Forty-ninth session
Agenda item 97
RESOLUTION ADOPTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY
The General Assembly,
Recalling all its relevant resolutions, in particular resolution
44/77 of 8 December 1989, in which, inter alia, it endorsed and
reaffirmed the importance of the Nairobi Forward- looking Strategies
for the Advancement of Women 1/ for the period up to the year
2000 and set out measures for their immediate implementation and
for the overall achievement of the interrelated goals and objectives
of the United Nations Decade for Women: Equality, Development
and Peace,
Recalling also its resolutions 46/98 of 16 December 1991,
47/95 of 16 December 1992 and 48/108 of 20 December 1993,
Taking into consideration the resolutions adopted by the
Economic and Social Council on issues relating to women since
the adoption of its resolution 1987/18 of 26 May 1987,
Reaffirming its determination to encourage the full participation
of women in economic, social, cultural, civil and political affairs
and to promote development, cooperation and international peace,
Conscious of the important and constructive contribution
to the improvement of the status of women made by the Commission
on the Status of Women, the specialized agencies, the regional
commissions and other organizations and bodies of the United Nations
system and non-governmental organizations concerned,
Concerned that the resources available in the Secretariat
to the programme on the advancement of women are insufficient
to ensure adequate support to the Committee on the Elimination
of Discrimination against Women and effective implementation of
other aspects of the programme, especially the preparations for
the Fourth World Conference on Women: Action for Equality, Development
and Peace, to be held in 1995,
Taking into account Commission on the Status of Women resolutions
36/8 of 20 March 1992, 2/ 37/7 of 25 March 1993 3/ and 38/10 of
18 March 1994 4/ on the preparations for the Fourth World Conference
on Women,
Bearing in mind the important role non-governmental organizations
play in all activities for the advancement of women and the fact
that some of them, especially those from developing countries,
do not enjoy consultative status with the Economic and Social
Council,
Noting with satisfaction that the preparations for the
Fourth World Conference on Women have entered a substantive stage,
that the relevant United Nations bodies, China, as the host country,
and other countries all attach great importance to the preparations
for the Conference and that the various preparatory activities
are being conducted in an in-depth and comprehensive manner,
Considering that 1995 will be a year of crucial importance
to the preparations for the Fourth World Conference on Women and
that the Commission on the Status of Women will deliberate the
content of the Platform for Action at its thirty-ninth session,
Welcoming the report of the Secretary-General 5/ containing
the executive summary of the 1994 World Survey on the Role
of Women in Development,
Expressing its satisfaction that the Programme of Action
of the International Conference on Population and Development
6/ establishes that the empowerment of women is a key issue for
the Fourth World Conference on Women,
Also expressing its satisfaction that the regional preparatory
conferences for the Fourth World Conference on Women have produced
plans or platforms for their regions, which provide useful inputs
for the Platform for Action of the Conference,
1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary- General;
7/
2. Reaffirms section I, paragraph 2, of the recommendations
and conclusions arising from the first review and appraisal of
the implementation of the Nairobi Forward- looking Strategies
for the Advancement of Women, contained in the annex to Economic
and Social Council resolution 1990/15 of 24 May 1990, which called
for an improved pace in the implementation of the Forward-looking
Strategies in the crucial last decade of the twentieth century,
since the cost to societies of failing to implement them would
be high in terms of slowed economic and social development, misuse
of human resources and reduced progress for society as a whole;
3. Urges Governments, international organizations and non-governmental
organizations to implement the recommendations;
4. Calls again upon Member States to give priority to policies
and programmes relating to the sub-theme "Employment, health
and education", in particular to literacy for self- reliance
of women and the mobilization of indigenous resources, as well
as to issues relating to the role of women in economic and political
decision-making, population, the environment, information and
science and technology;
5. Reaffirms the central role of the Commission on the
Status of Women in matters related to the advancement of women,
and calls upon it to continue promoting the implementation of
the Forward-looking Strategies to the year 2000, based on the
goals of the United Nations Decade for Women: Equality, Development
and Peace and the sub-theme "Employment, health and education",
and urges all relevant bodies of the United Nations system to
cooperate effectively with the Commission in this task;
6. Requests the Commission, when considering the priority
theme relating to development during its thirty-ninth session,
to ensure its early contribution to the preparatory work for forthcoming
major international conferences to be held in 1995, namely, the
Fourth World Conference on Women: Action for Equality, Development
and Peace and the World Summit for Social Development, and to
address the impact of technologies on women;
7. Also requests the Commission to give special attention
to women in developing countries, particularly in Africa and the
least developed countries, who suffer disproportionately from
the effects of the global economic crisis and the heavy external
debt burden, and to recommend further measures for the equalization
