General Assembly

Distr. GENERAL  

6 July 1998

ORIGINAL:
ENGLISH

                                                        A/53/144
                                                              

General Assembly
Fifty-third session


        REQUEST FOR THE INCLUSION OF AN ITEM IN THE PROVISIONAL AGENDA
                          OF THE FIFTY-THIRD SESSION

         OBSERVER STATUS FOR THE ORGANIZATION FOR ECONOMIC COOPERATION
                    AND DEVELOPMENT IN THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY

         Letter dated 30 June 1998 from the representatives of
         Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic,
         Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary,
         Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, the
         Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, the
         Republic of Korea, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, the United
         Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the
         United States of America to the United Nations addressed
                          to the Secretary-General


     In accordance with rule 13 (e) of the rules of procedure of the
General Assembly, we have the honour to request the inclusion in the
agenda of the fifty-third session of the General Assembly of an
additional item entitled "Observer status for the Organization for
Economic Cooperation and Development in the General Assembly".

     An explanatory memorandum (see annex) in support of the above
request and a draft resolution (see appendix) are attached to the
present letter, in accordance with rule 20 of the rules of procedure
of the General Assembly.

     We further have the honour to request that the present letter be
circulated as a document of the General Assembly.


(Signed)  Mr. John H. CRIGHTON           (Signed)  Mr. Ernst SUCHARIPA        
  Charge' d'affaires a.i.                  Ambassador Extraordinary           
  Deputy Permanent Representative          and Plenipotentiary                
  of Australia to the United Nations       Permanent Representative           
                                           of Austria to the United Nations   

(Signed)  M. Alex REYN                   (Signed)  Mr. Robert R. FOWLER       
  Ambassador Extraordinary                 Ambassador Extraordinary           
  and Plenipotentiary                      and Plenipotentiary                
  Permanent Representative                 Permanent Representative           
  of Belgium to the United Nations         of Canada to the United Nations    

(Signed)  Mr. Ivo þRA'MEK                (Signed)  Mr. Jorgen BþJER           
  Charge' d'affaires a.i.                  Ambassador Extraordinary           
  Deputy Permanent Representative          and Plenipotentiary                
  of the Czech Republic to the             Permanent Representative           
  United Nations                           of Denmark to the United Nations   

(Signed)  Mrs. Marjatta RASI             (Signed)  M. Alain DEJAMMET          
  Ambassador Extraordinary                 Ambassador Extraordinary           
  and Plenipotentiary                      and Plenipotentiary                
  Permanent Representative                 Permanent Representative           
  of Finland to the United Nations         of France to the United Nations    

(Signed)  Mr. Gerhard Walter HENZE       (Signed)  Mr. Vassilis KASKARELIS    
  Charge' d'affaires a.i.                 Charge' d'affaires a.i.             
  Ambassador Extraordinary                 Deputy Permanent Representative    
  and Plenipotentiary                      of Greece to the United Nations    
  Deputy Permanent Representative
  of Germany to the United Nations

(Signed)  Mr. Andre' ERD™S              (Signed)  Mr. Gunnar PA'LSSON         
  Ambassador Extraordinary                 Ambassador Extraordinary           
  and Plenipotentiary                      and Plenipotentiary                
  Permanent Representative                 Permanent Representative           
  of Hungary to the United Nations         of Iceland to the United Nations   

(Signed)  Mr. John H. F. CAMPBELL        (Signed)  M. Francesco Paolo FULCI   
  Ambassador Extraordinary                 Ambassador Extraordinary           
  and Plenipotentiary                      and Plenipotentiary                
  Permanent Representative                 Permanent Representative           
  of Ireland to the United Nations         of Italy to the United Nations     

(Signed)  Mr. Hisashi OWADA              (Signed)  M. Jean-Louis WOLZFELD     
  Ambassador Extraordinary                 Ambassador Extraordinary           
  and Plenipotentiary                      and Plenipotentiary                
  Permanent Representative                 Permanent Representative           
  of Japan to the United Nations           of Luxembourg to the United Nations

(Signed)  Sr. Manuel TELLO               (Signed)  Mr. Jan BERTELING          
  Ambassador Extraordinary                Charge' d'affaires a.i.             
  and Plenipotentiary                      Deputy Permanent Representative    
  Permanent Representative                 of the Kingdom of the Netherlands  
  of Mexico to the United Nations          to the United Nations              

(Signed)  Mr. Michael John POWLES        (Signed)  Mr. Ole Peter KOLBY        
  Ambassador Extraordinary                 Ambassador Extraordinary           
  and Plenipotentiary                      and Plenipotentiary                
  Permanent Representative                 Permanent Representative           
  of New Zealand to the United Nations     of Norway to the United Nations    

(Signed)  Mr. Eugeniusz WYZNER          (Signed)  Mr. Jose' Tadeu SOARES      
  Ambassador Extraordinary                Charge' d'affaires a.i.             
  and Plenipotentiary                      Ambassador                         
  Permanent Representative                 Deputy Permanent Representative    
  of the Republic of Poland                of Portugal to the United Nations  
  to the United Nations

(Signed)  Mr. LEE See-young              (Signed)  Sr. Inocencio F. ARIAS     
  Ambassador Extraordinary                 Ambassador Extraordinary           
  and Plenipotentiary                      and Plenipotentiary                
  Permanent Representative                 Permanent Representative           
  of the Republic of Korea                 of Spain to the United Nations     
  to the United Nations

