Development policy and international economic cooperation

Chapter I Economic and social questions

Development policy andinternational economic cooperation

In 2003, the world economy began to gain mo-mentum following more than two years of slug-gish growth. Although the war in Iraq and theoutbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome(SARS) in several countries caused some setbacksearly in the year, the global economy experienceda stronger-than-expected upturn in the secondhalf of the year, raising the overall rate of growthof world output to 2.5 per cent. Despite the im-proved global prospects, large imbalances re-mained, making it unlikely that most developingcountries would attain the rates of growth neces-sary for the achievement of the primary Millen-nium Development Goal (MDG), adopted by theGeneral Assembly in 2000, of halving by 2015 theproportion of the world’s people living in ex-treme poverty.

Eradicating poverty and achieving the otherMDGs continued to be a focus of the work of UNbodies in 2003. The Assembly emphasized the vi-tal role of the United Nations in promoting de-velopment and partnerships in order to meet thechallenges of globalization and to realize the keyMDGs of poverty reduction and sustainable devel-opment. The Assembly also discussed the on-going implementation of the first UnitedNations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty(1997-2006) and the preparations for the Interna-tional Year of Microcredit, 2005. The high-levelsegment of the Economic and Social Counciladopted a ministerial declaration aimed at pro-moting an integrated approach to rural develop-ment as a means for eradicating poverty andachieving sustainable development. The Councilalso endorsed the establishment of the WorldSolidarity Fund to eradicate poverty, which wasset up as a trust fund of the United Nations De-velopment Programme. In April, the Committeeof Experts on Public Administration addressedways to enhance the capacity of public adminis-tration for achieving the MDGs.

Follow-up to the 2002 World Summit on Sus-tainable Development, which reviewed progressin implementing Agenda 21, the action plan onsustainable development adopted by the 1992United Nations Conference on Environment andDevelopment, was also a priority. The Commis-sion on Sustainable Development, which was

charged with overseeing Summit follow-up, con-sidered its own future role in that regard, as wellas that of major groups. The Assembly reviewedplans by the United Nations Educational, Scien-tific and Cultural Organization for implement-ing the United Nations Decade of Education forSustainable Development (2005-2014).

The implications of science and new technolo-gies, especially information and communicationtechnologies (ICTs), for development remainedanother focus of UN deliberations during theyear. In December, the International Telecom-munication Union convened the first phase ofthe World Summit on the Information Society,which adopted the Declaration of Principles anda Plan of Action to build an inclusive informationsociety. The Assembly considered the role of bio-technology in promoting economic developmentand proposals for increasing global cybersecuritythrough the protection of critical informationinfrastructures. The Council welcomed the ori-entation of the UN ICT Task Force towards theuse of ICTs in the advancement of the MDGs. TheCommission on Science and Technology consid-ered technology development and capacity-building for competitiveness in a digital society,with particular emphasis on ICTs.

In addition, a variety of UN organs continuedefforts to improve the lives of the millions of peo-ple living in particularly vulnerable areas of theworld, including the least developed countries(LDCs), small island developing States (SIDS) andlandlocked developing countries. In April, theCommittee for Development Policy conductedthe triennial review of the list of officially desig-nated LDCs, adding one country to the list andrecommending two countries for future gradua-tion. In August, the International MinisterialConference on Transit Transport Cooperationadopted the Almaty Declaration and Programmeof Action, a global framework for addressing thespecial needs of landlocked developing countriesand their transit developing neighbours. Prepa-rations were under way for the comprehensivereview in 2004 of implementation of the Pro-gramme of Action for the Sustainable Develop-ment of SIDS, adopted at the global conference onthe subject in 1994.

Development policy and international economic cooperation 831

YUN03—3rd proofsMay 13 2005

International economic relations

Development and internationaleconomic cooperation

A number of UN bodies addressed develop-ment and international economic cooperationissues during 2003, including the General As-sembly and the Economic and Social Council.

The Assembly, by decision 58/528 of 17 De-cember, deferred consideration of the launchingof global negotiations on international economiccooperation for development and included theitem in the provisional agenda of its fifty-ninth(2004) session.

On 23 December, the Assembly took note ofthe reports of the Second (Economic and Finan-cial) Committee on its discussion of macro-economic policy questions [A/58/481 & Corr.1] (de-cision 58/544) and on sustainable developmentand international economic cooperation[A/58/483] (decision 58/548).

Economic and Social Council consideration.On 14 April, the Economic and Social Councilheld its sixth special high-level meeting with theBretton Woods institutions (the World BankGroup and the International Monetary Fund(IMF)) and the World Trade Organization (WTO)[A/58/77-E/2003/62 & Add.1,2]. It had before it aMarch note [E/2003/50] by the Secretary-Generalcontaining background information on in-creased coherence, coordination and coopera-tion of economic policy for the implementationof the Monterrey Consensus, adopted at the 2002International Conference on Financing for De-velopment [YUN 2002, p. 953] (see p. 987).

Globalization and interdependence

In response to resolution 57/274 [YUN 2002,p. 814], the Secretary-General submitted a 26 Sep-tember report on the role of the United Nationsin promoting development in the context of glob-alization and interdependence [A/58/394]. The re-port assessed the impact of globalization on therealization of the MDGs, adopted by the Millen-nium Summit in 2000 [YUN 2000, p. 51]. It also dis-cussed how to manage globalization so as tomaintain and translate the momentum createdby the consensus forged at the 2001 WTO Ministe-rial Meeting [YUN 2001, p. 1432], the 2002 Interna-tional Conference on Financing for Development[YUN 2002, p. 953] and the 2002 World Summit onSustainable Development [ibid., p. 821] into actionto achieve the MDGs. In discussing globalization,poverty reduction and sustainable development,the report called for UN system organizations to

undertake mutual reviews of the impact of theirwork on the MDGs. International financial insti-tutions and WTO should also be part of such eval-uation exercises. The Economic and Social Coun-cil and the UN System Chief Executives Boardfor Coordination (CEB) could contribute to thereviews. Also examined were the linkages be-tween international migration, financial flows,especially workers’ remittances, and trade; be-tween corruption, organized crime, trafficking,arms trade and terrorism and measures to reducetheir negative impact on growth and develop-ment; and between globalization of productionpatterns and environmental protection and sus-tainability.

The report concluded that Governments, in-ternational organizations, business institutions,and all civil society actors should take new stepsto ensure that the measures and policies theyadopted in areas such as finance, trade, scienceand technology, population and migration weresupportive of the MDGs and of the developingcountries’ integration into the world economy.The General Assembly had an important role toplay in maintaining the focus on ensuring thatthe MDGs and other development goals wereplaced at the centre of economic institutions andpolicies. It could also give guidance for continu-ing the international debate on the governanceof globalization following the conclusion of thework of the World Commission on the Social Di-mensions of Globalization, established by the In-ternational Labour Organization (ILO) in 2002[YUN 2002, p. 814].

GENERAL ASSEMBLY ACTION

On 23 December [meeting 78], the General As-sembly, on the recommendation of the SecondCommittee [A/58/490], adopted resolution 58/225without vote [agenda item 100].

Role of the United Nations in promotingdevelopment in the context of globalization

and interdependenceThe General Assembly,Recalling its resolutions 53/169 of 15 December

1998, 54/231 of 22 December 1999, 55/212 of 20 De-cember 2000, 56/209 of 21 December 2001 and 57/274of 20 December 2002 on the role of the United Nationsin promoting development in the context of globaliza-tion and interdependence,

Reaffirming the resolve expressed in the UnitedNations Millennium Declaration to ensure that global-ization becomes a positive force for the people of theentire world,

Recognizing that globalization and interdependenceare opening new opportunities and posing new chal-lenges through trade, investment and capital flowsand advances in technology, including informationtechnology, for the growth of the world economy, de-velopment and the improvement of living standards

832 Economic and social questions


around the world, within which some countries havemade progress in successfully benefiting from the op-portunities of globalization, while others have faceddifficulties in coping with its challenges,

Noting with concern that, notwithstanding the cur-rent improvement, global economic growth hasslipped since the adoption of the Millennium Declara-tion, with a negative impact on development prospectsfor developing countries,

Recognizing the importance of appropriate policyresponses at the national level by all countries to thechallenges of globalization, in particular by pursuingsound policies, stressing that such national policies canyield better results with international support andwith an enabling international economic environment,noting the need for support from the internationalcommunity for the efforts of the least developed coun-tries, in particular in improving their institutional andmanagement capacities, and recognizing that all coun-tries should pursue policies conducive to economicgrowth and to promoting a favourable global economicenvironment,

Noting with serious concern that a large number of de-veloping countries have not yet been able to benefitfully from the existing multilateral trading system, andunderlining the importance of promoting the integra-tion of developing countries into the world economy soas to enable them to take the fullest possible advantageof the trading opportunities arising from globalizationand liberalization,

Bearing in mind the commitment made at the FourthMinisterial Conference of the World Trade Organiza-tion, held at Doha from 9 to 14 November 2001, tomaintain the process of reform and the liberalizationof trade policies, thus ensuring that the system plays itsfull part in promoting recovery, growth and develop-ment, to reaffirm strongly the principles and objectivesset out in the Agreement Establishing the World TradeOrganization and to pledge to reject the use of protec-tionism and place development at the heart of theDoha work programme, ensuring that globalizationbenefits all and that the internationally agreed devel-opment goals, including those contained in the Millen-nium Declaration, are achieved,

Stressing that the process of reform for a strength-ened and stable international financial architectureshould be based on broad participation in a genuinemultilateral approach, involving all members of the in-ternational community, to ensure that the diverseneeds and interests of all countries are adequately rep-resented,

Underlining the urgent need to ensure the effectiveparticipation of all developing countries in the processof globalization, as an instrument for economic growthand poverty eradication,

Recognizing that all human rights are universal, indi-visible, interdependent and interrelated,

Noting with concern the increasing linkages betweencorrupt practices and the transfer of illicitly acquiredassets, money-laundering and other related organizedcrimes across national borders, and calling for betterinternational efforts to effectively address these globaltrends, including through effective economic andbanking regulations in all countries and the return ofillicitly acquired assets to the countries of origin, in ac-cordance with the United Nations Convention against

Corruption, and in this regard welcoming its adoptionby the General Assembly,

1. Takes note with appreciation of the report of theSecretary-General;

2. Reaffirms that the United Nations has a centralrole in promoting international cooperation for devel-opment and in promoting policy coherence on globaldevelopment issues, including in the context of global-ization and interdependence;

3. Reiterates that success in meeting the objectives ofdevelopment and poverty eradication depends, interalia, on good governance, both within individualcountries and at the international level, sound eco-nomic policies, solid democratic institutions that areresponsive to the needs of the people and improved in-frastructure, which are the basis for sustained growth,poverty eradication and employment creation, andthat transparency in financial, monetary and tradingsystems and commitment to an open, equitable, rule-based, predictable and non-discriminatory multilat-eral trading and financial system, which are equallyessential;

4. Stresses the need to address asymmetries in thecurrent global system, including those related to thevulnerability of countries to external shocks, the con-centration of technical innovation in industrializedcountries and the limited international mobility oflabour, as well as such issues as increasing the flow offoreign direct investment and enhancing the participa-tion of developing countries in the world trading andfinancial systems;

5. Welcomes the commitment by all countries to pro-mote national and global economic systems based onthe principles of justice, equity, democracy, participa-tion, transparency, accountability and inclusion, ascontained in the Monterrey Consensus of the Interna-tional Conference on Financing for Development;

6. Strongly urges the international community totake all necessary and appropriate measures, includingsupport for structural and macroeconomic reform,foreign direct investment, enhanced official develop-ment assistance, the search for a durable solution tothe external debt problem, market access, capacity-building and the dissemination of knowledge andtechnology, in order to achieve sustainable develop-ment and promote the participation in the globaleconomy of all African countries, as well as the leastdeveloped countries, the landlocked developing coun-tries and small island developing States;

7. Stresses that, in the increasingly globalizing inter-dependent world economy, a holistic approach to theinterconnected national, international and systematicchallenges of financing for development, namely, sus-tainable, gender-sensitive and people-centred develop-ment, is essential in order to open up opportunities forall and to ensure that resources are created and usedeffectively, and that solid and accountable institutionsare established at all levels;

8. Also stresses the special importance of creating anenabling international economic environment throughstrong cooperative efforts by all countries and institu-tions to promote equitable economic development in aworld economy that benefits all people, and in thatcontext invites developed countries, in particular themajor industrialized countries, which have significantweight in influencing world economic growth, when



formulating their macroeconomic policies, to take intoaccount whether the effects of those policies in termsof the external economic environment would be fa-vourable to growth and development;

9. Encourages all countries to consider, in the con-text of existing regional or subregional arrangements,reviewing the contribution of their national financial,trade, debt relief and other policies to the realizationof agreed development goals and commitments;

10. Reaffirms the significant importance of anopen, universal, equitable, rule-based, predictable,non-discriminatory and balanced multilateral tradingsystem in pursuit of sustained economic growth, pov-erty eradication and sustainable development, as setout in the United Nations Millennium Declaration;

11. Stresses the need to promote corporate responsi-bility and accountability, including through the fulldevelopment and effective implementation of inter-governmental agreements and measures, interna-tional initiatives and public-private partnerships andappropriate national regulations, and to support con-tinuous improvement in corporate practices in allcountries;

12. Invites all countries, as well as the UnitedNations, the Bretton Woods institutions and the WorldTrade Organization, within their respective mandates,to continue to strengthen interactions with civil society,including the private sector and non-governmentalorganizations, as important partners in development;

13. Expresses its concern about the setback at the FifthMinisterial Conference of the World Trade Organiza-tion, held in Cancún, Mexico, from 10 to 14 September2003, and stresses the importance of redoublingefforts in working towards the successful, timely anddevelopment-oriented conclusion of the Doha negotia-tions no later than 1 January 2005, as set out in theMinisterial Declaration of the Fourth Ministerial Con-ference of the World Trade Organization (“Doha Min-isterial Declaration”);

14. Notes the importance of advancing currentefforts to reform the international financial architec-ture, as envisaged in the Monterrey Consensus, em-phasizes that those efforts need to include the effectiveparticipation of developing countries and countrieswith economies in transition, and in this regard en-courages the International Monetary Fund and theWorld Bank to continue examining the issues of thevoice and effective participation of those countries, asprovided for in the communiqués of the InternationalMonetary and Financial Committee and the Develop-ment Committee at their last meetings, held in Dubai,United Arab Emirates, on 21 and 22 September 2003,and looks forward to the consideration of a road mapon the issue at their next meeting in April 2004;

15. Underlines the importance, for the improved ac-cess of developing countries to international financialmarkets, of considering counter-cyclical macro-economic policies in the face of volatile capital flowsand of strengthening macroeconomic stability;

16. Also underlines the fact that, in addressing thelinkagesbetweenglobalizationandsustainabledevelop-ment, particular focus must be placed on identifyingand implementing policies and practices that advanceand strengthen the interdependent and mutually rein-forcing pillars of sustainable development, namely, eco-nomic development, social development and environ-

mental protection, taking into account the Rio princi-ples, including the principle of common but differenti-ated responsibilities, as set out in principle 7 of the RioDeclaration on Environment and Development, andbearing in mind that good governance, at both nationaland international levels, is essential for sustainable de-velopment and to facilitate the transfer of environmen-tally sound technologies on concessional and preferen-tial terms as mutually agreed;

17. Stresses the need to buildan inclusive informationsociety, which is intrinsically global in nature, and thattherefore national efforts need to be supported by effec-tive internationalandregional cooperationamongGov-ernments, the private sector, civil society and otherstakeholders, including the international financial in-stitutions, in order, inter alia, to assist in bridging thedigital divide, promoting access to information andcommunication technologies, creating digital opportu-nities and harnessing the potential of information andcommunication technologies for development, and in-vites the World Summit on the Information Society toencourage all stakeholders in this regard;

18. Reiterates the need to address the specific con-cerns and needs of the least developed countries andsmall island developing States, and in this regard callsupon the least developed countries and their develop-ment partners, including multilateral financial institu-tions, to continue to implement expeditiously the Pro-gramme of Action for the Least Developed Countriesfor the Decade 2001-2010 and to adopt further meas-ures to effectively integrate the least developed coun-tries into the global economy and the multilateral trad-ing system;

19. Welcomes the Almaty Programme of Action,adopted at the International Ministerial Conference ofLandlocked and Transit Developing Countries andDonor Countries and International Financial and De-velopment Institutions on Transit Transport Coopera-tion, held in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on 28 and 29 August2003, which addresses the special needs of landlockeddeveloping countries within a new global frameworkfor transit transport cooperation for landlocked andtransit developing countries, and calls upon all stake-holders fully and effectively to implement the Pro-gramme of Action;

20. Emphasizes the importance of recognizing andaddressing the specific concerns of countries witheconomies in transition so as to help them to benefitfrom globalization, with a view to their full integrationinto the world economy;

21. Invites all relevant agencies of the UnitedNations system, through, inter alia, the UnitedNations System Chief Executives Board for Coordina-tion, within existing resources, to review the impact ofits work on the achievement of the internationallyagreed development goals, including those containedin the Millennium Declaration, and to focus its reportto the Economic and Social Council on progress madein this regard;

22. Stresses the need for the United Nations systemto continue to address the social dimension of global-ization, encourages in that regard the work of the In-ternational Labour Organization on the social dimen-sion of globalization, and takes note of the ongoingwork of its World Commission on the Social Dimen-sions of Globalization;



23. Also stresses the importance of migration as aphenomenon accompanying increased globalization,including its impact on economies, and underlinesfurther the need for greater coordination and co-operation among countries as well as relevant regionaland international organizations;

24. Requests the Secretary-General to submit to theGeneral Assembly at its fifty-ninth session a report onglobalization and interdependence, in the context ofthe present resolution, which should focus on ways toforge greater coherence in order to advance the inter-nationally agreed development goals, including thosecontained in the Millennium Declaration;

25. Decides to include in the provisional agenda ofits fifty-ninth session the item entitled “Globalizationand interdependence”.

Development through partnershipCommission for Social Development action.

In February, the Commission for Social Develop-ment [E/2003/26] (see p. 1099), as part of its con-sideration of its priority theme, “National and in-ternational cooperation for social development”,discussed the topic of forging partnerships forsocial development. It recommended for adop-tion by the Economic and Social Council a set ofagreed conclusions calling for renewed and effec-tive partnerships between developed and devel-oping countries and countries with economies intransition, and among all relevant actors, toachieve the internationally agreed social develop-ment objectives and commitments. The Council,by decision 2003/15 of 21 July, endorsed theCommission’s conclusions on partnerships (seep. 1100).

Commission on Sustainable Developmentaction. The Commission on Sustainable Devel-opment, in April/May [E/2003/29] (see p. 840),discussed the issue of partnership initiatives onthe basis of proposals contained in the Secretary-General’s February report on the follow-up to theWorld Summit on Sustainable Development andthe future role of the Commission on SustainableDevelopment: the implementation track [E/CN.17/2003/2]. It proposed criteria and guidelines forthe development of partnerships in the contextof the World Summit on Sustainable Develop-ment process and its follow-up, which wereadopted by the Economic and Social Council inresolution 2003/61 of 25 July (see p. 842).

Private sector partnershipsIn response to General Assembly resolution

56/76 [YUN 2001, p. 744], the Secretary-Generalsubmitted an 18 August report on enhanced co-operation between the United Nations and allrelevant partners, in particular the private sector[A/58/227]. The report reviewed recent develop-ments, including the World Summit on Sustain-

able Development [YUN 2002, p. 821] and the Inter-national Conference on Financing for Develop-ment [ibid., p. 953], to illustrate the variety of part-nership arrangements between UN entities andthe non-State sector, and attempted to derivelessons and formulate proposals for meeting thechallenges ahead. It noted that, in recent years,partnerships between the United Nations andnon-State actors—including businesses, founda-tions and other private sector organizations—hadplayed an increasingly important role and wereconsidered an important tool to complement theOrganization’s efforts to achieve UN goals andobjectives, including the MDGs. At the same time,such partnerships contributed to the Organiza-tion’s renewal by introducing new methods ofwork. Partnerships took many forms, rangingfrom time-bound project partnerships involvinga small number of actors to global initiatives in-volving a multitude of actors. They were an inte-gral part of the work of many UN organizations,especially those with on-the-ground capacities todeliver. UN organizations were still learning howbest to utilize the potential benefits of partner-ships and were learning from experience gainedso far. Among the lessons learned were thatsuccessful partnerships had to prove their worthin a practical manner by achieving concreteresults and that they needed to make goodbusiness sense.

However, to exploit fully the potential contri-bution that partnerships could make to the Orga-nization’s work, a more coherent and systematicapproach to developing and supporting themacross the UN system was needed. Such an ap-proach could include providing stronger incen-tives for their development, sharing best practicesmore systematically, developing a stronger skillbase and creating more robust processes for re-porting and accountability. The new UN Part-nership Office, which would bring under oneumbrella the Global Compact Office and the UNFund for International Partnerships (UNFIP),would be well placed to build on lessons learnedthus far, enhance quality assurance and providea more solid institutional framework in supportof new and promising partnership initiatives. Itwould also identify strategies for ensuring a moresystematic and coordinated approach to develop-ing effective cooperation with non-State actorsand consider the political issues raised by theOrganization’s increased use of partnership ap-proaches as a modality for delivering its goals.


On 19 December [meeting 76], the General As-sembly adopted resolution 58/129 [draft: A/58/L.51& Add.1] without vote [agenda item 46].



Towards global partnershipsThe General Assembly,Recalling its resolutions 55/215 of 21 December 2000

and 56/76 of 11 December 2001,Reaffirming the vital role of the United Nations, in

particular the General Assembly, in the promotion ofpartnerships in the context of globalization,

Underlining the intergovernmental nature of theUnited Nations,

Reaffirming its resolve to create an environment, at thenational and global levels alike, that is conducive tosustainable development and the elimination of pov-erty,

Recalling the objectives formulated in the UnitedNations Millennium Declaration, particularly in re-gard to developing partnerships through the provisionof greater opportunities to the private sector, non-governmental organizations and civil society in gen-eral so as to enable them to contribute to the realiza-tion of the goals and programmes of the Organization,in particular in the pursuit of development and theeradication of poverty,

Underlining the importance of the contribution ofthe private sector, non-governmental organizationsand civil society in general to the implementation ofthe outcomes of United Nations conferences in theeconomic, social and related fields,

Recalling the central role and responsibility of Gov-ernments in national and international policy-making,

Stressing that efforts to meet the challenges of glob-alization could benefit from enhanced cooperationbetween the United Nations and all relevant partners,in particular the private sector, in order to ensure thatglobalization becomes a positive force for all,

Underlining the fact that cooperation between theUnited Nations and all relevant partners, in particularthe private sector, shall serve the purposes and princi-ples embodied in the Charter of the United Nationsand make concrete contributions to the realization ofthe goals contained in the Millennium Declaration andin the outcomes of major United Nations conferencesand summits and their reviews, in particular in thearea of development and the eradication of poverty,and shall be undertaken in a manner that maintainsthe integrity, impartiality and independence of theOrganization,

Emphasizing that all relevant partners, in particularthe private sector, can contribute in several ways to ad-dressing the obstacles confronted by developing coun-tries in mobilizing the resources needed to financetheir sustainable development, and to the realizationof the development goals of the United Nationsthrough, inter alia, financial resources, access to tech-nology, management expertise, and support for pro-grammes, including through the reduced pricing ofdrugs, where appropriate, for the prevention, care andtreatment of HIV/AIDS and other diseases,

Encouraging the private sector to engage as reliableand consistent partners in the development processand to take into account not only the economic and fi-nancial, but also the developmental, social, humanrights, gender and environmental implications of theirundertakings and, in general, towards accepting andimplementing the principle of good corporate citizen-ship, that is, bringing social values and responsibilitiesto bear on a conduct and policy premised on profit in-

centives, in conformity with national laws and regula-tions,

Recalling that the International Conference on Fi-nancing for Development welcomed all efforts to en-courage good corporate citizenship and noted the ini-tiative undertaken in the United Nations to promoteglobal partnerships,

Noting that the World Summit on Sustainable Devel-opment, in order to promote the effective implementa-tion of Agenda 21 at the international level, encour-aged partnership initiatives for implementation by allrelevant stakeholders to support the outcome of theSummit,

Also noting that the Economic and Social Council, inits resolution 2003/61 of 25 July 2003, reiterated, uponthe recommendation of the Commission on Sustain-able Development at its eleventh session, that part-nerships for sustainable development, as voluntarymulti-stakeholder initiatives, contribute to the imple-mentation of Agenda 21 and the Plan of Implementa-tion of the World Summit on Sustainable Develop-ment (“Johannesburg Plan of Implementation”),

Further noting that the Economic and Social Council,in its resolution 2003/15 of 21 July 2003, endorsed theconclusion adopted by the Commission for Social De-velopment at its forty-first session that, at the interna-tional level, recent initiatives towards building volun-tary partnerships for social development should beencouraged,

Taking note of the work of the United Nations onpartnerships, such as the Global Compact Initiativelaunched by the Secretary-General, the Informationand Communication Technologies Task Force and theUnited Nations Fund for International Partnerships,and welcoming the establishment of a multitude ofpartnerships at the field level, entered into by variousUnited Nations agencies, non-State partners andMember States, such as the United Nations Public-Private Alliance for Rural Development,

Stressing that partnerships should focus on theachievement of concrete results,

1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General;2. Stresses that the principles and approaches that

govern such partnerships should be built on the firmfoundation of United Nations purposes and princi-ples, as set out in the Charter of the United Nations,and invites the United Nations system to continue toadhere to a common and systematic approach to part-nership which, without imposing undue rigidity inpartnership agreements, includes the following princi-ples: common purpose, transparency, bestowing nounfair advantages upon any partner of the UnitedNations, mutual benefit and mutual respect, accounta-bility, respect for the modalities of the United Nations,striving for balanced representation of relevant part-ners from developed and developing countries andcountries with economies in transition, sectoral andgeographic balance, and not compromising the inde-pendence and neutrality of the United Nations systemin general and the agencies in particular;

3. Encourages the relevant United Nations bodiesand agencies, and invites the Bretton Woods institu-tions, as well as the World Trade Organization, to con-tinue to explore possibilities of enhancing the use ofpartnerships to better implement their goals and pro-grammes, in particular in the pursuit of development



and the eradication of poverty, bearing in mind the dif-ferent mandates, modes of operation and objectives ofthe bodies and agencies, as well as the particular rolesof the non-State partners involved;

4. Recalls that the Johannesburg Plan of Imple-mentation designated the Commission on SustainableDevelopment to serve as a focal point for discussionson partnerships that promote sustainable develop-ment, and in this context reaffirms the criteria andguidelines for partnerships in the context of the WorldSummit on Sustainable Development process and itsfollow-up, as set out by the Economic and Social Coun-cil in its resolution 2003/61;

5. Stresses the importance of the contribution of vol-untary partnerships to the achievement of the interna-tionally agreed development goals, including thosecontained in the United Nations Millennium Declara-tion, while reiterating that they are a complement tobut not intended to substitute for the commitmentsmade by Governments with a view to achieving thesegoals;

6. Also stresses that partnerships should be consis-tent with national laws, national development strate-gies and plans, as well as the priorities of countrieswhere their implementation takes place, bearing inmind the relevant guidance provided by Governments;

7. Calls upon all bodies within the United Nationssystem that engage in partnerships to ensure the integ-rity and independence of the Organization and to in-clude information on partnerships in their regular re-porting, as appropriate, on their web sites and throughother means;

8. Stresses that partnerships should be designed andimplemented in a transparent and accountable man-ner, and in that regard calls upon partners to provideto and exchange relevant information with Govern-ments, other stakeholders and the relevant UnitedNations agencies and bodies and other internationalorganizations in which they engage, in an appropriateway, including through reports, with particular atten-tion to the importance of sharing among partnershipsinformation on their practical experience;

9. Requests the Secretary-General to continue topromote the transparency and accountability of part-nerships;

10. Acknowledges that serving successful partner-ships requires specific skills on the part of the Secreta-riat staff, and calls upon the Secretary-General to con-tinue to support and further to develop such skills,through appropriate training and the sharing of bestpractices;

11. Recalls the relevant paragraph in its resolution57/300 of 20 December 2002;

12. Requests the Secretary-General to report to theGeneral Assembly at its sixtieth session on the imple-mentation of the present resolution.

