How many regional commissions have been established by the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)?

Introduction / Context:
The Economic and Social Council of the United Nations, known as ECOSOC, coordinates various functional and regional bodies that deal with development, economics and social issues. Among these are regional commissions that focus on specific geographical areas. Knowing how many regional commissions exist is a standard general knowledge requirement for questions about the UN system.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The question is about the number of regional commissions established by ECOSOC.
• Options include 2, 3, 5, 1 and 4.
• We assume that the candidate is aware that each regional commission covers a major world region.
• Only one of the options matches the correct count.

Concept / Approach:
There are five regional commissions under ECOSOC, each dedicated to a major region: Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Western Asia. The approach is to recall or mentally list these commissions and count them. If you remember their full names or abbreviations, such as ECA, ESCAP, ECE, ECLAC and ESCWA, it becomes easy to reach the correct number.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: List the regional commissions. They are the Economic Commission for Africa, the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, the Economic Commission for Europe, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, and the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia. Step 2: Count these listed commissions. The total is five. Step 3: Compare this count with the answer choices. Only option C shows 5. Step 4: Therefore, the correct answer is 5.

Verification / Alternative check:
To verify, you can recall that the UN tries to cover every major region through a dedicated commission. Africa, Europe and Latin America each have one commission. Asia and the Pacific share one combined body, and Western Asia has another. This already suggests five regions and thus five commissions. Official UN documentation about ECOSOC also explicitly states that there are five regional commissions.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A, 2, is wrong because it would not allow for separate coverage of all major world regions.

Option B, 3, is wrong since three commissions would be insufficient to cover Africa, Europe, Asia and the Americas in a balanced way.

Option D, 1, is clearly wrong as there is more than one regional commission.

Option E, 4, is wrong because it would leave out one of the established regions, particularly Western Asia or Latin America and the Caribbean, which is not accurate.

Common Pitfalls:
Some candidates remember only three or four commissions and then guess. Others confuse regional commissions with other UN regional offices such as those of UNDP or WHO. To avoid such mistakes, it is useful to memorise the five specific names or at least the regions they represent: Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Western Asia.

Final Answer:
ECOSOC has established five regional commissions.