United Nations Day
Next: October 24, 2027
Nations, working together since 1945.
The story
Where it comes from
United Nations Day marks 24 October 1945, when the UN Charter came into force after it was ratified by most of its signatories, including the five permanent members of the Security Council. Representatives of 50 countries had drawn up the Charter in San Francisco earlier that year. In 1947 the General Assembly declared the anniversary United Nations Day, devoted to sharing the organisation's aims and achievements, and in 1971 it recommended that member states keep it as a public holiday.
How it's celebrated
UN offices, embassies and schools traditionally mark the day with meetings, discussions and exhibitions about the organisation's goals and work. Many people simply use it to learn how the UN promotes peace, human rights, healthcare and education, and to think about what countries can do together that none can do alone.
Did you know
- Malaysia, then the Federation of Malaya, joined the UN on 17 September 1957, and Singapore joined on 21 September 1965.
- The cornerstone of UN Headquarters in New York was laid on UN Day 1949, at an open-air meeting of the General Assembly.
- The UN has 193 member states; the newest, South Sudan, joined on 14 July 2011.
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