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Parties to the ICESCR: states parties in dark green; states which have signed but not ratified in light green, non-states parties in grey

The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) is a multilateral treaty adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on December 16, 1966, and in force from January 3, 1976. It commits states parties to work toward the granting of economic, social, and cultural rights (ESCR) to individuals.

It was introduced as a second generation human rights treaty developing some of the issues contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, at the same time as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).

Each party to the covenant undertook to implement the allocate the "maximum of its available resources" to the "full realization of the rights" recognized in the agreement. These rights are expansive--much more so than the ICCPR or even the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Some developed countries demanded that the positive rights and affirmative duties of the ICESCR be separated from the negative rights they more traditionally represented, so two Conventions were held.

Among the rights recognized by ICESCR are:

• Universal right to work in whatever occupation one wants, with "decent living," paid vacations, and paid holidays.
• Right to welfare, social security, and social insurance.
• Right to food, housing, clothing, and "the continuous improvement of living conditions"
• Right to health

As of July 2007, there were 157 states parties to the ICESCR. A further 4 states have also signed the treaty but have not ratified it. The states that are not states parties to the treaty are:

1. Andorra
2. Antigua and Barbuda
3. Bahamas
4. Bahrain
5. Belize^[1]
6. Bhutan
7. Botswana
8. Brunei
9. Comoros
10. Cuba
11. Fiji
12. Haiti
13. Kiribati
14. Malaysia
15. Marshall Islands
16. Micronesia
17. Mozambique
18. Myanmar (Burma)
19. Nauru
20. Pakistan^[2]
21. Palau
22. Papua New Guinea
23. Oman
24. Qatar
25. Saint Kitts and Nevis
26. Saint Lucia
27. Samoa
28. Saudi Arabia
29. Singapore
30. South Africa^[3]
31. Tonga
32. Tuvalu
33. United Arab Emirates
34. United States^[4]
35. Vanuatu
36. Vatican City

Although the Covenant has been widely adopted, the United States is one notable omission from the states parties. The US representative to the UN voted for the Covenant in 1966. However, it required the president's signature and the consent of two thirds of the Senate before being adopted by the US. Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford simply took no action on it. President Jimmy Carter eventually signed it, but the bill languished in the Senate. Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and George W. Bush opposed ratification. President Bill Clinton supported ratification, but sensing widespread opposition in Senate, did not push the matter.

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

• Text of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
• The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (which oversees the convention)

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