Fifty-ninth General Assembly

Second Committee

1^st Meeting (AM)

Second Committee Approves Work Plan for Fifty-Ninth General Assembly Session

The Second Committee (Economic and Financial) this morning approved its programme of work, as orally amended, for the fifty-ninth General Assembly session.

In introductory remarks, Committee Chairman Marco Balarezo (Peru) welcomed the Committee’s new Bureau, which was elected on 10 June.  The Vice-Chairpersons of the Bureau members are Antonio Bernardini (Italy), Majdi Ramadan (Lebanon) and Ewa Anzorge (Poland).  Azanaw Tadesse Abreha (Ethiopia) will serve as Rapporteur.

Mr. Balarezo also outlined several items that the Assembly had allocated to the Committee’s programme of work (document A/C.2/59/L.1).  Those included information and communication technologies for development; global partnerships (to be considered every other year); and strengthening of the coordination of humanitarian and disaster relief assistance, including special economic assistance -- either to individual countries or regions (for annual consideration), or through volunteer “White Helmets” (to be considered every three years).

According to the programme of work, the Committee would also focus on macroeconomic policy questions, including those directed at the international financial system, debt, international trade and commodities; follow-up to and implementation of the outcome of the International Conference on Financing for Development; implementation of the outcome of the United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II) and of the twenty-fifth special session of the General Assembly; sustainable development; and globalization and interdependence.

In addition, the Committee would consider operational activities for development; groups of countries in special situations, including least developed and landlocked developing countries; permanent sovereignty of the Palestinian people in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem, and of the Arab population in the occupied Syrian Golan over their natural resources; eradication of poverty and other development issues; and training and research.

Closing the meeting, Mr. Balarezo noted that several events would be held throughout the session to increase transparency and cooperation in Committee initiatives.  Among others, event topics would include development and conflict; the social dimension of globalization; trade and development; United Nations development cooperation; and the Millennium Project.

The Second Committee will meet again at 10 a.m. on Monday, 4 October, to begin its general debate.

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