International Organizations play a very important role in keep the world going. Each international organization is a groups of various nations from around the world that come together to fulfill a common goal. Organizations like United Nations play the role of a facilitator for cooperation, conflict avoidance and conflict resolution among nations. Various specialized agencies of the United Nations, like WHO and ICJ, perform their role within a specific area. There are geo-political international organizations like ASEAN and European Union. Many international organizations carry out humanitarian work, like MSF and ICRC. There are world sports bodies like FIFA and FIDE.
Facilitating dialog among member nations and coordination of agreed-upon actions are two most important core objectives of any international organization. Today we are publishing a list of various international organizations that are well-known around the world for their presence and work.
List of International Organizations
We have selected the following organizations for this article. These world groups are best known and most often talked about. So, learning about them would prove to be a useful addition to your general knowledge.
List of International Organizations
Name |
Abbreviation |
Foundation Year |
Headquarters |
United Nations |
UN |
1945 |
New York, United States |
BRICS |
|
2010 |
Shanghai, China |
United Nations Children’s Fund |
UNICEF |
1946 |
New York, United States |
United Nations Population Fund |
UNFPA |
1969 |
New York, United States |
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development |
UNCTAD |
1964 |
Geneva, Switzerland |
World Health Organization |
WHO |
1948 |
Geneva, Switzerland |
International Labor Organization |
ILO |
1919 |
Geneva, Switzerland |
International Committee of the Red Cross |
ICRC |
1863 |
Geneva, Switzerland |
World Trade Organization |
WTO |
1995 |
Geneva, Switzerland |
World Meteorological Organization |
WMO |
1950 |
Geneva, Switzerland |
World Intellectual Property Organization |
WIPO |
1967 |
Geneva, Switzerland |
International Organization for Standardization |
ISO |
1947 |
Geneva, Switzerland |
United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization |
UNESCO |
1945 |
Paris, France |
UN Women |
UW |
2010 |
New York, United States |
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development |
OECD |
1961 |
Paris, France |
United Nations Industrial Development Organization |
UNIDO |
1966 |
Vienna, Austria |
International Atomic Energy Agency |
IAEA |
1957 |
Vienna, Austria |
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries |
OPEC |
1960 |
Vienna, Austria |
International Monetary Fund |
IMF |
1945 |
Washington DC, United States |
World Bank |
WB |
1944 |
Washington DC, United States |
Amnestry International |
AI |
1961 |
London, United Kingdom |
International Maritime Organization |
IMO |
1959 |
London, United Kingdom |
Commonwealth of Nations |
CWN |
1926 |
London, United Kingdom |
International Court Of Justice |
ICJ |
1945 |
Hague, Netherlands |
Universal Postal Union |
UPU |
1874 |
Berne, Switzerland |
Food and Agricultural Organization |
FAO |
1945 |
Rome, Italy |
North Atlantic Treaty Organization |
NATO |
1949 |
Brussels, Belgium |
Transparency International |
TI |
1993 |
Berlin, Germany |
International Renewable Energy Agency |
IRENA |
2009 |
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates |
South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation |
SAARC |
1985 |
Kathmandu, Nepal |
Association of South East Asian Nations |
ASEAN |
1967 |
Jakarta, Indonesia |
Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation |
APEC |
1989 |
Singapore, Singapore |
Organization of Islamic Cooperation |
OIC |
1969 |
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia |
Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation |
IORA |
1997 |
Ebene, Mauritius |
Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons |
OPCW |
1997 |
Hague, Netherlands |
International Olympic Committee |
IOC |
1894 |
Lausanne, Switzerland |
Worldwide Fund for Nature |
WWF |
1961 |
Gland, Switzerland |
International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry |
IUPAC |
1919 |
Zurich, Switzerland |
World Economic Forum |
WEF |
1971 |
Geneva, Switzerland |
International Hydrographic Organization |
IHO |
1921 |
Monaco, Monaco |
International Association of Athletics Federations |
IAAF |
1912 |
Monaco, Monaco |
Federation Internationale de Football Association |
FIFA |
1924 |
Zurich, Switzerland |
International Cricket Council |
ICC |
1909 |
Dubai, United Arab Emirates |
International Hockey Federation |
FIH |
1924 |
Lausanne, Switzerland |
World Chess Federation |
FIDE |
1924 |
Athens, Greece |
International Union for Conservation of Nature |
IUCN |
1948 |
Gland, Switzerland |
Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers |
ICANN |
1998 |
Los Angeles, United States |
Médecins Sans Frontières |
MSF |
1971 |
Geneva, Switzerland |
International Shooting Sports Federation |
ISSF |
1907 |
Munich, Germany |
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees |
UNHCR |
1950 |
Geneva, Switzerland |
We will keep updating this table with information on more international organizations. Please let us know if you want to know more about any of these world groups.
Citation
Use the citation below to add this article to your bibliography