Reviewing the Millennium Declaration, revitalizing the organization.

From the opening of the fifty-ninth session of the General Assembly, delegations stressed the need for an international review of the Millennium Declaration and for revitalizing the United Nations as the centrepiece of its sixtieth anniversary, commemorated this year. Speakers from the developing world, particularly African countries, emphasized that progress towards the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger was uneven. Similar sentiments were expressed on the progress of achieving universal primary education, gender equality and combating HIV/AIDS and other diseases like malaria. The number of hungry people in Africa has increased over the past two decades, and the HIV/AIDS pandemic is claiming more than 8,000 lives every day. Sub-Saharan Africa represents the biggest development challenge, and if current trends persist, it may not reach some of the goals until the year 2147. Some delegates said that part of the problem was the limited resources committed by the international community. Others stressed that certain trade policies had effectively denied a large number of developing countries the opportunity to reap the benefits of globalization, and a much needed boost was required to empower nations to participate fully in the global trading system. To address some of those concerns, the General Assembly unanimously adopted a multi-stage work plan on the format and organization of its work from late June to mid-September. Member States agreed to have the 2005 high-level millennium review follow the structure of the earlier 2000 Millennium Summit, that is, three days of plenary debate, each covering the meeting's agenda on the internationally agreed development goals and the global partnership required for their achievement.

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The General Assembly, in plenary meetings that are not covered by its six main Committees, adopted 55 resolutions, among them "Strengthening emergency relief, rehabilitation, reconstruction and prevention in the aftermath of the Indian Ocean tsunami disaster", which was unanimously adopted. By the text, the Assembly invited the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank to bring together members of the international community to address the medium- and long-term rehabilitation and rebuilding needs of the affected areas, from Thailand to the Horn of Africa, in the aftermath of the disaster that left an arc of destruction, killing more than 200,000 persons (see page 38).

Another resolution, "2001-2010: Decade to Roll Back Malaria in Developing Countries, Particularly in Africa", was adopted without a vote. According to the World Health Organization, globally there are some 300 million acute cases of malaria each year, resulting in more than a million deaths, of which around 90 per cent occur in Africa, mostly in children under five years of age.

The other resolutions adopted in the plenary included an endorsement of the graduation of Maldives and Cape Verde from the list of least developed countries, which would lead them to effectively make the transition in the next three years. During that period, both States would also prepare a transition strategy to adjust the phasing-out of their membership on the list of least developed countries.

Acting on the recommendation of the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security), the Assembly adopted 55 resolutions relating mainly to the pace and path of nuclear disarmament, reducing nuclear danger and preventing terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass destruction. New texts tabled in 2004 included "The Hague Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation" and "Prevention of the illicit transfer and unauthorized access to and use of man-portable air defence systems". Chairman Luis Alfonso de Alba of Mexico, in addressing the Committee, said that challenges to international peace and security were global in nature, and it was impossible for countries to succeed in protecting themselves if they worked alone.

Speakers during the session of the Second Committee (Economic and Financial), chaired by Marco Balarezo of Peru, stressed the urgent need to assist many developing countries in bolstering their economies to meet the Millennium Development Goals. Many countries also needed assistance to recover from various environmental hazards, including natural disasters, climate change and desertification or marginalization. Also highlighted was the importance of migrant remittances, the role of communication technologies, and anti-corruption measures in furthering developmental aims.

On the recommendation of the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural), chaired by Valeriy Kuchinsky of Ukraine, the Assembly proceeded to adopt more than 60 resolutions on issues ranging from human rights to improving the situations of vulnerable groups, such as refugees, women and children, and fostering international cooperation for crime prevention and drug control. Country-specific resolutions concerning human rights were the subject of much debate.

Acting on the recommendations of the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization), the Assembly adopted 24 resolutions and 4 decisions--15 by a recorded vote--on a wide range of issues, including decolonization, information, the effects of atomic radiation, international cooperation for the peaceful uses of outer space, the work of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), and Israeli practices in the occupied Palestinian territories. Nine texts focused on the Middle East, including 4 on UNRWA and 5 on the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices. The Committee, chaired by Kyaw Tint Swe of Myanmar, also reviewed United Nations peacekeeping operations and assistance in mine action.

Among the main achievements of the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) during the 2004 session was a 16-part resolution on human resources management, as well as swift action on Secretary-General Kofi Annan's plan to strengthen and unify the United Nations safety and security system. Acting on what Mr. Annan had called one of the most important proposals of his term, the Assembly approved an additional appropriation of some $53.63 million for a strengthened and unified United Nations security system. Chaired by Don MacKay of New Zealand, the Committee established the Department of Safety and Security and introduced 383 new security posts.

In a major new action, the Sixth Committee (Legal) broke a three-year impasse by reaching agreement on the direction to be taken in elaborating an international instrument against reproductive cloning of human beings. Costa Rica, the United States and a majority of other Member States had called for a convention banning all forms of human cloning, including embryonic stem cell research. Altogether, the Committee submitted 17 reports. The resolutions were all adopted without a vote, although a number of them were controversial. One such decision was for the Assembly to consider directly in the plenary any reports submitted by the International Criminal Court under its relationship agreement with the United Nations. It is a process similar to the reporting procedure practised by the International Court of Justice and the United Nations tribunals.

The General Assembly section was coordinated and written by Namrita Talwar.

The fifty-ninth General Assembly opened on 14 September 2004, as it traditionally does, with a moment of silence.