United Nations - The Secretariat
The United Nations is perhaps the preeminent international organization. It has almost 200 member nations, all of whom agree to be bound by the U.N. Charter. The U.N. was formed in 1945 with the purposes of maintaining peace, developing international relations among nations, and achieving cooperation in various areas such as social, economic, or cultural arenas. Structurally, the U.N. is set up with six principal organs. These are the General Assembly, the Secretariat, the Economic and Social Council, the Security Council, the International Court of Justice, and the Trusteeship Council.
The Secretariat carries out the day-to-day work of the United Nations. This includes issuing press releases, organizing conferences, and translating documents. The Secretariat is also charged with assisting the other bodies of the U.N. in their substantive work and helping to administer U.N. programs. The Secretariat therefore deals with issues as varied as the issues that each program, fund, council, or other U.N. entity may be charged with handling. This includes peacekeeping operations; economic, social, and cultural issues; and environmental issues such as sustainable development.
The Secretariat is headed by the U.N. Secretary-General. The Secretary-General is appointed by the General Assembly after recommendation by the Security Council. The term of office for the Secretary-General is five years. There is no rule limiting the number of terms a Secretary-General may serve, but to date no person has served more than two terms. Currently, Kofi Annan serves as Secretary-General. He is in the middle of his second of two terms, and his term ends in December of 2006.
The Secretariat is based at U.N. Headquarters in New York, although there are U.N. offices around the world, including major presences in Geneva, Nairobi, Santiago, and Vienna among other places. The Secretariat's staff numbers in the thousands. The staff of the Secretariat must take an oath not to seek or receive instructions from any government or other organization. Likewise, member nations agree not to try to influence Secretariat staff in the execution of their duties.
Several U.N. offices are charged with assisting the Secretariat to fulfill its duties. These include the Office of Internal Oversight Services, the Office of Legal Affairs, and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. In addition, several departments fall under the umbrella of the Secretariat. These include the Department for Disarmament Affairs, the Department of Peace-Keeping Operations, and the Department of Management.
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