The Group of 77 (G77) at the United Nations (UN) is a coalition of developing countries, designed to promote its members' collective economic interests and create an enhanced joint negotiating capacity in the United Nations.[1]: 79  The group consists of a diverse set of states with a common South-South ideology.[2] There were 77 founding members of the organization headquartered in Geneva, but it has since expanded to 134 member countries.[1]: 79–80  Uganda holds its chairmanship for 2024, succeeding Cuba.

Group of 77
AbbreviationG77
Named afterNumber of founding Member States
Formation15 June 1964; 60 years ago (1964-06-15)
Founded atGeneva, Switzerland
TypeIntergovernmental
PurposeTo provide a forum for developing nations to promote their economic interests
HeadquartersUnited Nations Headquarters
MethodsCollective bargaining, lobbying, reports and studies
FieldsInternational politics
Membership
134 member states
Chair of the Group of 77
 Uganda
AffiliationsUnited Nations
WebsiteG77.org

The group was founded on 15 June 1964, by 77 non-aligned nations in the "Joint Declaration of the Seventy-Seven Countries" issued at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).[3] The first major meeting was in Algiers in 1967, where the Charter of Algiers was adopted and the basis for permanent institutional structures was begun under the leadership of Raul Prebisch who had previously worked at ECLA.[4] There are Chapters of the Group of 77 in Geneva (UN), Rome (FAO), Vienna (UNIDO), Paris (UNESCO), Nairobi (UNEP) and the Group of 24 in Washington, D.C. (International Monetary Fund and World Bank).

Policies

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The group was credited with a common stance against apartheid and for supporting global disarmament.[5] It has been supportive of the New International Economic Order.[6]: 30 [7]

Regarding environmental matters, the G77's position is that the developed countries bear historical responsibility for greenhouse gas emissions, pointing also to the disparity in per capita emissions between the developing and developed countries.[8]: 53  As a result, the G77 often resists binding commitments to reduce its emissions.[8]: 53  The G77 has been subject to criticism for its lacklustre support, or outright opposition, to pro-environmental initiatives, which the group considers secondary to economic development and poverty eradication initiatives.[6]: 30  In turn, the G77 has criticized the wealthier nations for their insufficient attention to poverty eradication, including at the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.[6]: 30–31 

Members

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Group of 77 countries as of 2013

As of 2023, the group comprises all of the UN member states (along with the UN observer State of Palestine), excluding the following countries:

  1. Members of the Council of Europe, except for Azerbaijan.
  2. Members of the Commonwealth of Independent States Free Trade Area, except for Tajikistan.
  3. Members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, except for all its (four) Latin American members.
  4. Two microstates in Oceania: Palau and Tuvalu.

Current founding members

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Source:[9]

Other current members

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Former members

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  1.   New Zealand signed the original "Joint Declaration of the Developing Countries" in October 1963 but pulled out of the group before the formation of the G77 in 1964 (it joined the OECD in 1973).
  2.   South Korea was a founding member but left the Group after joining the OECD in 1996.
  3.   Yugoslavia was a founding member; by the late 1990s, it was still listed on the membership list, but it was noted that it "cannot participate in the activities of G77." It was removed from the list in late 2003.[citation needed] It had presided over the group from 1985 to 1986.
    •   Bosnia and Herzegovina was the only former Yugoslavian state to be listed as a member on the G77 official website in 2007;[14] it was removed from the member list in February 2020.[15][16]
  4.   Cyprus was a founding member[9] but was no longer listed on the official membership list after it acceded to the European Union in 2004.[citation needed] A document from 1975 states that Cyprus is not a member.[12]
  5.   South Vietnam was a founding member, while North Vietnam never joined separately.[9][12]
  6.   South Yemen joined separately from founding member North Yemen sometime between 1967 and 1975.[9][12]
  7.   Malta was admitted to the Group in 1976 but was no longer listed on the official membership list after it acceded to the European Union in 2004.
  8.   Palau joined the Group in 2002 but withdrew in 2004, having decided that it could best pursue its environmental interests through the Alliance of Small Island States.
  9.   Romania was classed as a Latin American country for the purposes of the G77, having joined in 1976.[17][18] The G77 was divided into geographical regions, and because there was technically no European area, Romania was placed under the umbrella of Latin America.[19] Romania left the G77 following its accession to the European Union.[20]

