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GENERAL ASSEMBLY RESOLUTION

During December, interested delegates drafted a resolution on "Implementation of the outcome of the World Summit for Social Development." Consensus on this resolution was achieved only after lengthy consultations. One of the more difficult issues was agreement on the methodology for involving relevant actors of civil society in the field of social development to contribute to the work of the Commission for Social Development. Since this item was considered in the General Assembly Plenary, it was not brought to the Third Committee for adoption but rather was expected to be adopted in the General Assembly Plenary before it adjourned on 22 December 1995.

The draft resolution addressed both the critical importance of national action and international cooperation for social development and the role of the UN system. With regard to national action and international cooperation, the resolution endorses the Copenhagen Declaration and Programme of Action and reaffirms the pledge by the Heads of State and Government to give the highest priority to national, regional and international policies and actions for social development. The draft resolution also:

  • stresses the need for political will;
  • emphasizes the interdependence of economic development, social development and environmental protection;
  • recognizes that implementation of the Programme of Action is primarily the responsibility of Governments;
  • reiterates the call to governments to define time-bound goals and targets for poverty reduction and eradication, expanding employment and reducing unemployment, and enhancing social integration;
  • reiterates the call for comprehensive cross-sectoral strategies for implementing the Summit outcome;
  • reiterates the call for assessing national progress toward implementing the outcome of the Summit through periodic national reports;
  • reaffirms the need for an effective partnership between governments and civil society;
  • recognizes that the implementation of the Programme of Action and the Declaration will require mobilization of financial resources at the national and international levels as well as substantial debt reduction;
  • reaffirms the importance of implementing the 20:20 concept between interested developed and developing countries; and
  • urges the Secretary-General, the World Bank and the IMF to study the impact of structural adjustment programmes on economic and social development.
<$TSpInterLn=1335>With regard to the role of the UN system, the draft resolution calls on all parts of the UN system to adjust their activities and programmes to take into account follow-up to the Summit. The General Assembly, ECOSOC and the Commission for Social Development will form a three-tiered intergovernmental process for Summit follow-up. A special session of the General Assembly will be held in the year 2000 for overall review and appraisal of the implementation of the Copenhagen Declaration and Programme of Action.

The draft resolution also calls on ECOSOC to: oversee system-wide coordination in the implementation of the Summit outcome; improve its own effectiveness; and review the reporting system in the area of social development.

The draft resolution calls on the Commission for Social Development to:

  • develop a multi-year programme of work to the year 2000, selecting specific themes and addressing them from an interrelated and integrated perspective;
  • adapt its mandate to ensure an integrated approach to social development;
  • integrate the current sectoral issues on its agenda; review and update its methods of work;
  • invite experts to contribute to its work;
  • consider integrating high-level representatives on social development issues into its work;
  • consider at its next session the composition of its membership and the frequency of its sessions and make recommendations therein to ECOSOC; and
  • enable the participation of relevant actors of civil society in the field of social development.
The draft resolution also invites the Regional Commissions in cooperation with regional intergovernmental organizations and banks to consider convening, on a biennial basis, a high-level meeting to review progress made toward implementing the outcome of the Summit. UNDP is requested to facilitate UN-system capacity building efforts. The ILO, the Bretton Woods institutions and the World Trade Organization are also asked to contribute to the implementation of the Copenhagen Declaration and Programme of Action.

The Secretary-General is requested to: ensure an effectively functioning Secretariat to assist in the implementation and follow-up of the Summit; and strengthen UN capacity for gathering and analyzing information and developing indicators for social development. Finally, the resolution decides that the Trust Fund of the Social Summit should be continued and renamed "Trust Fund for the Follow-up to the World Summit for Social Development," with the aim of supporting programmes, seminars and activities for the promotion of social development and the implementation of the Copenhagen Declaration and Programme of Action and invites all States to contribute to it.

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