UNITED NATIONS 1391st meeting ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL Monday, 26 July 1965 Thirty-ninth session at' 3.20 p.m. OFFICIAL RECORDS PALAIS DES NATIONS, GENEVA CONTENTS 2. Mr. BOUATTOURA (Algeria) aaid that, after con.. Page sultation with other delegations, the sponsors wished Agenda item 24: to :make two amendments to the draft. The third pre­ Report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations ambular paragraph should be altered to read " Noting Institute for Training aud Research (concluded) • • • • 209 with interest the progress made so far in establishing Agenda item 30: the Institute ", and in operative paragraph 4, the words Report of the Executive Board of the United Nations Child- " to provide the Economic and Social Council at the ren's Fund . • . • • , . • • • . • 209 resumed thirty-ninth session with any additional informa­ Agenda item 25: tion and " should be inserted after " Secretary-General ". Report of the Commission on Human Rights 3. Mr. MORA BOWEN (Ecuador) said that, in order Report of the Social Committee . • • • . • 216 to make it clear which governments were referred to in Joint draft resolution . • . • . • . • . • • • . 216 operative paragraph 3, the opening words of the paragraph should be amended to read " Renews its appeal to the Governments of State.s Members of the United Nations, President: Mr. A. MATSUI (Japan) of the specialized agencies and of the International Atomic Energy Agency and to private institutions ..• ". That Present: amendment was acceptable to all the sponsors. Representatives of the following States, members of 4. Mr. VIAUD (France), referring to operative para­ the Council: Algeria, Argentina, Austria, Canada, Chile, graph 3, said that the Institute would need various kinds Czechoslovakia, Ecuador, France, Gabon, Iraq, Japan, of support, and government aid might well take the Luxembourg, Pakistan, Peru, Romania, Union of Soviet form of docUm.entation, the sending of experts, and Socialist Republics, United Kingdom of Great Britain and measures to facilitate study by fellowship holders sent Northern Ireland, Ubited States of America. to Member States. If the sponsors could give an assurance Representatives of the following States, additional th5tt such contributions would be acceptable, and not members of the sessional com"' ittees: Denmark, Ghana, only financial support in the narrow sense, his delegation India, Iran, Mexico, United Arab Republic. would be able to vote in favour of the joint draft resolu:.. Observers for the following Member States: Australia, tion, despite the reservations which had prevented France Bulgaria, Italy, Norway, Zambia. from supporting General Assembly resolutions 1727 (XVII) and 1934 (XVIII). Observer for the following non-m~mber State: Federal Republic of Germany. 5. Mr. BOUATIOURA (Algeria) said that in his Representatives of the following specialized agencies: delegation's understanding the financial support referred International Labour Organisation, Food and Agricul­ to in operative paragraph 3 was meant in the broadest ture Organization of the United Nations, United Nations possible sense; the provision of documentation or of Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Inter­ experts would be indirect financial support. · national Bank for Reconstruction and Development, 6. Mr. ASTAFYEV (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) International Monetary Fund, World Health Organiza­ asked for a separate vote on operative paragraph 3. tion. Operative paragraph 3 was adopted by 15 votes to The representative of the International Atomic Energy none with 2 abstentions. Agency. The joint draft resolution as a whole and as amended In the absence of the President, Mr. Hajek (Czecho· was adopted unanimously. slovakia), Second Vice-President, took the Chair. AGENDA ITEM 24 AGENDA ITEM 30 Report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Report of the Executive Boar4 of the United Nation~ Institute for Training and Research (E/4049; EJL.1086) Chlldren's Fund (E/4083 and Add.l; E/L.1090) (concluded) 7. Mrs. HARMAN (Chairman, Executive Board of the 1. The PRESIDENT invited the Council to consider United Nations· Children'a Fund), introducing the report the joint draft resolution submitted by the delegations of the Board (E/4083 and Add.l), said that in the past of Algeria, Ecuador and Iraq (E/L.l086). year UNICEF had experienced a great loss in the death 209 E/SR.1391 "''···---.... ----·-~~~-------··----.............. ~----------- 210 Economic and Social Council - Thirty-ninth session of Mr. Maurice Pate, who had been Director of the Fund had now been reached in which it would be unwise to since its inception and had been largely responsible for reduce the operating fund further-below the $25 million giving UNICEF a place in the United Nations which which was regarded as the minimum safe level. In that was perhaps outstanding for the unanimity of approval period, annual expenditure had been in the vicinity it had evoked and the impact it had made throughout of $40 million, while income had been approximately the developing