Progress, challenges and constraintsto achieving major UN development goals

In response to General Assembly resolution57/246 [YUN 2002, p. 818], the Secretary-Generalsubmitted a 28 August report on progress to-wards and challenges and constraints to theachievement of the major development goals and

objectives adopted by the United Nations duringthe past decade [A/58/327]. The report noted that,since the adoption of the 1990 Declaration on In-ternational Economic Cooperation, in particularthe Revitalization of Economic Growth and De-velopment of the Developing Countries, in Gen-eral Assembly resolution S-18/3 [YUN 1990, p. 337],and the International Development Strategy forthe Fourth United Nations Development Decade(the 1990s), adopted by the Assembly in resolu-tion 45/199 [ibid., p. 343], the United Nations hadheld a series of global conferences that had con-tributed to the forging of a new global consensuson development goals and policies. Also, in 2000,the Assembly had adopted, by resolution 55/2[YUN 2000, p. 49], the Millennium Declaration, inwhich the international community resolved tomove towards the implementation of the com-mitments made in the conferences by establish-ing measurable targets, referred to as the MDGs[ibid., p. 51]. The report also addressed a selectionof challenges to and opportunities for develop-ment in the first decade of the new millennium.Among the positive forces for development, thereport identified opportunities offered by tech-nological progress for attaining food security andthe contribution of information and communica-tion technologies. Constraints to global develop-ment included the fight against HIV/AIDS, thechallenges arising from demographic trends, in-cluding ageing and social safety nets, youth un-employment and migrant workers, and the rever-sal of the peace dividend due to increasing globalmilitary spending.

The report concluded that the focus of the in-ternational community’s development effortsshould be on implementation of the MDGs andthe goals of the global conferences, which pro-vided a concrete agenda for development in thenew millennium. However, the progress achievedin the first quarter of the current decade in al-most all fields was less than what was required toachieve all the development goals and targets es-tablished in recent years. Thus, extraordinaryefforts and measures were required by the inter-national community and Governments in allparts of the world to revitalize development.

On 23 December, by decision 58/549, the As-sembly took note of the report.

Coercive economic measures

In response to General Assembly resolution56/179 [YUN 2001, p. 746], the Secretary-Generalsubmitted an 11 September report [A/58/301]summarizing replies received from 10 Govern-ments in response to his request for informationon the issue of unilateral economic measures as a



means of political and economic coercion againstdeveloping countries.


On 23 December [meeting 78], the General As-sembly, on the recommendation of the SecondCommittee [A/58/481/Add.1], adopted resolution58/198 by recorded vote (125-1-37) [agenda item91 (a)].

Unilateral economic measures as a means ofpolitical and economic coercion against

developing countriesThe General Assembly,Recalling the relevant principles set forth in the

Charter of the United Nations,Reaffirming the Declaration on Principles of Inter-

national Law concerning Friendly Relations and Co-operation among States in accordance with the Char-ter of the United Nations, which states, inter alia, thatno State may use or encourage the use of unilateraleconomic, political or any other type of measures tocoerce another State in order to obtain from it the sub-ordination of the exercise of its sovereign rights,

Bearing in mind the general principles governingthe international trading system and trade policies fordevelopment contained in relevant resolutions, rulesand provisions of the United Nations and the WorldTrade Organization,

Recalling its resolutions 44/215 of 22 December1989, 46/210 of 20 December 1991, 48/168 of 21 De-cember 1993, 50/96 of 20 December 1995, 52/181 of 18December 1997, 54/200 of 22 December 1999 and56/179 of 21 December 2001,

Gravely concerned that the use of unilateral coerciveeconomic measures adversely affects the economy anddevelopment efforts of developing countries in partic-ular and has a general negative impact on interna-tional economic cooperation and on worldwide effortsto move towards a non-discriminatory and open multi-lateral trading system,

1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General;2. Urges the international community to adopt

urgent and effective measures to eliminate the use ofunilateral coercive economic measures against devel-oping countries that are not authorized by relevant or-gans of the United Nations or are inconsistent with theprinciples of international law as set forth in the Char-ter of the United Nations and that contravene the basicprinciples of the multilateral trading system;

3. Requests the Secretary-General to continue tomonitor the imposition of measures of this nature andto study the impact of such measures on the affectedcountries, including the impact on trade and develop-ment;

4. Also requests the Secretary-General to submit tothe General Assembly at its sixtieth session a report onthe implementation of the present resolution.RECORDED VOTE ON RESOLUTION 58/198:

In favour: Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Argen-tina, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados,Belarus, Belize, Benin, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam,Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central Afri-can Republic, Chile, China, Comoros, Congo, Costa Rica, Cuba, Demo-cratic People’s Republic of Korea, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominican Repub-lic, Ecuador, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, Ghana, Grenada,

Guatemala,Guinea,Guinea-Bissau,Guyana,Haiti, India, Indonesia, Iran,Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan,Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, LibyanArab Jamahiriya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania,Mauritius, Mexico, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar,Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Oman,Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines,Qatar, Romania, Russian Federation, Rwanda, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincentand the Grenadines, Samoa, Saudi Arabia, Serbia and Montenegro, Sey-chelles, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, Sri Lanka,Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Thailand,Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkmenistan,Uganda, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United Republic ofTanzania, Uruguay, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

Against: United States.Abstaining: Albania, Andorra, Australia, Austria, Bulgaria, Canada,

Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany,Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Israel, Japan, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Lux-embourg, Malta, Marshall Islands, Monaco, Norway, Portugal, Republicof Korea, Republic of Moldova, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain,Sweden, Switzerland, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Tur-key, Ukraine.

The Assembly, on 4 November, adopted reso-lution 58/7 on the necessity of ending the eco-nomic, commercial and financial embargo im-posed by the United States against Cuba (seep. 286).

Sustainable development

Follow-up to the WorldSummit on Sustainable Development

In 2003, several UN bodies, including the Gen-eral Assembly, the Economic and Social Counciland the Commission on Sustainable Develop-ment, addressed implementation of the out-comes of the 2002 World Summit on SustainableDevelopment [YUN 2002, p. 821], in particular theJohannesburg Declaration and the Plan of Im-plementation, which outlined actions and targetsfor stepping up implementation of Agenda 21—aprogramme of action for sustainable develop-ment worldwide, adopted at the 1992 UnitedNations Conference on Environment and Devel-opment (UNCED) [YUN 1992, p. 672]. The actionsand targets related to the five priority areas ofwater and sanitation, energy, health, agricultureand biodiversity (known as the WEHAB issues)and to new partnerships for sustainable develop-ment.

Commission on Sustainable Developmentconsideration. As the main body responsible forcoordinating and monitoring implementation ofthe Summit outcomes, the Commission on Sus-tainable Development, at its eleventh session(New York, 29 January, 28 April–9 May) [E/2003/29], discussed the Summit follow-up duringits high-level segment (28-30 April). A multi-stakeholder dialogue and five regional imple-mentation forums, held during the high-levelsegment, contributed to the deliberations. TheCommission had before it a 21 February report ofthe Secretary-General on follow-up to the World



Summit and the future role of the Commission:implementation track [E/CN.17/2003/2], which dis-cussed the outcomes of the Summit and their im-plications for follow-up at all levels, the futurerole of the Commission and the role of partner-ships in meeting the Summit’s objectives. TheSecretary-General stated that, in order to achievethe specific goals and time-bound targets con-tained in the Johannesburg Plan of Implementa-tion, the UN system, Governments and other ac-tors would have to significantly change theirpolicies, programmes and modalities of work.While the primary focus of implementation re-mained at the national level, UN agencies, fundsand programmes would assist Governments bysupporting national sustainable developmentstrategies. The United Nations DevelopmentGroup, led by the United Nations DevelopmentProgramme (UNDP), would play a major role inpromoting integration of the follow-up to theSummit and in ensuring that operational activi-ties were coordinated and focused on practical re-sults. At the regional level, the regional commis-sions and other regional organizations wouldneed to reorient their activities to pursue the goalof sustainable development more effectively. Atthe global level, the Plan of Implementation re-quired UN system–wide policy coherence andconsistency. It called for major changes in thework of the Commission on Sustainable Develop-ment, greater involvement of the Economic andSocial Council in sustainable development–related work and stronger linkages with thegoverning bodies of UN agencies, funds and pro-grammes. The Commission would have to inte-grate the cross-sectoral dimension of the varioussectoral issues and focus on the interrelationshipbetween them, devote more attention to review-ing implementation and suggesting measures toovercome obstacles and undertake implementa-tion reviews and policy discussions and negotia-tions in alternate years. The Commission’s meth-ods of work would therefore vary considerablyfor the two alternating sessions. Changes in themethods of work could include the redesign ofthe multi-stakeholder dialogues, creating a forumfor partnerships and regional implementationforums. The Commission’s post-Johannesburgprogramme of work needed to be linked moredirectly with practical implementation and pro-gress towards the agreed goals and targets. Theprogramme for the next decade should have theflexibility to allow the Commission to addressemerging challenges, which would requirechanging and modifying the programme of workover the years. The nature of the outcomes of theCommission was also expected to change, withdecisions being more specific, action-oriented

and focused, based on comprehensive and up-to-date reports on implementation. The Commis-sion could also provide a forum to nurture andfoster partnerships. The Secretary-General sub-mitted, in annexes to his report, specific propo-sals for meeting the new challenges through in-novations in the work of the Commission; aproposed matrix of issues on which the Commis-sion could focus; a proposed typical two-yearwork cycle of the Commission; proposed new or-ganizational arrangements; a flow chart of theCommission’s proposed two-year cycle; a flowchart of the Commission’s transition work cycle(2003–early 2005); and lessons learned throughmajor group participation in the Commissionand the Summit processes.

The Commission recommended to the Eco-nomic and Social Council for adoption a draftresolution on the future programme, organiza-tion and methods of work of the Commission(resolution 2003/61) (see p. 842).

Implementation activitiesReport of Secretary-General. In response to

General Assembly resolution 57/253 [YUN 2002,p. 825], the Secretary-General submitted an Au-gust report on activities undertaken in imple-mentation of Agenda 21, the Programme for theImplementation of Agenda 21 and the outcomesof the World Summit on Sustainable Develop-ment [A/58/210]. He provided an overview ofinitial actions taken by Governments, the UNsystem, intergovernmental bodies and majorgroups in follow-up to the World Summit andreviewed activities and proposals by variousstakeholders aimed at meeting Summit goals andtargets.

In his proposed 2004-2005 programme budget(see p. 1399), the Secretary-General had alignedthe activities of the United Nations with the pri-orities identified by the General Assembly, one ofwhich was the promotion of sustained economicgrowth and sustainable development. The fiveUN regional commissions were integrating theSummit outcomes with their ongoing work andreorienting relevant programme activities to-wards focused implementation. The EconomicCommission for Europe agreed to mainstreamthe dimensions of sustainable development intoall areas of its work (see p. 1016) and the othercommissions were taking steps to incorporate theSummit outcomes into their intergovernmentaland expert group meetings. The GoverningCouncil of the United Nations Environment Pro-gramme (UNEP) [A/58/25] (see p. 1036) had calledfor full and concrete implementation of the Sum-mit outcomes and agreed that UNEP should havean important role to play in helping countries to



develop policies and legislation to deal withenvironmental impacts associated with globaliza-tion.

A major international event was the Interna-tional Expert Meeting on the 10-Year Frameworkof Programmes for Sustainable Consumptionand Production (Marrakech, Morocco, 16-19June), organized by the UN Department of Eco-nomic and Social Affairs, in cooperation withUNEP, which agreed on the Marrakech Process onsustainable consumption and production.

The report noted that there was great enthusi-asm and dynamism in the follow-up to the Sum-mit and consensus on the sharper focus neededon implementation. An important thrust of im-plementation had been to identify obstacles andconstraints and to share lessons learned and bestpractices at all levels. The widely varied actionsand partnership initiatives being implemented atthe national, regional and international levelsdemonstrated the imperative of strengthened co-operation and coordination within and betweenorganizations of the UN system and other inter-national institutions. The Commission on Sus-tainable Development, as the high-level intergov-ernmental body on sustainable developmentwithin the UN system, provided an important fo-rum for reviewing progress in implementation,for sharing experiences and lessons learned inimplementation at the country, regional andglobal levels and for integrating such experiencesand lessons with policy review and guidance. Thereport concluded with several recommendationsfor General Assembly action.

CEB consideration. The UN System Chief Ex-ecutives Board for Coordination (CEB), at its firstregular session (Paris, 25-26 April) [CEB/2003/1],reviewed the deliberations of its High-levelCommittee on Programmes (HLCP) at its fifth ses-sion (Rome, 26-27 March) [CEB/2003/4] on the UNsystem’s follow-up to the World Summit on Sus-tainable Development. CEB asked HLCP to fur-ther elaborate its recommendations on the over-all approaches to the follow-up to the Summit inthe light of the Board’s observations and to focusits further work on the substance of Summitfollow-up. In that regard, CEB highlighted theneed for: coherence and consistency and stronglinkages among operational, regional and globallevels; country ownership of the follow-up pro-cess; coordination support for capacity-buildingand full use of existing country-level mecha-nisms; a focus on sustainability and productivity,and on natural resources as the engine for sus-tainable growth; greater attention to the regionaldimensions of the follow-up; and linking imple-mentation to the broader processes of integrated

follow-up to UN conferences and summits, par-ticularly the Millennium Summit.

At its second regular session (New York, 31October–1 November) [CEB/2003/2], CEB en-dorsed the conclusions of HLCP at its sixth session(Rome, 18-19 September) [CEB/2003/7] on inter-agency collaborative arrangements for the inte-grated follow-up to Summit outcomes in theareas of freshwater, water and sanitation, energy,oceans and coastal areas, and patterns of con-sumption and production. Executive heads askedthe Committee to take account of the multi-yearprogramme of work of the Commission on Sus-tainable Development (see p. 847) in framing itsfuture work programme on follow-up tothe World Summit. The Board requested HLCPto continue to monitor implementation of inter-agency arrangements for follow-up to the Summitto ensure policy and programme coherence.



Implementation of Agenda 21, the Programme forthe Further Implementation of Agenda 21 and the

outcomes of the World Summit onSustainable Development

The General Assembly,Recalling its resolutions 55/199 of 20 December

2000, 56/226 of 24 December 2001, 57/253 of 20 De-cember 2002 and 57/270 A and B of 20 December 2002and 23 June 2003, respectively,

Recalling also the Rio Declaration on Environmentand Development, Agenda 21, the Programme for theFurther Implementation of Agenda 21, the Johannes-burg Declaration on Sustainable Development and thePlan of Implementation of the World Summit on Sus-tainable Development (“Johannesburg Plan of Imple-mentation”),

Reaffirming the commitment to implement the Jo-hannesburg Plan of Implementation, including thetime-bound goals and targets, and other internation-ally agreed development goals, including those con-tained in the United Nations Millennium Declaration,

Expressing its satisfaction that the Commission on Sus-tainable Development, at its eleventh session, agreedon its new organization of work and multi-year pro-gramme of work, as well as new methods of workaimed at promoting and supporting implementationand the provision for the Commission to work in aseries of two-year action-oriented implementationcycles, alternating review and policy years,

Noting the adoption by the Commission, at its elev-enth session, of criteria and guidelines on partnershipinitiatives voluntarily undertaken by some Govern-ments, international organizations and major groups,announced at the World Summit on Sustainable Devel-opment and in the follow-up to the Summit, as en-dorsed by the Economic and Social Council,



Reaffirming the continuing need to ensure a balancebetween economic development, social developmentand environmental protection as interdependent andmutually reinforcing pillars of sustainable development,

Reaffirming also that poverty eradication, changingunsustainable patterns of production and consump-tion and protecting and managing the natural resourcebase of economic and social development are over-arching objectives of, and essential requirements for,sustainable development,

Noting the convening in Marrakech, Morocco, from16 to 19 June 2003, of an international expert meetingon a ten-year framework of programmes for sustain-able consumption and production,

Recognizing that good governance within eachcountry and at the international level is essential forsustainable development,

1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-Generalon the activities undertaken in implementation ofAgenda 21, the Programme for the Further Implemen-tation of Agenda 21 and the outcomes of the WorldSummit on Sustainable Development;

2. Reiterates that sustainable development is a keyelement of the overarching framework for UnitedNations activities, in particular for achieving the inter-nationally agreed development goals, including thosecontained in the United Nations Millennium Declara-tion and in the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation;

3. Calls upon Governments, all relevant interna-tional and regional organizations, the Economic andSocial Council, the United Nations funds and pro-grammes, the regional commissions and specializedagencies, the international financial institutions, theGlobal Environment Facility and other intergovern-mental organizations, in accordance with their respect-ive mandates, as well as major groups, to take action toensure the effective implementation of and follow-upto the commitments, programmes and time-bound tar-gets adopted at the Summit, and encourages them toreport on concrete progress in that regard;

4. Calls for the implementation of the commit-ments, programmes and time-bound targets adopted attheSummitand, tothatend,forthefulfilmentofthepro-visions relating to the means of implementation, as con-tained in the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation;

5. Requests the Secretary-General to strengthensystem-wide inter-agency cooperation and coordina-tion for the implementation of Agenda 21, the Pro-gramme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, and inthat regard to report on such inter-agency cooperationand coordination activities to the Commission on Sus-tainable Development and the Economic and SocialCouncil in 2004;

6. Welcomes the decision of the Commission at itseleventh session to invite the regional commissions, incollaboration with the secretariat of the Commission,to consider organizing regional implementation meet-ings in order to contribute to the work of the Commis-sion, and in this regard urges the regional commis-sions to take into account the relevant thematic clusterscontained in the Commission’s programme of workand to provide inputs as specified by the Commissionat its eleventh session;

7. Also welcomes the decision of the Commission atits eleventh session to invite other regional and sub-

regional bodies and institutions within and outside theUnited Nations system to contribute to the prepara-tions for the Commission’s review and policy sessionsand the intergovernmental preparatory meeting;

8. Requests the Secretary-General, in reporting tothe Commission at its twelfth session on the state of im-plementation of Agenda 21, the Programme for theFurther Implementation of Agenda 21 and the Johan-nesburg Plan of Implementation, on the basis of in-puts from all levels, as specified by the Commission atits eleventh session, to submit:

(a) One report on each of the issues of water, sanita-tion and human settlement, to be addressed in anintegrated manner during the session, which shouldcontain a detailed review of the progress of implemen-tation relating to those issues, taking into account, asappropriate, their interlinkages, while addressing thecross-cutting issues identified by the Commission at itseleventh session;

(b) A report on overall progress in the implementa-tion of Agenda 21, the Programme for the Further Im-plementation of Agenda 21 and the JohannesburgPlan of Implementation, reflecting:

(i) Cross-cutting issues identified by the Commis-sion at its eleventh session;

(ii) Progress made in the three dimensions of sus-tainable development and their integration;

(iii) Constraints, challenges, opportunities, bestpractices, information-sharing and lessons learned;

9. Invites the Bureau of the Commission at itstwelfth session to continue to recommend to the Com-mission the specific organizational modalities throughopen-ended and transparent consultations to be con-ducted in a timely manner, following the establishedUnited Nations rules of procedure, bearing in mindthat the activities during Commission meetings shouldprovide for balanced involvement of participants fromall regions, as well as for gender balance;

10. Decides to allocate the resources previously de-voted to the former ad hoc intersessional workinggroups of the Commission to support the participationof representatives of member States of the Commis-sion in one of their respective regional meetings ineach implementation cycle;

11. Invites donor countries to consider supportingthe participation of experts from developing countriesin the areas of water, sanitation and human settlementin the next review and policy sessions of the Commis-sion;

12. Decides that resources released by the termina-tion of the work of the Committee on Energy andNatural Resources for Development, whose work hasbeen transferred to the Commission, shall be used tosupport the work of the Commission;

13. Encourages Governments and organizations atall levels, as well as major groups, including the scien-tific community and educators, to undertake results-oriented initiatives and activities to support the workof the Commission and to promote and facilitate theimplementation of Agenda 21, the Programme for theFurther Implementation of Agenda 21 and the Johan-nesburg Plan of Implementation, including throughvoluntary multi-stakeholder partnership initiatives;

14. Encourages Governments to participate, at theappropriate level, through representatives of relevantdepartments and agencies responsible for water, sani-



tation and human settlement, in the next review andpolicy sessions of the Commission,

15. Requests the Secretariat to submit a summaryreport containing synthesized information on partner-ships to the Commission at its twelfth session, in ac-cordance with its programme and organization ofwork, noting the particular relevance of such reportsin review years, with a view to sharing lessons learnedand best practices and identifying and addressingproblems, gaps and constraints in the implementationof Agenda 21, the Programme for the Further Imple-mentation of Agenda 21 and the Johannesburg Plan ofImplementation;

16. Requests the Commission, in accordance withGeneral Assembly resolution 47/191 of 22 December1992 and as specified by the Commission at its eleventhsession, to examine progress made in the cross-cuttingissues in the relevant thematic clusters, utilizing inputsfrom all levels;

17. Requests the Economic and Social Council to im-plement the provisions of the Johannesburg Plan ofImplementation relevant to its mandate, in particularto promote the implementation of Agenda 21 bystrengthening system-wide coordination;

18. Urges the Secretariat, in the preparation of thereports of the Secretary-General referred to in para-graph 8 above, to take due account of national reports;

19. Decides to include in the provisional agenda ofits fifty-ninth session the item entitled “Implementa-tion of Agenda 21, the Programme for the Further Im-plementation of Agenda 21 and the outcomes of theWorld Summit on Sustainable Development”, and re-quests theSecretary-General, at that session, to submit areportontheimplementationofthepresentresolution.

Commission on Sustainable Development

The Commission on Sustainable Developmentheld an organizational session on 27 January andthe second part of its eleventh session in NewYork from 28 April to 9 May [E/2003/29]. The ses-sion’s high-level segment focused on the Com-mission’s future role in the context of follow-upto the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Devel-opment (see p. 838) and included three interac-tive high-level round tables and five regionalimplementation forums. A multi-stakeholder di-alogue addressed the role of major groups in re-lation to the future work of the Commission andimplementation of the Summit outcomes.

The Commission recommended to the Eco-nomic and Social Council for adoption two draftresolutions: one on the Commission’s future pro-gramme, organization and working methods (seebelow) and the other on preparations for an in-ternational meeting to review implementation ofthe Programme of Action for the Sustainable De-velopment of Small Island Developing States(SIDS) (see p. 871). It also recommended to theCouncil for adoption a decision on the report ofthe eleventh session and the provisional agendafor the twelfth. The Commission adopted a deci-sion [dec. 11/1] recommending Council consider-

ation of the status of non-governmental organi-zations (NGOs) that were accredited to the WorldSummit so that the Commission could benefitfrom their contributions, and another decision[dec. 11/2] asking the Council to consider the termof the Commission’s Bureau for future sessions,taking into account the Commission’s two-yearwork cycle.

The Commission had before it the report ofthe Secretary-General on the follow-up to theWorld Summit on Sustainable Development andthe future role of the Commission (see p. 838); a7 February letter from Austria [E/CN.17/2003/4],transmitting the executive summary of the thirdmeeting of the Global Forum on SustainableEnergy (Graz, Austria, 27-29 November 2002);proposed revisions to subprogramme 4, Sustain-able development, of programme 7, Economicand social affairs, of the medium-term plan for2002-2005 [E/CN.17/2003/4]; and the draft pro-gramme of work for the UN Division for Sustain-able Development for the 2004-2005 biennium[E/CN.17/2003/5].

ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL ACTION

On 25 July [meeting 49], the Economic and SocialCouncil, on the recommendation of the Commis-sion on Sustainable Development [E/2003/29],adopted resolution 2003/61 without vote [agendaitem 13 (a)].

Future programme, organization andmethods of work of the

Commission on Sustainable DevelopmentThe Economic and Social Council,Recalling the Rio Declaration on Environment and

Development, Agenda 21 and the Programme for theFurther Implementation of Agenda 21,

Recalling also the Johannesburg Declaration on Sus-tainable Development and the Plan of Implementationof the World Summit on Sustainable Development(“Johannesburg Plan of Implementation”), adopted atthe World Summit,

Reaffirming in that regard the commitment toachieving the internationally agreed developmentgoals, including those contained in the United NationsMillennium Declaration and in the outcomes of themajor United Nations conferences held and interna-tional agreements made since 1992,

Recalling that the Johannesburg Plan of Implemen-tation will build further on the achievements madesince the United Nations Conference on Environmentand Development and that the Plan expedites the reali-zation of the remaining goals; to that end, committingitself to undertaking concrete actions and measures atall levels and to enhancing international cooperation,taking into account the Rio principles, including, interalia, the principle of common but differentiated re-sponsibilities as set out in principle 7 of the Rio Decla-ration, efforts that will also promote the integration ofthe three components of sustainable development—economic development, social development and envi-



ronmental protection—as interdependent and mutu-ally reinforcing pillars; and recalling that povertyeradication, changing unsustainable patterns of pro-duction and consumption, and protecting and manag-ing the natural resource base of economic and socialdevelopment are overarching objectives of, and essen-tial requirements for, sustainable development,

Reaffirming that the Commission on Sustainable De-velopment should continue to be the high-level com-mission responsible for sustainable development withinthe United Nations system,

Reaffirming also the mandate of the Commission onSustainable Development as stipulated in Agenda 21,General Assembly resolution 47/191 of 22 December1992 and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation,

Taking into account General Assembly resolution57/253 of 20 December 2002,

Having considered the report of the Commission onSustainable Development on its eleventh session,

Future organization of work of the Commission1. Decides that the organization of work of the Com-

mission on Sustainable Development should contrib-ute to advancing the implementation of Agenda 21,the Programme for the Further Implementation ofAgenda 21 and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementa-tion at all levels;

2. Also decides that in order to fulfil its mandate thework of the Commission will be organized in a series oftwo-year action-oriented implementation cycles, whichwill include a review session and a policy session. Thecycles will function as follows:

(a) The review sessions of the Commission, to beheld in April/May for a period of two to three weeks inthe first year of the cycle, will undertake an evaluationof progress in implementing Agenda 21, the Pro-gramme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, whilefocusing on identifying constraints and obstacles inthe process of implementation with regard to the se-lected thematic cluster of issues for the cycle;

(b) The review sessions will include a high-level seg-ment, an exchange of regional experiences, dialogueswith experts, including scientific experts, and sharingof bestpracticesand lessons learned,withaview to facil-itating implementation, as well as capacity-buildingactivities, suchas learningcentresandpartnershipfairs;

(c) The review sessions will undertake the above-mentioned evaluation on the basis of:

(i) The reports of the Secretary-General on thestate of implementation, which should reflectoverall progress in the implementation ofAgenda 21, the Programme for the Further Im-plementation of Agenda 21 and the Johannes-burg Plan of Implementation, based on infor-mation provided in particular in countries’reports and in reports by United Nations organ-izations and bodies as identified in subpara-graph (ii) below, and on information from re-gions and subregions, as appropriate, as well asmajor groups. In addition, the reports of theSecretary-General on the state of implementa-tion should contain a detailed review of progressin implementation in the selected thematic clus-ter of issues for the cycle at all levels, and should

also reflect new challenges and opportunitiesrelated to the implementation of Agenda 21;

(ii) The contributions of United Nations agencies,programmes and funds, the Global Environ-ment Facility and international financial andtrade institutions;

(iii) The outcomes of regional and subregionalmeetings and activities, as appropriate;

(iv) The contributions of major groups, includingscientific experts, as well as educators, taking intoaccount paragraphs 139 (g) and 149 (c) and (d) ofthe Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, ontheir results-oriented activities concerning theimplementation of Agenda 21, the Programmefor the Further Implementation of Agenda 21and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation;

(d) The review session evaluation should enable animproved understanding of priority concerns in theimplementation of the selected thematic cluster ofissues and facilitate an effective policy discussion in thecourse of the policy year with a view to strengtheningimplementation in those areas;

(e) Theoutcomeofthereviewsessionwillbeareport,including a chairperson’s summary, identifying con-straints and obstacles and possible approaches and bestpractices for the implementation of Agenda 21, the Pro-gramme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation;

(f) In the policy year, the Commission will convenean intergovernmental preparatory meeting for oneweek in New York in February/March to discuss policyoptions and possible actions to address the constraintsand obstacles in the process of implementation identi-fied during the review year;

(g) The discussions of the intergovernmental pre-paratory meeting will be based on the outcome of thereview session, reports by the Secretary-General as wellas other relevant inputs. Based on those discussions,the Chair will prepare a draft negotiating documentfor consideration at the policy session;

(h) Thepolicy sessions of theCommission, tobeheldin April/May of the second year of the cycle, will takepolicy decisions on practical measures and options toexpedite implementation in the selected thematic clus-ter of issues, taking account of the discussions of the in-tergovernmental preparatory meeting, the reports ofthe Secretary-General and other relevant inputs;

(i) The review sessions and the policy sessionsshould mobilize further action by all implementationactors to overcome obstacles and constraints in the im-plementation of Agenda 21, the Programme for theFurther Implementation of Agenda 21 and the Johan-nesburg Plan of Implementation, and should addressnew challenges and opportunities and share lessonslearned and best practices;

(j) Specific organizational modalities for Commis-sion meetings will be recommended by the Bureau ofthe Commission through open-ended and transparentconsultations conducted in a timely manner, followingthe established United Nations rules of procedure. Ac-tivities during Commission meetings should providefor balanced involvement of participants from all re-gions, as well as for gender balance;

3. Decides, in order to allow effective considerationof regional and subregional inputs throughout the im-plementation cycle and to ensure maximum flexibility:



(a) To invite the regional commissions, in collabora-tion with the secretariat of the Commission on Sustain-able Development, to consider organizing regionalimplementation meetings in order to contribute to thework of the Commission, in accordance with the rele-vantprovisionsof theJohannesburgPlanof Implemen-tation and in collaboration with other regional and sub-regional organizations and bodies, as appropriate, aswell as the regional offices of funds, programmes andinternational finance and trade institutions and otherorganizations and bodies of the United Nations system.Such meetings should preferably take place before thereview session of the Commission, and should:

(i) Contribute to advancing the implementation ofAgenda 21, the Programme for the Further Im-plementation of Agenda 21 and the Johannes-burg Plan of Implementation;

(ii) Focus on the thematic cluster of issues to be ad-dressed in the ongoing implementation cycle;

(iii) Provide input to the reports of the Secretary-General and the sessions of the Commission.Those inputs may include identification of ob-stacles and constraints, new challenges and op-portunities related to the implementation ofAgenda 21, the Programme for the Further Im-plementation of Agenda 21 and the Johannes-burg Plan of Implementation, and sharing oflessons learned and best practices;

(iv) Provide for contributions from major groups,taking into account paragraphs 139 (g) and149 (c) and (d) of the Johannesburg Plan of Im-plementation;

(b) To invite the General Assembly to consider us-ing the resources previously devoted to the former adhoc intersessional working groups of the Commissionto support the participation of representatives of mem-ber States of the Commission in one of their respectiveregional meetings in each implementation cycle;

(c) To invite the regional commissions to provideother inputs to the review and policy sessions of theCommission and the intergovernmental preparatorymeeting;

(d) To invite other regional and subregional bodiesand institutions within and outside the UnitedNations system to contribute to the preparations forthe review and policy sessions of the Commission andthe intergovernmental preparatory meeting;

4. Recommends to the General Assembly that re-sources released by the termination of the work of theCommittee on Energy and Natural Resources for De-velopment, whose work has been transferred to theCommission, could be used to support the work of theCommission;

5. Invites Governments, as well as organizations atall levels and major groups, to undertake results-oriented initiatives and activities that support the pro-gramme of work of the Commission and promote andfacilitate the implementation of Agenda 21, the Pro-gramme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation. Theresults of such initiatives and activities should be an in-put to the work of the Commission, as appropriate;

6. Decides that the results of the work of the Com-mission could also include the sharing of best practicesand lessons learned, capacity-building activities, ex-change of experiences concerning the implementation

of sustainable development strategies, as appropriate,and partnerships that support the implementation ofAgenda 21, the Programme for the Further Implemen-tation of Agenda 21 and the Johannesburg Plan of Im-plementation;

7. Also decides that Commission sessions shouldinclude high-level segments, involving ministers ortheir representatives with responsibilities relevant tothe thematic cluster of issues under discussion. Thesegments should be organized so that ministerial lead-ership, oversight and guidance in decision-makingconcerning the outcomes of the sessions would be en-hanced. High-level segments should include focuseddialogue, with the active participation of agencies,funds, programmes and other organizations of theUnited Nations system, international finance andtrade institutions, and representatives of major groupsat the appropriate level, taking into account para-graphs 139 (g) and 149 (c) and (d) of the JohannesburgPlan of Implementation;

8. Further decides to organize the periodic consider-ation of sustainable development themes in regard tothe implementation of Agenda 21, the Programme forthe Further Implementation of Agenda 21 and the Jo-hannesburg Plan of Implementation, including themeans of implementation, and invites the Commissionto submit recommendations to the Council with re-gard to such themes, which may include recommenda-tions to assist the Council with its work in the pursu-ance of paragraph 144 of the Johannesburg Planof Implementation, including its role in promotingsystem-wide coordination;

Multi-year programme of workof the Commission for the period after 2003

9. Decides to adopt the multi-year programme ofwork of the Commission for the period after 2003 asoutlined in the annex to the present resolution;

10. Also decides that the implementation of that pro-gramme of work will be guided by the following con-siderations:

(a) Thereviewandevaluationof theimplementationofactions, commitmentsandtargetswillbedealtwith inaccordance with the relevant provisions of Agenda 21,the Programme for the Further Implementation ofAgenda 21, the Johannesburg Plan of Implementationand the decisions of the Commission. The thematicclusters should be addressed in an integrated manner,taking into account the economic, social and environ-mental dimensions of sustainable development. Recog-nizing that all the issues identified in Agenda 21 and theJohannesburg Plan of Implementation are important,theimplementationprocessshouldcoverall those issuesequally, and the selection of some issues during a givencycle does not therefore diminish the importance of thecommitments undertaken with respect to the issues tobe considered during future cycles;

(b) Means of implementation, as identified inAgenda 21 and chapter X of the Johannesburg Plan ofImplementation, should be addressed in every cycleand for every relevant issue, action and commitment;

(c) Other cross-cutting issues, as referred to in theannex to the present resolution, should also be ad-dressed in every cycle;

(d) African and other regional initiatives, as well asinitiatives on small island developing States and least



developed countries, will be considered in every cyclewith respect to all relevant issues, actions and targets;

(e) The Commission should focus on those issueswhere it can add value to intergovernmental delibera-tions on cross-sectoral and sectoral issues, in accord-ance with the provisions of General Assembly resolu-tion 47/191, in particular its paragraphs 3 (h), 21 and 23thereof, as well as 139 (f) of the Johannesburg Plan ofImplementation;

(f) The Commission should take into account theoutcome of the work of the Ad Hoc Working Group ofthe General Assembly on the integrated and coordi-nated implementation of and follow-up to the out-comes of major United Nations conferences and sum-mits in the economic and social fields;

(g) The Commission may decide to incorporate newchallenges and opportunities related to implementa-tion into its multi-year programme of work;

* * *11. Emphasizes that in order to enable the Commis-

sion to perform the relevant requirements providedfor in chapter XI of the Johannesburg Plan of Imple-mentation, in particular paragraphs 145, 147 and 148thereof, an effective system of reporting is essential forreviewing, evaluating and monitoring progress in theimplementation of Agenda 21, the Programme for theFurther Implementation of Agenda 21 and the Johan-nesburg Plan of Implementation, sharing of lessonslearned and best practices, as well as identifying ac-tions taken, opportunities for and obstacles and con-straints to implementation;

12. Encourages countries to present, on a voluntarybasis, national reports, in particular to the review ses-sions of the Commission, focusing on concrete pro-gress in implementation, including achievements, con-straints, challenges and opportunities;

13. Encourages, with the purpose of implementingparagraphs 130 and 131 of the Johannesburg Plan ofImplementation and paragraph 3 of Commission deci-sion 9/4 of 27 April 2001, further work on indicatorsfor sustainable development by countries at the na-tional level, including integration of gender aspects,on a voluntary basis, in line with national conditionsand priorities, and requests the Secretary-General toconsider progress made in that regard, including fur-ther work on the above-mentioned indicators, in re-porting to the Commission, as appropriate;

14. Underscores the fact that reporting to the Com-mission should be guided by the following consider-ations:

(a) Reporting should reflect the overall progressmade on the three dimensions of sustainable develop-ment, focusing on the thematic cluster of issues for thecycle, and should include inputs from all levels, as ap-propriate, including the national, subregional, regionaland global levels, and drawing on those sources listedin subparagraphs (ii) to (iv) of paragraph 2 (c) above;

(b) The existing reporting systems should be usedto the fullest extent possible and will be expected toprovide the bulk of information required;

(c) Reporting should focus on concrete progress inimplementation, taking into account the three dimen-sions of sustainable development and their integration,and should include information-sharing, lessonslearned, progress made and best practices, identifying

actions taken, constraints, challenges and opportuni-ties;

(d) The effective use of indicators, as described inparagraph 13 above;

(e) Country reporting should provide informationon the status of national strategies for sustainabledevelopment;

15. Requests the secretariat of the Commission,working in close cooperation with other organizationsof the United Nations system:

(a) To take measures to streamline reporting inorder to avoid duplication and unnecessary burden onStates, including in accordance with the report of theSecretary-General on United Nations reform;

(b) To provide focused information that highlightsrelevant trends, constraints, challenges and emergingissues;

(c) To provide technical assistance to countries,upon their request, in national reporting through reg-ular and extrabudgetary sources;

16. Invites the secretariat of the Commission to im-prove national reporting guidelines and question-naires with the intention of making reporting more ef-ficient and less burdensome on countries and morefocused on implementation, bearing in mind the pro-visions of the present resolution, in consultation withGovernments, United Nations organizations and sec-retariats of multilateral environmental agreements,and to report to the Commission for its consideration;

* * *17. Invites, further toparagraph140of theJohannes-

burg Plan of Implementation, relevant United Nationsagencies, programmes and funds, the Global Environ-ment Facility, and international and regional financialand trade institutions, within theirmandates, to partici-pate actively in the work of the Commission in orderto inform it of their activities designed to further theimplementation of Agenda 21, the Programme for theFurther Implementation of Agenda 21 and the Johan-nesburgPlanofImplementation.Tothatend,it isessen-tial to undertake further measures:

(a) To promote stronger linkages between global,regional and country-level implementation measures;

(b) To strengthen coherence and collaborationwithin and between organizations;

(c) To identify areas where further implementationmeasuresmayberequiredinorder to improveprogress;

(d) To mobilize and increase the effective use ofresources from all sources for implementation;

(e) To enhance collaboration and coordinationin all areas, including information exchange andknowledge-sharing on all aspects of the implementa-tion of Agenda 21, the Programme for the Further Im-plementation of Agenda 21 and the JohannesburgPlan of Implementation;

18. Requests the Secretary-General, taking into ac-count the ongoing process of United Nations reformand utilizing the United Nations System Chief Execu-tives Board for Coordination, including through infor-mal collaborative efforts, to further promote system-wide inter-agency cooperation and coordination toenhance the implementation of Agenda 21, the Pro-gramme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, and to



report on its activities to the Economic and SocialCouncil and the Commission;

19. Also requests the Secretary-General, pursuant toGeneral Assembly resolution 57/253, to include in hisreport proposals outlining an integrated and compre-hensive response of the United Nations system to sus-tainable development, taking into account the work ofthe Ad Hoc Working Group of the General Assemblyon the integrated and coordinated implementationof and follow-up to the outcomes of major UnitedNations conferences and summits in the economic andsocial fields;

* * *20. Decides that contributions to the Commission

from major groups, including the scientific com-munity and educators, taking into account paragraphs139 (g) and 149 (c) and (d) of the Johannesburg Plan ofImplementation, while following the established rulesof procedure and practices of the Commission, shouldbe further enhanced, taking into account chapter XIof the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, throughsuch measures as:

(a) Strengthening major group involvement in theactivities of the Commission, including through theparticipation of representatives of major groups at theappropriate level in an interactive dialogue duringhigh-level segments, taking into account paragraphs139 (g) and 149 (c) and (d) of the Johannesburg Plan ofImplementation;

(b) Making multi-stakeholder dialogues moreaction- and implementation-oriented;

(c) Enhancingtheparticipationandeffective involve-ment of civil society and other relevant stakeholders inthe implementation of Agenda 21, the Programme forthe Further Implementation of Agenda 21 and the Jo-hannesburg Plan of Implementation, as well as promot-ing transparency and broad public participation;

(d) Striving for a better balance and better represen-tation of major groups from all regions at the Commis-sion;

(e) Active involvement in partnership-related andcapacity-building activities at all levels, including thepartnerships fairs and learning centres organized aspart of the meetings of the Commission;

* * *21. Recalls that the Johannesburg Plan of Imple-

mentation designated the Commission to serve as thefocal point for discussion on partnerships that pro-mote sustainable development, and reiterates thatpartnerships, as voluntary multi-stakeholder initia-tives, contribute to the implementation of intergovern-mental commitments contained in Agenda 21, the Pro-gramme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation. Theyare a complement to, but not intended to substitutefor, those commitments;

22. Stresses that partnerships in the context of theWorld Summit on Sustainable Development processand its follow-up should be developed and imple-mented in accordance with the following criteria andguidelines, taking note in that regard of the prelimi-nary work undertaken on partnerships during the pre-paratory process for the Summit, including the Baliguiding principles, and General Assembly resolution56/76 of 11 December 2001:

(a) Partnerships are voluntary initiatives under-taken by Governments and relevant stakeholders, suchas major groups and institutional stakeholders;

(b) Partnerships should contribute to the imple-mentation of Agenda 21, the Programme for the Fur-ther Implementation of Agenda 21 and the Johannes-burg Plan of Implementation, and should not divertresources from the commitments contained in thoseagreements;

(c) Partnerships are not intended to substitute com-mitments made by Governments but to supplementthe implementation of Agenda 21, the Programme forthe Further Implementation of Agenda 21 and theJohannesburg Plan of Implementation;

(d) Partnerships should add concrete value to theimplementation process and should be new, that is,they should not merely reflect existing arrangements;

(e) Partnerships should bear in mind the economic,social and environmental dimensions of sustainabledevelopment in their design and implementation;

(f) Partnerships should be based on predictable andsustained resources for their implementation, shouldinclude the mobilization of new resources and, whererelevant, should result in the transfer of technologyto, and capacity-building in, developing countries;

(g) It is desirable that partnerships have a sectoraland geographical balance;

(h) Partnerships should be designed and imple-mented in a transparent and accountable manner. Inthat regard, they should exchange relevant informationwith Governments and other relevant stakeholders;

(i) Partnerships should be publicly announced withthe intention of sharing the specific contribution thatthey make to the implementation of Agenda 21, the Pro-gramme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation;

(j) Partnerships should be consistent with nationallaws and national strategies for the implementation ofAgenda 21, the Programme for the Further Implemen-tation of Agenda 21 and the Johannesburg Plan of Im-plementation, as well as the priorities of countrieswhere their implementation takes place;

(k) The leading partner of a partnership initiativeshould inform the national focal point for sustainabledevelopment of the involved country or countriesabout the initiation and progress of the partnership,and all partners should bear in mind the guidance pro-vided by Governments;

(l) The involvement of international institutionsand United Nations funds, programmes and agenciesin partnerships should conform to intergovern-mentally agreed mandates and should not lead to thediversion to partnerships of resources otherwise allo-cated for their mandated programmes;

23. Decides that the provision of information andreporting by partnerships registered with the Com-mission should be transparent, participatory and cred-ible, taking into account the following elements:

(a) The registration of partnerships should be vol-untary and should be based on written reporting to theCommission, taking into account the provisions speci-fied above. Reporting by partnerships should focus ontheir contribution to the implementation of the goals,objectives and targets of Agenda 21, the Programmefor the Further Implementation of Agenda 21 and theJohannesburg Plan of Implementation;



(b) Partnerships should submit a regular report,preferably at least on a biennial basis;

(c) The Secretariat is requested to make informationavailable on partnerships, including their reports,through a database accessible to all interested parties,including through the Commission web site and othermeans;

(d) The Secretariat is requested to produce a sum-mary report containing synthesized information onpartnerships for consideration by the Commission, inaccordance with its programme and organization ofwork, noting the particular relevance of such reportsin review years;

(e) The Commission, during review years, shoulddiscuss the contribution of partnerships towards sup-

porting the implementation of Agenda 21, the Pro-gramme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation with aview to sharing lessons learned and best practices,identifying and addressing problems, gaps and con-straints, and providing further guidance, including onreporting, during policy years, as necessary;

24. Calls for activities aimed at strengthening part-nerships in the context of the World Summit on Sus-tainable Development process and its follow-up andfacilitating new ones, including through such initia-tives as partnerships fairs and learning centres, mind-ful of the importance of sharing information onexisting activities, particularly across the UnitedNations system.



Annex

Multi-year programme of work of the Commission on Sustainable Development

Cycle Thematic cluster Cross-cutting issues

2004/2005 • Water• Sanitation• Human settlements

Poverty eradication; changing unsustainable patterns of consumptionand production; protecting and managing the natural resource base ofeconomic and social development; sustainable development in a global-izing world; health and sustainable development; sustainable develop-ment of small island developing States; sustainable development forAfrica; other regional initiatives; means of implementation; institutionalframework for sustainable development; gender equality; education

2006/2007 • Energy for sustainable development• Industrial development• Air pollution/atmosphere• Climate change

Poverty eradication; changing unsustainable patterns of consumptionand production; protecting and managing the natural resource base ofeconomic and social development; sustainable development in a glob-alizing world; health and sustainable development; sustainable devel-opment of small island developing States; sustainable development forAfrica; other regional initiatives; means of implementation; institutionalframework for sustainable development; gender equality; education

2008/2009 • Agriculture• Rural development• Land• Drought• Desertification• Africa

Poverty eradication; changing unsustainable patterns of consumptionand production; protecting and managing the natural resource base ofeconomic and social development; sustainable development in a glob-alizing world; health and sustainable development; sustainable devel-opment of small island developing States; sustainable development forAfrica; other regional initiatives; means of implementation; institutionalframework for sustainable development; gender equality; education

2010/2011a • Transport• Chemicals• Waste management• Mining• Ten-year framework of programmes on

sustainable consumption and productionpatterns


2012/2013a • Forests• Biodiversity• Biotechnology• Tourism• Mountains


2014/2015a • Oceans and seas• Marine resources• Small island developing States• Disaster management and vulnerability


2016/2017 • Overall appraisal of the implementationof Agenda 21, the Programme for the FurtherImplementation of Agenda 21 and theJohannesburg Plan of Implementation

aThis thematic cluster will remain as part of the multi-year programme of work as scheduled, unless otherwise agreed by the Commission (applies toclusters for 2010/2011, 2012/2013 and 2014/2015).

The Council, by decision 2003/289 of 24 July,took note of the report of the Commission on itseleventh session and approved the provisionalagenda for the Commission’s twelfth (2004)session.

By decisions 2003/295 and 2003/296 of 25July, the Council took note of the Commission’sdecisions on the status of NGOs and the Bureau,respectively, and deferred further considerationof those matters to its resumed 2003 session. On19 December, by decision 2003/316, the Councildeferred consideration of those matters until its2004 organizational session.

Education for sustainable developmentIn 2003, in accordance with resolution 57/254

[YUN 2002, p. 826], by which the General Assemblyproclaimed the United Nations Decade of Edu-cation for Sustainable Development (2005-2014),the United Nations Educational, Scientific andCultural Organization (UNESCO)—lead agencyfor promoting the Decade—developed a frame-work for a draft international implementationscheme for the Decade. The framework, whichwas presented orally to the Assembly in October[A/C.2/58/SR.15], gave a time line for activities inrelation to the Decade up to December 2005 andoutlined processes, players, outputs and strate-gies from which the implementation schemewould be developed.



United Nations Decade of Educationfor Sustainable Development

The General Assembly,Recalling chapter 36 of Agenda 21, on promoting

education, public awareness and training, adopted atthe United Nations Conference on Environment andDevelopment, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 3 to14 June 1992,

Recalling also the relevant provisions of the Plan ofImplementation of the World Summit on SustainableDevelopment (“Johannesburg Plan of Implementa-tion”) on education, in particular its provision 124 (d)on the United Nations Decade of Education for Sus-tainable Development,

Recalling further its resolution 57/254 of 20 Decem-ber 2002,

Reaffirming the internationally agreed developmentgoal of achieving universal primary education, in par-ticular that by 2015 children everywhere, boys and girlsalike, will be able to complete a full course of primaryschooling,

Taking note of the report of the Director-General ofthe United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cul-

tural Organization on the United Nations Decade ofEducation for Sustainable Development,

Welcoming the fact that the Commission on Sustain-able Development, at its eleventh session, identifiededucation as one of the cross-cutting issues of its multi-year programme of work,

Emphasizing that education is an indispensable ele-ment for achieving sustainable development,

1. Takes note of the Framework for a Draft Inter-national Implementation Scheme prepared by theUnited Nations Educational, Scientific and CulturalOrganization, requests the United Nations Educa-tional, Scientific and Cultural Organization, as thedesignated lead agency, to promote the United NationsDecade of Education for Sustainable Development, incoordination with other relevant United Nations agen-cies and programmes, and further requests it to final-ize the international implementation scheme, whileclarifying its relationship with the existing educationalprocesses, in particular the Dakar Framework forAction adopted at the World Education Forum and theUnited Nations Literacy Decade, in consultation withGovernments, the United Nations and other relevantinternational organizations, non-governmental organ-izations and other stakeholders;

2. Reaffirms that education for sustainable devel-opment is critical for promoting sustainable develop-ment, and in this regard encourages Governments toconsider the inclusion of measures to implement theUnited Nations Decade of Education for SustainableDevelopment in their respective educational strategiesand national development plans by 2005;

3. Invites Governments to promote public aware-ness of and wider participation in the United NationsDecade of Education for Sustainable Development, in-cluding through cooperation and initiatives engagingcivil society and other relevant stakeholders;

4. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of itsfifty-ninth session, under the item entitled “Environ-ment and sustainable development”, a sub-item enti-tled “United Nations Decade of Education for Sustain-able Development”.

