ABSTRACT
The United Nations, with its principal organs and subsidiary bodies, is probably the largest intergovernmental organization (IGO) in the world. Moreover, a number of so-called “specialized agencies” enjoy a familial relationship to the parent body but operate with a considerable degree of autonomy. Some of these specialized entities are household words or acronyms (World Bank, Unesco) while others may not be generally known (WIPO, IFAD). What all of these IGOs share in common is the compulsion to publish reports and documents of a scope and variety well known to those who work with government materials. Throughout the turbulent, controversial history of the world body and its satellite agencies, the activity of dissemination of information has endured and at times flourished. Recent years have witnessed an attempt on the part of the UN and some of the specialized agencies to curtail their publishing programs. Yet one perusing the current volume of documentation would be hard pressed to discern any significant reduction owing to fiscal restraints.
