Secretariat

Institution United Nations Preferred

The UN principal organ, headed by the Secretary-General, that carries out the organization's day-to-day administrative work.

Independent referenceNot an official or legal definition
Sources citedSee the sources at the end of this page
Status Under reviewLast updated 22 September 2026
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Definition

Academic definition

The Secretariat is one of the principal organs of the United Nations and, under Article 97 of the Charter, comprises the Secretary-General and such staff as the Organization may require. Its staff are international civil servants whose responsibilities are exclusively international, and Article 101 provides that they are appointed under regulations established by the General Assembly, with paramount consideration for efficiency, competence, and integrity and due regard for wide geographical recruitment. It services the other organs and carries out tasks they assign.

Classification

Term type
Institution
Category
United Nations
Subject field
International Organizations
Subfield
UN structure
Difficulty level
Beginner
Grammatical category
Noun

Language variants

Alternative terms
  • UN Secretariat
  • Secretariat of the United Nations
Non-preferred terms
  • not_applicable
Abbreviations
  • not_applicable
Acronyms
  • not_applicable
Native terms
  • not_applicable
Transliteration
not_applicable
Pronunciation
not_yet_verified

Context

Legal effect: Not a Legal Term

Scope

Primarily the UN organ; other international organizations also have secretariats with different structures.

Legal context

UN Charter Articles 97-101.

Diplomatic context

Prepares reports, services negotiations, and runs field operations that support diplomacy.

Institutional context

Headed by the Secretary-General.

Historical context

not_yet_verified

Why it matters

not_yet_verified

Usage

Register: Institutional

Usage note

When referring to other organizations, name them (for example 'the OSCE Secretariat').

Example scenario

not_yet_verified

Common misuse

not_applicable

Not to be confused with

  • General Assembly
  • Secretary-General

Sources

  1. Charter of the United Nations, Chapter XV: The Secretariat, United Nations, Articles 97-101. un.org
  2. Official definition. un.org
  3. Treaty reference. un.org
  4. not_found_in_source. not_found_in_source
  5. not_found_in_source. not_found_in_source

Source type: Treaty. Source reliability: Primary.

This entry is an independent reference definition, not an official or legally binding text. Where an official definition exists, it is linked above and is authoritative. Read our methodology.

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