U.N. Policies

U.N. Policies

The United Nations is a global corporation founded in 1945 to substitute League of Nations when the second World War ended. The main objective of the U.N. as an organization is to maintain security and peace internationally. More so, the organization helps in achieving cooperation in the world through solving and preventing international glitches of economic, social, political, and humanitarian issues (Ralph 630). The U.N. gets involved in the response of crisis in a comprehensive manner through its principal subsidiary and organization entities such as funds, commissions, programs, and specialized agencies.

U.N. respond to natural disasters and human-caused crisis which affects the health, well-being, and safety of either a society or a country. Whereby the geographical crisis varies, it could be international, national, and local. The response of the humanitarian crisis requires a duration of time to cope with the damages inflicted by disasters (Jeong, 1). The nature calamities which require the response of the U.N. include tsunamis, hurricanes, earthquakes, and floods. Also, the human-caused crisis examples such as oil spills, armed conflicts, and other emergencies like a disease outbreak. Therefore, this paper entails the explanation of how the United Nations respond to international crisis and elaborating particular examples

The most emergency responses and humanitarian relief of the U.N. organization get located at the Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. OCHA’s main objective is the ensure that all humanitarian efforts from various actors get coordinated in a comprehensible way through mobilizing the actions in response to the emergencies and disasters (Jeong 3). Moreover, the Security Council department is obligated to maintain security and peace internationally by solving threats affecting the safety of people. Furthermore, the subsidiary components of U.N. such as IOM, UNDP, UNHCR, WHO, and FAO are responsible for dealing with the crisis that relates to their specialized groups and areas

In 2007, OCHA developed a global symposium to improve crisis information. The main symposium objective was to unite a community of practice on shared knowledge and humanitarian information regarding crisis. The U.N, information management strategy, recognize the Governments, NGO’s, International financial institutions, and media to have substantial experience in crisis response. Hence, all organizations involved in disaster response and prevention harmonize the use of systems and tools to develop, disseminate, and record information for easy accessibility to respond to any crisis. Also, the ICT4Peace Foundation was created to formulate unified platforms, practices, system-wide, and standards to strengthen crisis information for effective response. The Foundation was effective in Haiti after the devastating earthquake, whereby ICT platforms were used to collect relief and aid from donors across the world to help the affected population on the ground.

The United Nations has a department known as UNHCR with the primary objective of protecting the refugees due to conflicts, violence, and persecution. The UNHCR provides medical care, shelter, food, water, and other essential commodities to help people who flee their homes due to various disasters. Hence, the department of UNHCR collaborates with other actors like the government to provide basic needs, sanitation programs, and enhancing that the refugees access medical services.

Additionally, UNHCR facilitates protection and legal assistance to the displaced civilians to minimize threats of violence by protecting their human rights (Malešič 159). For example, when the Rohingya refugees fled from Myanmar due to persecution and violence in 2017, UNHCR assisted them in building shelters and provided kits for monsoon preparation. Also, UNCHR donors provided relief food to approximately 611,323 Syrians who were trapped during the war in 2018 (Ralph 647).

The Agency focuses on empowering the refugees’ livelihood by enhancing the access of learning programs for youths through funding the education and supporting their training. It still encourages distance-learning by ensuring that the degrees pursued in the foreign countries are recognized by the native state of the refugees when their return. Furthermore, UNCHR assists marginalized women in accessing the available humanitarian assistance and training programs to equip them with new skills to upgrade their lives after the conflicts (Morse 37). For instance, UNCHR, in collaboration with other U.N. agencies formed Refugee Education 2030 strategy aimed to increase the education of all refugees by sustainable and equitable inclusion in the education systems in undeveloped countries like Bangladesh, Sudan, Chad, and others.

United Nations respond to emergencies through the department known as UNDP, which extends its network offices to all countries facing a crisis. The network office extensions are used to prevent further turmoil and facilitate procedures of recovery from the disaster. UNDP assembles partnerships beyond and within the United Nations, such as OCHA, to assist effective response of the emergencies. Its main objective is developing resilience to disasters and conflicts for long-term development objectives. More so, UNDP helps countries in the prevention of armed conflicts and alleviating effects of natural hazards like hurricanes (Morse 49).

Through the UNDP agencies, the United Nations can identify the cause of disputes and effectively reinforce the local government to solve the violence. Thematic Trust Fund was established by UNDP to enhance timely and effective responses for crisis recovery and prevention. In Yemen, UNDP created ESMF to respond to the emerging crisis in the country by ensuring that ECRP is consistent with the U.N. environmental and social standards. The ESMF acts as a platform for consultations with project beneficiaries and stakeholders.

