🕊️ What is the United Nations?
The United
Nations (UN) is an international organization created
in 1945 after the Second World War.
It was founded by 51 countries to:
- Maintain international peace and security
- Promote friendly relations among countries
- Improve living standards, human rights,
and social progress
Today, the
UN has 193 member countries.
📜 Brief History
- 1944 – Dumbarton Oaks Conference (USA): Major powers discussed plans for a post-war global
organization
- 1945 – San Francisco Conference: Representatives
of 50 countries drafted the UN Charter
- 26 June 1945: UN
Charter signed
- 24 October 1945: United
Nations officially came into existence
- Poland became the 51st founding
member
🎯 Main Purposes of the United
Nations
The UN
has four key goals:
- Maintain peace and
prevent wars
- Develop friendly relations among
nations
- Improve human life by
fighting poverty, hunger, disease, and illiteracy
- Coordinate global action to
achieve common international goals
🏛️ Structure of the United Nations
The UN
Charter created six main organs:
1️⃣ General Assembly
- Includes all 193 member states
- Each country has one vote
- Decides on budget, new members, and major policies
- Important decisions need a two-thirds majority
2️⃣ Security Council
- Responsible for international peace and security
- 15 members:
- 5 Permanent:
China, France, Russia, UK, USA
- 10 Non-Permanent (2-year
term)
- Permanent members have veto power
3️⃣ Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)
- Coordinates work on:
- Economy
- Health
- Education
- Social development
- Decisions by simple majority
4️⃣ International Court of Justice (ICJ)
- Located in The Hague, Netherlands
- Settles legal disputes between countries
- Gives advisory opinions to the UN
5️⃣ Trusteeship Council
- Supervised trust territories after World War II
- Completed its work in 1994
- Currently inactive
6️⃣ Secretariat
- Handles day-to-day work of the UN
- Headed by the Secretary-General
- Secretary-General appointed for 5 years
- Acts as the voice of the world’s people, especially the
poor and vulnerable
🏢 UN Headquarters & Offices
- Headquarters: New
York, USA
- Major offices in:
- Geneva
- Vienna
- Nairobi
- Addis Ababa
- Bangkok
- Beirut
- Santiago
🌐 UN Membership
- Total Members: 193 countries
- Membership is open to peace-loving states that
accept the UN Charter
How a country joins the UN:
- Applies to the Secretary-General
- Security Council approval
(no veto by permanent members)
- General Assembly approval
(two-thirds majority)
- Membership becomes effective immediately after approval
🌎 What Does the United Nations Do
Today?
The UN
works worldwide on:
- 🕊️ Peacekeeping & conflict prevention
- 🚑 Humanitarian aid & disaster relief
- 🌱 Sustainable development & environment protection
- 🏥 Global health
- 🧑⚖️ Human rights & democracy
- 👩🦰 Gender equality & women empowerment
- 🌍 Refugee protection
- ☢️ Disarmament & non-proliferation
- 🍽️ Food security & poverty reduction
Its work
affects millions of lives across the globe every day.
⭐ In Simple Words
👉 The United Nations is a global
platform where countries work together
👉 Its aim is to make the
world more peaceful, fair, and safe
👉 Though not perfect, it plays
a crucial role in global cooperation
