ASEAN

Association of South-East Asian Nations – established on 8 August 1967 in Bangkok by the five original Member Countries – Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand. Brunei Darussalam joined on 8 January 1984, Vietnam on 28 July 1995, Lao PDR and Myanmar on 23 July 1997, and Cambodia on 30 April 1999. The ASEAN region has a population of about 500 million, a total area of 4.5 million square kilometers, a combined gross domestic product of almost US$ 700 billion, and a total trade of about US$ 850 billion. The ASEAN Declaration states that the aims and purposes of the Association are: (1) to accelerate economic growth, social progress and cultural development in the region and (2) to promote regional peace and stability through abiding respect for justice and the rule of law in the relationship among countries in the region and adherence to the principles of the United Nations Charter.

BRICSAM

Acronym for Brazil, India, China, South Africa, Mexico - the major regional economic powers outside the G-8 (see also Gleneagles 5).

EU

European Union – a supranational and intergovernmental union of 27 European states; established in 1992 by the Maastricht Treaty, as the successor to the six-member European Economic Community founded in 1957. The EU is the largest economic entity and one of the largest political entities in the world, with 493 million people and a nominal GDP of US$ 13.5 trillion. The Union is a single market with a common trade policy. In 2002, it introduced a single currency, the euro, which has been adopted by 13 member states.

FAO

Food and Agriculture Organization – the UN agency which leads international efforts to defeat hunger. Serving both developed and developing countries, FAO acts as a neutral forum where all nations meet as equals to negotiate agreements and debate policy. FAO is also a source of knowledge and information. Since its founding in 1945, it has focused special attention on developing rural areas, home to 70 percent of the world’s poor and hungry people.

G-8

Group of Eight – France, USA, UK, Germany, Japan, Italy, Canada, Russia – annual meetings of the government leaders of the leading industrial countries; began in 1975 as six, and were joined by Canada the next year; joined by Russia as full member in 2006; meetings also attended by the President of the European Commission and the President of the European Council.

Gleneagles 5

Brazil, India, China, South Africa, Mexico – so-called because they were invited as a group to participate in the G-8 Summit in Gleneagles, Scotland in July 2005 (see also BRICSAM).

IMF

International Monetary Fund – international organization of 185 member countries. It was established in 1945 to promote international monetary cooperation, exchange stability, and orderly exchange arrangements; to foster economic growth and high levels of employment; and to provide temporary financial assistance to countries to help ease balance of payments adjustment.

NATO

North Atlantic Treaty Organisation – a military alliance of 26 countries from North America and Europe; established April 4, 1949 to counter the security threat from the USSR.

ODA

Official Development Assistance – flows of official financing administered with the promotion of the economic development and welfare of developing countries as the main objective, and which are concessional in character with a grant element of at least 25 percent (using a fixed 10 percent rate of discount). By convention, ODA flows comprise contributions of donor government agencies, at all levels, to developing countries (“bilateral ODA”) and to multilateral institutions. ODA receipts comprise disbursements by bilateral donors and multilateral institutions. Source: – OECD, Glossary of Statistical Terms.

OECD

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development – established in 1948, the OECD groups 30 member countries sharing a commitment to democratic government and the market economy. Best known for its publications and its statistics, its work covers economic and social issues from macroeconomics, to trade, education, development and science and innovation. It seeks to ensure the sustainable economic prosperity of its members and non-members through the advancement and dissemination of best market economic, social and democratic practices.

UN

United Nations – The name “United Nations”, coined by United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt, was first used in the “Declaration by United Nations” of 1 January 1942, during the Second World War, when representatives of 26 nations pledged their governments to continue fighting together against the Axis Powers. In 1945, representatives of 50 countries met in San Francisco at the United Nations Conference on International Organization to draw up the United Nations Charter. Those delegates deliberated on the basis of proposals worked out by the representatives of China, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom and the United States at Dumbarton Oaks, United States, in August-October 1944. The Charter was signed on 26 June 1945 by the representatives of the 50 countries. Poland, which was not represented at the Conference, signed it later and became one of the original 51 member states. The United Nations officially came into existence on 24 October 1945, when the Charter had been ratified by China, France, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, the United States and a majority of other signatories. The UN now has 192 Member States.

UNFCCC

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change – sets an overall framework for intergovernmental efforts to tackle the challenge posed by climate change. It recognizes that the climate system is a shared resource whose stability can be affected by industrial and other emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. The Convention enjoys near universal membership, with 189 countries having ratified. The Convention entered into force on 21 March 1994. An addition to the treaty, the Kyoto Protocol, which has more powerful (and legally binding) measures, was concluded in 1997 and came into force February 16, 2006.

WHO

World Health Organization – the UN specialized agency for health, established on 7 April 1948. WHO’s objective, as set out in its Constitution, is the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of health. Health is defined in WHO’s Constitution as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.

WMD

Weapons of Mass Destruction – generally considered as including three categories of weapon – chemical, biological and nuclear.

World Bank

Not a bank in the common sense, it is made up of two unique development institutions owned by 185 member countries – the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA). Each institution plays a different but supportive role in the Bank’s mission of global poverty reduction and the improvement of living standards. The IBRD focuses on middle income and creditworthy poor countries, while IDA focuses on the poorest countries in the world. Together they provide low-interest loans, interest-free credit and grants to developing countries for education, health, infrastructure, communications and many other purposes. Originally established in 1944.

WTO

World Trade Organization – established in 1995 as the successor organization to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (originally set up in 1948). WTO deals with the rules of trade between nations at a global or near-global level. It provides a forum through which governments can negotiate trade agreements and a place where they can settle trade disputes. It operates a system of trade rules and encourages the liberalization of international trade.