United Nations: Specialized Agencies

The United Nations has designated 15 organizations as Specialized Agencies, 12 of which are discussed here. (The World Bank Group is made up of three agencies: the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development [IBRD], the International Development Association [IDA], and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), each of which is discussed below.) This edition of the Handbook does not include separate entries on the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), or two agencies whose activities are largely technical: the Universal Postal Union (UPU), which traces its origins to the 1874 Treaty Concerning the Establishment of a General Postal Union (the Berne Treaty), and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), successor to the International Meteorological Organization (founded in 1878). Appendix C lists the members of all the Specialized Agencies.