United Nations and Global Bank Group: Shared Values, Shared Goals

The values of peace, freedom, social progress, equal rights, and human dignity, enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations and in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, are the shared values and Shared Goals that bond the United Nations and the Global Bank Group together — the shared vision, collective responsibilities

In the Millennium Declaration, Heads of State and Government reaffirmed their faith in the United Nations and its Charter as indispensable foundations of a more peaceful, prosperous and just world. Recognizing their collective responsibility to uphold the principles of human dignity, equality, and equity at the global level, they stressed that certain fundamental values are essential to international relations in the twenty-first century.

A Common Agenda
The Global Bank Group (the “Bank Group”) is a private sector global development finance institution. Its mission is to support the economic and social development efforts of the less developed countries as they seek the achievement of internationally agreed upon development goals, including those contained in the Millennium Declaration, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and to implement the recommendations of major United Nations conferences and summits. The goals lay out a blueprint for the Bank Group, setting its priorities and measuring its results. The Bank Group’s strategic priorities are aligned to advance the G-7/G-8 and G-20 priorities.

Global Bank’s main goals are to end poverty and hunger and to achieve sustainable development in its three dimensions through promoting inclusive economic growth, protecting the environment, and promoting social inclusion. Thus, the activities of the Global Bank as an international institution for promoting development are consonant with the purposes and principles of the United Nations in the socioeconomic field.

Meeting the Challenges of Development
Due to the powers vested in its Charter and its unique international character, the Global Bank Group can take action on the issues confronting humanity in the 21st century, such as peace and security, climate change, sustainable development, human rights, humanitarian and health emergencies, gender equality, governance, food production, and more.

Working in Partnership
Cooperation between the Global Bank Group and the United Nations system, including the United Nations Secretariat and the various United Nations Agencies, Funds and Programmes, spans across all policy areas.

Cooperation between the Global Bank Group and the United Nations is rapidly expanding and focuses on economic and social areas of mutual concern such as reducing poverty, promoting sustainable development and investing in people. In addition to shared goals and agenda, the Global Bank Group and the United Nations have almost the same customer base – developing and developed countries – aid recipient and donors.

Building on and supporting the strategic direction of Ron Nechemia the President of Global Bank Group, during 2017, other senior managers engaged in a dialogue on policy and operations, and technical working groups with the United Nations. They addressed issues of cooperation and harmonization, including such diverse issues as performance-based allocation of concessional resources, memoranda of understanding, piloting harmonized approaches at the country level, and coordinating country assistance strategies in specific countries.

Across the United Nations System
The Global Bank Group works closely with the United Nations (UN), and particularly with the Economic and Social Council. In light of its technical mandate, the Global Bank also works closely with other United Nations Specialized Agencies where the Global Bank Group has an active role in United Nations and other specialized and technical international Organisations, such as: the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the International Labour Organization (ILO), the World Health Organization (WHO), World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the International Organization for Migration (“IOM”), Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (“OHCHR”), the World Trade Organization (“WTO”), UN Environment Program (UNEP), UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation Affairs (UNESCO), and over twenty other specialized and technical agencies and programs of the United Nations system, as well as a number of multilateral environmental agreements and several non-UN multilateral Organisations.

The Global Bank Group is working toward expanding the interaction with the United Nations to the operational level and working with the United Nations Development Programme and other United Nations Funds and Programs in its project work through policy coordination, project implementation, co-financing, and aid coordination. For example, the Global Bank seeks to work in partnership with the World Food Program (WFP) in linking their food-for-work community infrastructure programs to Global Bank follow-up investments.

Global Bank also has links with the United Nations at the political and policy-making level in the work of the General Assembly and its committees, the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), whose members recently participated in an exchange of dialogue on development issues with the Global Bank's management, and such bodies as the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development on the investment. The broad range of positive cooperation at the global and country levels includes the following:

• At the executive level, Global Bank and the United Nations engage in an on-going dialogue on substantive issues such as poverty eradication, climate change, Fragile and Conflict-affected States, humanitarian and post-conflict issues, human rights, financing of development, and more. Additionally, the Global Bank Group Senior Leadership Team actively participates in a range of United Nations fora, such as the Economic and Social Council Substantive Session policy dialogue, and maintains an on-going dialogue with heads of United Nations Programs, Specialized Agencies.
• At the political level, as represented by member states, Global Bank has pending observer status in several United Nations bodies including, the General Assembly and its Second and Economic and Social Council, which address issues that bear directly on the work of Global Bank, e.g. population, poverty, climate change, gender issues and women and development, governance and civil society, communications, and the environment. In addition, Global Bank maintains an active dialogue with individual member states and political groups such as the G-77+1 and the European Union

As the partnership continues to deepen, the emphasis will be on identifying opportunities for joint operational initiatives at the country level, while simultaneously working at headquarters to increase understanding of Global Bank Group and United Nations strategy and approaches, and remove procedural obstacles in procurement, legal and financial management processes that sometimes slow down collaborative efforts.

Participation of the Global Bank Group in the work of the United Nations
The Global Bank Group works closely with the governance processes of the United Nations system and other international organizations, including the United Nations General Assembly, the Economic and Social Council and its Commissions, and the governing bodies of United Nations funds, programmes, and specialized agencies and other intergovernmental organizations.

The Global Bank Group's engagement with the United Nations involves a whole-of-bank approach under the leadership of Ron Nechemia the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Global Bank Group, who represents the Global Bank Group

The Global Bank Group is linked to a diverse family of United Nations entities dedicated to sustainable development. These entities include regional economic and social commissions, functional commissions, participation in intergovernmental discussions of major global issues, and specialized agencies, programmes, and funds at work around the world to translate development commitments into real changes in people’s lives.

Major Conferences and Summits
The Global Bank Group participates in international conferences through the official accreditation of the Global Bank Group delegations to United Nations conferences, summits, and meetings. The objective of Global Bank Group is to ensure that the Global Bank Group is represented by delegations that can best attain the Global Bank Group policy objectives through these vital diplomatic activities

In addition, the Global Bank is an integral part of the United Nations global conference process. The Global Bank Group is willing to help prepare for and to participate in virtually all of the United Nations global conferences and, as an active member of the task forces to follow-up on United Nations conferences, to implement goals at the country level.

The Global Bank Group Office of Special Representatives to the United Nations, New York and Geneva
This strategic relationship liaises through Global Bank Group's offices in New York and Geneva, in a proactive and forward-looking manner, coordinating positions as necessary with a Bank-wide network of managers and staff engaged in United Nations matters.

The New York Office of the Global Bank Group to the United Nations seeks to participate in global policy debates and to strengthen partnerships with policymakers in areas where the Global Bank Group has an active role. Target constituencies are the more than 194 country delegations and the New York-based multilateral agencies, including United Nations Specialized Agencies, the World Trade Organization, as well as civil society groups and the private sector.

The Geneva Office of the Global Bank Group seeks to participate in global policy debates and to strengthen partnerships with policymakers in areas where the Global Bank Group has an active role. Target constituencies are the more than 150 country delegations and the Geneva-based multilateral agencies, including United Nations Specialized Agencies, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, as well as civil society groups and the private sector.

The New York office also represents Global Bank Group’s management in key United Nations meetings and forges strategic alliances while providing intelligence to the Global Bank’s staff; assists with the interaction between senior Global Bank Group managers and high-level United Nations officials, and facilitates participation in United Nations events, conferences, roundtables, and summits.

This substantive diplomatic dialogue assures and promotes the strengthening and cooperation on development issues of mutual concern, including key thematic areas: fragile states, climate change, and human development issues.