WhatConvention.org

Constitution of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, UNESCO,1945

Signed by 0 countries, ratified by 194 countries

   Introduction

The Governments of the States parties to this Constitution on behalf of their peoples declare

that since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defences of peace must be constructed;

that ignorance of each other's ways and lives has been a common cause, throughout the history of mankind, of that suspicion and mistrust between the peoples of the world through which their differences have all too often broken into war;

that the great and terrible war which has now ended was a war made possible by the denial of the democratic principles of the dignity, equality and mutual respect of men, and by the propagation, in their place, through ignorance and prejudice, of the doctrine of the inequality of men and races;

that the wide diffusion of culture, and the education of humanity for justice and liberty and peace are indispensable to the dignity of man and constitute a sacred duty which all the nations must fulfill in a spirit of mutual assistance and concern;

that a peace based exclusively upon the political and economic arrangements of governments would not be a peace which could secure the unanimous, lasting and sincere support of the peoples of the world, and that the peace must therefore be founded, if it is not to fail, upon the intellectual and moral solidarity of mankind.

For these reasons, the States parties to this Constitution, believing in full and equal opportunities for education for all, in the unrestricted pursuit of objective truth, and in the free exchange of ideas and knowledge, are agreed and determined to develop and to increase the means of communication between their peoples and to employ these means for the purposes of mutual understanding and a truer and more perfect knowledge of each other's lives;

In consequence whereof they do hereby create the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation for the purpose of advancing, through the educational and scientific and cultural relations of the peoples of the world, the objectives of international peace and of the common welfare of mankind for which the United Nations Organisation was established and which its Charter proclaims.

   Article : 1 : PURPOSES AND FUNCTIONS

The Governments of the States Parties to this Constitution on behalf of their peoples declare:

That since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defences of peace must be constructed;

That ignorance of each other's ways and lives has been a common cause, throughout the history of mankind, of that suspicion and mistrust between the peoples of the world through which their differences have all too often broken into war;

That the great and terrible war which has now ended was a war made possible by the denial of the democratic principles of the dignity, equality and mutual respect of
men, and by the propagation, in their place, through ignorance and prejudice,of the doctrine of the inequality of men and races;

That the wide diffusion of culture, and the education of humanity for justice and liberty and peace are indispensable to the dignity of man and constitute a sacred duty which all the nations must fulfil in a spirit of mutual assistance and concern;

That a peace based exclusively upon the political and economic arrangements of governments would not be a peace which could secure the unanimous, lasting and sincere
support of the peoples of the world, and that the peace must therefore be founded, if it is not to fail,upon the intellectual and moral solidarity of mankind.

For these reasons, the States Parties to this Constitution, believing in full and equal opportunities for education for all, in the unrestricted pursuit of objective truth, and in the free exchange of ideas and knowledge, are agreed and determined to develop and to increase the means of communication
between their peoples and to employ these means for thepurposes of mutual understanding and a truer and more perfect knowledge
of each other's lives;

In consequence whereof they do hereby create the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization for the purpose of advancing, through the educational and scientific and cultural relations of the peoples of the world, the objectives of international peace and of the common welfare of mankind for which the United Nations Organization was established andwhich its Charter proclaims.

   Article : 2 : Membership

1. Membership of the United Nations Organization shall carry with it the right to membership of the United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization.
2. Subject to the conditions of the Agreement between this Organization
and the United Nations Organization, approved pursuant to Article X of this Constitution, states not members of the United
Nations Organization may be admitted to membership of the
Organization, upon recommendation of the Executive Board, by a
two-thirds majority vote of the General Conference.
3. Territories or groups of territories which are not responsible for the conduct of their international relations may be admitted as Associate Members by the General Conference by a two-thirds
majority of Members present and voting, upon application made on behalf of such territory or group of territories by the Member
or other authority having responsibility for their international relations.The nature and extent of the rights and obligations of Associate Members shall be determined by the General Conference.
4. Members of the Organization which are suspended from the exercise
of the rights and privileges of membership of the United
Nations Organization shall, upon the request of the latter, be suspended
from the rights and privileges of this Organization.
5. Members of the Organization which are expelled from the United Nations Organization shall automatically cease to be Members of this Organization.
6. Any Member State or Associate Member of the Organization may withdraw from the Organization by notice addressed to the
Director-General. Such notice shall take effect on 31 December of the year following that during which the notice was given. No such withdrawal shall affect the financial obligations owed to theOrganization on the date the withdrawal takes effect. Notice of
withdrawal by an Associate Member shall be given on its behalf
by the Member State or other authority having responsibility for
its international relations.
7. Each Member State is entitled to appoint a Permanent Delegate
to the Organization.
8. The Permanent Delegate of the Member State shall present his credentials to the Director-General of the Organization, and shall
officially assume his duties from the day of presentation of his credentials.

