GGGI Receives UN General Assembly Observer Status

NEW YORK, Dec. 17, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- In recognition of its achievements in green growth and sustainable development, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution granting the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) observer status. The status gives GGGI the right to speak at General Assembly meetings and sponsor and sign resolutions. GGGI will also be able to cast procedural votes. Observers are not allowed to vote on resolutions.

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"Receiving General Assembly observer status is a sign of confidence in GGGI as an international organization of standing with a valuable contribution to make to the UN and the international community generally," said GGGI Director-General Howard Bamsey.

The resolution to grant observer status to GGGI was part of a resolution for consideration by the UN General Assembly Sixth Committee (Legal) earlier this year. The resolution then went before the 68th General Assembly Plenary and was formally adopted on December 16, 2013.

As a new international organization with a focus on developing countries, GGGI contributes in concrete ways towards the objectives and frameworks established by the UN and other international bodies in the areas of sustainable development and poverty reduction, including the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Millennium Development Goals. GGGI cooperates with developing countries and emerging economies to facilitate and implement the transition towards a green economy in the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication as defined by the UN Conference on Sustainable Development. Cooperation with GGGI helps make partner countries ready to benefit from international funding sources which support investments in a green economy, including the Green Climate Fund and other climate financing mechanisms.

UN General Assembly observers consist of around 80 intergovernmental organizations and non-governmental organizations that are not part of the UN system. GGGI joins other prominent organizations with observer status, such as the African Development Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the East African Community, the European Union, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and the Organization of American States.

In June 2013 GGGI was granted Official Development Assistance (ODA) eligibility status by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development -- Development Assistance Committee (OECD-DAC). GGGI also gained intergovernmental (IGO) observer status at sessions of the UNFCCC Conference of Parties (COP) in Warsaw, Poland in November 2013.

About GGGI

GGGI is a treaty-based international organization dedicated to developing and diffusing a new paradigm of economic growth -- green growth -- which balances economic performance and environmental sustainability to help build strong and inclusive societies. Twenty countries have joined GGGI. Headquartered in Seoul, GGGI works in long-term partnership with developing and emerging economies through rigorous green growth planning, research and public-private cooperation. To learn more, see www.gggi.org.