INTERNATIONAL

RELATIONS &
ORGANIZATIONS
Civil Service Examination
Prelims 2021
 SESSION FRAMEWORK
 Question Format
 Question Solving Techniques
 Analysis of Previous Year Questions
 Preparation tips specific to IR&O
 Current affairs Briefing
 Prelims Bits (facts and shortcuts)

DISCLAIMER:
 NO Expectation of Important topics
for the exam ( everything under sky
is questioned by UPSC )
 QUESTION FORMAT
1.Nuclear Related
2018. What is/are the
consequence/consequences of a country
becoming the member of the `Nuclear Suppliers
Group'?
1. It will have access to the latest and most
efficient nuclear technologies.
2. It automatically becomes a member of "The
Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear
Weapons (NPT)".
Which of the statements given above is/are
correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
2018. In the Indian context, what is the
implication of ratifying the 'Additional
Protocol' with the `International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA)' ?
(a) The civilian nuclear reactors come under
IAEA safeguards.
(b) The military nuclear installations come
under the inspection of IAEA.
(c) The country will have the privilege to buy
uranium from the Nuclear Suppliers Group
(NSG).
(d) The country automatically becomes a
member of the NSG.
2019. Recently, India signed a deal known as
'Action Plan for Prioritization and
Implementation of Cooperation Areas in
the Nuclear Field' with which of the
following countries?
(a) Japan
(b) Russia
(c) The United Kingdom
(d) The United States of America
 2.Reports
2018. "Rule of Law Index" is released by
which of the following ?
(a) Amnesty International
(b) International Court of Justice
(c) The Office of UN Commissioner for Human
Rights
(d) World Justice Project
2019. Which one of the following is not a
sub-index of the World Bank's 'Ease of
Doing Business Index'?
(a) Maintenance of law and order
(b) Paying taxes
(c) Registering property
(d) Dealing with construction permits
 3.UN Related
2018. International Labour Organization's
Conventions 138 and 182 are related to
(a) Child labour
(b) Adaptation of agricultural practices to
global climate change
(c) Regulation of food prices and food security
(d) Gender parity at the workplace
2019. Consider the following statements:
1. The United Nations Convention against Corruption
(UNCAC) has a 'Protocol against the Smuggling of
Migrants by Land, Sea and Air'.
2. The UNCAC is the ever-first legally binding global
anti-corruption instrument.
3. A highlight of the United Nations Convention
against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) is
the inclusion of a specific chapter aimed at returning
assets to their rightful owners from whom they had
been taken illicitly.
4. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime
(UNODC) is mandated by its member States to assist
in the implementation of both UNCAC and UNTOC.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
(a) 1 and 3 only
(b) 2, 3 and 4 only
(c) 2 and 4 only
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4
 4.Issue / Event Based

2018. The term "two-state solution" is

sometimes mentioned in the news in the
context of the
affairs of
(a) China
(b) Israel
(c) Iraq
(d) Yemen
2018. Very recently, in which of the following
countries have lakhs of people either suffered
from severe famine/acute malnutrition or died
due to starvation caused by war/ethnic
conflicts ?
(a) Angola and Zambia
(b) Morocco and Tunisia
(c) Venezuela and Colombia
2019. Which of the following adopted a law
on data protection and privacy for its
citizens known as 'General Data Protection
Regulation' in April 2016 and started
implementation of it from 25th May, 2018?
(a) Australia
(b) Canada
(c) The European Union
(d) The United States of America
 5. Institutions
2018. Consider the following countries :
1. Australia
2. Canada
3. China
4. India
5. Japan
6. USA
Which of the above are among the 'free-trade partners' of
ASEAN ?
(a) 1, 2, 4 and 5
(b) 3, 4, 5 and 6
(c) 1, 3, 4 and 5
(d) 2, 3, 4 and 6

2018. India enacted The Geographical Indications of Goods

(Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 in order to
comply with the obligations to
(a) ILO
(b) IMF
2019. With reference to Asian Infrastructure
Investment Bank (AIIB), consider the
following statements
1. AIIB has more than 80 member nations.
2. India is the largest shareholder in AIIB.
3. AIIB does not have any members from outside
Asia.
Which of the statements given above is / are
correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c). 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
QUESTION SOLVING TECHNIQUES
1.Guess Work
 Based on Mandate

Think whether can that particular

organization can perform that task ?

Ex: WTO related to trade , TRIPS(GI)

WIPO related to IPR alone
WCO related to custom regulations (HS
code , Authorized Economic operator scheme)
Ex: WB related to development aspects
IMF related to Balance of Payment ,
Financial stability
Recollect the current news between 2 countries
as well as the region
Ex : During Brexit talks it is more logical to guess a
trade deal between Indian and Britain than India
and Kenya

 Whether legally binding or not ?

Most agreements , partnerships ,

assosciations etc are voluntary in nature that does
not threaten the sovereignty and integrity of the
country.
But issues like nuclear security ,
environmental threats (climate change ) invoke
legally binding conditions
Ex : Paris Accord is legally binding and India Accepted
since the NDC is voluntarily determined
 Stakeholders

Try to decode the relationship status

among the members stated in the question.
Ex : In a Sunni Organization like Gulf Cooperation
Council , there is no place for Shia power like
Iran

Ex : In most of the society and environment

related programs , the membership will be open
to private bodies , NGO’s
ANALYSIS OF PREVIOUS
YEAR QUESTIONS
 PREPARATION TIPS

 Know the Mandate of all organizations

 Memorize the members of organizations

 Keep an update of events happening in each

continent

 Focus on issues/events closely associated with

India

 Be strong with associated subjects like

Geography , Economics , Environment
  UNITE AWARE
India, in partnership with the
UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations and the
Department of Operational Support, has been
working towards developing a mobile tech platform
'UNITE AWARE' that helps increase situational
awareness and provides terrain-related information
to peacekeepers.

NOTE : An Indian peacekeepers brigade

stationed in Goma, Democratic Republic of the
Congo, is presently saving lives in the aftermath of
the volcanic eruption of Mount Nyiragongo.

India is one of the largest

troop contributing countries to UN peacekeeping
missions and has contributed more than 250,000
troops in 49 missions over the years. (Top 3
Contributors to UNPKO Budget = USA>China>Japan)
  UN ELECTIONS

United Nations had elections to the following

posts:
 UN General Assembly President for 76 th Session
(Sep 2021 – Sep 2022)
 UN Secretary General (2022-2027)

 UNSC Non- Permanent members (2022 - 2023)

 UNSC MEMBERSHIP & PRESIDENCY

 Before applying, each country must obtain the

votes of two-thirds of the Member States
present and voting at the General Assembly, to
secure a seat on the Council. (a minimum of
129 votes, to win a seat if all 193 UN Member
States are present and voting )
 Even if candidates have been endorsed by their
regional group and are running unopposed,
formal balloting is required.
NOTE : Exceptionally, countries competing for a
seat have decided to split the term between
them. But since 1966, this only happened once,
in 2016, when Italy and the Netherlands agreed
to split the 2017-2018 term.
Since 2010, 78 per cent of races for
Security Council seats have been uncontested.
 Albania, Brazil, Gabon, Ghana and the
United Arab Emirates (UAE) were elected by the
75th session of the General Assembly in June
2021 to serve as non-permanent members of the
UN Security Council for the 1Jan 2022- 31Dec
2023 term.
 The newly elected five will join India, Ireland,
Kenya, Mexico and Norway, the other non-
permanent members serving 2021-2022 term.
 Vacating their seats were VietNam, Saint
Vincent and the Grenadines(island nation in
Carribean),Estonia, Niger and Tunisia.
  UNSC PRESIDENT
 The presidency of the Council is held by each
of the members in turn for one
month, following the English alphabetical
order of the Member States names.
 The head of the country’s delegation is known
as the President of the United Nations Security
Council.
 The president serves to coordinate actions of
the council, decide policy disputes, and
sometimes functions as a diplomat or
intermediary between conflicting groups.
 India is starting its 8th tenure as UNSC Non
Permanent Member so it is not the first time
that India holds presidency of the council.
  UNGA PRESIDENT
 The UNGA (called the parliament of the
world) is headed by its President, who is
elected for a term of 1 year with simple
majority vote of UNGA via secret ballot.
 Presidency rotates among 5 regional groups
– Asian , Eastern European , LA & CS ,
African , Western European & others ( Asian
group is second largest after African Group )
NOTE : Glance the members of Regional group
 In 1953, Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit became the
eight President of the UNGA, the only Indian
GA President to date.
 UNGA President administers oath to UN Secretary
General (75th UNGAP administered oath to UN SG for
next term)
 President-elect of the 76th session of the UN
General Assembly Maldivian Foreign Minister
Abdulla Shahid has appointed India's Deputy
Permanent Representative to the UN
Ambassador K Nagaraj Naidu as his Chef De
cabinet (means Chief Secretary)
 It is the I time , an Indian diplomat holds this
position.
 UNGA Voting types
 Decisions on important questions, such as those on
peace and security, admission of new members and
budgetary matters, require a two-thirds majority of the
General Assembly.
 Decisions on other questions are by simple majority.
 The Assembly has no binding votes or veto powers like
the UN Security Council. It follows the principle of 1
Member 1 Vote 1 Value.
 Under Article 19 of the Charter of the United Nations, a
Member State in arrears in the payment of its dues in
an amount that equals or exceeds the contributions
due for two preceding years can lose its vote in the
General Assembly. An exception is allowed if the
Member State can show that conditions beyond its
control contributed to this inability to pay.
 As of June 2021, four Member States are subject to the
provisions of Article 19 of the Charter : Central African
Republic , Comoros ,Sao Tome and Principe (a country
of Central Africa), Somalia.
 The subsidiary organs of the General Assembly
are divided into categories: Boards,
Commissions, Committees, Councils and Panels
, and Working Groups and others.
 After discussing the items on the agenda,
seeking where possible to harmonize the various
approaches of States, the subsidiary organs
present their recommendations, usually in the
form of draft resolutions and decisions, to a
plenary meeting of the Assembly for its
consideration.
Commission
 Disarmament Commission

 International Civil Service Commission

 International Law Commission

 United Nations Commission on International Trad

e Law (UNCITRAL)

 United Nations Conciliation Commission for

Palestine
 United Nations Peacebuilding Commission

Advisory Commission
 Advisory Commission on the United Nations Relief
and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the N
ear East
Assembly
 United Nations Environment Assembly of the Uni
ted Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
(earlier Governing Council to UNEP)

Councils
 Human Rights Council

 Governing Council of the United Nations Human

Settlements Programme, UN – Habitat (earlier
Commission on Human Settlements, UN -
Habitat)
 Council of the United Nations University
  UN SECRETARY GENERAL

 The Secretary-General is appointed by the General

Assembly on the recommendation of the Security
Council. The Secretary-General’s selection is
therefore subject to the veto of any of the five
permanent members of the Security Council.
 Essentially, the Secretary-General is chosen
during closed-door sessions of the Security
Council, and approval by the General Assembly is
seen more as a formality.
 Serves for a 5 year term.
 None of the Previous Secretary Generals has
served for more than 2 consecutive terms
 Moon (South Korea) , Kofi (Ghana) , Ghali (Egypt) ,
Javier (Peru) , Kurt (Austria) , UThant (Burma) ,
Dag (Sweden)
 The five permanent members of the 15-nation-
strong Security Council – China, France, Russia,
the United Kingdom, and the United States – are
the most powerful players in this process as any
one of them can eliminate a candidature by a veto.
 The 10 elected non-permanent members of the
Security Council, of which India is currently a
part, do not have veto powers, but their backing is
still crucial as a candidate requires at least nine
out of 15 votes to be recommended for the top job.
 For any candidate to have a real chance at being
considered for the top post, a recommendation by
any UN member state is essential. (In the current
race, Guterres was endorsed by Portugal for a
second term, and none of his seven other
challengers received backing from a member state,
making Guterres all but certain of retaining his
job)
 A resolution adopted by the General Assembly
in 2015 made the selection process more open
and transparent, allowing member states for
the first time to see basic information about all
candidates, including their resumes, and to
question them at open sessions, as per the
Associated Press.
 Guterres was appointed in 2016 under the
2015 rules, and the same process was
followed this year, which involved holding a
question and answer session with UN
diplomats in the General Assembly in May,
followed by private meetings with members of
the Security Council.
  Functions
 The UN Charter refers to the Secretary-General as
the body’s “chief administrative officer”, who shall
act in that capacity and perform “such other
functions as are entrusted” to them by the Security
Council, General Assembly, Economic and Social
Council and other United Nations organs.
 The UN website defines the role as “equal parts
diplomat and advocate, civil servant and CEO,” and
“a symbol of United Nations ideals and a
spokesperson for the interests of the world’s
peoples, in particular the poor and vulnerable
among them”.
 The Secretary-General’s day-to-day work includes
attendance at sessions of United Nations bodies;
consultations with world leaders, government
officials, and others; and worldwide travel intended
to keep the Secretary-General in touch with the
peoples of the UN member states, as per the body’s
 DATA
 UN Member States = 193
 UN Permanent Non Member Observer States = 2
( State of Palestine and Holy See Vatican City )
They have received a standing invitation to
participate as Observers in the sessions and the
work of the General Assembly and maintaining
Permanent Observer Missions at Headquarters
 States not recognized by UN but recognized by
other member states = Kosovo 102 , Western
Sahara 44 , Taiwan 16 , South Ossetia 5 ,
Abkhazia 5 (both near Georgia ) , Northern
Cyprus 1.
 UNFCC = 197 (193 + Palestine + Niue + Cooks Island +
EU )
 WHO = 194 (192 – Liechtenstein + Niue + Cooks Island )
 UNESCO and UN members

