UNESCO at 80
UNESCO is a UN Agency that has been operating for 80 years. This briefing outlines UNESCO, its functions, and recent challenges.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is a UN specialised agency responsible for promoting education, science, culture, and communication internationally. It was established following the United Nations Conference for the Establishment of an Education and Cultural Organisation in London in November 1945.
The UNESCO Constitution recognises that the prevention of conflict, and the establishment of peace, begins with not only the political and economic arrangements of government, but also “the intellectual and moral solidarity of mankind.” This is based on the Constitution’s first declaration that:
since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defences of peace must be constructed.
The Constitution is based on the premise that ignorance of the differences between peoples of the world has the potential to undermine such peace, causing suspicion and mistrust that “have all too often broken into war.”
The purpose of UNESCO, according to Article 1 of its constitution, is to contribute to international peace and security by promoting peaceful education and collaboration:
The purpose of the Organization is to contribute to peace and security by promoting collaboration among the nations through education, science and culture in order to further universal respect for justice, for the rule of law and for the human rights and fundamental freedoms which are affirmed for the peoples of the world, without distinction of race, sex, language or religion, by the Charter of the United Nations.
Based on this, UNESCO has the following functions as set out in Article 2 of its Constitution:
- Advance mutual understanding among peoples through mass communication and recommend international agreements to promote the free flow of ideas.
- Promote popular education and the spread of culture by:
- Collaborating with Members, upon request, to develop educational activities;
- Fostering collaboration to advance equal educational opportunity without distinction;
- Suggesting educational methods to prepare children for “the responsibilities of freedom”.
- Maintain, increase, and diffuse knowledge by:
- Conserving the world’s heritage (books, art, monuments) and recommending necessary international conventions;
- Encouraging intellectual cooperation, including the exchange of people and materials in education, science, and culture;
- Initiating cooperation to give all peoples access to published materials.
Since 1945, UNESCO has been the forum that has established a number of international conventions and declarations, including:
- The 1952 Copyright Convention, taking steps to protect copyrighted works internationally
- The 1972 World Heritage Convention, establishing a system of collective protection of the cultural and natural heritage
- The 1997 Declaration on the Human Genome and Human Rights, recognising (among other things) that cloning of human beings should not be permitted.
- The 2003 Convention on Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage, which seeks to protect heritage not in physical monuments or objects, but in the practices, knowledge, and skills that are passed down from generation to generation and form a core part of a community’s identity.
UNESCO is one of the Specialised Agencies of the United Nations, meaning that it is an autonomous international organisation, but works within the wider UN System and has a formal relationship with the UN. A chart produced by the UN (PDF) outlines the wider UN system and its multiple agencies,
Like other UN agencies, UNESCO coordinates its work with the wider UN system through several means, including the UN Chief Executives Board for Coordination (CEB).
FundingLike other UN Agencies, UNESCO is funded by assessed (mandatory) contributions by member states, and voluntary contributions by states, civil society, and other donors.
UNESCO regularly updates the status of its funding sources on its website.
In 2023, the UK provided £10.5 million from its aid budget to UNESCO, falling to £9.1 million in 2024 (funding also comes from the non-aid budget). In its business case for UK funding covering 2024 to 2026, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office says that UNESCO will help advance UK priorities on girls’ education, soft power, and international work on emerging technologies like AI.
The UK government’s in terms of performance, and the review judged that “several UN development agencies” had a “mixed” performance. The government said in 2018 it was working with UNESCO on a reform plan and later annual reviews of specific UK funding noted improvements in UNESCO management.
In July 2025, International Development Minister Baroness Chapman said that “underperforming multilateral organisations will face funding cuts in the future”. The Minister has not set out which multilateral organisations that this would apply to.
- See further, Commons Library Briefing: UK funding to UN agencies and potential reforms in 2025
The UK was a founding member of UNESCO and hosted its founding conference in London in 1945.
The UK originally ratified the UNESCO Constitution on 8 February 1946, with it coming into force on 4 November 1946.
Some political disagreements over UNESCO’s work and functioning led to the UK withdrawing from UNESCO in 1985. The UK had demanded several areas of change for UNESCO before it left, but ultimately continued with its withdrawal in 1985. One of the main drivers of the UK’s withdrawal is considered to be a report by the International Commission for the Study of Communication Problems, established under UNESCO. The report of the Commission, “Many voices, One World” (PDF), proposed far-reaching changes to media and communications within states, with the aim of creating a more equitable and balanced flow of information. However, in the context of the Cold War, some of the changes were considered an attack on the freedom of the press by the UK and the US, as well as being labelled “communist rhetoric” by the then Minister for Overseas Development in 1985, ultimately leading to their withdrawal from UNESCO.
The UK returned to UNESCO in 1997 (PDF).
The US also rejoined, in 2003, under President Bush.
However, President Donald Trump withdrew the US from UNESCO for the second time in 2017 over the US’s perception that there was a need for “fundamental reform” and “continuing anti-Israel bias.” Israel also withdrew at the same time.
While the US returned in 2023 under President Biden, President Trump has started the process of withdrawal for the third time in July 2025.
This time, the US argued that UNESCO was pursuing “divisive social and cultural causes”, and criticised UNESCO’s support for the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals as “globalist, ideological agenda for international development at odds with our America First foreign policy.” The US also criticised UNESCO’s decision to admit the State of Palestine as a Member State in 2011. The US’s withdrawal will formally take effect in December 2026.
UNESCO Director General Audrey Azoulay said that the US’s latest decision to withdraw was regrettable and “contradicts the fundamental principles of multilateralism”. Highlighting structural reforms to UNESCO and diversified funding streams, the Director General said that the US “will always be welcome.”