Additionally, the United Nations uses a body within the organization known as the Security Council, which react and take action in case of a peace threat. The Security Council is authorized to maintain security and peace across the globe (Bellamy 31). The organization’s body responds to peace threatening crisis by first investigating the cause of the dispute second, by determining the existence of the conflict and eventually recommends for action against the peace threat. After the identification of the danger, the Council tries to negotiate with the conflicting parties to agree. The Security Council uses four-step strategic techniques to facilitate the agreements, it carries investigations, reports a mission, elects particular diplomats, and politely ask the Secretary-General to enhance a peaceful solution for the conflicts (Bailey 254).

However, when the peaceful resolutions do not work, and the dispute leads to chaos, the Security Council provides directives to a ceasefire, such as sending peacekeeping forces. The Council may also consider enforcing various procedures like financial penalties, economic sanctions, and arms embargoes. Hence, the Security Council uses resolutions to solve conflicts among involved parties. For example, Resolution 687 urged Kuwait and Iraq to honor and respect the boundaries between them. Also, Iraq gets directed to comply with following the defeat in the Gulf War. Eventually, Iraq accepted and appreciated the resolution in 1991.

The United Nations also has another agency referred to as UNEP works on the preparedness of the emergency and response. UNEP focuses on equipping the organization with the appropriate knowledge for supportable development in case of an emergency. Thus, it manages environmental consequences and causes of the natural calamities to reduce their effects on vulnerable communities and nations (Malešič 167). The department of UNEP prevents emergencies through the utilization of ecosystem services and the reduction of ecosystem degradation in a sustainable manner.

UNEP projects deal with environmental crises as well as technology and natural hazards through implementing the ecosystem-based adaptation techniques. The EBA procedures minimize vulnerability through developing social and ecological resilience to climate variation risks. Besides, the Disaster Risk Reduction is an initiative developed by UNEP to focus on risk assessments, early warning, and disaster preparedness for environmental emergencies. For instance, UNEP agencies promote the transition of low-carbon societies by strengthening the nations to integrate climate changes through the provision of finance, technology, and leadership in adaptation (Malešič 171).

UNEP also has disaster and post-conflict management programs that evaluate environmental assessments within the countries affected by the crisis. Still, the projects guide the implementation of institutional and legislative frameworks for environmental management. UNEP created PCDMB to conduct post-conflict assessment activities in Lebanon, Afghanistan, and Sudan to manage disasters and prevent more conflicts in those countries. Ultimately, UNEP joins with OCHA to form JEU developed to deal with the environmental effects of conflicts and disasters by mobilizing international efforts and coordinating response actors (Bailey 277). Therefore, the joint organization aims at facilitating the preparedness of societies, government, and disaster responders against the potential impacts and risks of conflicts and environmental emergencies.

The United Nations uses the WHO department to respond to emergencies regarding health issues to its member states. The WHO agency established GEMT to provide exclusive management and strategy guidance for emergency response duties. WHO creates an evidence-based health sector response plan and appeal that help the U.N. to respond to health problems like epidemics effectively. The department still provides early warning, ensures strict adaption of disease surveillance and response systems (Otterman 19). Also, WHO draft and give the information about updates of the health situation and performance on the ground. Likewise, it provides the affected member countries with technical expertise to solve the health issues through best practices. WHO harnessed capital in 2014 after the outbreak of the Ebola virus to enhance the preparedness of the health problem by detecting, responding, and preventing the spread of infectious disease. The Agency provided medical expertise in central Africa to control and prevent the outbreak of Ebola in Congo.

Consequently, the U.N. responds to the crisis using the UNICEF department, which is in charge of developmental and humanitarian assistance to mothers and children in post-conflict countries. United Nations formed UNICEF after the Second World War to assist children in war-torn states. The Agency provides immediate relief to the affected individuals as well as incorporating efforts to deal with the causes of vulnerability to conflicts and disasters. The Burundi conflicts in 1993, The UNICEF responded by providing water and sanitation assistance to support both local people and refugees (Otterman 23).

Nevertheless, the UNICEF entails an emergency department called EMOPS that enhance strategic coordination with other humanitarian partners outside and inside the U.N. organization to assist needy children and mothers. The office supports preparedness procedures and early warning about the crisis faced by children in the communities, states, and internationally. For example, in the Burundi conflict, the response was effective due to the proper coordination of UNICEF and other partners by appropriate preparedness and application of emergency response to improve hygiene practices in the country.

