United Nations Information Centres
United Nations Information Centres (UNIC) is an organization which was established in 1946. Its headquarters is situated at New York, USA, and it currently works worldwide in 63 countries. These centres are managed by the United Nations to exchange & provide current happenings to the world. They are directed by the United Nations' Department of Global Communications of the UN Secretariat to communicate problems related to the Organization. All development projects are reviewed and approved by DGC. These projects are thematic promotional campaigns of the issues related to UN and publicized through the regional information centres.[2]
Abbreviation | UNIC |
---|---|
Formation | 1946 |
Purpose | Information centre |
Headquarters | New York |
Head | António Guterres[1] (2017–present) |
Website | unic |
History
In 1946, United Nations Information Centres has been established by the United Nations Department of Global Communications. DGC is the organization which works for the people of the United Nations. The motive behind UNICs is to collaborate & exchange information through its centers to the people of the world. The first two United Nations Information Centers were created in 1946. Currently, they have been servicing in 63 countries. These centers are the main hub for exchanging information about the system of the United Nations for all countries where UNICs are presented.[3][4]
Scope
United Nations Information Centres have been established in the regions of Europe, Americas, UAE, Asia & Pacific, and Africa. These centres are organized to reduce the communication gaps by providing information of United Nations to the people of the world. To make it more communicable all information have been translated and presented respectively in their regional languages. These centres are otherwise called United Nations Regional Information Centres and responsible for connecting United Nations with the people of developing countries. They reach out media, institutions with coordinating the UN system and get allianced with Government, Non-government, and private sector organizations in their projects. UNICs also maintain physical & digital resources of information like libraries and electronic information medium.[5]
Activities
UNICs are engaged in multiple cores of activities for sharing the latest information about UN system.[6]
- Communication - UNICs follow communication strategies through the current affairs, traditional festivals, and events. They get information translated into regional languages of the countries they serve.
- Media Outreach - United Nations get connected with national & regional media houses to circulate information. These centres use press conference, print media, electronic and digital medium to collaborate information.
- Information Resource Development - These centres create & maintain resources like libraries, and websites through regional information centres. UNICs activities cover training sessions for journalist to keep them update with its development projects. They regularly conduct television and radio for broadcasting stories of UN in regional languages.
- Events Organization - These centres organize many events on international & national celebration days. Besides, they manage to arrange seminars, sports & other competitions in educational institutions.
List of centres
The following are all of the current information centres, as well as all the areas they serve:[7]
African States
Centre | Established | Areas serviced | Director |
---|---|---|---|
UNIC Accra | 1958 | Ghana Sierra Leone | Sylvia Lopez-Ekra |
UNIC Antananarivo | 1963 | Madagascar | Violet Kakyomya |
UNO Asmara | 1993 | Eritrea | Susan Ngongi |
UNIC Brazzaville | 1983 | Congo | Anthony Ohemeng-Boamah |
UNIC Bujumbura | 1961 | Burundi | Garry Conille |
UNIC Dakar | 1964 | Senegal Cape Verde Ivory Coast Gambia Guinea Guinea-Bissau Mauritania | Damian Cardona Onses |
UNIC Dar es Salaam | 1961 | United Republic of Tanzania | Alvaro Rodriguez |
UNIC Harare | 1982 | Zimbabwe | Bishow Parajuli |
UNIC Lagos | 1967 | Nigeria | Ronald Kayanja |
UNIC Lome | 1962 | Togo Benin | Damien Mama |
UNIC Lusaka | 1975 | Zambia | Janet Rogan |
UNIC Nairobi | 1974 | Kenya Uganda Seychelles | Nasser Ega-Musa |
UNIC Ouagadougou | 1982 | Burkina Faso Chad Mali Niger | Metsi Makhetha |
UNIC Pretoria | 1995 | South Africa | Masimba Tafirenyika |
UNIC Windhoek | 1992 | Namibia | Rachel Odede |