Eradication of poverty

UN Decade for Eradication of Poverty

In response to General Assembly resolution57/266 [YUN 2002, p. 828], the Secretary-Generalsubmitted a July report on the implementation ofthe first United Nations Decade for the Eradica-tion of Poverty (1997-2006) and a draft pro-gramme of action for observance of the Interna-tional Year of Microcredit in 2005 (see p. 853)[A/58/179].

The report stated that progress in reducingpoverty had been patchy and uneven, with thepoorer developing countries, where economicandsocialdevelopmentwasneededmost, still lag-ging behind the faster-growing developing coun-tries on many fronts. On current performance,many countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Af-rica, were not likely to achieve the MDG of halving



the proportion of the world’s people living on lessthan one dollar a day by 2015. However, there weresome fresh developments and results that pointedtowards progress in two key areas—governance atthe international and national levels and povertyreduction strategies—considered to be among thepreconditions necessary for countries to achieverapid growth and poverty eradication.

The report also described a modest revival ofofficial development assistance (ODA) levels, fol-lowing the commitments made at the 2002 Inter-national Conference on Financing for Develop-ment [YUN 2002, p. 953]. Although the levels werestill well below their historical highs and consid-erably below the minimum levels needed to attainthe MDGs, there was optimism that ODA wouldcontinue to rise.



Implementation of the first United Nations Decadefor the Eradication of Poverty (1997-2006)


1992, 48/183 of 21 December 1993, 50/107 of 20 De-cember 1995, 56/207 of 21 December 2001 and 57/266of 20 December 2002,

Recalling also the United Nations Millennium Decla-ration adopted by heads of State and Government onthe occasion of the Millennium Summit, and theircommitment to eradicate extreme poverty and tohalve, by 2015, the proportion of the world’s peoplewhose income is less than one dollar a day and the pro-portion of people who suffer from hunger,

Underlining the priority and urgency given by theheads of State and Government to the eradication ofpoverty, as expressed in the Monterrey Consensus ofthe International Conference on Financing for Devel-opment and in the outcomes of the World Summit onSustainable Development,

Recalling the outcomes of the major United Nationsconferences and summits in the economic and socialfields,

Bearing in mind the outcomes of the World Summitfor Social Development and the twenty-fourth specialsession of the General Assembly,

Expressing its deep concern that the number of peopleliving in extreme poverty in many countries continuesto increase, with women and children constituting themajority and the most affected groups, in particularin the least developed countries and in sub-SaharanAfrica,

Recognizing that, while the rate of poverty in somecountries has been reduced, some developing coun-tries and disadvantaged groups are being marginalizedand others are at risk of being marginalized and effec-tively excluded from the benefits of globalization, re-sulting in increased income disparity among and

within countries, thereby constraining efforts to eradi-cate poverty,

1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General;2. Reiterates that eradicating poverty is the greatest

global challenge facing the world today and an indis-pensable requirement for sustainable development, inparticular for developing countries, that each countryhas the primary responsibility for its own sustainabledevelopment and poverty eradication, that the role ofnational policies and development strategies cannot beoveremphasized and that concerted and concretemeasures are required at all levels to enable develop-ing countries to eradicate poverty and achieve sustain-able development;

3. Recognizes that, in order for developing countriesto reach the targets set in the context of national devel-opment strategies for the achievement of the interna-tionally agreed development goals, including thosecontained in the United Nations Millennium Declara-tion, in particular the goal of the eradication of pov-erty, and for such poverty eradication strategies to beeffective, it is imperative that they be integrated intothe world economy and share equitably in the benefitsof globalization;

4. Reaffirms that, within the context of overallaction for the eradication of poverty, special attentionshould be given to the multidimensional nature of pov-erty and the national and international conditions andpolicies that are conducive to its eradication, fostering,inter alia, the social and economic integration of peo-ple living in poverty and the promotion and protectionof all human rights and fundamental freedoms for all,including the right to development;

Global response for the eradication of poverty5. Stresses the importance of the follow-up to the

outcome of the International Conference on Financ-ing for Development, and calls for the full and effec-tive implementation of the Monterrey Consensus;

6. Reaffirms that good governance at the interna-tional level is fundamental for achieving poverty eradi-cation and sustainable development; in order to ensurea dynamic and enabling international economic envi-ronment, it is important to promote global economicgovernance by addressing the international finance,trade, technology and investment patterns that have animpact on the development prospects of developingcountries; to that end, the international communityshould take all necessary and appropriate measures,including ensuring support to structural and macro-economic reform, a comprehensive solution to the ex-ternal debt problem and increasing market access fordeveloping countries; efforts to reform the interna-tional financial architecture need to be sustained withgreater transparency and with the effective participa-tion of developing countries in decision-making pro-cesses; and that a universal, rule-based, open, non-discriminatory and equitable multilateral tradingsystem, as well as meaningful trade liberalization, cansubstantially stimulate development worldwide, bene-fiting countries at all stages of development;

7. Also reaffirms that good governance at the na-tional level is essential for poverty eradication and sus-tainable development, that sound economic policies,solid democratic institutions responsive to the needs ofthe people and improved infrastructure are the basis



for sustained economic growth, poverty eradicationand employment creation, and that freedom, peaceand security, domestic stability, respect for humanrights, including the right to development, the rule oflaw, gender equality, market-oriented policies and anoverall commitment to just and democratic societiesare also essential and mutually reinforcing;

8. Recognizes the major role that trade can play as anengine of growth and development and in eradicatingpoverty, regrets that the Fifth Ministerial Conferenceof the World Trade Organization, held in Cancún,Mexico, from 10 to 14 September 2003, failed to pro-duce an agreement, and calls for the resumption of thenegotiations and the implementation of the Dohaagenda, adopted at the Fourth Ministerial Conferenceof the World Trade Organization, held at Doha from9 to 14 November 2001;

9. Also recognizes the responsibility of all Govern-ments to adopt policies aimed at preventing and com-bating corrupt practices at the national and interna-tional levels, and welcomes in this regard the adoptionof the United Nations Convention against Corruption;

10. Underlines that, together with coherent and con-sistent domestic policies, international cooperation isessential in supplementing and supporting the effortsof developing countries to utilize their domestic re-sources for development and poverty eradication andin ensuring that they will be able to achieve the devel-opment goals as envisioned in the Millennium Decla-ration;

11. Reiterates that a substantial increase in officialdevelopment assistance and other resources will be re-quired if developing countries, in particular the leastdeveloped countries, are to achieve the internationallyagreed development goals and objectives, includingthose contained in the Millennium Declaration, andthat, to build support for official development assist-ance, cooperation is necessary to further improve poli-cies and development strategies to enhance aid effec-tiveness, both nationally and internationally, requests,in that regard, those countries that made announce-ments of increased official development assistance atthe International Conference on Financing for Devel-opment to make those resources available as soon aspossible, and notes in this context the recent upwardtrend in official development assistance;

12. Urges developed countries that have not done soto make concrete efforts to reach the targets of 0.7 percent of their gross national product as official develop-ment assistance to developing countries and 0.15 to0.20 per cent of their gross national product to leastdeveloped countries, as reconfirmed at the ThirdUnited Nations Conference on the Least DevelopedCountries, held in Brussels from 14 to 20 May 2001, en-courages developing countries to build on progressachieved in ensuring that official development assist-ance is used effectively to help achieve developmentgoals and targets, acknowledges the efforts of all do-nors, commends those donors whose official develop-ment assistance contributions exceed, reach or areincreasing towards the targets, and underlines the im-portance of undertaking to examine the means andtime frames for achieving the targets and goals;

13. Recognizes that an enabling domestic environ-ment is vital for mobilizing domestic resources, in-creasing productivity, reducing capital flight, encour-

aging the private sector and attracting and makingeffective use of international investment and assist-ance, and that efforts to create such an environmentshould be supported by the international community;

14. Also recognizes that creditors and debtors mustshare the responsibility for preventing and resolvingunsustainable debt situations and that debt relief canplay a key role in liberating resources that should be di-rected towards activities consistent with attaining pov-erty eradication, sustainable economic growth, sus-tainable development and the achievement of theinternationally agreed development goals, includingthose contained in the Millennium Declaration, and inthat regard urges countries to direct those resourcesfreed through debt relief, in particular through debtcancellation and reduction, towards these objectives;

15. Calls upon the developed countries, by means ofintensified and effective cooperation with developingcountries, to promote capacity-building and facilitateaccess to and transfer of technologies and correspond-ing knowledge, in particular to developing countries,on favourable terms, including concessional and pref-erential terms, as mutually agreed, taking into accountthe need to protect intellectual property rights as wellas the special needs of developing countries;

16. Recognizes the crucial role that microcredit andmicrofinance could play in the eradication of poverty,the promotion of gender equality, the empowermentof vulnerable groups and the development of ruralcommunities, encourages Governments to adopt poli-cies that support access to microcredit as well as the de-velopment of microfinance institutions and their ca-pacities, and calls upon the international communityto support those efforts;

Policies for the eradication of poverty17. Reaffirms that the eradication of poverty should

be addressed in an integrated way, as set out in the Planof Implementation of the World Summit on Sustain-able Development (“Johannesburg Plan of Implemen-tation”), taking into account the importance of theneed for the empowerment of women and sectoralstrategies in such areas as education, development ofhuman resources, health, human settlements, rural,local and community development, productive employ-ment, population, environment and natural resources,water and sanitation, agriculture, food security, energyand migration, and the specific needs of disadvan-taged and vulnerable groups, in such a way as to in-crease opportunities and choices for people living inpoverty and to enable them to build and strengthentheir assets so as to achieve development, security andstability, and in that regard encourages countries to de-velop their national poverty reduction policies in ac-cordance with their national priorities, including,where appropriate, through poverty reduction strategypapers;

18. Underlines, in this context, the importance offurther integration of the internationally agreed devel-opment goals, including those contained in the Millen-nium Declaration, in the national development strate-gies and plans, including the poverty reductionstrategy papers where they exist, and calls upon the in-ternational community to continue to support develop-ing countries in the implementation of those develop-ment strategies and plans;



19. Recognizes the importance of disseminating bestpractices for the reduction of poverty in its various di-mensions, taking into account the need to adapt thosebest practices to suit the social, economic, cultural andhistorical conditions of each country;

20. Reaffirms that all Governments and the UnitedNations system should promote an active and visiblepolicy of mainstreaming a gender perspective in allpolicies and programmes aimed at the eradication ofpoverty, at both the national and the international lev-els, and encourages the use of gender analysis as a toolfor the integration of a gender dimension into plan-ning the implementation of policies, strategies andprogrammes for the eradication of poverty;

21. Also reaffirms that poverty eradication, changingunsustainable patterns of production and consump-tion and protecting and managing the natural resourcebase of economic and social development are over-arching objectives of, and essential requirements for,sustainable development;

22. Emphasizes the critical role of both formal andnon-formal education, in particular basic educationand training, especially for girls, in empowering thoseliving in poverty, reaffirms in that context the DakarFramework for Action adopted at the World EducationForum, and recognizes the importance of the UnitedNations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organi-zation strategy for the eradication of poverty, espe-cially extreme poverty, in supporting the EducationFor All programmes as a tool to achieve the millen-nium development goal on universal primary educa-tion by 2015;

23. Recognizes the devastating effect of HIV/AIDS,malaria, tuberculosis and other infectious, contagiousdiseases on human development, economic growthand poverty reduction efforts in all regions, in particu-lar in sub-Saharan Africa, urges Governments andthe international community to give urgent priority tocombating those diseases, takes note of the conveningof the fifteenth International Conference on HIV/AIDS, to be held in Thailand from 11 to 16 July 2004,and in that regard welcomes the recent decisionadopted by members of the World Trade Organizationon the implementation of paragraph 6 of the DohaDeclaration on the Agreement on Trade-RelatedAspects of Intellectual Property Rights and PublicHealth;

24. Emphasizes the link between poverty eradicationand improving access to safe drinking water, andstresses in this regard the objective to halve, by 2015,the proportion of people who are unable to reach or toafford safe drinking water and the proportion of peo-ple who do not have access to basic sanitation, as reaf-firmed in the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation;

25. Recognizes that the lack of adequate housing re-mains a pressing challenge in the fight to eradicate ex-treme poverty, particularly in the urban areas in devel-oping countries, expresses its concern at the rapidgrowth in the number of slum dwellers in the urbanareas of developing countries, particularly in Africa,stresses that, unless urgent and effective measuresand actions are taken at the national and internationallevels, the number of slum dwellers, who constituteone third of the world’s urban population, will con-tinue to increase, and emphasizes the need for in-

creased efforts, with a view to significantly improvingthe lives of at least 100 million slum-dwellers by 2020;

Specific initiatives in the fight against poverty26. Also recognizes the important potential contribu-

tion of the World Solidarity Fund to the achievementof the Millennium Development Goals, in particularthe objective to halve, by 2015, the proportion of peopleliving on less than one dollar a day and the proportionof the people who suffer from hunger;

27. Reiterates its endorsement of the decision of theWorld Summit on Sustainable Development to estab-lish the World Solidarity Fund to eradicate povertyand to promote social and human development in thedeveloping countries, while stressing the voluntarynature of the contributions and the need to avoid du-plication of existing United Nations funds and en-couraging the role of the private sector and individualcitizens relative to Governments in funding theendeavours, as set out in the Johannesburg Plan of Im-plementation;

28. Encourages Member States, international organ-izations, the private sector, relevant institutions, foun-dations and individuals to contribute to the World Soli-darity Fund;

29. Requests the Administrator of the UnitedNations Development Programme, in that regard, totake further measures to operationalize the WorldSolidarity Fund by establishing, on an urgent basis,the high-level committee whose task it is to definethe strategy of the Fund and to mobilize resourcesto enable it to start its activities in the field of povertyalleviation;

30. Acknowledges the significance of greater involve-ment of developing countries in joint efforts, includ-ing those among developing countries, to overcomeextreme poverty, and in this context takes note of theinitiatives undertaken by the developing countries, in-cluding those announced at the fifty-eighth session ofthe General Assembly;

31. Welcomes the initiatives undertaken by regionaland subregional organizations for overcoming ex-treme poverty;

Africa, least developed countries,landlocked developing countries andsmall island developing States

32. Stresses the importance, as recognized in theMillennium Declaration, of meeting the special needsof Africa, where poverty remains a major challengeand where most countries have not benefited fullyfrom the opportunities of globalization, which hasfurther exacerbated the continent’s marginalization;

33. Reaffirms its support for the New Partnership forAfrica’s Development, encourages further efforts inthe implementation of the commitments containedtherein in the political, economic and social fields, andcalls upon the developed countries and the UnitedNations system to continue to support the Partnership,the primary objective of which is to eradicate povertyand promote sustainable development on the basis ofAfrican ownership and leadership and enhanced part-nerships with the international community, in accord-ance with the principles, objectives and priorities ofthe Partnership;

34. Calls upon the Governments of the least de-veloped countries and their development partners to



implement fully the commitments contained in theBrussels Declaration and the Programme of Action forthe Least Developed Countries for the Decade 2001-2010, adopted at the Third United Nations Conferenceon the Least Developed Countries;

35. Stresses the significant challenge to poverty re-duction posed by the geographical disadvantages oflandlocked developing countries and the vulnerabili-ties of small island developing States, and in this con-text welcomes the adoption of the Almaty Programmeof Action, at the International Ministerial Conferenceof Landlocked and Transit Developing Countries andDonor Countries and International Financial and De-velopment Institutions on Transit Transport Coopera-tion, held in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on 28 and 29 August2003, and supports the comprehensive review of theimplementation of the Programme of Action for theSustainable Development of Small Island DevelopingStates, to be held in Mauritius from 30 August to 3 Sep-tember 2004;

The United Nations and the fight against poverty36. Calls for the full implementation of its resolu-

tion 57/270 B of 23 June 2003 on the integrated andcoordinated implementation of and follow-up to theoutcomes of the major United Nations conferencesand summits in the economic and social fields, whichprovides a comprehensive basis for the follow-up to theoutcomes of those conferences and summits and con-tributes to the achievement of the internationallyagreed development goals, including those containedin the Millennium Declaration, in particular the goalof the eradication of poverty and hunger, and notes inthis context the decision to review in 2005 the progressachieved in implementing all commitments made inthe Millennium Declaration and that there is scope fora major event;

37. Reaffirms the role of United Nations funds andprogrammes, in particular the United Nations Devel-opment Programme and its associated funds, in assist-ing the national efforts of developing countries, interalia, in the eradication of poverty, and the need fortheir funding in accordance with the relevant resolu-tions of the United Nations;

38. Requests the Secretary-General to submit to theGeneral Assembly at its fifty-ninth session a report onthe implementation of the present resolution;

39. Decides to include in the provisional agenda ofits fifty-ninth session the item entitled “Implementa-tion of the first United Nations Decade for the Eradi-cation of Poverty (1997-2006)”.

World Solidarity FundIn response to General Assembly resolution

57/265 [YUN 2002, p. 831], the Secretary-Generaltransmitted to the Economic and Social Counciland the Assembly, in April, the report of theUNDP Administrator on the establishment ofthe World Solidarity Fund [A/57/72-E/2003/53].The Administrator described measures taken tooperationalize the Fund, which was establishedby the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Devel-opment [YUN 2002, p. 821] to eradicate poverty andpromote social development in developing coun-

tries, and endorsed by the Assembly in resolution57/265 [ibid., p. 831]. The Fund was set up in Febru-ary as a UNDP trust fund and steps had beentaken to operationalize and publicize it. A high-level committee was to be established to definethe Fund’s strategy.

The Economic and Social Council, in resolu-tion 2003/4 of 11 July (see p. 889), requested theUNDP Administrator, among other things, tomobilize the financial resources to enable theFund to start its activities in poverty alleviation.

In resolution 58/222 (see p. 849), the Assem-bly encouraged Member States, international or-ganizations, the private sector and others to con-tribute to the Fund.

Rural poverty

Committee for Development Policy consider-ation. The Committee for Development Policy(New York, 7-11 April) [E/2003/33] considered thequestion of promoting an integrated approach torural development in developing countries forpoverty eradication and sustainable develop-ment. The Committee noted that rural develop-ment as a strategy to eradicate poverty should re-flect the multidimensional nature of poverty, bemulti-targeted, extend across disciplines andencompass demographic, economic, social, insti-tutional and political factors. That integrated ap-proach would differ from previous, more sector-specific experiences in rural development.Among the major causes of the persistence of ru-ral poverty in most developing countries werelow or stagnant economic growth in rural areas,often below the rate of population growth, inade-quate investment in human capital, agriculturaltechnology and infrastructure, and inadequaciesin institutional mechanisms that addressed theneeds of the rural poor. A fundamental reorien-tation of integrated rural development shouldfocus on enhancing rural employment andincome-generation, and more resources had tobe directed towards those areas. The Committeereviewed the poor state of health and educationin rural areas, excessive rural-urban migrationand rural environmental degradation.

The Committee recommended that both devel-oping countries and the international communityshould focus on four priority areas: expandingeducation and health services and providing in-centives for rural people to take advantage of theservices; increasing agricultural productivity andnon-farm activities through the use of technol-ogy, diversification and access to inputs and cred-its; improving access to local, national and globalmarkets; and examining all policies through “rurallenses” with a special focus on women.



Economic and Social Council consideration.In accordance with decision 2002/309 [YUN 2002,p. 814], the Economic and Social Council, at thehigh-level segment of its substantive session(30 June–2 July) [A/58/3/Rev.1], considered thetheme “Promoting an integrated approach to ru-ral development in developing countries for pov-erty eradication and sustainable development”.The segment included four ministerial round-ta-ble discussions on: natural resources and ruraldevelopment in developing countries; an inte-grated approach to the implementation of theMDGs in the area of rural development; globalpartnerships for rural development; and ru-ral/urban interface and slums.

The Council had before it an April report bythe Secretary-General on the theme of the high-level segment [E/2003/51]. He noted that threequarters of the world’s poor lived in rural areas ofdeveloping countries and depended mainly onagriculture and related activities for their liveli-hood. In 2025, when the majority of the worldpopulation was expected to be urban, 60 per centof poverty would still be rural. Accelerated ruraldevelopment was essential to achieve the interna-tionally agreed development goals, including theMDGs. The international community had an im-portant role to play in supporting national effortsand contributing to an enabling environmentfor poverty eradication and sustainable develop-ment. The Secretary-General stated that an inte-grated approach to rural development had to en-compass economic, social and environmentaldimensions and consist of mutually reinforcingpolicies and programmes to address the rangeof rural development–related issues, while meet-ing the specific conditions and requirements ofa given country. He outlined the common ele-ments of the integrated approach, which in-cluded creating an enabling macroeconomic pol-icy environment conducive to poverty eradicationand sustainable development in rural areas; re-versing the decline in the flow of domestic re-sources and ODA; strengthening agriculturaland food policies, improving agricultural pro-ductivity and fostering non-farm rural economicactivities and diversification in production; andenhancing the access of poor rural people,especially women and smallholder farmers, toproductive assets, such as land and water, and tofinancial services.

In a ministerial declaration of 2 July, the Coun-cil stated, among other things, that rural develop-ment should be pursued through an integratedapproach, encompassing economic, social andenvironmental dimensions, taking into accountthe gender perspective and consisting of mutu-ally reinforcing policies and programmes. It

should be balanced, targeted, situation-specificand locally owned, include local synergies andinitiatives and be responsive to the needs of ruralpopulations. The Council expressed its commit-ment to responding effectively to Africa’s specialneeds for achieving sustainable development andreiterated its support for the priorities of the NewPartnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD)(see p. 937). It also recognized the special needsof the least developed countries, the small islanddeveloping States and the landlocked developingcountries. The Council committed itself to im-plementing its ministerial declaration and calledon civil society, the UN system and other relevantactors and organizations to support the realiza-tion of the objectives of integrated rural develop-ment. It agreed to review the implementation ofthe declaration in 2005.

On 24 July, the Council decided that the coor-dination segment of its 2004 substantive sessionwould consider the theme of a coordinated andintegrated UN system approach to promote ruraldevelopment in developing countries for povertyeradication and sustainable development (deci-sion 2003/287).

By decision 2003/290 of 24 July, adopted onthe recommendation of the Commission on Sci-ence and Technology for Development [E/2003/31], the Council took note of that Commission’scontribution to its consideration of the theme ofthe high-level segment, which was addressed bythe Commission in its 2001 deliberations on na-tional capacity-building in biotechnology [YUN2001, p. 757], in which the Commission had under-lined the need for national capacity-building inbiotechnology to support efforts in rural devel-opment, including food security, agriculturalproductivity, health and environmental sustain-ability.

International Year of Microcredit, 2005

In response to General Assembly resolution53/197 [YUN 1998, p. 785], by which the year 2005was declared the International Year of Micro-credit, the Secretary-General presented a draftprogramme of action for the observance of theYear [A/58/179].

The Secretary-General said that the Interna-tional Year would give impetus to microcreditand microfinance programmes and activitiesaround the world. The objectives of the Yearmight include building upon promoting the con-tribution of microcredit and microfinance to-wards achieving the MDGs and the goals of majorconferences and summits; promoting awarenessand understanding of microcredit and micro-finance, and their roles in poverty eradication;identifying critical measures for Governments



to stimulate sustainable, pro-poor financial sec-tors and build strategies to position microcreditand microfinance as integral parts of a country’sfinancial system; increasing the capacity ofmicrocredit and microfinance service providersto address the needs of poor people more effi-ciently; and promoting and creating strategicpartnerships between Governments, UN systemorganizations and other microcredit and micro-finance stakeholders. The report also outlinedactivities and initiatives that could be undertakenat the national, regional and international levels.

The Secretary-General concluded that observ-ance of the International Year would provide asignificant opportunity to raise awareness of theimportance of microcredit and microfinance inthe eradication of poverty, share good practicesand further enhance programmes that sup-ported sustainable pro-poor financial sectorsaround the world. Expanding outreach couldcontribute to achieving the MDGs, particularlythe poverty reduction targets, and promotinggender equality and the empowerment of women.