Not all UNESCO member states are UN

member states and vice versa. But both
have 193 members
 Interestingly, there are 3 member states of
UNESCO that are not members of the UN -
Niue, the Cook Islands (Cook Islands and Niue
which are island nations of Pacific are not
members of the UN because they do not meet
the criteria of carrying out foreign relations
independently without consultation with New
Zealand) and Palestine.
 Similarly, there are 3 member states of the
United Nations, that are not members of
UNESCO - US, Israel, and Lichtenstein.
 For countries wishing to join the United Nations
as members, they have to satisfy four key
attributes stipulated in Article 4 of the UN
Charter:
The country making the
application should meet the requirement of a state
as defined in the customary international law of -
 having a permanent population,

 having a defined territory,

 having some form government with the capacity to

carry out foreign relations with other countries.
 A country must be a peace-loving nation, and it
must have a history to demonstrate it and must
be willing to carry out all the obligations of the UN
Charter.
  UN ENVIRONMENT ASSEMBLY
 The United Nations Environment
Assembly is the world’s highest-level
decision-making body on the
environment. It is the governing body of
UNEP.
 It addresses the critical environmental
challenges facing the world today.
 The Environment Assembly meets
biennially to set priorities for global
environmental policies and develop
international environmental law.
 Through its resolutions and calls to
action, the Assembly provides leadership
and catalyses intergovernmental action
 The United Nations Environment Assembly was
created in June 2012, when world leaders called for
UN Environment to be strengthened and upgraded
during the
United Nations Conference on Sustainable Developme
nt
, also referred to as RIO+20.
 The Assembly is led by a Bureau and its President.
 The UN Environment Assembly Bureau assists the
President in the general conduct of business of the
UN Environment Assembly.
 The Bureau is composed of ten Ministers of the
Environment for a term of two years, and follows
geographical rotations.
 The Assembly is the governing body of the UN
Environment Programme (UN Environment).
 The UNEA, with a universal membership, is now
 The Committee of Permanent Representatives is the
inter-sessional intergovernmental body of the
Assembly, formally established as a subsidiary organ
of the Governing Council (now the UN Environment
Assembly) in May 1985.
 The Committee is led by
accredited Permanent Representatives to the UN
Environment Programme, which account for 118
members.
 The Committee meets on a quarterly basis led by a
five-member Bureau elected for a period of two years.
 UN BETTER THAN CASH ALLIANCE
 It is a partnership of governments, companies,
and international organizations that accelerates
the transition from cash to responsible digital
payments to help achieve the SDG.
 The Alliance has 77 members which are
committed to digitizing payments in order to
boost efficiency, transparency, women’s
economic participation and financial inclusion,
helping build economies that are digital and
inclusive.
 Members do not want to abolish physical cash –
it is legal tender – but rather want to provide
responsible digital payment options that are
“better than cash”.
 The Alliance Secretariat works with members on
their journey to digitize payments by:
 Providing advisory services based on their priorities.

 Sharing action-oriented research and fostering peer

learning on responsible practices.
 Conducting awareness at national, regional and global
level.

 The Better That Cash Alliance’s

Responsible Digital Payment Guidelines (RDPG) help
define responsible digital payments. The Guidelines
identify eight good practices for engaging with clients
who are sending or receiving digital payments and who
have previously been financially excluded or
underserved.
  UNCLOS
 Enrica Lexie Case (Italian Marines- Indian Fisherman)
in ITLOS. Finally settled by PCA
 UNCLOS is also known as the Law of the Sea
Convention or the Law of the Sea Treaty that defines
the rights and responsibilities of nations towards the
use of the world’s oceans.
 The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
lays down a comprehensive regime of law and order in
the world’s oceans and seas establishing rules
governing all uses of the oceans and their resources.
 India ratified the agreement in 1995 (USA not ratified)

(Simply it is an agreement among the member states

of the conference regarding the delimitation and
sharing of the oceanic space and resources)
 Article 87 Freedom of the high seas .
 The high seas are open to all States, whether coastal
or land-locked. Freedom of the high seas is exercised
under the conditions laid down by this Convention
and by other rules of international law. It comprises,
inter alia, both for coastal and land-locked States:
 freedom of navigation;

 freedom of over-flight;

 freedom to lay submarine cables and pipelines,

subject to Part VI;
 freedom to construct artificial islands and other
installations permitted under international law,
subject to Part VI;
 freedom of fishing, subject to the conditions laid
down in section 2;
 freedom of scientific research, subject to Parts VI and
XIII.
International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea
(ITLOS)
 Established by the UNCLOS, the International Tribunal
for the Law of the Sea is an independent judicial body that
adjudicates disputes arising out of the convention..
International Seabed Authority
 It was formed in 1994 for regulating the exploration and
exploitation of marine non-living resources of oceans in
international waters.
 8 contractors identified by ISA for PMN extraction are :
India + KCRJ + Germany France + Interoceanmetal Joint
Organization (Bulgaria , Cuba , Slovakia , CzecHRepublic ,
Poland and Russian Federation )
Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf
(CLCS)
 Established under UNCLOS , CLCS is responsible for
facilitating the implementation of UNCLOS with respect to
the establishment of the outer limits of the continental
shelf beyond 200 nautical miles.
  UNCTAD
 World Economic Situation And Prospects
Report released by UN DESA , UNCTAD and 5
Regional Economic Commissions.
 UNCTAD is a permanent IGO established by
the United Nations General Assembly in 1964.
 UNCTAD is part of the UN Secretariat. It
report to the UN General Assembly and the
Economic and Social Council but have own
membership, leadership, and budget.
 It is also part of the United Nations
Development Group.
 UNCTAD support developing countries to access the
benefits of a globalized economy more fairly and
effectively.
 It administers the GSP programme.

 The Secretariat functions with an annual regular

budget of approximately $68 million from the United
Nations and $40 million of extra-budgetary technical
assistance funds.
 UNCTAD technical cooperation activities are financed
from three main sources:
 Trust funds (i.e. voluntary contributions from donors)

 United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

 United Nations programme budget

  UNDESA
 Rooted in the United Nations Charter and guided by
the transformative 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development, the UN Department of Economic and
Social Affairs (UN DESA) upholds the development
pillar of the United Nations.
 UN DESA works towards sustainable development for
all and help countries translate their global
commitments into national action in the economic,
social and environmental spheres.
 The Under-Secretary-General for Economic and
Social Affairs, appointed by the UN Secretary-
General, is the head of UN DESA.
 He/She advises the Secretary-General on the
three pillars of sustainable development – social,
economic and environmental, and nurtures key
partnerships with governments, UN agencies
and civil society organizations.
 UNCDP
 The Committee for Development Policy (CDP), a
subsidiary body of the Economic and Social Council
(ECOSOC), advises the Council on a wide range of
issues that are relevant for the implementation of the
2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
 The 24 members are nominated in their personal
capacity by the Secretary-General and are appointed
by ECOSOC for a period of three years.
 Membership is geared to reflect a wide range of
development experience as well as geographical and
gender balance.
 The CDP meets once a year at the Plenary and
subsequently submits its report to ECOSOC.
 Every three years the CDP reviews the
least developed country (LDC) category and
recommends to ECOSOC and the UN General
Assembly which countries should be included into or
graduated from the list.
 The review is based on quantitative criteria developed
by the CDP as well as country-specific additional
information.
 The CDP also monitors countries that are graduating
or have graduated from the LDC list and alerts
ECOSOC of any sign of deterioration of their
development progress.
 The CDP is assisted by the CDP Secretariat, which is
part of the Economic Analysis and Policy Division
(EAPD) of the Department of Economic and Social
Affairs (DESA).
 Quantitative Criteria
 Per capita income (gross national income per capita)

 Human assets (indicators of nutrition, health, school

enrolment and literacy)
 Economic vulnerability (indicators of natural and
trade-related shocks, physical and economic
exposure to shocks, and smallness and remoteness).
 WHO
 Our Health Minister took charge as the chairman of
executive board of WHO. World Health Assembly was
conducted.
 To achieve better health for everyone, everywhere and
striving to combat communicable ( Influenza, HIV
and non-communicable diseases (Cancer , Heart
disease).
 Working with 194 Member States, across six regions.
It includes non – UN member states(recognized) also
like Cook Island , Niue.
 All countries which are Members of the United
Nations may become members of WHO by accepting
its Constitution.
 Other countries may be admitted as members when
their application has been approved by a simple
majority vote of the World Health Assembly.
 Territories which are not responsible for the conduct
of their international relations may be admitted as
Associate Members upon application made on their
behalf by the Member or other authority responsible
for their international relations.
 Through its work, WHO address:

 human capital across the life-course

 Non-communicable diseases prevention

 mental health promotion

 climate change in small island developing states

 antimicrobial resistance

 elimination and eradication of high-impact

communicable diseases.
 The World Health Assembly is the decision-making
body of WHO.
 It is attended by delegations from all WHO Member
States and focuses on a specific health agenda
prepared by the Executive Board.
 The main functions of the World Health Assembly are
to determine the policies of the Organization, appoint
the Director-General(5 years), supervise financial
policies, and review and approve the proposed
programme budget.
 The Health Assembly is held annually in Geneva,
Switzerland.
 The Executive Board is composed of 34 technically
qualified members elected for 3 year terms. The
annual Board meeting is held in January when the
members agree upon the agenda for the World Health
Assembly and the resolutions to be considered by the
Health Assembly.
 A second shorter meeting takes place in May, as a
follow-up to the Health Assembly. The main functions
of the Board are to implement the decisions and
policies of the Health Assembly, and advise and
generally to facilitate its work.
 Chairman post is held by rotation for 1 year among 6
regional groups Africa, Americas, South East Asia,
Europe, Eastern Mediterranean and Western Pacific.
 The DG is the chief technical and administrative
officer overseeing the policy for the organizations
international health work.
 WHO gets its funding from two main sources: Member
States paying their assessed contributions (20%)
(countries’ membership dues), and voluntary
contributions(80%) from Member States and other
partners.
 Assessed contributions (AC) are a % of a country’s
GDP (the percentage is agreed by the UN General
Assembly).
 Member States approve them every two-years at the
World Health Assembly. They cover less than 20% of
the total budget.
 The remainder of WHO’s financing is in the form of
voluntary contributions (VC), largely from Member
States as well as from other United Nations
organizations, intergovernmental organizations,
philanthropic foundations, the private sector, and
other sources.
 WHO’s Essential Medicines List, revised every 2 years, is a guide
for countries on the core medicines that a national health system
needs.
 Smallpox, a devastating contagious disease, was declared
eradicated in 1980 following a global immunization campaign led
by the World Health Organization. It is the only infectious disease
to have been eradicated. (polio still exists in Pakistan and
Afghanistan )
 The WHO Foundation was launched 27 May 2020. It is legally
separate from WHO and it will facilitate contributions from the
general public, individual major donors and corporate partners to
WHO and trusted partners to deliver on high-impact programmes.
 International Health Regulations, or IHR (2005),
represent an agreement between 196 countries
including all WHO Member States to work together for
global health security.
 Through IHR, countries have agreed to build their
capacities to detect, assess and report public health
events. WHO plays the coordinating role in IHR and,
together with its partners, helps countries to build
capacities.
 IHR also includes specific measures at ports, airports
and ground crossings to limit the spread of health
risks to neighbouring countries, and to prevent
unwarranted travel and trade restrictions so that
traffic and trade disruption is kept to a minimum.
 Public Health Emergency of International Concern -
It is defined in the IHR (2005) as “an extraordinary
event which is determined, as provided in these
Regulations:
 to constitute a public health risk to other States
through the international spread of disease; and
 to potentially require a coordinated international
response”.
 This definition implies a situation that: is serious,
unusual or unexpected; carries implications for public
health beyond the affected State’s national border;
and may require immediate international action.
 The responsibility of determining whether an event is
within this category lies with the WHO Director-
General and requires the convening of a committee of
experts – the IHR Emergency Committee.
 This committee advises the Director General on the
recommended measures to be promulgated on an
emergency basis, known as temporary
recommendations.
 Temporary recommendations include health measures
to be implemented by the State Party experiencing the
PHEIC, or by other States Parties, to prevent or reduce
the international spread of disease and avoid
unnecessary interference with international traffic.
 The first PHEIC was declared for the 2009 H1N1 swine
flu pandemic, and others have included the 2014 Polio
2014-2016 West African Ebola outbreak and the Zika
outbreak in 2016.
 The Emergency Committee also gives advice on the
determination of the event as a PHEIC in
circumstances where there is inconsistency in the
assessment of the event between the Director-General
and the affected country/countries.
 The Emergency Committee continues to provide
advice to the Director-General throughout the
duration of the PHEIC, including any necessary
changes to the recommended measures and on the
determination of PHEIC termination.
 WHO maintains an IHR roster of experts and the
members of an IHR Emergency Committee are
selected from this roster and/or WHO expert advisory
panels and committees.
 At least one member of the Emergency Committee
should be an expert nominated by a State Party
within whose territory the event arises.
 COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund- by WHO to
supports the fundraising plan to fight the pandemic.
People and organizations who want to help fight the
pandemic and support WHO and partners can now
donate through this fund.
 COVID Action Platform- by WEF, aiming to convene
the business community for collective action, protect
people's livelihoods and mobilise support for the
COVID-19 response.
 Fast track financing- by the World Bank, it aims to
support countries in their efforts to fight COVID-19 as
well as face wide range of consequences in the post-
COVID world.
 Alliance for Multilateralism –This initiative was
launched by Germany and France in 2019 and is an
informal network of countries. India too participated
in its virtual summit to fight COVID 19.
  WTO
 Some members of World Trade
Organization established Multi-party
Interim Appeal Arbitration Arrangement
as contingency appeal arrangement for
trade disputes.
 USA blocking new appointments to
WTO dispute settlement body.
 In 2020, the WTO marked its 25th
anniversary.
 From 1948 to 1994, the GATT provided the rules for
much of world trade and presided over periods that
saw some of the highest growth rates in international
commerce.
 The WTO’s creation on 1 January 1995 marked the
biggest reform of international trade since the end of
the Second World War.
 Whereas the GATT mainly dealt with trade in goods,
the WTO and its agreements also cover trade in
services and intellectual property.
 The birth of the WTO also created new procedures for
the settlement of disputes.
 Marrakesh Agreement(Uruguay Round) lead to
creation of WTO ( Accord lead to UNFCCC while
Treaty lead to WIPO )
 Although the WTO is not a UN specialized agency, it
has maintained strong relations with the UN and its
agencies since its establishment.
 The WTO is not a member of ECOSOC .
 WTO is the only global international organization
dealing with the rules of trade between nations.

