General Assembly: Meetings Coverage

After calling a do-over vote for technical reasons, the Third Committee today approved the wording of a decision that would have the General Assembly welcome the outcome document of the Durban Review Conference and endorse its provisions, while deciding to implement the Review’s outcome as part of the wider implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action.

Profoundly concerned that the situation of children in many parts of the world remained critical, the Third Committee approved a draft resolution that explicitly recognized the right of young people to be heard in all matters affecting them today, on the 20th anniversary of the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

While early and concrete successes underlined the importance of the young Peacebuilding Commission and Peacebuilding Fund ‑‑ established at the General Assembly’s 2005 World Summit to help countries emerging from conflict hold on to fragile reconstruction gains ‑‑ broader support and resources were needed, notably from the private sector, to enable those bodies to realize their potential, Assembly delegates said today as they considered progress achieved thus far.

The General Assembly, gravely concerned by the findings of the Secretary-General’s Board of Inquiry and the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza conflict, would stress the need for “serious follow-up” by all parties of the recommendations addressed to them, by one of 11 draft texts approved today by the Fourth Committee as it concluded its work for the session.

Raising grave concerns over the dangers posed to political and socio-economic stability by the illegal drug trade, the Third Committee today approved, by consensus, a draft resolution paving the way for the General Assembly to adopt a declaration and plan of action on international cooperation towards a strategy to counter the world drug problem, as adopted at the high-level segment of the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs in March.

The Second Committee (Economic and Financial) approved by consensus today a draft resolution on South-South cooperation for development and an oral decision on postponement of the fourth High-level Dialogue on Financing for Development.

Only 17 days ahead of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon today refuted reports that the talks on reducing heat-trapping greenhouse gas emissions would fall short of expectations, and called on Member States to forge the political determination needed to broker a comprehensive deal that would create the climate security all nations desired.

The Second Committee approved three draft resolutions today, including a text by which the General Assembly would reiterate its deep concern over the destruction by the Israeli Air Force of oil storage tanks near Lebanon’s El-Jiyeh electric power plant due to the adverse implications for sustainable development in that country.

Addressing several issues today, among them a number of reports under its human resources management agenda item, members of the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) heard from staff representatives on the new staff regulations and rules proposed for implementing the new contractual arrangements, and in their debate stressed the importance of going forward with the implementation of continuing contracts.