Committee: United Nations Democracy Fund (UNDEF)
Photograph by Eskinder Debebe
Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro (centre, front row) poses for a group photo with the members of the Advisory Board of the United Nations Democracy Fund (UNDEF). 21 April 2009 United Nations, New York
UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, said that the UNDEF’s focus “recognizes a fundamental truth about democracy everywhere -- that it is ultimately the product of a strong, active and vocal civil society. It is such a civil society that fosters responsible citizenship and makes democratic forms of government work.” In 2005, the UNDEF was established by the UN Security-General as an UN General Trust Fund at the African Union Summit in Libya. For the UNDEF’s most recent fifth round of funding, 65 proposals out of 3,700 applications were short-listed; almost double the average number from previous years.
After the proposal of the UNDEF, the governments of the United States and India made a joint proposal to fortify international democracy support through multilateralism. Later in 2005, all UN member states welcomed the new UNDEF at the World Summit. At the World Summit, member states agreed that the Fund would not support one type of democracy or a model of democracy from a specific country, but rather democracy as a whole. The UNDEF works on projects that support and strengthen human rights and encourage democracy and the voice of civil society. The majority of funds from the UNDEF go to local civil society organizations, which are in transitional and consolidation phases of democracy. Therefore, the UNDEF plays a significant role in complementing the UN’s more conventional work in order to fortify global democracy.
The UNDEF falls under the authority of the UN Secretary-General. The Secretary-General is led by the UNDEF Advisory Board, which is made up of the seven largest donor countries: the U.S., India, Qatar, Germany, Japan, Spain and Australia. These seven member states from dissimilar regions were chosen because of their dedication to and support for democracy. Since 2007, the Chair of the UNDEF has been Professor Michael Doyle from Columbia University. The office of the UNDEF is managed by a small team made up of four professionals, headed by former diplomat, Australian Ronald Rich.
The projects of the UNDEF always fall under the following topics: youth, community development, media, women, tools of democratization, rule of law and human rights. The UNDEF’s projects last two years, and so far, the UNDEF has funded over 330 projects in over 110 countries. Funding for the UNDEF comes from voluntary contributions from governments. These contributions qualify as Official Development Assistance. The U.S. and India are two of the biggest donors to this committee.
Lately, the UNDEF has been very active. They recently funded a program in Russia to construct skills among Russian NGOs who lack business experience working with government officials. The UNDEF also held a conference on May 9, where they discussed this crucial current time for democracy worldwide. They displayed the results of a study, which was based on feedback from democracy support grantees, which illustrates how well family supports family members who are fighting for democracy. The UNDEF also funds a program to help women find a voice and strengthen their roles in countries such as Egypt, Morocco, and others involved in the ‘Arab Spring.'
Overall, the UNDEF is a significant aspect of the UN. Its desire to strengthen global democracy remains important in the development of many countries and the success of relationships between and within countries. Currently, there are 123 out of 194 democratic countries in the world (Answers.com). The number of democratic countries has increased over the years and will hopefully, with the help of the UNDEF, increase even more in future years.
Works Cited
“How Many Democratic Countries Are There in the World." Answers.com
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"The Shared Societies Project | Club De Madrid." Club of Madrid. Web. 25 May 2011.
<http://www.clubmadrid.org/en/programa/the_shared_societies_project>.
"UNDEF." Welcome to the United Nations: It's Your World. Web. 25 May 2011.
<http://www.un.org/democracyfund/News/news_events_index.html>.
"United Nations Democracy Fund." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 25 May 2011.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Democracy_Fund#Backgroun
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