Across the Globe, We Are United in Our Dedication to Children’s Rights

Who We Are

One place where the world's nations can gather together, discuss common problems and find shared solutions.

The United Nations is an international organization founded in 1945. Currently made up of 193 Member States, the UN and its work are guided by the purposes and principles contained in its founding Charter.

The UN has evolved over the years to keep pace with a rapidly changing world.

But one thing has stayed the same: it remains the one place on Earth where all the world’s nations can gather together, discuss common problems, and find shared solutions that benefit all of humanity.

The Secretary-General is Chief Administrative Officer of the UN – and is also a symbol of the Organization’s ideals and an advocate for all the world’s peoples, especially the poor and vulnerable.

The Secretary-General is appointed by the General Assembly on the recommendation of the Security Council for a 5-year, renewable term.

The current Secretary-General, and the 9th occupant of the post, is António Guterres of Portugal, who took office on 1 January 2017.

On the 18th of June, 2021, Guterres was re-appointed to a second term, pledging as his priority to continue helping the world chart a course out of the COVID-19 pandemic.

01.

— Main Bodies

The main bodies of the UN are the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship Council, the International Court of Justice, and the UN Secretariat.

All were established in 1945 when the UN was founded.

02.

— Secretariat

The Secretariat carries out the day-to-day work of the UN as mandated by the General Assembly and the Organization’s other main bodies.

The Secretary-General is the head of the Secretariat, which has tens of thousands of international UN staff members working at duty stations all over the world.

03.

— UN System

The United Nations is part of the UN system, which, in addition to the UN itself, comprises many programmes, funds and specialized agencies, each of which have their own area of work, leadership and budget.

The UN coordinates its work with these separate UN system entities, all of which cooperate with the Organization to help it achieve its goals.