General Assembly

Distr. GENERAL  

17 December 1985

ORIGINAL:
ENGLISH

                                                       A/RES/40/171
                                                       17 December 1985
                                                       119th plenary meeting
 
               International Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Decade
 
     The General Assembly,
 
     Recalling its resolution 32/158 of 19 December 1977, in which it approved
the Mar del Plata Action Plan adopted by the United Nations Water Conference,
 
     Recalling also its resolution 35/18 of 10 November 1980, by which it
proclaimed the period 1981-1990 as the International Drinking Water Supply and
Sanitation Decade,
 
     Recalling further Economic and Social Council resolution 1983/57 of
28 July 1983, in which the Council urged Governments of developing countries
to adopt national targets for drinking water supply and sanitation services,
commensurate with resource availability, absorptive capacity and ability, and
to formulate action plans and programmes for reaching the targets set,
 
     Mindful of the fact that significant progress towards meeting the
objectives of the Decade by 1990 will require a much greater sense of urgency
and priority on the part of Governments and the continued support of the
international community,
 
     1.   Welcomes the recommendations and conclusions contained in the report
of the Secretary-General on progress in the attainment of the goals of the
International Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Decade;
 
     2.   Encourages Governments to seek to implement the recommendations for
action contained in the report, in particular:
 
     (a)  To strengthen national capabilities for policy formulation and for
the preparation, implementation and monitoring of water supply and sanitation
programmes and projects;
 
     (b)  To prepare and implement national strategies to meet and develop
both present and longer-term needs for skilled human resources;
 
     (c)  To intensify efforts to improve the mobilization and utilization of
national financial resources;
 
     (d)  To increase the attention devoted to health education and community
participation and to the need for close operational linkages between health
and water supply agencies;
 
     (e)  To formulate and implement strategies that will enhance the
participation of women in the planning, operation and assessment of water and
sanitation programmes and projects;
 
     3.   Calls upon organs, organizations and bodies of the United Nations
system, as well as other multilateral, bilateral and non-governmental
organizations, to continue and, where possible, increase their assistance to
Governments in support of national plans and programmes for the Decade as well
as in support of efforts to implement the above-mentioned recommendations for
action;
 
     4.   Urges the international community to take note of the need to
enhance co-ordination of technical co-operation activities at the global and
national levels and, in this regard, supports the role of the resident
representatives of the United Nations Development Programme as focal points
for the Decade at the country level;
 
     5.   Takes note of the need to focus efforts and resources on the least
developed countries where requirements for drinking water and sanitation are
the greatest, and of the need to give special consideration to the countries
of sub-Saharan Africa;
 
     6.   Requests the Secretary-General, at the end of the Decade, in 1990,
to prepare a report on the progress achieved during the Decade, providing a
detailed comparative analysis based as much as possible on quantitative data,
as well as recommendations for future and follow-up action that may be
required, for submission to the General Assembly at its forty-fifth session.