1.
Palace of Nations
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The Palace of Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, was built between 1929 and 1938 to serve as the headquarters of the League of Nations. In 2012 alone, the Palace of Nations hosted more than 10,000 intergovernmental meetings, a jury of architects was selected to choose a final design from among three-hundred and thirty-seven entries but was unable to decide on a winner. Donations from League members were used in the interior, the Palace constituted at the time of completion, volume wise, the second-largest building complex in Europe after Versailles. After its transfer to the United Nations, two extensions were added to the building, which increased the size of the usable area of the building. Between 1950-1952, three floors were added to the K building, and the D building was constructed to house temporarily the World Health Organization, the E building was added between 1968-1973 as a conference facility, with bringing the total of conference rooms to 34. The park also contains a 1668 chalet, a medal showing the Palace of Nations with the Jura Mountains in the background was struck in silvered bronze. The building overlooks Lake Geneva and has a view of the French Alps. List of United Nations organizations by location United Nations System Joëlle Kuntz, Geneva, a History, éditions Zoé,2011,96 pages. Jean-Claude Pallas, Histoire et architecture du Palais des Nations, Nations Unies,2001,431 pages United Nations Office at Geneva Palais des Nations
2.
Geneva
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Geneva is the second most populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situated where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the capital of the Republic, the municipality has a population of 198,072, and the canton has 484,736 residents. In 2014, the compact agglomération du Grand Genève had 946,000 inhabitants in 212 communities in both Switzerland and France, within Swiss territory, the commuter area named Métropole lémanique contains a population of 1.25 million. This area is essentially spread east from Geneva towards the Riviera area and north-east towards Yverdon-les-Bains, Geneva is the city that hosts the highest number of international organizations in the world. It is also the place where the Geneva Conventions were signed, Geneva was ranked as the worlds ninth most important financial centre for competitiveness by the Global Financial Centres Index, ahead of Frankfurt, and third in Europe behind London and Zürich. A2009 survey by Mercer found that Geneva has the third-highest quality of life of any city in the world, the city has been referred to as the worlds most compact metropolis and the Peace Capital. In 2009 and 2011, Geneva was ranked as, respectively, the city was mentioned in Latin texts, by Caesar, with the spelling Genava, probably from a Celtic toponym *genawa- from the stem *genu-, in the sense of a bending river or estuary. The medieval county of Geneva in Middle Latin was known as pagus major Genevensis or Comitatus Genevensis, the name takes various forms in modern languages, Geneva /dʒᵻˈniːvə/ in English, French, Genève, German, Genf, Italian, Ginevra, and Romansh, Genevra. The city in origin shares its name, *genawa estuary, with the Italian port city of Genoa, Geneva was an Allobrogian border town, fortified against the Helvetii tribe, when the Romans took it in 121 BC. It became Christian under the Late Roman Empire, and acquired its first bishop in the 5th century, having been connected to the bishopric of Vienne in the 4th. In the Middle Ages, Geneva was ruled by a count under the Holy Roman Empire until the late 14th century, around this time the House of Savoy came to dominate the city. In the 15th century, a republican government emerged with the creation of the Grand Council. In 1541, with Protestantism in the ascendancy, John Calvin, by the 18th century, however, Geneva had come under the influence of Catholic France, which cultivated the city as its own. France also tended to be at odds with the ordinary townsfolk, in 1798, revolutionary France under the Directory annexed Geneva. At the end of the Napoleonic Wars, on 1 June 1814, in 1907, the separation of Church and State was adopted. Geneva flourished in the 19th and 20th centuries, becoming the seat of international organizations. Geneva is located at 46°12 North, 6°09 East, at the end of Lake Geneva. It is surrounded by two chains, the Alps and the Jura
3.
United Nations General Assembly
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The United Nations General Assembly is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations and the only one in which all member nations have equal representation. The General Assembly is the deliberative, policymaking and representative organ of the UN. It has also established a number of subsidiary organs. It can also reconvene for special and emergency special sessions and its composition, functions, powers, voting, and procedures are set out in Chapter IV of the United Nations Charter. The first session was convened on 10 January 1946 in the Methodist Central Hall in London, other questions are decided by a straightforward majority. Each member country has one vote, apart from approval of budgetary matters, including adoption of a scale of assessment, Assembly resolutions are not binding on the members. The Assembly may make recommendations on any matters within the scope of the UN, except matters of peace, the one state, one vote power structure potentially allows states comprising just five percent of the world population to pass a resolution by a two-thirds vote. During the 1980s, the Assembly became a forum for the North-South dialogue and these issues came to the fore because of the phenomenal growth and changing makeup of the UN membership. In 1945, the UN had 51 members and it now has 193, of which more than two-thirds are developing countries. Because of their numbers, developing countries are able to determine the agenda of the Assembly, the character of its debates. For many developing countries, the UN is the source of much of their diplomatic influence, the Assembly can consider the matter immediately with a view to making recommendations to Members for collective measures to maintain or restore international peace and security. The first session of the UN General Assembly was convened on 10 January 1946 in the Methodist Central Hall in London, the next few annual sessions were held in different cities, the second session in New York, and the third session was in Paris. It moved to the permanent United Nations Headquarters in New York at the start of its seventh regular annual session, on 14 October 1952. In December 1988, in order to hear Yasser Arafat, the General Assembly organised its 29th session in the Palace of Nations, all 193 members states of the United Nations are members of the General Assembly. The agenda for each session is planned up to seven months in advance and this is refined into a provisional agenda 60 days before the opening of the session. Items on the agenda are numbered, the General Assembly votes on many resolutions brought forth by sponsoring states. These are generally statements symbolizing the sense of the community about an array of world issues. Most General Assembly resolutions are not enforceable as a legal or practical matter, the General Assembly has authority to make final decisions in some areas such as the United Nations budget
4.
International trade
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International trade is the exchange of capital, goods, and services across international borders or territories. It is the exchange of goods and services among nations of the world, in most countries, such trade represents a significant share of gross domestic product. While international trade has existed throughout history, its economic, social, trading globally gives consumers and countries the opportunity to be exposed to new markets and products. Almost every kind of product can be found on the market, food, clothes, spare parts, oil, jewellery, wine, stocks, currencies. Services are also traded, tourism, banking, consulting and transportation, a product that is sold to the global market is an export, and a product that is bought from the global market is an import. Imports and exports are accounted for in a current account in the balance of payments. Industrialization, advanced technology, including transportation, globalization, multinational corporations, increasing international trade is crucial to the continuance of globalization. Without international trade, nations would be limited to the goods, the main difference is that international trade is typically more costly than domestic trade. Another difference between domestic and international trade is that factors of such as capital and labor are typically more mobile within a country than across countries. Thus international trade is restricted to trade in goods and services. Trade in goods and services can serve as a substitute for trade in factors of production, instead of importing a factor of production, a country can import goods that make intensive use of that factor of production and thus embody it. An example is the import of goods by the United States from China. Instead of importing Chinese labor, the United States imports goods that were produced with Chinese labor, International trade is also a branch of economics, which, together with international finance, forms the larger branch called international economics. The history of international trade chronicles notable events that have affected the trade between various economies, there are several models which seek to explain the factors behind international trade, the welfare consequences of trade and the pattern of trade. </ref></ref>==Largest countries by total international trade== Source, International Trade Centre President George W. Bush observed World Trade Week on May 18,2001, mcKenzie, Lionel W. Specialization and Efficiency in World Production. A Ricardo-Sraffa Paradigm Comparing the Gains from Trade in Inputs and Finished Goods, the definitions and methodological concepts applied for the various statistical collections on international trade often differ in terms of definition and coverage. Metadata providing information on definitions and methods are published along with the data. Ptas. mcgill. ca Historical documents on international trade available on FRASER
5.
Foreign direct investment
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A foreign direct investment is an investment in the form of a controlling ownership in a business in one country by an entity based in another country. It is thus distinguished from foreign investment by a notion of direct control. Broadly, foreign direct investment includes mergers and acquisitions, building new facilities, reinvesting profits earned from overseas operations and intra company loans. In a narrow sense, foreign direct investment refers just to building new facility, FDI is the sum of equity capital, other long-term capital, and short-term capital as shown the balance of payments. FDI usually involves participation in management, joint-venture, transfer of technology, stock of FDI is the net cumulative FDI for any given period. Direct investment excludes investment through purchase of shares, FDI is one example of international factor movements. A foreign direct investment is an ownership in a business enterprise in one country by an entity based in another country. Foreign direct investment is distinguished from foreign investment, a passive investment in the securities of another country such as public stocks and bonds. Moreover, control of technology, management, even crucial inputs can confer de facto control, for example, Joe S. Bain only explained the internationalization challenge through three main principles, absolute cost advantages, product differentiation advantages and economies of scale. Furthermore, the theories were created under the assumption of the existence of perfect competition. Facing the challenges of his predecessors, Hymer focused his theory on filling the gaps regarding international investment, the theory proposed by the author approaches international investment from a different and more firm-specific point of view. Furthermore, Hymer proceeds to criticize the neoclassical theories, stating that the theory of capital movements cannot explain international production. Moreover, he clarifies that FDI is not necessarily a movement of funds from a country to a host country. In contrast, if interest rates were the motive for international investment. Another observation made by Hymer went against what was maintained by the neoclassical theories, in fact, foreign direct investment can be financed through loans obtained in the host country, payments in exchange for equity, and other methods. Further studies attempted to explain how firms could monetize these advantages in the form of licenses, removal of conflicts, conflict arises if a firm is already operating in foreign market or looking to expand its operations within the same market. He proposes that the solution for this hurdle arose in the form of collusion, however, it must be taken into account that a reduction in conflict through acquisition of control of operations will increase the market imperfections. The extent to which a company can mitigate risk depends on how well a firm can formulate an internationalization strategy taking these levels of decision into account
6.
