The General Assembly,
 
      Recalling its resolutions 49/128 of 19 December 1994 and 50/124 of 20
December 1995,
 
      Recalling also Economic and Social Council resolution 1996/2 of 17 July
1996 on the follow-up to the International Conference on Population and
Development,
 
      Acknowledging fully the integrated approach taken during the
International Conference on Population and Development, which recognizes the
interrelationship between population, sustained economic growth and
sustainable development,
 
      Having considered the report of the Secretary-General on the
implementation of resolution 50/124,
 
      1.    Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General on the
implementation of resolution 50/124;
 
      2.    Notes the action taken so far by Governments and the international
community to implement the Programme of Action of the International Conference
on Population and Development, and encourages them to strengthen their efforts
in that regard;
 
      3.    Reiterates that Governments should continue to commit themselves
at the highest political level to achieving goals and objectives and to take a
lead role in coordinating the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the
follow-up actions at the national level;
 
      4.    Urges all countries to consider, among other things, their current
spending priorities, with a view to making additional contributions in line
with national priorities for the implementation of the Programme of Action,
taking into account the provisions of chapters XIII and XIV thereof and the
economic constraints faced by developing countries, in particular the least
developed among them;
 
      5.    Emphasizes that international cooperation in the field of
population and development is essential for the implementation of the
recommendations adopted at the Conference and, in this context, calls upon the
international community to continue to provide, both bilaterally and
multilaterally, adequate and substantial support and assistance for population
and development activities, including through the United Nations Population
Fund, other organs and organizations of the United Nations system and the
specialized agencies that will be involved in the implementation, at all
levels, of the Programme of Action;
 
      6.    Reiterates the importance of South-South cooperation for the
successful implementation of the Programme of Action and invites all
Governments, relevant organizations of the United Nations system, as well as
the private sector and non- governmental organizations, to continue to support
those activities in South-South cooperation being undertaken by the developing
countries;
 
      7.    Recognizes the efforts of Partners in Population and Development
in strengthening the capacities of developing countries in South-South
cooperation;
 
      8.    Emphasizes the importance of the identification and allocation of
financial resources by all members of the international community, including
regional financial institutions, to enable them to fulfil their commitments
with regard to the implementation of the Programme of Action;
 
      9.    Requests the Economic and Social Council to continue to give
guidance on matters concerning harmonization, cooperation and coordination
within the United Nations system regarding the implementation of the Programme
of Action;
 
      10.   Reiterates that the Commission on Population and Development, as a
functional commission assisting the Economic and Social Council, has the
primary responsibility for monitoring, reviewing and assessing the
implementation of the Programme of Action, and emphasizes the need for the
Commission to continue its work in broadening its focus so as to fully reflect
the Programme of Action;
 
      11.   Invites the Secretary-General to ensure that the Task Force on
Basic Social Services for All of the Administrative Committee on Coordination
informs the Commission and the Economic and Social Council on the progress of
its work, with an emphasis on the improvement of the impact of programme
delivery for the purpose of system-wide coordination, and stresses the need
for close cooperation and timely reporting by all the working groups of the
Task Force;
 
      12.   Emphasizes the importance of the ongoing efforts of the Task Force
to develop, on an urgent basis, appropriate indicators as reliable means for
monitoring the progress of the implementation of the Programme of Action, with
special attention to the reproductive health needs of individual countries,
taking into account relevant research and development work as well as existing
data collection systems in developing countries, and to make this information
available as it is developed to the Commission on Population and Development,
the Economic and Social Council and the General Assembly at its fifty-second
session; 
 
      13.   Endorses the continuation of coordination and collaboration
between the Task Force and the appropriate United Nations entities responsible
for the development of statistics;
 
      14.   Reaffirms that the follow-up to the Conference, at all levels,
should take fully into account that population, health, education, poverty,
patterns of production and consumption, empowerment of women and the
environment are closely interconnected and should be considered through an
integrated approach;
 
      15.   Recommends that the special session for the overall review and
appraisal of the implementation of Agenda 21, which will be convened from 23
to 27 June 1997, should give due attention to the issue of population in the
context of sustainable development;
 
      16.   Requests the Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly
at its fifty-second session on the implementation of the present resolution;
 
      17.   Decides to include in the agenda of its fifty-second session, the
sub-item entitled "Population and development".