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WHAT IS THE UNGA?
Established in 1945 the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) is the primary deliberative policy-making and representative organ of the United Nations. Located in New York, the UNGA considers and makes recommendations on any issue that falls under the scope of the UN Charter, including human rights, peace and security, political cooperation, and international collaboration.
The UNGA is responsible for electing the members of its subsidiary bodies and principal organs (including the Human Rights Council), appointing the UN Secretary General upon recommendation from the Security Council, considering reports from other organs and experts from within the UN, assessing the financial status of UN member States, and approving the UN budget.
The UNGA allocates most of its work to its six main committees which take up different issues and present draft resolutions and decisions to the plenary of the UNGA. The Third Committee, officially called ‘The Social, Humanitarian & Cultural Affairs Committee’, carries out a majority of the human rights work that takes place through the UNGA.
While the UNGA remains in session for the entire year, from early September through mid-December what is informally known as the ‘main’ session takes place in New York, beginning with a two-week general debate attended by heads of states and Senior Ministers. During this period each year, the UNGA addresses over 150 agenda items, considered either in a plenary session or in one of its six committees. The formal decisions made during these sessions are known as UN resolutions.
LGBTI INCLUSION
Over the past few years LGBTI issues have been raised through three main access points at the UNGA:
EVENTS IN UN HEADQUARTERS
THE REPORT OF THE INDEPENDENT EXPERT ON DISCRIMINATION AND VIOLENCE BASED ON SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY (SOGI IE)
UNGA RESOLUTIONS