   Article : 3 : Organs

The Organization shall include a General Conference, an Executive Board
and a Secretariat.

   Article : 4 : The General Conference

A. Composition
1. The General Conference shall consist of the representatives of the
States Members of the Organization. The Government of each Member State shall appoint not more than five delegates, who shall be selected after consultation with the National Commission, if established, or with educational, scientific and cultural bodies.
B. Functions
2. The General Conference shall determine the policies and the main
lines of work of the Organization. It shall take decisions on programmes
submitted to it by the Executive Board.
3. The General Conference shall, when it deems desirable and in accordance with the regulations to be made by it, summon international conferences of states on education, the sciences and
humanities or the dissemination of knowledge; non-governmental
conferences on the same subjects may be summoned by the General Conference or by the Executive Board in accordance with
such regulations.
4. The General Conference shall, in adopting proposals for submission
to the Member States, distinguish between recommendations and international conventions submitted for their approval. In the former case a majority vote shall suffice; in the latter case a two-thirds majority shall be required. Each of the Member States shall submit recommendations or conventions to its competent authorities within a period of one year from the close of the session
of the General Conference at which they were adopted.
5. Subject to the provisions of Article V, paragraph 6 (c), the General Conference shall advise the United Nations Organization on the
educational, scientific and cultural aspects of matters of concern to the latter, in accordance with the terms and procedure agreed upon
between the appropriate authorities of the two Organizations.
6. The General Conference shall receive and consider the reports sent to the Organization by Member States on the action taken upon
the recommendations and conventions referred to in paragraph 4 above or, if it so decides, analytical summaries of these reports.
7. The General Conference shall elect the members of the Executive Board and, on the recommendation of the Board, shall appoint the
Director-General.
C. Voting
8. (a) Each Member State shall have one vote in the General
Conference. Decisions shall be made by a simple majority
except in cases in which a two-thirds majority is required by
the provisions of this Constitution, or the Rules of Procedure
of the General Conference.A majority shall be a majority
of the Members present and voting.
(b) A Member State shall have no vote in the General Conference if the total amount of contributions due from it exceeds the total amount of contributions payable by it for the current year and the immediately preceding calendar year.
(c) The General Conference may nevertheless permit such a
Member State to vote, if it is satisfied that failure to pay is due to conditions beyond the control of the Member State.
D. Procedure
9. (a) The General Conference shall meet in ordinary session every two years. It may meet in extraordinary session if it decides to do so itself or if summoned by the Executive Board, or on the demand of at least one third of the Member States.
(b) At each session the location of its next ordinary session shall be designated by the General Conference. The location of an extraordinary session shall be decided by the General Conference
if the session is summoned by it, or otherwise by the
Executive Board.
10. The General Conference shall adopt its own rules of procedure. It shall at each session elect a President and other officers.
11. The General Conference shall set up special and technical committees
and such other subsidiary organs as may be necessary for
its purposes.
12. The General Conference shall cause arrangements to be made for public access to meetings, subject to such regulations as it shall
prescribe.
E. Observers
13. The General Conference, on the recommendation of the Executive Board and by a two-thirds majority may, subject to its rules of procedure, invite as observers at specified sessions of the Conference or of its commissions representatives of international organizations,
such as those referred to in Article XI, paragraph 4.14. When consultative arrangements have been approved by the Executive Board for such international non-governmental or semigovernmental
organizations in the manner provided in Article XI,
paragraph 4, those organizations shall be invited to send observers to sessions of the General Conference and its commissions.