of opportunity and for the integration of the roles and perspective
of women, as well as their needs, concerns and aspirations, into
the entire development process when considering the priority theme
of development;
8. Emphasizes, in the framework of the Forward-looking
Strategies, the importance of the total integration of women of
all ages in the development process, bearing in mind the specific
and urgent needs of the developing countries, and calls upon Member
States to establish specific targets at each level in order to
increase the participation of women in professional, management
and decision-making positions in the countries;
9. Emphasizes once again the need to give urgent attention
to redressing socio-economic inequities at the national and international
levels as a necessary step towards the full realization of the
goals and objectives of the Forward-looking Strategies through
meeting the practical and strategic needs of women;
10. Strongly urges that particular attention be given by
the competent United Nations organizations and Governments to
the special needs of women with disabilities, elderly women and
also women in vulnerable situations such as migrant and refugee
women and children;
11. Urges the international community and the competent
United Nations bodies and organs to place more emphasis on the
sharp increase in the incidence of poverty among rural women;
12. Welcomes the recommendations adopted at the United
Nations Conference on Environment and Development on women, environment
and development in all programme areas, in particular those set
out in chapter 24 of Agenda 21, 8/ entitled "Global action
for women towards sustainable and equitable development";
13. Welcomes also the recommendations of the International
Conference on Population and Development regarding the advancement
of women, contained in the Programme of Action of the Conference;
6/
14. Urges organs, organizations and bodies of the United
Nations system to ensure the active participation of women in
the planning and implementation of programmes for sustainable
development, and requests Governments, in the context of General
Assembly resolution 47/191 of 22 December 1992, to consider nominating
women as representatives to the Commission on Sustainable Development;
15. Requests the Secretary-General, in formulating the
system-wide medium-term plan for the advancement of women for
the period 1996-2001 and in integrating the Forward-looking Strategies
into activities mandated by the General Assembly, to pay particular
attention to specific sectoral themes that cut across the three
objectives, equality, development and peace, and to include, in
particular, literacy, education, health, population, the impact
of technology on the environment and its effect on women and the
full participation of women in decision-making, and to continue
to assist Governments in strengthening their national machineries
for the advancement of women;
16. Also requests the Secretary-General to continue updating
the World Survey on the Role of Women in Development, 9/ bearing
in mind its importance, placing particular emphasis on the adverse
impact of the difficult economic situation affecting the majority
of developing countries, particularly on the condition of women,
giving special attention to worsening conditions for the incorporation
of women into the labour force, as well as the impact of reduced
expenditures for social services on opportunities available to
women for education, health and child care;
17. Requests Governments, when presenting candidatures
for vacancies in the Secretariat, in particular at the decision-making
level, to give priority to candidatures of women, and requests
the Secretary-General in reviewing those candidatures to give
special consideration to female candidates from underrepresented
and unrepresented developing countries;
18. Requests the Secretary-General to invite Governments,
organizations of the United Nations system, including the regional
commissions and the specialized agencies, and intergovernmental
and non-governmental organizations to report periodically to the
Economic and Social Council, through the Commission on the Status
of Women, on activities undertaken at all levels to implement
the Forward-looking Strategies;
19. Also requests the Secretary-General to continue to
provide for the existing weekly radio programmes on women in the
regular budget of the United Nations, making adequate provisions
for broadcasts in different languages, and to develop the focal
point for issues relating to women in the Department of Public
Information of the Secretariat, which, in concert with the Department
for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, should provide
a more effective public information programme relating to the
advancement of women;
20. Further requests the Secretary-General to include in
his report on the implementation of the Forward-looking Strategies,
to be submitted to the General Assembly at its fiftieth session,
an assessment of recent developments that are relevant to the
priority themes to be considered at the subsequent session of
the Commission and to transmit to the Commission a summary of
relevant views expressed by delegations during the debate in the
Assembly;
21. Requests the Commission to continue to examine the
implications of the World Conference on Human Rights and the Vienna
Declaration and Programme of Action 10/ adopted by the Conference
for its central role in matters related to the rights of women
within the United Nations system and to report to the Economic
and Social Council at its substantive session of 1995;
22. Requests the Secretary-General to prepare a report
for the Commission, for consideration at its thirty-ninth session,
on steps to be taken by the Division for the Advancement of Women,
in cooperation with other United Nations bodies, specifically
the Centre for Human Rights of the Secretariat, to ensure that
relevant human rights mechanisms of the United Nations, such as