UNIC Yaounde | 1965 | Cameroon Central African Republic Gabon | Allegra Maria Del Pilar Baiocchi |
American States
Centre | Established | Areas serviced | Director |
---|---|---|---|
UNIC Asuncion | 1962 | Paraguay | Jorge Meza |
UNIC Bogota | 1954 | Colombia Ecuador Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of | Helene Papper |
UNIC Buenos Aires | 1948 | Argentina Uruguay | Tamar Hahn |
UNIC La Paz | 1963 | Bolivia (Plurinational State of) | Mauricio Ramirez-Villegas |
UNIC Lima | 1960 | Peru | Maria del Carmen Sacasa |
UNIC Mexico City | 1947 | Mexico Cuba Dominican Republic | Giancarlo Summa |
UNIC Panama City | 1984 | Panama | Harold Robinson |
UNIC Port of Spain | 1962 | Countries: Antigua and Barbuda Bahamas Barbados Belize Dominica Grenada Guyana Jamaica Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Suriname Trinidad and Tobago Other areas: Aruba Bonaire Curaçao Saba Sint Eustatius Sint Maarten | Juan Miguel Diez |
UNIC Rio de Janeiro | 1947 | Brazil | Maurizio Giuliano |
UNIC Washington | 1946 | United States of America | Robert Skinner[8] |
Arab States
Centre | Established | Areas serviced | Director |
---|---|---|---|
UNIC Algiers | 1963 | Algeria | Eric Overvest |
UNIC Beirut | 1962 | Lebanon Jordan Kuwait Syrian Arab Republic | Marguerite El Helou |
UNIC Cairo | 1949 | Egypt Saudi Arabia | Radhia Achouri |
UNIC Khartoum | 1963 | Sudan Somalia | Gwi-Yeop Son |
UNIC Manama | 1977 | Bahrain Qatar United Arab Emirates | Samir Al-Darabi |
UNIC Rabat | 1962 | Morocco | Fethi Debbabi (Acting Director) |
UNIC Sana'a | 1994 | Yemen | Lise Grande |
UNIC Tunis | 1960 | Tunisia | Diego Zorrilla |
Asia and Pacific States
Centre | Established | Areas serviced | Director |
---|---|---|---|
UNIC Canberra | 1948 | Australia Fiji Kiribati Nauru New Zealand Samoa Tonga Tuvalu Vanuatu | Christopher Woodthorpe |
UNIC Colombo | 1961 | Sri Lanka | Hanaa Singer |
UNIC Dhaka | 1981 | Bangladesh | Mia Seppo |
UNIC Islamabad | 1951 | Pakistan | Vlastimil Samek (Acting Director) |
UNIC Jakarta | 1985 | Indonesia | Francyne Harrigan (Acting Director) |
UNIC Kathmandu | 1964 | Nepal | Sara Beysolow Nyanti |
UNIC Manila | 1953 | Philippines Papua New Guinea Solomon Islands | Ola Almgren |
UNIC New Delhi | 1947 | India Bhutan | Rajiv Chandran (National Information Officer) |
UNIC Tehran | 1950 | Iran (Islamic Republic of) | Maria Dotsenko |
UNIC Tokyo | 1958 | Japan | Kaoru Nemoto |
UNIC Yangon | 1959 | Myanmar | Knut Ostby |
Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States
Centre | Established | Areas serviced | Director |
---|---|---|---|
UNO Almaty | 1993 | Kazakhstan | Abdurahim Muhidov (Officer-in-Charge) |
UNIC Ankara | 1975 | Turkey | Irena Vojačkova-Sollorano |
UNO Baku | 1992 | Azerbaijan | Ghulam Isaczai |
UNRIC Brussels | 2004 | Countries: Andorra Belgium Cyprus Denmark Finland France Germany Greece Holy See Iceland Ireland Italy Luxembourg Malta Monaco Netherlands Norway Portugal San Marino Spain Sweden United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Other areas served: European Union | Deborah Seward |
UNIS Geneva | 1947 | Switzerland | Alessandra Vellucci |
UNO Kyiv | 1992 | Ukraine | Osnat Lubrani |
UNO Minsk | 1992 | Belarus | Joanna Kazana |
UNIC Moscow | 1948 | Russian Federation | Vladimir Kuznetsov |
UNIC Prague | 1947 | Czech Republic | Michal Broza (Officer-in-Charge) |
UNO Tashkent | 1992 | Uzbekistan | Helena Fraser |
UNO Tbilisi | 1992 | Georgia | Vinton Louisa |
UNIS Vienna | 1984 | Austria Hungary Slovakia Slovenia | Martin Nesirky |
UNIC Warsaw | 1995 | Poland | Mariola Ratschka (Officer-in-Charge) |
UNO Yerevan | 1992 | Armenia | Shombi Sharp |
References
- "Secretary General Biography". United Nations. 22 December 2016.
- "Who We Are". United Nations Information Centres.
- "UN Information Centre". United Nations Foundation. Archived from the original on 1 March 2018.
- UN Information Centers & Services. United Nations. 1998. p. 1461. ISBN 978-9-211008401.
- "Partnerships". United Nations Information Centres.
- Yearbook of the United Nations. United Nations. 2003. pp. 635–636. ISBN 978-9-211009057.
- "UNIC Directory". United Nations Information Centres. Department of Global Communications, United Nations. Retrieved 19 March 2019.
- "Robert Skinner, Director, The United Nations Information Center". UN Association of the National Capital Area. Archived from the original on 15 August 2020. Retrieved 3 October 2020.