NOTE : (UNCTAD is an UN body formed to increase

trade and development opportunities for developing
countries and enable them to access the benefits of
globalised economy )
 The WTO’s overriding objective is to help trade flow
smoothly, freely, fairly and predictably. It does this
by:
 Administering WTO trade agreements

 Conducting forum for trade negotiations

 Handling trade disputes

 Monitoring national trade policies

 Providing technical assistance and training for

developing countries
 Cooperation with other international organizations
 Decisions in the WTO are generally taken by
consensus of the entire membership.
 The highest institutional body is the Ministerial
Conference, which meets roughly every two years.
 A General Council conducts the organization's
business in the intervals between Ministerial
Conferences.
 Both of these bodies comprise all members.
 Specialised subsidiary bodies (Councils, Committees,
Sub-committees), also comprising all members,
administer and monitor the implementation by
members of the various WTO agreements.
 The General Council also meets, under different rules,
as the Dispute Settlement Body and as the Trade
Policy Review Body.
 The Appellate Body is a standing body of 7 persons
that hears appeals from reports issued by panels in
disputes brought by WTO Members.
 The Appellate Body can uphold, modify or reverse the
legal findings and conclusions of a panel, and
Appellate Body Reports, once adopted by the Dispute
Settlement Body (DSB), must be accepted by the
parties to the dispute.
 The Appellate Body has its seat in Geneva,
Switzerland.
 The WTO derives most of the income for its annual
budget from contributions by its Members.
 These are established according to a formula based
on their share of international trade.
 DG of WTO are chosen by member states through
consensus for a term of 4 years.
 Observers at WTO include Iran , Iraq , Turkmenistan,
Uzbekistan , Bhutan and few African nations etc.
 The Council for TRIPS is the body responsible for
administering the TRIPS Agreement. In particular, it
monitors the operation of the Agreement .
 In its regular sessions, the TRIPS Council mostly
serves as a forum for discussion between members on
key issues. It is open to all WTO members and
observers.
 The TRIPS Council also meets in “special sessions”.
These are for negotiations on a multilateral system for
notifying and registering geographical indications for
wines and spirits, under the Doha Development
Agenda.
NOTE : (GI under TRIPS agreement covered by WTO )
  IAEA
 NPT completing 50 years
 The International Atomic Energy Agency is the world's
central intergovernmental forum for scientific and
technical co-operation in the nuclear field.
 It works for the safe, secure and peaceful uses of
nuclear science and technology, contributing to
international peace and security and the United
Nations' Sustainable Development Goals.
 The IAEA is an autonomous international
organization within the UN system.
 It partners with more than a dozen UN organizations,
thereby helping extend the reach of its services.
 The IAEA Director General is a member of the United
Nations Chief Executive Board and regularly
participates in the meetings chaired by the Secretary
General of the United Nations.
 The Statute of the IAEA was approved on 23 October
1956 by the Conference on the Statute of the
International Atomic Energy Agency, which was held
at the Headquarters of the United Nations. It came
into force on 29 July 1957.
 The Agency was set up as the world’s “Atoms for
Peace” organization within the United Nations family.
 From the beginning, it was given the mandate to work
with its Member States and multiple partners
worldwide to promote safe, secure and peaceful
nuclear technologies.
 The objectives of the IAEA’s dual mission – to promote
and control the Atom – are defined in Article II of the
IAEA Statute.
 The IAEA’s policy-making bodies decide on the Agency’s
programmes and budgets.
 They comprise the General Conference of all Member
States and the 35-member Board of Governors (India is
a board member for 2019-20 , 2020-2021).
 The General Conference convenes annually at the IAEA
headquarters in Vienna, typically in September.
 The Board meets five times per year, also in Vienna.
 The Board examines and makes recommendations to
the General Conference on the IAEA's financial
statements, programme and budget.
 It considers applications for membership, approves
safeguards agreements and the publication of the
IAEA's safety standards.
 It also appoints the DG of the IAEA, with the approval
of the General Conference.
 The Board of Governors elected by the IAEA General
 The Agency's main sources of funding are the
Regular Budget Fund, the Technical Cooperation
Fund and Extrabudgetary Programme Funds.
 These are mainly supplied by Member States and, in
some cases, by other donors.
 Contributions to the extrabudgetary funds and the
Technical Cooperation Fund are voluntary.
 35 Board of Governors : Argentina, Australia,
Austria, Brazil, Canada, China, Egypt, Estonia,
France, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Hungary, India ,
Japan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Mexico, Mongolia, NZ ,
Nigeria, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Poland,
Russia , Saudi Arabia, Senegal, South Africa,
Sweden, Switzerland, the UAE, UK and USA.
  Cyclone Naming
 Function of WMO/ESCAP
 The RSMC New Delhi Tropical Cyclone Center is
responsible to name the tropical cyclones that have
formed over the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea
when they have reached the relevant intensity.
 The names to be used will be taken in alphabetical
order from the 13 lists submitted by 13 countries
containing 13 names each.
 Countries are Bangladesh , India , Iran , Maldives ,
Myanmar , Oman , Pakistan , Qatar , Saudi Arabia ,
Srilanka , Thailand , UAE , Yemen.
  COMNAP
 COMNAP is the international association, formed in
1988, which brings together its Members, who are
the National Antarctic Programs.
 National Antarctic Programs are those organizations
that have responsibility for delivering and supporting
scientific research in the Antarctic Treaty Area on
behalf of their respective governments and in the
spirit of the Antarctic Treaty​.
 COMNAP consists of 31 National Antarctic Program
Members.
 Each Member program is represented by the Manager
of that National Antarctic Program and/or the Deputy
Manager of that program.
 India is a member represented by its NAP – NCPOR
(National Centre for Polar and ocean Research)
 COMNAP’s purpose which can be found in its
Constitution is to "develop and promote best practice
in managing the support of scientific research in
Antarctica". It does this by:
 Serving as a forum to develop practices that improve
effectiveness of activities in an environmentally
responsible manner;
 Facilitating and promoting international partnerships;

 Providing opportunities and systems for information

exchange; and
 Providing the Antarctic Treaty System with objective
and practical, technical and non-political advice
drawn from the National Antarctic Programs' pool of
expertise.
  BIMSTEC (BBINMTS)
 Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-
Sectoral Technical and Economic
Cooperation is a regional organization
comprising 7 Member States ( 5 from
South Asia, including Bangladesh,
Bhutan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and 2
from Southeast Asia, including Myanmar
and Thailand ) lying in the littoral and
adjacent areas of the Bay of Bengal
constituting a contiguous regional unity.
 This sub-regional organization came into
being on 6 June 1997 through the
Bangkok Declaration.
 The objective of building such an alliance was
to harness shared and accelerated growth
through mutual cooperation in different areas
of common interests by mitigating the
onslaught of globalization and by utilizing
regional resources and geographical
advantages.
 Initially, the economic bloc was formed with 4 Member
States with the acronym ‘BIST-EC’. So India is a
founding member. Following the inclusion of Myanmar
on 22 December 1997 it was renamed ‘BIMST-EC’
 With the admission of Nepal and Bhutan (2004,
Thailand), the name of the grouping was changed to ‘Bay
of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and
Economic Cooperation’ .
 BIMSTEC has also established a platform for intra-
regional cooperation between SAARC and ASEAN
members.
 Unlike many other regional groupings, BIMSTEC is a
sector-driven cooperative organization. Starting with six
sectors—including trade, technology, energy, transport,
tourism and fisheries—for sectoral cooperation in the late
1997, it expanded to embrace nine more sectors—
including agriculture, public health, poverty alleviation,
counter-terrorism, environment, culture, people to people
contact and climate change—in 2008.
 The Chairmanship of BIMSTEC rotates among the
Member States. Sri Lanka is the present chair of
BIMSTEC.
 After a span of 17 years of the founding of BIMSTEC
as a regional organization Permanent Secretariat was
established in Dhaka, Bangladesh on 2014 to serve
the BIMSTEC Member States.
 The next summit to be conducted by Srilanka in 2022.
4 summits have been held so far Thailand(2004) ,
India (2008) , Myanmar(2014) , Nepal(2018).
 The First BIMSTEC Ports Conclave was held at
Visakhapatnam Port Trust, India in November 2019.
to provide a platform for maritime interaction, port
led connectivity initiatives and sharing best practic
 3 MOUs have been signed between Ranong Port (Port
Authority of Thailand) and the Port Trusts of Chennai,
Vishakhapatanam and Kolkata to strengthening
connectivity and is a part of India’s Act East Policy.
 India has been identified as Lead Country in 4 sectors :
Transportation & Communication/ Sub-sector ,
Tourism/Sub-sector , Environment and Disaster
Management/Sub-sector , Counter-Terrorism and
Transnational Crime/Sub-sector.
 Lead countries of each sector will seek to identify
specific projects for facilitating cooperation.
  BBIN Initiative
 BBIN had signed a framework MVA in
June 2015 to enable movement of
passenger and cargo vehicles across
borders among the four countries.
Bhutan has not yet ratified the pact for
its entry to come into force.
 However, Bhutan had given its consent
for the BBIN MVA to enter into force
amongst the other 3 countries i.e.
Bangladesh, India and Nepal, who have
already ratified it.
 The main objective of the agreement is to provide
seamless people-to-people contact and enhance
economic interaction by facilitating cross border
movement of people and goods.
 The Asian Development Bank(ADB) has been providing
technical, advisory, and financial support to the BBIN
MVA initiative as part of its assistance to the South
Asia Sub regional Economic Cooperation (SASEC)
program,
 ADB is the secretariat of SASEC.
  SASEC(BBIN MMS)
 South Asia Subregional Economic
Cooperation a projects-based economic
cooperation initiative that aims to promote
regional prosperity, improve economic
opportunities, and build a better quality of
life for the people of the subregion.
 SASEC countries share a common vision
of boosting intraregional trade and
cooperation in South Asia, while also
developing connectivity and trade with
Southeast Asia through Myanmar, the
People’s Republic of China, and the global
market.
 SASEC seeks to strengthen multimodal cross-border
transport networks that boost intraregional trade and
open up trade opportunities with East and Southeast
Asia.
 SASEC also assists member countries in improving
energy security by developing infrastructure and
promoting intraregional power trade to reduce costs and
import dependence.
 In 2016, the SASEC countries approved the SASEC
Operational Plan 2016-2025, a 10-year strategic
roadmap, which introduced Economic Corridor
Development as a fourth sectoral area of focus, to
promote synergies and linkages between economic
corridors across SASEC countries.
 As of June 2020, SASEC member countries have signed
and implemented 61 ADB-financed investment projects
worth around $13.58 billion in the transport, trade
facilitation and ICT, energy, and economic corridor
sectors.
 The transport sector accounts for the most number of
projects (41 projects worth a cumulative $11.20 billion),
followed by energy (12 projects worth $1.58 billion),
economic corridor development (three projects worth
$697 million), trade facilitation (three projects worth
over $80.66 million), and ICT (two projects worth $20.80
million).
 ADB-financed technical assistance has supported
SASEC investment projects throughout the subregion,
regional cooperation forums and knowledge-sharing
initiatives, and pilot projects since 2001.
  South Asia Co-Operative Environment
Programme (SACEP)
 SACEP is an IGO, established in 1982 by
the governments of South Asia to
promote and support protection,
management and enhancement of the
environment in the region.
 SACEP member countries are
Afghanistan , Bangladesh , Bhutan ,
India , Maldives , Nepal , Pakistan and
Sri Lanka (SAARC = SACEP = SAFTA)
 SACEP supports national government’s efforts for
environmental protection and sustainable
development.
 'A healthy environment, resilient society and regional
prosperity for the present and future generations' is the
vision of SACEP through the 2020 - 2030 decade.
 Since its creation, SACEP has implemented a number
of projects and programmes in the areas of
environment education, environment legislation,
biodiversity, air pollution, and the protection and
management of the coastal environment.
 The Malé Declaration on control and prevention of air
pollution and its likely transboundary effects for South
Asia is another significant efforts which encourages
intergovernmental cooperation to combat the
transboundary air pollution problem
 The 15th Meeting of SACEP Governing Council and the
6th Inter-governmental Meeting of South Asia Seas
Programme was held in November 2019, in Dhaka,
Bangladesh.
 The meeting also adopted a declaration on Sustainable
Public Procurement, Marine and Coastal Biodiversity
Strategy for South Asia, and the Regional Marine Litter
Action Plan for the Region.
 SACEP is also secretariat for the South Asian Seas
Programme.
  SASP
 SASP is a regional agreement adopted in
1995 – among the five maritime countries
of South Asia, Bangladesh, India,
Maldives, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, sharing
the Indian Ocean.
 SASP is part of the global Regional Seas
Programme established under the
auspices of UN Environment.
 It aims to protect and manage the marine
environment and related coastal
ecosystems of the region in an
environmentally sound and sustainable
  Indian Ocean Commission
 India has been approved as a member of the Indian
Ocean Commission,
 IOC is an IGO that coordinates maritime governance
in the south-western Indian Ocean.
 Set up in 1982, the Indian Ocean
Commission comprises Seychelles, Comoros,
Madagascar, Mauritius, and Reunion island (France’s
overseas territory in the region.)
 Till now, IOC had four observers – China, Malta,
European Union and International Organisation of La
Francophonie (OIF).

