings or coalitions of states, such as the G8 or the Quartet. Types and purposes[edit] Examples[edit] United Nations[edit] Mission. The Centre for Independent Studies. Civil society. The term civil society has a range of meanings in contemporary usage. It is sometimes considered to include the family and the private sphere, and referred to as the "third sector" of society, distinct from government and business.[1] Dictionary.com's 21st Century Lexicon defines civil society as 1) the aggregate of non-governmental organizations and institutions that manifest interests and will of citizens or 2) individuals and organizations in a society which are independent of the government.[2] Sometimes the term is used in the more general sense of "the elements such as freedom of speech, an independent judiciary, etc, that make up a democratic society" (Collins English Dictionary).[3] Volunteering is often considered a defining characteristic of the organizations that constitute civil society, which in turn are often called NGOs, or NPOs.

Etymology[edit] Democracy[edit] More recently, Robert D. Constitutional economics[edit] Globalization[edit] History[edit] Western antiquity[edit] Mapping: Creation of graphic matrices - CiSocH. Creation of a simple matrix with 4 entries: North or South actors, actors of the public sphere (State) and the private sphere (Market and civil society). These 4 elements can also be divided into subelements. The public sphere can be broken down into the regional, local and national levels. Once the actors are defined and located in one of the 4 sectors of the image, one can define the relations between them, drawing up lines of different thickness according to the strength of the link as well as of different colours to illustrate the different types of relationships (financial, political, opposite actors). Ideally, as defined in the principles of methodology, this exercise should be carried out with the actors themselves, or at least with those of the civil society, in workshops where scheme is created in a participatory way.

One can also imagine a classification of actors based on relevant criteria, according to the nature of the mapping, etc. Civil Society - Defining Civil Society.