Funds and programmes

UN bodies working on development and relief

Agencies & programmes

Funds and programmes are subsidiary bodies of the UN, financed mainly by voluntary contributions, that deliver development and humanitarian work around the world.

Main funds and programmes

UNICEF (UN Children's Fund), New York, 1946: children's health, nutrition, education and protection; Nobel Peace Prize 1965.
UNDP (UN Development Programme), New York, 1965: fights poverty and publishes the Human Development Index, which was devised with Pakistani economist Mahbub ul Haq.
UNEP (UN Environment Programme), Nairobi, 1972: the first UN body headquartered in a developing country.
WFP (World Food Programme), Rome, 1961: the largest humanitarian organization fighting hunger; Nobel Peace Prize 2020.
UNFPA (UN Population Fund), New York: reproductive health and population data.
UN-Habitat, Nairobi: housing and sustainable cities.

Refugees and related organizations

UNHCR (UN High Commissioner for Refugees), Geneva, 1950: protects refugees; Nobel Peace Prize 1954 and 1981.
UNRWA: serves Palestine refugees.
IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency), Vienna, 1957: promotes peaceful nuclear energy and verifies non-proliferation.
WTO (World Trade Organization), Geneva, 1995: rules of international trade.
UN Women and UNAIDS: gender equality and the fight against HIV.

Work in Pakistan

UNICEF and WHO support polio vaccination and child health; WFP and UNHCR provide food and refugee assistance; UNDP supports governance and climate resilience; and the UN system played a major role in relief after the 2005 earthquake and the 2010 and 2022 floods.