Developing country
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Also, the general term less-developed country should not be confused with the specific least developed country. The term developing describes a currently observed situation and not a dynamic or expected direction of progress, since the late 1990s developing countries tended to demonstrate higher growth rates than the developed ones. There is criticism of the use of the developing country. The term implies inferiority of a country or undeveloped country compared with a developed country. It assumes a desire to develop along the traditional Western model of development which a few countries, such as Cuba and Bhutan. An alternative measurement that has suggested is that of gross national happiness. Countries on the boundary between developed and developing are often categorized under the newly industrialized countries. In the 2016 edition of its World Development Indicators, the World Bank made a decision to no longer distinguish between “developed” and “developing” countries in the presentation of its data, nobody has ever agreed on a definition for these terms in the first place. Various terms are used for whatever is not a developed country, terms used include less developed country or less economically developed country, and for the more extreme, least developed country or least economically developed country. But according to the United Nations Statistics Division, There is no established convention for the designation of developed, the World Bank classifies countries into four income groups. These are set each year on July 1, economies were divided according to 2016 GNI per capita using the following ranges of income, Low income countries had GNI per capita of US$1,025 or less. Lower middle income countries had GNI per capita between US$1,026 and US$4,035, upper middle income countries had GNI per capita between US$4,036 and US$12,475. High income countries had GNI per capita above US$12,476 and this may be by absolute numbers or country ranking. The UN has developed the Human Development Index, an indicator of the above statistics. The UN sets Millennium Development Goals from a blueprint developed by all of the countries and leading development institutions. There is an association between low income and high population growth. The terms utilized when discussing developing countries refer to the intent, other terms sometimes used are less developed countries, least economically developed countries, underdeveloped nations or Third World nations, and non-industrialized nations. Conversely, developed countries, most economically developed countries, First World nations and that is, LEDCs are the poorest subset of LDCs
7.
World Trade Organization
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The World Trade Organization is an intergovernmental organization which regulates international trade. The WTO officially commenced on 1 January 1995 under the Marrakesh Agreement, signed by 123 nations on 15 April 1994, replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, most of the issues that the WTO focuses on derive from previous trade negotiations, especially from the Uruguay Round. The WTO is attempting to complete negotiations on the Doha Development Round, as of June 2012, the future of the Doha Round remained uncertain, the work programme lists 21 subjects in which the original deadline of 1 January 2005 was missed, and the round is still incomplete. This impasse has made it impossible to launch new WTO negotiations beyond the Doha Development Round, as a result, there have been an increasing number of bilateral free trade agreements between governments. As of July 2012, there were various groups in the WTO system for the current agricultural trade negotiation which is in the condition of stalemate. The WTOs current Director-General is Roberto Azevêdo, who leads a staff of over 600 people in Geneva, a trade facilitation agreement, part of the Bali Package of decisions, was agreed by all members on 7 December 2013, the first comprehensive agreement in the organizations history. Seven rounds of negotiations occurred under GATT, the first real GATT trade rounds concentrated on further reducing tariffs. Then, the Kennedy Round in the mid-sixties brought about a GATT anti-dumping Agreement, because these plurilateral agreements were not accepted by the full GATT membership, they were often informally called codes. Several of these codes were amended in the Uruguay Round, only four remained plurilateral, but in 1997 WTO members agreed to terminate the bovine meat and dairy agreements, leaving only two. Well before GATTs 40th anniversary, its members concluded that the GATT system was straining to adapt to a new globalizing world economy. In response to the problems identified in the 1982 Ministerial Declaration, the GATT still exists as the WTOs umbrella treaty for trade in goods, updated as a result of the Uruguay Round negotiations. GATT1994 is not however the only legally binding agreement included via the Final Act at Marrakesh, the highest decision-making body of the WTO is the Ministerial Conference, which usually meets every two years. It brings together all members of the WTO, all of which are countries or customs unions, the Ministerial Conference can take decisions on all matters under any of the multilateral trade agreements. When agricultural export subsidies were agreed to be phased out and adoption of the European Unions Everything, the WTO launched the current round of negotiations, the Doha Development Round, at the fourth ministerial conference in Doha, Qatar in November 2001. This was to be an effort to make globalization more inclusive and help the worlds poor, particularly by slashing barriers. The initial agenda comprised both further trade liberalization and new rule-making, underpinned by commitments to strengthen substantial assistance to developing countries. Among the various functions of the WTO, these are regarded by analysts as the most important and it provides a forum for negotiations and for settling disputes. Another priority of the WTO is the assistance of developing, least-developed and low-income countries in transition to adjust to WTO rules and disciplines through technical cooperation and training
8.
International Monetary Fund
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The International Monetary Fund is an international organization headquartered in Washington, D. C. It now plays a role in the management of balance of payments difficulties. Countries contribute funds to a pool through a system from which countries experiencing balance of payments problems can borrow money. As of 2016, the fund had SDR477 billion, the rationale for this is that private international capital markets function imperfectly and many countries have limited access to financial markets. The IMF provides alternate sources of financing and this assistance was meant to prevent the spread of international economic crises. The IMF was also intended to help mend the pieces of the economy after the Great Depression. As well, to provide investments for economic growth and projects such as infrastructure. The IMFs role was altered by the floating exchange rates post-1971. It shifted to examining the economic policies of countries with IMF loan agreements to determine if a shortage of capital was due to economic fluctuations or economic policy, the IMF also researched what types of government policy would ensure economic recovery. Rather than maintaining a position of oversight of only exchange rates and their role became a lot more active because the IMF now manages economic policy rather than just exchange rates. In addition, the IMF negotiates conditions on lending and loans under their policy of conditionality, nonconcessional loans, which include interest rates, are provided mainly through Stand-By Arrangements, the Flexible Credit Line, the Precautionary and Liquidity Line, and the Extended Fund Facility. The IMF provides emergency assistance via the Rapid Financing Instrument to members facing urgent balance-of-payments needs, the IMF is mandated to oversee the international monetary and financial system and monitor the economic and financial policies of its member countries. This activity is known as surveillance and facilitates international cooperation, the responsibilities changed from those of guardian to those of overseer of members’ policies. In 1995 the International Monetary Fund began work on data dissemination standards with the view of guiding IMF member countries to disseminate their economic and financial data to the public. The executive board approved the SDDS and GDDS in 1996 and 1997 respectively, the system is aimed primarily at statisticians and aims to improve many aspects of statistical systems in a country. It is also part of the World Bank Millennium Development Goals, some countries initially used the GDDS, but later upgraded to SDDS. The IMF does require collateral from countries for loans but also requires the government seeking assistance to correct its macroeconomic imbalances in the form of policy reform, if the conditions are not met, the funds are withheld. The concept of conditionality was introduced in a 1952 Executive Board decision, conditionality is associated with economic theory as well as an enforcement mechanism for repayment
9.
World Bank
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The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to countries of the world for capital programs. It comprises two institutions, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the International Development Association, the World Bank is a component of the World Bank Group, which is part of the United Nations system. The World Banks stated official goal is the reduction of poverty, the president of the World Bank is, traditionally, an American. The World Bank and the IMF are both based in Washington, D. C. and work closely with each other, 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. Before 1974 the reconstruction and development loans provided by the World Bank were relatively small, the Banks staff were aware of the need to instill confidence in the bank. Fiscal conservatism ruled, and loan applications had to meet strict criteria, the first country to receive a World Bank loan was France. The Banks president at the time, John McCloy, chose France over two other applicants, Poland and Chile, the loan was for US$250 million, half the amount requested, and it came with strict conditions. France had to agree to produce a budget and give priority of debt repayment to the World Bank over other governments. World Bank staff closely monitored the use of the funds to ensure that the French government met the conditions. In addition, before the loan was approved, the United States State Department told the French government that its members associated with the Communist Party would first have to be removed, the French government complied with this diktat and removed the Communist coalition government - the so-called tripartisme. Within hours, the loan to France was approved, when the Marshall Plan went into effect in 1947, many European countries began receiving aid from other sources. Faced with this competition, the World Bank shifted its focus to non-European countries, in 1960, the International Development Association was formed, providing soft loans to developing countries. From 1974 to 1980 the bank concentrated on meeting the needs of people in the developing world. The size and number of loans to borrowers was greatly increased as loan targets expanded from infrastructure into social services and these changes can be attributed to Robert McNamara, who was appointed to the presidency in 1968 by Lyndon B. Johnson. McNamara implored bank treasurer Eugene Rotberg to seek out new sources of capital outside of the banks that had been the primary sources of funding. Rotberg used the bond market to increase the capital available to the bank. One consequence of the period of poverty alleviation lending was the rise of third world debt. From 1976 to 1980 developing world debt rose at an annual rate of 20%
10.
Santiago
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Santiago de Chile, or simply Santiago, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chiles largest and the most densely populated conurbation, the city is entirely located in the countrys central valley, at an elevation of 520 m above mean sea level. Founded in 1541, Santiago has been the city of Chile since colonial times. The city has a core of 19th century neoclassical architecture and winding side-streets, dotted by art deco, neo-gothic. Santiagos cityscape is shaped by several hills and the fast-flowing Mapocho River. The Andes Mountains can be seen from most points in the city and these mountains contribute to a considerable smog problem, particularly during winter. The city outskirts are surrounded by vineyards and Santiago is within a few hours of both the mountains and the Pacific Ocean, Santiago is the cultural, political and financial center of Chile and is home to the regional headquarters of many multinational corporations. The Chilean executive and judiciary are located in Santiago, but Congress meets mostly in nearby Valparaíso, Santiago is named after the biblical figure St. James. In Chile, there are entities which bear the name of Santiago that are often confused. The Commune of Santiago, sometimes referred to as downtown or Central Santiago, is a division that comprises roughly the area occupied by the city during its colonial period. The city and regions demonym is santiaguinos and santiaguinas, according to certain archaeological investigations, it is believed that the first human groups of the X millennium settled in the Santiago basin. The groups were mainly nomadic hunter-gatherers, who traveled from the coast to the interior in search of guanacos during the time of the Andean snowmelt. The villages established in the belonging to picunches groups or promaucaes, were subject to the Inca Empire throughout the late fifteenth century. The Incas settled in the valley of mitimaes, the main installation settled in the center of the present city, with strengths as Huaca de Chena, the area would have served as a basis for the failed Inca expeditions southward road junction as the Inca Trail. Having been sent by Francisco Pizarro from Peru and having made the journey from Cuzco. The hosts of Valdivia camped by the river in the slopes of the Tupahue hill, the natives accepted and even recommended the foundation of the town on a small island between two branches of the river next to a small hill called Huelén. On 12 February 1541, Valdivia officially founded the city of Santiago del Nuevo Extremo in honor of St. James, patron saint of Spain, near the Huelén, renamed by the conqueror as St. Lucia. Following colonial rule, Valdivia entrusted the layout of the new town to master builder Pedro de Gamboa, in the center of the city, Gamboa designed a Plaza Mayor, around which various plots for the Cathedral and the governors house were selected
11.
