1. Permanent Representative of the Republic of Korea to the United Nations Oh Joon is to be elected as the President of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) for the 2016 cycle (July 2015 – July 2016) at an organizational session of ECOSOC to be held at the UN headquarters in New York on July 24, 2015.

o Permanent Representative Oh is the first Korean to be elected as the President of ECOSOC, one of the six principal organs of the UN.

o ECOSOC elects its new president in July for the first time since it shifted from a January-December to a July-July annual cycle.

2. ECOSOC, which handles economic, social and development issues within the UN system, has 54 member states that serve three-year terms. The Council oversees and coordinates the activities of its 28 subsidiary bodies.

o ECOSOC is responsible for facilitating the implementation of development agenda, coordinating cooperation among UN organizations in the economic and social sectors, and fostering participation of civil society, including the private sector. In particular, the Council will play a leading role in implementing the new development agenda to be adopted in September this year and establishing monitoring mechanisms.

3. With the post-2015 development goals, which will guide international development efforts for the next 15 years, scheduled to be adopted at the UN Development Summit in September this year, Permanent Representative Oh Joon will be serving as the President of ECOSOC as the first Korean to do so while mechanisms for implementing the goals are established. This is expected to strengthen the ROK’s role in the areas of poverty eradication and sustainable development. This will also be another opportunity to further elevate the ROK’s status in the UN, after its election as a non-permanent member of the Security Council for the 2013-2014 term.

4. During his presidency, Ambassador Oh Joon will focus on enhancing ECOSOC’s relevance to promptly respond to issues facing the international community; consolidating the Council’s position in implementing and assessing the post-2015 development agenda; strengthening coordination with its 28 subsidiary bodies; and increasing participation of various stakeholders, including civil society.


*unofficial translation