New York: The UAE has succeeded in making the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) stop granting special consultative status for Foundation Alkarama.

The Permanent Mission of the UAE to the UN expressed serious concerns with the recommendation to grant the status to the NGO, which has been designated a terrorist organisation under UAE Federal Law No. 07 of 2014 on Combating Terrorist Offences.

The UAE mission introduced a draft resolution and it was adopted by consensus by ECOSOC.

The mission issued a statement was delivered at the ECOSOC in New York on Wednesday, ahead of the vote on applications for special consultative status of non-governmental organisations.

“The UAE welcomes the decision,” said Lana Nussaibah, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the UAE to the UN. “Today, member states have ensured that only NGOs whose operations align with the principles of the UN Charter and ECOSOC Resolution 1996/31 are granted this special status, keeping with our collective responsibility to the ECOSOC,” she added.

The UAE’s statement recognised the importance of civil society participation at the UN, noting that it contributes to better policymaking and governance processes, but emphasised that NGOs must operate in accordance with the principles of the Charter of the UN and ECOSOC Resolution 1996/31, which outlines the consultative relationship between the UN and NGOs.

The UAE added that Abd Al Rahman Bin Umayr Al Nuaimi, the founder and former president of Foundation Alkarama, is designated as a financier and facilitator of terrorism by the UN’s Daesh/Al Qaida Sanctions Committee.

At the meeting, the UAE pointed out that Foundation Alkarama withdrew a previous application for consultative status following questions from ECOSOC’s Committee on NGOs regarding its connections to terrorism. During the current application process, Foundation Alkarama claimed that the questions posed in the previous process were politically motivated. The lack of a direct response from Foundation Alkarama was concerning for the UAE, which considered that the ECOSOC Committee on NGOs may not have been able to give serious consideration to the gravity of issues affecting Alkarama’s application.

The UAE praised the diversity of voices in and engagement of civil society in the work of the UN, reaffirming that Foundation Alkarama’s connections to terrorism were incompatible with the work and spirit of the UN. The official statement was delivered by Ahmad Al Mahmoud, Second Secretary at the UAE Permanent Mission in New York.

Algeria, a co-sponsor of the draft resolution, said the ECOSOC should not accept the application of an NGO with certain members that are currently being prosecuted in courts. India also spoke in favour of the draft decision, calling for an introspection of the NGO Committee’s functions as well the need to check NGO applications against the UN Security Council sanctions list prior to consideration for consultative status by the ECOSOC.

The ECOSOC is one of the six main organs of the UN, and aims to advance the three dimensions of sustainable development: Economic, social and environmental. It is the central platform for fostering debate and innovative thinking, forging consensus on ways forward, and coordinating efforts to achieve internationally agreed goals. It is also responsible for the follow-up to major UN conferences and summits.