29 May 1985

23rd plenary meeting

Ensuring the timely distribution of conference documents

The Economic and Social Council,

Noting with regret that the majority of the documents for the twenty-ninth session of the Commission for Social Development, one of which was the comprehensive 1985 report on the world social situation, did not reach the Commission until the first meeting of the session,

Conscious of the Commission's responsibility for maintaining the quality of its deliberations and decisions,

Considering that adequate information on the contents of the documents relating to the items of the agenda of the Commission constitutes a prerequisite therefor,

Considering that representatives should be accorded sufficient time to study the documents adequately and to orient themselves further if required,

Recalling the rules of procedure of the functional commissions of the Economic and Social Council, in rule 6, paragraph 1, of which it is stated that the Secretary-General shall, not less than six weeks before the opening of the session, communicate the provisional agenda and transmit the basic documents related to each item appearing therein,

1. Requests the Secretary-General to ensure, as a matter of priority and urgency, that from now on the distribution of the documents concerned will correspond strictly to the rules of procedure;

2. Further requests the Secretary-General to ensure that future reports on the world social situation are distributed no later than twelve weeks before the commencement of the session of the Commission.