The Minister for Foreign Affairs and Chairman of the Delegation of Egypt, Abdel Hamid Pasha Badawi, signing the Charter with the Egyptian delegation in the background. A facsimile copy of the Charter is superimposed on the photo.
United Nations Organization

The UN Charter turns 80

On 26 June 1945, the UN Charter was signed by 50 nations, establishing an organization dedicated to fostering peace, security, and human rights. Emphasizing the dignity of all individuals, the Charter aimed to prevent war, promote social progress, and uphold international law. Since then, the UN has grown to 193 Member States, playing an essential role in the world. The 80th anniversary of the Charter serves as a reminder of its significance and the commitment of nations to work together for the common good. To mark the occasion, the General Assembly is holding a commemorative plenary meeting.

The mission and work of the Organization have been guided by the principles contained in its founding Charter, which has been amended in 1963, 1965, and 1973.
Photo:UN
The aftermath of a strike in Dnipro, Ukraine, in April 2025.

UN rights mission condemns civilian toll in deadly missile strikes on Ukraine

25 June 2025 — Dozens of civilians – including children and school staff – were killed or wounded in Russian missile attacks on Ukrainian cities this week, in what UN human rights monitors...

A young boy stands amid the ruins of a classroom in Douma destroyed during the Syrian civil war.

Responsibility to Protect: An unfulfilled promise, a ray of hope

25 June 2025 — The UN Secretary-General has warned that the world today is failing to protect civilians from mass atrocity crimes, calling for a renewed global commitment to the Responsibility to...

Around the world, more than 666 million people still live without basic access to electricity.

Energy access has improved, but more funding is needed to address disparities: WHO

25 June 2025 — Although nearly 92 per cent of the global population now has basic access to electricity, more than 666 million people still live without it, prompting the World Health Organization...

UN Sustainable Development Goals

17 Goals to transform our world

The Sustainable Development Goals are a call for action by all countries — poor, rich and middle-income — to promote prosperity while protecting the planet.

hands holding megaphone and speech bubble

ActNow Campaign

ActNow is the UN campaign to inspire people to act for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In the lead up to the Summit of the Future, join the 1 Million Actions for our Common Future challenge to contribute to a more sustainable and peaceful world. Find new inspiring actions on the app and at un.org/actnow.

Thomas the Tank engine

Student Resources on the SDGs

Learn more about the Sustainable Development Goals! On our student resources page you will find plenty of materials for young people and adults alike. Share with your family and friends to help achieve a better world for all.

Save the date image for 2025 UN Ocean conference.

SDG Media Zone

Be part of the global conversation on ocean action and sustainable development at the UN Ocean Conference. From ocean science and biodiversity to pollution, maritime transport, and sustainable fishing, this pivotal event will spotlight the urgent solutions needed to achieve the SDGs. Don’t miss the SDG Media Zone, where global changemakers bring key issues to life through powerful interviews and thought-provoking discussions. Full programme

icon with fish swimming below waves

Goal of the month

 

Goal 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources

Healthy oceans and seas are essential to human existence and life on Earth.

More about the UN Sustainable Development Goals

More from the
United Nations

Featured stories from across the United Nations and our world-wide family of agencies, funds, and programmes.

Women sell mango and sweet potato jam at the food processing shop in Bantantinnting, Senegal. Trade and Commerce

Enabling Micro-, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises to drive growth and innovation

This year, Micro-, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Day (27 June) comes at a time of shifts in global trade and just ahead of two major development conferences in Spain and Qatar. These enterprises are crucial for job creation and local development, especially for women and vulnerable groups. They face challenges such as limited financing and tough operating conditions. Climate change and supply chain disruptions worsen their struggles. Addressing the funding gap, supportive policies, skills training, and easier registration are vital for their success.

Aerial view of the Amazon Rainforest, South America Natural Resources and the Environment

The future belongs to the tropics

The tropics host extraordinary biological and cultural diversity but also face deep-rooted challenges. Most people suffering from extreme poverty live in the tropics, and the exploitation of resources by colonial powers throughout history has shaped economies with serious disadvantages. Despite that, there is a promising future with a growing, more educated, and young population that can maintain its economic growth. On this International Day of the Tropics (29 June) let's celebrate their remarkable diversity, while highlighting not just the obstacles, but also the opportunities.

Democracy and Governance, Women and Gender Equality

Advancing women’s leadership and peace

Women remain underrepresented in legislatures worldwide, limiting their influence on policymaking. UN Women and the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) work to advance women’s political participation through leadership training, inclusive laws, and collaboration. The IPU’s Forum of Women Parliamentarians empowers female MPs, promotes male allyship, and backs the 2025 theme: “Achieving gender equality, action by action.” Founded in 1889, the IPU promotes conflict resolution through dialogue and supports democratic institution-building in post-conflict nations. 