   Article : 5 : Executive Board

A. Composition
1. (a) The Executive Board shall be elected by the General Conference
and it shall consist of fifty-eight Member States. The
President of the General Conference shall sit ex officio in an advisory capacity on the Executive Board.
(b) Elected States Members of the Executive Board are hereinafter referred to as “Members” of the Executive Board.
2. (a) Each Member of the Executive Board shall appoint one representative. It may also appoint alternates.
(b) In selecting its representative on the Executive Board, the
Member of the Executive Board shall endeavour to appoint a
person qualified in one or more of the fields of competence of UNESCO and with the necessary experience and capacity to fulfil the administrative and executive duties of the Board.
Bearing in mind the importance of continuity, each representative shall be appointed for the duration of the term of the Member of the Executive Board, unless exceptional circumstances
warrant his replacement. The alternates appointed by
each Member of the Executive Board shall act in the absence
of its representative in all his functions.
3. In electing Members to the Executive Board, the General
Conference shall have regard to the diversity of cultures and a balanced geographical distribution.
4. (a) Members of the Executive Board shall serve from the close of the session of the General Conference which elected them
until the close of the second ordinary session of the General Conference following their election. The General Conference shall, at each of its ordinary sessions, elect the number of Members of the Executive Board required to fill vacancies occurring at the end of the session.
(b) Members of the Executive Board are eligible for re-election.Re-elected Members of the Executive Board shall endeavour to change their representatives on the Board.
5. In the event of the withdrawal from the Organization of a Member
of the Executive Board, its term of office shall be terminated on the date when the withdrawal becomes effective.
B. Functions
6. (a) The Executive Board shall prepare the agenda for the General Conference. It shall examine the programme of work for the Organization and corresponding budget estimates submitted to it by the Director-General in accordance with paragraph 3 of Article VI and shall submit them with such recommendations
as it considers desirable to the General Conference.
(b) The Executive Board, acting under the authority of the General Conference, shall be responsible for the execution of the
programme adopted by the Conference. In accordance with
the decisions of the General Conference and having regard to circumstances arising between two ordinary sessions, the Executive Board shall take all necessary measures to ensure the effective and rational execution of the programme by theDirector-General.
(c) Between ordinary sessions of the General Conference, the
Board may discharge the functions of adviser to the United Nations, set forth in Article IV, paragraph 5, whenever the problem upon which advice is sought has already been dealt
with in principle by the Conference, or when the solution is implicit in decisions of the Conference.1
7. The Executive Board shall recommend to the GeneralConference the admission of new Members to the Organization.
8. Subject to decisions of the General Conference, the Executive Board shall adopt its own rules of procedure. It shall elect its officers from among its Members.
9. The Executive Board shall meet in regular session at least four times during a biennium and may meet in special session if convoked
by the Chairman on his initiative or upon the request of six Members of the Executive Board.
10. The Chairman of the Executive Board shall present, on behalf of the Board, to the General Conference at each ordinary session,with or without comments, the reports on the activities of the Organization which the Director-General is required to prepare in accordance with the provisions of Article VI.3 (b).
11. The Executive Board shall make all necessary arrangements to consult the representatives of international organizations or
qualified persons concerned with questions within its competence.
12. Between sessions of the General Conference, the Executive Board may request advisory opinions from the International Court of
Justice on legal questions arising within the field of the Organization's
activities.
13. The Executive Board shall also exercise the powers delegated to it by the General Conference on behalf of the Conference as a whole.

   Article : 6 : Secretariat

1. The Secretariat shall consist of a Director-General and such staff as may be required.
2. The Director-General shall be nominated by the Executive Board and appointed by the General Conference for a period of four years, under such conditions as the Conference may approve. The
Director-General may be appointed for a further term of four years but shall not be eligible for reappointment for a subsequent term.
The Director-General shall be the chief administrative officer of the Organization.
3. (a) The Director-General, or a deputy designated by him, shall participate, without the right to vote, in all meetings of the General Conference, of the Executive Board, and of the Committees of the Organization. He shall formulate proposals for
appropriate action by the Conference and the Board, and shall prepare for submission to the Board a draft programme of work for the Organization with corresponding budget estimates.
6(b) The Director-General shall prepare and communicate to Member States and to the Executive Board periodical
reports on the activities of the Organization. The General
Conference shall determine the periods to be covered by
these reports.
4. The Director-General shall appoint the staff of the Secretariat in accordance with staff regulations to be approved by the General
Conference. Subject to the paramount consideration of securing the highest standards of integrity, efficiency and technical competence,
appointment to the staff shall be on as wide a geographical
basis as possible.
5. The responsibilities of the Director-General and of the staff shall
be exclusively international in character. In the discharge of their
duties they shall not seek or receive instructions from any government
or from any authority external to the Organization. They
shall refrain from any action which might prejudice their positions
as international officials. Each State Member of the Organization
undertakes to respect the international character of the responsibilities
of the Director-General and the staff, and not to seek to
influence them in the discharge of their duties.6. Nothing in this Article shall preclude the Organization from
entering into special arrangements within the United Nations
Organization for common services and staff and for the interchange
of personnel.

   Article : 7 : National cooperating bodies

1. Each Member State shall make such arrangements as suit its particular conditions for the purpose of associating its principal bodies interested in educational, scientific and cultural matters with the work
of the Organization,preferably by the formation of a National Commission broadly representative of the government and such bodies.
2. National Commissions or National Cooperating Bodies, where they exist, shall act in an advisory capacity to their respective delegations to the General Conference, to the representatives and
alternates of their countries on the Executive Board and to their Governments in matters relating to the Organization and shall function as agencies of liaison in all matters of interest to it.23. The Organization may, on the request of a Member State, delegate,either temporarily or permanently, a member of its Secretariat to serve on the National Commission of that state, in order to assist in the development of its work.