Programme of Action for the InternationalYear of Microcredit, 2005

The General Assembly,Recalling its resolution 53/197 of 15 December 1998,

by which it proclaimed 2005 the International Year ofMicrocredit and requested that the observance of theYear be a special occasion for giving impetus tomicrocredit programmes in all countries, particularlythe developing countries,

Recalling also its resolution 52/194 of 18 December1997, in which it emphasized the role of microcreditand microfinance as an important anti-poverty toolthat promotes asset creation, employment and eco-nomic security and empowers people living in poverty,especially women,

Stressing that people living in poverty in rural andurban areas need access to microcredit and micro-finance that enhance their ability to increase income,build assets and mitigate vulnerability in times ofhardship,

Bearing in mind the importance of microfinance in-struments such as credit, savings and related businessservices in providing access to capital for people livingin poverty,

Recognizing the need to facilitate the access of peopleliving in poverty, especially women, to microcredit andmicrofinance to enable them to undertake micro-enterprises so as to generate self-employment and con-tribute to achieving empowerment,

1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-Generalcontaining the draft programme of action for the In-ternational Year of Microcredit, 2005;

2. Emphasizes that the observance of 2005 as theInternational Year of Microcredit will provide a signif-icant opportunity to raise awareness of the importanceof microcredit and microfinance in the eradication ofpoverty, to share good practices and to further en-hance financial sector developments that support sus-tainable pro-poor financial services in all countries;

3. Invites the Department of Economic and SocialAffairs of the Secretariat and the United Nations Capi-tal Development Fund to jointly coordinate the activi-ties of the United Nations system regarding the prepa-rations for and observance of the Year;

4. Recognizes the importance of scaling up micro-credit and microfinance services and of using the Yearas a platform to find ways of enhancing developmentimpact and sustainability through the sharing of bestpractices and lessons learned;

5. Invites Member States to consider establishingnational coordinating committees or focal points withresponsibility for promoting the activities related tothe preparations for and observance of the Year;

6. Invites Member States, relevant organizations ofthe United Nations system, non-governmental organi-zations, the private sector and civil society to collabo-rate in the preparations for and observance of the Yearand to raise public awareness and knowledge aboutmicrocredit and microfinance;

7. Recognizes that access to microcredit and micro-finance can contribute to achieving the goals and tar-gets of major United Nations conferences and sum-mits, including those contained in the United NationsMillennium Declaration, in particular the targets relat-ing to poverty eradication, gender equality and theempowerment of women;

8. Encourages the holding of regional and sub-regional events on microcredit and microfinance, and,in this regard, welcomes the holding of the Asia-Pacific Region Microcredit Summit Meeting of Coun-cils, in Dhaka, from 16 to 19 February 2004;

9. Encourages Member States, relevant organiza-tions of the United Nations system, non-governmentalorganizations, the private sector and foundations tomake voluntary contributions and/or to lend otherforms of support to the Year, in accordance with theguidelines for international years;

10. Requests the Secretary-General to prepare a re-port on the preparations for the International Yearof Microcredit, 2005, in consultation with MemberStates, relevant organizations of the United Nationssystem, non-governmental organizations, the privatesector and civil society, and to submit it to the GeneralAssembly at its fifty-ninth session under the item enti-tled “Implementation of the first United Nations Dec-ade for the Eradication of Poverty (1997-2006)”.

Science and technology fordevelopment

Commission on Scienceand Technology for Development

The Commission on Science and Technologyfor Development held its sixth session in Genevafrom 5 to 9 May [E/2003/31]. The session had as its



main substantive theme “Technology develop-ment and capacity-building for competitivenessin a digital society”, with particular attention toinformation and communication technologies (ICT)as pervasive tools of global impact with wide ap-plication and growing potential, and considereda report by the Secretary-General on the subject(see below). The Commission also heard countryreports on ICT policies. It had before it notes bythe Secretariat on: implementation of and pro-gress made on decisions taken at the Commis-sion’s fifth (2001) session [E/CN.16/2003/3]; theCommission’s budget [E/CN.16/2003/4]; and thefunctioning of the Commission, including itsrole in coordinating science and technology fordevelopment [E/CN.16/2003/5]. The Commissionrecommended a draft resolution and three draftdecisions for adoption by the Economic and So-cial Council. It brought to the Council’s attentionits decisions noting the Secretary-General’s syn-thesis report on its panels on technology develop-ment and capacity-building in a digital society(see below) [E/2003/31 (dec. 6/101)] and the report ofthe Commission’s Open-ended Working Group,the text of which it decided to include in its re-port [dec. 6/102].

Technology development and capacity-buildingThe Commission had before it a report by the

Secretary-General [E/CN.16/2003/2] that providedan overview of the outcomes of three panels, con-vened during its 2001-2003 intersessional period,on its main substantive theme of technology de-velopment and capacity-building for competi-tiveness in a digital society. The panels discussedindicators of technology development (Geneva,22-24 May 2002), foreign direct investment andtechnology capacity-building for strategic com-petitiveness (Colombo, Sri Lanka, 15-17 October2002), and enhancing strategic competitivenessin ICT (Luanda, Angola, 15-17 January 2003).The report summarized the main findings andpresented the policy recommendations thatemerged from the three panels.

The Commission decided that the substantivetheme and focus of its work during the 2003-2004intersessional period would be “Promoting theapplication of science and technology to meet theMDGs”.

On 9 May, the Commission took note of thereport [dec. 6/101].


On 24 July [meeting 48], the Economic and SocialCouncil, on the recommendation of the Commis-sion on Science and Technology for Development[E/2003/31], adopted resolution 2003/56 withoutvote [agenda item 13 (b)].

Science and technology for development

I. Technology development and capacity-buildingfor competitiveness in a digital society

The Economic and Social Council,Welcoming the work of the Commission on Science

and Technology for Development on its theme “Tech-nology development and capacity-building for com-petitiveness in a digital society”, and noting the find-ings, which indicate, inter alia, the following:

(a) Information and communication technologiescreate new opportunities to tackle the problems ofpoverty, poor communications, economic stagnationand environmental degradation. At the same time,they generate new challenges, especially for thosecountries in which technological capability, skillcapacity and supporting infrastructure are not suffi-ciently developed,

(b) The diffusion of information and communica-tion technologies throughout the world is extremelyuneven. Many of the developing countries face signifi-cant barriers in access to and effective applications ofinformation and communication technologies owingto limited telecommunications infrastructure, lowcomputer literacy levels and lack of a regulatoryframework,

(c) Information and communication technologieswill continue to play an increasingly important role indevelopment. Most developing countries are not in aposition to compete with industrialized countries atthe frontier of innovation. The most effective way ofraising the level of technology in developing countriesis therefore through acquisition of technology fromthe industrialized countries. The experience of suc-cessful economies suggests that foreign direct invest-ment has a crucial role to play in the acquisition oftechnology by developing countries,

(d) Mere transfer and imports of new technologythrough foreign direct investment and other channelsdo not ensure technology acquisition. In order to buildcapacity to acquire and master technology, it is essen-tial that Governments build a sound human resourcescapital and put in place credible and more focusedlong-term policies and regulations that encourage theactive international transfer, effective diffusion and de-velopment of technology,

(e) In order to facilitate and promote informationand communication technology use in developingcountries, there is a need for an enhanced partnershipbetween Governments, the private sector, academicinstitutions and non-governmental organizations,

Heeding the call of the ministerial declarationadopted at the high-level segment of the substantivesession of the Economic and Social Council in 2000 towork cooperatively to bridge the digital divide and tofoster “digital opportunity”,

Decides to recommend the following actions for con-sideration by national Governments, the Commissionon Science and Technology for Development and theinternational community:

1. Governments are encouraged to undertake thefollowing actions:

(a) Utilize the benchmarking tools developed by theCommission to assess their progress in informationand communication technology development and toestablish mechanisms involving all stakeholders for the



ongoing review, evaluation and analysis of informa-tion and communication technology strategies, pro-grammes and projects, including strategies to facilitatethe attraction of foreign direct investment in informa-tion and communication technologies;

(b) Accelerate investment in information and com-munication technology human capacity-building andpromote computer literacy and lifelong learning;

(c) Build up physical and institutional infrastruc-ture to facilitate information and communication tech-nology development and improve efficiency and trans-parency through e-government;

(d) Develop policy initiatives in order to facilitatethe building of information and communication tech-nology infrastructure at the regional level;

(e) Develop strategies to facilitate access to andlower costs of information and communication tech-nology hardware and software by providing tax incen-tives and encouraging the use and further develop-ment of free and open source software;

(f) Apply innovative approaches with a focus onshared infrastructure, public access facilities and theuse of intermediaries and other services to interactwith individuals who may lack functional literacy;

(g) Establish a regulatory framework that supportsinfrastructure development and accelerate deploy-ment of appropriate and cost-effective technologies;

(h) Promote sustained measures to ensure the mas-tery and adaptation of technology by creating and/orstrengthening local research and development units,promoting foreign direct investment with high-technology content and fostering collaboration in re-search and development between foreign investors anddomestic research institutions;

(i) Develop strategies for local content develop-ment, including the use of icon-based programmesand the integration of traditional mass media, print,television and radio, with electronic media;

2. The international community is invited:(a) To promote the compilation of more appropri-

ate data on technology indicators, taking into accountthat that there is a lack of data for many developingcountries, which typically have a large informal sectorso that more accurate information and communicationtechnology and technology development indices couldbe developed;

(b) To reaffirm the right of developing countriesto use to the full the flexibilities provided in inter-national agreements such as the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights;

3. The Commission on Science and Technology forDevelopment is invited:

(a) To interact closely with the Information andCommunication Technologies Task Force to promotegreater information exchange and coordination ofactivities in the field of information and communica-tion technologies in order to contribute to the WorldSummit on the Information Society and, as feasible,update its publication Knowledge Societies: InformationTechnologies for Sustainable Development in order to raiseawareness on recent developments in the field of infor-mation and communication technologies;

(b) To play an active role within the United Nationssystem in the analysis, promotion and recommenda-tion of applications of science and technology to meet

the development goals contained in the UnitedNations Millennium Declaration;

(c) To ensure that the Science and Technology forDevelopment Network further develops and expandsinto an inter-agency gateway on information on scienceand technology activities, which also links informationtechnology networks at the regional, subregional andinterregional levels to the network;

(d) To liaise with the United Nations Conference onTrade and Development to develop further its bench-marking tool in information and communication tech-nologies, promote its use by other relevant UnitedNations agencies and consider the possibility of carry-ing out information and communication technologyneeds assessment for interested developing countries,in particular least developed countries, to help formu-late or update national strategies and action plans forinformation and communication technologies, coordi-nating efforts with the United Nations DevelopmentProgramme and other entities carrying out similarwork in order to promote complementarity and effi-ciency.

II. New substantive theme and other activitiesThe Economic and Social CouncilWelcomes the choice of the theme “Promoting the ap-

plication of science and technology to meet the devel-opment goals contained in the United Nations Millen-nium Declaration” for the work of the Commission onScience and Technology during the intersessional pe-riod 2003-2004. In undertaking work on this theme,the Commission is invited to analyse policies and meas-ures that would lead to:

(a) Improving the policy environment for the appli-cation of science and technology to development byidentifying potential risks and benefits of new andemerging technologies;

(b) Strengthening basic and applied research in de-veloping countries and international scientific net-working;

(c) Strengthening technology support institutionsand science advisory mechanisms, building humancapacity, identifying new technologies and applica-tions, and encouraging international collaboration tosupport research in neglected fields;

(d) Promoting affordable universal Internet accessand building strategic partnerships in the field of sci-ence and technology for development and capacity-building for competitiveness, taking care to ensurecomplementarity with efforts under way by otherorganizations, such as the United Nations Develop-ment Programme, the International Telecommunica-tion Union and the Information and CommunicationTechnologies Task Force, and to promote efficiency.All entities of the United Nations system working inthese areas are invited to collaborate and provide inputto the work of the Commission on its main theme;

III. Strengthening coordination of science and technologyfor development in the United Nations system

The Economic and Social Council,Noting with appreciation the work carried out by the

Gender Advisory Board of the Commission on Scienceand Technology for Development, including at the re-gional and national levels,

Requests the Commission to take into account theneed to integrate meaningfully and systematically a



gender component into all its programmes and to im-prove its collaboration with its Gender AdvisoryBoard.

In other action, the Council, by decision2003/291 of 24 July, decided that the duration ofthe regular sessions of the Commission should beone week. By decision 2003/293 of the samedate, the Council took note of the report of theCommission on its sixth session and approved theprovisional agenda and documentation for theCommission’s seventh (2004) session.

Information and communication technologies

In 2003, the United Nations continued to en-sure that the benefits of new technologies, espe-cially ICTs, were available to all, in conformitywith recommendations contained in the ministe-rial declaration adopted by the Economic and So-cial Council at its 2000 high-level segment [YUN2000, p. 799] and the Millennium Declaration [ibid.,p. 49]. In December, the first phase of the WorldSummit on the Information Society adopted aDeclaration of Principles and Plan of Action thatoutlined specific goals for bridging the digital di-vide. The second phase of the Summit was sched-uled to be held in 2005. During the year, the UNICT Task Force continued its substantive work as aglobal forum on integrating information on ICTinto development programmes.

World Summit on theInformation Society (first phase)

The first phase of the World Summit on theInformation Society (Geneva, 10-12 December)[WSIS-03/GENEVA/9(Rev.1)-E] was attended by politi-cal leaders from 175 countries, including 44heads of State or Government, and representa-tives of intergovernmental and non-governmentalorganizations and the private sector. It adoptedthe Declaration of Principles and the Plan ofAction for establishing the foundations for an in-formation society for all, reflecting all the differ-ent interests at stake. In three round tables, theSummit discussed the themes of creating digitalopportunities; diversity in cyberspace; and ICT asa tool for achieving the MDGs. It also consideredreports on a number of multi-stakeholder eventsheld in preparation for the Summit. Plannedin two phases, the Summit was the first multi-stakeholder global effort to share and shape theuse of ICTs for a better world. The second phasewas to be held in Tunis, Tunisia, in November2005.

Declaration of Principles and Plan of ActionThe Declaration of Principles adopted on 12

December, “Building the information society: a

global challenge in the new Millennium”, statedthe commitment to build a people-centred, inclu-sive and development-oriented information soci-ety to enable people to achieve their full potentialin promoting their sustainable development andimproving their quality of life. The challengewas to harness the potential of ICT to promote theMDGs [YUN 2000, p. 51]. The Summit committed it-self to realizing that vision, focusing especially onyoung people and paying attention to the needsof women and of vulnerable groups, particularlythe poor in remote rural and marginalized urbanareas and the peoples of developing countriesand economies in transition. Recognizing thatbuilding an inclusive information society re-quired new forms of partnerships and coopera-tion among Governments and other stakeholdersto realize the goal of bridging the digital divideand ensuring harmonious, fair and equitable de-velopment for all, the Summit called for nationaland international digital solidarity.

The Declaration enumerated key principlesfor an information society for all, covering therole of Governments and all stakeholders in thepromotion of ICTs for development: informationand communication infrastructure as an essentialfoundation for an inclusive information society;access to information and knowledge; capacity-building; building confidence and security in theuse of ICTs; creating an enabling environment atthe national and international levels based on therule of law within a supportive policy and regula-tory framework; and the benefits in all aspects oflife of ICT applications. The key principles alsocovered respect for cultural and linguistic diver-sity, freedom of the press, the ethical dimensionsof the information society and international andregional cooperation. All stakeholders were in-vited to commit to the “Digital SolidarityAgenda” set forth in the Plan of Action (see be-low). The Summit participants also committedthemselves to evaluate and follow up progress inbridging the digital divide and to assess theeffectiveness of investment and internationalcooperation efforts in building the informationsociety.

The Plan of Action, based on the common vi-sion and guiding principles of the Declaration,had as its objectives to build an inclusive informa-tion society; to put the potential of knowledgeand ICTs at the service of development; to pro-mote the use of information and knowledge toachieve internationally agreed development goals;and to address new challenges of the informationsociety at all levels. Specific targets for improvingconnectivity and access in the use of ICTs, to beachieved by 2015, included: connecting villageswith ICTs and establishing community access



points; connecting universities, colleges, secon-dary schools and primary schools; connectingscientific and research centres; connecting pub-lic libraries, cultural centres, museums, post of-fices and archives; connecting health centres andhospitals; and connecting local and central gov-ernment departments and establishing web sitesand e-mail addresses. Other targets includedadapting all primary and secondary school cur-ricula to meet the challenges of the informationsociety, taking into account national circum-stances; ensuring that all of the world’s popula-tion had access to television and radio services;encouraging the development of content andputting in place technical conditions to facilitatethe presence and use of all world languages onthe Internet; and ensuring that more than halfthe world’s inhabitants had access to ICTs withintheir reach.

The Plan of Action set out action lines undereach of the key principles in the Declaration. Italso established the Digital Solidarity Agenda forputting in place the conditions for mobilizingthe necessary human, financial and technologi-cal resources for including all men and womenin the emerging information society. The prior-ities of the Agenda would be: making nationale-strategies an integral part of national develop-ment plans, including poverty reduction strat-egies; and mainstreaming ICTs into ODA throughmore effective donor information-sharing and co-ordination and sharing best practices and lessonslearned. A task force was established, under theauspices of the Secretary-General, to review theadequacy of all existing financial mechanisms inmeeting the challenges of ICT for developmentby December 2004, for consideration at thesecond phase of the Summit, with a view to creat-ing a voluntary Digital Solidarity Fund. Coun-tries were asked to consider establishing nationalmechanisms to achieve universal access in under-served rural and urban areas to bridge the digitaldivide. International performance evaluationand benchmarking should be developed tofollow up on implementation of the objectives,goals and targets in the Plan of Action.

The Summit also adopted a resolution regard-ing the arrangements for the second phase of theSummit, to be held in Tunis in 2005. It decidedthat a preparatory meeting would be held in thefirst half of 2004 to review those issues of the in-formation society that should form the focus ofthe Tunis phase.

Summit preparationsIn accordance with General Assembly resolu-

tions 56/183 [YUN 2001, p. 764] and 57/238 [YUN2002, p. 836], the Secretary-General transmitted to

the Assembly and the Economic and SocialCouncil, in April, the report of the ITU Secretary-General on preparations for the World Summiton the Information Society [A/58/74-E/2003/58].The second meeting of the Preparatory Commit-tee (Geneva, 17-28 February) agreed on workingdocuments to serve as a basis for further discus-sions on the draft declaration and draft actionplan and established an intersessional mecha-nism to advance negotiations on the draft texts,including a meeting to be held in Paris (15-18July). The third meeting was scheduled to beheld from 15 to 26 September.

Five regional preparatory meetings were heldprior to the second preparatory meeting for Af-rica (Bamako, Mali, 25-30 May 2002); Europe(Bucharest, Romania, 7-9 November 2002); Asiaand the Pacific (Tokyo, 13-15 January 2003); LatinAmerica and the Caribbean (Baváro, DominicanRepublic, 29-31 January); and Western Asia (Bei-rut, Lebanon, 4-6 February) (see p. 1027). Otherinitiatives included a meeting of the League ofArab States (Cairo, Egypt, 16-18 June); the Mauri-tius Ministerial Conference on Access to Infor-mation and Communication Technologies for All(Pointe aux Piments, 3-5 April); and a meeting offrancophone ministers (Rabat, Morocco, 3-5 Sep-tember).

The Economic and Social Council, by decision2003/309 of 25 July, and the Assembly, by deci-sion 58/546 of 23 December, took note of theITU report.


On 22 July [meeting 44], the Economic and So-cial Council adopted resolution 2003/19 [draft:E/2003/L.30/Rev.1] without vote [agenda item 13 (b)].

World Summit on the Information SocietyThe Economic and Social Council,Recalling General Assembly resolutions 56/183 of

21 December 2001 and 57/238 of 20 December 2002,related in particular to the launching of the prepara-tory process of the World Summit on the InformationSociety, which will be held in two phases, in Geneva,from 10 to 12 December 2003, and in Tunis, from 16 to18 November 2005,

Welcoming the progress achieved in the preparatoryprocess of the Summit,

Taking note of the contribution of the Informationand Communication Technologies Task Force to thepreparatory process of the Summit,

Encouraging all countries to continue to support thepreparatory process,

Encouraging civil society, non-governmental organi-zations and the private sector to contribute further tothe preparations for the Summit,

Reaffirming the urgent need to harness the potentialof knowledge and technology for promoting the goalsof the United Nations Millennium Declaration and to



find effective and innovative ways to put this potentialat the service of development for all,

Reaffirming also the pivotal role of the UnitedNations system in promoting development, in particu-lar with regard to access to and transfer of technology,especially information and communication technolo-gies and services, inter alia, through partnerships withall relevant stakeholders,

Reaffirming further the need to harness synergiesand to create cooperation among the various informa-tion and communication technologies initiatives, atboth the regional and global levels, currently beingundertaken or planned to promote and foster thepotential of information and communication technol-ogies for development by other international organiza-tions and civil society,

1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-Generalof the International Telecommunication Union on theongoing preparatory process for the World Summit onthe Information Society;

2. Takes note also of the results of the first two meet-ings of the intergovernmental Preparatory Commit-tee, held in Geneva from 1 to 5 July 2002 and from 17to 28 February 2003;

3. Welcomes the holding of the regional preparatoryconferences in Bamako, from 25 to 30 May 2002, in Bu-charest from 7 to 9 November 2002, in Tokyo from 13to 15 January 2003, in Baváro, Dominican Republic,from 29 to 31 January 2003, in Beirut from 4 to 6 Feb-ruary 2003, and in Cairo from 16 to 18 June 2003;

4. Encourages all relevant United Nations bodiesand other intergovernmental organizations, includinginternational and regional institutions, as well as theInformation and Communication Technologies TaskForce, to intensify their work in the preparatory pro-cess of the Summit;

5. Invites countries to be represented at the highestpolitical level at the two phases of the Summit;

6. Encourages civil society, non-governmental or-ganizations and the private sector to contribute furtherto and participate actively in the intergovernmentalpreparatory process of the Summit, and in the Summititself, according to the modalities of participation es-tablished by the Preparatory Committee;

7. Requests the International TelecommunicationUnion, in the context of its role in the preparatory pro-cess for the Summit, in close cooperation with theDepartment of Public Information of the Secretariatand other information offices of the United Nationssystem, to intensify its public information campaign toraise global awareness of the Summit, within existingresources and through voluntary contributions;

8. Invites the international community to con-tinue providing extrabudgetary resources, in partic-ular through voluntary contributions, to the specialtrust fund established by the International Telecom-munication Union to support the preparations for andthe holding of the two phases of the Summit and to fa-cilitate the effective participation of representatives ofdeveloping countries, in particular the least developedcountries, in the third meeting of the intergovernmen-tal Preparatory Committee, to be held in Geneva from15 to 26 September 2003, as well as in future meetingsof the Preparatory Committee and in the two phasesof the Summit.

UN roleICT Task Force. In April, the Secretary-

General submitted to the Economic and SocialCouncil the first annual report [E/2003/56 & Corr.1]of the Information and Communication Tech-nologies Task Force, which was established in2001 [YUN 2001, p. 762] to provide a global forum onintegrating ICT into development programmesand a platform for promoting public and privatepartnerships to help bridge the digital divide andfoster digital opportunity.

During the first year of its mandate, the TaskForce had become a universally recognized fo-rum for the ICT and development communitiesto interact in support of the MDGs with the use ofICT and had helped to develop a holistic policyresponse to the challenge of putting ICT in theservice of development, paying special attentionto Africa. The Task Force had also begun to ad-dress policy issues related to the integration ofnational e-strategies into overall developmentand poverty eradication strategies and hadstrongly advocated mainstreaming ICT into ODApolicies and programmes. In the coming years,the Task Force would implement a focused strat-egy to support the realization of the MDGs. Amajor challenge was awareness-raising and advo-cacy for policy and regulatory reform, of which akey part would be to help shape an agenda for theWorld Summit on the Information Society andbuild a common platform for action.


On 24 July [meeting 48], the Economic and SocialCouncil adopted resolution 2003/54 [draft: E/2003/L.46] without vote [agenda item 7 (i)].

Information and communication technologiesfor development

The Economic and Social Council,Taking note of the first annual report of the Informa-

tion and Communication Technologies Task Force,Welcomes the achievements of the Task Force thus

far, its orientation towards the use of information andcommunication technologies in the advancement ofthe development goals contained in the UnitedNations Millennium Declaration, its support of thepreparations for the World Summit on the Informa-tion Society and its work, including through its re-gional networks and working groups and regionalnodes on information and communication technologyissues.

Development of a system-wide ICT strategyCEB consideration. At its sixth session (New

York, 20-21 October) [CEB/2003/5], the CEB High-level Committee on Management noted progressmade by ICT managers on a number of projects,including the UN system Extranet and the searchengine, and encouraged all organizations in the



system that had not already done so to join theUN system Extranet so that it could truly becomea system-wide tool for communication. TheCommittee also supported increased interactionbetween ICT managers and programme manag-ers as part of the development of a system-wideICT strategy and encouraged the exchange ofpolicies on hardware replacement amongorganizations in the UN system.

Report of Secretary-General. In response toGeneral Assembly resolution 57/295 [YUN 2002,p. 836], the Secretary-General, as Chairman ofCEB, submitted a report [A/58/568] on progress inthe development of a comprehensive ICT strategyfor the UN system. He reviewed the status of col-laboration on ICT in the UN system, includingthe work of the ICT Task Force and the launch ofjoint work of the UN system and the Task Force,which concluded that a single e-policy for the UNsystem was not feasible, but coordination andinformation-sharing should be enhanced to-wards the elaboration of a system-wide ICT strat-egy. Regarding future actions, the report statedthat to move towards enhanced coordination inICT, work was needed in parallel at several levels,including that of ICT managers, senior managersand Member States, to overcome a number ofbasic roadblocks and impediments. In particular,more coherence was required with regard tobudget, procurement and financial procedures,which tended to breed isolationist approaches tofunding ICT programmes.

The report called for the elaboration of anaction plan outlining the building blocks for asystem-wide framework of ICTs, including mile-stones, benchmarks, resources, responsibilitiesand accountabilities for results. On the basis ofconsultation among CEB members and with in-puts from the ICT Task Force, a proposal for sucha strategy and accompanying action plan wouldbe submitted to the Secretary-General in 2004.

By decision 58/565 of 23 December, the As-sembly decided that the agenda item on ICT fordevelopment would remain for consideration atits resumed fifty-eighth (2004) session.

