Improvements to social policy are a key element of development and the achievement of human rights. Many social policy issues are addressed by the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly. This Committee deals with subjects such as education, employment, social protection, social security, and crime and drugs.

 

Much of this work is framed by the agreements reached at the 1995 World Summit for Social Development, in Copenhagen, Denmark, and the subsequent five year follow-up meeting at the United Nations in Geneva. The UN's social policy and development work also addresses issues linked to specific social groups and institutions, including older people, youth, the disabled, and the family.

In addition to the UN’s Third Committee, which considers these issues each year during the UN General Assembly, other UN bodies take an interest in social policy and development issues. The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) debates a number of these issues each year at its session in July. The UN’s Commission for Social Development (CSocD), which meets once a year in New York, is the key UN body responsible for the follow-up and implementation of the Copenhagen Declaration and Programme of Action. The UN Secretariat provides support to work on social development through the Division for Social Policy and Development of the Department for Economic and Social Affairs.

While not currently a member of CSocD, the UK remains strongly committed to social development issues at the UN. Various Government departments in London have an interest in the work of CSocD, including:

 

Department of International Development (DFID)

Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)

Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF)

For more details of the UK position on international social development, please consult the relevant department's website.