Most Koreans are familiar with the word OECD, as South Korea annually ranks the top in suicide rates among countries worldwide according OECD data. The eighth secretary-general of the United Nations was Ban Ki-moon, a South Korean diplomat. All this information might sound peculiar and unrelated. However, I have stated these facts show that we live very close to these global organizations. Yet, the truth is, we often are greatly unaware of what these organizations aim for in the long term and what their specific roles are. We know vaguely that they are responsible for maintaining world peace, healthy international relations, and global economic stability. However, there is more than this to fully understand their significant influences on worldwide citizen safety. Thus, after reading this essay, readers will be able to understand what these international organizations are, through an explanation of the specific roles and aims of the United Nations and the OECD.

How the United Nations and the OECD Operate

The United Nations, founded in 1945, is one of the world’s biggest international organizations that aims to preserve world peace and stability. The foundation of the United Nations is based on an official validation of the United Nations Charter, which refers to specific admission standards that countries must follow to become part of the organization. The UN Charter was made by the founding members of the UN: the United States, Republic of China, France, Soviet Union, and United Kingdom. Once accepted as a member state of the United Nations, the country gets to participate and vote in conferences that occur every year. This way, it makes solutions to the problems that the whole world is currently facing. At this point, the United Nations has about 193 member states, which include Mexico, South Korea, Norway, and many more.

The OECD, first founded in 1961, stands for the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. 37 democratic states are part of the OECD, including South Korea, the United States, and Canada. Its main focus is analyzing economic practices and policies performed worldwide and figuring out which are the best policies to share. This way, all of the countries can benefit from this organization and promote further worldwide economic growth. OECD is funded by its member nations, and its headquarter is located in Paris. It also helps raise the economies of countries that are not part of the OECD, as they seek global economic success. According to the OECD's official website, they release “more than 5 billion data points” annually regarding policies performed worldwide. Thus, they offer a depth of information that policymakers and politicians can utilize to infer the general trend of the policy practices.

Influence on Citizens Across the World

Despite these organizations’ intense efforts to protect global security, their positive influence on global citizens are not explicitly shown. Yet, they are helpful for many citizens in various aspects. The United Nations has human rights treaties that monitor whether basic human rights are properly kept and offers realistic solutions if they are violated. For instance, recently in the Ukraine war, the UN played a significant role in reducing the amount of damage to innocent citizens and ensuring basic human rights in conflict areas. For instance, the UN has specialized agencies in which they rapidly locate local staff to place food sources in warzones. In addition, the OECD accurately analyzes general poverty and unemployment trends and offers specific solutions accordingly. Apart from these specific roles that they serve for global economies, both the UN and the OECD take charge of many important roles for the success of the global economy by helping solve problems common among all societies. Most countries across the world are part of these organizations, and therefore, this gives them the power to make appropriate decisions that bring positive outcomes.

Why We Should Understand These Organizations

Like this, international organizations are something of great significance. It allows global cooperation, understanding of problems, information sharing, and security of citizens. To become a better citizen that can serve a worldwide role, we must realize how significant these international organizations are and why. For these international organizations to operate better in the future, the readers, including myself, must pay continuous attention to their actions and goals.