WAEC Government 2020 Theory — Question 6

Model answer

The United Nations Organisation is a global/universal intergovernmental organization established after the Second World War in 1945 for the primary purpose of promoting and maintaining world peace and security. The Headquarters of the United Nations is located in New York, USA. Currently, the United Nations has 193 member-states. The challenges facing the United Nations Organization include (any five): (1) Threats to human security i.e. poverty, disease, and environmental degradation. (2) Violence and massive human rights violations within states. (3) Conflicts among nearby states in certain regions. (4) Legacies of military intervention and violent regime change. (5) Forced displacement as a result of famine or natural disaster etc. (6) Humanitarian challenges. (7) Civil wars and genocide. (8) Problems associated with the exercise of the veto power. (9) How to end human trafficking and forced migration. (10) How to end organized terrorist activities. (11) Confronting transnational organized crimes. (12) Challenges of Biosecurity and Bioterrorism. (13) How to curtail weapons of mass destruction (nuclear proliferation, biological and chemical weapon). (14) Ideological differences among the big powers. (15) Poor member states' inability to honour our financial obligation to the United Nations/Financial challenges. (16) Absence of a standing army for the United Nations (UN). (17) Over-reliance on the USA for financial and other logistic needs. (18) Unwillingness of member states to surrender their sovereignty. (19) Climate change. (20) The problem of bridging the development gap between the rich north and the poor south. (21) The problem of inequality among member states.