Urgent Message on NGOs access to the building

Dear Civil Society friends,

We are pleased to inform you that beginning Monday, 14 March 2022, representatives of civil society organizations will be able to access the United Nations Headquarters (UNHQ) in New York.

Please note the following important considerations:

Grounds Passes

• The Department of Global Communications (DGC) and the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) will continue issuing grounds passes, as per the process detailed in our previous communication.
• As previously informed, the number of grounds passes issued to either DGC-associated organizations, or to organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council, is limited to three (3) per organization.
  • Please note that organizations accredited to both DGC and ECOSOC may request passes from both DGC and DESA. That is, three (3) passes from DGC and three (3) passes from DESA, noting that the Head/President of the organization is the same for both departments. 

Access

• Civil society representatives will have access to all the public areas in the General Assembly Building, as well as to the conference rooms for meetings open to civil society. Please note that, as per usual practice, it may be necessary to register and obtain a Special Event Ticket (SET) for some meetings. 

COVID-19 Related Measures

The COVID-19 cases, hospitalization and transmission rates have significantly improved in New York City and the Tri-state area. State and City authorities in New York have now lifted or revised their pandemic mitigation measures. 

Given the improvements and, in accordance with local guidance, please note the following, as of Monday, 14 March 2022:

• Vaccination for civil society representatives will remain mandatory, as conveyed in our last communication.  The certification of civil society representatives vaccination status will continue to follow the procedure outlined in our last communication.
• The use of masks throughout the premises is voluntary.
• By swiping their UN-issued ID, all civil society representatives entering the UNHQ confirm they have not had symptoms consistent with COVID-19 in the last 5 days or a positive COVID test result in the last 5 days.
• Persons experiencing COVID-19 symptoms or symptoms of an upper respiratory tract infection such as seasonal flu are required to stay at home.

Civil society representatives are required to carry proof of COVID-19 vaccination while on UN premises in New York, noting that they may be requested to make it available to UN personnel.

For inquiries on the above information, please contact the corresponding department

Department of Global Communications (DGC) undgccso@un.org

Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) Form on DESAs Website

We look forward to welcoming you back to the United Nations Headquarters in New York.