As of July 2023[update], UNESCO members include 194 member states and 12 associate members.[1] Some members have additional National Organizing Committees (NOCs) for some of their dependent territories.[2] The associate members are non-independent states.
Three UNESCO member states are not UN member states: Cook Islands, Niue, and Palestine (Palestine is a non-member observer State of the United Nations General Assembly since 29 November 2012), while UN member states Israel and Liechtenstein are not UNESCO members. Israel and the United States left on 31 December 2018 asserting that the organization had an anti-Israel bias.[3] The United States later reversed its decision in 2023,[4] and was readmitted by the UNESCO General Conference that July.[5]
Kosovo was approved for membership by UNESCO's executive board in 2015,[6] but the proposal did not receive the required 2/3 of votes in favour at the general conference.[7]
- ^ UNESCO official site: List of the 193 Member States (and the 11 Associate Members) of UNESCO and the date on which they became members (or Associate Members) of the Organization, as of 1 January 2019
- ^ WADA. "Summary update on Government progress to become a State Party to the UNESCO International Convention against Doping in Sport" (PDF). p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 January 2013. Retrieved 28 July 2009.
- ^ Lazaroff, Tovah (31 December 2018). "Israel, U.S. slated to leave UNESCO today to protest anti-Israel bias". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 31 December 2018.
- ^ Charlton, Angela (12 June 2023). "US decides to rejoin UNESCO and pay back dues, to counter Chinese influence". Associated Press. Retrieved 12 June 2023.
- ^ Lee, Matthew (11 July 2023). "U.S. formally rejoins UNESCO 5 years after withdraw". PBS. Associated Press. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
- ^ "Kosovo Moves Closer To UNESCO Membership". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 21 October 2015. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
- ^ "Kosovo's UNESCO Membership Bid Fails". 9 November 2015. Retrieved 8 December 2015.