   Article : 8 : Reports by Member States

Each Member State shall submit to the Organization, at such times and in such manner as shall be determined by the General Conference,reports on the laws, regulations and statistics relating to its educational,scientific and cultural institutions and activities, and on the action taken upon the recommendations and conventions referred to in Article IV,
paragraph 4.

   Article : 9 : Budget

1. The budget shall be administered by the Organization.
2. The General Conference shall approve and give final effect to
the budget and to the apportionment of financial responsibility
among the States Members of the Organization subject to such
arrangement with the United Nations as may be provided in the
agreement to be entered into pursuant to Article X.
3. The Director-General may accept voluntary contributions, gifts,
bequests and subventions directly from governments, public and
private institutions, associations and private persons, subject to
the conditions specified in the Financial Regulations.2

   Article : 10 : Relations with the United Nations Organization

This Organization shall be brought into relation with the United Nations Organization, as soon as practicable, as one of the specialized agencies
referred to in Article 57 of the Charter of the United Nations. This relationship shall be effected through an agreement with the United
Nations Organization under Article 63 of the Charter, which agreement shall be subject to the approval of the General Conference of this
Organization. The agreement shall provide for effective cooperation between the two Organizations in the pursuit of their common purposes,and at the same time shall recognize the autonomy of this Organization, within the fields of its competence as defined in this Constitution.
Such agreement may, among other matters, provide for the approval and financing of the budget of the Organization by the General Assembly of the United Nations.

   Article : 11 : Relations with other specialized international organizations and agencies

1. This Organization may cooperate with other specialized intergovernmental
organizations and agencies whose interests and
activities are related to its purposes. To this end the Director-General, acting under the general authority of the Executive Board, may establish effective working relationships with such
organizations and agencies and establish such joint committees as may be necessary to assure effective cooperation. Any formal
arrangements entered into with such organizations or agencies
shall be subject to the approval of the Executive Board.
2. Whenever the General Conference of this Organization and the
competent authorities of any other specialized intergovernmental
organizations or agencies whose purpose and functions lie withinthe competence of this Organization deem it desirable to effect a transfer of their resources and activities to this Organization,
the Director-General, subject to the approval of the Conference,may enter into mutually acceptable arrangements for this
purpose.
3. This Organization may make appropriate arrangements with other intergovernmental organizations for reciprocal representation at meetings.
4. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
may make suitable arrangements for consultation and
cooperation with non-governmental international organizations concerned with matters within its competence, and may invite them to undertake specific tasks. Such cooperation may also include appropriate participation by representatives of such
organizations on advisory committees set up by the General Conference.

   Article : 12 : Legal status of the Organization

The provisions of Articles 104 and 105 of the Charter of the United Nations
Organization concerning the legal status of that Organization, its privileges
and immunities, shall apply in the same way to this Organization.

   Article : 13 : Amendments

1. Proposals for amendments to this Constitution shall become effective upon receiving the approval of the General Conference by a two-thirds majority; provided, however, that those amendments which involve fundamental alterations in the aims of the Organization or new obligations for the Member States shall require subsequent acceptance on the part of two thirds of the Member States before they come into force. The draft texts of proposed amendments shall be communicated by the Director-General to the Member
States at least six months in advance of their consideration by the General Conference.
2. The General Conference shall have power to adopt by a two-thirds majority rules of procedure for carrying out the provisions of this
Article.

   Article : 14 : Interpretation

1. The English and French texts of this Constitution shall be regarded
as equally authoritative. Any question or dispute concerning the interpretation of this
Constitution shall be referred for determination to the International
Court of Justice or to an arbitral tribunal, as the General Conference
may determine under its Rules of Procedure.

   Article : 15 : Entry into force

1. This Constitution shall be subject to acceptance. The instrument of acceptance shall be deposited with the Government of the
United Kingdom.
2. This Constitution shall remain open for signature in the archives of the Government of the United Kingdom. Signature may take
place either before or after the deposit of the instrument of acceptance.
No acceptance shall be valid unless preceded or followed
by signature. However, a state that has withdrawn from the
Organization shall simply deposit a new instrument of acceptance
in order to resume membership.
3. This Constitution shall come into force when it has been accepted
by twenty of its signatories. Subsequent acceptances shall take effect immediately.
4. The Government of the United Kingdom will inform all Members of the United Nations and the Director- General of the receipt of all instruments of acceptance and of the date on which the Constitution comes into force in accordance with the preceding
paragraph.