Biotechnology

In response to General Assembly resolution56/182 [YUN 2001, p. 761], the Secretary-Generalsubmitted a May report on the impact of newbiotechnologies, with particular attention to sus-tainable development, including food security,health and economic productivity [A/58/76]. Thereport presented an overview of sectors andcountries where biotechnology was making a sig-nificant contribution to economic productivityand human welfare and identified measures thatneeded to be taken in order to build indigenous

capabilities in biotechnology. It put forward pro-posals on the aspects of the transfer of suchtechnologies, particularly to developing coun-tries and countries with economies in transition,while taking into account the need to protect in-tellectual property rights and the special needs ofdeveloping countries.

The Assembly, by decision 58/545 of 23 De-cember, took note of the Secretary-General’s re-port and asked that it be circulated at the GlobalBiotechnology Forum (see below).

UNIDO action. The UNIDO Industrial Devel-opment Board, at its twenty-seventh session (Vi-enna, 26-28 August) [GC.10/4], taking note ofpreparations for the Global Biotechnology Fo-rum [IDB.27/15], scheduled to be held in Con-cepción, Chile, from 2 to 5 March 2004, re-quested the UNIDO Director-General to prepare adraft final statement of the Forum and urgedmember States to participate in the Forum at thehighest appropriate level and encourage the par-ticipation of all other stakeholders [GC.10/4(IDB.27/Dec.8)]. The UNIDO General Conference(Vienna, 1-5 December) [GC.10/INF.4] encouragedthe Forum to discuss ways of addressing theissues of accelerating the quest for and acquisi-tion, adaptation and dissemination of innova-tions, creating capacity for utilizing biotechnologyand establishing strategic partnerships [GC.10/INF.4 (GC.10/Res. 7)].

The General Assembly, by decision 58/545 of23 December, reiterated its invitation to theUNIDO Director-General to report to the Assem-bly’s fifty-ninth (2004) session on the outcome ofthe Forum.


On 23 December [meeting 78], the General As-sembly, on the recommendation of the SecondCommittee [A/58/481/Add.2], adopted resolution58/200 without vote [agenda item 91 (b)].

Science and technology for developmentThe General Assembly,Recognizing the role that international cooperation

on science and technology can play in addressing thetechnological gap and the digital divide between theNorth and the South,

Recognizing also the importance of North-South aswell as South-South cooperation in the field of scienceand technology,

Recognizing further the vital role of new and emerg-ing technologies in raising the productivity and com-petitiveness of nations and the need, inter alia, forcapacity-building, measures promoting the transferand diffusion of technologies to developing countries,and the promotion of private sector activities and pub-lic awareness of science and technology,

Reaffirming the need to enhance the science andtechnology activities of the organizations of the



United Nations system and the role of the Commis-sion on Science and Technology for Development inproviding policy guidance, in particular on issues ofrelevance to developing countries,

Recognizing the role of information and communica-tion technologies in promoting development as an im-portant step towards addressing the challenges ofbridging the digital divide, and in this regard welcom-ing the convening of the first phase of the World Sum-mit on the Information Society, held in Geneva from10 to 12 December 2003, and its second phase, to beheld in Tunis from 16 to 18 November 2005,

Welcoming the Commission’s selection of the sub-stantive theme “Promoting the application of scienceand technology to meet the development goals con-tained in the United Nations Millennium Declara-tion”, for its work during the intersessional period2003-2004, as welcomed by the Economic and SocialCouncil in its resolution 2003/56 of 24 July 2003,

Noting with appreciation the Commission’s work dur-ing its intersessional period 2001-2003 on its theme“Technology development and capacity-building forcompetitiveness in a digital society”, in particular theinformation and communication technologies devel-opment indices, which serve as an important contribu-tion to the preparation of the World Summit on theInformation Society,

Taking note of the report of the Secretary-Generalon the impact of new biotechnologies, with particularattention to sustainable development, including foodsecurity, health and economic productivity,

Taking note also of Economic and Social Council res-olution 2003/56, in which the Council invited theCommission to interact closely with the Informationand Communication Technologies Task Force to pro-mote greater information exchange and coordinationof activities in the field of information and communi-cation technologies in order to contribute to the WorldSummit on the Information Society,

1. Urges the relevant bodies of the United Nationssystem engaged in biotechnology to work coopera-tively so as to ensure that countries receive sound scien-tific information and practical advice to enable them totake advantage of these technologies, as appropriate, topromote economic growth and development;

2. Takes note of the proposal of the Secretary-General for an integrated framework for biotechnol-ogy development within the United Nations system, ascontained in his report, and requests him to reportfurther on the status of coordination between the rele-vant organizations and bodies of the United Nationssystem with a view to strengthening the coordinationof activities in the area of biotechnology, in particularin the promotion of biotechnology within the UnitedNations system;

3. Also takes note of the publication entitled Infor-mation and Communication Technology DevelopmentIndices, and invites the United Nations Conference onTrade and Development in collaboration with the In-formation and Communication Technologies TaskForce and the International Telecommunication Union,to update that publication as part of its contribution tothe World Summit on the Information Society, recall-ing General Assembly resolution 56/183 of 21 Decem-ber 2001, in which the Assembly encouraged effective

contributions from and the active participation of allrelevant United Nations bodies;

4. Calls upon the Secretary-General to continue toensure that the Commission and its secretariat withinthe United Nations Conference on Trade and Develop-ment are provided with the necessary resources to en-able the Commission to better carry out its mandate;

5. Requests the Secretary-General to submit to theGeneral Assembly at its sixtieth session a report on theimplementation of the present resolution.

Cybersecurity


On 23 December [meeting 78], the General As-sembly, on the recommendation of the SecondCommittee [A/58/481/Add.2], adopted resolution58/199 without vote [agenda item 91 (b)].

Creation of a global culture ofcybersecurity and the protection ofcritical information infrastructures


2002 on the creation of a global culture of cyber-security, 55/63 of 4 December 2000 and 56/121 of 19December 2001 on establishing the legal basis for com-bating the criminal misuse of information technolo-gies, and 53/70 of 4 December 1998, 54/49 of 1 De-cember 1999, 55/28 of 20 November 2000, 56/19 of 29November 2001 and 57/53 of 22 November 2002 ondevelopments in the field of information and telecom-munications in the context of international security,

Recognizing the growing importance of informationtechnologies for the promotion of socio-economic de-velopment and the provision of essential goods andservices, the conduct of business and the exchange ofinformation for Governments, businesses, other or-ganizations and individual users,

Noting the increasing links among most countries’critical infrastructures—such as those used for, interalia, the generation, transmission and distribution ofenergy, air and maritime transport, banking and fi-nancial services, e-commerce, water supply, food dis-tribution and public health—and the critical informa-tion infrastructures that increasingly interconnect andaffect their operations,

Recognizing that each country will determine its owncritical information infrastructures,

Recognizing also that this growing technologicalinterdependence relies on a complex network of criti-cal information infrastructure components,

Noting that, as a result of increasing inter-connectivity, critical information infrastructures arenow exposed to a growing number and a wider varietyof threats and vulnerabilities that raise new securityconcerns,

Noting also that effective critical infrastructure pro-tection includes, inter alia, identifying threats to andreducing the vulnerability of critical information in-frastructures, minimizing damage and recovery timein the event of damage or attack, and identifying thecause of damage or the source of attack,

Recognizing that effective protection requires com-munication and cooperation nationally and interna-



tionally among all stakeholders and that nationalefforts should be supported by effective, substantiveinternational and regional cooperation among stake-holders,

Recognizing also that gaps in access to and the use ofinformation technologies by States can diminish the ef-fectiveness of cooperation in combating the criminalmisuse of information technology and in creating aglobal culture of cybersecurity, and noting the need tofacilitate the transfer of information technologies, inparticular to developing countries,

Recognizing further the importance of internationalcooperation for achieving cybersecurity and the pro-tection of critical information infrastructures throughthe support of national efforts aimed at the enhance-ment of human capacity, increased learning and em-ployment opportunities, improved public services andbetter quality of life by taking advantage of advanced,reliable and secure information and communicationtechnologies and networks and by promoting universalaccess,

Noting the work of relevant international and re-gional organizations on enhancing the security of criti-cal information infrastructures,

Recognizing that efforts to protect critical informa-tion infrastructures should be undertaken with due re-gard for applicable national laws concerning privacyprotection and other relevant legislation,

1. Takes note of the elements set out in the annex tothe present resolution for protecting critical informa-tion infrastructures;

2. Invites all relevant international organizations,including relevant United Nations bodies, to consider,as appropriate, inter alia, these elements for protectingcritical information infrastructures in any future workon cybersecurity or critical infrastructure protection;

3. Invites Member States to consider, inter alia,these elements in developing their strategies for reduc-ing risks to critical information infrastructures, in ac-cordance with national laws and regulations;

4. Invites Member States and all relevant interna-tional organizations to take, inter alia, these elementsand the need for critical information infrastructureprotection into account in their preparations for thesecond phase of the World Summit on the InformationSociety, to be held in Tunis from 16 to 18 November2005;

5. Encourages Member States and relevant regionaland international organizations that have developedstrategies to deal with cybersecurity and the protectionof critical information infrastructures to share theirbest practices and measures that could assist otherMember States in their efforts to facilitate the achieve-ment of cybersecurity;

6. Stresses the necessity for enhanced efforts to closethe digital divide, to achieve universal access to infor-mation and communication technologies and to pro-tect critical information infrastructures by facilitatingthe transfer of information technology and capacity-building, in particular to developing countries, espe-cially the least developed countries, so that all Statesmay benefit fully from information and communica-tion technologies for their socio-economic develop-ment.

Annex

Elements for protectingcritical information infrastructures

1. Have emergency warning networks regardingcyber-vulnerabilities, threats and incidents.

2. Raise awareness to facilitate stakeholders’ un-derstanding of the nature and extent of their criticalinformation infrastructures and the role each mustplay in protecting them.

3. Examine infrastructures and identify inter-dependencies among them, thereby enhancing theprotection of such infrastructures.

4. Promote partnerships among stakeholders, bothpublic and private, to share and analyse critical infra-structure information in order to prevent, investigateand respond to damage to or attacks on such infra-structures.

5. Create and maintain crisis communication net-works and test them to ensure that they will remain se-cure and stable in emergency situations.

6. Ensure that data availability policies take into ac-count the need to protect critical information infra-structures.

7. Facilitate the tracing of attacks on critical infor-mation infrastructures and, where appropriate, thedisclosure of tracing information to other States.

8. Conduct training and exercises to enhance re-sponse capabilities and to test continuity and contin-gency plans in the event of an information infrastruc-ture attack, and encourage stakeholders to engage insimilar activities.

9. Have adequate substantive and procedural lawsand trained personnel to enable States to investigateand prosecute attacks on critical information infra-structures and to coordinate such investigations withother States, as appropriate.

10. Engage in international cooperation, when ap-propriate, to secure critical information infrastruc-tures, including by developing and coordinating emer-gency warning systems, sharing and analysinginformation regarding vulnerabilities, threats and in-cidents and coordinating investigations of attacks onsuch infrastructures in accordance with domestic laws.

11. Promote national and international researchand development and encourage the application ofsecurity technologies that meet international stand-ards.

Economic and social trends

The World Economic and Social Survey 2003[Sales No. E.03.II.C.1], prepared in mid-2003 by theUN Department of Economic and Social Affairs(DESA), observed that the tentative recovery of theworld economy from the global slowdown of2001, which began in the second half of 2002,quickly faded, largely due to the geopolitical un-certainties associated with the looming confron-tation in Iraq (see p. 333). Those uncertaintiescaused oil prices to rise, equity markets to plum-



met, and consumer and business confidence tofall to their lowest levels in a decade. Gross worldproduct (GWP) increased by less than 2 per cent in2002, marking a second consecutive year of below-potential growth. China, India and a number oftransition economies were notable exceptions tothe sub-par performance that characterized themajority of the world’s economies. A global re-covery was forecast for the second half of 2003,led by the developed countries, notably theUnited States, which was expected to provide astimulus to the rest of the world. However, geo-political uncertainties continued to pose a down-side risk to the global economy in early 2003, asdid a new economic shock—severe acute respira-tory syndrome (SARS). The most important fac-tors that could pose a threat to short-term globalgrowth were the nature and adjustment of theUnited States external deficit and the possibilityof deflation in a growing number of countries.

Growth in the developed economies as agroup, which had been below 1.5 per cent for twoyears, was expected to be only marginally strongerin 2003. Although the prospects for economicgrowth in North America were improving, thewar in Iraq derailed an already anaemic recoveryin the United States and moderated substantiallythe robust domestic demand that had offset ex-ternal weaknesses in Canada. While some weak-nesses could linger, a gradual rebound wasexpected in the second half of 2003, to bestrengthened further in 2004. Business spend-ing, rather than household consumption, wasconsidered crucial for the strength of the recov-ery. Following growth of only 1 per cent in 2002,Western Europe was expected to recover some-what in 2003. The region’s extended period ofbelow-trend growth had led to higher region-wide unemployment and increased fiscal defi-cits, which, together with the appreciation ofthe euro, would dampen the region’s recovery.Japan’s economy remained fragile, with gross do-mestic product (GDP) growth forecast at less than1 per cent in both 2003 and 2004. Despite an im-provement in some economic indicators early in2003, economic fundamentals continued to beweak, with the ongoing decline in asset prices ag-gravating severe problems in the banking sectorand in the real economy. In Australia and NewZealand, GDP growth was expected to moderatein 2003 and 2004, although it would still exceed3 per cent.

Growth in the economies in transition had de-celerated in 2002 but was expected to strengthenagain in 2003 and 2004. Economic growth in theCentral and Eastern European countries, whichdecreased from 2.7 per cent in 2001 to 2.5 percent in 2002, was expected to strengthen to about

3 per cent in 2003. The Commonwealth of Inde-pendent States (CIS) economies continued to belargely sheltered from global economic uncer-tainties, having recorded strong growth each yearsince 2000. GDP growth for the region was pro-jected at 4.5 per cent in 2003 (compared with4.7 per cent in 2002).

In the developing countries overall, economicgrowth was expected to accelerate slightly to3.5 per cent in 2003, compared with 3.2 per centin 2002. However, not all regions were participat-ing in that mild recovery: Latin America wouldrecord only modest growth; both East Asia andWestern Asia would decelerate; and Africa wouldgrow at only 3 per cent. The only bright spots inthe outlook were South Asia, where growth wasexpected to reach 5.75 per cent in 2003, andChina, which would continue its strong perform-ance of recent years.

The Trade and Development Report, 2003 [SalesNo. E.03.II.D.7], published by the United NationsConference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD),stated that the global economy was experiencingan anxious time. The long-anticipated reboundin the United States continued to be delayed andthere were concerns that the imbalances and ex-cesses created during the high-tech boom of the1990s could result in a long period of erratic andsluggish growth. Adverse consequences for thedeveloping countries, even the most resilient,were unavoidable. Brighter political conditionscould help avoid a repetition of the previousyear’s recession in Latin America, but any recov-ery there would be fragile. Africa appeared to berelatively insulated from global trends, but thecontinued weakness of many commodity pricesmeant that it might not be able to repeat its per-formance of the preceding two years. Given thecurrent level of development cooperation andthe structural weaknesses across the region, therewas growing consensus that it would be impossi-ble to meet the MDGs even under the most opti-mistic growth scenario for the world economy.

A report on the world economic situation andprospects [Sales No. E.04.II.C.2], prepared jointly byDESA and UNCTAD, stated that at the end of 2003the world economy was gaining momentum; GNPfor the year as a whole had risen to 2.5 per cent.Despite some lingering uncertainties and down-side risks, the recovery was expected to strengthenand broaden further, raising global economicgrowth to 3.5 per cent in 2004. The recovery wasbeing driven mainly by the United States but withincreasing contributions from a number of othereconomies, notably China. The acceleration ingrowth was greater in the developed countriesthan in the developing countries. While growthwas highest in North America, Asia and Oceania



achieved the greatest improvement because ofJapan’s return to productive growth. Overall, theWestern European economies performed lesswell than in 2002, but improved as the year pro-gressed. The CIS countries rebounded solidlyfrom the deceleration in 2002 and growth inother economies in transition also improved. Theinternational economic environment for mostdeveloping countries improved during 2003, butthe long-term downward trend in the real pricesof commodities and the pro-cyclical nature ofinternational capital flows would continue tochallenge many of them over the longer term. InAfrica, progress in political and economic gov-ernance and in achieving macroeconomic stabil-ity, along with other positive factors, character-ized the economy in 2003. Growth in LatinAmerica and the Caribbean was expected to re-cover, boosted by the improvement in both exter-nal conditions and the domestic economic policyenvironment. In East Asia, the external sector,private consumption, public spending and busi-ness investment were all contributing to a strongrecovery. In South Asia, the economic spilloverfrom the war in Iraq was relatively modest and fa-vourable agricultural production, rising rural in-comes, increased exports, low interest rates,growing remittances and the improved securitysituation would continue to support a broad re-covery in most countries. The prospects for West-ern Asia depended on developments in Iraq andon the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Growth in theoil-exporting countries of the region was ex-pected to accelerate. A key feature of the globalrecovery was the rising economic weight of thetwo most populous countries, China and India,which were growing at a rate more than twice theworld average. Continued strong growth in thosetwo large low-income countries would benefit theworld economy as a whole. However, their sizemeant that their fast growth would have far-reaching implications for international patternsof trade, production and financing, and for theglobal supply and demand of energy and com-modities.

Human Development Report 2003

The Human Development Report 2003 [Sales No.03.III.B.1], prepared by UNDP, assessed progressmade towards achieving the MDGs of halving ex-treme poverty by 2015 and advancing other areasof human development. It also reviewed how theMDGs were transforming development, as Gov-ernments, aid agencies and civil society reori-ented their work around them. The Report foundthat, although much of the world was on track forsome of the Goals, when progress was brokendown by region and country and within coun-

tries, it was clear that a huge amount of workremained. Many had seen life expectancy plum-met due to HIV/AIDS, and some of the worstperformers—often torn by conflict—were seeingschool enrolments shrink and access to basichealth care fall. Nearly everywhere the environ-ment was deteriorating. The Report also assessedwhere the problems in achieving the MDGs were,analysed what needed to be done to reverse thesetbacks and made proposals for acceleratingprogress everywhere towards achieving all theGoals. Building on the commitments made at the2002 Monterrey Conference on Financing forDevelopment [YUN 2002, p. 953], the Report also setout a Millennium Development Compact thatprovided a broad framework for how national de-velopment strategies and international supportfrom donors and others could be better aligned,commensurate with the scale of the challenge ofthe MDGs.

In addition to providing a critical analysis ofa different theme each year, the Report assessedthe state of human development across the globe,involving country data that focused on humanwell-being, not just economic trends. In 2003, itranked 175 countries in its human developmentindex by combining indicators of life expectancy,educational attainment and adjusted per capitaincome, among other factors. Of the 175 coun-tries listed, 55 were in the high human develop-ment category, 87 were in the medium categoryand 33 were in the low category. The Report alsoincluded a special set of tables containing indica-tors relating to the MDGs.

UNDP consideration. In June [E/2003/35 (dec.2003/21)], the UNDP/United Nations PopulationFund Executive Board took note of a report ofthe UNDP Administrator [DP/ 2003/17] on strength-ening consultations with Member States on theHuman Development Report , in accordance withGeneral Assembly resolution 57/264 [YUN 2002,p. 841]. The Administrator made proposals for im-proving the consultation process by increasingthe number and enhancing the quality of consul-tations, and by holding special consultations onspecific issues.

By decision 2003/225 of 11 July, the Economicand Social Council took note of the report.

Development policy

and public administration

Committee for Development Policy

The Committee for Development Policy (CDP),at its fifth session (New York, 7-11 April) [E/2003/33], considered the issues of promoting an inte-



grated approach to rural development in devel-oping countries for poverty eradication and sus-tainable development (see p. 852) and globalpublic goods and financial mechanisms in thepursuit of sustainable development. It also re-viewed the list of least developed countries(LDCs), including criteria for their identification(see p. 867).

Concerning global public goods (GPGs) and in-novative financial mechanisms in the pursuit ofsustainable development, CDP focused on thecontribution of the perspective on GPGs to think-ing regarding development in developing coun-tries and to accelerated progress towards meetingthe MDGs. The Committee considered GPGs asthose goods whose benefits had strong qualitiesof publicness and were global in terms of coun-tries, people and generations. It agreed that GPGshad the potential for generating a better formula-tion of effective, efficient and equitable pathstowards development. However, the conceptneeded further clarification. Limited until re-cently to the provision of national or local publicgoods, the concept had been extended to theinternational context. CDP suggested: raisingpublic awareness about the nature and role ofGPGs; developing new institutional and financearrangements; identifying the financing gap anddeveloping realistic estimates of financing re-quirements for the provision of GPGs by category;and considering new potential sources to supple-ment existing resources to help ensure the provi-sion of GPGs and increasing the role of the privatesector.

On 24 July, the Economic and Social Council(decision 2003/281) took note of chapters I, II,III and V of the CDP report on its fifth session.

Public administration

As decided by the Economic and Social Coun-cil on 28 January (decision 2003/207), the Com-mittee of Experts on Public Administration heldits second session (New York, 7-11 April) [E/2003/44]. The Committee had before it Secretariat re-ports on: status of and trends in the develop-ment of e-Government [E/C.16/2003/2]; basic dataon the public sector [E/C.16/2003/3]; strategies forhigh-quality staffing in the public sector [E/C.16/2003/4]; and the role of public administration inmainstreaming poverty reduction strategieswithin the MDGs [E/C.16/2003/5].

The Committee concluded that it was an over-arching priority for all countries to revitalize andrevalidate public administration. Given the im-portance of efficient public administration sys-tems for the attainment of social developmentgoals, the Committee recommended that the

Economic and Social Council establish linkagesbetween the Committee’s work and that of theCommission for Social Development. The Coun-cil should bring the issue of governance andpublic administration to the forefront of the de-velopment agenda and consider devoting its nexthigh-level segment to that topic. The Committeefurther recommended that public adminis-tration issues should become an integral part ofthe process of follow-up to UN conferences andsummits, and that the Committee could serve as avaluable source of advice to the intergovernmen-tal machinery in that respect.

The Committee also reviewed and commentedand made recommendations on the UnitedNations Programme in Public Administrationand Finance. In particular, it recommended thatthe Secretariat continue to provide, at the requestof Member States, technical advisory supportfor enhancing the quality of personnel in thepublic sector; reinforcing governance and publicadministration systems and institutions; and fos-tering transparency and accountability, as wellas reconstructing public administration in post-conflict countries and in situations of decentral-ized governance. The Secretariat should furtheranalyse and delineate the role of the State asenabler and user of knowledge and technology tosupport and encourage innovation throughoutpublic administration and society as a whole. Itshould also continue its work on basic data on thepublic sector and expand the number of indica-tors, in partnership with agencies and institutescurrently working on the topic, focusing in par-ticular on government efficiency, transparencyand participation.

The Committee commended the World PublicSector Report as being an extremely valuable toolfor policy makers and practitioners in MemberStates; recommended that the Secretariat shouldfocus, in its next issue, on human resources devel-opment; and advised the Secretariat of the use-fulness of having the publication translated intoother languages. The Committee stressed the im-portance of capitalizing on the successes ofthe United Nations Online Network in PublicAdministration and Finance (UNPAN) by expand-ing its reach to the subregional level in order tostrengthen the capacity of subregional institu-tions in public administration.


On 25 July [meeting 49], the Economic and SocialCouncil [draft: E/2003/L.45, orally revised] adoptedresolution 2003/60 without vote [agenda item 13 (g)].

Public administration and developmentThe Economic and Social Council,Recalling its resolution 2002/40 of 19 December 2002,



1. Takes note of the report of the Committee of Ex-perts on Public Administration on its second session;

2. Reiterates that efficient, accountable, effectiveand transparent public administration, at both the na-tional and the international levels, has a key role to playin the implementation of the internationally agreeddevelopment goals, including those contained in theUnited Nations Millennium Declaration, and inthat context stresses the need to strengthen nationalpublic sector administrative and managerial capacity-building, in particular in developing countries andcountries with economies in transition;

3. Reiterates also that strengthening public adminis-tration and the State are at the forefront of the devel-opment agenda to achieve the internationally agreeddevelopment goals, including those contained in theMillennium Declaration, and that revitalizing publicadministration is considered to be one of the essentialcomponents of economic and social development, andin this context decides to explore the possibility of con-sidering this theme at a future high-level segment;

4. Decides that the Committee shall meet annually,instead of biennially, for one week, given the need toadapt to the ever-changing environment and owingto the fact that rapidly emerging issues need to beaddressed in a timely manner, with a focus on the needto modernize in all countries public sector humanresource systems, strengthen systems of accounta-bility and transparency and explore the potential ofe-government to develop innovative public adminis-trative tools;

5. Decides also that the Committee, within theframework decided upon in General Assembly resolu-tion 57/270 B of 23 June 2003, should contribute to theintegrated and coordinated follow-up to major UnitedNations conferences and summits in the economic andsocial fields;

6. Approves the following agenda for the next meet-ing of the Committee, to be held at United NationsHeadquarters from 29 March to 2 April 2004:

1. Revitalizing public administration.2. Public sector institutional capacity for African

renewal.3. Analysis of existing basic data on the public sector.4. Review of the United Nations Programme in

Public Administration and Finance.7. Urges the Committee to continue to work in

accordance with its mandate.

Report of Secretary-General. In response toGeneral Assembly resolution 57/277 [YUN 2002,p. 843], the Secretary-General submitted an 11July report on the role of public administrationin the implementation of the United NationsMillennium Declaration [YUN 2000, p. 49]. Interna-tional organizations and bodies had been invitedto provide information on: initiatives undertakento improve the capacity of the public sector ofMember States to meet the MDGs; and innovativeand successful practices that contributed directlyto those Goals. The information collectedrevealed five areas of interventions that were con-ducive to the attainment of the MDGs: decentral-ization; transparency and accountability; “en-

gaged governance” or mainstreaming citizens’voices in public policy; the application of ICT;and capacity-building in statistics. The reportfound that the first four reforms reinforced eachother to transform traditional public adminis-tration into a public sector that emphasized par-ticipation, partnership and openness. Describingcapacity-building in statistics as a cross-cuttingneed, the Secretary-General stated that, to helpreplicate best practices, the United Nationswould regularly document those practices forknowledge transfer, while offering technical andadvisory services to Member States for capacity-building.