treaty-monitoring bodies, rapporteurs and working groups, regularly
address violations of the rights of women, including gender-specific
abuses;
23. Recognizes that the Declaration on the Elimination
of Violence against Women, proclaimed by the General Assembly
in its resolution 48/104 of 20 December 1993, is essential to
the attainment of full respect for the rights of women and is
an important contribution to efforts aimed at achieving the objectives
of the Forward-looking Strategies by the year 2000;
24. Expresses its satisfaction for the smooth conclusion
of the regional preparatory meetings, the results of which constitute
important inputs to the Platform for Action, the final document
of the Fourth World Conference on Women;
25. Requests the Secretary-General to give more support,
from within existing resources, to the Division for the Advancement
of Women, acting as secretariat of the Fourth World Conference
on Women, by providing sufficient financial and human resources
and giving wide publicity to the Conference and its preparatory
activities;
26. Appeals to countries that have not done so to compile
their national reports in earnest and to forward them in time
to the secretariat of the Conference;
27. Decides that, in order to support developing countries,
in particular the least developed among them, in participating
fully and effectively in the Conference and its preparatory process,
each least developed country, to the extent that extrabudgetary
funds are available, may be provided from the trust fund established
by the Secretary- General for the preparations for the Conference
with travel expenses and, on an exceptional basis, daily subsistence
allowance for representatives attending the thirty-ninth session
of the Commission, which is the preparatory body for the Conference,
and the Conference itself;
28. Expresses its gratitude and appreciation to the Governments,
organizations and individuals that have already contributed to
the Trust Fund for the Fourth World Conference on Women;
29. Recommends the further development of methods of compilation
and data collection in areas of concern identified by the Commission,
and urges Member States to improve and broaden collection of gender-disaggregated
statistical information and make it available to the relevant
bodies of the United Nations system with a view to preparing,
in all official languages, as a background document for the Fourth
World Conference on Women, an updated edition of The World's Women
1970-1990: Trends and Statistics; 11/
30. Endorses the request by the Commission that the Secretary-General
should include information on the decision- making position of
women in public life and in the fields of science and technology
in the preparation of the priority theme on peace, "Women
in international decision-making", for the Commission at
its thirty-ninth session, in 1995;
31. Requests the Secretary-General to make available for
the Fourth World Conference on Women reports and decisions of
the World Conference on Human Rights, the International Conference
on Population and Development and the World Summit for Social
Development;
32. Emphasizes that the success of the Fourth World Conference
on Women will depend largely on the follow-up to the Conference;
33. Invites United Nations bodies and specialized agencies
and other relevant intergovernmental organizations to consider
making concrete commitments and specifying actions to meet the
global priorities for the advancement of women by the year 2000
which will be reflected in the Platform for Action;
34. Invites Member States similarly to consider specific
action which they could take in their own countries to bring about
change by the year 2000;
35. Reaffirms its decision, taking into account Commission
resolution 37/7, to adopt the modalities for the participation
in and contribution to the Fourth World Conference on Women and
its preparatory process by non-governmental organizations, particularly
those from the developing countries, set out in the annex to General
Assembly resolution 48/108;
36. Requests the Secretary-General to prepare a report
for the Fourth World Conference on Women, to be held at Beijing
in 1995, on the extent to which gender concerns have been included
in the activities of the relevant human rights mechanisms of the
United Nations, such as treaty-monitoring bodies, rapporteurs
and working groups;
37. Requests that the report of the Fourth World Conference
on Women be submitted to the General Assembly at its fiftieth
session for consideration and action;
38. Requests the Secretary-General to prepare for the consideration
of the General Assembly at its fiftieth session a report on follow-up
to the Fourth World Conference on Women, taking into consideration
the recommendations made at the Conference;
39. Also requests the Secretary-General to report to the
General Assembly at its fiftieth session on measures taken to
implement the present resolution.
94th plenary meeting
23 December 1994
1/ Report of the World Conference to Review and Appraise the Achievements
of the United Nations Decade for Women: Equality, Development
and Peace, Nairobi, 15-26 July 1985 (United Nations publication,
Sales No. E.85.IV.10), chap. I, sect. A.
2/ See Official Records of the Economic and Social Council, 1992,
Supplement No. 4 (E/1992/24), chap. I, sect. C.
3/ Ibid., 1993, Supplement No. 7 (E/1993/27), chap. I, sect. C.
4/ Ibid., 1994, Supplement No. 7 (E/1994/27), chap. I, sect. C.
5/ A/49/378.
6/ A/CONF.171/13, chap. I, resolution 1, annex.
7/ A/49/349.
8/ Report of the United Nations Conference on Environment and
Development, Rio de Janeiro, 3-14 June 1992 (A/CONF.151/26/Rev.1
(Vol. I, Vol. I/Corr.1, vol. II, Vol. III and Vol. III/Corr.1))(United
Nations publication, Sales No. E.93.I.8 and corrigenda), vol.
I: Resolutions adopted by the Conference, resolution 1, annex
II.
9/ United Nations publication, Sales No. E.89.IV.2.
10/ A/CONF.157/24 (Part I), chap. III.
11/ United Nations publication, Sales No. E.90.XVII.3.