30 May 1991

12th plenary meeting

United Nations Decade of Disabled Persons

The Economic and Social Council,

Recalling its resolution 1989/52 of 24 May 1989, in which it called upon Member States, the bodies and organizations of the United Nations system and intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations to further the practical implementation of the World Programme of Action concerning Disabled Persons, adopted by the General Assembly in its resolution 37/52 of 3 December 1982, during the second half of the United Nations Decade of Disabled Persons, based on the list of priorities and programmes set forth in the annex to General Assembly resolution 43/98 of 8 December 1988,

Recalling also General Assembly resolution 45/91 of 14 December 1990, in which the Secretary-General was requested to shift the focus of the United Nations programme on disability from awareness-raising to action, with the aim of achieving a society for all by the year 2010 and of responding more appropriately to the many requests for assistance and advisory services,

Noting with appreciation the recommendations of the meeting of experts held at Jarvenpaa, Finland, from 7 to 11 May 1990, under the joint auspices of the Government of Finland and the United Nations,

Concerned about the very difficult situation of disabled persons living in developing countries and the vulnerability of disability-related programmes and projects, particularly during periods of economic restructuring,

Taking note with appreciation of the report of the Secretary-General on major issues and programme activities of the Secretariat and the regional commissions relating to social development and welfare and specific social groups,

1. Welcomes the intiative of the Commission for Social Development in elaborating standard technical rules on the equalization of opportunities for disabled persons;

2. Calls upon Member States, regional commissions, intergovernmental bodies and other relevant organizations, in cooperation with organizations of disabled persons, to adopt an integrated policy approach to disability issues as part of the overall efforts to strive for a sustainable social development strategy;

3. Requests the Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs of the Secretariat to support pilot projects aimed at designing integrated disability policies in developing countries and to seek voluntary contributions for that purpose;

4. Invites Member States to review their policies and programmes with the aim of designing national annual priorities until the end of the United Nations Decade of Disabled Persons in 1992 and concrete long-term strategies to ensure the full implementation of the World Programme of Action concerning Disabled Persons beyond the Decade;

5. Requests the Secretary-General to encourage the establishment of working groups funded by voluntary contributions to study and compare the implementation of national priorities;

6. Requests Member States to give concrete support to the efforts of the Secretary-General to develop activities benefiting disabled persons on a sustainable basis in countries with a special need for international support, particularly in developing countries;

7. Recommends that a meeting of experts, to be funded by voluntary contributions, be held in conjunction with the conference entitled "Independence 1992", to be organized in Canada by the British Columbia Pavillion Corporation, in cooperation with Disabled Peoples' International and other interested non-governmental organizations, with the primary objective of drawing up a long-term strategy to implement the World Programme of Action concerning Disabled Persons to the year 2000 and beyond;

8. Invites Member States to provide financial and technical support for the efforts of the Secretary-General to develop an international information network at the United Nations Office at Vienna;

9. Recommends that the General Assembly, at its forty-seventh session, devote four plenary meetings to mark, at the global level, the conclusion of the United Nations Decade of Disabled Persons;

10. Requests the Commission for Social Development to include in the provisional agenda of its thirty-third session an item entitled "Monitoring of international plans and programmes of action", and to discuss under that item a long-term strategy to further the implementation of the World Programme of Action concerning Disabled Persons beyond the Decade.