Global Forum. On 12 September [A/58/383],Morocco transmitted to the Assembly the text ofthe Marrakech Declaration, adopted by theFourth Global Forum on Reinventing Govern-ment (Marrakech,11-12December2002),devotedto the theme “Citizens, Businesses and Govern-ments: dialogue and partnerships for democracyand development”.

Santa Cruz Consensus. On 28 July [A/58/193],Bolivia transmitted to the Secretary-Generalthe texts of the Santa Cruz Consensus and theIbero-American Charter for the Public Service,adopted at the fifth Ibero-American Conferenceof Ministers for Public Administration and StateReform (Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, 26-27June 2003).


On 23 December [meeting 78], the General As-sembly, on the recommendation of the SecondCommittee [A/58/495 & Corr.1], adopted resolution58/231 without vote [agenda item 12].

Public administration and developmentThe General Assembly,Recalling its resolutions 50/225 of 19 April 1996,

53/201 of 15 December 1998, 56/213 of 21 December2001 and 57/277 of 20 December 2002 on publicadministration and development, as well as Economicand Social Council resolution 2001/45 of 20 December2001,

Stressing the need for capacity-building initiativesaimed at institution-building, human resources devel-opment, strengthening financial management andharnessing the power of information and technology,

Recalling that 2006 will mark the tenth anniversaryof the resumed fiftieth session of the General Assem-bly, on public administration and development,

Welcoming the adoption of the Ibero-AmericanCharter for the Public Service at the fifth Ibero-American Conference of Ministers for PublicAdministration and State Reform, held in Santa Cruzde la Sierra, Bolivia, on 26 and 27 June 2003,

Expressing its deep appreciation for the generosity ofthe Government of Mexico in hosting the fifth GlobalForum on Reinventing Government, held in MexicoCity from 3 to 7 November 2003,



Welcoming e-Government initiatives as a tool to pro-mote development,

Welcoming also the adoption of the United NationsConvention against Corruption,

1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-Generalon the role of public administration in the implemen-tation of the United Nations Millennium Declaration;

2. Reiterates that efficient, accountable, effectiveand transparent public administration, at both the na-tional and international levels, has a key role to play inthe implementation of the internationally agreed de-velopment goals, including those contained in theUnited Nations Millennium Declaration, and in thatcontext stresses the need to strengthen national publicsector administrative and managerial capacity-building,in particular in developing countries and countrieswith economies in transition;

3. Takes note with appreciation of the commemora-tion of 23 June as United Nations Public Service Dayand the granting of the United Nations Public ServiceAwards, which provide motivation for public servantsall over the world to enhance public administration asa tool for development, and in this regard encouragesMember States to participate in the award process bynominating candidates;

4. Also takes note with appreciation of the MarrakechDeclaration, adopted by the Fourth Global Forum onReinventing Government, held in Marrakech, Mo-rocco, from 11 to 13 December 2002;

5. Welcomes with appreciation the offer of the Gov-ernment of the Republic of Korea to host the SixthGlobal Forum on Reinventing Government in Seoul in2005;

6. Requests the Secretary-General to make propo-sals for commemorating the tenth anniversary of theresumed fiftieth session of the General Assembly, onpublic administration and development, during thesixty-first session of the General Assembly, in 2006;

7. Also requests the Secretary-General to support in-formation exchange and research and to disseminatesuccessful practices and advisory services in publicadministration that contribute to achieving the inter-nationally agreed development goals, including thosecontained in the Millennium Declaration;

8. Encourages the Secretary-General to continuesupporting the e-Government initiatives in the Afri-can, Asian, Central American and Caribbean regionsas a tool for development;

9. Requests the Secretary-General to submit a reportto the General Assembly at its fifty-ninth session on theimplementation of the present resolution.

Developing countries

and transition economies

Least developed countries

The special problems of the officially desig-nated LDCs were considered in several UN fo-rums in 2003, especially through the implemen-tation of the Brussels Declaration and theProgramme Action for the LDCs for the Decade

2001-2010, adopted at the Third UN Conferenceon the LDCs in 2001 [YUN 2001, p. 770] and endorsedby the General Assembly in resolution 55/279 inJuly of that year [ibid., p. 771]. In April, CDP under-took the triennial review of the official LDC list,recommending one country for addition to andtwo countries for future graduation from the list(see below).

LDC list

The number of countries officially designatedas LDCs increased to 50, when the Economic andSocial Council endorsed the CDP recommenda-tion to add Timor-Leste to the list.

The full list of LDCs comprised: Afghanistan,Angola, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, BurkinaFaso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cape Verde, CentralAfrican Republic, Chad, Comoros, DemocraticRepublic of the Congo, Djibouti, EquatorialGuinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Guinea,Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Kiribati, Lao People’sDemocratic Republic, Lesotho, Liberia, Mada-gascar, Malawi, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Mo-zambique, Myanmar, Nepal, Niger, Rwanda, Sa-moa, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, SierraLeone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Sudan,Timor-Leste, Togo, Tuvalu, Uganda, UnitedRepublic of Tanzania, Vanuatu, Yemen, Zambia.

Triennial reviewCDP, which was responsible for adding coun-

tries to or graduating them from the LDC list, con-ducted, in accordance with Economic and SocialCouncil resolution 1998/46 [YUN 1998, p. 1262], atriennial review of the list of LDCs at its fifth ses-sion in April [E/2003/33]. As requested by theCouncil in resolution 2002/36 [YUN 2002, p. 847],the Expert Group Meeting on the Review of theList of Least Developed Countries (New York, 23-24 January) continued to revise the criteria foridentification of LDCs, reviewed eligibility for in-clusion and graduation, examined the situationof certain economies in transition and dis-cussed the issue of smooth graduation from LDCstatus.

Based on the Expert Group proposals and itsown review, CDP adopted a three-year average of$750 per capita as the threshold for inclusion inthe category under the gross national income percapita criterion and increased the margin forgraduation from 15 to 20 per cent above thethreshold for inclusion, making the graduationthreshold a three-year average of $900 per capita.The Committee agreed that the threshold for in-clusion with regard to both the human assets in-dex and the economic vulnerability index crite-ria should be chosen so that three quarters of the



most disadvantaged countries would be eligibleunder each of those criteria. The margin be-tween the thresholds for inclusion and gradua-tion should be decreased from 15 to 10 per centfor those indicators.

Applying those thresholds, the Committeeconcluded that Timor-Leste qualified for inclu-sion in the list of LDCs; Cape Verde and Maldivesqualified for graduation from the list in 2006;and Samoa was eligible to be considered for grad-uation in 2006. The Committee emphasized theneed for a smooth transition for countries thatgraduated from the list and called on the interna-tional community to give urgent attention to thematter. Since all of the countries that qualified orwere eligible for graduation were small island de-veloping States, CDP considered it imperative thatthe international meeting on small island devel-oping States in 2004 should make progress in for-mulating policies and actions to address the de-velopment challenges faced by that group ofcountries, particularly those that qualified forgraduation from LDC status.

Economic and Social Council action. By deci-sion 2003/280 of 24 July, the Economic and So-cial Council included Timor-Leste in the list ofLDCs. By decision 2003/281of the same date, theCouncil deferred consideration of the review ofthe list of LDCs, including the question of gradu-ating Cape Verde and Maldives, to a resumed ses-sion. The Secretary-General was asked to providethe Council with technical support in thatregard.


On 17 December [meeting 75], the General As-sembly adopted resolution 58/112 [draft: A/58/L.36& Add.1] without vote [agenda item 12].

Report of the Committee for Development PolicyThe General Assembly,Noting that Timor-Leste became a member of the

United Nations on 27 September 2002,Recalling Economic and Social Council decisions

2003/280 and 2003/281 of 24 July 2003 on the reportof the Committee for Development Policy,

Noting that Timor-Leste has given its consent to beincluded in the list of least developed countries,

Endorses the recommendation of the Economic andSocial Council that Timor-Leste be added to the list ofthe least developed countries.

Programme of Action (2001-2010)

In response to General Assembly resolution57/276 [YUN 2002, p. 846] and Economic and SocialCouncil resolution 2002/33 [ibid., p. 845], theSecretary-General issued a May report [A/58/86-E/2003/81] on implementation of the Brussels Pro-gramme of Action for the LDCs, adopted at the

Third United Nations Conference on the LDCs(LDC-III) in 2001 [YUN 2001, p. 770]. The reportchronicled the policies adopted by LDCs and pro-gress made and challenges remaining in imple-menting the Brussels Programme of Action. Italso examined the decisions and programmesundertaken by the international developmentpartners, including the UN system, the BrettonWoods institutions, other multilateral organiza-tions, the donor community, civil society and theprivate sector, in mainstreaming the BrusselsProgramme of Action.

The report concluded that LDC actions to fulfilthe Brussels Programme of Action commitmentswere yet to materialize, given the limited timesince its adoption, the lack of data, the complex-ity of the issues involved and capacity constraints.While LDC Governments had shown a willing-ness to reverse the fortunes of their peoples, theright economic and social policies had to be pur-sued and suitable international conditionsshould prevail in order for them to make mean-ingful progress towards achieving the Pro-gramme of Action’s commitments and targets. Inaddition, only a few LDCs had established na-tional forums or designated national focal points,both of which were crucial for facilitating follow-up and monitoring the implementation of theProgramme of Action.

The report recommended a number of actionsto address the challenges that were impeding im-plementation of the Programme of Action. Theycovered: the need for international support; aclearly defined operational plan designating theroles of stakeholders, sequenced priorities andcoordinated actions at the national, regional/subregional and global levels; and the effectivefunctioning of arrangements for follow-up,coordination, monitoring and review.


On 22 July [meeting 44], the Economic and So-cial Council adopted resolution 2003/17 [draft:E/2003/L.15/Rev.1] without vote [agenda item 6 (b)].

Programme of Action for the Least DevelopedCountries for the Decade 2001-2010

The Economic and Social Council,Recalling the Brussels Declaration and the Pro-

gramme of Action for the Least Developed Countriesfor the Decade 2001-2010,

Recalling also its decision 2001/320 of 24 October2001 on the establishment of a regular sub-item enti-tled “Review and coordination of the implementationof the Programme of Action for the Least DevelopedCountries for the Decade 2001-2010”,

Recalling further its resolution 2002/33 of 26 July2002, in which it took note of the oral report of theHigh Representative for the Least Developed Coun-tries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small



Island Developing States on the implementation of theProgramme of Action for the Least Developed Coun-tries for the Decade 2001-2010,

1. Takes note of the progress report of the Secretary-General on the implementation of the Programme ofAction for the Least Developed Countries for the Dec-ade 2001-2010;

2. Expresses its deep concern over the weak implemen-tation of the Programme of Action, and expresses itsexpectation of more vigorous implementation by allpartners;

3. Calls upon the Secretary-General, while stressingthe central role of the Economic and Social Council inthe coordination of actions in the United Nationssystem for the implementation of the Programme ofAction, to take appropriate measures to strengthen theefficiency and effectiveness of the Office of the HighRepresentative for the Least Developed Countries,Landlocked Developing Countries and Small IslandDeveloping States so that it can fulfil its functions inaccordance with General Assembly resolution 56/227of 24 December 2001;

4. Urges all Member States and the organizationsand bodies of the United Nations system and invitesthe international financial institutions and other mul-tilateral organizations to extend to the Office of theHigh Representative their full support for the fulfil-ment of its mandate, including through staffingsupport;

5. Stresses the need for the effective implementationof the Programme of Action and its annual assessmentat the substantive session of the Council, recognizes inthis regard the critical importance of the participationof the least developed countries in the assessment pro-cess of the Programme of Action, and requests theSecretary-General to make, in consultation with Mem-ber States, recommendations to facilitate the participa-tion of the delegations of the least developed countriesat the annual substantive sessions of the Council andto report thereon to the General Assembly at its fifty-eighth session;

6. Reiterates that the Programme of Action offers aframework for partnership, based on mutual commit-ments by least developed countries and their develop-ment partners to undertake concrete actions in a num-ber of interlinked areas set out in the Programme ofAction;

7. Calls upon least developed countries, with thesupport of their development partners, to continue tofulfil their commitments and to promote the imple-mentation of the actions contained in the Programmeof Action by translating them into specific measureswithin their national development frameworks andpoverty eradication strategies, in particular poverty re-duction strategy papers, where they exist, with the in-volvement of civil society, including the private sector,on the basis of a broad-based inclusive dialogue, as wellas to continue to promote an enabling environment forthe effective mobilization and utilization of resourcesconsistent with paragraph 82 of the Programme ofAction;

8. Calls upon all development partners of the leastdeveloped countries, including multilateral financialinstitutions, to continue to fulfil their commitmentsregarding the effective and expeditious implementa-tion of the Programme of Action, and urges the de-

veloped countries that have not yet done so to makeconcrete efforts to implement effectively their commit-ments on official development assistance to the leastdeveloped countries, as contained in paragraph 83 ofthe Programme of Action;

9. Invites the organizations and bodies of theUnited Nations system, including the Bretton Woodsinstitutions, and all other international organizations,within their respective mandates, to support, as a pri-ority, the implementation of the Programme of Action,including programmes of financial and technical co-operation devoted to least developed countries insupport of their national development programmes,including their poverty reduction strategies;

10. Welcomes the initiatives of the United Nationsand the Group of Eight to bridge the digital divide thathas further marginalized the least developed coun-tries, particularly in the area of information technol-ogy, calls upon the international community to addressthe special needs of the least developed countriestherein, and in this regard invites the forthcomingWorld Summit on the Information Society to adoptconcrete actions to bridge the digital divide in the leastdeveloped countries;

11. Invites the forthcoming Ministerial Conferenceof the World Trade Organization, to be held inCancún, Mexico, in September 2003, to address themarginalization of the least developed countries in in-ternational trade and to adopt further measures to in-tegrate effectively the least developed countries intothe multilateral trading system and the global econ-omy;

12. Invites the members of the World Trade Organi-zation to facilitate and accelerate accession to the or-ganization for those least developed countries that arecandidates by expeditiously implementing the guide-lines to facilitate and accelerate the accession of theleast developed countries to the World Trade Organi-zation, which were adopted by the General Council ofthe World Trade Organization on 10 December 2002;

13. Calls upon the Secretary-General to submit hisannual progress report on the implementation of theProgramme of Action in such a way as to make it moreanalytical and results-oriented by putting greater em-phasis on concrete results and indicating the progressachieved in the implementation of the Programme ofAction.

The Council, by decision 2003/287 of 24 July,decided that the high-level segment of its 2004substantive session would consider the theme“Resources mobilization and enabling environ-ment for poverty eradication in the context of theimplementation of the Programme of Action forthe Least Developed Countries for the Decade2001-2010”.

Report of Secretary-General. In response toEconomic and Social Council resolution 2003/17(above), the Secretary-General submitted a 24October report [A/58/532] containing recommen-dations for facilitating the participation of dele-gations of LDCs at the Council’s annual substan-tive sessions.



Trade and Development Board. The UNCTADTrade and Development Board (TDB), at its fifti-eth session (Geneva, 6-17 October) [A/58/15], hav-ing considered the third progress report of theUNCTAD secretariat on UNCTAD-wide activitiesin favour of LDCs [TD/B/50/3], an UNCTAD secre-tariat note on preliminary impact assessment ofthe main recent initiatives in favour of LDCs inthe area of preferential market access [TD/B/50/5& Corr.1] and a conference room paper describingprogress on the implementation of the Inte-grated Framework for Trade-Related TechnicalAssistance for LDCs (IF), adopted agreed conclu-sions [A/58/15 (agreed conclusions 476(L))] in which iturged the secretariat to work with donors to re-verse the declining share of LDCs in UNCTAD’stechnical cooperation resources and intensify itsactivities in support of LDCs and to reportthereon, including on IF-related activities, andto continue to contribute to the Economic andSocial Council’s reviews of the Brussels Pro-gramme of Action. It urged development part-ners and others in a position to do so to imple-ment market access commitments in favour ofLDCs, give priority to enhancing LDCs’ supply ca-pacities and address bottlenecks hindering mar-ket entry. The secretariat should also undertakefurther work on how to enhance the benefits toLDCs from preferential market access and otherinternational support measures. In the run-upto UNCTAD XI, to be held in 2004, the secretariatshould address the issues of supply capacitiesand diversification with a view to enabling LDCsto benefit more effectively from preferentialmarket access. TDB encouraged the secretariat tointensify activities for strengthening countryownership of the IF process and called for donorsupport through the IF Trust Fund. In the areaof commodities, the secretariat should strengthenactivities in commodity diversification, technicalassistance and capacity-building. TDB invitedbilateral donors to regularly replenish theUNCTAD Trust Fund for LDCs and asked the sec-retariat to mobilize adequate extrabudgetary re-sources for the participation of LDCs in theUNCTAD XI preparatory process and in the con-ference itself; donors were invited to earmarkcontributions for that purpose. TDB called forfurther strengthening of cooperation betweenUNCTAD and the Office of the High Representa-tive for the Least Developed Countries, Land-locked Developing Countries and Small IslandDeveloping States.


On 23 December [meeting 78], the General As-sembly, on the recommendation of the Second

Committee [A/58/492], adopted resolution 58/228without vote [agenda item 102].

Third United Nations Conference on theLeast Developed Countries

The General Assembly,Recalling its resolution 55/279 of 12 July 2001, in

which it endorsed the Brussels Declaration and theProgramme of Action for the Least Developed Coun-tries for the Decade 2001-2010, and its resolution57/276 of 20 December 2002 on the Third UnitedNations Conference on the Least Developed Coun-tries,

Reaffirming its resolution 55/2 of 8 September 2000,by which it adopted the United Nations MillenniumDeclaration, in particular paragraph 15 thereof, inwhich the heads of State and Government undertookto address the special needs of the least developedcountries,

Recalling Economic and Social Council decision2001/320 of 24 October 2001, in which the Council de-cided to establish a regular sub-item entitled “Reviewand coordination of the implementation of the Pro-gramme of Action for the Least Developed Countriesfor the Decade 2001-2010”,

Taking note of Economic and Social Council resolu-tion 2003/17 of 22 July 2003, in which the Council tooknote of the progress report of the Secretary-Generalon the implementation of the Programme of Actionfor the Least Developed Countries,

Taking note also of Economic and Social Council deci-sion 2003/287 of 24 July 2003, in which the Counciladopted the theme “Resources mobilization and en-abling environment for poverty eradication in the con-text of the implementation of the Programme ofAction for the Least Developed Countries for the Dec-ade 2001-2010” as the theme of its high-level segmentof 2004,

Taking note further of the report of the Secretary-General,

1. Expresses its deep concern over the weak implemen-tation of the Programme of Action for the LeastDeveloped Countries for the Decade 2001-2010, andexpresses its expectation of more vigorous implemen-tation by all partners;

2. Reiterates that the Programme of Action offers aframework for partnership, based on mutual commit-ments by the least developed countries and their devel-opment partners to undertake concrete actions in anumber of interlinked areas, as set out in the Pro-gramme of Action;

3. Calls upon the least developed countries to con-tinue, with the support of their development partners,to fulfil their commitments and to promote the imple-mentation of the actions contained in the Programmeof Action by translating them into specific measureswithin their national development frameworks andpoverty eradication strategies, in particular poverty re-duction strategy papers, where they exist, with the in-volvement of civil society, including the private sector,on the basis of a broad-based inclusive dialogue, as wellas to continue to promote an enabling environment forthe effective mobilization and utilization of resourcesconsistent with paragraph 82 of the Programme ofAction;



4. Calls upon the development partners of the leastdeveloped countries, including the multilateral finan-cial institutions, to fulfil their commitments regardingthe effective and expeditious implementation of theProgramme of Action, and urges the developed coun-tries that have not yet done so to make concrete effortsto effectively implement their commitments on officialdevelopment assistance to the least developed coun-tries, as contained in paragraph 83 of the Programmeof Action;

5. Urges the least developed countries and theirdevelopment partners to make the Programme ofAction an effective tool for the implementation of thepoverty reduction strategies at the national level forthe achievement of the internationally agreed develop-ment goals, including those contained in the UnitedNations Millennium Declaration;

6. Invites the United Nations system, including theBretton Woods institutions, and all other internationalorganizations, within their respective mandates, tosupport as a priority the implementation of the Pro-gramme of Action, including programmes of financialand technical cooperation devoted to the least de-veloped countries in support of their national develop-ment programmes, including their poverty reductionstrategies;

7. Stresses the need for the effective implementationoftheProgrammeofActionanditsannualassessmentatthe substantive session of the Economic and SocialCouncil, and recognizes in this regard the critical im-portance of the participation of the least developedcountries in the assessment process of the Programmeof Action;

8. Requests the Secretary-General to take appro-priate measures to facilitate the participation of gov-ernment representatives from the least developedcountries in the annual assessment by the Economicand Social Council of the Programme of Actionwithin the context of the overall financial provisionsestablished by the General Assembly in its resolution1798(XVII) of 11 December 1962 and subsequentamendments;

9. Also requests the Secretary-General to take appro-priate measures, within existing resources and withthe full participation of the regional commissions andrelevant United Nations bodies, to support the partici-pation of the least developed countries in internationalmeetings, as well as in their preparation and consulta-tion processes;

10. Emphasizes the importance of coordinatingaction within the United Nations system for the imple-mentation of the Programme of Action, and calls uponthe Secretary-General to take appropriate measures toensure the efficiency and effectiveness of the Officeof the High Representative for the Least DevelopedCountries, Landlocked Developing Countries andSmall Island Developing States to fulfil its functions inaccordance with General Assembly resolution 56/227of 24 December 2001;

11. Calls upon the Secretary-General to submit,through the Economic and Social Council, an annualprogress report on the implementation of the Pro-gramme of Action in a more analytical and results-oriented way by placing greater emphasis on concreteresults and indicating the progress achieved in itsimplementation.

Island developing countries

Implementation of the Programme of Action

Preparations for international review meetingCommission on Sustainable Development.

Pursuant to resolution 57/262 [YUN 2002, p. 848], bywhich the General Assembly decided to convenein 2004 an international meeting to undertake acomprehensive review of the implementation ofthe Barbados Programme of Action for the Sus-tainable Development of Small Island Develop-ing States (SIDS), adopted at the 1994 Global Con-ference on the subject [YUN 1994, p. 783], theCommission on Sustainable Development con-sidered, at its eleventh session (27 January and 28April–9May) [E/2003/29], its role in the prepara-tory process for the conduct of that review. Therewas broad agreement that the Commission shouldact as the high-level policy forum for the prepara-tory process. The review should not renegotiatethe Programme of Action but should assess thesuccesses and failures of its implementation andfocus on developing actions and modalities tofurther implementation and provide a strongfoundation for the sustainable development ofSIDS. There was general agreement also thateffective regional, subregional and major groupinput into the preparatory process should be as-sured through regional preparatory meetings.

The Commission recommended to the Eco-nomic and Social Council for adoption a draftresolution on the preparations for the interna-tional review meeting.


On 24 July [meeting 48], the Economic and SocialCouncil, on the recommendation of the Commis-sion on Sustainable Development [E/2003/29],adopted resolution 2003/55 without vote [agendaitem 13 (a)].

Preparations for an international meetingto review the implementation of the

Programme of Action for theSustainable Development of

Small Island Developing StatesThe Economic and Social Council,Recalling the decision of the General Assembly in

its resolution 57/262 of 20 December 2002 to convenean international meeting in 2004 in Mauritius, includ-ing a high-level segment, for a full and comprehensivereview of the implementation of the Programme ofAction for the Sustainable Development of SmallIsland Developing States,

Recalling also the decision to convene regional andinterregional preparatory meetings of small islanddeveloping States,

Recalling further the decision to invite the Commis-sion on Sustainable Development, at its eleventh ses-



sion, to consider its role in the preparatory process forthe comprehensive review of the implementation ofthe Programme of Action,

Noting the preliminary discussion of the issues bythe Commission at its eleventh session in its consider-ation of its role in the preparations for the interna-tional meeting,

1. Decides that the Commission on Sustainable De-velopment, during its twelfth session, in 2004, shall con-vene a three-day preparatory meeting for an interna-tional meeting for an in-depth assessment and appraisalof the implementation of the Programme of Action forthe Sustainable Development of Small Island Develop-ing States, and shall finalize the preparations for the in-ternational meeting, including its agenda;

2. Also decides that the three-day preparatory meet-ing shall consider a synthesis report, to be prepared bythe Secretary-General on the basis of the recommen-dations contained in:

(a) National assessment reports of small island de-veloping States, where available;

(b) Expert thematic workshop reports;(c) Reports of the regional and interregional prepa-

ratory meetings referred to in paragraph 6 below onthe implementation of the Programme of Action;

3. Invites the international donor and developmentcommunity and international organizations to provideinformation, on or before 31 January 2004, on theiractivities in support of the Programme of Action, aswell as on recommendations for further action insupport of its full implementation, and requests thatthe information provided be considered by theSecretary-General in the preparation of the synthesisreport referred to in paragraph 2 above;

4. Welcomes the work in progress in all small islanddeveloping States to continue and to enhance theirpreparations for the international meeting, and callsupon the international community, United Nationsagencies and intergovernmental bodies to support theefforts of small island developing States in their prepa-rations of national assessment reports to be completedby July 2003, given that national reports are a criticalcomponent for the comprehensive review of the Pro-gramme of Action in providing information on re-spective national circumstances;

5. Emphasizes that in the preparation of the report-ing referred to in paragraphs 2, 3 and 4 above, the pro-visions of paragraph 9 of General Assembly resolution57/262 should be taken into account, and invites theSecretary-General to make full use of the Small IslandDeveloping States Information Network in his effortsto disseminate the various reports;

6. Welcomes, in accordance with paragraph 7 ofGeneral Assembly resolution 57/262, the regional pre-paratory meetings for:

(a) Pacific small island developing States, to be heldin Apia from 4 to 8 August 2003;

(b) Caribbean small island developing States, to beheld in Port of Spain from 18 to 22 August 2003;

(c) Atlantic, Indian Ocean, Mediterranean andSouth China Seas small island developing States, to beheld in Praia from 1 to 5 September 2003;as well as an interregional preparatory meeting, withministerial participation, for all small island develop-ing States, to be held in Nassau from 26 to 30 January2004;

7. Encourages Governments and participants at thehigh-level segment of the twelfth session of the Com-mission on Sustainable Development to also address,within the thematic cluster of issues for that session,matters related to the sustainable development ofsmall island developing States and the Programme ofAction;

8. Invites the international community, UnitedNations agencies and intergovernmental bodies tosupport regional initiatives and to collaborate closely,in partnership with the regional organizations and in-stitutions, to expedite preparations for the review,noting the work already done by the regional organiza-tions and institutions, bearing in mind the coordinat-ing role assigned to the Department of Economic andSocial Affairs of the Secretariat by the General Assem-bly, and to the Water, Natural Resources and Small Is-land Developing States Branch of the Department inits capacity as Chair of the inter-agency task force forthe international meeting;

9. Reiterates the need for the full participation ofsmall island developing States in the preparatory pro-cess leading up to, as well as during, the internationalmeeting, and invites Governments and internationaland regional intergovernmental organizations to con-tribute to the voluntary fund called for in paragraph 15of General Assembly resolution 57/262;

10. Reiterates also the need for the effective partici-pation of associate members of the regional commis-sions, and calls for their participation to be facilitatedthrough the voluntary fund referred to in paragraph 9above;

11. Invites interested Governments and donor or-ganizations to support the participation of majorgroups in the preparatory process and in the interna-tional meeting itself;

12. Requests the Secretary-General to work withinexisting resources and especially to utilize fully the sav-ings from the budget that would result from not imple-menting the two intersessional meetings of the Com-mission on Sustainable Development as programmedin 2003 and voluntary contributions, as necessary, forthe preparatory process referred to above.