An illustration of a woman and child talking.
Children, Peace and Security, UNICEF

Supporting children through conflict news

When conflict dominates the news, children often feel scared or anxious and look to their parents for reassurance and a sense of safety.

A community around an agricultural land being shown a cabbage head.
Social Development, UNOPS

Resilience through dignity

From Bangladesh to Colombia and Uganda, the Lives in Dignity Grant Facility empowers displaced and host communities through local, long-term solutions that restore dignity, strengthen resilience, and foster inclusion and peace.

A woman carrying a child among other people in a health center.
SDG 2: Zero Hunger, WFP

Somalia’s journey of hunger

Drought, conflict, and floods have displaced millions in Somalia, forcing families like Farhia Ali’s to leave farms for uncertain lives in overcrowded, under-resourced urban camps, where funding cuts deepen hunger and hardship.

An illustration of a young superhero girl carrying people on her back.
Science and Technology, UNDP

Harnessing AI to combat hate

UNDP uses AI and inclusive digital initiatives to empower women, Indigenous peoples, and refugees, transforming online spaces into safer, more inclusive platforms that counter hate speech and amplify marginalized voices.

What we do

Due to the powers vested in its Charter and its unique international character, the United Nations can take action on the issues confronting humanity in the 21st century, including:

A UNIFIL peacekeeper from Spain on a regular patrol in the vicinity of Al Wazzani, south-eastern Lebanon as the sun sets in the horizon. Since 1948, more than a million women and men have served as UN peacekeepers.

Maintain International Peace and Security

The United Nations came into being in 1945, following the devastation of the Second World War, with one central mission: the maintenance of international peace and security. The UN does this by working to prevent conflict; helping parties in conflict make peace; peacekeeping; and creating the conditions to allow peace to hold and flourish. These activities often overlap and should reinforce one another, to be effective. The UN Security Council has the primary responsibility for international peace and security. The General Assembly and the Secretary-General play major, important, and complementary roles, along with other UN offices and bodies.

Students at Butkhak High School in Kabul, Afghanistan, cheer in unison on the last day of Global Action Week, an international campaign advocating free, quality education for all.

Protect Human Rights

The term “human rights” was mentioned seven times in the UN's founding Charter, making the promotion and protection of human rights a key purpose and guiding principle of the Organization.  In 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights brought human rights into the realm of international law.  Since then, the Organization has diligently protected human rights through legal instruments and on-the-ground activities.

A child has a meal at a food distribution centre in the Rwanda camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs), near Tawila, North Darfur. More than 8,000 women and children living in the camp benefit from nutrition programmes run by the World Food Programme

Deliver Humanitarian Aid

One of the purposes of the United Nations, as stated in its Charter, is "to achieve international co-operation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character."  The UN first did this in the aftermath of the Second World War on the devastated continent of Europe, which it helped to rebuild.  The Organization is now relied upon by the international community to coordinate humanitarian relief operations due to natural and man-made disasters in areas beyond the relief capacity of national authorities alone.

Grace, a farmer from Kipilat village, and a leading member of the forest community in Ainabkoi, Kenya, planting a tree in 2012.

Promote Sustainable Development

From the start in 1945, one of the main priorities of the United Nations was to “achieve international co-operation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character and in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion.”  Improving people’s well-being continues to be one of the main focuses of the UN. The global understanding of development has changed over the years, and countries now have agreed that sustainable development offers the best path forward for improving the lives of people everywhere.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) delivers its order on the request for the indication of provisional measures filed by Nicaragua on 11 October 2013 in the case concerning Construction of a Road in Costa Rica along the San Juan River.

Uphold International Law

The UN Charter, in its Preamble, set an objective: "to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained."  Ever since, the development of, and respect for international law has been a key part of the work of the Organization.  This work is carried out in many ways - by courts, tribunals, multilateral treaties - and by the Security Council, which can approve peacekeeping missions, impose sanctions, or authorize the use of force when there is a threat to international peace and security, if it deems this necessary.  These powers are given to it by the UN Charter, which is considered an international treaty.  As such, it is an instrument of international law, and UN Member States are bound by it.  The UN Charter codifies the major principles of international relations, from sovereign equality of States to the prohibition of the use of force in international relations.

Structure of the
United Nations

The main parts of the UN structure are the General Assembly, the
Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship Council, the International Court of Justice, and the UN Secretariat. All were established in 1945 when the UN was founded.

General Assembly

The General Assembly is the main deliberative, policymaking and representative organ of the UN. All 193 Member States of the UN are represented in the General Assembly, making it the only UN body with universal representation.

Security Council

The Security Council has primary responsibility, under the UN Charter, for the maintenance of international peace and security. It has 15 Members (5 permanent and 10 non-permanent members). Each Member has one vote. Under the Charter, all Member States are obligated to comply with Council decisions.

Economic and Social Council

The Economic and Social Council is the principal body for coordination, policy review, policy dialogue and recommendations on economic, social and environmental issues, as well as implementation of internationally agreed development goals.