NOTE : (Vanilla Islands - a tourist brand of

Seychelles, Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mayotte
and Reunion island )
 Due to their common history, the group has largely
been dominated by France, due to a common colonial
history.
 In fact, the 2018 joint strategic vision for India-France
cooperation in the Indian Ocean region – released
during the visit of French president Emmanuel
Macron – specifically mentions that France would
support India’s entry in the IOC as an observer.
 Earlier in 2019, the MEA got a brand-new Indo-Pacific
division to reflect the priority given to the region and
bring about a sense of coherence within its various
regions. The division also looked after the multilateral
linkages in the region and would likely look after the
enhanced IOC portfolio.
  IORA
 An IGO setup with the objective of strengthening
regional cooperation and sustainable development
within the Indian Ocean Region.
 The IORA is a regional forum, tripartite in nature,
bringing together representatives of Government,
Business and Academia, for promoting co-operation
and closer interaction among them.
 It is based on the principles of Open Regionalism for
strengthening Economic Cooperation particularly on
Trade Facilitation and Investment, Promotion as well
as Social Development of the region.
 Member states include Australia, Bangladesh,
Comoros, India (one of the founding members),
Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Madagascar, Malaysia,
Maldives, Mauritius, Mozambique, Oman, Seychelles,
Singapore, Somalia, South Africa, Sri Lanka,
Tanzania, Thailand, UAE , Yemen and France.
 Dialogue Partners refer to individual sovereign states
and not members of IORA, but with a special interest
and/or capacity to contribute to IORA, particularly in
the areas of common interest.
 It includes China , USA , UK , Germany , Italy , Japan
, Turkey , Egypt , South Korea.
 IORA’s apex body is the Council of Foreign Ministers
(COM) which meets annually.
 UAE assumed the role of Chair since 2019 - 2021, to
be succeeded by the Bangladesh.
 A committee of Senior Officials (CSO) meets twice a
year to progress IORA’s agenda and consider
recommendations by Working Groups and forums of
officials, business and academics to implement
policies and projects to improve the lives of people
within the Indian Ocean Member States.
 The Council of Ministers, on voluntary offer by
Member States, elects a Chair of the Association for a
period of 2 years.
 If there is no voluntary offer, the Chair is elected on
the basis of geographical consideration.
 The role of the Chair is to arrange, coordinate, host
and preside over the meetings of the Council, the
meetings of the Committee of Senior Officials and any
other meetings as mandated by the Council.
  IONS
 The ‘Indian Ocean Naval Symposium’ is a voluntary
initiative started by Indian Navy in 2008 seeking to
increase maritime co-operation among navies of the
littoral states of the Indian Ocean Region by
providing an open and inclusive forum for discussion
of regionally relevant maritime issues
 IONS brings together key naval personnel and
policymakers of Indian Ocean countries to identify
and develop solutions to areas of cooperation such as
security—involving the challenges of piracy,
smuggling and illegal immigration—and
humanitarian assistance and disaster relief .
 Members include Australia, UK, France, Bangladesh,
Myanmar, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Malaysia,
Maldives, Mauritius, Mozambique, Oman, Seychelles,
Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Timor
Leste, Thailand, UAE , Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.
(No Madagascar , Yemen, Somalia).
 Few countries like Qatar , Egypt left IONS.
 Observers include China , Japan , Germany , Italy ,
Spain , Netherland , Russia , Madagascar.
 Current Chair is Iran (2018-21).
 The next 2 year tenure leadership will be held by
France .
  FIPIC
 Maritime Organizations initiated by India.
 Forum for India-Pacific Islands cooperation(FIPIC) is a
multinational grouping developed by India in 2014
(during Hon'ble PM’s visit to Fiji) for cooperation
between India and 14 Pacific Islands nations which
include Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands,
Micronesia, Nauru, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands,
Palau, Papua New Guinea, Tonga, Tuvalu and
Vanuatu.
 All Head of state/head of government of the above
countries met in Suva, Fiji in November 2014 for the
first time where the annual summit was
conceptualised.
 The FIPIC initiative marks a serious effort to expand
India's engagement in the Pacific region.
 Though these countries are relatively small in land
area and distant from India, many have large EEZs,
and offer promising possibilities for fruitful
cooperation.
  Biological Weapon Convention
 Completes 45 years
 The Biological Weapons Convention (BWC), the first
multilateral disarmament treaty banning the
development, production and stockpiling of an entire
category of weapons of mass destruction.
 The BWC entered into force on 26 March 1975. India is
a party to the treaty.
 The Second Review Conference (1986) agreed that the
States Parties were to implement a number of
confidence-building measures (CBM) in order to
prevent or reduce the occurrence of ambiguities,
doubts and suspicions and in order to improve
international co-operation in the field of peaceful
biological activities.
 The CBMs were expanded by the Third Review
Conference (1991).
 Each State Party to this Convention undertakes never
in any circumstances to develop, produce, stockpile
or otherwise acquire or retain:
 microbial or other biological agents, or toxins
whatever their origin or method of production, of
types and in quantities that have no justification for
prophylactic, protective or other peaceful purposes;
 weapons, equipment or means of delivery designed to
use such agents or toxins for hostile purposes or in
armed conflict.
 It comes under UN office for Disarmament Affairs.

NOTE : (It does not ban their usage because it can be

used for protective purpose and also existing
weapons need to be destroyed within 9 months after
Convention’s entry into force)
  India – USA (3rd Edition – Oct 2020)
 Industrial Security Annex (ISA): The Industrial
Security Annex (ISA) to the India-U.S. General
Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA
signed in 2002) will provide a framework for
exchange and protection of classified military
information between the U.S. and Indian defence
industries (Private).
 Currently, under GSOMIA, such information is
exchanged between the Government authorities of
the two countries but not between private parties.
 It will enable greater industry-to-industry
collaboration for co-production and co-development
in the defence sector, in line with the GOI’s objective
of promoting Make in India in the defence sector.
 India already signed LEMOA(2016) , COMCASA(2018). BECA
(2020).
 Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement
(LEMOA)
 It gives both the nations access to each other’s
military facilities. But it does not make it automatic or
obligatory.
 It is a tweaked India-specific version of the Logistics
Support Agreement (LSA) which the U.S. has with
several countries it has close military to military
cooperation.
 The agreement will primarily cover four areas — port
calls, joint exercises, training and Humanitarian
Assistance and Disaster Relief.
 Any other requirement has to be agreed upon by both
sides on a case-by-case basis.
 Communications Compatibility and Security
Agreement (COMCASA)
 COMCASA is an India-specific version of
the Communication and Information on Security
Memorandum of Agreement (CISMOA).
 It comes into force immediately and is valid for a
period 10 years.
 It would facilitate access to advanced defense systems
and enable India to optimally utilize its existing U.S.-
origin platforms.
 COMCASA allows India to procure specialized
equipment for encrypted communications for US
origin military platforms like the C-17, C-130 and P-
8Is.
 Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement
(BECA):
 BECA is last of the four foundational agreements.

 It facilitates exchange of geospatial information. It

would set a framework through which the US could
share sensitive data to aid targeting and navigation
with India.
 These agreements can bring military advantage to
India though they have been politically contentious.
 Also, it is feared that they may undermine India’s
military autonomy.
 Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure
(CDRI):
 United States has announced its commitment in
CDRI whose headquarters will be located in India.
 CDRI is an initiative of India, launched in September
2019 at the UN Secretary General Climate Action
Summit held in USA.
 U.S. participation in CDRI is a significant
development for the organisation since the U.S. has
considerable expertise in the area, which will be
beneficial to the organisation and its members.
 There are 12 founding members of CDRI: Australia,
Bhutan, Fiji, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Maldives,
Mexico, Mongolia, Rwanda, Sri Lanka and the UK
 Finalisation of SOP for Defense Technology and Trade
Initiative (DTTI) (signed in 2012): This will harmonise
the two side’s processes for identification,
development and execution of projects under the
DTTI.
 This will enable expedited decision making and set
forth implementation guidelines for DTTI projects,
enhancing process predictability of DTTI project
proposals.
 The proposed Industry-to-Industry Framework under
DTTI will establish a standing mechanism for
dialogue and exchanges between the U.S. and Indian
defence companies and their governments on defence
technology and industrial cooperation.
 Water MOU: A MoU was signed between India’s
Ministry of Jal Shakti and the U.S. Geological Survey
to promote technical cooperation in water resources
management and water technology.
 Both sides will be cooperating in the area of
management of river basins, flood management and
forecasting, water management, water quality, waste-
water recycling and capacity building in testing and
instrumentation.
 The cooperation will span across Government
agencies, universities , , research centres,
institutions, private sector companies etc.. This MOU
could have great relevance for India’s Jal Shakti
Abhiyan.
 Young Innovators Internship Programme (YIIP)
between India and the U.S. will create short-term
internship opportunities in the U.S. for Indian
students at post-secondary level or recent graduates,
in key areas of scientific and economic endeavour.
 The U.S. side will provide bonafide structured and
guided work-based learning programme for upto 200
Indian interns for 6 to 12 months.
 The U.S. Government will place Indian interns with
U.S. host organizations in STEM or business fields
and provide tailored training to the interns. It will
provide networking opportunities for young
entrepreneurs besides helping develop
entrepreneurial skills.
 Tiger Triumph Exercise:
 It has been decided to hold the India-U.S. joint tri-
services and amphibious exercise ‘Tiger Triumph’ on
an annual basis.
 It was first held in November 2019 as a
Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR)
Exercise to develop synergies between the tri-services
of both countries in conducting HADR operations.
 U.S. has advanced capabilities in joint services
operations for several decades; training together with
the U.S. in these areas can help our forces as we
strive for more jointness in our services.
 The U.S. has agreed to consider placing a liaison
officer in the Information Fusion Centre for the Indian
Ocean Region (IFC-IOR) that Indian Navy has set up
to facilitate exchange of white shipping information
across the entire breadth of the Indian Ocean Region.
 In the East Asia Summit held in November 2019 , our
PM proposed an “Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative” for
safe, secure and stable maritime domain. The Focus
areas include creating partnerships among interested
states in Enhancing maritime security; Sustainably
using marine resources; Disaster prevention &
management.
  India – Saudi Arabia
 Vision 2030 of Saudi to reduce its
dependence on oil and diversify its
economy.
 As part of the vision Saudi Arabia plans
to establish Strategic Partnership
Council with 8 Countries : P5(except
Russia) , India , Germany , South Korea
and Japan.
 SPC with India established. in Oct 2019
to deal issues regarding political ,
security , society and culture ,
economics and investment .
 Future Investment Initiative (Davos in the Desert) of
Saudi brings together policymakers, investors and
global experts, to discuss the role of investment in
driving global prosperity and development. It is also
intended to diversify the economy of Saudi Arabia.
 FII event conducted annually by the kingdom. The
4th FII event with theme “Neo Renaissance” was
postponed to October 2021 to deliberate on global
economy amid the Covid-19 pandemic.​​ .
 Associated terms : Nitaqat (increase job opening for
Saudi Nationals) , Kafala (like a Bonded labour
agreement )
 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the
Crime of Genocide
 Republic of the Gambia backed by OIC moved the ICJ against
Myanmar over alleged violations of the Convention on the
Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
 Unanimously adopted by the United Nations General Assembly
in 1948, the Convention entered into force in 1951.
 It defines genocide in legal terms as any of the following acts
committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a
national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such:
 Killing members of the group;
 Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the
group;
 Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated
to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;
 Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the
group;
 Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.
 India ratified the treaty in 1959.
 OIC
 The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) is the second
largest organization after the United Nations (NAM more like a
forum) with a membership of 57 states spread over four
continents – Asia , Africa , Europe (Albania) , South America
( Surinam , Guyana) , Transcontinental ( Egypt ,Turkey ,
Azerbaijan , Kazaksthan)
 The membership include both Muslim Majority States as well as
those with significant Muslim population.
 Observers are Russia , Northern Cyprus , Thailand , Bosnia and
Herzegovina , Central African Republic.
 The General Secretariat comprises a Secretary General who is the
Chief Administrative Officer of the Organisation and such staff
as the Organisation requires.
 The Secretary-General is elected from among nationals of the
Member States in accordance with the principles of equitable
geographical distribution, rotation and equal opportunity for all
Member States with due consideration to competence, integrity
and experience.
  WEF (1971 - 2021)
 The World Economic Forum is the
International Organization for Public-Private
Cooperation.
 The Forum engages the foremost political,
business, cultural and other leaders of
society to shape global, regional and industry
agendas.
 It was established in 1971 as a not-for-profit
foundation and is headquartered in Geneva,
Switzerland.
 It is independent, impartial and not tied to
any special interests. In 2015, the Forum was
formally recognised as an international
 The Forum strives in all its efforts to demonstrate
entrepreneurship in the global public interest while
upholding the highest standards of governance
 To coincide with its 50th anniversary, the World
Economic Forum has launched a new Davos Manifesto,
a set of ethical principles to guide companies in the age
of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
 World Economic Forum Strategic Partner Associates
include the world’s leading businesses, and are actively
involved in shaping the future of industries, regions and
systemic issues.
  Boa forum for Asia (Asian Devos)
 Headquartered in China, the Boao Forum
for Asia (BFA) is an international
organization jointly initiated by 29
member states.
 BFA holds its annual conference in Boao,
Hainan on a regular basis. The founding
purpose of BFA was to promote economic
integration in Asia. Its mission now is to
pool positive energy for the development of
Asia and the world.
 FICCI participates in the forum.
  NAM
 The Non-Aligned Movement was formed during
the Cold War as an organization of States that
did not seek to formally align themselves with
either the US or the USSR , but sought to
remain independent or neutral.
 The Movement has its origin in the Asia-Africa
Conference held in Bandung, Indonesia in
1955. "Ten Principles of Bandung", were
proclaimed at that Conference were guiding
principles of NAM.
 NAM was founded and held its first conference
(the Belgrade Conference) in 1961 under the
leadership of India, Yugoslavia, Egypt, Ghana,
and Indonesia
 The Movement recognizes three categories for
participation: Full Member, Observer and Guest.
 The Bandung Principles and the Membership Criteria of
the Non-Aligned Movement function as admission
criteria both for new members and observers.
 At present, the Movement has 120 Member States, 17
Observer Countries and 10 Observer organizations
(second largest after United Nations)
 Members have full rights and duties, while observers
may participate only in the Movement deliberation and
plenary sessions.
 Guests only attend high- level meetings of the
Movement ( specially opening and closing sessions ) if
so approved by the coordinating Bureau.
 Members of NAM by region : Africa(53) > Asia (39) >
Latin America & Caribbean (26) > Europe (2- Belarus ,
Azerbaijan)
 ( In CAR only Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan are
members while the remaining 3 are observers. China is
also a observer. Pakistan is a member )
 Observers are : Argentina ,Armenia, Bosnia-
Herzegovina, Brazil, China, Costa Rica, Croatia , El
Salvador , Kazakstan , Kirghiztan ,Mexico , Montenegro
, Paraguay , Serbia , Tajikistan , Ukraine , Uruguay,
UN , OIC , World Peace Council.
 Membership Criteria of The Movement of Non-Aligned
Countries :
 The Country should have adopted an independent
policy based on the coexistence of States with different
political and social systems and on nonalignment, or it
should have shown a tendency to favor such a policy.
 The Country in question should support national
independence movements in a consistent manner.
 The Country should not be a member of a multilateral
military alliance concluded in the context of great power
conflicts.
 If the Country has a bilateral military agreement with a
great power or it is a member of a regional defence pact,
the agreement or pact should have not been concluded
deliberately in the context of great power conflicts.
 If the Country has granted military bases to a foreign
power, the concession should have not been made in
the context of great power conflicts
 The ten principles of Bandung were:
 Respect of fundamental human rights and of the objectives and
principles of the Charter of the United Nations.
 Respect of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations.
 Recognition of the equality among all races and of the equality
among all nations, both large and small.
 Non-intervention or non-interference into the internal affairs of
another -country.
 Respect of the right of every nation to defend itself, either
individually or collectively, in conformity with the Charter of the
United Nations.
 Non-use of collective defence pacts to benefit the specific interests of
any of the great powers and Non-use of pressures by any country
against other countries.
 Refraining from carrying out or threatening to carry out aggression,
or from using force against the territorial integrity or political
independence of any country.
 Peaceful solution of all international conflicts in conformity with the
Charter of the United Nations.
 Promotion of mutual interests and of cooperation.
  WPC
 The WORLD PEACE COUNCIL ( WPC) is an anti-
imperialist, democratic, independent and non-aligned
international movement of mass action.
 The World Peace Council was founded in 1948, with a first
international meetings in Paris and Prague the following year.
 It is an integral part of the world peace movement and
acts in cooperation with other international and
national movements.
 The WPC is the largest International Peace structure,
based in more than 100 countries.
 As an NGO member of the United Nations, the WPC
cooperates with UNESCO, UNCTAD, UNIDO, ILO and
other UN specialized agencies, special committees and
departments; with the Non-Aligned Movement as
official observer, the African Union, the League of Arab
States and other inter-governmental bodies.
  UN-INCB
 India re-elected for a five-year term
(2020-2025)
 The International Narcotics Control
Board (INCB) is the independent and
quasi-judicial monitoring body for the
implementation of the United Nations
international drug control conventions.
 It was established in 1968 in accordance
with the Single Convention on Narcotic
Drugs, 1961.
 The functions of INCB are laid down in the following
treaties:
 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, 1961

 Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971

 United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Nar

cotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances of 1988
.
 INCB endeavours, in cooperation with Governments,
to ensure that adequate supplies of drugs are
available for medical and scientific uses and that the
diversion of drugs from licit sources to illicit channels
does not occur.
 INCB also monitors Government’s control over
chemicals used in the illicit manufacture of drugs and
assists them in preventing the diversion of those
chemicals into the illicit traffic.
 It closely cooperates with the governments to mitigate
 INCB has 13 members, each elected by the Economic
and Social Council for a period of 5 years. INCB
members may be re-elected.
 10 of the members are elected from a list of persons
nominated by Governments.
 The remaining 3 members are elected from a list of
persons nominated by the World Health Organization
(WHO) for their medical, pharmacological or
pharmaceutical experience.
 INCB has a secretariat that assists it in the exercise of its treaty-
related functions.
 The INCB secretariat is an administrative entity of
the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, but it
reports solely to the Board on matters of substance.
  UNHRC
 The Human Rights Council is an inter-
governmental body within the United
Nations system responsible for
strengthening the promotion and
protection of human rights around the
globe and for addressing situations of
human rights violations and make
recommendations on them.
 The Human Rights Council replaced
the former United Nations Commission
on Human Rights.
 The Council is made of 47 Member States, which are
elected by the majority of members of the General
Assembly of the United Nations through direct and
secret ballot.
 The General Assembly takes into account the
candidate States' contribution to the promotion and
protection of human rights, as well as their voluntary
pledges and commitments in this regard.
 As of 1 January 2020, 117 UN member States will
have served as Human Rights Council Members,
reflecting the UN’s diversity and giving the Council
legitimacy when speaking out on human rights
violations in all countries.
 The Council's Membership is based on
equitable geographical distribution. Seats are
distributed as follows:
 African States: 13 seats , Asia-Pacific States:
13 seats , Latin American and Caribbean
States: 8 seats, Western European and other
States: 7 seats, Eastern European States: 6
seats.
 Members of the Council serve for a period of 3
years and are not eligible for immediate re-
election after serving two consecutive terms.
 India’s term in the council ends in 2021.
 The Council serves as a forum for dialogue among
States, with input from other stakeholders.
 As a result of its discussions, the Council may issue
resolutions calling on States to take specific actions
or uphold certain principles, or it may create
mechanisms to investigate or monitor questions of
concern.
 The Human Rights Council has created or renewed
the mandates of various “special procedures.”
 The special procedures are experts appointed to
monitor human rights around priority themes or in
specific countries with serious human rights
problems. The special procedures may be individual
experts (“special rapporteurs” or “independent
experts”) or working groups.
 The Council also manages the Universal Periodic
Review, a process through which each UN
Member State’s overall human rights record is
reviewed.
 In addition, the Council receives complaints
alleging patterns of human rights violations,
which are considered by the Working Group on
Communications and may be referred to
the Working Group on Situations.
 The Working Group on Situations reports
substantiated claims of consistent patterns of
gross violations to the Council and makes
recommendations for action.
 The Council conducts its substantive work primarily
in Regular Sessions and Special Sessions.
 Regular Sessions are held no fewer than 3 times a
year, usually in March, June, and September.
 The agenda and program of work for each Session
are established with respect to any adopted Council
resolutions and in consultation with Member States.
 Regular Sessions include the presentation of human
rights reports and interactive dialogues with Special
Procedure mandate holders or Member States, panel
discussions and debates on a wide range of human
rights issues, and consideration of Universal
Periodic Review reports.
 Council Special Sessions address urgent human
rights situations arising between Regular Sessions
and may be called at the request of any Council
Member State with the support of at least one third of
the Council membership.

Note : UNHRC is like a discussion forum while

OHCHR is like an organization providing assistance
in protecting Human Rights.
  OHCHR
 The OHCHR is different from the United
Nations Human Rights Council
(UNHRC), though both work in the field
of promotion of human rights.
 In March 2020, the OHCHR announced
an intention to file an application in the
Supreme Court of India asking to be
included in the petitions challenging
the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.
 The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
(UN Human Rights) is the leading UN entity on human
rights.
 The General Assembly entrusted both the High
Commissioner and her Office with a unique mandate to
promote and protect all human rights for all people.
 UN Human Rights also plays a crucial role in
safeguarding the integrity of the three interconnected
pillars of the United Nations – peace and security,
human rights and development.
 The OHCHR is headed by the High Commissioner for
Human Rights.
 In accordance with General Assembly resolution, the
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights is
appointed by the Secretary-General of the United
Nations and approved by the General Assembly, with
due regard to geographical rotation for a fixed term of
four years with a possibility of one renewal for another
fixed term of four years.
 UN Human Rights provides assistance in the form of
technical expertise and capacity-development in order
to support the implementation of international human
rights standards on the ground.
 It assists governments, which bear the primary
responsibility for the protection of human rights, to
fulfil their obligations and supports individuals to
claim their rights.
 Moreover, it speaks out objectively on human rights
violations.
 It is a part of the UN Secretariat and was established
in 1993. It is headquartered in Geneva and has many
regional offices as well.
 The chief functions of the Office include:
 Preventing human rights violations.

 Promoting respect for human rights.

 Encouraging international cooperation to safeguard

human rights.
 Coordinating, strengthening and streamlining
activities related to human rights within the United
Nations.

 Almost 2/3rd of the funding for the Office comes from

voluntary contributions from donors and member
states. The rest is covered by the general budget of
the UN.
  UNHCR
 The first Global Refugee Forum took place on 16
(advance session), 17 and 18 December 2019 in
Geneva, Switzerland and brought the international
community together to demonstrate solidarity with
the world’s refugees and the countries and
communities that host them.
 States and other stakeholders demonstrated
leadership, vision and ambition to share the
responsibility for refugees by announcing pledges to
improve the lives of refugees and their host
communities.
 Participants also shared good practices that illustrate
how the Global Compact is already making a
difference around the world.
 The office of the United Nations High Commissioner
for Refugees , the UN Refugee Agency was created in
1950, during the aftermath of the Second World War,
to help millions of Europeans who had fled or lost
their homes.
 Today, over 70 years later, it is still at work,
protecting and assisting refugees around the world.
 The 1951 Refugee Convention is the key legal
document that forms the basis of UNHCR.
 Ratified​by 145 State parties, it defines the term
‘refugee’ and outlines the rights of the displaced, as
well as the legal obligations of States to protect them.
 UNHCR serves as the ‘guardian’ of the 1951
Convention and its 1967 Protocol.
 India is neither a party nor acceded to the 1950
convention / 1967 protocol.
 UNHCR is governed by the UN General Assembly and
the ECOSOC.
 The UNHCR Executive Committee approves the
agency's biennial programmes and the corresponding
budget.
 These are presented by the High Commissioner, who
is appointed by the UN General Assembly.
 Mandate is defined by the 1950 UNHCR Statute. In
2003, the General Assembly extended the
organization's mandate "until the refugee problem is
solved."
 The High Commissioner reports annually to ECOSOC
and the General Assembly on the work of UNHCR.
 High Commissioner was elected by the UN General
Assembly on 1 January 2016 to serve a 5 year term,
until 31 December 2020. He was again reelected.
 UNHCR is one of the few UN agencies which depends
almost entirely on voluntary contributions to fund
their operations.
 Only 2 % of UNHCR’s annual budget is covered by a
subsidy from the UN regular budget.
 Most of UNHCR’s programmes are funded by
governments, but partnerships with corporations,
foundations and private individuals also constitute
important sources of funding.
 About 96 per cent of the funds received by UNHCR in
any given year come from 15 donors – 14
governments and the European Commission
 UNHCR 2019 Nansen Refugee Award ,the prestigious
annual prize honours individuals, groups and
organizations who go to extraordinary lengths to
protect refugees, displaced and stateless people
around the world.
 The Global Compact on Refugees is a framework for
more predictable and equitable responsibility-sharing,
recognizing that a sustainable solution to refugee
situations cannot be achieved without international
cooperation. It provides a blueprint for governments,
international organizations, and other stakeholders to
ensure that host communities get the support they
need and that refugees can lead productive lives.
  UNRWA
 India has given USD 2 million in aid to
UNRWA working for the welfare of Palestinian
refugees, amidst the coronavirus crisis.
 Following the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict,
UNRWA was established by UN General
Assembly Resolution to carry out direct relief
and works programmes for Palestine refugees.
The Agency began operations on 1 May 1950.
 In the absence of a solution to the Palestine
refugee problem, the General Assembly has
repeatedly renewed UNRWA's mandate, most
recently extending it until 30 June 2023.
 (It is a kind of task specific executive body
under the supervision of UN General
 The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for
Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) is funded almost entirely
by voluntary contributions from UN Member States.
 UNRWA also receives some funding from the Regular
Budget of the United Nations, which is used mostly
for international staffing costs.
 The Agency’s services encompass education, health
care, relief and social services, camp infrastructure
and improvement, microfinance and emergency
assistance, including in times of armed conflict.
 UNRWA is committed to advancing the human
development of Palestine refugees through the
achievement of the following five strategic outcomes
under the Agency’s Medium-Term Strategy 2016-
2022 (MTS):
 Strategic Outcome 1: Refugees' rights under
international law are protected and promoted
 Strategic Outcome 2: Refugees' health is protected
and the disease burden is reduced
 Strategic Outcome 3: School-aged children complete
quality, equitable and inclusive basic education
 Strategic Outcome 4: Refugee capabilities
strengthened for increased livelihood opportunities
 Strategic Outcome 5: Refugees are able to meet their
basic human needs of food, shelter and
environmental health
 SCO
 2021 is the 20th year of SCO
 The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) is a
permanent intergovernmental international
organisation, the creation of which was announced
on 15 June 2001 in Shanghai (China) by the
Republic of Kazakhstan, the People's Republic
of China, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Russian
Federation, the Republic of Tajikistan, and the
Republic of Uzbekistan. It was preceded by the
Shanghai Five mechanism.
 India and Pakistan joined in 2017.
 The SCO's main goals are as follows: strengthening
mutual trust and neighbourliness among the member
states; promoting their effective cooperation
in politics, trade, the economy, research, technology
and culture, as well as in education, energy,
transport, tourism, environmental protection, and
other areas; making joint efforts to maintain and
ensure peace, security and stability in the region; and
moving towards the establishment of a democratic,
fair and rational new international political and
economic order.
 SCO comprises 8 member states, namely the India,
Kazakhstan, China, the Kyrgyz Republic, the
Pakistan, Russian Federation, the Republic
of Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. (RIC+Pakistan+CA-
Turkmenistan)
 SCO counts four observer states, namely the
Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran and of Mongolia;
 SCO has six dialogue partners, namely Azerbaijan,
Armenia, Cambodia, Nepal, Turkey, and Sri Lanka.

