26 July 1985

52nd plenary meeting

Transport and Communications Decade in Africa

The Economic and Social Council,

Recalling its resolution 2097 (LXIII) of 29 July 1977 and General Assembly resolution 32/160 of 19 December 1977, by which the Assembly proclaimed the Transport and Communications Decade in Africa during the years 1978-1988,

Recalling also resolution 464 (XVIII) of 2 May 1983 of the Conference of Ministers of the Economic Commission for Africa, by which the Conference of Ministers requested the Executive Secretary of the Commission to ensure that the programme for the second phase of the Decade would, inter alia, promote harmonization and co-ordination of the various modes of transport and communications, and resolution 487 (XIX) of 26 May 1984, by which the Conference of Ministers endorsed the programme for the second phase,

Referring to Council resolution 1984/68 of 27 July 1984 and General Assembly resolutions 38/150 of 19 December 1983 and 39/230 of 18 December 1984,

Noting that financial resources have been allocated by the General Assembly for the activities envisaged in its resolutions 38/150 and 39/230, including the studies on the harmonization and co-ordination of the various modes of transport and communications,

1. Expresses its appreciation to the Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme for his continuing support of the Transport and Communications Decade in Africa through the financing of the Decade Co-ordination Unit and requests him to continue to provide funds to the Economic Commission for Africa during the next programming cycle to enable it to complete the task of monitoring the implementation of the programme for the Decade and to evaluate the results of the whole programme for the Decade;

2. Welcomes the role played by the Inter-Agency Co-ordinating Committee under the Economic Commission for Africa as lead agency in co-ordinating activities and its contribution to realizing the objectives of the Decade;

3. Requests the Secretary-General to provide adequate financial resources to the Economic Commission for Africa to enable it to organize the Fifth Conference of African Ministers of Transport, Communications and Planning in 1986;

4. Requests the Executive Secretary of the Commission:

(a) To organize, in collaboration with other United Nations bodies and African intergovernmental organizations, a co-financing meeting each year until the end of the Decade, for the purpose of submitting specific regional projects and transport corridor projects to appropriate donor countries and financial institutions;

(b) To intensify efforts to contact as many donor countries and financial institutions as possible to promote the programme for the Decade;

5. Also requests the Secretary-General to make available to the Commission sufficient financial resources to enable it to organize co-financing meetings for specific regional projects and projects located in corridors affording access to the sea for land-locked countries;

6. Reiterates the appeals previously made to donor countries and international financial institutions to give increased financial support to the programme for the second phase of the Decade and to accord particular attention to the financing of the regional projects and projects related to the maintenance and rehabilitation of infrastructures, training and technical assistance, and projects in corridors affording access to the sea for land-locked countries.