17 December 1981

Assistance for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of the Gambia

The General Assembly,

Deeply concerned about the extensive destruction of life and property as well as the severe damage to infrastructure which were inflicted on the Gambia as the result of recent events,

Noting that the Gambia is a least developed country with acute economic and social problems arising from its weak economic infrastructure, Noting further that the Gambia also suffers from many of the serious problems common to countries of the Sahelian region, notably drought,

Convinced that the Government of the Gambia needs urgent international assistance to rehabilitate and reconstruct its damaged economy,

1. Notes with satisfaction the efforts exerted by the Government and people of the Gambia for national rehabilitation and reconstruction;

2. Urgently appeals to all Member States, the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system, as well as international development and financial institutions, to contribute generously, through bilateral or multilateral channels, to the rehabilitation and reconstruction of the Gambia;

3. Calls upon regional and interregional organizations and other intergovernmental bodies and non-governmental organizations, as well as international development and financial institutions, to give urgent consideration to the establishment of a programme of assistance for the Gambia;

4. Requests the appropriate organizations and programmes of the United Nations system - in particular the United Nations Development Programme, the United Nations Children's Fund, the World Food Programme, the World Health Organization, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the International Fund for Agricultural Development - to increase their current and future programmes of assistance to the Gambia, to co-operate closely with the Secretary-General in organizing an effective international programme of assistance and to report periodically to him on the steps they have taken and the resources they have made available to assist that country;

5. Invites the United Nations Development Programme, the United Nations Children's Fund, the World Food Programme, the World Health Organization, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the World Bank and the International Fund for Agricultural Development to bring to the attention of their governing bodies, for their consideration, the special needs of the Gambia and to report the decisions of those bodies to the Secretary-General by 15 July 1982;

6. Requests the Secretary-General:

(a) To organize a special emergency assistance programme of financial, technical and material assistance to the Gambia to enable it to meet its urgent needs for rehabilitation and reconstruction;

(b) To ensure that the necessary financial and budgetary arrangements are made to organize an international programme of assistance to the Gambia and to mobilize that assistance;

(c) To dispatch a mission to the Gambia with a view to holding consultations with the Government on the additional assistance which it needs for rehabilitation and reconstruction and to communicate the report of the mission to the international community;

(d) To apprise the Economic and Social Council, at its second regular session of 1982, of the assistance being provided and the progress made in mobilizing assistance to the Gambia;

(e) To keep the situation in the Gambia under review and to report to the General Assembly at its thirty-seventh session on the implementation of the present resolution.