9/13/2026
There are not officially different "types" of the United Nations, but the UN system is made up of several types of organizations and bodies. These include the six principal organs of the UN, the Secretariat, funds and programmes, specialized agencies and related organizations. Understanding these categories is useful when researching United Nations jobs and organizations.
The United Nations has six principal organs:
General Assembly
Security Council
Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)
Trusteeship Council
International Court of Justice (ICJ)
Secretariat
These bodies were established under the UN Charter.
The General Assembly is the main deliberative body and includes all UN Member States.
The Security Council has primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and security.
ECOSOC coordinates economic, social and related work.
The International Court of Justice is the UN's principal judicial organ.
The Secretariat carries out the organization's day-to-day administrative and operational work.
The Trusteeship Council suspended operations in 1994 after the completion of the majority of its original mandate.
The UN system also contains numerous funds and programmes.
Examples include:
UNDP – United Nations Development Programme
UNICEF – United Nations Children's Fund
UNFPA – United Nations Population Fund
UNEP – United Nations Environment Programme
UNHCR – United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
WFP – World Food Programme
UNOPS – United Nations Office for Project Services
These organizations have specific mandates and areas of work.
For example, UNICEF focuses on children, while UNDP focuses on development and WFP focuses strongly on food assistance.
Specialized agencies are autonomous international organizations that work with the United Nations through formal agreements.
Examples include:
WHO – health
FAO – food and agriculture
ILO – labour
UNESCO – education, science and culture
ICAO – civil aviation
IMO – maritime affairs
ITU – telecommunications and digital communications
WIPO – intellectual property
WMO – meteorology
These organizations are part of the wider UN system but are not simply departments of the UN Secretariat. The UN describes them as autonomous international organizations working with the United Nations.
The broader UN system also includes related organizations and other entities with specialized international mandates.
The exact classification can vary depending on the institutional framework being used. This is why lists of "UN organizations" can sometimes contain different numbers.
Understanding the different types of UN organizations is particularly useful when searching for United Nations jobs.
A person interested in health might search WHO jobs, while someone interested in agriculture might consider FAO. A development specialist may look at UNDP, while a labour economist may consider ILO.
Although these organizations cooperate closely, their recruitment systems, employment categories, salary structures and vacancy databases can differ.
Rather than thinking of the UN as one single organization, it is more accurate to think of the UN system as a family of organizations. It includes the UN's six principal organs, its Secretariat, funds and programmes, specialized agencies and related organizations.
United Nations – About Us
United Nations – UN System
United Nations – Family of Organizations
Unchannel - 9/13/2026