The General Assembly,
 
      Having considered the report of the Secretary-General on cooperation
between the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity,
 
      Recalling the provisions of Chapter VIII of the Charter of the United
Nations on regional arrangements or agencies, which set forth the basic
principles governing their activities and establishing the legal framework for
cooperation with the United Nations in the area of the maintenance of
international peace and security, as well as resolution 49/57 of 9 December
1994, the annex to which contains the Declaration on the Enhancement of
Cooperation between the United Nations and Regional Arrangements or Agencies
in the Maintenance of International Peace and Security,
 
      Recalling also the agreement of 15 November 1965 on cooperation between
the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity as updated and signed
on 9 October 1990 by the Secretaries-General of the two organizations,
 
      Recalling further its resolutions on the enhancement of cooperation
between the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity, in
particular resolutions 43/12 of 25 October 1988, 43/27 of 18 November 1988,
44/17 of 1 November 1989, 45/13 of 7 November 1990, 46/20 of 26 November 1991,
47/148 of 18 December 1992, 48/25 of 29 November 1993, 49/64 of 15 December
1994 and 50/158 of 21 December 1995,
 
      Recalling that, in its resolutions 46/20, 47/148 and 48/25, it, inter
alia, urged the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the relevant
agencies of the United Nations system to extend their support for the
establishment of the African Economic Community,
 
      Recalling also its resolution 48/214 of 23 December 1993 on the
implementation of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa
in the 1990s,
 
      Taking note of the resolutions, decisions and declarations adopted by
the Council of Ministers of the Organization of African Unity at its
sixty-fourth ordinary session, held at Yaounde from 1 to 5 July 1996, and by
the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the Organization of African
Unity at its thirty- second ordinary session, held at Yaounde from 8 to 10
July 1996,
 
      Considering the important statement made by the Chairman of the Assembly
of Heads of State and Government of the Organization of African Unity before
the General Assembly on 24 October 1996,
 
      Mindful of the need for continued and closer cooperation between the
United Nations and its specialized agencies and the Organization of African
Unity, in particular in the political, economic, social, technical, cultural
and administrative fields,
 
      Noting that the Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management and
Resolution of the Organization of African Unity is developing its capacity in
preventive diplomacy,
 
      Also noting the efforts of the Organization of African Unity, and the
support and assistance of the United Nations, to promote the peaceful
settlement of disputes and conflicts in Africa and the harmonious continuation
of the process of democratization,
 
      Deeply concerned that, despite the policies of reform being implemented
by most African countries, their economic situation remains critical and
African recovery and development continue to be severely hindered by the
persistence of lower-level commodity prices, the heavy debt burden and the
paucity of funding possibilities,
 
      Aware of the efforts being made by the Organization of African Unity and
its States members in the area of economic integration and of the need to
accelerate the process of implementation of the African Economic Community,
 
      Deeply concerned about the gravity of the situation of refugees and
displaced persons in Africa and the urgent need for increased international
assistance to help refugees and, subsequently, African countries of asylum,
 
      Acknowledging the assistance already rendered by the international
community, in particular to refugees, displaced persons and African countries
of asylum,
 
      Recognizing the importance of developing and maintaining a culture of
peace, tolerance and harmonious relationships in order to contribute to the
prevention of conflicts and wars in Africa,
 
      Taking note of the report of the Ad Hoc Committee of the Whole of the
General Assembly for the Mid-term Review of the Implementation of the United
Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s,
 
      1.    Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General on cooperation
between the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity and of his
efforts to strengthen that cooperation and to implement the relevant
resolutions;
 
      2.    Notes with appreciation the continued and increasing participation
of the Organization of African Unity in the work of the United Nations and the
specialized agencies and its constructive contribution to that work;
 
      3.    Calls upon the United Nations organs, in particular the Security
Council and the Economic and Social Council, to continue to involve the
Organization of African Unity closely in all their activities concerning
Africa;
 
      4.    Welcomes the fact that both the United Nations and the
Organization of African Unity have agreed to strengthen and broaden their
cooperation in measures to prevent and resolve conflicts in Africa, and in
this regard invites the United Nations to provide the Organization of African
Unity with the necessary support for the consolidation and promotion of a
culture of peace, tolerance and harmonious relationships in Africa;
 
      5.    Calls upon the United Nations to coordinate its efforts and to
cooperate with the Organization of African Unity in the context of the pacific
settlement of disputes and the maintenance of international peace and security
in Africa, as provided for under Chapter VIII of the Charter of the United
Nations; 
 
      6.    Commends the efforts of the Organization of African Unity to
strengthen its capacity in the field of conflict resolution and to
operationalize its Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management and
Resolution in Africa;
 
      7.    Also commends the United Nations and the Organization of African
Unity for their ongoing cooperative activities in the resolution of conflicts
in Africa, and stresses the need to enhance and strengthen the existing
pattern of exchange of information and consultations, especially in the areas
of preventive diplomacy, peacemaking and peacekeeping operations;
 
      8.    Invites the United Nations to assist the Organization of African
Unity in strengthening its institutional and operational capacity in the
prevention, management and resolution of conflicts in Africa, in particular in
the following areas:
 
      (a)   Establishment of an early-warning system;
 