Nairobi
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Nairobi is the capital and largest city of Kenya. It is famous for having the Nairobi National Park, the only game reserve found within a major city. The city and its surrounding area also form Nairobi County, whose current governor is Evans Kidero, the name Nairobi comes from the Maasai phrase Enkare Nairobi, which translates to cool water. The phrase is also the Maasai name of the Nairobi river, however, it is popularly known as the Green City in the Sun, and is surrounded by several expanding villa suburbs. Nairobi was founded in 1899 by the authorities in British East Africa. The town quickly grew to replace Machakos as the capital of Kenya in 1907, after independence in 1963, Nairobi became the capital of the Republic of Kenya. During Kenyas colonial period, the city became a centre for the coffee, tea. The city lies on the River Athi in the part of the country. With a population of 3.36 million in 2011, Nairobi is the second-largest city by population in the African Great Lakes region after Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. According to the 2009 census, in the area of Nairobi,3,138,295 inhabitants lived within 696 km2. Nairobi is the 14th-largest city in Africa, including the population of its suburbs, the Nairobi Securities Exchange is one of the largest in Africa and the second-oldest exchange on the continent. It is Africas fourth-largest exchange in terms of trading volume, capable of making 10 million trades a day, Nairobi is found within the Greater Nairobi Metropolitan region, which consists of 4 out of 47 counties in Kenya, which generates about 60% of the entire nations wealth. The city was named after a water hole known in Maasai as Enkare Nairobi and it was completely rebuilt in the early 1900s after an outbreak of plague and the burning of the original town. The location of the Nairobi railway camp was due to its central position between Mombasa and Kampala. It was also chosen because its network of rivers could supply the camp with water, however, malaria was a serious problem, leading to at least one attempt to have the town moved. In 1905, Nairobi replaced Mombasa as capital of the British protectorate, as the British occupiers started to explore the region, they started using Nairobi as their first port of call. This prompted the government to build several spectacular grand hotels in the city. The main occupants were British game hunters, Nairobi continued to grow under the British and many British subjects settled within the citys suburbs
12.
Manila
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Manila, officially City of Manila, is the capital of the Philippines. Founded on June 24,1571, by Spanish conquistador Miguel López de Legazpi and it is situated on the eastern shore of Manila Bay and is home to many landmarks, some of which date back to the 16th century. In 2012, the Globalization and World Cities Research Network listed Manila as a global city, the city proper is home to 1,780,148 people in 2015, forming the historic core of Metro Manila, the capital region of the Philippines. The metropolitan area, which includes the much larger Quezon City, Manila is also the most densely populated city proper in the world, with 41,515 people per square kilometer. The term Manila is commonly used to refer to either the whole area or the city proper. Manila is located on the shore of the Manila Bay on one of the finest harbors in the country. The city has six districts for the lower house of the Philippine Congress. Manila was once ruled by the Kingdom of Tondo before it became a province of the Majapahit Empire. During the Bruneian invasion of the Philippines, Sultan Bolkiah of Brunei captured Seludong and renamed it Maynilà, Maynilà became a vassal state of the Sultanate of Brunei, established to overpower Tondo. In 1571, conquistadors arrived from Mexico, across the Pacific Ocean, Spanish missionaries soon Christianized the city, incorporated Tondo and built some of the oldest churches in the country, including San Agustin Church. The conquistadors renamed the area Nuevo Reino de Castilla, Manila became the center of Spanish activity in the Far East and one end of the Manila–Acapulco galleon trade route linking Spanish America with Asia, one of the earliest examples of globalization. Because of its location on Pacific trade routes, Manila received the moniker Pearl of the Orient. Spanish rule of the Philippine archipelago lasted for more than three centuries, until 1898, order was usually quickly restored and the city returned to the business of trade. In the 19th century, Manila was one of the most modern cities in Asia, before the Spanish–American War, it saw the rise of the Philippine Revolution. After the war, the United States took control, switched the official language from Spanish to English, near the end of World War II, during the Battle of Manila, most of the city was flattened by intensive aerial bombardment by the United States Air Force. As a result, relatively little remains of Manilas prewar and colonial architecture, although there are ongoing projects, especially within the old walled city. Maynilà, the Filipino name for the city, originated from the word nilà, referring to a mangrove tree that grew on the delta of the Pasig River. The flowers were made into garlands that, according to folklore, were offered to statues on religious altars or in churches
13.
Belgrade
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Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and its name translates to White city. The urban area of the City of Belgrade has a population of 1.34 million, one of the most important prehistoric cultures of Europe, the Vinča culture, evolved within the Belgrade area in the 6th millennium BC. In antiquity, Thraco-Dacians inhabited the region, and after 279 BC Celts conquered the city and it was conquered by the Romans during the reign of Augustus, and awarded city rights in the mid-2nd century. In 1521, Belgrade was conquered by the Ottoman Empire and became the seat of the Sanjak of Smederevo and it frequently passed from Ottoman to Habsburg rule, which saw the destruction of most of the city during the Austro-Ottoman wars. Belgrade was again named the capital of Serbia in 1841, northern Belgrade remained the southernmost Habsburg post until 1918, when the city was reunited. As a strategic location, the city was battled over in 115 wars, Belgrade was the capital of Yugoslavia from its creation in 1918, to its final dissolution in 2006. Belgrade has an administrative status within Serbia and it is one of five statistical regions of Serbia. Its metropolitan territory is divided into 17 municipalities, each with its own local council, City of Belgrade covers 3. 6% of Serbias territory, and 22. 5% of the countrys population lives within its administrative limits. It is classified as a Beta- global city, chipped stone tools found at Zemun show that the area around Belgrade was inhabited by nomadic foragers in the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic eras. Some of these belong to the Mousterian industry, which are associated with Neanderthals rather than modern humans. Aurignacian and Gravettian tools have also discovered there, indicating occupation between 50,000 and 20,000 years ago. The first farming people to settle in the region are associated with the Neolithic Starčevo culture, there are several Starčevo sites in and around Belgrade, including the eponymous site of Starčevo. The Starčevo culture was succeeded by the Vinča culture, a more sophisticated farming culture that grew out of the earlier Starčevo settlements which is named for a site in the Belgrade region. Evidence of early knowledge about Belgrades geographical location comes from ancient myths, the rock overlooking the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers has been identified as one of the place in the story of Jason and the Argonauts. The Paleo-Balkan tribes of Thracians and Dacians ruled this area prior to the Roman conquest, Belgrade was inhabited by a Thraco-Dacian tribe Singi, after the Celtic invasion in 279 BC, the Scordisci took the city, naming it Singidūn. In 34–33 BC the Roman army led by Silanus reached Belgrade, jovian reestablished Christianity as the official religion of the Roman Empire, ending the brief revival of traditional Roman religions under his predecessor Julian the Apostate. In 395 AD, the passed to the Eastern Roman or Byzantine Empire
14.
Cartagena, Colombia
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It is the fifth-largest city in Colombia and the second largest in the region, after Barranquilla. The urban area of Cartagena is also the fifth-largest urban area in the country, economic activities include the maritime and petrochemicals industries, as well as tourism. The city was founded on June 1,1533, and named after Cartagena, Spain, settlement in the region around Cartagena Bay by various indigenous people dates back to 4000 BC. During the Spanish colonial period Cartagena served a key role in administration and expansion of the Spanish empire and it was a center of political and economic activity due to the presence of royalty and wealthy viceroys. In 1984, Cartagenas colonial walled city and fortress were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, archaeologists estimate that around 4000 BC, the formative culture was located near the boundary between the present-day departments of Bolívar and Sucre. In this area, archaeologists have found the most ancient ceramic objects of the Americas, archaeological investigations date the decline of the Puerto Hormiga culture and its related settlements to around 3000 BC. The Monsú culture appears to have inherited the Puerto Hormiga cultures use of the art of pottery and also to have developed an economy of agriculture. The Monsú peoples diet was based mostly on shellfish and fresh, the development of the Sinú society in what is today the departments of Córdoba and Sucre, eclipsed these first developments around the Cartagena Bay area. Until the Spanish colonization, many derived from the Karib, Malibu. In the late pre-Columbian era, the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta was home to the Tayrona people, around 1500 the area was inhabited by different tribes of the Carib language family, more precisely the Mocanae sub-family. Among these, according to the earliest documents available, the Kalamari had preeminence, rodrigo de Bastidas traveled to the Pearl Coast and the Gulf of Uraba in 1500-01. On 14 Feb.1504, Ferdinand V contracted Juan de la Cosas voyage to Uraba, However, Juan de la Cosa died in 1510, after an armed confrontation with indigenous people, before he could get possession of the Gulf of Urabá area. They preferred the better known Hispaniola and Cuba, De Nicuesa and De Ojeda noted the existence of a big bay on the way from Santo Domingo to Urabá and the Panama isthmus, and that encouraged Bastidas to investigate. Under contract to Queen Joanna of Castile, Pedro de Heredia invaded the Bay of Cartagena with three ships,150 men, and 22 horses, on 14 Jan.1533 and he soon found the village of Calamari abandoned. Proceeding onwards to Turbaco, where Juan de la Cosa had been mortally wounded 13 years earlier, using India Catalina as a guide, Heredia embarked on a three month exploration expedition. He returned to Calamari in April 1533 with gold pieces, including a gold porcupine weighing 132 pounds. In later expeditions, Heredia raided the Sinú tombs and temples of gold and his rule as governor of Cartagena lasted 22 years, before perishing on his return to Spain in 1544. Cartagena was founded on June 1,1533 by the Spanish commander, Pedro de Heredia, the town was named after Cartagena, Spain, where most of Heredias sailors had resided
15.