world. UNICEF welcomed the appoint~ $33 million. The hope that income would be increased ment of Mr. Henry Labouisse as the new Executive Direc­ to sustain an annual expenditure of $40 million had tor of the Board, and was confident that with him "t unfortunately not been realized, and the Board was the helm UNICEF would continue to strengthen and faced by a most serious financial situation. Of course, expand its activities as it sought ways of assisting govern­ the major burden of responsibility rested with govern­ ments to prepare the young generation to cope with ments, and it should be borne in mind that UNICEF's the challenges of a constantly evolving society. She investment was matched by the requesting governments, wished, too, to express the deep sorrow of the Board often to the extent of more than two to two-and-a-half at the death of Dr. Rajchman, who had originally times the initial investment; nevertheless, UNICEF suggested the establishment of UNICEF and had provided supplies and equipment, its aid for training programmes brilliant leadership as its first Executive Board Chairman. and the over-all advice and stimulation it was able to give could not yet be provided by the governments requesting 8. On the occasion of the twentieth anniversary of the assistance. Moreover, there was no alternative source United Nations, there had been considerable heart~ of aid directed exclusively towards benefiting children searching concerning the future course of the Organiza­ and concerned with their over-all needs. While children tion's work. There had perhaps understandably been could not be viewed as an object of assistance apart a tendency to dwell on the political problems which from the family community, and must be regarded as challenged the statesmen of the world and to forget an integral part of the population, their vulnerability that much of the United Nations budget and personnel entitled them to special and urgent consideration. was devoted to the slow and laborious work of improving Children's sel'vices should be an obvious area of major the day-to-day lot of millions of people, and that ultimate government responsibility, to ensure progress and stabil­ peace would be achieved only under conditions of human ity for the country as a whole. Although other agencies, satisfaction: which implied not merely the absence of both bilateral and multilateral, undertook important hostilities but the positive certainty that a greater measure programmes which indirectly assisted children, they were of happiness was within the reach of everyone. not concerned solely with child welfare. It seemed 9. Appalling conditions of deprivation, poverty, disease incredible that at a time when vast sums were being and illiteracy still prevailed, and progress must inevitably expended on the exploration of space and the develop­ be slow, especially when. the world population was ment of weapons of destruction, UNICEF had a budget increasing at the fantastic rate of 2 per cent to 2.8 per of only $35 million to cope with the agonizing needs cent per year. Surely responsibility began with the child: of 800 million children, victims of a brutal struggle it was imperative to ensure not only thnt children should for survival. The financial position of UNICEF must achieve adulthood healthy in body ar 1 mind, but also become a central and major concern of the immediate that they should be capable of taking their place in a future. In 1964 121 governments. had contributed to developing technological society. Although a general UNICEF and there were no realistic grounds for anti­ improvement of conditions and the raising of economic cipating substantial increases in governme11t contribu­ standards of living would have a profound impact on. tions for the time being; the international c.ommnnity children's prospects, special services and provisions must think boldly and imaginatively if UNICEF was to must be made for children at all times. UNICEF con­ be enabled to meet the challenges raining down upon it. cerned itself specifically with those particular needs: thus, when the Declaration of the Rights of the Child 11. It had been suggested that a small tax imposed on had been adopted in 1959 [General Assembly resolution · the issue of passports in all countries should go into 1386 (XIV)], it had been pointed out that the aid provided a fund to benefit the children of the world; that 1 per through UNICEF constituted a practical way of interna­ cent of the receipts from the sale of all stamps in the tional co-operation to help countries carry out the aims world should go into . such a fund; or that a special proclaimed in the Declaration. It way self-evident that stamp should be attached to all international agreements neglect of the child meant the certain accumulation of and undertakings at the time of signature. There were difficult problems for the future, while concern for the many other possibiljties, but unless the problem was child provided the certainty of a healthy, adjusted dis­ tackled with broad vision, efforts to move ahead at the ciplined labour force in a dynamic society.