A/RES/54/85 GA

UNITED A NATIONS General Assembly Distr. GENERAL A/RES/54/85 27 January 2000 Fifty-fourth session Agenda items 94 and 12 RESOLUTION ADOPTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY [on the report of the Special Political and Decolonization Committee (Fourth Committee) (A/54/581)] 54/85. Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples by the specialized agencies and the international institutions associated with the United Nations The General Assembly, Having considered the item entitled “Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples by the specialized agencies and the international institutions associated with the United Nations”, Having also considered the reports submitted on the item by the Secretary-General1 and the Chairman of the Special Committee on the Situation with regard to the Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples,2 Having examined the chapter of the report of the Special Committee relating to the item,3 1 A/54/119. 2 A/AC.109/1999/L.16. 3 A/54/23 (Part II), chap. VII. For the final text, see Official Records of the General Assembly, Fifty- fourth Session, Supplement No. 23. 00 26228 /... A/RES/54/85 Page 2 Recalling its resolutions 1514 (XV) of 14 December 1960 and 1541 (XV) of 15 December 1960 and the resolutions of the Special Committee, as well as other relevant resolutions and decisions, including in particular Economic and Social Council resolution 1998/38 of 30 July 1998, Bearing in mind the relevant provisions of the final documents of the successive Conferences of Heads of State or Government of Non-Aligned Countries and of the resolutions adopted by the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the Organization of African Unity, the South Pacific Forum and the Caribbean Community, Conscious of the need to facilitate the implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples, contained in resolution 1514 (XV), Noting that the large majority of the remaining Non-Self-Governing Territories are small island Territories, Welcoming the assistance extended to Non-Self-Governing Territories by certain specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system, in particular the United Nations Development Programme, Also welcoming the participation in the capacity of observer of those Non-Self-Governing Territories which are associate members of regional commissions in the world conferences in the economic and social sphere, and in the special session of the General Assembly on the review and appraisal of the implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development, held at Headquarters from 30 June to 2 July 1999, Noting that only some specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system have been involved in providing assistance to Non-Self-Governing Territories, Stressing that, because the development options of the small island Non-Self-Governing Territories are limited, there are special challenges to planning for and implementing sustainable development and that those Territories will be constrained in meeting the challenges without the continued cooperation and assistance of the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system, Stressing also the importance of securing the necessary resources for funding expanded assistance programmes for the peoples concerned and the need to enlist the support of all major funding institutions within the United Nations system in that regard, Reaffirming the mandates of the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system to take all appropriate measures, within their respective spheres of competence, to ensure the full implementation of General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV) and other relevant resolutions, Expressing its appreciation to the Organization of African Unity, the South Pacific Forum, the Caribbean Community and other regional organizations for the continued cooperation and assistance they have extended to the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system in this regard, /... A/RES/54/85 Page 3 Expressing its conviction that closer contacts and consultations between and among the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system and regional organizations help to facilitate the effective formulation of programmes of assistance to the peoples concerned, Mindful of the imperative need to keep under continuous review the activities of the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system in the implementation of the various United Nations decisions relating to decolonization, Bearing in mind the extremely fragile economies of the small island Non-Self-Governing Territories and their vulnerability to natural disasters, such as hurricanes, cyclones and sea-level rise, and recalling its relevant resolutions, Recalling its resolution 53/62 of 3 December 1998 on the implementation of the Declaration by the specialized agencies and the international institutions associated with the United Nations, 1. Takes note of the reports of the Secretary-General1 and the Chairman of the Special Committee on the Situation with regard to the Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples;2 2. Recommends that all States intensify their efforts in the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system to ensure the full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples, contained in General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV), and other relevant resolutions of the United Nations; 3. Reaffirms that the specialized agencies and other organizations and institutions of the United Nations system should continue to be guided by the relevant resolutions of the United Nations in their efforts to contribute to the implementation of the Declaration and all other relevant General Assembly resolutions; 4. Reaffirms also that the recognition by the General Assembly, the Security Council and other United Nations organs of the legitimacy of the aspirations of the peoples of the Non-Self-Governing Territories to exercise their right to self-determination entails, as a corollary, the extension of all appropriate assistance to those peoples; 5. Expresses its appreciation to those specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system that have continued to cooperate with the United Nations and the regional and subregional organizations in the implementation of General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV) and