Johannesburg
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Johannesburg is the largest city in South Africa and is one of the 50 largest urban areas in the world. It is the capital of Gauteng, which is the wealthiest province in South Africa. While Johannesburg is not one of South Africas three capital cities, it is the seat of the Constitutional Court, the city is located in the mineral-rich Witwatersrand range of hills and is the centre of large-scale gold and diamond trade. In 2011, the population of the city of Johannesburg was 4,434,827, in the same year, the population of Greater Johannesburg Metropolitan Area was 7,860,781. Some view the surrounding the city of Johannesburg yet more broadly than the metropolitan area, adding Ekurhuleni, West Rand and Lenasia. The land area of the city is large in comparison with those of other major cities, resulting in a moderate population density of 2. The city was established in 1886 following the discovery of gold on what had been a farm, the city is commonly interpreted as the modern day El Dorado due to the extremely large gold deposit found along the Witwatersrand. The name is attributed to one or all of three men involved in the establishment of the city, in ten years, the population was 100,000 inhabitants. A separate city from the late 1970s until the 1990s, Soweto is now part of Johannesburg, Soweto, although eventually incorporated into Johannesburg, had been separated as a residential area for blacks, who were not permitted to live in Johannesburg proper. Lenasia is predominantly populated by English-speaking South Africans of Indian descent, controversy surrounds the origin of the name. There were quite a number of people with the name Johannes who were involved in the history of the city. Among them are the principal clerk attached to the office of the surveyor-general Johannes Rissik, Christiaan Johannes Joubert, another was Stephanus Johannes Paulus Paul Kruger, president of the South African Republic 1883-1900. Johannes Meyer, the first government official in the area is another possibility, precise records for the choice of name were lost. Rissik and Joubert were members of a delegation sent to England to attain mining rights for the area. Joubert had a park in the city named after him and Rissik Street is today a street where the historically important and dilapidated Post Office, since burnt out. The region surrounding Johannesburg was originally inhabited by San people, the Sotho–Tswana practised farming and extensively mined and smelted metals that were available in the area. The most prominent site within Johannesburg is Melville Koppies, which contains an iron smelting furnace, the main Witwatersrand gold reef was discovered in June 1884 on the farm Vogelstruisfontein by Jan Gerritse Bantjes that triggered the Witwatersrand Gold Rush and the start of Johannesburg in 1886. The discovery of gold rapidly attracted people to the area, making necessary a name, Johannes Meyer, the first government official in the area is another possibility
16.
Bangkok
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Bangkok is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. It is known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon or simply Krung Thep. The city occupies 1,568.7 square kilometres in the Chao Phraya River delta in Central Thailand, over 14 million people live within the surrounding Bangkok Metropolitan Region, making Bangkok an extreme primate city, significantly dwarfing Thailands other urban centres in terms of importance. Bangkok was at the heart of the modernization of Siam—later renamed Thailand—during the late 19th century, the city grew rapidly during the 1960s through the 1980s and now exerts a significant impact on Thailands politics, economy, education, media and modern society. The Asian investment boom in the 1980s and 1990s led many multinational corporations to locate their headquarters in Bangkok. The city is now a regional force in finance and business. It is a hub for transport and health care, and has emerged as a regional centre for the arts, fashion. The city is known for its vibrant street life and cultural landmarks. The historic Grand Palace and Buddhist temples including Wat Arun and Wat Pho stand in contrast with other tourist attractions such as the scenes of Khaosan Road. Bangkok is among the top tourist destinations. It is named the most visited city in MasterCards Global Destination Cities Index, Bangkoks rapid growth amidst little urban planning and regulation has resulted in a haphazard cityscape and inadequate infrastructure systems. The city has turned to public transport in an attempt to solve this major problem. Five rapid transit lines are now in operation, with more systems under construction or planned by the national government and the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration. The history of Bangkok dates at least back to the early 15th century, because of its strategic location near the mouth of the river, the town gradually increased in importance. Bangkok initially served as a customs outpost with forts on both sides of the river, and became the site of a siege in 1688 in which the French were expelled from Siam. After the fall of Ayutthaya to the Burmese Empire in 1767, the newly declared King Taksin established his capital at the town, in 1782, King Phutthayotfa Chulalok succeeded Taksin, moved the capital to the eastern banks Rattanakosin Island, thus founding the Rattanakosin Kingdom. The City Pillar was erected on 21 April, which is regarded as the date of foundation of the present city, Bangkoks economy gradually expanded through busy international trade, first with China, then with Western merchants returning in the early-to-mid 19th century. As the capital, Bangkok was the centre of Siams modernization as it faced pressure from Western powers in the late 19th century, Bangkok became the centre stage for power struggles between the military and political elite as the country abolished absolute monarchy in 1932
17.
Accra
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Accra /əˈkrɑː/ is the capital and most populous city of Ghana, with an estimated urban population of 2.27 million as of 2012. It is also the capital of the Greater Accra Region and of the Accra Metropolis District, Accra stretches along the Ghanaian Atlantic coast and extends north. Originally built around three different settlements including a port, it served as the capital of the British Gold Coast between 1877 and 1957, Accra serves as the Greater Accra Regions economic and administrative hub. It is furthermore a centre of a range of nightclubs, restaurants. Since the early 1990s, a number of new buildings have been built, the citys National Theatre was built with Chinese assistance. In 2010, the Globalization and World Cities Research Network designated Accra a Gamma-minus-level world city, indicating a level of international influence. The central business district of Accra contains the main banks and department stores, and an area known as the Ministries. Economic activities in Accra include the financial and commercial sectors, fishing, and the manufacture of processed food, lumber, plywood, textiles, clothing, tourism is soon becoming a thriving business for arts and crafts, history cites and local travel & tour agents. The oxford street in Osu – Accra has grown to become the hub of business, the word Accra is derived from the Akan word Nkran meaning ants, a reference to the numerous anthills seen in the countryside around Accra. The name specifically refers to ants, and was applied to both the town and people by the Twi speakers. The name of Accra in the Ga language is also Ga or Gaga, the nasalised vowels sometimes shown as Gã or Gãgã, which is a cognate with Nkran. Historian Carl Christian Reindorf confirmed this etymology, proposing a link between the qualities and migratory behaviour of the local ants and those of the Ga people. The link between the ethonym and ants was explicitly reflected in the recognition of anthills as sacred places. Often ringed by sacred fences, the tall red mounds dotting Accras hinterland were seen as microcosms of human community, instead of viewing Ga speakers as a formidable military force, the Akan-speaking term Nkran cast Ga peoples as pests or nuisances to be controlled or exterminated. The name Ga is actually a version of the name Akan, Ga also gave its name to the Ga districts surrounding Accra. The name Accra was given to Nkran by Europeans, the main Ga group known as the Tumgwa We led by Ayi Kushie arrived by sea. When the Guan on the coast saw them on their canoes at sea, hence, the Lartehs refer to them as Nkran. Nkran was later corrupted by the Danes to Akra, then to present-day Accra, Nkran in the Ga language is Gaga, thus they also started calling themselves Ga
18.
Doha
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Doha is the capital city and most populous city of the State of Qatar. Doha has a population of 1,351,000 in a city proper with the close to 1.5 million. The city is located on the coast of the Persian Gulf in the east of the country and it is Qatars fastest growing city, with over 50% of the nations population living in Doha or its surrounding suburbs, and it is also the economic center of the country. Doha was founded in the 1820s as an offshoot of Al Bidda and it was officially declared as the countrys capital in 1971, when Qatar gained independence. As the commercial capital of Qatar and one of the emergent financial centers in the Middle East, Doha is considered a city by the Globalization. Doha accommodates Education City, a devoted to research and education. The city was host to the first ministerial-level meeting of the Doha Development Round of World Trade Organization negotiations. It was also selected as host city of a number of sporting events, including the 2006 Asian Games, in December 2011, the World Petroleum Council held the 20th World Petroleum Conference in Doha. Additionally, the city hosted the 2012 UNFCCC Climate Negotiations and is set to host a number of the venues for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. In May 2015, Doha was officially recognized as one of the New7Wonders Cities together with Vigan, La Paz, Durban, Havana, Beirut, the name Doha may have originated from the Arabic Ad-Dawḥa, the big tree. The reference might be to a prominent tree that stood at the site where the fishing village arose. Alternatively, it may have derived from dohat — Arabic for bay or gulf — referring to the Doha Bay area surrounding the Corniche. The city of Doha was formed after seceding from another local settlement known as Al Bidda, the earliest documented mention of Al Bidda was made in 1681, by the Carmelite Convent, in an account which chronicles several settlements in Qatar. In the record, the ruler and a fort in the confines of Al Bidda are alluded to, carsten Niebuhr, a European explorer who visited the Arabian Peninsula, created one of the first maps to depict the settlement in 1765 in which he labelled it as Guttur. David Seaton, a British political resident in Muscat, wrote the first English record of Al Bidda in 1801 and he refers to the town as Bedih and describes the geography and defensive structures in the area. He stated that the town had recently settled by the Sudan tribe. Seaton attempted to bombard the town with his warship, but returned to Muscat upon finding that the waters were too shallow to position his warship within striking distance. In 1820, British surveyor R. H. Colebrook, who visited Al Bidda and he wrote, The same year, an agreement known as the General Maritime Treaty was signed between the East India Company and the sheikhs of several Persian Gulf settlements
19.
United Nations Development Group
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Currently, the UNDG is one of the main UN actors involved in the development of the Post-2015 Development Agenda. UNDG brings together 32 UN agencies and groups, plus five observers working on development issues. This was especially so with the Delivering as One initiative, an initial proposal was to merge the UNICEF, the World Food Programme and the UNFPA into the UNDP. Finally, then Secretary General Kofi Annan worked to form the UNDG, the CEB brings the executive heads of UN organizations together on a regular basis under the chairmanship of the Secretary-General. The Administrator of the UN Development Programme chairs the UNDG, the UNDG Chair reports to the Secretary-General and the CEB on progress in implementing the group’s work plan, and on the management of the Resident Coordinator System. The United Nations Economic and Social Council and the United Nations General Assembly provide oversight, the UNDG is overseen by the Economic and Financial Committee of the General Assembly. The UNDGs chairperson is the UNDPs Administrator, in 2009, the non-rotational members of the advisory group were, the FAO, ILO, UNDP, UNESCO, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNHCR, WFP, WHO and UNIDO. The rotational members are, the UNCTAD and the Economic and Social Commission for Western Africa, the UN Development Operations Coordination Office is a key component within the UNDG, promoting social and economic progress by providing support. It was key part of UNDGs formation in 1997, uniting the UN system, at present is the Secretariat and technical and advisory support unit of the UNDG. It brings together the UN development system to change and innovation to deliver together on sustainable development. DOCO works under the leadership of the UNDG Chair and guidance of the UNDG, the team provides field evidence to inform policy, facilitates the achievement of shared results, and promotes excellence in UN leadership and coordination. The core objective is a relevant and impactful UN contribution to development
20.