NOTE : Due to its policy of 'permanent neutrality',

Turkmenistan did not join the SCO.
 The Heads of State Council (HSC) (PM) is the supreme
decision-making body in the SCO.
 It meets once a year and adopts decisions and
guidelines on all important matters of the
organisation.
 The SCO Heads of Government Council (HGC)
(Defence Minister )meets once a year to discuss the
organisation's multilateral cooperation strategy and
priority areas, to resolve current important economic
and other cooperation issues, and also to approve the
organisation's annual budget.
 The SCO's official languages are Russian and Chinese.
 The Council of National Coordinators of SCO Member
States (CNC) acts as the SCO coordination
mechanism.
 In addition to HSC and HGC meetings, there is also a
mechanism of meetings at the level of heads
of parliament; secretaries of Security Councils;
ministers of foreign affairs, defence, emergency relief,
economy, transport, culture, education, and
healthcare; heads of law enforcement agencies and
supreme and arbitration courts; and prosecutors
general.
 The organisation has two permanent bodies — the
SCO Secretariat based in Beijing and the Executive
Committee of the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure
(RATS) based in Tashkent.
 The SCO Secretary-General and the Director of the
Executive Committee of the SCO RATS are appointed
by the Council of Heads of State for a term of 3 years.
 The Secretariat is headed by the Secretary-General.
 Nominated by the Council of Ministers of Foreign
Affairs and approved by the Heads of State Council,
the Secretary-General is appointed from among
citizens of the SCO member states on a rotating basis
in Russian alphabetical order for a single three-year
term with no possibility of extension.
 Deputy Secretaries-General are nominated by the
Council of National Coordinators and approved
by the Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs.
 Officials of the Secretariat are hired from among
citizens of the SCO member states on the basis
of quotas.
 The SCO Secretariat coordinates the activity of the
SCO and provides informational, analytical, legal,
organisational and technical support.
  IOM
 International Organization for Migration (IOM)
(UN Migration Agency) is an IGO that works
closely with governmental, non-governmental
and intergovernmental partners in the field of
migration to aid orderly and humane migration
for the benefit of the human race.
 With 174 member states, a further 8 states
holding observer status and offices in over 100
countries.
 Observers are Bahrain, Bhutan, Indonesia,
Kuwait, Malaysia, Qatar, San Marino, Saudi
Arabia.
 Headquartered at Geneva, Switzerland, it has
a global presence with over one hundred
offices across the world.
 The objectives of the IOM are to provide for the organised
transfer of migrants, including refugees, displaced persons and
other individuals forced to leave their homelands; meet the needs
of both emigration and immigration countries, and provide
migrants with resettlement services.
 The IOM has a Council, an Executive Committee and a
Secretariat.
 The Secretariat is headed by a Director-General. Voting member
states – of which there will be 171 – will select from among three
candidates, each nominated by their home governments
 Voting is by secret ballot and will begin Friday morning. Under
the rules of procedure, the winning candidate must receive at
least two-thirds of all voting states’ ballots.
 The Council consists of representatives of all member-states and
observer-states and meets annually. It has the powers to decide
on matters of policy, programmes and finance.
 The 9 member Executive Committee meets twice a year and is
elected annually.
 It is responsible for preparing the work of the Council and
making recommendations on the basis of reports by sub-
committees on budget and finance, and coordination of
 Migration assistance is given through transportation
facilities, emergency operations programme, and
resettlement services involving orientation courses,
placement services and vocational and language
training.
 The IOM has developed some specific ‘migration for
development’ initiatives to help developing countries
meet their needs for skilled personnel.
 The Selective Migration Programme, initiated in 1965,
facilitates the transfer of technology from Europe to
Latin America through the migration of highly
qualified individuals.
 In addition, the IOM participates in efforts to address
the ‘brain-drain’ problem faced by developing
countries by encouraging the return of their citizens
who did not return following overseas education or
job training.
 In addition, the Organisation assists in the
formulation of national migration policies carried out
studies on migration issues and act as a multilateral
forum where key migration issues may be discussed
in the course of international seminars.
 IOM works in the following broad areas of migration:

 Forced Migration

 Migration and development

 Facilitating Migration

 Regulation of migration
 IOM was accorded the status of a Permanent
Observer to the United Nations General
Assembly in the year 1992.
 A resolution to make IOM a related organization
of the United Nations Organization was
unanimously passed at the United Nations
General assembly.
 The United Nations considers IOM’s role to be
imperative in handling the refugee crisis across
the world.
 To protect the rights of refugees, the New York
Declaration for Refugees and Migrants was also
adopted at the UN Summit for Refugees and
Migrants.
 India was granted an observer’s status to IOM in
the year 1991 and became a member state in
2008.
 Recently, the IOM and the Government of India
signed an MoU (Memorandum of Understanding)
that aims to serve as a platform for the joint
implementation of programmes and activities
enhancing the management and facilitation of
overseas employment of Indian workers
worldwide.
 Under this programme, IOM and the Ministry of
External Affairs will jointly create labour mobility
management projects such as the establishment
of an Overseas Workers Resource Centre to
disseminate information on legal opportunities
for potential overseas workers and the
implementation of mass information campaigns.
 NATO
 It is an IGO - political and military alliance to
guarantee freedom and security for its members in
north Atlantic area through political and military
means .
 This alliance of countries from Europe and North
America enable them to consult and cooperate in
the field of defence and security, and conduct
multinational crisis-management operations
together.
 POLITICAL - NATO promotes democratic values and
enables members to consult and cooperate on defence
and security-related issues to solve problems, build
trust and, in the long run, prevent conflict.
 MILITARY - NATO is committed to the peaceful
resolution of disputes. If diplomatic efforts fail, it has
the military power to undertake crisis-
management operations.
 These are carried out under the collective defence
clause of NATO's founding treaty - Article 5 of the
Washington Treaty or under a United Nations mandate,
alone or in cooperation with other countries and
international organisations.
 An attack against one or several of its members is
considered as an attack against all. This is the principle
of collective defence, which is enshrined in Article 5 of
the Washington Treaty.
 So far, Article 5 has been invoked once - in response to
 NATO membership is open to “any other European
state in a position to further the principles of this
Treaty and to contribute to the security of the North
Atlantic area.”
 Around 40 non-member countries work with NATO on
a wide range of political and security-related issues.
These countries pursue dialogue and practical
cooperation with the Alliance and many contribute to
NATO-led operations and missions. NATO is also
cooperating with a wide network of international
organisations.
 Partner countries do not have the same decision-
making authority as member countries.
 Each member country has a permanent delegation at
NATO’s political headquarters in Brussels. Each
delegation is headed by an “ambassador”, who
represents his/her government in the Alliance’s
consultation and decision-making process.
 The 2010 Strategic Concept defines NATO’s cores
tasks as: collective defence, crisis-management and
cooperative security.
 A “NATO decision” is the expression of the collective
will of all 29 member countries since all decisions are
taken by consensus.
 The North Atlantic Council (NAC) is the principal
political decision-making body at NATO. Each
member country has a seat at the NAC.
 It meets at least once a week or whenever the need
arises, at different levels. It is chaired by the
Secretary General who helps members reach
agreement on key issues.
 The Nuclear Planning Group has the same authority
as the NAC with regard to nuclear policy issues.
 Working : NATO has very few permanent forces of its
own.
 When the North Atlantic Council agrees to launch an
operation, members contribute military forces on a
voluntary basis. These forces then return to their
countries once the mission is completed.
 When the implementation of political decisions has
military implications, the key actors involved are:
the Military Committee, composed of the Chiefs of
Defence of NATO member countries; the International
Military Staff, the Military Committee’s executive
body; and the military command structure, composed
of Allied Command Operations and Allied Command
Transformation.
 The Secretary General is the Alliance’s top
international civil servant. He / She is appointed
based on consensus among all.
 He/she is responsible for steering the process of
consultation and decision-making within the Alliance
and ensuring that decisions are implemented.
 The Secretary General is also NATO’s chief
spokesperson and heads the Organisation’s
International Staff, which provides advice, guidance
and administrative support to the national
delegations at NATO Headquarters.
 Current Operations : Afghanistan , Kosovo , Securing
the Mediterranean , Supporting the African Union
 Not a Member : Sweden , Finland , Austria ,
Herzegovina
 Latest to join : Albania and Croatia (2009) ,
Montenegro (2017) , North Macedonia (2019)
  Interpol
 Blue corner notice issued by Interpol against self styled
godman who fled India. Earlier Red Notice against few Indians.
 International Criminal Police Organization is an IGO with 194
member countries, and help police to work together to make
the world a safer place by sharing and accessing data on
crimes and criminals, along with offering a range of technical
and operational support.
 The General Assembly is the governing body and it brings all
countries together once a year to take decisions.
 The General Secretariat run by the Secretary General
(appointed by General assembly for 5 years ) coordinates day-
to-day activities to fight a range of crimes.
 It is staffed by both police and civilians and comprises a
headquarters in Lyon, a global complex for innovation in
Singapore and several satellite offices in different regions.
 In each country, an INTERPOL National Central Bureau (NCB)
provides the central point of contact for the General
Secretariat and other NCBs
 The President of the Organization is elected by the General
Assembly for a period of 4 years.
INTERPOL's Constitution requires that the President:
 Preside at meetings of the General Assembly and the Executive
Committee and direct the discussions;
 Ensure that the activities of the Organization are in conformity
with the decisions of the General Assembly and the Executive
Committee;
 Maintain, as far as possible, direct and constant contact with the
Secretary General of the Organization.
 The role of President is part-time and unpaid, with the holder
retaining their full-time post within their national authority.
 Two main sources of income: statutory contributions
from membership, and voluntary funding(higher than
the former) for activities.
 Each of our member countries pays a statutory
contribution to INTERPOL each year; it is an
obligatory payment. The amount paid by each country
is agreed by the General Assembly each year,
according to an adapted scale of United Nations
contributions, essentially based on economic weight.
 Most of the voluntary funding comes from government
agencies, notably those responsible for policing, but
there were also smaller contributions from
international and non-governmental organizations,
foundations and private entities.
 The Secretariat also generates a small amount of
income directly.
  UN Habitat
 India has been elected to the Executive Board of the
first UN-Habitat Assembly at the Plenary Session of
the Assembly that was held in Nairobi in 2019.
 The United Nations Human Settlements Programme,
UN-HABITAT, is the United Nations agency for
human settlements.
 It is mandated by the UN General Assembly to
promote socially and environmentally sustainable
towns and cities with the goal of providing adequate
shelter for all.
 The UN-Habitat’s vision of “a better quality of life for
all in an urbanizing world” is bold and ambitious.
UN-Habitat works with partners to build inclusive,
safe, resilient and sustainable cities and
communities.
 UN-Habitat works in over 90 countries to promote
transformative change in cities and human
settlements through knowledge, policy advice,
technical assistance and collaborative action.
 UN-Habitat’s new strategic plan 2020-2023 adopts a
more strategic and integrated approach to solving the
challenges and opportunities of twenty-first century
cities and other human settlements.
 UN-Habitat’s governance structure is a three-tier
structure made up of the UN-Habitat Assembly ,
the Executive Board and the Committee of Permanent
Representatives.
 The General Assembly of the United Nations in its
resolution decided to dissolve the Governing Council
of the United Nations Human Settlements
Programme and to replace it with a United Nations
Habitat Assembly of the United Nations Human
Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat Assembly).
 UN-Habitat Assembly is a universal body composed of
the 193 member states of the United Nations and
convenes every 4 years at the Headquarters of UN-
Habitat in Nairobi.
 The Executive Board is composed of 36 member
states elected by the UN-Habitat Assembly and
meets 3 times a year to increase the oversight by
Member States of UN-Habitat operations.
 The Committee of Permanent Representatives of UN-
Habitat (CPR) meets twice every 4 years in an open-
ended manner.
 The three governing bodies together are intended to
strengthen the accountability and transparency of
UN-Habitat, and provide an effective oversight
mechanism for UN-Habitat to enhance its normative
and operational activities.
 Some of the publications released by UN-Habitat are:
 The State of the World’s Cities

