Research guides: Non-Governmental and Inter-Governmental Organizations: Inter-Governmental Organizations (IGOs)

What are IGOs?

Inter-governmental organizations (IGOs) are public or governmental organizations established by a treaty or agreement. IGOs have a geographical or a subject focus. IGOs have international legal status and can enter into agreements with other IGOs or with states.

Documents published by IGOs include:

Publications describing IGOs work
Policy suggestions
Case studies
IGO and its member demographic and socio-economic statistics

IGO Directories

Europa World Plus
Provides access to the economic, political and geographic information and statistical data by country and a comprehensive listing of more than 2,000 international organizations.
International Organizations and Forums
A list of International Organizations and Forums from Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada.

Finding Publications

Access UN
The Readex United Nations Index provides access to current and retrospective United Nations documents and publications.

Many IGOs issue publications that may be of interest to the legal researcher: founding documents (treaties, charters, statutes), legal acts, proceedings and documents issued by the IGO's legislative body.

Council of Europe's Treaty Office
Includes the text of all Council of Europe treaties, their explanatory reports, the status of signatures and ratifications, the declarations and reservations made by States, as well as the notifications issued by the Treaty Office since 2005.
European Union Publications
FAO Corporate Document Repository
Fulltext electronic library of FAO publications and meeting documents and related publications from non-FAO sources. Topics covered include agriculture, economics and nutrition, fisheries, forestry.