Member states of the United Nations
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The United Nations member states are the 193 sovereign states that are members of the United Nations and have equal representation in the UN General Assembly. The UN is the worlds largest intergovernmental organization, ahead of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, the admission of any such state to membership in the United Nations will be effected by a decision of the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Security Council. A recommendation for admission from the Security Council requires affirmative votes from at least nine of the fifteen members. The Security Councils recommendation must then be approved in the General Assembly by a majority vote. In principle, only states can become UN members. Although five members were not sovereign when they joined the UN and this is because the UN does not consider them to possess sovereignty, mainly due to the lack of international recognition or due to opposition from one of the permanent members. Observers are generally intergovernmental organizations and international organizations and entities whose statehood or sovereignty is not precisely defined, the other two original members, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia, had been dissolved and their memberships in the UN not continued from 1992 by any one successor state. India was under British colonial rule, until gaining independence in 1947. The Philippines was a commonwealth with the United States, until gaining independence in 1946. New Zealand, while de facto sovereign at that time, only gained full capacity to enter into relations with states in 1947 when it passed the Statute of Westminster Adoption Act. This occurred 16 years after the British Parliament passed the Statute of Westminster Act in 1931 that recognised New Zealands autonomy, if judged by the Montevideo Convention criteria, New Zealand did not achieve full de jure statehood until 1947. The current members and their dates of admission are listed below with their official designations used by the United Nations, the member states can be sorted by their official designations and dates of admission by clicking on the buttons in the header of the columns. See related sections on former members by clicking on the links in the column See also, original members are listed with blue background. Both sides rejected compromise proposals to both states to participate in the UN, based on the One-China policy. By the 1970s, a shift had occurred in diplomatic circles. This effectively transferred the seat of China in the UN, including its permanent seat on the Security Council, from the ROC to the PRC, from the United Nations perspective the Republic of China is not a former member. No UN member was expelled in 1971, rather, the credentials of one Chinese delegation were rejected and the credentials of another Chinese delegation were accepted. In addition to losing its seat in the UN, the UN Secretary-General concluded from the resolution that the General Assembly considered Taiwan to be a province of China
21.
Holy See
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The Holy See, also referred to as the See of Rome, is the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, the episcopal see of the Pope, and an independent sovereign entity. It serves as the point of reference for the Catholic Church everywhere. Today, it is responsible for the governance of all Catholics, organised in their Particular Churches, Patriarchates, as an independent sovereign entity, holding the Vatican City enclave in Rome as sovereign territory, it maintains diplomatic relations with other states. Diplomatically, the Holy See acts and speaks for the whole church and it is also recognised by other subjects of international law as a sovereign entity, headed by the Pope, with which diplomatic relations can be maintained. The creation of the Vatican City state was meant to ensure the diplomatic, in Greek, the adjective holy or sacred is constantly applied to all such sees as a matter of course. The word see comes from the Latin word sedes, meaning seat, while Saint Peters basilica in Vatican City is perhaps the church most associated with the Papacy, the actual cathedral of the Holy See is the church of Saint John Lateran within the city of Rome. The Pope governs the Catholic Church through the Roman Curia, the Secretariat of State, under the Cardinal Secretary of State, directs and coordinates the Curia. The incumbent, Archbishop Pietro Parolin, is the Sees equivalent of a prime minister, Archbishop Paul Gallagher, Secretary of the Section for Relations with States of the Secretariat of State, acts as the Holy Sees minister of foreign affairs. Parolin was named in his role by Pope Francis On 31 August 2013, mamberti was named in his role by Pope Benedict XVI in September 2006. The Secretariat of State is the body of the Curia that is situated within Vatican City. The others are in buildings in different parts of Rome that have rights similar to those of embassies. The Roman Rota handles normal judicial appeals, the most numerous being those that concern alleged nullity of marriage and it also oversees the work of other ecclesiastical tribunals at all levels. The most important of these is the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See, the Prefecture of the Papal Household is responsible for the organization of the papal household, audiences, and ceremonies. The Holy See does not dissolve upon a Popes death or resignation and it instead operates under a different set of laws sede vacante. The government of the See, and therefore of the Catholic Church, canon law prohibits the College and the Camerlengo from introducing any innovations or novelties in the government of the Church during this period. In 2001, the Holy See had a revenue of 422.098 billion Italian lire, the Guardian newspaper described Mennini and his role in the following manner. Paolo Mennini, who is in effect the popes merchant banker, Mennini heads a special unit inside the Vatican called the extraordinary division of APSA – Amministrazione del Patrimonio della Sede Apostolica – which handles the patrimony of the Holy See. The Holy See has been recognized, both in practice and in the writing of modern legal scholars, as a subject of public international law, with rights
22.
United Nations Regional Groups
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The United Nations Regional Groups are the geopolitical regional groups of member states of the United Nations. Originally, UN member states were grouped into five geopolitical regional groups. What began as a means of sharing the distribution of posts for General Assembly committees has taken on a much more expansive role. The groupings have changed over time, from the founding of the United Nations until 1966, the regional groups were, British Commonwealth, Eastern Europe and Asia, Latin America, Middle East and Western Europe. In 2011, the Asia Group was renamed Asia-Pacific, Kiribati is not included in the above numbers. According to convention, the non-permanent membership seats of the United Nations Security Council is apportioned between regional groups according to a set formula. Other bodies, such as the United Nations Economic and Social Council, the position of the President of the UN General Assembly rotates amongst the groups on a ten-year cycle. The African Group has 54 members, and is thus the largest regional group by number of member states and it is the only regional group that has a territory that coincides with the traditional continent of which its name originates. The African Group has 3 seats on the Security Council, all non-permanent, currently occupied by Ethiopia, Egypt, the Group also has 14 seats on the United Nations Economic and Social Council and 13 seats on the United Nations Human Rights Council. Member states of the African Group, as of July 2011 and its territory is composed of much of the continents of Asia and Oceania. However, Russia and the Caucasian states are members of the Eastern European Group and Australia, New Zealand, Israel, the Asia-Pacific Group has three seats on the Security Council, the permanent seat of China, and two non-permanent seats, currently occupied by Japan and Kazakhstan. The Group also has 11 seats on the United Nations Economic, member states of the Asia-Pacific Group, as of 2011, Until 2011, the Asia-Pacific Group was called the Asian Group. The name change was adopted as a result of pressure from the island countries that compose approximately one-fifth of the groups membership. The Eastern European Group has 23 members, and as such is the group with the fewest member states. The Eastern European Group has 2 seats on the Security Council, the Group also has 6 seats on the United Nations Economic and Social Council and 6 seats on the United Nations Human Rights Council. Members of the Eastern European Group as of 2010, The Latin American and Caribbean Group has 33 members and its territory is almost exactly that of South and Central America and the Caribbean, the differences arise from the presence of dependent territories of European countries. GRULAC has 2 non-permanent seats on the Security Council, currently occupied by Venezuela, the Group also has 10 seats on the United Nations Economic and Social Council and 8 seats on the United Nations Human Rights Council. Member states of the Latin American and Caribbean Group, as of 2010, The Western European and it has a territory dispersed on all of the continents, but mostly centred in Western Europe and North America
23.
Pacific Ocean
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The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of the Earths oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south and is bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, the Mariana Trench in the western North Pacific is the deepest point in the world, reaching a depth of 10,911 metres. Both the center of the Water Hemisphere and the Western Hemisphere are in the Pacific Ocean, the oceans current name was coined by Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan during the Spanish circumnavigation of the world in 1521, as he encountered favourable winds on reaching the ocean. He called it Mar Pacífico, which in both Portuguese and Spanish means peaceful sea, important human migrations occurred in the Pacific in prehistoric times. Long-distance trade developed all along the coast from Mozambique to Japan, trade, and therefore knowledge, extended to the Indonesian islands but apparently not Australia. By at least 878 when there was a significant Islamic settlement in Canton much of trade was controlled by Arabs or Muslims. In 219 BC Xu Fu sailed out into the Pacific searching for the elixir of immortality, from 1404 to 1433 Zheng He led expeditions into the Indian Ocean. The east side of the ocean was discovered by Spanish explorer Vasco Núñez de Balboa in 1513 after his expedition crossed the Isthmus of Panama and he named it Mar del Sur because the ocean was to the south of the coast of the isthmus where he first observed the Pacific. Later, Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan sailed the Pacific East to West on a Castilian expedition of world circumnavigation starting in 1519, Magellan called the ocean Pacífico because, after sailing through the stormy seas off Cape Horn, the expedition found calm waters. The ocean was often called the Sea of Magellan in his honor until the eighteenth century, sailing around and east of the Moluccas, between 1525 and 1527, Portuguese expeditions discovered the Caroline Islands, the Aru Islands, and Papua New Guinea. In 1542–43 the Portuguese also reached Japan, in 1564, five Spanish ships consisting of 379 explorers crossed the ocean from Mexico led by Miguel López de Legazpi and sailed to the Philippines and Mariana Islands. The Manila galleons operated for two and a half centuries linking Manila and Acapulco, in one of the longest trade routes in history, Spanish expeditions also discovered Tuvalu, the Marquesas, the Cook Islands, the Solomon Islands, and the Admiralty Islands in the South Pacific. In the 16th and 17th century Spain considered the Pacific Ocean a Mare clausum—a sea closed to other naval powers, as the only known entrance from the Atlantic the Strait of Magellan was at times patrolled by fleets sent to prevent entrance of non-Spanish ships. On the western end of the Pacific Ocean the Dutch threatened the Spanish Philippines, Spain also sent expeditions to the Pacific Northwest reaching Vancouver Island in southern Canada, and Alaska. The French explored and settled Polynesia, and the British made three voyages with James Cook to the South Pacific and Australia, Hawaii, and the North American Pacific Northwest, one of the earliest voyages of scientific exploration was organized by Spain in the Malaspina Expedition of 1789–1794. It sailed vast areas of the Pacific, from Cape Horn to Alaska, Guam and the Philippines, New Zealand, Australia, and the South Pacific. Growing imperialism during the 19th century resulted in the occupation of much of Oceania by other European powers, and later, Japan, in Oceania, France got a leading position as imperial power after making Tahiti and New Caledonia protectorates in 1842 and 1853 respectively. After navy visits to Easter Island in 1875 and 1887, Chilean navy officer Policarpo Toro managed to negotiate an incorporation of the island into Chile with native Rapanui in 1888, by occupying Easter Island, Chile joined the imperial nations
24.