(Signed)  Mr. Hans DAHLGREN              (Signed)  Mr. Volkan VURAL           
  Ambassador Extraordinary                 Ambassador Extraordinary           
  and Plenipotentiary                      and Plenipotentiary                
  Permanent Representative                 Permanent Representative           
  of Sweden to the United Nations          of Turkey to the United Nations    

(Signed)  Mr. Stephen GOMERSALL          (Signed)  Mr. Bill RICHARDSON        
  Charge' d'affaires a.i.                  Ambassador Extraordinary           
  Deputy Permanent Representative          and Plenipotentiary                
  of the United Kingdom of Great           Permanent Representative           
  Britain and Northern Ireland             of the United States of America    
  to the United Nations                    to the United Nations              


                                     ANNEX

                            Explanatory memorandum


     The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)
is an international intergovernmental organization, based in Paris,
which currently has 29 member countries.  It was established by the
Convention on the Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development in 1960, as a successor to the Organization for European
Economic Cooperation, created in 1948.  It has, as its aim, the
promotion of policies designed to:

     -   Achieve the highest sustainable economic growth and
         employment and a rising standard of living in member
         countries, while maintaining financial stability, and thus to
         contribute to the development of the world economy;

     -   Contribute to sound economic expansion in member as well as
         non-member countries in the process of economic development;

     -   Contribute to the expansion of world trade on a multilateral,
         non-discriminatory basis, in accordance with international
         obligations.

     Within this broad mandate, the Organization functions essentially
as a forum where countries come together to discuss critical issues,
opportunities and policy options, to exchange information and to agree
on coordinated or harmonized policy approaches.  OECD's activities
cover a broad range of areas, including economics; energy;
environment; development cooperation; education, employment, labour
and social affairs; food, agriculture and fisheries; financial, fiscal
and enterprise affairs; public management; science, technology and
industry; statistics; territorial development; trade and transport.

     OECD carries out its work through some 200 specialized committees
and other bodies, including the semi-autonomous Nuclear Energy Agency
and Development Centre.  Work is also carried out through the
International Energy Agency, an autonomous body within the framework
of the Organization.  This work is supported by an international
secretariat composed of about 1,900 staff members.

     The governing body of OECD is the Council, which has authority to
adopt decisions, which are legally binding on members, and
recommendations, which are an expression of the political will of
members to implement certain policies.  Moreover, OECD has provided
the framework for the negotiation of several multilateral agreements
and arrangements, such as the recently concluded "Convention on
combating bribery of foreign officials in international business
transactions", signed also by several non-member countries.

     Membership in OECD remained stable for many years, until 1994,
when Mexico joined the Organization, followed by the Czech Republic,
Hungary, Poland and the Republic of Korea.  Increasingly in recent
years, non-member countries have joined with member countries in a
wide variety of cooperative activities within OECD.  In particular,
through its "Centre for Cooperation with Non Members", the
Organization carries out a broad range of thematic, multi-country
activities and programmes, such as the "Transition Economy Programme",
which focuses on countries in Central and Eastern Europe and the newly
independent States, and the "Emerging Market Economy Forum", in which
non-member participation depends upon the topic of the particular
activity.  It also has specific programmes of cooperation and dialogue
with certain non-member countries, such as the Russian Federation and
China.  Moreover, a number of non-members take part in OECD committees
and working parties either as observers or as full participants.  The
Development Centre, whose principal activities include various form of
cooperation and dialogue, serves as a bridge between OECD member
countries and developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

     In its programme of work for the coming years, OECD will focus on
several major issues, such as sustainable development, development
assistance, ageing populations and electronic commerce, on which an
increased exchange with the United Nations General Assembly would be
mutually beneficial.

     Numerous United Nations agencies and bodies (such as the Food and
Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, United Nations
Development Programme, United Nations Environment Programme, United
Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), United
Nations/Economic Commission for Europe, International Atomic Energy
Agency) participate in OECD activities, either as observers or on the
basis of invitations to attend particular meetings.

     OECD enjoys observer status in the United Nations Economic and
Social Council as well as in UNCTAD, and has working arrangements with
certain other economic bodies and organizations in the United Nations
family, including the Conferences of the Parties and the Working
Groups of several key United Nations Conventions and their preparatory
bodies.  However, the ad hoc arrangements for observing selected
General Assembly sessions, particularly on environment and
development, have become increasingly unworkable.  The Organization
considers it desirable to consolidate links between OECD and the
United Nations, and that observer status in the General Assembly would
be mutually beneficial.

     Consequently, pursuant to a decision taken by its Council, OECD
requests that it be granted observer status in the General Assembly. 
The observer status sought for OECD would cover all bodies within its
framework.



                                   APPENDIX

                 Draft United Nations General Assembly resolution


       Observer status for the Organization for Economic Cooperation and
                      Development in the General Assembly

     The General Assembly,

     Wishing to promote cooperation between the United Nations and the
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development,

     1.  Decides to invite the Organization for Economic Cooperation
and Development to participate in the sessions and the work of the
General Assembly in the capacity of observer;

     2.  Requests the Secretary-General to take the necessary action
to implement the present resolution.


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