26 May 1987

14th Plenary Meeting

Water resources and progress in the implementation of the Mar del Plata Action Plan

The Economic and Social Council,

Recalling its resolutions 1979/67, 1979/68 and 1979/70 of 3 August 1979, 1981/80 of 24 July 1981, 1983/57 of 28 July 1983 and 1985/49 of 25 July 1985, concerning the implementation of the Mar del Plata Action Plan,

Recalling also its resolution 1981/81 of 24 July 1981, concerning co-operative measures among international river and lake organizations and related activities within the United Nations system,

Noting that the Interregional Symposium on Improved Efficiency in the Management of Water Resources: Follow-up to the Mar del Plata Action Plan was convened by the Secretary-General in New York from 5 to 9 January 1987 in order to review the recommendations of the United Nations Water Conference ten years after the Conference,

1. Takes note with appreciation of the oral report on the conclusions reached at the Interregional Symposium on Improved Efficiency in the Management of Water Resources: Follow-up to the Mar del Plata Action Plan, made before the Committee on Natural Resources at its 196th meeting, on 14 April 1987, by the representative of the United Nations Secretariat;

2. Requests the Secretary-General to circulate for the information of Governments the final report of the Symposium;

3. Requests the Secretary-General to submit to the Committee on Natural Resources at its eleventh session, together with the report on the follow-up of the Mar del Plata Action Plan, a supplementary report that would include the following:

(a) Views of Governments on the report of the Symposium;

(b) Developments in co-operative action undertaken in the field of shared water resources, including specific items on co-operative action to reduce land degradation and desertification, to establish and make operational a hydrometeorological data collection network and publicize the data, to alleviate flood risks, and to prevent and control transboundary pollution;

4. Invites all Governments to continue and possibly increase their efforts to train personnel in technical and managerial skills, giving due regard to the role of women in water resources development and management;

5. Requests the Secretary-General, in consultation with regional commissions and organizations of the United Nations system, to report to the Committee at its eleventh session on progress in formulating proposals for a comprehensive strategy to implement the Mar del Plata Action Plan during the decade 1991-2000 and to include an assessment of those proposals as they relate to the activities of the United Nations system.