26 July 1991

32nd plenary meeting

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

The Economic and Social Council,

Recalling the Declaration on International Economic Cooperation, in particular the Revitalization of Economic Growth and Development of the Developing Countries, and the International Development Strategy for the Fourth United Nations Development Decade,

Recalling also General Assembly resolution 32/158 of 19 December 1977, in which the Assembly approved the Mar del Plata Action Plan,

Recalling further General Assembly resolution 45/181 of 21 December 1990 on the International Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Decade,

Recalling Economic and Social Council resolution 1989/7 of 22 May 1989, in which the Council requested the Secretary-General to submit to the Committee on Natural Resources at its twelfth session a comprehensive report on strategies and measures necessary for the implementation of the Mar del Plata Action Plan,

Alarmed at the fact that at the end of the Decade one in three people in the developing countries still lacks access to water and sanitation services,

1. Takes note with appreciation of the report of the Secretary-General on strategies and measures for the implementation of the Mar del Plata Action Plan in the 1990s;

2. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General on the activities of the United Nations system in water, mineral and energy resources;

3. Reaffirms the continuing validity of the Mar del Plata Action Plan, including the objectives and recommendations contained therein, affirms the endorsement by the General Assembly in its resolution 45/181 of the four guiding principles, the actions recommended and the proposed follow-up enunciated in the New Delhi Statement, adopted at the Global Consultation on Safe Water and Sanitation for the 1990s, which was held in New Delhi from 10 to 14 September 1990, and recognizes that the New Delhi Statement constitutes a positive step towards the implementation of the Mar del Plata Action Plan;

4. Stresses that the ultimate goal of the Mar del Plata Action Plan is to promote the level of preparedness needed to avoid a water crisis of global dimensions through the efficient and productive use and management of scarce water resources, which are vital to development, taking into consideration environmental concerns, including those related to the semi-arid and arid regions of developing countries;

5. Emphasizes that the 1990s will require an intensification of national efforts and international development cooperation in order to ensure the efficient and productive use and management of scarce water resources;

6. Reaffirms the urgent need for new strategies for integrated water resources development and management, including strategies in the areas of finance and technology, to manage the growing demand for water and to achieve long-term sustainability of the water resources sector;

7. Stresses the need to strengthen and increase international assistance, including technical assistance, human resources development and exchange of information, in order to support the efforts of developing countries;

8. Urges the appropriate organs, organizations and programmes of the United Nations system to assign a high degree of priority to activities, projects and programmes related to water resources undertaken at all levels by developing countries;

9. Requests the Secretary-General to submit to the Committee on Natural Resources at its thirteenth session, for consideration and follow-up, an analytical report on the progress made in the implementation of the Mar del Plata Action Plan containing recommendations for future action at the national and international levels and a summary of meetings, seminars and conferences on water held during the biennium 1991-1992;

10. Also requests the Secretary-General to submit to the Committee at its thirteenth session a compendium of legislative mandates relevant to water resources adopted by the entities of the United Nations system concerned.