CONGO

The Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations, or CONGO, is an organization assisting NGOs to obtain influence at the United Nations. CONGO coordinates actions or voting blocks to favor a given grouping, and in return, at a future date the collaborating NGO will be assisted on matters of its interest; CONGO facilitates coallition formation. CONGO aims to leverage the voting or lobbying pressure of several small NGOs into a more influential voice. CONGO is an organization set up and funded by several zionist groups; several of CONGO's principals are activists with UN Watch and other similar groups.

From its "About Us"

 * The Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations in Consultative Relationship with the United Nations is an independent, international, not-for-profit membership association of nongovernmental organizations that facilitates the participation of NGOs in United Nations debates and decisions. CONGO is most active in the major UN centers of New York, Geneva, and Vienna, but extends its work to all regions of the world.
 * Since its founding in 1948, CONGO has worked to ensure that NGO voices are heard throughout the international arena. CONGO's role in mobilizing NGOs to form the first worldwide NGO forum on human rights in 1968, its role in conceiving forms of NGO participation in UN world conferences and its advocacy on behalf of NGOs at UN Headquarters highlight CONGO's major objectives: to ensure that NGOs are present when governments discuss issues of global concern at the United Nations and to facilitate NGO discussions on such issues.
 * CONGO does not take positions on substantive matters. However, CONGO does provide, through special and ad hoc NGO Committees, fora for discussion of substantive matters by its members and members of the UN Secretariat, UN Delegations, and other experts.

Activities
CONGO provides a framework for several NGOs to coordinate actions. This may entail some of the following:
 * 1) Issuing press releases with many signatories, where most of the signatories are CONGO partners
 * 2) Coordinate lobbying
 * 3) Coordinate voting where this is possible
 * 4) Coordinate demonstrations (some CONGO members have participated in demonstrations against the Durban-II conference held in Geneva)
 * 5) Assist allied NGOs to get UN accreditation.

Affiliations or relationships

 * UN Watch
 * Ford Foundation (provided funding for CONGO activities, in particular, it funded a 10-member CONGO delegation to travel to Durban, South Africa to the UN Anti-Racism Conference.)
 * Federation of American Women's Clubs Overseas (FAWCO)
 * "What is FAWCO's relationship with CONGO? FAWCO is one of the under 500 member organizations of CONGO - the Conference of NGOs in consultative relationship with ECOSOC. This is a select, independent, not for profit membership organization that facilitates our participation in UN debates and decisions, giving us a stronger voice at UN meetings. Of the various CONGO committees, FAWCO representatives are active members of the Committee on the Status of Women, the Special NGO Committee on Human Rights and the HIV/AIDS Committee."

Contact

 * Address: 11, Avenue de la Paix, 1st Floor, 1202 Geneva, Switzerland
 * Post: CP 50, 1211 Geneva 20, Switzerland
 * Tel: +41 22 301 10 00
 * E-mail: congo@ngocongo.org
 * Website: www.ngocongo.org