Also on 24 July, by decision 2003/283, theCouncil recommended to the Assembly thattravel and subsistence allowances for participantsfrom SIDS in the preparatory meetings and theinternational review meeting should be providedfrom the funds designated by donors for thatpurpose in the voluntary fund established by theAssembly in resolution 57/262 [YUN 2002, p. 848].

Report of Secretary-General. In response toGeneral Assembly resolution 57/262 [YUN 2002,p. 848], the Secretary-General submitted an 18 Julyreport on further implementation of the out-come of the Global Conference on the Sustain-able Development of SIDS [A/58/170]. He providedan overview of activities planned at the national,regional and international levels in anticipationof the international review meeting, to be hostedby Mauritius in 2004. The report, which in-cluded input from the Inter-Agency Task Force



established by the Secretary-General for the pur-pose of preparing the international meeting, alsogave information on the schedule of regional pre-paratory meetings that would coordinate re-gional platforms based on the national assess-ment reports of small island developing States,which were expected to play a key role in the pre-paratory process.

Three regional preparatory meetings wereheld in 2003: for Pacific SIDS (Apia, Samoa, 4-8August) [A/58/303]; for Caribbean SIDS (Port ofSpain, Trinidad and Tobago, 6-10 October)[A/C.2/58/14]; and SIDS of the Atlantic, IndianOcean, Mediterranean and South China Seas(Praia, Cape Verde, 1-5 September) [A/C.2/58/12].Other regional-level preparations included theExpert Meeting on Capacity-Building for Renew-able Energy and Energy Efficiency in SIDS (Niue,7-11 July) [A/58/675] and a workshop on the vul-nerability of SIDS (Dominica, 29 September–3 October). Those regional preparatory and ex-pert meetings would culminate in the conveningof an interregional preparatory meeting withministerial-level participation to harmonize theplatform for all SIDS, to be held in Nassau, Baha-mas, in January 2004. In addition, the SIDS Unitof the Secretariat was compiling best practicesand success stories regarding field projects andprogrammes in SIDS aimed at implementing theProgramme of Action at the international, re-gional and local levels. A publication and web-based databank were envisaged in time for theMauritius meeting.

The report concluded that preparatory workfor the international meeting was progressingsteadily, but there was a need for high-level re-gional and global advocacy in support of thepreparations.

The Secretary-General, by a November note[A/58/567 & Corr.1], submitted to the General As-sembly the draft provisional rules of procedureof the 2004 International Meeting to Review theImplementation of the Programme of Action forthe Sustainable Development of SIDS.


On 23 December [meeting 78], the General As-sembly, on the recommendation of the SecondCommittee [A/58/484/Add.4], adopted resolution58/213 A without vote [agenda item 94 (d)].

Further implementation of the Programme ofAction for the Sustainable Development of

Small Island Developing StatesThe General Assembly,Recalling the Declaration of Barbados and the Pro-

gramme of Action for the Sustainable Development ofSmall Island Developing States, adopted by the GlobalConference on the Sustainable Development of Small

Island Developing States, and recalling also its resolu-tion 49/122 of 19 December 1994 on the GlobalConference,

Recalling also its resolutions 51/183 of 16 December1996, 52/202 of 18 December 1997 and 53/189 of 15December 1998, the review document adopted by theAssembly at its twenty-second special session, and itsresolutions 54/224 of 22 December 1999, 55/199 and55/202 of 20 December 2000, 56/198 of 21 December2001 and 57/262 of 20 December 2002,

Recalling further the Johannesburg Declaration onSustainable Development and the Plan of Implemen-tation of the World Summit on Sustainable Develop-ment (“Johannesburg Plan of Implementation”), inparticular the emphasis given to small island develop-ing States in chapter VII of the Johannesburg Plan ofImplementation, as well as the references to the specificneeds of small island developing States contained inthe United Nations Millennium Declaration and theMonterrey Consensus of the International Conferenceon Financing for Development,

Recalling its decision to convene an internationalmeeting in 2004, including a high-level segment, toundertake a full and comprehensive review of the im-plementation of the Programme of Action, as calledfor in the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation,

Welcoming the preparatory activities undertaken atthe national and regional levels for the internationalmeeting, and expressing its appreciation to the Gov-ernments of Samoa, Cape Verde and Trinidad andTobago for hosting regional preparatory meetings,

Reaffirming the political importance of the forth-coming ten-year review of the progress achieved sincethe Global Conference, and stressing that the risk fromthe vulnerabilities of and challenges to small islanddeveloping States has increased and requires thestrengthening of cooperation and more effective de-velopment assistance towards achieving the goals ofsustainable development,

1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General;2. Approves the provisional rules of procedure of

the International Meeting to Review the Implementa-tion of the Programme of Action for the SustainableDevelopment of Small Island Developing States, ascontained in the note by the Secretary-General;

3. Decides that the International Meeting shall beopen to all States Members of the United Nations andStates members of the specialized agencies, with theparticipation of observers, in accordance with the es-tablished practice of the General Assembly and its con-ferences and with the rules of procedure of the Inter-national Meeting;

4. Welcomes the efforts made at the national, sub-regional and regional levels to implement the Pro-gramme of Action, and takes note of the reports of theregional preparatory meetings for the Pacific, theAtlantic, Indian Ocean, Mediterranean and SouthChina Seas and the Caribbean regions of small islanddeveloping States;

5. Reiterates the urgent need for the full and effec-tive implementation of the Programme of Action, theDeclaration of Barbados and the review documentadopted by the General Assembly at its twenty-secondspecial session so as to assist small island developingStates in their efforts to achieve sustainable develop-ment;



6. Decides that the International Meeting will beconvened from 30 August to 3 September 2004 andwill include a high-level segment to undertake a fulland comprehensive review of the implementation ofthe Programme of Action, as called for in the Johan-nesburg Plan of Implementation, and welcomes theoffer of the Government of Mauritius to host the In-ternational Meeting;

7. Also decides to hold, if deemed necessary by anopen-ended preparatory meeting, and if funded fromvoluntary resources, two days of informal consulta-tions in Mauritius, on 28 and 29 August 2004, to facili-tate the effective preparation of the InternationalMeeting;

8. Urges that representation and participation atthe International Meeting be at the highest possiblelevel;

9. Decides that the International Meeting will seek arenewed political commitment by the internationalcommunity and will focus on practical actions for thefurther implementation of the Programme of Action,taking into consideration new and emerging issues,challenges and situations since the adoption of theProgramme of Action;

10. Endorses Economic and Social Council resolu-tion 2003/55 of 24 July 2003, in which it decided, onthe recommendation of the Commission on Sustain-able Development at its eleventh session, to convene aninterregional preparatory meeting for small islanddeveloping States in Nassau from 26 to 30 January2004, expresses its appreciation to the Government ofthe Bahamas for hosting the meeting, and encouragesparticipation in the meeting at the ministerial level;

11. Also endorses the decision of the Economic andSocial Council in its resolution 2003/55, on the recom-mendation of the Commission on Sustainable Devel-opment at its eleventh session, to convene during thetwelfth session of the Commission a three-day prepara-tory meeting for the International Meeting, from 14to 16 April 2004, for an in-depth assessment and ap-praisal of the implementation of the Programme ofAction and to finalize the preparations for the Interna-tional Meeting, including its agenda;

12. Decides that the preparatory meeting shall beopen-ended and shall be held in accordance with therules of procedure of the functional commissions ofthe Economic and Social Council and the supplemen-tary arrangements established for the Commission onSustainable Development by the Council in its deci-sions 1993/215 of 12 February 1993 and 1995/201 of8 February 1995, applied to all Member States andother participants, as was the practice in the prepara-tory committee for the World Summit on SustainableDevelopment, while maintaining the provisions of theCommission in relation to travel assistance, in accord-ance with the provisions of Economic and SocialCouncil decision 2003/283 of 24 July 2003;

13. Encourages associate members of the regionalcommissions that are small island developing States toparticipate in the International Meeting, and decidesthat their participation shall be in accordance withrule 61 of the provisional rules of procedure of theInternational Meeting;

14. Decides that the participation of major groups,including non-governmental organizations, in the In-ternational Meeting shall be in accordance with

rule 65 of the provisional rules of procedure of theInternational Meeting;

15. Also decides that non-governmental organiza-tions whose work is relevant to the subject of the Inter-national Meeting, that are not currently accredited bythe Economic and Social Council, may submit applica-tions to participate as observers in the InternationalMeeting, as well as its preparatory meeting, subject tothe approval of the open-ended preparatory meeting;

16. Takes note of the appointment of a Secretary-General of the International Meeting;

17. Requests the Secretary-General, in consultationwith the relevant United Nations agencies and organi-zations, and taking into account the submissions hemay receive from bilateral, regional and multilateraldonor agencies as well as from major groups, includ-ing non-governmental organizations, to ensure thetimely submission to the Commission on SustainableDevelopment at its twelfth session of a synthesis reporton the basis of the national, regional and interregionalpreparations and reports by small island developingStates and other parties;

18. Requests that the necessary resources, fromwithin existing resources, be provided to the Depart-ment of Public Information of the Secretariat to en-sure that the goals and purposes of the InternationalMeeting receive the widest possible disseminationwithin Member States, major groups, including non-governmental organizations, and national, regionaland international media, including through the SmallIsland Developing States Information Network, with aview to encouraging contributions to and support forthe International Meeting and its preparatory process;

19. Expresses its appreciation for the contributionsmade to the voluntary trust fund established for thepurpose of assisting small island developing States toparticipate fully and effectively in the InternationalMeeting and its preparatory process, as approved bythe Economic and Social Council in resolution2003/55 and decision 2003/283, and urges all MemberStates and organizations to contribute generously tothe fund;

20. Encourages the full and effective participationof developing countries in the International Meeting,and invites donor countries and agencies to provideadditional extrabudgetary resources, in particularthrough voluntary contributions to the trust fund, tofacilitate their participation;

21. Welcomes the coordinating efforts undertaken inthe United Nations system through the creation of aninter-agency task force to enable the United Nationssystem to improve coordination and enhance coopera-tion on matters pertaining to the preparatory processand to the International Meeting itself;

22. Calls upon the Department of Economic and So-cial Affairs of the Secretariat, through the Division forSustainable Development and its Small Island Devel-oping States Unit, to undertake activities in both thepreparatory processes and the International Meetingto enhance coordination and cooperation within theUnited Nations system as well as with other relevantmultilateral organizations to ensure the effective im-plementation and monitoring of and follow-up to theoutcomes of the ten-year review of the Programme ofAction;



23. Calls upon the Office of the High Representa-tive for the Least Developed Countries, LandlockedDeveloping Countries and Small Island DevelopingStates to fulfil its mandate and to advocate strongly,in partnership with the relevant parts of the UnitedNations as well as with major groups, media, academiaand foundations, for the mobilization of internationalsupport and resources for the successful outcome ofthe International Meeting and for the follow-up to theoutcomes of the ten-year review of the Programme ofAction;

24. Welcomes the generous contributions by donorsto provide for staffing of the Small Island DevelopingStates Unit, and calls upon the Secretary-General toexplore practical options for strengthening the Unit,including by redeployment of resources, on a perma-nent basis during the biennium 2004-2005, pursuantto resolutions 56/198 and 57/262, with a view to facili-tating the full and effective implementation of the Dec-laration of Barbados and the Programme of Actionand the outcomes of the International Meeting;

25. Decides to include in the provisional agenda ofits fifty-ninth session, under the item entitled “Envi-ronment and sustainable development”, a sub-item en-titled “Further implementation of the outcome of theGlobal Conference on the Sustainable Development ofSmall Island Developing States: follow-up to the out-comes of the International Meeting to Review the Im-plementation of the Barbados Programme of Action”,and requests the Secretary-General to submit to theGeneral Assembly at its fifty-ninth session the reportof the International Meeting.

Landlocked developing countries

In 2003, the International Ministerial Confer-ence of Landlocked and Transit DevelopingCountries and Donor Countries and Interna-tional Financial and Development Institutionson Transit Transport Cooperation (Almaty, Ka-zakhstan, 28-29 August) adopted the AlmatyDeclaration and Programme of Action, a globalframework outlining partnerships, objectivesand priorities for addressing the special needs oflandlocked developing countries [A/CONF.202/3].

In December, the General Assembly, in resolu-tion 58/201 (see p. 877), endorsed the AlmatyProgramme of Action and called for its effectiveimplementation.

Ministerial communiqué. On 2 October [A/C.2/58/3], the Lao People’s Democratic Republictransmitted to the Secretary-General the ministe-rial communiqué adopted at the Fourth AnnualMinisterial Meeting of Landlocked DevelopingCountries (New York, 30 September) and thecommuniqué issued by the ministers of land-locked developing countries attending the fifthsession of the WTO Ministerial Conference(Cancún, Mexico, 13 September) (see p. 1535).

International Ministerial Conference

In accordance with General Assembly resolu-tions 56/180 [YUN 2001, p. 777] and 57/242 [YUN2002, p. 850], the International Ministerial Confer-ence of Landlocked and Transit DevelopingCountries and Donor Countries and Interna-tional Financial and Development Institutionson Transit Transport Cooperation was held inAlmaty, Kazakhstan, on 28 and 29 August [A/CONF.202/3]. The Conference reviewed the cur-rent situation of transit transport systems inlandlocked developing countries and the imple-mentation of the 1995 Global Framework forTransit Transport Cooperation between Land-locked and Transit Developing Countries and theDonor Community [YUN 1995, p. 876] and formu-lated policy measures and action-oriented pro-grammes aimed at developing efficient transittransport systems. At the conclusion of the Con-ference, the ministers adopted the Almaty Dec-laration and the Almaty Programme of Action:Addressing the Special Needs of LandlockedDeveloping Countries within a New Global Frame-work for Transit Transport Cooperation forLandlocked and Transit Developing Countries.

In conjunction with the Conference, three par-allel events were organized by UNCTAD (on tradefacilitation); by the World Bank (a high-level in-vestment forum); and by the Economic Commis-sion for Europe (regional initiatives on trade andtransport facilitation).

Almaty Programme of Action and DeclarationThe Almaty Programme of Action stated that

landlocked developing countries, as a group,were among the poorest of developing countries.Lack of territorial access to the sea, remotenessand isolation from world markets contributed totheir relative poverty, substantially inflatingtransportation costs and lowering their effectiveparticipation in international trade. High transittransport costs constrained export developmentand caused the price of imports to soar. The tran-sit neighbours of landlocked developing coun-tries were themselves mostly developing countries,often of broadly similar economic structure, be-set by similar scarcities of resources, and bur-dened by the financial, infrastructural and socialimpacts deriving from transit transport. Thetransit developing countries were in need ofimproved technical and administrative arrange-ments in their transport and customs and admin-istrative systems to which their landlocked neigh-bours were expected to link.

The objective of the Programme of Action wasto address the special needs of landlocked devel-oping countries and establish a new global frame-work for action for developing efficient transit



transport systems in landlocked and transit de-veloping countries, taking into account the inter-ests of both groups. It aimed to: secure access toand from the sea by all means of transport ac-cording to applicable rules of international law;reduce costs and improve services so as to in-crease the competitiveness of their exports; re-duce the delivered costs of imports; address prob-lems of delays and uncertainties in trade routes;develop adequate national networks; reduce loss,damage and deterioration en route; open theway for export expansion; and improve safety ofroad transport and security of people along thecorridors.

The Programme of Action outlined five pri-orities: fundamental transit policy issues; infra-structure development and maintenance, in-cluding rail transport, road transport, ports,inland waterways, pipelines, air transport andcommunications; international trade and tradefacilitation; international support measures;and implementation and review. The Confer-ence recommended specific actions under eachpriority. In terms of international support meas-ures, the Conference recommended that the in-ternational community, including financial anddevelopment institutions and donor countries,should assist landlocked and transit developingcountries to deal effectively with their transitproblems and requirements by, among other ac-tions, facilitating an external supporting environ-ment for the timely realization of the objectives ofthe Programme of Action, providing technicalsupport through partnerships and encouragingincreased foreign direct investment. Donor coun-tries and multilateral financial and developmentinstitutions should provide landlocked and tran-sit developing countries with financial and tech-nical assistance in the form of grants and/orconcessional loans for the needs identified in theProgramme of Action. Special attention shouldbe given to institutional capacity-building to pro-mote effective government policy-making andpractices addressing transport and transit needs.The Programme of Action identified areas forpriority financing, including investments tocomplete “missing links” in the transit transportchain to extend railways and roads to landlockeddeveloping countries; maintenance of existingphysical transit transport infrastructure; devel-opment and maintenance of cost-effective routes;development of dry port projects; projects to im-prove existing or establish adjacent borderpoints; and rehabilitation and reconstruction oftransport infrastructure, especially in countriesor regions emerging from war and internal con-flict and natural disasters.

The Programme of Action stated that imple-mentation required individual and concertedefforts by the landlocked and transit developingcountries, their development partners, the UNsystem, relevant international organizations, in-cluding the World Bank and regional develop-ment banks, WTO, and the World Customs Or-ganization and regional and other organizations.International and regional organizations shouldgive priority to requests for technical assistanceto supplement national and regional efforts topromote efficient use of existing transit facilities.The private sector should be actively involvedin implementing the Programme of Action, andSouth-South cooperation and triangular co-operation with the involvement of donors shouldbe promoted, as should cooperation among sub-regional and regional organizations. The UN re-gional commissions should expand their pro-grammes consistent with the Programme ofAction and specific subregional meetings shouldbe organized to consider how to implement theProgramme of Action effectively.

The UN Secretary-General should report onthe implementation of the Programme of Actionto the Assembly, which would decide on periodic-ity. The Assembly was invited to conduct a com-prehensive review of the implementation of theProgramme of Action at a time to be decided.The Office of the High Representative for theLeast Developed Countries, Landlocked Devel-oping Countries and Small Island DevelopingStates should coordinate the preparatory reviewprocess, and UNCTAD, the World Bank and theregional commissions were invited to providesubstantive assistance for that process. The Of-fice of the High Representative was asked to en-hance cooperation and coordination with UNsystem organizations, particularly those engagedin operational activities on the ground in land-locked and transit developing countries, and tocarry out advocacy work to mobilize internationalawareness and focus attention on the implemen-tation of the Programme of Action.

In the Almaty Declaration, participating Gov-ernments recognized that high trade transactioncosts were a major reason for the marginalizationof landlocked developing countries from theglobal trading system and committed themselvesto minimizing that marginalization and enhanc-ing the beneficial integration of landlocked de-veloping countries into the global economythrough the establishment of efficient transittransport systems in both landlocked and transitdeveloping countries, and through genuine part-nerships between landlocked and transit devel-oping countries and their development partnersat the national, bilateral, subregional, regional



and global levels. They reaffirmed the right ofaccess of landlocked countries to and from thesea and freedom of transit through transit coun-tries. They also reaffirmed that transit countrieshad the right to take all measures necessary to en-sure that the rights and facilities provided forlandlocked countries in no way infringed upontheir legitimate interests. They emphasized theimportance of effective implementation of andregular follow-up to the Almaty Programme ofAction and committed themselves to that end,and requested the High Representative to ensurethat the Conference was effectively followed up.The Conference also adopted a resolutionthanking the people and Government ofKazakhstan for hosting the Conference.

Report of Secretary-General. In response toGeneral Assembly resolution 57/242 [YUN 2002,p. 850], the Secretary-General submitted a 23 Sep-tember report [A/58/388] on the outcome of theInternational Ministerial Conference and someaspects of the preparatory process that precededit. He concluded that the Conference successfullygalvanized international solidarity and partner-ships to address the special needs of landlockeddeveloping countries as called for in the Millen-nium Declaration [YUN 2002, p. 49]. Implementa-tion of the specific actions in the five priorityareas agreed upon in the Almaty Programme ofAction would facilitate establishing the efficienttransit transport systems in landlocked and tran-sit developing countries that were inevitably re-quired for landlocked developing countries tobe effectively integrated into the internationaltrading system.

Preparatory meetingsIn accordance with General Assembly resolu-

tion 57/242 [YUN 2002, p. 850], the Intergovern-mental Preparatory Committee for the Interna-tional Ministerial Conference held two sessionsduring 2003. The sixth Meeting of Governmen-tal Experts from Landlocked and Transit Devel-oping Countries and Representative DonorCountries and Financial and Development Insti-tutions (New York, 23-27 June) served as the firstpreparatory session [A/CONF.202/PC/5]. It in-cluded a high-level panel discussion and consid-ered a draft outcome document [A/CONF.202/PC/L.1 & Corr.1]. The session also had before it aMay report of the Secretary-General [A/CONF.202/PC/2] on the state of preparations for the Confer-ence, including the outcomes of regional andsubregional preparations. Annexed to the reportwere the Asunción Programme of Action,adopted in Asunción, Paraguay (12-13 March);the Asian Action Plan on Transit Transport Co-operation, adopted at the fifty-ninth session of

the Economic and Social Commission for Asiaand the Pacific (Bangkok, 24-25 April); and theAfrican Action Plan, adopted in Addis Ababa,Ethiopia (7 May). The report also highlightedother aspects of the preparatory process for theMinisterial Conference, including support fromthe UN system, consultations with the host Gov-ernment, mobilization of resources, and advo-cacy and promotion of the Conference. In addi-tion, the structure and format of the Conferencewere reviewed. The report concluded that theConference would need to agree on action-oriented measures that took into account a broadrange of factors, such as unfettered access to thesea by all means of transport, inadequate infra-structure, imbalance of trade, inefficient trans-port organization, poor utilization of assets, reformof transit transport policies and weak managerial,procedural, regulatory and institutional systems,and international support measures.

A Meeting of Senior Officials (Almaty, 25-27August) served as the second preparatory session[A/CONF.202/PC.2/1], which finalized the draftoutcome document, the Almaty Programme ofAction, and recommended it to the Conferencefor adoption.


On 23 December [meeting 78], the General As-sembly, on the recommendation of the SecondCommittee [A/58/481/Add.3], adopted resolution58/201 without vote [agenda items 91 (c) & (f)].

Almaty Programme of Action: Addressingthe Special Needs of Landlocked Developing Countries

within a New Global Framework for TransitTransport Cooperation for Landlocked

and Transit Developing CountriesThe General Assembly,Recalling its resolution 56/180 of 21 December 2001,

in which it requested the Secretary-General to convenein 2003 the international ministerial meeting nowknown as the International Ministerial Conference ofLandlocked and Transit Developing Countries and Do-nor Countries and International Financial and Devel-opment Institutions on Transit Transport Cooperation,as well as its resolution 57/242 of 20 December 2002,

1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-Generalon the outcome of the International Ministerial Con-ference of Landlocked and Transit Developing Coun-tries and Donor Countries and International Financialand Development Institutions on Transit TransportCooperation;

2. Expresses its deep appreciation to the Governmentof Kazakhstan for hosting the International Ministe-rial Conference in Almaty on 28 and 29 August 2003;

3. Endorses the Almaty Programme of Action: Ad-dressing the Special Needs of Landlocked DevelopingCountries within a New Global Framework for TransitTransport Cooperation for Landlocked and TransitDeveloping Countries and the Almaty Declaration,adopted by the International Ministerial Conference;



4. Calls for full and effective implementation of theAlmaty Programme of Action;

5. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of itsfifty-ninth session an item entitled “Specific actions re-lated to the particular needs and problems of land-locked developing countries: outcome of the Interna-tional Ministerial Conference of Landlocked andTransit Developing Countries and Donor Countriesand International Financial and Development Institu-tions on Transit Transport Cooperation”;

6. Requests the Secretary-General to submit to theGeneral Assembly at its fifty-ninth session a report onthe progress made in the implementation of theAlmaty Programme of Action.

On 23 December, the Assembly took note of areport by the UNCTAD Secretary-General [A/58/209] on the transit environment in the landlockedStates in Central Asia and their transit develop-ing neighbours (decision 58/547) (see p. 1010).



Development policy and international economic cooperation

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