other relevant resolutions of the United Nations, and requests all the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system to implement the relevant provisions of those resolutions; 6. Requests the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system and international and regional organizations to examine and review conditions in each Territory so as to take appropriate measures to accelerate progress in the economic and social sectors of the Territories; 7. Urges those specialized agencies and organizations of the United Nations system which have not yet provided assistance to Non-Self-Governing Territories to do so as soon as possible; /... A/RES/54/85 Page 4 8. Requests the specialized agencies and other organizations and institutions of the United Nations system and regional organizations to strengthen existing measures of support and formulate appropriate programmes of assistance to the remaining Non-Self-Governing Territories, within the framework of their respective mandates, in order to accelerate progress in the economic and social sectors of those Territories; 9. Requests the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system concerned to provide information on: (a) Environmental problems facing the Non-Self-Governing Territories; (b) The impact of natural disasters, such as hurricanes and volcanoes, and other environmental problems, such as beach and coastal erosion and droughts, on those Territories; (c) Ways and means to assist the Territories in fighting drug trafficking, money-laundering and other illegal and criminal activities; (d) The illegal exploitation of the marine resources of the Territories and the need to utilize those resources for the benefit of the peoples of the Territories; 10. Recommends that the executive heads of the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system formulate, with the active cooperation of the regional organizations concerned, concrete proposals for the full implementation of the relevant resolutions of the United Nations and submit the proposals to their governing and legislative organs; 11. Also recommends that the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system continue to review at the regular meetings of their governing bodies the implementation of General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV) and other relevant resolutions of the United Nations; 12. Welcomes the continuing initiative exercised by the United Nations Development Programme in maintaining close liaison among the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system and in providing assistance to the peoples of the Non-Self-Governing Territories; 13. Encourages Non-Self-Governing Territories to take steps to establish and/or strengthen disaster preparedness and management institutions and policies; 14. Requests the administering Powers concerned to facilitate the participation of appointed and elected representatives of Non-Self-Governing Territories in the relevant meetings and conferences of the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system so that the Territories may benefit from the related activities of those agencies and organizations; 15. Recommends that all Governments intensify their efforts in the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system of which they are members to accord priority to the question of providing assistance to the peoples of the Non-Self-Governing Territories; 16. Requests the Secretary-General to continue to assist the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system in working out appropriate measures for implementing the relevant resolutions of the United Nations and to prepare for submission to the relevant bodies, with the /... A/RES/54/85 Page 5 assistance of those agencies and organizations, a report on the action taken in implementation of the relevant resolutions, including the present resolution, since the circulation of his previous report; 17. Welcomes the adoption by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean of resolution 574 (XXVII),4 in which the Commission called for the necessary mechanisms to permit its associate members, including small island Non-Self-Governing Territories, to participate, subject to the rules of procedure of the General Assembly, in the special sessions of the Assembly to review and appraise the implementation of the programmes of action of those United Nations conferences in which the Territories originally participated in the capacity of observer, and in the work of the Economic and Social Council and its subsidiary bodies; 18. Recalls its resolution 53/189 of 15 December 1998, in which, inter alia, it called for the participation of associate members of regional economic commissions in the special session of the General Assembly for the review and appraisal of the implementation of the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States, subject to the rules of procedure of the Assembly, and in the preparatory process thereof, in the same capacity of observer that held for their participation in the Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States, held at Bridgetown from 25 April to 6 May 1994; 19. Commends the Economic and Social Council for its debate and resolution on this question, and requests it to continue to consider, in consultation with the Special Committee, appropriate measures for coordination of the policies and activities of the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system in implementing the relevant resolutions of the General Assembly; 20. Requests the specialized agencies to report periodically to the Secretary-General on the implementation of the present resolution; 21. Requests the Secretary-General to transmit the present resolution to the governing bodies of the appropriate specialized agencies and international institutions associated with the United Nations so that those bodies may take the necessary measures to implement it, and also requests the Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly at its fifty-fifth session on the implementation of the present resolution; 22. Requests the Special Committee to continue to examine the question and to report thereon to the General Assembly at its fifty-fifth session. 71st plenary meeting 6 December 1999 4 See Official Records of the Economic and Social Council, 1998, Supplement No. 21 (E/1998/41), chap. III.G.

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