China

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The Group of 77 lists China as one of its members.[21] The Chinese government provides consistent political support to the G77 and has made financial contributions to the Group since 1994, but it does not consider itself to be a member.[22] As a result, official statements of the G77 are delivered in the name of The Group of 77 and China or G77+China.[23]

Presiding countries

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The following is the chain of succession of the chairmanship of the G77:[24]

 
Presiding countries of the G77 since 1970. Colors show the number of times a country has held the position. Gray = never, Yellow = once, Orange = twice, Red = three times
Presiding country Year
  India 1970–71
  Peru 1971–72
  Egypt 1972–73
  Iran 1973–74
  Mexico 1974–75
  Madagascar 1975–76
  Pakistan 1976–77
  Jamaica 1977–78
  Tunisia 1978–79
  India 1979–80
  Venezuela 1980–81
  Algeria 1981–82
  Bangladesh 1982–83
  Mexico 1983–84
  Egypt 1984–85
  Yugoslavia 1985–86
  Guatemala 1987
  Tunisia 1988
  Malaysia 1989
  Bolivia 1990
  Ghana 1991
  Pakistan 1992
  Colombia 1993
  Algeria 1994
  Philippines 1995
  Costa Rica 1996
  Tanzania 1997
  Indonesia 1998
  Guyana 1999
  Nigeria 2000
  Iran 2001
  Venezuela 2002
  Morocco 2003
  Qatar 2004
  Jamaica 2005
  South Africa 2006
  Pakistan 2007
  Antigua and Barbuda 2008
  Sudan 2009
  Yemen 2010
  Argentina 2011
  Algeria 2012
  Fiji 2013
  Bolivia 2014
  South Africa 2015
  Thailand 2016
  Ecuador 2017
  Egypt 2018
  Palestine 2019
  Guyana 2020
  Guinea 2021
  Pakistan 2022
  Cuba 2023
  Uganda 2024
  Iraq 2025

Group of 24

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G-24 countries:
  Member nations
  Observer nations

The Group of 24 (G-24) is a chapter of the G-77 that was established in 1971 to coordinate the positions of developing countries on international monetary and development finance issues and to ensure that their interests were adequately represented in negotiations on international monetary matters. Every member of the G-24 is also a member of the G77.

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ The G77 continues to recognize the de jure Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.[10]
  2. ^ Joined as Dahomey.
  3. ^ Joined as Upper Volta.
  4. ^ Joined as the United Arab Republic.
  5. ^ Mexico was a founding member but left the Group after joining the OECD in 1994. Its rejoining the organization was approved in 2023.[11] Despite the approval, Mexico does not appear yet as a member on the official website of the organization.
  6. ^ Joined as Burma.
  7. ^ Joined as Ceylon.
  8. ^ Joined as the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zanzibar.
  9. ^ Officially considered as a member by the organization, yet not by China itself
  10. ^ Joined as Swaziland.
  11. ^ Joined as the Palestine Liberation Organization sometime between 1975 and 1998.[12][13]

