AG/RES. 1370 (XXVI-O/96)

SUMMIT CONFERENCE ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

(Resolution adopted at the seventh plenary session, held on June 6, 1996)

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,

HAVING SEEN the Report of the Permanent Council on OAS Cooperation regarding the Summit Conference on Sustainable Development (AG/doc.3360/96); and

CONSIDERING:

That at the Summit of the Americas, held in December 1994, the heads of state and government decided to hold a Summit Conference on Sustainable Development in Bolivia in 1996;

That, since the Summit Conference on Sustainable Development is an intergovernmental gathering at the highest level, its results will have to reflect the medium- and long-term aims of the governments;

That the countries of the Hemisphere undertook commitments pertaining to the environment and sustainable development at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, which were translated into binding agreements, and that the Summit of the Americas reaffirmed the interest of the member states in seeking sustainable development;

That, in resolution AG/RES. 1359 (XXV-O/95), the General Assembly agreed to the request from the Government of Bolivia that the Organization of American States assist in preparing for and holding the Summit Conference on Sustainable Development;

That, pursuant to that resolution, the General Assembly instructed the Permanent Council to participate actively in preparing the agenda and formulating proposals for consideration at the Summit Conference on Sustainable Development;

That the Permanent Council established the Working Group on OAS Cooperation regarding the Summit Conference on Sustainable Development;

That the process of preparing the Summit Conference on Sustainable Development must be given political impetus, particularly through intergovernmental action in the context of the Hemisphere's highest multilateral forums;

That the Summit Conference on Sustainable Development provides a unique opportunity to initiate a new phase of hemispheric cooperation in this field; and

That, when it assigned the Organization of American States an important role in preparing for and holding the Summit Conference in Santa Cruz, the Government of Bolivia presented a document entitled "Toward Sustainable Development in the Americas" to the Permanent Council for study and consideration,

RESOLVES:

1. To reaffirm support by the Organization of American States for the preparations for and holding of the Summit Conference on Sustainable Development in the city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, on December 7 and 8, 1996.

2. To decide that the Working Group of the Permanent Council shall be the intergovernmental forum for organizational and substantive preparations for the Summit Conference on Sustainable Development.

3. To decide also that proposals and matters relating to the Summit Conference on Sustainable Development should be considered by the Working Group of the Permanent Council.

4. To thank the Government of Bolivia for presenting the document "Toward Sustainable Development in the Americas," and to request the member state governments to forward their observations and comments thereon.

5. To instruct the Permanent Council to continue to participate actively in preparations for the Summit Conference on Sustainable Development and, if it deems it necessary, to convene meetings with government experts to support that process.

6. To instruct the Permanent Council to promote participation by nongovernmental sectors in preparations for the Summit Conference on Sustainable Development.

7. To instruct the Secretary General to take the necessary steps to ensure that the General Secretariat provides, to the extent allowed by existing resources, technical and administrative support for the preparations for and holding of the Summit Conference on Sustainable Development, as requested by the Government of Bolivia or the Working Group of the Permanent Council.

8. To request the Permanent Council to report to the General Assembly at its twenty-seventh regular session on the implementation of this resolution.