The General Assembly,
Reaffirming the importance and continued validity of the Declaration on International Economic Cooperation, in particular the Revitalization of Economic Growth and Development of the Developing Countries, the International Development Strategy for the Fourth United Nations Development Decade, the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s, the Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries for the 1990s, and the various agreements, especially Agenda 21, that were adopted during the process of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development,
Recalling its resolution 1995 (XIX) of 30 December 1964, as amended, on the establishment of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development as an organ of the General Assembly, and its resolution 45/261 of 3 May 1991, in which it decided to convene the eighth session of the Conference at Cartegena de Indias, Colombia, from 8 to 25 February 1992,
Having considered the final documents adopted by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development at its eighth session, in particular the Declaration and the document entitled "A New Partnership for Development: The Cartagena Commitment", and noting with satisfaction the highly successful outcome of the eighth session of the Conference and the spirit of genuine cooperation and solidarity - the Spirit of Cartagena - that emerged therefrom,
Expressing its deep gratitude to the Government and the people of Colombia for the hospitality extended to the participants at the eighth session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development and for the facilities for holding the session,
Noting the importance of follow-up and of keeping under review the implementation of the policies and measures adopted by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development at its eighth session,
Emphasizing that the concerns of the international community about the current world economic situation, trade and development issues, and the difficulties of many countries in achieving satisfactory rates of development deserve continuing attention, in particular as far as the developing countries are concerned,
Reaffirming, in this context, the need to give priority to problems facing the least developed countries owing to the fragility of their economies and their particular vulnerability to external shocks and natural calamities,
Reiterating that the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations should result in a substantial and balanced outcome in all areas involved, and expressing concern that those negotiations have not yet been completed but hopeful that they will come to a successful conclusion rapidly, taking into account the specific interests of developing countries,
1. Endorses the outcome of the eighth session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, in particular the commitments agreed upon, and emphasizes the importance of the New Partnership for Development, initiated by the Conference at that session, where countries will join actively in cooperative work to address the development challenges of the 1990s, and expresses its political will and responsibility to implement the agreed commitments;
2. Welcomes the far-reaching institutional reform measures adopted by the Conference at its eighth session regarding the functions, intergovernmental machinery, methods of work and substantive orientations of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, and agrees that those measures are a valuable contribution to the process of restructuring the economic and social sectors of the United Nations launched by the General Assembly;
3. Reaffirms the important role of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, as a principal organ of the General Assembly in the field of trade and development and as the most appropriate focal point within the United Nations proper for the integrated treatment of development and interrelated issues in key areas, including trade, commodities, finance, investment, services and technology, in the interests of all countries, particularly those of developing countries;
4. Welcomes the agreement by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development to refocus its substantive work on four areas, namely, a new partnership for development, global interdependence, paths to development and sustainable development, which should serve as orientations for developing both fresh approaches to long-standing issues and insights for pursuing relevant new lines of work, and acknowledges the efforts that have been made in this respect and encourages further efforts in this regard;
5. Also welcomes the high priority given by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development to commodities, poverty alleviation, services development, economic cooperation among developing countries, investment and financial flows, privatization, trading opportunities for developing countries, investment and technology transfers, and trade efficiency;
6. Stresses the important contribution that the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development can make to sustainable development in the context of the implementation of Agenda 21, inter alia, on trade-related environmental, poverty alleviation, commodity and technology issues, and, in this context, requests the Conference to work closely with the Commission on Sustainable Development;
7. Invites all organs, organizations and bodies of the United Nations system to respond positively to the requests addressed to them in the relevant parts of the commitments of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development at its eighth session;
8. Takes note of the reports of the Trade and Development Board on the second part of its thirty-eighth session and the first part of its thirty-ninth session and calls upon all States to take appropriate action to implement the outcome of those sessions;
9. Expresses its satisfaction with the action initiated by the Trade and Development Board for the implementation of the new institutional arrangements and of the substantive orientations agreed upon by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, and welcomes Trade and Development Board decision 398 (XXXVIII) of 7 May 1992 on the follow-up to the recommendations adopted by the Conference at its eighth session;
10. Takes note of the agreement by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development at its eighth session to suspend the existing Committees of the Trade and Development Board, with the exception of the Special Committee on Preferences and the Intergovernmental Group of Experts on Restrictive Business Practices;
11. Endorses the establishment and the terms of reference of the new standing committees and of the new ad hoc working groups, as contained in the annex to Trade and Development Board decision 398 (XXXVIII), as well as the convening of executive sessions of the Board aimed at strengthening its policy function;
12. Takes note of Trade and Development Board decision 399 (XXXIX) of 9 October 1992 on the establishment of an ad hoc working group to explore the issue of structural adjustment for the transition to disarmament;
13. Welcomes the streamlining and strengthening of the intergovernmental machinery of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development and the improvement of methods of work aimed at providing an enriched substantive and technical basis for the functions of the Conference, as agreed at its eighth session;
14. Endorses the convening in 1994, within existing resources, of a United Nations international symposium of one week's duration on trade efficiency, and requests the Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development to make all the necessary arrangements for that symposium, taking into account the preparatory work of the Ad Hoc Working Group on Trade Efficiency of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development;
15. Takes note of the valuable contribution made by the Trade and Development Board, underpinned by the Trade and Development Report, 1992, to the understanding of the international implications of macroeconomic policies and issues concerning global interdependence, with particular reference to the recent evolution of development problems and prospects, and welcomes the outcome of the deliberations of the Board on this matter;
16. Also takes note of the recognition on the part of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development at its eighth session and of the Trade and Development Board that Governments should consider, as part of fighting protectionism and as appropriate, the establishment of transparent mechanisms at the national level;
17. Calls upon the international community to assist in promoting measures necessary for the revitalization of the development process in the developing countries, in pursuit of the objective of revitalizing international trade, sustained economic growth and development;
18. Urges all countries to fulfil their commitments to halt and reverse protectionism and to reach a final agreement on the remaining issues of the Uruguay Round, and reaffirms that the balanced and comprehensive conclusion of the multilateral trade negotiations is crucial and is needed in order to strengthen the rules and disciplines of the international trading system and significantly enhance the prospects for trade, economic growth and development of all countries, especially developing countries.
93rd plenary meeting
22 December 1992