Trusteeship Council

The Trusteeship Council was established in 1945 by the UN Charter, under Chapter XIII, to provide international supervision for 11 Trust Territories that had been placed under the administration of seven Member States, and ensure that adequate steps were taken to prepare the Territories for self-government and independence.

International Court of Justice

The International Court of Justice is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. Its seat is at the Peace Palace in the Hague (Netherlands). It is the only one of the six principal organs of the United Nations not located in New York (United States of America).

Secretariat

The Secretariat comprises the Secretary-General and tens of thousands of international UN staff members who carry out the day-to-day work of the UN as mandated by the General Assembly and the Organization's other principal organs.

More about the structure of the United Nations

Learn more

Climate Change

Climate change is the defining issue of our time and now is the defining moment to do something about it. There is still time to tackle climate change, but it will require an unprecedented effort from all sectors of society.

Women at UN CSW63 Side Event - “Take the Hot Seat”. Photo: UN Women/Ryan Brown

Gender Equality

Women and girls represent half of the world’s population and, therefore, also half of its potential. Gender equality, besides being a fundamental human right, is essential to achieve peaceful societies, with full human potential and sustainable development.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres is greeted on his visit to the Central African Republic

Ending Poverty

While global poverty rates have been cut by more than half since 2000, one in ten people in developing regions still lives on less than US$1.90 a day — the internationally agreed poverty line, and millions of others live on slightly more than this daily amount.

A young girl holds a smiling infant at the Zaatari Refugee Camp

Our Common Agenda

Following up on a pledge made by UN Member States at the UN’s 75th anniversary, the report Our Common Agenda looks ahead to the next 25 years and represents the Secretary-General’s vision on the future of global cooperation. It calls for inclusive, networked, and effective multilateralism to better respond to humanity’s most pressing challenges.

Watch and Listen

Video and audio from across the United Nations and our world-wide family of agencies, funds, and programmes.

80 Years of the UN Charter: Why it matters more than ever

In 1945, after the devastation of two World Wars, global leaders came together in San Francisco to sign a bold new document — the Charter of the United Nations. This video, featuring historian Stephen Schlesinger, marks the 80th anniversary of that historic moment and explores the origins, vision, and enduring relevance of the UN Charter.

UN Charter Returns to UNHQ for 80th Anniversary

The original UN Charter, signed in 1945 and foundational to international cooperation, is back on display at UN Headquarters for the first time since 2011 as part of a special exhibit marking the 80th anniversary of the historic San Francisco Conference.

Our Common Future

Ahead of the Fourth World Conference on Financing for Development in Sevilla, Mariangela Parra-Lancourt highlights how smart investments in individuals can drive progress for all of society.

UN Podcasts

woman with cell phone

As democratic space shrinks, misogynistic content surges on social media

With over 5.5 billion people online - nearly all of them active on social media - digital platforms have become the main arena for public debate.

But a steady rise in misogynistic content online is fuelling a toxic environment that not only silences women and girls but also reinforces harmful gender norms, the UN Agency for gender equality, UN Women, warns.

Experts say that addressing this trend requires more than just protecting girls. It also means building a world where boys are free from the pressures of toxic masculinity and restrictive gender expectations.

UN Women’s Kalliopi Mingeirou, who leads the effort to end violence against women and girls, outlined to UN News’s Ana Carmo the alarming spread of online misogyny – and what can be done to stop it.

Latest Audio from UN News

The United Nations in Pictures

Images from across the United Nations and our world-wide family of agencies, funds, and programmes.

women in colorful dresses and headgear gathered
Photo:© UNFPA Guinea-Bissau/Gaia Squarci

From tradition to transformation: Ending female genital mutilation in Guinea-Bissau

In the West African country of Guinea-Bissau, more than 400,000 girls and women have undergone female genital mutilation. Despite decades of effort, the prevalence of the harmful practice has remained. Now, communities are coming together to change that. In the Gabu region, in the eastern part of the country, 24 rural communities recently united in a show of solidarity and hope, gathering to advocate for the right of women and girls to live free from harm – and to sign a declaration of intent to end the practice for good. Here, a look inside the powerful event.

women untangling crabs from nets
Photo:© PEMSEA/Orange Omengan

Women of the Wetlands

In Sasmuan, Philippines, women sustain their families and ecosystems by fishing, weaving nets, and processing crabs. Facing pollution and declining fish stocks, they diversify incomes through crab paste and pickled sea purslane. Along the Mabuanbuan alley, women of all ages gather each morning to untangle crabs from the nets. On average, families harvest around 10 kilos of crabs per day. The UNDP-backed Integrated River Basin Management Project, executed by Partnerships in Environmental Management for the Seas of Asia (PEMSEA) Resource Facility aids in watershed conservation and women's empowerment.

Main Bodies

Departments / Offices

Resources / Services

Key Documents

News and Media

Issues / Campaigns