Western European and Others Group
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The Western European and Others Group is one of five unofficial Regional Groups in the United Nations that act as voting blocs and negotiation forums. Regional voting blocs were formed in 1961 to encourage voting to various UN bodies from regional groups, as of 2010, there are 28 member states, plus one observer. Israel is also a permanent member, due to its cultural and historical links with Western Europe. The group also contains one observer, the United States, which has chosen not to participate as a member. However, it is considered to be a member for putting forward candidates for electoral purposes in the United Nations General Assembly, turkey participates fully in both the WEOG and the Asian Group, but for electoral purposes is considered a member of the WEOG only. This is an alliance of Japan, the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Norway and it essentially includes most major non-European Union members of the WEOG, plus Japan. It ensures the European Union is not able to dominate WEOG discussions, quotas for the five regional groups ensure that for most elections to UN bodies the number of seats available to members of the WEOG is set. For example, two of ten non-permanent seats of the Security Council are reserved for states from the Western European, similarly,13 of ECOSOCs 54 members come from the WEOG. In 2004, Israel obtained a permanent renewal to its membership, on June 14,2005, Dan Gillerman was elected to the position of Vice-President of the 60th UN General Assembly. The last Israeli to hold position was UN envoy Abba Eban in 1952. Israels candidacy was put forward by WEOG, in this position, Gillerman played a central role during the initial negotiation stages of the 2006 Israel–Lebanon conflict. In December 2013, Israel was granted membership of WEOG in Geneva. Israel is thus a permanent member of WEOG. As the Western European Group changed significantly over time, the number of its members had also changed, UNAIDS, The Governance Handbook, January 2010, PDF document at UN-AIDS website
25.
Eastern European Group
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The Eastern European Group, also known as Countries with Economies in Transition, is one of the five unofficial Regional Groups in the United Nations that act as voting blocs and negotiation forums. Regional voting blocs were formed in 1961 to encourage voting to various UN bodies from regional groups, the group consists of countries in Eastern Europe and the Caucasus, which form the area of the former Eastern Bloc. Europe is divided between the EEG and the Western European and Others Group, the group currently has 23 members. Prior to the creation of the Regional Groups in 1966, the UNSC had an Eastern European and Asian Seat, the Eastern European Group exists since 1966. It has changed due to the dissolution of some of its members. These dissolutions are those of the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, also, through the German reunification, the Eastern European Group lost East Germany as its member. All the new countries created in Europe stayed in the bloc, the Eastern European Group has two seats in the United Nations Security Council, the permanent seat of Russia, and one elected seat, currently held by Lithuania. The Group further has 6 seats on the United Nations Economic, source As the Eastern European Group changed significantly over time, the number of its members had also changed
26.
United Nations Industrial Development Organization
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The United Nations Industrial Development Organization, French/Spanish acronym ONUDI, is a specialized agency in the United Nations system, headquartered in Vienna, Austria. It is also a member of the United Nations Development Group, UNIDO believes that competitive and environmentally sustainable industry has a crucial role to play in accelerating economic growth, reducing poverty and achieving the Millennium Development Goals. UNIDO thus works largely in developing countries, with governments, business associations, UNIDO was established as a UN programme in 1966 with headquarters in Vienna, Austria, and became a specialized agency of the United Nations in 1985. In 2004, UNIDO established the UNIDO Goodwill Ambassador programme, in 2009, UNIDO created a new flagship publication, Making It, Industry for Development. As of January 2017,168 States are Members of UNIDO, the estimated total volume of UNIDO operations for the biennium 2012–2013 is €460 million, the value of technical cooperation delivery in 2012 amounted to $189.2 million. UNIDOs services therefore focus on encouraging the creation of decent employment, the technical ability of developing countries to produce competitive exportable products that comply with international standards is key to their successful participation in international trade. Fundamental changes in the way societies produce and consume are indispensable for achieving global sustainable development, UNIDO therefore promotes sustainable patterns of industrial consumption and production to de-link the processes of economic growth and environmental degradation. UNIDO is a provider of services for improved industrial energy efficiency. It also assists developing countries in implementing multilateral environmental agreements and in reaching their economic. UNIDO organizes the Global Renewable Energy Forum in October 2009, the Industry Section of the Secretariat became a branch in 1959, and in 1962 it became the Industrial Development Centre, headed by a Commissioner for Industrial Development. In the aftermath, proposals for further institutionalizing industrial development-related issues within the UN were considered by various advisory groups, subsequently, the United Nations General Assembly created the UNIDO in November 1966 as a special organ of the United Nations. In January 1967, the Organization was formally established with Headquarters in Vienna, compared to the Industrial Development Centre, UNIDOs creation was intended to broaden the work of its predecessor. The setting up of UNIDO as a special organ had nonetheless been a compromise solution, the developing countries had in the first instance promoted the idea of a specialized agency with its own political decision-making governing bodies and autonomy in budgetary matters. The same position was advocated by several high-level expert groups and intergovernmental committees during the following years, an intergovernmental committee prepared a draft constitution, which was adopted in Vienna in 1979. However, the objections and doubts of industrialized countries as to the necessity of a specialized agency contributed to delaying the ratification process. All necessary formal requirements were fulfilled in 1985, and in December of the same year, during the subsequent years, UNIDO continuously expanded particularly its operational activities. As a result, Canada, the United States, and Australia subsequently withdrew from the Organization between 1993 and 1997, in addition, a weak management structure and lack of focus and integration of UNIDOs activities contributed to aggravate the crisis. UNIDOs Member States responded by adopting a stringent Business Plan on the Future Role, activities laid out in the Business Plan are based on the clear comparative advantages of UNIDO, while avoiding overlap and duplication with other multilateral institutions
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Specialized agency
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At present the UN has in total 15 specialized agencies that carry out various functions on behalf of the UN. The specialized agencies are listed below, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations leads international efforts to defeat hunger. Serving both developed and developing countries, FAO acts as a forum where all nations meet as equals to negotiate agreements. FAOs mandate is to raise levels of nutrition, improve productivity, better the lives of rural populations. FAO is the largest of UN agencies and its headquarters is in Rome, the International Civil Aviation Organization was founded in 1947. It codifies the principles and techniques of international air navigation and fosters the planning and development of air transport to ensure safe. Its headquarters are located in the Quartier international de Montréal of Montreal and it also solves disputes between two countries. IFAD is dedicated to eradicating poverty in developing countries. Its headquarters are in Rome, Italy, the International Labour Organization deals with labour issues. Its headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland, founded in 1919, it was formed through the negotiations of the Treaty of Versailles and was initially an agency of the League of Nations. It became a member of the UN system after the demise of the League and its Constitution, as amended to date, includes the Declaration of Philadelphia on the aims and purposes of the Organization. Its secretariat is known as the International Labor Office, however the IMO did not enter into full force until 1958. Headquartered in London, United Kingdom, the IMO promotes cooperation among government, IMO is governed by an Assembly of members and is financially administered by a Council of members elected from the Assembly. The work of IMO is conducted through five committees and these are supported by technical sub-committees, Member organizations of the UN organizational family may observe the proceedings of the IMO. Observer status may be granted to qualified non-governmental organizations, the IMO is supported by a permanent secretariat of employees who are representative of its members. International Monetary Fund is sometimes considered to be a specialized agency and it is part of the United Nations system and has a formal relationship agreement with the UN, but retains its independence. The IMF provides monetary cooperation and financial stability and acts as a forum for advice, negotiation and it is headquartered in Washington, D. C. The International Telecommunication Union was established to standardize and regulate international radio and it was founded as the International Telegraph Union in Paris on 17 May 1865
28.
Cook Islands
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The Cook Islands is a self-governing island country in the South Pacific Ocean in free association with New Zealand. It comprises 15 islands whose total area is 240 square kilometres. The Cook Islands Exclusive Economic Zone, however, covers 1,800,000 square kilometres of ocean, the Cook Islands defence and foreign affairs are the responsibility of New Zealand, but they are exercised in consultation with the Cook Islands. In recent times, the Cook Islands have adopted an independent foreign policy. Although Cook Islanders are citizens of New Zealand, they have the status of Cook Islands nationals, the Cook Islands main population centres are on the island of Rarotonga, where there is an international airport. There is a population of Cook Islanders in New Zealand. In the 2006 census,58,008 self-identified as being of ethnic Cook Islands Māori descent, the Cook Islands are in the South Pacific Ocean, northeast of New Zealand, between French Polynesia and American Samoa. There are 15 major islands spread over 2,200,000 km2 of ocean, the islands were formed by volcanic activity, the northern group is older and consists of six atolls, which are sunken volcanoes topped by coral growth. The climate is moderate to tropical, palmerston Island sometimes grouped with the Northern Group. Manuae Winslow Reef The Cook Islands were first settled in the 6th century by Polynesian people who migrated from Tahiti, in 1813 John Williams, a missionary on the Endeavour made the first recorded sighting of Rarotonga. The first recorded landing on Rarotonga by Europeans was in 1814 by the Cumberland, the islands saw no more Europeans until missionaries arrived from England in 1821. Christianity quickly took hold in the culture and many continue to be Christian believers today. The Cook Islands became a British protectorate in 1888, due largely to community fears that France might occupy the territory as it had Tahiti, on 6 September 1900, the leading islanders presented a petition asking that the islands should be annexed as British territory. These instruments did not include Aitutaki and it appears that, though the inhabitants regarded themselves as British subjects, the Crowns title was uncertain, and the island was formally annexed by Proclamation dated 9 October 1900. The islands were included within the boundaries of the Colony of New Zealand in 1901 by Order in Council under the Colonial Boundaries Act,1895 of the United Kingdom. The boundary change became effective on 11 June 1901 and the Cook Islands have had a relationship with New Zealand ever since. When the British Nationality and New Zealand Citizenship Act 1948 came into effect on 1 January 1949, the country remained a New Zealand dependent territory until 1965, when the New Zealand Government decided to offer self-governing status to its colony. In that year, Albert Henry of the Cook Islands Party was elected as the first Premier, Henry led the country until he was accused of vote-rigging
29.