      (b)   Technical assistance and training of personnel, including a staff
exchange programme;
 
      (c)   Exchange and coordination of information between their respective
early-warning systems;
 
      (d)   Logistical support;
 
      (e)   Mobilization of financial support;
 
      9.    Urges the United Nations to enhance its cooperation with, and
facilitate the participation of, the Organization of African Unity in its
preventive diplomacy, peacemaking and peacekeeping operations and in joint
fact-finding missions in Africa, by providing technical assistance and
secondments and assisting in the mobilization of financial and logistical
support; 
 
      10.   Also urges the United Nations to encourage donor countries, in
consultation with the Organization of African Unity, to provide adequate
funding and training for African countries in their efforts to enhance their
peacekeeping capabilities, with a view to enabling those countries to
participate actively in peacekeeping operations within the framework of the
United Nations;
 
      11.   Notes with appreciation the assistance provided by the United
Nations and its agencies to African countries in the context of the
democratization process;
 
      12.   Urges the United Nations to continue to support the Organization
of African Unity in its efforts to manage a peaceful democratic transition in
Africa, in particular in the areas of education for democracy, election
observation, human rights and freedom, including technical support to the
African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights;
 
      13.   Urges all Member States and regional and international
organizations, in particular those of the United Nations system, as well as
non-governmental organizations, to provide the necessary and appropriate
economic, financial and technical assistance to refugees and displaced
persons, as well as to the African countries of asylum, taking into account
recent disquieting developments in this respect;
 
      14.   Commends the continued efforts of the Organization of African
Unity to promote multilateral cooperation and economic integration among
African States, and requests the United Nations agencies to continue to
support those efforts;
 
      15.   Stresses that the economic, technical and development assistance
provided to Africa by the organizations of the United Nations system must
continue, and emphasizes the current need for those organizations to accord
priority to Africa in this field;
 
      16.   Urges the Secretary-General, Member States, regional and
international organizations, in particular those of the United Nations system,
and non-governmental organizations to extend their support to the operations
of the African Economic Community and to assist in economic integration and
cooperation in Africa, in particular the strengthening of the regional
economic communities, the preparation of the protocols to the Treaty
Establishing the African Economic Community, its popularization and the
strengthening of its institutional support;
 
      17.   Requests the agencies of the United Nations system working in
Africa to include in their programmes at the national and regional levels
activities that will enhance regional cooperation in their respective areas
and to facilitate the realization of the objectives of the Treaty Establishing
the African Economic Community;
 
      18.   Calls upon the United Nations agencies to intensify the
coordination of their regional programmes in Africa in order to create
interlinkages among them and to ensure the harmonization of their programmes
with those of the African regional and subregional economic organizations;
 
      19.   Emphasizes the urgency of the need to adopt appropriate measures
to ensure the effective implementation of the United Nations New Agenda for
the Development of Africa in the 1990s, in particular regarding (a) economic
reforms, including the effective mobilization and efficient utilization of
domestic resources, (b) promotion of the private sector and foreign direct
investment, (c) intensification of the democratic process and the
strengthening of civil society, (d) environment and development, (e) resource
flows, (f) solution of Africa's debt problem, (g) trade facilitation and
market access, (h) diversification of African economies, (i) improvement of
physical and institutional infrastructure and social and human resource
development and (j) women in development;
 
      20.   Urges all States and international subregional and regional
organizations actively to implement the recommendations of the Ad Hoc
Committee of the Whole of the General Assembly for the Mid-term Review of the
United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s, as
adopted by the General Assembly at its fifty-first session;
 
      21.   Invites the Secretary-General to associate the Organization of
African Unity closely with the follow-up and monitoring of the implementation
of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s,
including the conduct of the final review of its implementation in the year
2002;
 
      22.   Invites the Secretary-General of the United Nations to work
closely with the Secretary-General of the Organization of African Unity on the
implementation of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa
in the 1990s, and requests that it be given prominence at the annual meeting
of the two organizations;
 
      23.   Recalls its resolution 48/214, in paragraph 10 of which it invited
the Secretary-General to follow up and promote the responses of the United
Nations system and the international community to the development concerns of
Africa, as expressed in the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of
Africa in the 1990s;
 
      24.   Takes note with appreciation of the recommendations of the meeting
between the secretariats of the Organization of African Unity and the United
Nations held at Addis Ababa from 6 to 9 November 1995, and requests the
convening of a follow-up meeting in 1997, at Addis Ababa, to review and
evaluate the progress made in the implementation of the recommendations agreed
at the 1995 meeting and to adopt new and effective joint action;
 
      25.   Calls upon the relevant organs of the United Nations system to
ensure the effective, fair and equitable representation of Africa at senior
and policy levels at their respective headquarters and in their regional field
operations;
 
      26.   Requests the relevant organs of the United Nations system to
continue to assist the Organization of African Unity in strengthening its
capacity for information gathering, analysis and dissemination through the
training of personnel and the mobilization of technical and financial
assistance;
 
      27.   Requests the Secretary-General to strengthen and improve
follow-up, monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of the United
Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa;
 
      28.   Also requests the Secretary-General to report to the General
Assembly at its fifty-second session on the implementation of the present
resolution and on the development of cooperation between the Organization of
African Unity and the organizations of the United Nations system.