Cooperation between the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity, G.A. res. 48/25, 48 U.N. GAOR Supp. (No. 49) at 27, U.N. Doc. A/48/49 (1993).


The General Assembly,

Having considered the report of the Secretary-General on cooperation between the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity,

Recalling the agreement of 15 November 1965 on cooperation between the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity as updated and signed on 9 October 1990 by the Secretaries-General of the two organizations,

Recalling also its resolutions on the enhancement of cooperation between the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity, in particular resolutions 43/12 of 25 October 1988, 43/27 of 18 November 1988, 44/17 of 1 November 1989, 45/13 of 7 November 1990, 46/20 of 26 November 1991 and 47/148 of 18 December 1992,

Recalling further that in its resolutions 46/20 and 47/148 it, inter alia, urged the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the relevant agencies of the United Nations system to extend their support for the establishment of an African economic community,

Taking note of the resolutions, decisions and declarations on democratization, conflict resolution and economic integration adopted by the Council of Ministers of the Organization of African Unity at its fifty-eighth

Considering the important statement made by the representative of the current Chairman of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the Organization of African Unity before the General Assembly on 28 September 1993,

Mindful of the need for continued and closer cooperation between the United Nations and the specialized agencies and the Organization of African Unity, in particular in the political, economic, social, technical, cultural and administrative fields,

Noting the establishment by the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the Organization of African Unity in June 1993 of a mechanism for the prevention, management and resolution of conflicts in Africa,

Also noting the efforts of the Organization of African Unity, and the support and assistance of the United Nations, to promote the peaceful settlement of disputes and conflicts in Africa and the harmonious continuation of the process of democratization,

Deeply concerned that, despite the policies of reform being implemented by most African countries, their economic situation remains critical and African recovery and development continue to be severely hindered by the persistence of lower level commodity prices, the heavy debt burden and the paucity of funding possibilities, as well as by the effects of the devastating drought affecting certain regions of the continent,

Aware of the efforts under way by the Organization of African Unity and its member States in the area of economic integration and, in particular, of the adoption by the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of that organization on 3 June 1991 at Abuja of the Treaty establishing the African Economic Community,

Deeply concerned also about the gravity of the situation of refugees and displaced persons in Africa and the urgent need for increased international assistance to help refugees and, subsequently, African countries of asylum,

Acknowledging the assistance already rendered by the international community, particularly to refugees, displaced persons and African countries of asylum,

Taking note of the report of the Secretary-General on the meeting between the representatives of the secretariats of the United Nations system and the General Secretariat of the Organization of African Unity, held at United Nations Headquarters from 8 to 10 September 1993,

1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General on cooperation between the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity and of his efforts to strengthen that cooperation and to implement the relevant resolutions;

2. Takes note also of the conclusions contained in the report of the Secretary-General on the meeting between the representatives of the secretariats of the United Nations system and the General Secretariat of the Organization of African Unity, held at United Nations Headquarters from 8 to 10 September 1993;

3. Notes with appreciation the increasing and continued participation of the Organization of African Unity in the work of the United Nations and the specialized agencies and its constructive contribution to that work;

4. Calls upon the United Nations organs, in particular the Security Council and the Economic and Social Council, to continue to involve the Organization of African Unity closely in all their activities concerning Africa;

5. Commends the establishment by the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the Organization of African Unity in June 1993 of a mechanism for the prevention, management and resolution of conflicts in Africa;

6. Commends the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity for their ongoing cooperative activities in the resolution of conflicts in Africa, and stresses the need to enhance and strengthen the existing pattern of exchange of information and consultations, especially in the area of monitoring and early warning of conflict situations;

7. Calls upon the United Nations to coordinate its efforts and to cooperate with the Organization of African Unity in the context of the pacific settlement of disputes and the maintenance of international peace and security in Africa, as provided for under Chapter VIII of the Charter of the United Nations;

8. Notes with appreciation the assistance provided by the United Nations and its agencies to African countries in the context of the democratization process;

9. Urges the United Nations and its Member States to continue to provide assistance, as appropriate, to the Organization of African Unity, should the latter decide to launch a peace-keeping operation;

10. Urges the United Nations to continue to support the Organization of African Unity in its efforts to promote the peaceful settlement of disputes and conflicts and peacefully to manage change in Africa;

11. Urges all Member States and regional and international organizations, in particular those of the United Nations system, as well as non-governmental organizations, to provide the necessary and appropriate economic, financial and technical assistance to refugees and displaced persons, as well as to African countries of asylum, taking into account recent disquieting developments in this respect;

12. Commends the continued efforts of the Organization of African Unity to promote multilateral cooperation and economic integration among African States, and requests United Nations agencies to continue to support those efforts;

13. Stresses that the economic, technical and development assistance provided to Africa by the organizations of the United Nations system must continue, and emphasizes the current need for those organizations to accord priority to Africa in this field;

14. Urges the Secretary-General and Member States, regional and international organizations, non-governmental organizations and relevant agencies of the United Nations system to extend their support to the establishment of the African Economic Community and to assist in economic integration and cooperation;

15. Requests the Secretary-General to continue to support the efforts of the Secretary-General of the Organization of African Unity with a view to holding sectoral meetings on the priority areas of cooperation, particularly the establishment of the African Economic Community and the strengthening of the African regional and subregional organizations;

16. Requests the agencies of the United Nations system working in Africa to include in their programme at the national and regional levels the activities which will enhance regional cooperation in their respective areas and to facilitate the realization of the objectives of the Treaty establishing the African Economic Community;

17. Calls upon United Nations agencies to make an effort to coordinate their regional programmes in Africa in order to create inter-linkages among them and to ensure harmonization of their programmes with those of the African regional and subregional economic organizations;

18. Emphasizes the urgency of the need to adopt appropriate measures to ensure the implementation of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s, in particular in the areas of resource flows, debt relief and diversification of African economies;

19. Calls upon the Secretary-General to work in close coordination and cooperation with the Secretary-General of the Organization of African Unity,

20. Endorses the agreement reached between the organizations of the United Nations system and the Organization of African Unity on the convening of a meeting between the secretariats of those organizations, to be held in 1994 at Addis Ababa, to review and evaluate the progress made in implementing the proposals and recommendations agreed upon in September 1993 on cooperation between them in 1993-1994 and to adopt new and effective joint action;

21. Calls upon the relevant organs of the United Nations to ensure the effective, fair and equitable representation of Africa at senior and policy levels at their respective headquarters and in their regional field operations;

22. Requests the Secretary-General to continue to ensure that the United Nations information network continues to disseminate information so as to increase public awareness of the situation prevailing in southern Africa, as well as of the social and economic problems and needs of African States and of their regional and subregional institutions;

23. Also requests the Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly at its forty-ninth session on the implementation of the present resolution and on the development of cooperation between the Organization of African Unity and organizations of the United Nations system.

65th plenary meeting
29 November 199
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