Niue
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Niue is an island country in the South Pacific Ocean,2,400 kilometres northeast of New Zealand, and east of Tonga, south of Samoa and west of the Cook Islands. Its land area is 260 square kilometres and its population, predominantly Polynesian, is around 1,612 as of November 2016 and they commonly refer to the island as The Rock, a reference to the traditional name Rock of Polynesia. Niue, whose capital is the village of Alofi, is a state in free association with New Zealand. Niueans are citizens of New Zealand, and Queen Elizabeth II is head of state in her capacity as Queen of New Zealand, between 90–95% of Niuean people live in New Zealand, along with about 70% of the speakers of the Niuean language. A bilingual country, over 30% speak both Niuean and English, though the percentage of monolingual English-speaking people is only 11%, while 46% are monolingual Niuean speakers, Rugby is the most played sport in Niue. In October 2016, Niue officially declared that all its debt was paid off. Niue is not a member of the United Nations, but UN organisations have accepted its status as a state as equivalent to independence for the purposes of international law. As such, Niue is a member of some UN specialised agencies, and is invited, alongside the other non-UN member state. Niue is subdivided into 14 villages, each village has a village council that elects its chairman. The villages are at the same electoral districts. Each village sends an assemblyman to the Parliament of Niue, in 2003, Niue became the first country in the world to offer free wireless internet to all its inhabitants. Niue Island Organic Farmers Association is currently paving way to an MEA committed to making Niue the worlds first fully organic nation, a leader in green growth, Niue is also transitioning to solar power, with help from the European Union. In 2015, Niue started providing phone landlines to all of its inhabitants, in 2008, Niue became the first country in the world where laptops are provided to all its school students. A highly democratic nation, Niueans enjoy high freedom, with elections every 3 years, there are no political parties in Niue, all are independents. The last political party, Niue Peoples Party, won once, in January 2004, Niue was hit by Cyclone Heta, which caused extensive damage to the entire island, including wiping out most of the south of the capital, Alofi. The disaster set the island back about two years from its planned timeline to implement the Niue Integrated Strategic Plan, since national efforts concentrated on recovery, in 2008, Niue had yet to fully recover. Niue is one of the worlds largest coral islands, the terrain consists of steep limestone cliffs along the coast with a central plateau rising to about 60 metres above sea level. A coral reef surrounds the island, with the only break in the reef being in the central western coast, close to the capital
30.
Midrand
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Midrand is an area in central Gauteng Province, South Africa. It is situated between Centurion and Kyalami, and is part of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality, Midrand was established as a municipality in 1981, but ceased to be an independent town in the restructuring of local government that followed the end of apartheid in 1994. It was incorporated in the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality in 2000 and it was made part of Region 2 and, as of 2006, when the number of regions were reduced to seven, it forms part of Region A. Suburbs that are regarded as being in Midrand include among others, Country View, Carlswald, Crowthorne, Glen Austin, Halfway House, Halfway Gardens, Vorna Valley, Noordwyk. In 2010, it was reported that the City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality wished to annex Midrand from the City of Johannesburg, reportedly to boost its income, the city is relatively modern, having experienced much growth in the last decade. Many businesses have relocated due to its proximity to good highway links. The South African Civil Aviation Authority is headquartered in Midrand, Midrand is also the location of the African Unions Pan-African Parliament and of the NEPAD secretariat. The newest landmark of Midrand is the Nizamiye Masjid, the largest mosque in South Africa, the Classical Turkish-style mosque was personally funded by Turkish-born construction tycoon Ali Katircioglu at a cost of R210 Million. In 2013, Atterbury Properties announced plans to build the Mall of Africa, the Mall of Africa will be located within the green, mixed-use Waterfall City precinct. The N1 Business Park and International Business Gateway are among the commercial developments in Midrand. The Midrand Graduate Institute, Varsity Colleges new campus opened in Riverview Office Park in 2012, there are schools located in close proximity in every area. Kyalami, an international renowned racetrack is in Midrand and is the venue for many of South Africas premier motor racing events, the South African Lipizzaners riding academy is situated in the smallholdings of Kyalami. Midrand is the home of Grand Central Airport and also to one of the stations in the Gautrain rapid rail system, köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as subtropical highland. Midrand Chamber of Commerce Midrand Free Business Directory, Community Forum and Classifieds
31.
New Delhi
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New Delhi is the capital of India and one of Delhi citys 11 districts. The National Capital Region is a larger entity comprising the entire National Capital Territory along with adjoining districts. The foundation stone of the city was laid by George V and it was designed by British architects, Sir Edwin Lutyens and Sir Herbert Baker. The new capital was inaugurated on 13 February 1931, by Viceroy, New Delhi has been selected as one of the hundred Indian cities to be developed as a smart city under Prime Minister of India Narendra Modis flagship Smart Cities Mission. Calcutta was the capital of India during the British Raj until December 1911, Delhi had served as the political and financial centre of several empires of ancient India and the Delhi Sultanate, most notably of the Mughal Empire from 1649 to 1857. During the early 1900s, a proposal was made to the British administration to shift the capital of the British Indian Empire, as India was officially named, from Calcutta on the east coast, to Delhi. The Government of British India felt that it would be easier to administer India from Delhi in the centre of northern India. The land for building the new city of Delhi was acquired under the Land Acquisition Act 1894. The foundation stone of New Delhi was laid by King George V and Queen Mary at the site of Delhi Durbar of 1911 at Kingsway Camp on 15 December 1911, during their imperial visit. Large parts of New Delhi were planned by Edwin Lutyens, who first visited Delhi in 1912, the contract was given to Sobha Singh. The original plan called for its construction in Tughlaqabad, inside the Tughlaqabad fort, construction really began after World War I and was completed by 1931. The city that was later dubbed Lutyens Delhi was inaugurated in ceremonies beginning on 10 February 1931 by Lord Irwin, Lutyens designed the central administrative area of the city as a testament to Britains imperial aspirations. Soon Lutyens started considering other places, however, it was rejected by the Viceroy when the cost of acquiring the necessary properties was found to be too high. The central axis of New Delhi, which faces east at India Gate, was previously meant to be a north-south axis linking the Viceroys House at one end with Paharganj at the other. During the projects early years, many believed it was a gate from Earth to Heaven itself. Eventually, owing to space constraints and the presence of a number of heritage sites in the North side. A site atop the Raisina Hill, formerly Raisina Village, a Meo village, was chosen for the Rashtrapati Bhawan, then known as the Viceroys House. The reason for this choice was that the hill lay directly opposite the Dinapanah citadel, which was considered the site of Indraprastha
32.
Least Developed Countries
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The concept of LDCs originated in the late 1960s and the first group of LDCs was listed by the UN in its resolution 2768 of 18 November 1971. A country is classified among the Least Developed Countries if it meets three criteria, Poverty – adjustable criterion based on GNI per capita averaged over three years. As of 2015 a country must have GNI per capita less than US $1,035 to be included on the list, human resource weakness and Economic vulnerability LDC criteria are reviewed every three years by the Committee for Development Policy of the UN Economic and Social Council. Countries may graduate out of the LDC classification when indicators exceed these criteria, the classification applies to 48 countries. Since the LDC category was initiated, only four countries have graduated to developing country status, the first country to graduate from LDC status was Botswana in 1994. The second country was Cape Verde in 2007, maldives graduated to developing country status on 1 January 2011, while Samoa graduated in 2014. It is anticipated that Equatorial Guinea and Vanuatu will be the countries to be promoted from LDC status. At the UNs fourth conference on LDCs held in May 2011, Least developed countries can be distinguished from developing countries, less developed countries, lesser developed countries, or other terms for countries in the so-called Third World. Although many contemporary scholars argue that Third World is outdated, irrelevant or inaccurate, the term less economically developed country is also used today. Countries with populations over 75 million are excluded, there have been four United Nations conferences on LDCs, held every ten years. The first two were in Paris, in 1981 and 1991, the third was in Brussels in 2001, the Fourth UN Conference on Least Developed Countries was held in Istanbul, Turkey, 9–13 May 2011. It was attended by Ban Ki-Moon, the head of the UN, the conference endorsed the goal of raising half the existing Least developed countries out of the LDC category by 2022. The importance of society and its contributions has also been recognised in the UNGA Resolution 63/227. Post LDC III, civil society actors have been engaged and involved in the UN Decision making processes concerning LDCs. They have also involved in the implementation and follow-up, monitoring and review of the progress made by LDCs. For LDC IV, the UN-OHRLLS has entrusted LDC Watch, a network of LDC Civil Society Organizations. LDC Watch has organised civil society consultations at various levels, UN-OHRLLS has mandated LDC Watch as the lead Civil Society Organization to coordinate the Civil Society track towards the LDC-IV conference. The Forum will open two days before the conference begins and will continue till the end of the conference
33.
Group of 77
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There were 77 founding members of the organization, but by November 2013 the organization had since expanded to 134 member countries. Ecuador holds the Chairmanship for 2017, the group was founded on 15 June 1964, by the Joint Declaration of the Seventy-Seven Countries issued at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. The first major meeting was in Algiers in 1967, where the Charter of Algiers was adopted, there are Chapters of the Group of 77 in Geneva, Rome, Vienna, Paris, Nairobi and the Group of 24 in Washington, D. C. The group has been credited with common stance against apartheid and for supporting global disarmament and it has been supportive of the New International Economic Order. On the map, members as of 2013 are shown in green, the years in parenthesis represent the year/s a country has presided. Countries listed in bold are members of the G-24. See the official list of G-77 members, New Zealand signed the original Joint Declaration of the Developing Countries in October 1963, but pulled out of the group before the formation of the G77 in 1964. Mexico was a member, but left the Group after joining the OECD in 1994. It had presided over the group in 1973–1974, 1983–1984, however, south Korea was a founding member, but left the Group after joining the OECD in 1996. Yugoslavia was a member, by the late 1990s it was still listed on the membership list. It was removed from the list in late 2003 and it had presided over the group in 1985–1986. Bosnia and Herzegovina is the part of former Yugoslavia that is currently in G77. Cyprus was a member, but was no longer listed on the official membership list after its accession to the EU in 2004. Malta was admitted to the Group in 1976, but was no longer listed on the membership list after its accession to the EU in 2004. Palau joined the Group in 2002, but withdrew in 2004, romania was admitted to the Group in 1976, but was no longer listed on the official membership list after its accession to the EU in 2007. China has never joined the G77 but provides consistent political support. Its meetings usually take place twice a year, prior to the IMFC and Development Committee meetings, although membership in the G-24 is strictly limited to 24 countries, any member of the G-77 can join discussions. China has been a special invitee since the Gabon meetings of 1981, naglaa El-Ehwany, Minister of International Cooperation, Egypt, is the current chairman of the G-24
34.
