Functions of the Department

The Department for General Assembly and Conference Managementprovides technical secretariat support to the General Assembly, its General and First Committees, its Special Political and Decolonization (Fourth) Committee and various subsidiary organs and its Second and Third Committees, the Economic and Social Council and most of the Council’s subsidiary and ad hoc bodies, and special conferences and ad hoc meetings held under the auspices of the United Nations in the fields of disarmament, international security and economic, social and related areas. By providing advice and assistance to the chairpersons and bureaus of the bodies concerned, the technical secretariats ensure their smooth functioning on the basis of the Charter of the United Nations and the relevant rules of procedure.

DGACM also provides a full range of conference services, such as meetings support and documentation services to all the intergovernmental and expert bodies at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, the United Nations Offices at Geneva, Vienna and Nairobi, and to events at other locations for which the Department is responsible. The Department produces documentation in the six official languages of the United Nations.

Through the comprehensive reform implemented in the past five years, DGACM has largely moved from a reactive servicing approach to a proactive management approach. In this process, it has stepped up internal management through, inter alia, weekly meetings of its senior management. It has made continuous efforts to enhance internal transparency and communications through its intranet website and through regular meetings of the Staff-Management Committee. It has also made considerable progress towards integrated management of conference-servicing support at Geneva, Vienna and Nairobi, through the coordination and harmonization of the operations at the four duty stations. Finally it has taken the lead in the International Annual Meeting on Language Arrangements, Documentation and Publications (IAMLADP), comprising UN system entities and Major international and regional organizations.

Needless to say, the Department's success depends ultimately on the professionalism, dedication, teamwork and sometimes personal sacrifice of all its staff members, 1,200 in New York and over 2,000 worldwide. They have come from all corners of the world, with diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds. But as international civil servants, they all share one defining character - they are motivated by the noble purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations.

The Department for General Assembly and Conference Management consists of three Divisions and one Service. In addition, the Executive Office and the Information and Communications Technology Section (ICTS) provide support to the Department. In January 2008, the Office of Protocol and Liaison Services, previously part of the Executive Office of the Secretary-General, has been transferred to DGACM.

For a description of the functions of each main organizational unit of the Department, please click on the links below.

General Assembly and ECOSOC Affairs Division
Meetings and Publishing Division
Documentation Division
Central Planning and Coordination Service
Office of Protocol and Liaison Services
Executive Office
Information and Communications Technology Section (ICTS)