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CLOSING PLENARY

The Plenary met for its closing session on Friday morning, 2 September 1994. The Plenary adopted four decisions on: the need for intersessional consultations; the provisional agenda for the third session of the Preparatory Committee; a report on the status of preparations for the WSSD; and the report of the second session of the PrepCom.

INTERSESSIONAL CONSULTATIONS: On Thursday, 1 September 1994, delegates agreed on the need for some type of intersessional activity to facilitate preparation of a new draft Programme of Action. After consultations with various delegates and regional groups, the Chair submitted a draft decision to the Committee. This four-paragraph decision requests the Chair and the Bureau to organize, during the week of 24 October 1994, intersessional informal consultations with the participation of all States, in conjunction with the 49th session of the General Assembly. The Secretariat is requested to prepare an informal document, based on the discussions during and documentation for PrepCom II, by 30 September 1994, to serve as a starting point for the intersessional consultations. The Secretariat is also requested to prepare a revised draft Programme of Action, drawn from these consultations, by 30 November 1994. The Chair is requested to continue his consultations on the Declaration and to prepare a progress report for the intersessional meeting. On the basis of these consultations, the Chair will submit a new draft Declaration to be considered at PrepCom III.

In their comments, delegates stressed the importance of holding open-ended and transparent consultations to ensure the participation of all delegations. Some delegates, including Bangladesh, expressed concern about the financial constraints that may prohibit some States from attending. The Secretariat noted that, since these consultations are within the framework of the General Assembly, support for developing country delegates' participation is under the domain of the General Assembly. The Chair added that the Secretariat will try to ensure adaptation of the Second and Third Committees' schedules so that delegates may participate in these consultations.

PROVISIONAL AGENDA FOR PREPCOM III: The provisional agenda for the third session of the Preparatory Committee (A/CONF.166/PC/L.19) contains six items: adoption of the agenda and other organizational matters; accreditation of NGOs; status of preparations for the WSSD (trust fund and public information programmes); draft outcome of the WSSD (draft Declaration and draft Programme of Action); provisional agenda and organization of work for the WSSD; and adoption of the report of the Preparatory Committee. Delegates adopted the provisional agenda, but the Chair noted that some are concerned that the two weeks scheduled for the PrepCom (16-27 January 1995) may be insufficient. Facilities will be available for three simultaneous meetings. The option of asking the General Assembly to extend the PrepCom by one week was also suggested. No consensus emerged on this matter after initial consultations. The Bureau will continue to consult on this issue.

STATUS OF PREPARATIONS FOR THE WSSD: Delegates adopted a procedural document prepared by the Secretariat on the status of preparations for the WSSD (A/CONF.166/PC/L.20). The document summarizes the preparations for the Summit in four parts: the Trust Fund; activities undertaken since the first session of the PrepCom; NGOs; and the public information programme.

ADOPTION OF THE REPORT: The last item of the agenda was the adoption of the report of the Preparatory Committee (A/CONF.166/PC/L.16). The Chair then closed the second session of the Preparatory Committee, commenting that the future will go well if the atmosphere continues as it did at this session of the PrepCom.

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