32nd plenary meeting

26 July 1991

Countries stricken by desertification and drought in Africa

The Economic and Social Council,

Recalling General Assembly resolutions 39/208 of 17 December 1984, 40/175 of 17 December 1985 and 42/188 of 11 December 1987 and Economic and Social Council resolution 1986/44 of 21 July 1986,

Recalling also General Assembly resolution 40/209 of 17 December 1985, by which the Assembly rationalized its consideration of desertification and drought issues,

Recalling further General Assembly resolution 44/172 A of 19 December 1989 on the implementation of the Plan of Action to Combat Desertification,

Recalling that the General Assembly, in its resolution 44/228 of 22 December 1989, included protection and management of land resources by, inter alia, combating deforestation, desertification and drought among environmental issues of major concern, and paid renewed attention to drought i

and desertification in its enunciation of the goals and objectives of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development,

Deeply concerned about the dramatic effects of accelerating desertification, which have caused a substantial decline in agricultural output and served, in particular, to aggravate the current economic crisis in Africa,

Taking note of the report of the Secretary-General on countries stricken by desertification and drought in Africa,

Taking note of the work of the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme on this question and of Governing Council decision 15/23 of 25 May 1989,

Noting the important contribution made by the United Nations Sudano-Sahelian Office in helping the countries of the region to prepare for the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, and encouraging the Office to continue and intensify its efforts in that area,

Expresses its appreciation to the United Nations Sudano-Sahelian Office for having organized consultative meetings of the Sudano-Sahelian countries at Ouagadougou from 13 to 15 February 1991 and at Cairo from 8 to 10 July 1991, in preparation for the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, and for the detailed preparations it made for those meetings in the countries concerned with such partners as the Permanent Inter-State Committee on Drought Control in the Sahel and the Intergovernmental Authority for Drought and Development,

Welcoming the results and resolutions of the Ministerial Conference for a joint policy to combat desertification in the countries of the Permanent Inter-State Committee on Drought Control in the Sahel and the Economic Community of West African States, in the Maghreb countries, in Egypt and in the Sudan (COMIDES), held at Dakar in July 1985 and November 1985 and at Algiers in October 1988,

Welcoming also the renewed efforts of the United Nations Sudano-Sahelian Office aimed at increasing support for the countries and organizations concerned and at cooperating with them, in particular with the Permanent Inter-State Committee on Drought Control in the Sahel and the Intergovernmental Authority for Drought and Development,

Aware of the efforts that are already being made in the African region, inter alia, to combat desertification and drought, and the commitments made at the consultative meeting of the Sudano-Sahelian countries held at Cairo in July 1991, organized by the United Nations Sudano-Sahelian Office, and at the African Regional Conference on Environment and Sustainable Development, held at Kampala in June 1989,

Bearing in mind the report of the Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme on the activities of the United Nations Sudano-Sahelian Office,

Acknowledging that, in view of the scale and gravity of desertification and drought, programmes to combat those scourges require financial and human resources beyond the means of the countries concerned,

Noting with appreciation that the Sixteenth Regional Conference for Africa of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, held at Marrakesh, Morocco, in June 1990, endorsed an International Scheme for the Conservation and Rehabilitation of African Lands, with a view to giving to the countries of the region the means of developing their own programmes for the fight against land degradation, including desertification,

1. Reaffirms the need for sustained implementation of General Assembly resolution 44/172 A;

2. Recognizes the commendable, sustained efforts made by the Permanent Inter-State Committee on Drought Control in the Sahel to combat desertification and drought, and welcomes its fruitful cooperation with Governments and United Nations organs and bodies;

3. Appeals urgently to the international community, particularly donor countries, to continue to support the Permanent Inter-State Committee on Drought Control in the Sahel, the Intergovernmental Authority for Drought and Development and the Ministerial Conference for a joint policy to combat desertification in the countries of the Permanent Inter-State Committee on Drought Control in the Sahel, and the Economic Community of West African States, in the Maghreb countries, in Egypt and in the Sudan (COMIDES);

4. Welcomes with satisfaction the progress made by the International Fund for Agricultural Development through its Special Programme for Sub-Saharan African Countries Affected by Drought and Desertification;

5. Stresses the fundamental importance of South-South cooperation in executing programmes to combat desertification and drought and of the support of the international community that is necessary for such cooperation;

6. Recalls with satisfaction the interest expressed at the Summit of the seven major industrialized nations, held in Paris from 14 to 16 July 1989, in aspects of the struggle against desertification and, specifically, in the planned observatory of the Sahara and the Sahel;

7. Notes with appreciation the solidarity with which the international community has responded to the assistance needs resulting from the emergency in Africa, particularly with regard to food aid, emergency medical assistance and the fight against grasshoppers and locusts;

8. Recommends that, within the framework of bilateral and multilateral development assistance programmes, the fight against desertification and drought should be given priority attention in keeping with the scope of those problems;

9. Invites the United Nations Sudano-Sahelian Office to increase its efforts to mobilize additional resources in support of efforts of the countries within its purview and of the relevant regional organizations, notably the Permanent Inter-State Committee on Drought Control in the Sahel and the Intergovernmental Authority for Drought and Development;

10. Urges the United Nations Sudano-Sahelian Office to continue to help the Sudano-Sahelian countries to prepare for the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development and the follow-up activities resulting therefrom;

11. Invites the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations to continue to provide the countries of the region with all the technical assistance required to implement the recommendations of the International Scheme for the Conservation and Rehabilitation of African Lands, and invites the international community to support the Scheme and initiatives within the framework of the implementation of national programmes for the control of desertification and drought and to support the recommendations of the Conference on Agriculture and the Environment, organized by the Government of the Netherlands and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations at Hertogenbosch, Netherlands, from 15 to 19 April 1991;

12. Requests the Secretary-General to place greater emphasis, in the World Economic Survey, on the situation and prospects of all countries stricken by desertification and drought;

13. Further requests the Secretary-General, given the urgency of the situation of the countries stricken by desertification and drought, to report to the General Assembly at its forty-sixth session on the countries concerned, taking into account the work being done on the subject in the Preparatory Committee for the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development and to put forward specific, coordinated proposals for action, with due regard for the results of the third session of the Preparatory Committee of relevance to this issue.