General Assembly
The General Assembly (GA) is a principal organ of the UN under Article 7 of the Charter.
- Formation: 1945. Headquarters: New York City.
- Total Members: 193 — all UN members are automatically GA members.
- Representatives (Article 9(1)(2)): Each member shall have not more than five (5) representatives in the GA.
- Composition: The General Committee consists of the President, 21 Vice-Presidents, and the Chairmen of the six Main Committees; the five permanent members of the Security Council also serve as Vice-Presidents.
- Sessions: Start on the 3rd Tuesday of September and end in the 3rd week of December each year; the GA meets in regular annual sessions and special sessions as occasion requires.
- General Debate: Held without interruption for 9 working days.
- Voting: Decisions require a 2/3rd majority of members present and voting.
- Head: The President, elected for a term of 1 year.
- Functions: Discuss international problems and recommend solutions; recommend peaceful settlement of disputes; consider and approve the UN budget; elect non-permanent Security Council members, ECOSOC members, and Trusteeship Council members; initiate studies to promote international co-operation in the political field (encouraging codification of international law) and in the economic, social, cultural, educational, and health fields — both functions.
- Not a GA function: Contacting international donors for donations is not a function of the General Assembly.
- Representation: The GA represents all members of the UN.
- Legal status of resolutions: GA resolutions are not binding on member states (recommendatory in nature).
- Provisions: Found in Chapter IV, Articles 9-22 of the UN Charter; voting procedure under Articles 18(2) and 18(3).
- Nicknames: Called the 'International Parliament' or 'Parliament of the World', and is the main deliberative and policy-making body of the UN.