The eruption of an emergency influences the assessment team of emergency to measure and ascertain the food demand and formulate a delivery plan. The measurement gets followed by drafting EMOP, which entirely involves a budget and a plan of action. Then, the World Food Program launches an appeal requesting the international community for food and fund assistance. When the WFP receives the funds and food, its logistics workforce plans the transportation procedures and transport the food to emergency locations (Binder 713). Recently, the program delivered food to displaced residents in Ecuador and Nepal after the earthquakes. The WFP partners with governments and NGOs to facilitate the adequate transportation of food to the needy people.

The WFP provides the United Nations with the most comprehensive systems of early warning, practical analysis, and collection of information about the human-caused and natural hazards assisting the organization in responding appropriately according to the crisis. Besides, the scientific partners of WFP produce a Rapid Impact Analysis, which helps WFP to draft a budget according to the effects of the crisis. The scientists use satellite imageries to illustrate the happenings and the current situation on the areas affected by the crisis, and they also predict change through the use of computerized modeling.

Still, the analysis of the impacts assists the United Nations to develop a sufficient strategy to respond to the crisis on the ground (Jeong 7). The United Nations used WFP systems to warn people about the tropical storm in Mahasen, south of Kolkata, India. Scientists used the Rapid Impact Analysis to illustrate that the rain would cause flooding due to heavy rainfall in the west of Myanmar and eastern Bangladesh.

The FAO dedicates its resources on the reduction of people’s vulnerability to the crisis by incorporating emergence response, risk assessment, rehabilitation, and risk reduction. The work of FAO entails contributing to repair and recovery of hazards with an emphasis on the flexibility of livings through the transition to development from relief assistance.  FAO’s method incorporates post-disaster improvement with emergency response strategies (Binder 721). The integrated approach formed DRM, which minimizes the impacts of the threats and facilitate community flexibility to provide food security and establish bearable agriculture systems. In Nigeria, Borno estate, the FAO programs opened aquaculture markets to create opportunities to conflict-affected fishers to upgrade their living standards.

Inconclusion, the main objective of the U.N. as an organization is to maintain security and peace internationally. The most emergency responses and humanitarian relief of the U.N. organization get located at the Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. The United Nations has a department known as UNHCR with the primary objective of protecting the refugees due to conflicts, violence, and persecution. United Nations respond to emergencies through the department known as UNDP, which extends its network offices to all countries facing a crisis. Additionally, the United Nations uses a body within the organization known as the Security Council, which react and take action in case of a peace threat. The United Nations uses the WHO department to respond to emergencies regarding health issues to its member states. Therefore, all agencies of the United Nations should unite and coordinate with external organizations to improve the overall response of crisis.

Work Cited

Bailey, Sydney. The U.N. Security Council and human rights. Springer, 2016. https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=Ugu_DAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PR7&dq=united+nations+security+council&ots=2wCb6FVKn0&sig=VCO2YG57k_KJuq6A2wVQYkC53aI

Bellamy, Alex J. “International responses to human protection crises: Responsibility …” OpenEdition Journals, 2015, https://doi.org/10.4000/rccsar.609

Binder, Martin. “Paths to intervention: What explains the U.N.’s selective response to humanitarian crises?” Journal of Peace Research 52.6 (2015): 712-726. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0022343315585847

Jeong, Bok, and Yeo, Jungwon. “United Nations and crisis management.” (2017): 1-8. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Bok_Jeong/publication/319097940_United_Nations_and_Crisis_Management/links/5991cfa5458515a8a24bbc84/United-Nations-and-Crisis-Management.pdf

Malešič, M. “Eulex Kosovo: A test of the E.U.’s civilian crisis management.” Managing crises, making peace. Palgrave Macmillan, London, 2015. 157-177. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1057/9781137442253_8

Morse, A. “Responding to crises.” National Audit Office (NAO), 2016. 1-58 www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Responding-to-crises.pdf.

Otterman, S. “Iraq: The U.N. Role.” Council on foreign relations, Council on Foreign Relations, 2015, www.cfr.org/backgrounder/iraq-un-role.

Ralph, Jason, and Jess, G. “The purpose of United Nations Security Council practice: Contesting competence claims in the normative context created by the Responsibility to Protect.” European Journal of International Relations 23.3 (2017): 630-653. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1354066116669652