AG/RES. 1421 (XXVI-O/96)

ACCESS TO INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES

(Resolution adopted at the eighth plenary session, held on June 7, 1996)

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,

HAVING SEEN:

Its declaration AG/DEC. 1 (XX-E/94), "Commitment on a Partnership for Development and Struggle to Overcome Extreme Poverty," which calls for the study of a proposed "information network to integrate the wealth of knowledge possessed by governmental and nongovernmental organizations and institutions that provide cooperation for development in the Hemisphere, in order to encourage and support the sharing of experience and know-how among all countries in the region and to help identify and coordinate supply, demand, and resources for addressing cooperation needs"; and

Its resolution AG/RES. 1339 (XXV-O/95), "Information Network to Strengthen the Partnership for Development in the Hemisphere";

NOTING:

The Report of the Hemispheric Conference on the Eradication of Poverty and Discrimination, held in Santiago, Chile, in January 1996, which recommends in its conclusions the building of an information network to exchange initiatives and programs that enhance the fight against poverty in our countries and to strengthen and connect the focal points of that network;

The Declaration of Cartagena and the Plan of Action drawn up by the ministers responsible for science and technology meeting in Cartagena, Colombia, in March 1996, as a follow-up to the Summit of the Americas; and

The numerous resolutions and decisions adopted by the various United Nations bodies and agencies in the field of science and technology for development; and

CONSIDERING:

That the Plan of Action of the Summit of the Americas states that it is necessary to utilize new advances in information technology;

That the inclusion of science and technology on the Hemisphere's agenda drafted by the heads of state and government at the Summit of the Americas reflects the strategic role that science and technology play in socioeconomic development and environmental protection;

That, in the context of science and technology in the Hemisphere, the ministers meeting in Cartagena noted the importance of facilitating access to new information technologies and promoting their application to sustainable development;

That ongoing human resource training plays a crucial role in scientific and technological development, as stated in the Plan of Action of the Meeting of Ministers of Science and Technology; and

That it is necessary to facilitate local access to new information technologies to ensure equal opportunities for development and to ensure that specialized institutions and local organizations can play a significant role in this area,

RESOLVES:

1. To support access by member states to new information technologies and to help these technologies to reach the lower echelons of society in the interest of integral and sustainable development in our countries.

2. To instruct the Inter-American Council for Integral Development (CIDI) to establish, through its Permanent Executive Committee (CEPCIDI), a database on development cooperation, pursuant to operative paragraphs 2 and 3 of resolution AG/RES. 1339 (XXV-O/95).

3. To instruct CIDI, through CEPCIDI, to continue its study of a proposed information network to integrate the wealth of knowledge possessed by governmental and nongovernmental institutions and organizations that provide cooperation for development in the Hemisphere, as established in declaration AG/DEC. 1 (XX-E/94).

4. To instruct CIDI to adopt the necessary measures to mobilize resources for development projects, especially with regard to the design and establishment of new networks to facilitate the exchange of information and related training.

5. To instruct the General Secretariat to continue its efforts toward modernization of the Organization's information systems and, within existing resources, to facilitate access to training courses on new information systems for member states.