India elected to UN Economic and Social Council

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India has been elected to the Economic and Social Council, that is one of the six main organs of the United Nations, for the 2022-24 term.

About

The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is an integral part of the United Nations system to strengthen the three dimensions of sustainable development that is economic, social and environmental. It is a 54 member body.

It is the central platform for encouraging debate and innovative thinking, creating consensus on further course of action, and coordinating efforts to achieve internationally accepted goals.

It is also responsible for the follow-up to major UN conferences and summits.

India was elected in the Asia-Pacific States category along with Afghanistan, Kazakhstan and Oman in the elections held on 7th June, 2021.

From the African states, Côte d'Ivoire, Eswatini, Mauritius, Tunisia and the United Republic of Tanzania were elected while from the eastern European states, Croatia and the Czech Republic and from the Latin American and Caribbean states, Belize, Chile and Peru were elected.

In the Economic and Social Council by-election, Greece, New Zealand and Denmark were elected for a term of office from January to December 2022 and Israel was elected for a term of office beginning January 1, 2022 and until December 31, 2023.

India is currently serving the 2021-22 term as a non-permanent member of the powerful UN Security Council and will assume the Presidency of the 15-nation UN organ in August.

The 54 ECOSOC members are elected for three-year terms by the General Assembly. Seats on the Council are allotted based on geographical representation with 14 allocated to African states, 11 to Asian states, six to eastern European states, 10 to Latin American and Caribbean states and 13 to western European and other states, according to the ECOSOC website.