 The Global Report on Human Settlements

 New Urban Agenda

 Sustainable Development Goals and Urban Local

Bodies – The Future We Want

 The nodal agency for UN-Habitat in India is the

Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. The UN body
has an office in New Delhi and is in the country since
1991.
  WCO
 The World Customs Organization (WCO), established
in 1952 as the Customs Co-operation Council (CCC)
is an independent intergovernmental body whose
mission is to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency
of Customs administrations.
 The WCO develops international standards, fosters
cooperation and builds capacity to facilitate legitimate
trade, to secure a fair revenue collection and to
protect society, providing leadership, guidance and
support to Customs administrations.
 WCO has 183 Members, three-quarters of which are
developing countries, which are responsible for
managing more than 98% of world trade. India is a
member
 The WCO Secretariat, which is based in Brussels,
Belgium, runs the WCO’s day-to-day operations
under the leadership of a Secretary General.
 Together with the WCO’s Committees, the Secretariat
implements the WCO Strategic Plan as approved by
the Council.
 The Secretariat supplies technical, logistical and
professional support to the various working bodies
established by the Council, delivers capacity building,
technical assistance, and training, and develops and
maintains international Customs instruments and
tools.
 The Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding
System generally referred to as "Harmonized System"
or simply "HS" is a multipurpose international product
nomenclature developed by the WCO.
 It comprises more than 5,000 commodity groups; each
identified by a six digit code, arranged in a legal and
logical structure and is supported by well-defined
rules to achieve uniform classification.
 The HS contributes to the harmonization of Customs
and trade procedures, and the non-documentary trade
data interchange in connection with such procedures,
thus reducing the costs related to international trade.
 (It is simply a global standard used worldwide for
description of goods thereby facilitating smooth
recognition across borders. It is used calculation of
internal taxes , trade negotiations etc)
 It is also extensively used by governments,
international organizations and the private sector for
many other purposes such as internal taxes, trade
policies, monitoring of controlled goods, rules of
origin, freight tariffs, transport statistics, price
monitoring, quota controls, compilation of national
accounts, and economic research and analysis. The
 HS is thus a universal economic language and code
for goods, and an indispensable tool for international
trade.
 The International Convention on the simplification
and harmonization of Customs procedures (as
amended), known as the Revised Kyoto Convention
is the blueprint for modern and efficient Customs
procedures in the 21st century.
  INSTEX
 The INSTEX is a European special-purpose vehicle
(SPV) established as a barter mechanism to facilitate
non-USD transactions and non-SWIFT to avoid
breaking U.S. sanctions.
 It functions as a clearing house allowing Iran to
continue to sell oil and import other products or
services in exchange.
 The system has not yet enabled any transactions.
 Six Countries – Belgium, Denmark, Finland, the
Netherlands, Norway and Sweden have recently joined
INSTEX.
 France, Germany and the UK are its founding
members.
  Tishreen Revolution (October Revolution )
 The 2019 Iraqi protests, also nicknamed the
Tishreen Revolution, are an ongoing series of
protests that consisted of demonstrations,
marches, sit-ins and civil disobedience to protest
16 years of corruption, unemployment and
inefficient public services, before they escalated
into calls to overthrow the administration and stop
the Neighbourhood and outside politics
intervention in Iraq.
 They are calling for the end of a political system
which has existed since the US-led invasion
toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003 - a system
which, they argue, has failed them.
 They specifically point to the way government
appointments are made on the basis of sectarian
or ethnic quotas (a system known as muhassasa),
  Blue Dot Network
 Launched by USA , Japan ,
Australia on the sidelines of the
35th ASEAN Summit in Thailand.
 It is meant to be a multi-
stakeholder initiative that aims to
bring governments, the private
sector and civil society together to
promote “high quality, trusted
standards for global infrastructure
development”.
 Initiative will evaluate projects on various
parameters, in line with ‘G20 Principles for
Quality Infrastructure Investment’ including
level of public consultation, transparency in
funding, debt traps and basic environment
norms.
 Projects that meet the norms will get a “blue
dot” certification, which will enable them to
attract private funding and not have to depend
on state-funding alone.
 This is seen as alternative to ‘predatory
lending’ and debt trap diplomacy of China
under Belt and Road initiative (BRI), by
facilitating foreign investment in projects that
come under this network.
 However, unlike the BRI, the BDN would not
offer public funds or loans for the project.
  ICGEB
 The International centre for Genetic Engineering and
Biotechnology is a unique IGO initially established as
a special project of UNIDO.
 Fully autonomous since 1994, it runs 46 state-of-the-
art laboratories, in Italy, India and South Africa and
forms an interactive network with over 65 Member
States.
 It plays a key role in Biotechnology worldwide for
excellence in Research, Training and Technology
Transfer to industry to contribute in concrete terms to
the achievement of sustainable global development
and its operations are aligned to those of the United
Nations System.
 The ICGEB currently has 66 full Member States, a
further 19 countries are still pending ratification of, or
accession to, the Statutes of ICGEB.
 Organisation is dedicated to advanced research
and training in molecular biology and
biotechnology and advancing knowledge,
applying the latest techniques in the fields of:
 biomedicine

 crop improvement

 environmental protection/remediation

 biopharmaceuticals, bio pesticide and bio fuel

production
 The ICGEB is governed by the Board of
Governors, made up of representatives from
each Member State and the Council of Scientific
Advisers, composed of eminent scientists who
oversee the scientific excellence of the Centre.
 The Board of Governors consists of a representative
of each Member State and constitutes the
Governing body of the Centre. Its main functions
include:
 Determining the general policies and principles
governing the activities of the Centre;
 Admitting new Members to the Centre;

 Approving the work programme and budget, taking

into account the recommendations of the Council of
Scientific Advisers, adopting the financial
regulations of the Centre and deciding on any other
financial matter
 Since 1999 all Member States participate in the
financing of ICGEB through a scale of assessment
adopted by the Board of Governors at its third
session.
 The Director General of UNIDO is an ex-officio
member of the Board, without voting rights.
 Representatives of the United Nations, specialised
agencies, the International Atomic Energy Agency
and intergovernmental organisations and non-
governmental organisations, upon invitation of the
Board, participate as observers in its deliberations.
 For this purpose, the Board has established a list of
organisations that have a relationship with, and that
have expressed interest in, the work of the Centre.
 The Twenty-sixth session of the ICGEB Board of
Governors held on 18-19 November, 2020 in Trieste,
Italy.
  Common Wealth

 The Commonwealth is a voluntary association

of 54 independent and equal countries (Africa, Asia,
the Americas, Europe).
 Member governments have shared goals like
development, democracy and peace.
 32 members are classified as small states. Small
states are especially vulnerable to things like climate
change or developmental challenges.
 Leaders of member countries shape Commonwealth
policies and priorities. Every 2 years, they meet to
discuss issues affecting the Commonwealth and the
wider world at the Commonwealth Heads of
Government Meeting (CHOGM).
 All members have an equal say regardless of size or
wealth. This makes sure even the smallest countries
have a voice in shaping the Commonwealth.
 It is home to 2.4 billion people, and includes both
advanced economies and developing countries. 32 of
our members are small states, including many
island nations.
 The Commonwealth's roots go back to the British
Empire.
 But today any country can join the modern
Commonwealth. The last country to join the
Commonwealth was Rwanda in 2009.
 The Commonwealth is often described as a 'family' of
nations. At the heart of this family are 3
intergovernmental organisations:
 The Commonwealth Secretariat supports member
countries to achieve the Commonwealth's aims. This
website is run by the Commonwealth Secretariat.
 The Commonwealth Foundation supports people's
participation in democracy and development.
 The Commonwealth of Learning promotes open
learning and distance education.
 Member countries are also supported by a network
of more than 80 intergovernmental, civil, cultural
and professional organisations.
  ICD
 The ICD of WHO is the foundation for identifying
health trends and statistics worldwide, and contains
around 55 000 unique codes for injuries, diseases
and causes of death. It provides a common language
that allows health professionals to share health
information across the globe.
 For the first time, it is completely electronic and has
a much more user-friendly format.
 ICD-11 presented at the World Health Assembly in
May 2019 for adoption by Member States, and will
come into effect on 1 January 2022.
 The ICD is also used by health insurers whose
reimbursements depend on ICD coding; national
health programme managers; data collection
specialists; and others who track progress in global
health and determine the allocation of health
resources.
 The new ICD also includes 2 chapters, one on
traditional medicine: although millions of people use
traditional medicine worldwide, it has never been
classified in this system.
 Another new chapter on sexual health brings
together conditions that were previously categorized
in other ways (e.g. gender incongruence was listed
under mental health conditions) or described
differently. Gaming disorder has been added to the
section on addictive disorders.
  World organization of animal health
 An IGO responsible for improving animal health
worldwide.
 It is recognised as a reference organisation by the
WTO with respect to animal health and in 2018 has
a total of 182 Member Countries.
 The OIE maintains permanent relations with nearly
75 other international and regional organisations
and has Regional and sub-regional Offices on every
continent.
 How does the organisation function?
 The organisation is placed under the authority and
control of a World Assembly of Delegates consisting
of Delegates designated by the Governments of all
Member Countries.
 The day-to-day operation of the OIE is managed at
the Headquarters situated in Paris and placed under
the responsibility of a Director General elected by the
World Assembly of Delegates.
 The OIE's financial resources are derived principally
from compulsory annual contributions backed up by
voluntary contributions from Member Countries.
 The World Assembly of Delegates is the highest authority of
the OIE.
 It comprises the Delegates of all Member Countries and meets
at least once a year. The General Session of the Assembly lasts
five days and is held every year in May in Paris.
 Voting by Delegates within the Assembly respects the
democratic principle of 'one country, one vote'.
 The main functions of the Assembly are:
 to adopt international standards in the field of animal health,
especially for international trade;
 to adopt resolutions on the control of the major animal
diseases;
 to elect the members of the governing bodies of the OIE
(President and Vice-President of the Assembly, members of the
Council and of the Regional Commissions), as well as the
members of the Specialist Commissions;
 to appoint the Director General of the OIE;
 to examine and approve the annual report of activities and the
financial report of the Director General and the annual budget
of the OIE.
 In addition, during the General Session, two
technical items of general interest are dealt by
speakers chosen for their specialist knowledge, and
the animal health situation worldwide is presented in
summary form with additional information provided
by each Member Country.
 The work of the World Assembly of Delegates is
prepared by the Council, which consists of nine
Delegates and meets under the chairmanship of the
President of the Assembly each year, at least , in
February and May.
 During the General Session, Delegates have an
opportunity to meet in their respective Regional
Commissions to discuss problems of common
interest.
 The Council is composed of the President of the
World Assembly of Delegates, the Vice-President, the
Past President and six Delegates representing all the
5 regions( africa ; america ; europe ; middle eat ; asia
,fareast and oceania) , all elected (with the exception
of the former President) for a three-year term.
 The Council represents the Assembly during the
interval between General Sessions.
 The Council meets at least twice a year in Paris to
examine technical and administrative matters and,
in particular, the working programme and the
proposed budget to be presented to the Assembly.
 The role of the OIE's Specialist Commissions is to use
current scientific information to study problems of
epidemiology and the prevention and control of
animal diseases, to develop and revise OIE's
international standards and to address scientific and
technical issues raised by Members. They are
 The Terrestrial Animal Health Standards Commission
("Terrestrial Code Commission") ,
 The Scientific Commission for Animal Diseases
("Scientific Commission") ,
 The Biological Standards Commission ("Laboratories
Commission") ,
 Aquatic Animal Health Standards Commission
(Aquatic Animals Commission)
 International Council of Arbitration for sport

