India elected to UN Economic and Social Council

The United Nations General Assembly on October 22 elected India as among the 18 countries to serve on the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) for a three-year term starting from January next year.

Apart from India, Japan, Germany and France, eleven new members are also chosen for the 54-member council, one of the principal organisations of UN to coordinate all economic, social, and related work of other UN specialised agencies, functional commissions and five regional commissions.

Every year eighteen of the 54 members retire from the Council and new members join in to discuss international economic, social and environmental issues, and to formulate policy recommendation to the member countries.

The 18 outgoing members were Angola, Austria, Benin, Cuba, Czech Republic, France, Greece, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Japan, Lichtenstein, Madagascar, Mauritania, Paraguay, Portugal, Saudi Arabia and Sri Lanka.

The other elected members were viz. Guatemala, Peru, Saint Kitts, Nevis, Venezuela, Greece, Liechtenstein, Portugal, Estonia, Guinea-Bissau, Côte d’Ivoire, Mauritius, Morocco, Namibia [France, Greece, Liechtenstein and Portugal were re-elected].

As part of the Asian contingent, Japan and Saudi Arabia were re-elected while India succeeded Sri Lanka. Norway was chosen for a one-year term starting from January, 2009, in request of Iceland who is relinquishing its seat for the remainder of the term – not due to end until 31 December 2010 – to Norway.

Among the current 54 members, 18 nations whose terms end with the beginning of 2010 are: Bolivia, El Salvador, Somalia, Indonesia, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Romania, Barbados, Cape Verde, Algeria, Malawi, Canada, Luxembourg, Philippines, Belarus, Netherlands, United States and Sudan.