References

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  1. ^ a b Shinn, David H.; Eisenman, Joshua (2023). China's Relations with Africa: a New Era of Strategic Engagement. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-21001-0.
  2. ^ Lees, Nicholas (2023). "The endurance of the G77 in international relations: South–South ideology and voting at the United Nations 1970–2015". Japanese Journal of Political Science. 24 (3): 310–330. doi:10.1017/S1468109923000105. ISSN 1468-1099.
  3. ^ "About the Group of 77". G77. Archived from the original on Jan 20, 2024.
  4. ^ Prebisch, Raúl; Prebisch, Raul (October 1986). "El desarrollo económico de la América Latina y algunos de sus principales problemas". Desarrollo Económico. 26 (103): 479. doi:10.2307/3466824. hdl:11362/10183. ISSN 0046-001X. JSTOR 3466824.
  5. ^ Satpathy (2005). Environment Management. Excel Books India. p. 30. ISBN 978-81-7446-458-3.
  6. ^ a b c Satpathy, Ipseeta (2005). Environment Management. Excel Books India. ISBN 978-81-7446-458-3.
  7. ^ Fitzmaurice, Malgosia; Ong, David M.; Merkouris, Panos (2010). Research Handbook on International Environmental Law. Edward Elgar Publishing. pp. 567–. ISBN 978-1-84980-726-5.
  8. ^ a b Lewis, Joanna I. (2020). "China's Low-Carbon Energy Strategy". In Esarey, Ashley; Haddad, Mary Alice; Lewis, Joanna I.; Harrell, Stevan (eds.). Greening East Asia: The Rise of the Eco-Developmental State. Seattle: University of Washington Press. ISBN 978-0-295-74791-0. JSTOR j.ctv19rs1b2.
  9. ^ a b c d "Joint Declaration of the Seventy-seven Developing Countries Made at the Conclusion of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development". The Group of 77. 15 June 1964. Archived from the original on Dec 2, 2023.
  10. ^ "About G77 - G77 3rd South Summit". G77 Third South Summit.
  11. ^ "G77 + China aprueba la reincorporación de México – DW – 17/09/2023". dw.com (in Spanish). 17 September 2023. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  12. ^ a b c d "Prospects for the 7th Special Session of the UN General Assembly" (PDF).
  13. ^ "A/RES/52/250".
  14. ^ "The Group of 77 - Member States". Archived from the original on 2007-06-06.
  15. ^ "The Group of 77 - Member States". Archived from the original on 2020-02-14.
  16. ^ "The Group of 77 - Member States". Archived from the original on 2020-02-19.
  17. ^ Mark, James; Iacob, Bogdan C.; Rupprecht, Tobias; Spaskovska, Ljubica (August 29, 2019). 1989. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-108-42700-5 – via Google Books.
  18. ^ Mark, James; Kalinovsky, Artemy M.; Marung, Steffi (February 11, 2020). Alternative Globalizations: Eastern Europe and the Postcolonial World. Indiana University Press. ISBN 978-0-253-04653-6 – via Google Books.
  19. ^ Krause, Keith; Knight, W. Andy (November 7, 1995). State, Society and the UN System: Changing Perspectives on Multilateralism. United Nations University Press. ISBN 978-92-808-0885-8 – via Google Books.
  20. ^ Badie, B. (August 21, 2012). Diplomacy of Connivance. Springer. ISBN 978-1-137-00643-1 – via Google Books.
  21. ^ "The Member States of the Group of 77". The Group of 77 at the United Nations.
  22. ^ "七十七国集团(Group of 77, G77)". Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China. July 2016. 中国不是77国集团成员,但一贯支持其正义主张和合理要求,与其保持良好合作关系,在经社领域一般以"77国集团加中国"的模式表达共同立场。中国自1994年开始每年向其捐款,2014年起捐款每年5万美元。
  23. ^ "Statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China by HE Mr. Horacio Sevilla Borja, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Ecuador to the United Nations, at the opening session of the 4th Prepcom established by General Assembly resolution 69/292: Development of an international legally binding instrument under UNCLOS on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (New York)". G77. 10 July 2017. Archived from the original on Dec 11, 2023. Mr. Chair, I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of the Group of 77 and China.
  24. ^ "Presiding Countries of the Group of 77 in New York". The Group of 77 at the United Nations.
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