Overseas Development Institute
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The Overseas Development Institute is an independent think tank on international development and humanitarian issues, founded in 1960. It does this by locking together high-quality applied research, practical policy advice, since then it has moved several times and is currently on Blackfriars Road. Since 2004 it has had a Partnership Programme Arrangement with the UKs Department for International Development, the Institute also developed a strong focus on communications and bridging research and policy. During Simon Maxwells period as ODI Director, ODI was named Think Tank of the Year 2007 by Public Affairs News magazine and it celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2010, with guests including former ODI Fellow and UK Business Secretary, Vince Cable. As of 2014 ODI had more than 230 staff and its director from 2013 until 2016 was Kevin Watkins who took over from Dr Alison Evans, formerly of the Institute of Development Studies at Sussex University. Its future director will be Alex Their, unlike its counterpart IDS, ODI does not engage in teaching. Speakers include ODI staff, visiting development policymakers, DFID officials and other prominent figures such as Justin Yifu Lin, ODI has published many books, papers, briefings, and two academic journals, Development Policy Review and Disasters. Since 1963 ODI has sent over 900 post-graduate economists to work in 40 mostly low-income countries, participants were initially known as Overseas Development Institute Nuffield Fellows and later titled as ODI Fellows. As a registered charity, ODIs income relies on grants and donations from foundations, non-governmental organisations, david Steven of Global Dashboard criticised the ODI for not making the distinction between subsidy and having a lower VAT rate on fuel comparison to other goods
35.
1973 oil crisis
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The 1973 oil crisis began in October 1973 when the members of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries proclaimed an oil embargo. The embargo occurred in response to United States support for Israel during the Yom Kippur War, by the end of the embargo in March 1974, the price of oil had risen from US$3 per barrel to nearly $12 globally, US prices were significantly higher. The embargo caused an oil crisis, or shock, with many short- and long-term effects on global politics and it was later called the first oil shock, followed by the 1979 oil crisis, termed the second oil shock. The embargo was a response to American involvement in the 1973 Yom Kippur War, six days after Egypt and Syria launched a surprise military campaign against Israel, the US supplied Israel with arms. In response to this, the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries announced an oil embargo against Canada, Japan, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, the crisis had a major impact on international relations and created a rift within NATO. Some European nations and Japan sought to disassociate themselves from United States foreign policy in the Middle East to avoid being targeted by the boycott, Arab oil producers linked any future policy changes to peace between the belligerents. To address this, the Nixon Administration began multilateral negotiations with the combatants and they arranged for Israel to pull back from the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights. By January 18,1974, US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger had negotiated an Israeli troop withdrawal from parts of the Sinai Peninsula, the promise of a negotiated settlement between Israel and Syria was enough to convince Arab oil producers to lift the embargo in March 1974. The embargo occurred at a time of rising petroleum consumption by industrialized countries and coincided with an increase in oil imports by the worlds largest oil consumer. In the aftermath, targeted countries initiated a variety of policies to contain their future dependency. The 1973 oil price shock, with the accompanying 1973–74 stock market crash, was regarded as the first discrete event since the Great Depression to have a persistent effect on the US economy, the embargos success demonstrated Saudi Arabias diplomatic and economic power. It was the largest oil exporter and a politically and religiously conservative kingdom, in 1970, US oil production started to decline, exacerbating the embargos impact. Following this, Nixon named James E. Akins as US Ambassador to Saudi Arabia to audit US production capacity, the confidential results were alarming—no spare capacity was available and production could only decrease. The oil embargo had little effect on supply, according to Akins. OPEC was organized to resist pressure by the Seven Sisters to reduce oil prices, at first, OPEC operated as an informal bargaining unit for resource-rich third-world countries. OPEC confined its activities to gaining a share of the profits generated by oil companies. In the early 1970s it began to exert economic and political strength, on August 15,1971, the United States unilaterally pulled out of the Bretton Woods Accord. The US abandoned the Gold Exchange Standard whereby the value of the dollar had been pegged to the price of gold and all other currencies were pegged to the dollar, shortly thereafter, Britain followed, floating the pound sterling
36.
Sustainable Stock Exchanges Initiative
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Other key stakeholders include the World Federation of Exchanges, and the International Organization of Securities Commissions. The SSE provides a learning platform for stock exchanges, investors, regulators. In collaboration with investors, regulators, and companies, they strive to encourage sustainable investment, the Sustainable Stock Exchanges Global Dialogues are held every two years as the SSE initiative’s flagship event. They provide a unique, high-level platform to explore how the world’s exchanges can work together with investors, regulators and they are designed to analyze, promote and foster communication on stock exchanges’ sustainability-related activities. They demonstrate the progress of stock exchanges, while highlighting challenges and opportunities ahead, the 2014 Global Dialogue was held in Geneva, Switzerland, on 14 October 2014, at the United Nations Palais de Nations. The focus of this event was Capital Markets for Sustainable Development and this event was held as part of the four-day UNCTAD biennial World Investment Forum from October 13 to 17. The 2012 Global Dialogue was held on 18 June 2012 in Rio de Janeiro and it focused on the role of the world’s stock exchanges in encouraging responsible, long-term investment and creating sustainable financial markets. The event took place in the leading up to the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development as part of the UN Global Compact’s Corporate Sustainability Forum. The 2010 Global Dialogue was held on 8 September 2010 in Xiamen, the 2009 Global Dialogue was held on 2 November 2009. These high-level events are open to the public and bring exchanges together with policy makers, regulators, investors, companies and other relevant stakeholders. For the SSE Regional Dialogue, LatAm & Caribbean, Latin America’s four largest stock exchanges gathered in Colombia for the first Sustainable Stock Exchanges Regional Dialogue, LatAm & Caribbean. The regional version of the flagship SSE Global Dialogue was facilitated by the SSE, hosted by the Colombian Securities Exchange, the SSE Regional Dialogue, South East Asia was held on 18 May 2015. The Sustainable Stock Exchanges Regional Dialogue South East Asia kicked off in the heart of Bangkok, afternoon workshop sessions were made possible through the support of collaborating partners GRI, CDSB, ASRIA and MSCI. During the Regional Dialogue, leaders of the Hanoi, Hochiminh, the SSE Regional Dialogue, Nordic Countries began on 4 November 2015. The Sustainable Stock Exchanges Regional Dialogue, Nordic Countries took place in Helsinki, hosted by Nasdaq Helsinki, the SSE Regional Dialogue welcomed more than 100 participants from across Nordic markets. Eight new exchanges joined the SSE initiative at the SSE Regional Dialogue, the SSE Leaders Luncheon, Climate was held in December 2015. World leaders gathered for the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference to complete a new global agreement and this summit caps a year that has seen numerous momentous international breakthroughs, from the G20 pact on climate policy to the China-USA Joint Presidential Announcement on Climate Change. As climate plays a prominent role in the development of investment policy and regulation, it also has a growing impact on capital markets, investors
37.
Principles for Responsible Investment
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The United Nations-supported Principles for Responsible Investment is an international network of investors working together to put the six Principles for Responsible Investment into practice. Its goal is to understand the implications of sustainability for investors and support signatories to incorporate these issues into their investment decision making, in implementing the Principles, signatories contribute to the development of a more sustainable global financial system. The Principles are voluntary and aspirational and they offer a menu of possible actions for incorporating environmental, social and corporate governance issues into investment practices across asset classes. Responsible investment is a process that must be tailored to fit each organisations investment strategy, approach, the Principles are designed to be compatible with the investment styles of large, diversified, institutional investors that operate within a traditional fiduciary framework. As of November 2016,1,600 signatories representing US$62 trillion assets under management have signed up to the Principles, in some cases, before retaining an investment manager, institutional investors will inquire as to whether the manager is a signatory. In early 2005, the then UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, a 20-person investor group drawn from institutions in 12 countries was supported by a 70-person group of experts from the investment industry, intergovernmental organisations and civil society. The Principles were launched in April 2006 at the New York Stock Exchange, the six Principles provide a global framework for mainstream investors to consider these ESG issues. The PRI was created alongside the Principles to help put the framework into practice,1,600 signatories have signed up to the Principles, with an increased sign-up arising from the global financial crisis of 2008-2009, according to a report in the Financial Times. The Principles are ‘voluntary and aspirational’ and they do not have entry requirements or absolute performance standards for responsible investment. However, signatories have an obligation to report on the extent to which they implement the Principles through the annual Reporting, the PRI has around 90 staff based mostly in London, with offices in New York City, Seoul, Sao Paulo, Amsterdam, Tokyo and Cape Town. The Principles are as follows, As institutional investors, we have a duty to act in the best long-term interests of our beneficiaries, in this fiduciary role, we believe that environmental, social, and corporate governance issues can affect the performance of investment portfolios. We also recognise that applying these Principles may better align investors with broader objectives of society, therefore, where consistent with our fiduciary responsibilities, we commit to the following,1. We will incorporate ESG issues into investment analysis and decision-making processes and we will be active owners and incorporate ESG issues into our ownership policies and practices. We will seek appropriate disclosure on ESG issues by the entities in which we invest and we will promote acceptance and implementation of the Principles within the investment industry. We will work together to enhance our effectiveness in implementing the Principles and we will each report on our activities and progress towards implementing the Principles. A report published by the PRI found that fiduciary duty is not an obstacle to asset owner action on ESG factors, fiduciary duty in the 21st century looked at fiduciary duty across eight markets through a series of events, interviews, case studies and a legal review. Fiduciary duty has long been an issue, especially in the US. The report found that investors have yet to fully integrate ESG issues into their investment decision making processes
Kenya
Qatar
Ghana
Brazil
Thailand
South Africa
Colombia
Switzerland
Yugoslavia
Philippines
Chile
India
Grenada
Sri Lanka
Venezuela
Argentina
