26 July 1988

38th plenary meeting

Assistance in cases of natural disaster and other disaster situations:

Office of the United Nations Disaster Relief Co-ordinator

The Economic and Social Council,

Recalling General Assembly resolution 2816 (XXVI) of 14 December 1971, by which the Assembly established the Office of the United Nations Disaster Relief Co-ordinator and, inter alia, recognized the need to ensure prompt, effective and efficient responses, in times of natural disaster and other disaster situations, that would bring to bear the resources of the United Nations system, prospective donor countries and voluntary agencies,

Recalling also other pertinent resolutions, in particular General Assembly resolution 41/201 of 8 December 1986,

Bearing in mind General Assembly resolution 42/169 of 11 December 1987, in which the Assembly decided to designate the 1990s as a decade in which the international community, under the auspices of the United Nations, would pay special attention to fostering international co-operation in the field of natural disaster reduction,

Reaffirming that the primary responsibility for the administration of disaster relief operations and for disaster preparedness lies with the Governments of the affected countries and recognizing that available resources and efforts are being devoted by the Governments of those countries towards the alleviation of disaster-related problems,

Noting the increased number of requests to the Office of the United Nations Disaster Relief Co-ordinator for assistance in disaster relief and mitigation and for related information,

Reaffirming also that shortage of resources has been one of the major constraints on an effective response of the United Nations to disaster situations and continues to hamper the full achievement of a rapid and effective response to the needs of countries affected by disasters and that, if the shortage is to be overcome, efforts will be required by the international community to provide both funds and assistance in kind,

Reaffirming that, within the United Nations system, the Office of the United Nations Disaster Relief Co-ordinator is the focal point for disaster relief matters and therefore should be provided by the donor community, the United Nations and the other organizations of the United Nations system with the support necessary for it to discharge its responsibilities for disaster relief and mitigation,

Affirming the necessity of implementing the conclusions of the report of the Secretary-General on the implementation of General Assembly resolution 41/201,

1. Takes note with satisfaction of the report of the Secretary-General on the activities of the Office of the United Nations Disaster Relief Co-ordinator and of the statement made by the Co-ordinator before the Third Committee of the Economic and Social Council on 7 July 1988;

2. Emphasizes that it is essential for the Office of the United Nations Disaster Relief Co-ordinator to be placed, and kept, on a sound financial basis, and calls upon the international community to respond positively and expeditiously to the appeals of the Secretary-General for contributions to the Trust Fund for Disaster Relief Assistance in order to meet relief needs resulting from natural disasters and other disaster situations;

3. Recognizes that activities related to disaster preparedness and prevention were significantly greater in 1986-1987 than in the previous biennium, and appreciates the good performance of the Office of the United Nations Disaster Relief Co-ordinator in participating in strengthening the national emergency services of affected developing countries by providing, inter alia, advice and expertise on the utilization of early warning systems and on the elaboration and implementation of disaster contingency plans for pre-disaster planning and the post-disaster period, and in giving assistance to regional, interregional and global activities on the medium-term and longer-term aspects of disaster mitigation;

4. Invites the Secretary-General to request the United Nations Development Programme, in co-operation with the Office of the United Nations Disaster Relief Co-ordinator, to facilitate further the integration of disaster prevention projects in the planning of national programmes;

5. Recognizes that at the country level, particularly in disaster-prone countries, it is important that the organizations of the United Nations system concerned be organized, under the resident co-ordinator, in an emergency operations group, in accordance with General Assembly resolution 36/225 of 17 December 1981, and welcomes the practical steps taken by the United Nations Development Programme and the Office of the United Nations Disaster Relief Co-ordinator to improve further their co-operation with Governments and voluntary agencies;

6. Invites the Secretary-General to provide the Office of the United Nations Disaster Relief Co-ordinator with the support necessary for it to continue to provide high-quality service to recipient countries, and to encourage the organizations of the United Nations system to contribute to this endeavour;

7. Requests the Secretary-General to include information on the implementation of the present resolution in his next biennial report on the Office, to be submitted to the General Assembly at its forty-fifth session, through the Economic and Social Council at its second regular session of 1990;

8. Invites the Secretary-General to continue to implement, by concrete measures, the conclusions of his report on the implementation of General Assembly resolution 41/201.