Friendship through Understanding, and
Understanding through Education and Friendship
WCI ACHIEVES A SPECIAL CONSULTATIVE STATUS WITH
THE UNITED NATIONS
On June 24, 2020, the Economic and Social Council branch of the United Nations (ECOSOC) conferred on Welcome Clubs International (WCI) the distinct honor of a Special Consultative Status. This status represents a landmark in our organization and offers members many opportunities to benefit and contribute to women's work internationally.
A Special Consultative Status enables WCI to actively engage with ECOSOC and its subsidiary bodies and the United Nations Secretariat, programs, funds, and agencies in several ways.
The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is at the heart of the United Nations (UN) system to advance the three dimensions of sustainable development – economic, social, and environmental. It is the central platform for fostering debate and innovative thinking, forging consensus on ways forward, and coordinating efforts to achieve internationally agreed goals. It is also responsible for the follow-up to major UN conferences and summits.
The UN Charter established ECOSOC in 1945 as one of the six main organs of the United Nations.
Coordination within the UN
ECOSOC links a diverse family of UN entities dedicated to sustainable development, providing overall guidance and coordination. The entities include regional economic and social commissions, functional commissions facilitating intergovernmental discussions of major global issues, and specialized agencies, programs, and funds at work around the world to translate development commitments into real changes in people's lives.
Partnership with the rest of the world
Building on its coordination role within the UN system, ECOSOC is a gateway for UN partnership and participation by the rest of the world. It offers a unique global meeting point for productive dialogues among policymakers, parliamentarians, academics, foundations, businesses, youth, and registered non-governmental organizations (including Welcome Clubs International).
ECOSOC Subsidiary Bodies
ECOSOC oversees a complex ecosystem of subsidiary bodies, composed of regional commissions, functional commissions and expert bodies, standing committees and ad hoc bodies. The Council is entrusted with guiding and coordinating the work of its subsidiary and related bodies. It thus influences a wide remit of the work of the UN system on development.
ECOSOC Accreditation
Non-governmental, non-profit, public, or voluntary organizations may formally contribute to the work of the United Nations after being granted consultative status with the Economic and Social Council under Article 71 of the Charter of the United Nations and on Economic and Social Council Resolution 1996/31. These accredited organizations may participate in meetings of the Council and its subsidiary bodies, including the functional commissions, in accordance with the rules of procedure of those bodies.
As a fully-accredited non-governmental organization (NGO) in good standing with ECOSOC,
Welcome Clubs International is eligible to contribute and participate at the annual sessions of the Commission on the Status of Women.
Commission on the Status of Women
A functional commission of ECOSOC, the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) is the principal global intergovernmental body exclusively dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women. It was established by ECOSOC resolution 11(II) of 21 June 1946.
The CSW is instrumental in promoting women's rights, documenting the reality of women’s lives throughout the world, and shaping global standards on gender equality and the empowerment of women.
In 1996, ECOSOC expanded the Commission’s mandate and decided that it should take a leading role in monitoring and reviewing progress and problems in the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, and in mainstreaming a gender perspective in UN activities.
CSW holds an annual two-week session where representatives of UN Member States, civil society organizations, and UN entities gather at the UN headquarters in New York. They discuss progress and gaps in the implementation of the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the key global policy document on gender equality, and the 23rd special session of the General Assembly held in 2000 (Beijing+5), as well as emerging issues that affect gender equality and the empowerment of women.
In 2023, the sixty-seventh session of the Commission on the Status of Women will be from March 6-17. Parallel Events sponsored by the NGO CSW67 Forum will take place in a hybrid format for the first time; in-person and virtual events will occur throughout the session.
Themes
CSW67 Priority theme: Innovation and technological change, and education in the digital age for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls
Review theme: Challenges and opportunities in achieving gender equality and the empowerment of rural women and girls (agreed conclusions of sixty-second session)