Banner of Commissions: CND and CCPCJ
NGOs in consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) can be accredited to participate in the sessions of the Commissions as observers. As observers, NGOs are able, among other things, to:
The Commissions broadcast some of the sessions live via webcast. While UN TV is unfortunately not (yet) available, the Secretariat streams the general debates of the sessions to the webpages of the Commissions.
An NGO in consultative status with ECOSOC planning to attend a session of the Commissions must issue a letter of request for accreditation, signed by the head of the organization, with the composition of its representation and share the document with their representatives. The letter must contain the following elements:
Practical Guide for NGO Participants
UNODC Secretariat to the Governing Bodies
unodc-sgb[at]un.org
UNODC Civil Society Team
unodc-ngounit[at]un.org
Alliance of NGOs on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice
info[at]crimealliance.org
Representatives must register on the self-registration's platform INDICO and will receive a message to the email-address provided confirming their approval to attend the meeting as well as a link to upload their photo. Once the photo is uploaded, the badge can be pre-printed and made available for pick-up.
The Commissions meet for their annual regular sessions in the M-building of the Vienna International Centre, Vienna, Austria. NGO representatives must obtain a photo identity badge upon arrival at the United Nations and before attending the session at Gate 1 of the Vienna International Centre. Representatives accredited to the session as described above can pick-up their badges in person, upon presentation of an identity document (i.e. passport) and a copy of the letter of request for accreditation from the concerned NGO.
NGO representatives in possession of an annual grounds pass for the Vienna International Centre and valid for the duration of the session, will have access to the conference rooms, but will not be included in the list of participants unless accredited to the session. To be included in the list of participants, representatives must be registered and get a pass for the duration of the meeting.
All travel-related expenses, accommodation and medical insurance are the responsibility of the NGO or its representatives.
NGO representatives accredited to the session can attend the plenary meetings, the meetings of the Committee of the Whole and side events. At the plenary meetings, the Commissions discuss the issues that are contained in the provisional agendas (the agenda is contained in document number 1 of the session, please see the documentation sections of the Commissions' websites). In order to examine draft decisions, draft resolutions and specific technical issues, a Committee of the Whole is convened in parallel with the plenary meetings of the Commission. NGO representatives can participate in the Committee of the whole as observers, but cannot take the floor. Informal consultations conducted by Member States are not open to NGO participation. Audio and video recordings of sessions and live transmissions of the meetings are not permitted, except for accredited media.
NGOs in consultative status with ECOSOC may submit written statements to the Commissions. NGOs in general consultative status may submit written statements of up to 2,000 words. NGOs in special consultative status may submit written statements of up to 1,500 words.
A written statement is issued, unedited, in the language(s) as received (English, French or Spanish) from the submitting NGO. NGOs assume full responsibility for the content of their statements, which should fully uphold UN standards and avoid abusive language.
The deadline for written statements is normally two weeks prior to the session. Please submit to unodc-sgb[at]un.org.
Checklist for inclusion in the submission:
NGOs can inscribe an accredited member of their delegation to the speaker's list to deliver a statement on behalf of their organization on any of the agenda items. Prior to the opening of the Commission NGOs wishing to inscribe on the list of speakers are asked to send the name of the organization as well as the name (FAMILY NAME, First name) and function of their speaker as well as the item under which they wish to speak to the Secretariat to the Governing Bodies at unodc-sgb[at]un.org. During the meeting speakers need to register to the speaker's list in the plenary room at the conference officer's desk before the item which they wish to address closes. The list of speakers for the general debate has an application period. The application period is decided by the Bureau of the Commission and it is usually open a month before the meeting and it closes in the week before the meeting.
The list of speakers is established on a first-come, first-served basis. NGOs take the floor after Member States, United Nations entities and Intergovernmental Organizations. A speaking time of maximum 5 minutes (or 500 words) is allotted to all speakers. Speakers are requested to provide a copy of their statement to the Conference Officers in the plenary room and also adjust the speed of the delivery of their statement in order to facilitate the work of the interpreters.
NGOs in consultative status with ECOSOC which are not present in Vienna and which do not have individuals accredited to the relevant session of the Commissions may participate in some meetings by submitting a pre-recorded video statement.
To enable the Secretariat to duly verify the credentials of the NGOs and the identity of individuals delivering a video message, please submit the following:
Oral statements delivered by video message are subject to the same rules as oral statements delivered in person, as laid out in ECOSOC resolution 1996/31. The video messages are subject to the same time limits as, and should mirror as closely as possible, the oral statements delivered in person. A transcript of the video statement must be submitted in advance. In particular, the following rules must be strictly observed:
The video statement will be projected in the room under the same conditions as an oral statement delivered in the room. The rules of procedure and practices of the Commissions apply in the same manner to video statements as to all other statements. The transcript of the video message will be posted on the Commissions websites upon request along with other oral statements.
NGOs in consultative statues with ECOSOC may organize a side event of relevance to the work of the Commissions. Side events can be organized in accordance with the guidelines for side events for the respective session of the Commission, published on the side event website in November each year. The indicative application period is in January for the CND (session in March) and in March for the CCPCJ (session in May). Please refer to the guidelines for more specific information.
For the organization of exhibitions and their openings, please contact the UNODC Advocacy Section.
Copies of all official documents issued as pre-session or in-session documentation for the sessions of the Commissions, including reports, annotated agenda, journals, draft resolutions etc. are published through the United Nations documents system (ODS). For ease of reference and as a service to delegations, the Secretariat posts those documents also on the websites of the CND and CCPCJ. During the sessions of the Commissions, the documents and the daily journal are also available at the documentation counter, which is usually located just outside the entrance to the plenary hall.
Use of the United Nations emblem and the logos of the Commissions on non-official documents and publications, including NGO material is expressly prohibited. The United Nations flag may not be displayed in meeting rooms where NGOs organize events.