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New NGO network created under UN guidance - NGOs - Global policy Forum New NGO Network Created Under UN Guidance
By Duane A. Gallop
Earth Times
May 31, 2001
A new global network to facilitate communication between Nongovernmental Organizations and the United Nations is currently underway, according to an NGO press release.
“A key problem is the difficulty of establishing and maintaining regular contact between the NGOs in these regions and with the NGO section in New York owing to geographic dispersion, travel problems and inadequate communications systems,” said Patrick van de Coevering, Counsel to the President of International Association Znanie, the NGO coordinator for Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
Smaller NGOs are often deprived of the latest information that might help them participate in UN activities and councils such as the Economic and Social Council. The ECOSOC has emphasized the importance of including all NGOs and is granting consultative status to many NGOs from all over the world, said Coevering.
“For this purpose the NGO Informal Network has been created,” Coevering said. “It will be the means of drawing even the smallest and most isolated organizations into a system that provides information and support and the opportunity for collaborative action.”
The NGO Informal Network will be supported by designated organizations with consultative status with the ECOSOC. Five organizations with a particular area of expertise have been identified in Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Western Asia/Arab States and others. International Association Znanie is the regional coordinator for Eastern Europe and Central Asia. According to Coevering, Zhane will be acting as an advisor to all NGOs wishing to obtain consultative status at the UN.
Coevering said the new network will provide information for NGOs and help in obtaining funding for NGO activities.
More Information on the Relations between NGOs and the UN