 Tokyo 2021 Olympics

 Not a UN body.
 Located in Switzerland
 The purpose of ICAS is to facilitate the resolution of
sports-related disputes through arbitration or
mediation and to safeguard the independence of CAS
and the rights of the parties.
 It is also responsible for the administration and
financing of CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sport).
 CAS comprises of an Ordinary Arbitration Division,
an Anti-Doping Division and an Appeals Arbitration
Division.
 The Anti-Doping Division of the Court of Arbitration
for Sport (CAS ADD) has been established to hear
and decide anti-doping cases as a first-instance
authority pursuant to the delegation of powers from
the International Olympic Committee (IOC),
International Federations of sports on the Olympic
programme (Olympic IFs), International Testing
Agency (ITA) and any other signatories to the World
Anti-Doping Code (WADC).
 These international sports entities have delegated
their powers to CAS ADD to decide whether or not
there has been a violation of their anti-doping rules,
as well as to decide any sanction, if applicable, in
accordance primarily with the WADC and with the
anti-doping rules (ADR) concerned.
 What kind of dispute ? Any disputes directly or
indirectly linked to sport may be submitted to the CAS.
These may be disputes of a commercial nature (e.g. a
sponsorship contract), or of a disciplinary nature
following a decision by a sports organisation (e.g. a
doping case).
 Who can file ? Any individual or legal entity with
capacity to act may have recourse to the services of the
CAS. These include athletes, clubs, sports federations,
organisers of sports events, sponsors or television
companies.
 When CAS can intervene ? For a dispute to be
submitted to arbitration by the CAS, the parties must
agree to this in writing. Such agreement may be on a
one-off basis or appear in a contract or the statutes or
regulations of a sports organization. Parties may agree
in advance to submit any future dispute to arbitration
by the CAS, or they can agree to have recourse to the
CAS after a dispute has arisen.
 An award pronounced by the CAS is final and
binding on the parties from the moment it is
communicated. It may in particular be enforced in
accordance with the New York Convention on the
recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards,
which more than 125 countries have signed.
 India is a signatory
  African Union
 The African Union (AU) is a continental body
consisting of the all 55 member states that make up
the countries of the African Continent.
 It was officially launched in 2002 as a successor to
the Organisation of African Unity (OAU, 1963-1999).
 The AU is guided by its vision of “An Integrated,
Prosperous and Peaceful Africa, driven by its own
citizens and representing a dynamic force in the
global arena.”
 The work of the AU is implemented through several
principal decision making organs:- The Assembly of
Heads of State and Government, the Executive
Council, the Permanent Representatives
Committee (PRC), Specialised Technical
Committees(STCs), the Peace and Security
Council and The African Union Commission.
 The AU structure promotes participation of African
citizens and civil society through the Pan-African
Parliament and the Economic, Social & Cultural
Council (ECOSOCC).
 Organs that handle judicial and legal matters as well
as human rights issues include:- African Commission
on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR), African
Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights(AfCHPR), AU
Commission on International Law (AUCIL), AU
Advisory Board on Corruption (AUABC) and the
African Committee of Experts on the Rights and
Welfare of the Child.
 The AU is also working towards the establishment
of continental financial institutions (The African
Central Bank, The African Investment Bank and the
African Monetary Fund)
 The Regional Economic Communities(RECs) and
the African Peer Review Mechanism are also key
bodies that that constitute the structure of the
African Union.
 To ensure the realisation of its objectives and the
attainment of the Pan African Vision of an integrated,
prosperous and peaceful Africa, Agenda 2063 was
developed as a strategic framework for Africa’s long
term socio-economic and integrative transformation.
 Agenda 2063 calls for greater collaboration and
support for African led initiatives to ensure the
achievement of the aspirations of African people.
(Vision 2030 of Saudi Arabia)
  MCG
 The Mekong-Ganga Cooperation (MGC) is an
initiative by six countries – India and five ASEAN
countries, namely, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar,
Thailand and Vietnam for cooperation in tourism,
culture, education, as well as transport and
communications.
 It was launched in 2000 at Vientiane, Lao PDR.
 Both the Ganga and the Mekong are civilizational
rivers, and the MGC initiative aims to facilitate
closer contacts among the people inhabiting these
two major river basins.
 The MGC is also indicative of the cultural and
commercial linkages among the member countries
of the MGC down the centuries.
  Mandates
IBSA
 As a forum for consultation and coordination on
global and regional political issues, such as, the
reform of the global institutions of political and
economic governance, WTO/Doha Development
Agenda, climate change, terrorism etc. - Trilateral
collaboration on concrete areas/projects, through
fourteen working groups and six People-to-People
Forums, for the common benefit of three countries; -
Assisting other developing countries by taking up
projects in the latter through IBSA Fund.
BRICS
 One of the major objectives of the grouping is
broadening, deepening, and intensifying cooperation
among the member countries for mutually beneficial,
sustainable and equitable development.
 Every member’s growth and development are
considered to ensure that relations are built on the
economic strengths of individual countries and
eliminate competition wherever possible.
 Such diverse objectives allow BRICS to emerge as an
innovative and encouraging Political-Diplomatic
entity which was earlier formed just to resolve the
global financial issues and reform institutions.
WB
The World Bank Group has set two goals for the
world to achieve by 2030:
 End extreme poverty by decreasing the percentage of
people living on less than $1.90 a day to no more
than 3%
 Promote shared prosperity by fostering the income
growth of the bottom 40% for every country
 The World Bank is a vital source of financial and
technical assistance to developing countries around
the world. It is not a bank in the ordinary sense but a
unique partnership to reduce poverty and support
development. The World Bank Group comprises five
institutions managed by their member countries.
Financial Products and Services
 It provide low-interest loans, zero to low-interest
credits, and grants to developing countries. These
support a wide array of investments in such areas as
education, health, public administration,
infrastructure, financial and private sector
development, agriculture, and environmental and
natural resource management.
 Some of projects are co-financed with governments,
other multilateral institutions, commercial banks,
export credit agencies, and private sector investors.
Innovative Knowledge Sharing
 It offers support to developing countries through
policy advice, research and analysis, and technical
assistance.
 Open Development: WB offer a growing range of free,
easy-to-access tools, research and knowledge to help
people address the world's development challenges.
For example, the Open Data website offers free
access to comprehensive, downloadable indicators
about development in countries around the globe.
G20
 ​The G20 is the premier forum for international
economic cooperation. It gathers the ​leaders of the
largest economies of the world to discuss financial
and socioeconomic issues.
 G20 = G7+P5(2)+BRICS(3)+Fragile5(2)+Mexico ,
Argentina + Saudi Arabia + South Korea + Australia +
EU
  CRMM
 The Common Risk Mitigation Mechanism (CRMM)
under the International Solar Alliance (ISA) has
been taken over by the World Bank
 The objective of CRMM is de-risking and reducing
the financial cost of solar projects in ISA-member
countries.
 CRMM will act as a pooled insurance with limited
liability. Banks and multi-lateral institutions can
contribute to the fund for a marginal premium. This
will lower the cost of capital for developing
renewable energy projects.
Council of Europe’s (CoE) Cybercrime Convention
 Also known as the Budapest Convention came into
force in 2001, is the only binding international
instrument that addresses Internet and computer
crime by harmonizing national laws, improving legal
authorities for investigative techniques, and
increasing cooperation among nations.
 India is not a member since drafted without Indian
participation.
  Global Trade Alert Project
 With the pandemic , Many countries had restricted
the export of protective equipments, medical devices
and medicines.
 GTA, a new online resource that monitors policies
affecting world trade, launched on June 8, 2009.
 Centre for International Governance
Innovation (independent Think Tank) is a major
partner of this initiative along with the Centre for
Economic Policy Research (UK based Research
Institute), the International Development Research
Centre (Estd. By Parliament of Canada) and
the World Bank.
 GTA does independent monitoring of policies affect
world commerce and provides timely information on
state interventions affecting trade in goods and
services, foreign investment and labour force
 Although global in scope, the GTA has given
particular attention to the policy choices of the G-20
governments ever since their leaders made a “no
protectionism” pledge in Washington DC in November
2008.
 GTA has become a widely-used input for analysis and
decision-making by firms, industry associations,
journalists, researchers, international organisations,
and governments.
 GTA publishes brief reports twice a year. Every GTA
report focuses on a new and current topic in
international commerce. It presents original research
on the topic as well as summaries of the latest
updates.
 Exports at Risk from Non-Tariff Measures: The
Experience of Commonwealth Countries is the
recent report of GTA published in August 2020( Titles
are generally big )
 “21st Century Tracking of Pandemic-Era Trade
Policies in Food and Medical Products” a joint
initiative by European university institute , GTA &
World Bank.
 The purpose of this initiative is to collect information
on changes in trade policy towards exports and
imports of medical and food products so as to
document the cumulative resort to trade policies since
the beginning of 2020.
 IDRC was established by an act of Canada’s
parliament in 1970 with a mandate “to initiate,
encourage, support, and conduct research into the
problems of the developing regions of the world and
into the means for applying and adapting scientific,
technical, and other knowledge to the economic and
social advancement of those regions.”
 Head office is located in Ottawa, Canada, while
five regional offices located in Montevideo, Uruguay;
Nairobi, Kenya; Dakar, Senegal; Amman, Jordan; and
New Delhi, India.
  GAVI
 In June 2019, the Gavi Board approved a new 5-year
strategy (‘Gavi 5.0’) with a vision to ‘leave no-one
behind with immunisation’ and a mission to save
lives and protect people’s health by increasing
equitable and sustainable use of vaccines
 Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, helps vaccinate almost
half the world’s children against deadly and
debilitating infectious diseases.
 Gavi’s impact draws on the strengths of its core
partners, the WHO , UNICEF, the World Bank and
the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation,( also there are
independent individuals and countries like USA ,
Australlia , UK , Qatar) and plays a critical role in
strengthening primary health care (PHC), bringing us
closer to the SDG of Universal Health Coverage
(UHC), ensuring that no one is left behind.
 With membership drawn from a range of partner
organisations, as well as experts from the private
sector, the Gavi Board provides a forum for balanced
strategic decision making, innovation and partner
collaboration.
 The Board is comprised of 18 “representative” seats, 9
seats for independent or “unaffiliated” individuals and
one seat for Gavi's CEO
 UNICEF, WHO, the World Bank and the Bill &
Melinda Gates Foundation hold permanent seats on
the Board. Constituency representatives serve on a
time-limited basis.
  CEPI
 India is a founding member of CEPI
 The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations
(CEPI) is a global partnership launched in 2017 to
develop vaccines to stop future epidemics.
 CEPI was founded in Davos by the governments of
Norway and India, the Bill & Melinda Gates
Foundation, the Wellcome Trust, and the WEF.
 CEPI is a Norwegian Association.
 The primary governing body is the Board, which has
12 voting members (four investors and eight
independent members representing competencies
including industry, global health, science, resource
mobilisation, finance) and five observers.
 The Board is advised on decisions, such as
prioritising pathogens and selecting development
partners, by Scientific Advisory Committee.
 All investors contributing to CEPI’s funding pool are
invited to join Investors Council. The council nominates
Investor representatives to the Board and has some
rights including approval any single investments over
$100 m.
 The Investors Council receives regular updates from the
CEPI team, provides guidance and oversight of CEPI
activities, and engages in resource mobilisation efforts.
 Four members of the CEPI Investors Council serve on the
CEPI Board, as part of the Executive and Investment
Committee.
 To date, CEPI has secured financial support from the Bill
& Melinda Gates Foundation, Wellcome Trust, the
European Commission, and the governments of
Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Ethiopia,
Germany, Japan, Mexico, Norway and the United
Kingdom. Additional investment from sovereign
governments, the private sector and philanthropic
foundations has also been provided to support our
  OSCC
 USA announce to exit Open Skies Treaty citing
violation of treaty by Russia
 The Open Skies Consultative Commission (OSCC) is
the implementing body for the Open Skies Treaty.
 It consists of representatives from each of the 34
States Parties to the Open Skies Treaty.
 The OSCC meets at the headquarters of the
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
(OSCE) in Vienna, Austria.
 OSCE consist of 57 members from North America ,
Central Asia and Europe.
 India is neither a member of this organization nor a
party to the open skies treaty.
 The Open Skies Treaty entered into force in January
2002, and covers territory from Vancouver to
Vladivostock.
 The Treaty establishes a regime of unarmed aerial
observation flights over the entire territory of its 34
signatories. It is designed to enhance mutual
understanding and confidence by giving all
participants, regardless of size, the possibility to
obtain information on military or other activities of
concern to them.
 Open Skies is the most wide-ranging international
effort to date to promote openness and transparency
of military forces and their activities.
 The OSCC's main functions are to:
 consider questions relating to compliance with the
Treaty;
 seek to resolve ambiguities and differences of
interpretation emerging during Treaty
implementation;
 consider and decide on applications for accession to
the Treaty,
 review the distribution of flight quotas annually.

 The OSCC was established by the

Treaty. The OSCC takes decisions by consensus, and
has adopted over 90 Decisions since its inception.
OSCC Decisions enter into force with the Treaty and
have the same duration as the Treaty.
  MISCELLANEOUS FACTS
 India has supplied humanitarian aid to
Bangladesh to resolve Rohingya crisis under
'Operation Insaniyat’
 Protocol on Inland Water Transit and Trade
(PIWTT), signed between India and Bangladesh
in 2015 to make mutually beneficial
arrangements for the use of their waterways
for commerce between the two countries and
for passage of goods between two places in one
country and to third countries through the
territory of the other under the terms mutually
agreed upon.
 SAFTA is the free trade arrangement of SAARC
containing BBINMSPA but the earlier signed
 Op. Kayla Mueller of USA killing ISIS chief Abu
Baghdadi.
 Trans-Himalayan Multi-Dimensional Connectivity
Network between Nepal and China to enhance
connectivity in ports, roads, railways, aviation and
communications
 A New Passage to India programme to increase the
number of Indian students studying in Germany.
 Global Climate Risk Index , Climate Change
Performance Index = German Watch
 World Economic Outlook = IMF
World Energy Outlook (Indian Energy Outlook) = IEA
Global Environment Outlook = UNEP
Global Biodiversity Outlook = UNCBD
Asian Development Outlook = ADB
Global Economic Prospects = WB
 Taiwan is not a member of UN , WHO but member of
WTO (Chineese Taipei)
 1 Country 2 Systems (semi autonomy) = China and
Hong Kong , Macau (soon Taiwan is to be brought
under this policy)
 2 State Solution = Israel Palestine (British’s Sykes-
Picot Agreement with France to capture Palestine from
Ottomon Empire , Balfour Declaration of Britain to
establish Palestine as home for Jews , Camp David
Accord for peace between Israel and Egypt , Oslo
Accord between PLO and Israel granting autonomy to
Palestine )
 2 Nation Theory = India and Pakistan
 Toman is the new currency of Iran.
 World competitive Index by Institute for Management
Development(Independent academic organization)
 Global Competitive Index by WEF
 Countries with which India signed Civil Nuclear
Agreement = France, US , Russia, UK , Japan,
Namibia, Canada, Argentina, Kazakhstan, Republic
of Korea, Czech Republic, Australia, Sri Lanka ,
Vietnam , Mongolia .
 2+2(Defense and Foreign Minister talk) with = USA ,
Japan , Australlia
 Global Soft Power Index by UK based organization
called Brand Finance
 Gender Social Norms Index , Gender Inequality index
by UNDP
 Gender Parity Index by UNESCO
 Global Gender Gap Report by WEF
 CEPA / CECA are similar to a FTA, with a
comprehensive coverage of trade in goods and
services and investments, as well as intellectual
property rights. CEPA is even more comprehensive
than CECA. India has signed CEPAs with South
Korea and Japan. India has signed CECA with
Malaysia and Singapore .
 Freedom of Navigation operations conducted by USA
in the South China Sea opposing the extra maritime
claims of China. (USA has not ratified UNCLOS)
 India shares maritime boundary with Pakistan ,
Srilanka , Bangladesh , Maldives , Myanmar ,
Thailand, Indonesia
 10 Day (Fajr)Dawn Celebration - Of Iran marking
the anniversary of victory of Iranian Revolution in
1979.
 IO membership
 F5
 P5
 G7
 G20
 BRICS
 CPTPP
 APEC
 IORA
 IONS
 EAEU
 EAG
 ANDEAN
 MERCOSUR
 Arctic Council
 OPEC
 OPEC +
 GCC
 D10
 5 Eyes intelligence
 ASEAN
Queries at :
kishankumar.s@shankarias.in